Genre: Slow Burn Romance / Teen Drama
Setting: A middle-class estate in Lagos.
CHAPTER ONE: 6PM AT THE GATE
If you lived in Peaceville Estate long enough, you would understand one thing:
Nothing ever changed.
The same security man sleeping at the gate.
The same children playing football and breaking someone's flower pot.
The same aunties discussing other people's lives like it was national news.
And every evening by exactly 6PM, there was one more thing that never changed.
A boy's voice.
"Amara! Come out joor!"
It had been like that since primary school.
Amara used to run out barefoot, hair rough, face shining with sweat. Back then, life was simple. Tobi was just Tobi. Her partner in everything. Her neighbour. Her best friend.
But people grow up.
And sometimes… they grow apart.
Amara stood in front of her mirror, adjusting her school uniform.
SS3 did not look like how she imagined it when she was younger. She thought she would feel mature. In control. Ready to conquer WAEC and life.
Instead, she felt confused.
Especially when it came to Tobi.
From her bedroom window, she could see their compound. The distance between their houses was so small that their mothers could argue without leaving their verandas.
She used to like that closeness.
Now it felt dangerous.
Because Tobi Adeyemi was no longer the skinny boy who used to cry when he lost at Ludo.
He had grown taller over the holiday. His shoulders broader. His voice deeper. Girls in the estate had started noticing. Even girls from lesson classes would slow down when passing his gate.
And Amara hated that she noticed too.
That evening, she heard footsteps outside.
But no voice.
She froze.
She waited.
Silence.
Her chest tightened slightly.
Five minutes passed.
Ten.
No shout.
Her little brother ran into her room. "Aunty Amara, that Tobi is outside with one fine girl ooo."
Her heart dropped so fast she thought it would make noise.
"What fine girl?" she asked, trying to sound uninterested.
"New girl from House 27. The one that came with big car."
Amara walked to the window slowly.
And there he was.
Laughing.
Laughing in a way she had not seen in weeks.
The girl beside him was light-skinned, long braids, confident posture. She touched his arm casually as she spoke.
Tobi did not remove her hand.
Amara stepped back from the window like it burned her.
It shouldn't hurt.
He was free to have friends.
So why did it feel like something had been taken from her?
Later that night, her phone buzzed.
Tobi: You dey house?
She stared at the message for a long time before replying.
Amara: Obviously.
Typing…
Stopped.
Typing again…
Stopped.
Finally:
Tobi: Come outside small.
She almost replied no.
But her feet were already moving.
Outside, the streetlights flickered weakly.
Tobi was leaning against his gate, hands in pocket.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
"You didn't shout today," she said quietly.
He shrugged. "You're not five again."
The words stung more than they should.
"Oh."
Another silence.
He rubbed the back of his neck a habit she knew meant he was thinking too much.
"You saw me with Zara."
So that was her name.
"Yes," Amara replied calmly.
"She just moved in. Her dad and my dad know each other from work."
"Okay."
"You're not saying anything."
"What do you want me to say?"
He looked frustrated. "You've been acting somehow."
She laughed softly. "Me?"
"Yes, you."
She crossed her arms. "You're the one that stopped coming around. You stopped waiting after lesson. You stopped calling me to gist. Now suddenly I'm the one acting somehow?"
He opened his mouth.
Closed it.
Because she was right.
And they both knew it.
The wind blew gently between them.
The space felt bigger than the road separating their houses.
"I just…" he started, then stopped.
"Just what?"
His eyes met hers.
For a second, something shifted.
Something unfamiliar.
"I just needed space."
The words were simple.
But they landed heavy.
"From me?" she asked softly.
He didn't answer immediately.
And that silence told her everything.
Upstairs in her room later that night, Amara lay on her bed staring at the ceiling.
Maybe this was how childhood ended.
Not with shouting.
Not with fighting.
But with distance.
Her phone buzzed again.
Tobi: You know you're still my person, right?
She stared at the message.
Her person.
What did that even mean anymore?
She typed.
Deleted.
Typed again.
Finally sent:
Amara: Goodnight.
She dropped her phone and turned to the wall.
Outside, somewhere in the estate, a generator started humming.
Peaceville Estate was quiet again.
But for the first time in years…
6PM at the gate did not feel certain anymore.
And Amara had a feeling
This was only the beginning.