Sophie sat elegantly in the lounge chair, one leg crossed over the other as she checked the time again.
Still nothing.
The hotel lounge was expensive looking. Soft piano music played from hidden speakers while waiters moved around carefully with trays balanced in their hands.
Everything looked clean.
Sophie glanced around again, irritation slowly building inside her.
This man was already late.
"Strike three."
She picked up the glass of water in front of her and took a small sip.
"Honestly, why arrange a meeting if you won't even act serious?"
Her phone remained silent.
No message.
No apology.
Nothing.
Sophie leaned back slowly and exhaled.
Maybe she should leave.
The thought crossed her mind for the third time in ten minutes.
But again, her mother's voice echoed inside her head.
"At least meet him first."
Sophie shook her head slightly.
Parents and marriage pressure.
Every conversation somehow returned there these days.
One brother engaged.
Another preparing introductions.
Now suddenly everyone was looking at her like she was running out of time.
Meanwhile half the men they introduced acted like overgrown boys with money.
She was still staring at her phone when a shadow stopped beside the table.
"Am I forgiven?"
Sophie looked up.
Dayo stood there with the same relaxed expression she remembered from their phone call earlier.
No stress.
No urgency.
Like being late meant nothing.
Sophie stared at him for a second before speaking.
"You're late."
Most women would have smiled first.
Not Sophie.
Dayo noticed immediately.
Interesting.
He slowly pulled out the chair opposite her and sat down.
"I know."
"No apology?"
"I figured you'd still insult me anyway."
That almost pulled a smile from her.
Almost.
"You're very confident for somebody making a terrible first impression."
Dayo laughed softly.
"Terrible?"
"First off, You asked me to meet you at a HOTEL and then what? disappeared."
"Fair point."
He leaned back comfortably in his chair.
"I had something to handle."
"You could've called."
"You're right."
The answer came too easily.
That caught Sophie off guard.
Most men became defensive quickly when corrected.
But he looked amused instead.
A waiter approached the table.
"Good evening, sir."
Dayo nodded once.
"Anything she wants."
The waiter turned politely toward Sophie.
She ordered calmly while Dayo barely even checked the menu.
Again.
Too comfortable.
Too used to this lifestyle.
The waiter left.
Sophie folded her arms lightly.
"So," she said, "what exactly do you do?"
Dayo smiled.
"Why do women always ask that first?"
"Because men like to pretend they're mysterious instead of answering simple questions."
He laughed again.
"You judge quickly."
"I observe quickly."
That answer interested him more than he expected.
Most conversations bored him after five minutes.
But this girl?
Sharp mouth.
Composed.
Not trying to impress him.
It felt different.
"I'm into hospitality," he finally replied.
"Meaning?"
"My family owns businesses."
"I see," Sophie nodded slowly.
"So you're rich through inheritance."
"Daddy's boy?"
Dayo blinked once before laughing harder.
"You make that sound criminal."
"Not criminal. Just important context."
"And what's your context?"
Sophie straightened slightly.
"I work."
"What do you do?"
"I own a fashion brand."
His eyebrows lifted slightly.
"You own it?"
"Yes."
"No partners?"
"No."
He studied her differently now.
Very different from the women he usually met.
Most people around him either wanted money, status, or access.
But Sophie carried herself like she already had direction.
"What kind of fashion?" he asked.
"Everything women"
"You sound serious."
"I am serious."
"That explains the face."
Sophie narrowed her eyes slightly.
"What face?"
"The one judging me since I sat down."
This time she actually smiled.
Small.
"There's a lot to judge."
"Like?"
"You're late. Overconfident. Unnecessarily relaxed."
"And yet you're still here."
Sophie leaned back calmly.
"Curiosity."
Dayo shook his head, smiling.
"Dangerous thing."
The waiter returned with their food and drinks.
For a while, the conversation shifted naturally.
Lagos traffic.
Family pressure.
Relationships.
Social media pretending.
The strange obsession people had with appearing successful online.
Sophie spoke intelligently, confidently, sometimes brutally honest in ways Dayo found amusing.
"You don't like people easily, do you?" he asked eventually.
Sophie took a sip of her drink before answering.
"I just think most people are performative."
"And men?"
She looked at him directly.
"Most men lack intentionality."
Dayo leaned back slowly, studying her.
There it is.
The standards challenge.
And strangely…
He liked it.
The conversation continued longer than he intended.
At some point, he forgot entirely that Nancy was still upstairs waiting.
His phone buzzed on the table.
He glanced down casually.
A message from one of his friends.
"Awfar oo, you don forget your other babe 😂"
Dayo smirked.
Locked the phone.
Dropped it face down.
Then looked back at Sophie like nothing had happened.
"So," he said calmly,
"tell me why you think Lagos relationships are doomed."