Her Love, His Scars
Chapter Six – Secrets Between Streets
Ziora had barely sat down in the back row of her afternoon lecture when a girl slid into the seat beside her, all smiles and scented with expensive perfume.
"Hi. You're Ziora, right?"
The girl's voice was light, confident — the kind of girl who always knew who to talk to and how.
"Yeah. And you are?" Ziora asked, her eyes flicking briefly from her notebook.
"Name's Kaira. We have this course together. I love your style, by the way. You sew your own clothes, right?"
Ziora relaxed a little. "Yeah, most of them. Thanks."
They talked in soft whispers as the lecturer droned on. It wasn't deep — just school stuff, guys on campus, and how hot the sun was that week. Kaira was bold and funny, the kind of girl that could get you to talk without realizing how far you've gone.
"So where do you stay?" Kaira asked, tapping her acrylic nails on the edge of the desk.
"Ogudu side. Near the market," Ziora replied casually.
Kaira's brows lifted. "Ohhh okay, not too far from my street. I stay in Olayemi Close."
Ziora's stomach twitched. That was Damian's street.
Kaira was still speaking, unaware. "Do you know a guy called Damian? Fine footballer guy, tall, light-skinned, always quiet but his eyes are mad intense."
Ziora's hand froze mid-note.
Her heart beat quickened, but she kept her face neutral.
"Hmm, no. Doesn't ring a bell," she said, voice light like tissue paper.
Kaira laughed. "Really? Almost every girl knows him. I think it's the mystery. You know he's dating that Sarah babe on our street, abi?"
Ziora blinked.
Sarah?
Something cold slid through her chest. She didn't even blink as Kaira kept talking.
"She's always going to his house. Like, late nights. It's not even hidden. But he doesn't talk much, sha. Maybe that's why girls are so obsessed."
Ziora managed a small smile. "That's interesting."
"Yeah. You know girls like bad boys," Kaira giggled. "But me, I like peace of mind. Guys like Damian will have you in tears by episode three."
Ziora chuckled weakly, pretending to scribble something in her book. Her palms were sweating.
The lecture ended, and Kaira said goodbye, hugging her like they were old friends. As she walked away, Ziora just sat there, staring at the half-filled page in front of her.
She didn't move.
She didn't cry either.
But her chest ached.
Sarah.
Someone else already had the piece of him she was still trying to understand.
And yet… she couldn't stop thinking about his voice, his messages, that soft video he sent, and how part of her still believed he was different — with her.
She shouldn't care.
She wasn't even his girlfriend.
But it felt like someone had just whispered a truth she wasn't ready to hear.
One thing was clear now:
Whatever Damian was hiding... she wasn't the only one in the dark.