1 WHO IS THE FOOL?

 "No! Amanda, don't!" I heard Celine plead as I walked in a haste. Like the stubborn girl I am, I didn't listen. I walked into somebody's mansion, walked past his huge living room and into the lounge area just behind. My friends followed me, pleading for me to stop what I was about to do. 

 "You don't have to do this! Amanda, listen to me!" Stella, another friend that was behind me pleaded. Despite all she said I opened the door to the lounge.

 "Leave her, Stella. She wouldn't be doing this if you had chosen a better man." Austin said calmly, glaring at Stella. He was right behind me just in case anything went wrong. 

 "Hey! Ode!" I yelled at the oaf I needed to deal with. He was sitting with his friends, laughing with his friends until he saw me.

 "My my.... who do we have here?" He said tauntingly as he rose from his seat, revealing his huge frame. Compared to him, I was probably as tiny as a toothpick he could easily break and throw away. On a normal circumstance, it would have intimidated me. But, I was so angry. 

 "You bastard! Did you think for one second, with that nonexistent brain of yours that you would get away with what you have done?" I screamed. 

 "Calm down, shortie. You're making a scene." One of that Oaf's friend said with a smug smile.

 "And, what did I do?" Micheal, Stella's asshole of a boyfriend said. He was the oaf that needed to be dealt with. 

 "You... You..." I could not say the words out loud. It was then that I realized why Stella and Celine had been trying to stop me. Confronting Micheal would not do justice to the situation. I couldn't confront him in public because it would also affect Stella. "You had no right! You had no right to do what you did to her!" 

 "You mean that bitch?" Michael pointed at Stella who flinched immediately on reflex. "She deserved it. She—" Before he could say another word, Austin punched him. 

 I thought it would end there. But, it didn't. Austin threw another punch at Michael before he could recover. And before I knew what was going on, Austin the quiet guy was beating up Micheal. We all stood there, shocked. 

 "Austin, stop. It's enough!" Stella screamed. But, she didn't go in the middle of the fight out of fear. 

 The guys around, including my bodyguards that had been tailing me since I left home that evening, they all separated the two. 

 "Miss. We need to get you home. It is no longer safe here." The head of my security guards told me as he tried guiding me out. 

 "No. I can't just leave here like this. " I resisted. 

 "Austin, it's enough! I can't let you keep hitting my boyfriend." Stella went between Michael and Austin just after they had been separated. She had her back facing her boyfriend, Michael protectively as she faced Austin. 

 "You are defending him? I can't believe this. You are defending him? After all he did to you. After the way he treated you...the things he did to you? Look at you, Stella. I don't even recognize you anymore." Austin yelled in rage. I have never seen Austin this angry, ever. I couldn't blame him though. I was upset too. 

 I just could not understand why my friend would decide to defend her abuser. Michael had beaten her thoroughly the other day. Even the make up she had on was not enough to hide her swollen jaw. And, this was not his first time!

 When Stella had confronted Michael privately after finding out he was cheating on her, what did he do? He hit her! He turned her to his personal punching bag. We had reported him to the police immediately we found out. But, he got out. His family's wealth was enough to set him free that very day. It was obvious calling the police on him again would be pointless. He would just buy his way out and our dear friend, Stella would just forgive him because the welfare of her family depended on their relationship.

"You heard her. I'm her boyfriend! Fuck off!" Michael said with a smug smile. 

 Austin left quietly, though he was still fuming. It was pointless fighting for someone that didn't want to leave a toxic relationship. I wanted to leave too. But, I couldn't leave without Stella. 

 "Stella, let's go." I tried to take her hand. But, she pulled away. 

 "You want to leave now? After causing all these?" Stella looked at me me accusingly.

 "Calm down. Let's all just leave this place. " Celine tried calming Stella. 

 "No! I'm not leaving. I begged you not to do this, Amanda. I begged you! Now, look at the mess you have caused. Tell me, what have you achieved from all of this?" I couldn't believe what I heard from Stella. She was blaming me when all I did was for her sake. I was speechless. 

 "Stella, you don't know what you're saying. Let's leave here." Celine said as she tried to drag her.

 "Leave me alone!" Stella pulled away from her grip. "I don't need your help. I don't need any of y'all's help." She said as she went to her boyfriend's side. 

 "You heard her! She doesn't need any of you! Now, get out of my house!" Michael yelled.

 "Stella..." I tried to talk but she cut me off.

 "Stop acting like I'm the only one in this kind of situation! Your boyfriend cheats on you everytime and you forgive him. How is he any different?" A wry laugh slipped Stella's lips as she spoke. 

 "Nonso doesn't! He might be a control freak. But, he would never cheat on me." I said firmly only for Michael and his friends to laugh. Even Stella laughed. 

 "Dey play!" One of them yelled, causing them all to laugh again. 

 "You don't know?" Michael asked me mockingly before facing Celine. "You didn't tell her?" 

" Let's go, Amanda. We have had enough for the night." At that point, I was the one Celine tried to drag away. 

 "Tell me what? What is it that you didn't tell me?" I asked Celine only to hear Stella speak instead.

 "Next time you're in the mood to confront any man, you better start with your boyfriend." 

 "Shut up, Stella!" Celine yelled at her as she dragged me out of Michael's mansion. 

 " What is it, Celine? What is it that I need to know?" 

 "Let's leave here, first. Then, I will tell you. "

 "I'm not leaving until you tell me!" I said firmly. I was beginning to feel like a fool. Firstly, for helping Stella. And lastly, for being so oblivious to something everyone except me knew. 

 "Fine! It's about Nonso. He has been cheating on you. " she said plainly.

 "What? That's not true. That can't be true. Nonso would never do that to me, Celine. I know him." I said firmly. My boyfriend sweetest man I knew. There was no way he would cheat. That was simply not him! 

 "He is. Everyone knows. It is so obvious. On valentine day, he didn't celebrate it with you. Who do you think he was celebrating it with?" Celine asked.

 "Duhhh... He was at a meeting in Europe. Some people have work to do." I refused to believe her. That day, I had video called Nonso to confirm. And he really not in Nigeria. 

 "On valentine's day? Think about it. He could have at least sent you a gift or come back as soon as possible from the so called meeting. But, he didn't." Celine argued.

 "That was because the business trip took longer than he thought. It was in Europe, Celine! Europe! Nonso would never betray me that way. I know him. He is not that type of person. Besides, he proposed to me yesterday."

 "Whatever makes you sleep at night." Frustrated, Celine said. She was walking away when she suddenly turned back to say. " This is why nobody said anything about it. You wouldn't believe us. Both you and Stella are the same. You can both fuck off for all I care." 

 "Fine! Leave! I don't expect a someone like you to ever understand. You don't even have a boyfriend!" I yelled at her. While I defended my boyfriend, I had this gnawing feeling in my chest. Celine might be right because on that valentine night, Nonso avoided my calls all through. What if it wasn't. Though Celine had gone, the seeds of doubt had been placed in my mind. 

 "You are still here, Serena?" I heard Michael say from behind. 

 "I was leaving already. Idiot!" I hissed. I didn't bother to look at him. I walked towards my car. My security guards were waiting for me. 

 "Say hi to Nonso for me. He is the real man." He said mockingly. 

 That night I went to Nonso's place and saw things I shouldn't have seen.