22| split the bill.
1148 Words
The drive to the station was long and silent.
When we entered the station i called Tunde and asked him to sit down.
“Why?” He asked.
I looked at his knuckle and said “Just sit down. And don’t ask me questions please.”
He obliged and sat down.
“I will be right back.” I said and went to get the first aid box.
When I returned, i sat down across him, held his hand, then wiped the wound with an antiseptic wipe to disinfect it. I applied antibiotic ointment to protect the wound from infection, then I placed bandage on it to cover it.
I could feel his eyes on me while I was at it, but I didn’t say anything.
When I finished, he cleared his throat and said. “I am sorry for talking to you like that a while ago.”
“You don’t have to apologize.” I said, as I was arranged the first aid box.
“Thank you.” He said, then lifted the first aid box up and stood up. “I’ll return this.”
“Hey, what happened to your hand?” Lizzy asked, as she approached us, with her eyes glued to his knuckle.
“I tripped and scratched it on the floor.” He lied, then looked at me and smiled. That smile, was him, begging me not to rat him out.
“Oh dear, sorry.” Lizzy said and pouted her lips like a cute puppy.
“Thank you.” Tunde said and dashed out, with the first aid box.
“How’s the case going? Have you been able to come up with anything?” Lizzy asked, with a concerned tone.
I nodded my head disappointedly.
“Oh, dear. Come here.” Lizzy said, then opened her arms wide and took me into a hug.
“Let’s go and report to chief.” Tunde interrupted our little emotional moment.
We quickly let go of each other, then I turned to look at him.
“okay.” I said and we both trudged to chief’s office.
We stopped at the door. We were anxious. We wondered what his response to what we were about to tell him would be.
‘Would he call us incompetent? Or would he be understanding?’ were the thoughts that were racing through my mind, before chief’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts.
“Tunde and Hazel. I know you guys are there, come in.”
Tunde and I looked at each other, surprised, wondering how he knew.
“Do you need a special invitation?” chief said again.
We quietly entered the office.
Before we could say anything, chief started. “You are unable to solve the case, yeah?” He asked.
We both nodded our heads in affirmation, too embarrassed to say the word “yes.”
I was very anxious as to what will come next then he said. “I trust that the both of you, are very good detectives. In fact, among the best. And I noticed how you both put your all into solving this case. I also tried to solve it when I realized that you guys were taking too long on this case. But, i couldn’t come up with any lead.”
He looked at Tunde, then said. “I asked you to give me the details of all you’ve gathered so far, right?”
Tunde nodded his head and said. “Yes.”
I had not known that Tunde gave him anything or the fact that he was also looking into the case.
“We have other cases waiting to be solved. We can’t spend forever on this one.” Chief said, then lowered his head and continued. “As hard as it is for me to say, I must say that, the case of Anna Martins who was murdered in cold blood at Cleverly hotels, has been placed on hold, until we find a lead then we’ll continue.”
We were both quiet, we didn’t know how to respond to what he just said:
“You can go.” He dismissed us.
“Yes sir.” Tunde and I said in unison, then turned back and left the office.
“You should wash your hair; you look like you came straight out of the jungle.” I joked, trying to lighten his mood and he laughed. But I didn’t lie though, Tunde had been looking like a mess since the case started. He had not been taking care of himself, I was not even sure if he had been feeding well. As hard as it was for me to admit, he was more invested in the case than I was.
“Let’s go and eat lunch together, bills on me.” I offered.
“Really?” He asked, excitedly.
“Yes, really.” I said.
I was glad my offer put a smile on his face. I was also sad about the outcome of the investigation, but I had to do something for Tunde, because he looked like he was going to dive into depression.
We walked to a restaurant that was not far from the station and ordered pasta. We talked about a lot of things before the waitress brought our food. We started digging in and I ate so fast. I didn’t realize I was really hungry until I started eating. I could feel Tunde’s eyes on me while I was eating, but I didn’t care. Tunde also didn’t waste time in eating his food, so we were able to finish in no time.
He gestured at the waiter, calling for him to come and the waiter rushed to our table.
“Our bill.” Tunde requested, as he tugged his card out of his wallet.
“No, you can’t do that. What did I tell you before we came here?” I asked.
“Bills on you?” He asked, with a raised brow.
“Yes, bills on me.” I said and took out my card.
“I am trying to be a gentle man here. I can’t have you pay for our food.” He said.
“And who said you have to be a gentle man?” I asked, then raised my brow, waiting for a reply.
“Me! I am going to pay.” He insisted.
I knew he was stubborn and there was no way he was going to make me pay for everything, so I made another offer.
“Let’s split the bill.” I said.
“I can’t have you-“ He started, but I cut him off.
“Accept my offer or I pay for everything. You have to choose one.”
He nodded his head in defeat and said “okay.”
We split the bill and paid, then we walked back to the station together.
- Writer
