A Game Of Obsession – Episode 16

© Lewis Dampson

Desmond was immediately troubled when he realized that Jesse was single. He knew he was a real competition. “What are you thinking about, Desmond?” Sandra asked. “Nothing in particular, dear. Was just thinking about what I would have done if I lost you. Considering the fact that I haven’t seen you in months. It would have been very difficult for me. I am just glad you survived. I am happy that you didn’t slip away from me, Sandra,” Desmond said passionately almost at the brink of shedding tears .

During Sandra’s brief moment at the hospital, both guys made it a point to visit her on daily basis. After all that Jesse had been through in the hands of his former fiancées, he was not ready to lose this one to some random guy who just surfaced out of nowhere. This time around, he wasn’t going to sit down and fold his arms like some scared cat for someone to snatch his happiness from him. He was going to fight for it. His ideology of leaving things to chance was way over. He had learnt that, in order to get what you want, strife was necessary. Likewise, Desmond saw Sandra as his soulmate. He had tried several relationships and they all didn’t workout. He always ended up crawling back to Sandra. He wasn’t going to allow some stranger who just popped out from the skies to steal his soulmate from him! He knew he and Sandra were meant to be and he got to fight for his happiness.

Sandra was discharged from the hospital after two weeks. Jesse was the first to be at the hospital to drive her home. He brought a check from the office indicating that the company had paid all her medical bails in full. “I can see you are doing well now, Sandra. That is good! You could barely stand on your feet last week. I am really impressed with how fast you are healing. We miss you back at the office, but I got to confess, I miss your company more,” said Jesse as he was helping Sandra pack her belongings. “That is nice of them. It is a good feeling to know that people care about you that much. Thank you, Jesse for being there for me,” Sandra said with a smile. “We are running late, girl. We got to move before they start giving us bails o long chatting,” Jesse said and laughed. Sandra also laughed as she enjoyed Jesse’s sense of humor.

Jesse carried all of Sandra’s bags to the car he brought from the company. He quickly went back and helped Sandra to the car. Sandra started laughing heartily the moment she entered the car. “What is so funny? You can share so that we can both enjoy the moment,” Jesse said and smiled. Sandra continued to laugh the more. It was as if every sentence Jesse spoke was a comic line to her. “You are freaking me out now, Sandra. Please tell me why you are laughing,” Jesse implored. “It is nothing really, Jesse. Never mind,” said Sandra. She stopped laughing when she realized what she was doing was actually getting to Jesse. “I mind, please. Tell me why,” said Jesse as he looked into Sandra’s eyes. “A thought just came to mind. A thought of the first day we met. The way you were behaving then and how you are behaving now. I just can’t correlate the two you know. But, it is all good. I knew you were this tenderhearted the first time we met and I was right,” Sandra responded. Jesse remained silent for a while, wagged his head with a smile and drove off.

Just after Jesse drove off from the hospital, Desmond came to the scene. He also knew Sandra was being discharged that morning and wanted to be the one to pick her from the hospital. But, as you know, he was very late. He went to Sandra’s hospital room only to discover an empty bed. He knew he had been beaten. He knew Jesse had come to pick her up, but there was nothing to do. The only thing he could do was to find time and visit Sandra in her house.

Jesse dropped Sandra in her house and drove off to work. He sought permission from work to pick Sandra from the hospital. The duration he was given to execute that job was expiring and he needed to get to the company as fast as possible.

Sandra went to take a shower the moment she got into the house. She laid on her bed to rest for a while, but couldn’t. She found herself thinking about both Jesse and Desmond. She was now hit with the reality of choosing between the two. Initially, it was just Jesse in the picture, but now Desmond had been factored into the equation. “What am I going to do now? Both Jesse and Desmond are great guys and I don’t know who to go for. Desmond has been a sweetheart since school days. He has never given up on me although I never reciprocated his feelings. He has been there for me always. What if I am making a mistake of shunning the only person who knows both my good and bad attitudes, but still loves me for who I am. Look at what happened to me some weeks ago because of Jesse. I was nearly killed by that crazy girl! Who knows what will happen next if I continue with Jesse,” Sandra pondered.

She got down from the bed and started pacing in her bedroom. “But, wait! What happened to me wasn’t Jesse’s fault. There was no way he could have known about that. To think of it, he is also very caring just like Desmond. To be frank with myself, I have intimate affection for him. What I feel for Desmond is more of a brotherly affection. What should I do? I’m so confused!” Sandra continued to ponder about the issue.

“There is this saying that the devil you know is better than the angel you don’t know. I know Desmond very well. It will be wise for me to stick with him rather than plunging my future into the realms of the unknown. Throughout these years, I have not given him the chance to prove himself. I think I should do that now. Perhaps, this brotherly feeling might change over time,” Sandra thought as a knock on the door interrupted her thinking.

Sandra ambled to the door. She was wondering who could be knocking on her door at the moment she was deciding on her future. She opened the door only to find Desmond standing in the doorway. Desmond!! I didn’t see you at the hospital today. How are you doing?” Sandra asked. “I am doing great and I am glad you are also doing fine. I went to the hospital only to realize that I was late in coming to pick you, “ Desmond said. “That is no problem, Desmond. I got someone to bring me home. Come on! Come in! The place is quite messy, but I guess you can manage. Will clean it up tomorrow, Sandra said and led Desmond into the house.

Desmond brought out food and drinks. “ I knew you would be hungry now and you won’t have the strength to cook. So I bought us something, “Desmond said and went to the kitchen to get some plates and wine glasses. Sandra was surprised and shocked. She didn’t understand why Desmond was so super romantic towards her. “This is it!! I am going to give Desmond a chance. He is so good to me. I don’t want to be part those girls who get a perfect gentleman for a future husband in their reach and let them go all in the name of seeing them as mere friends or brothers. I won’t make that mistake and regret later,” Sandra said.

Desmond came back with the plates and glasses on a tray. He dished out the food and they both began to eat. “Sandra, I know this is out of place considering you have just returned home from the hospital, but I have no other choice. I need to know my fate and where I stand. I believe you remember all that I told you in the hospital, “Desmond said and waited for a while for Sandra to nod in agreement before continuing. “Very good! I am glad you remember. So what is your answer, Sandra? Do you have an answer for me? “ Desmond asked. “I have had a deep thought about all that we spoke about at the hospital. The truth is that, I still don’t have any intimate feelings for you yet. But, I want to give us a chance. You are a good friend, Desmond and I know you will make me happy. I am just hoping I will be able to see you as something more than a mere friend one day,” Sandra answered. Desmond was very happy with the answer. He had finally succeeded in letting Sandra say yes to him. It was a relief after many years of rejection.

…to be continued