Lisa was angry and devastated to dress up for nothing, and the worst was that Simba didn’t cancel or tell her he was held up by something. He didn’t even bother to answer his phone or reply to her messages. He had no remembrance of Lisa: it was all gone.

Tariro kept him busy. She lay on his chest, stroking him slowly. He enjoyed every moment of it. A fog covered his eyes so that he became blind to everything in front of him. Lisa was erased from his mind and he never even knew he had a phone. It beeped and rang while Tariro kept him occupied.

“I love you, baby,” he said, and kissed her lips.

Tariro grinned. She knew he had forgotten about Lisa, but would she forget too? Tariro disappeared before dawn. Simba felt the warmth of the blanket and stroked the bed beside him. He woke up on edge and very afraid. His heart palpitated when he tried to think.

“Baby!” he called out.

He looked around the house and in the bathroom, but she was gone. He grabbed his phone and saw a plenty of calls.

“Oh, Lisa!” he gasped. Memories flashed back: Lisa was his love and had tried to call. He called her back.

“Baby…How are you?”

“What happened last night?” she asked furiously.

That is when he realised that he was with Tariro, not Lisa. He was confused: he had dumped Tariro to be with Lisa. He didn’t recall last night’s incident.

“I am sorry, I got busy,” he said.

Lisa forgave him because she loved him sincerely but Simba was alert to what was happening. He needed a solution. He had to get rid of Tariro. He didn’t love her: it was just sex for him. His love for Lisa was burning, he was starving to be with her.

On his way to work, he wandered aimlessly until his sister Maggie appeared in front of him.

“Brother, it’s been long,” she jumped to embrace him. She felt darkness on him in a vision and knew she needed to visit.

“Yes.”

He stared at her without blinking as she closed her eyes and sensed something. She believed in spirits and sometimes saw visions of warnings but no one ever believed her. She looked into his eyes and held his hands tightly. He felt her shivering. He was shocked and tried to break loose.

“Bro, I see you are in trouble,” she said, releasing him.

“You think so…Yes, I am in a big mess,” he said stuttering.

“Don’t sleep at home, come to my house. I see danger is looming in your life,” she warned him, but he walked away, dragging his feet. She rushed towards him and stopped him again.

“Don’t go home tonight,” she repeated softly and he nodded.

When he arrived at work he couldn’t concentrate and the boss was not happy. His reports were due at the end of the week.

“What is troubling you?” his boss asked, irritated, before leaving his office.

Simba kept on hearing his sister’s voice, “Don’t go home tonight,” and “Danger is looming in your life.”

He wondered what danger it was. He knew this had Tariro written all over it, but he couldn’t stop her because she had a hold on his life. It was his fault too: he shouldn’t have slept with a stranger. Then he met Lisa, whom he put in his heart and engraved there. He couldn’t remove her. He decided to visit Lisa after work. She was surprised to see him at her door.

“Come in,” she said.

He apologised for letting her down but couldn’t talk about Tariro. Lisa would leave him for cheating. But he didn’t know what Tariro was in his life. He cuddled with Lisa on the bed after talking for a long time. Their stories were interesting and the room was full of laughter. They talked about their childhoods. He wanted so much to let Lisa know about Tariro: he hated to keep secrets. He looked up at the ceiling wondering how he was going to walk out of Tariro’s life. Lisa opened her eyes and smooched him.

“I love you.” He kissed her forehead.

Her lips searched for his and kissed him deeply. He caressed her soft body and she undid his top button so she could see his chest, which was hairy. He was on top of her, feeling his hoarse breath and rough skin. She held him tightly, not wanting him to let go.

“I love you, Simba.” They kissed. She stopped him when his hand went between her thighs.

“I can’t…” she said softly, and sat hunched over on the bed.

Simba was embarrassed, and did up his buttons. Girls didn’t usually refuse to have sex with him. He sat down on the bed.

“I am sorry,” he said, licking his scraped lips. She sat close to him.

“I am a Christian, I can’t do sexual immorality,” she said, staring into space.

“It’s okay…When you are ready…” He lay back and she joined him, breathing deeply. But he wondered if it was him or her who wouldn’t want sex!

“Thank you, Simba.”

She smiled and he grinned. He wanted more of her and wondered why she tried to remove his clothes if she didn’t want it. He felt so embarrassed, this never happened to him. They lay on the bed relaxing when the phone alarmed them by ringing.

“Don’t go home,” a voice said, and broke off the call.

Simba didn’t return home for long, but he did have to fetch his clothes. He slept in the spare room of his Lisa’s house. As the days went on, Simba felt his mood change like a chameleon. Lisa thought it was just normal. Apart from his moods, their relationship grew, and he loved her more. She got to know a lot about him, except about his previous girlfriends. She met his sister, Maggie. Lisa knew the bond between them would not be broken. Maggie was happy that Simba was safe.

A month later he was packing his briefcase for work when he heard a noise. He ignored it, thinking it might just be his ears ringing.

“Simba, I will find you,” a voice spoke. He jumped up and nearly fell over. He checked the room but he was alone. There was a shuffling sound.

“Simba, where are you?”

He recognised the voice. It was Tariro, he tiptoed to the door and peeked out. He heard no footsteps and saw no one. The voice was in his room.

“Simba, don’t make it hard for me. You are mine, I will find you.”

He rushed out to Lisa’s room like a lunatic and entered without knocking. Lisa was coming from the bathroom, naked. She screamed and took hold of a cloth to cover herself.

“Sorry…I…” his voice cracked. He bent down, breathing harshly, not knowing what to say. He kept checking over his shoulder.

“You scared me,” she said, grabbing her gown and pulling it on.

Simba looked at the door and listened for the voice, but it was gone. Lisa was confused.

“Are you OK?” she asked patiently. He nodded and sat on the chair, hand on his pounding heart.

Tell us: What do you think of Lisa’s character?