Under the Crimson Sunset (a Nigerian Romance story)

It's been six months since Nancy and Dave started dating. The decision was the best decision in their entire existence. They were like perfect match, like they were created for each other. Dave had gotten almost perfect control of his condition because he found a reason to. On Nancy's part, having Dave as her first love was the happiest thing she could ever imagine. She enjoyed exploring this form of nature. Dave introduced her to the family, except his parents because they weren't around. Ella accepted her with full arms. She later became friends with Tina. Dave was always seen with her, everywhere they went. They were like a snail and its shell.

"So, that was you when you were young?" Dave asked during one of their moments together. He was laying on his back, his head on Nancy's laps. She showed him her childhood picture.

"Yes. Can't you see how beautiful I've been since I've been young?"

Dave wanted to laugh but kept it in because if he did, Nancy would slap his shoulder hard. In the picture, the young Nancy was wearing a gown pleated from the waist, her shoe was the the type that brought different colors of light around the sole area. She looked like a wannabe Terminator. To worsen it all, she wore a childish sunglass which made her look like she was blind. Her mother's wig on her head made her look like a community godmother. Dave couldn't hold it in again. He burst out laughing hard. Nancy already knew what was funny. She had expected the mockery because she also laughed hard anytime she saw the picture. She'd have loved to sue everyone involved in taking the pictures and those who dressed her up.

"Sorry baby, but you look like an upcoming assassin who trained hard but didn't learn anything." He laughed again. Nancy joined him in laughing.

"I know how I look. You don't need to tell me."

Dave sat up while laughing. After a while, he stopped and leant his back against the wall, facing her. She also looked at him, smiling. Dave leant closer, touched her left cheek, "nevertheless, you grew up to be more beautiful than ever."

"Thank you, dearie." She held his free hand and caressed it.

Dave stared at her for a while. He could feel a burning sensation in him. He remembered how she tasted and his body wanted more. He leant closer till their foreheads touched.

"I want to kiss you badly." He found himself whisper to her. Nancy swallowed hard. She wanted him too, but she didn't want to rush things. It surprised her how she, a virgin, must have wanted him so terribly. They can't rush things, she can't. She hadn't shown him to her Mom yet. Besides, she had learnt a lot from her mother, she couldn't throw the training away just for the enjoyment she'd get tired of.

"I want you as much as you want me. But let's not rush things..."

Dave chuckled, "you have quite a lewd mind. I don't want you in that aspect, yet, I just want a taste of your lips. Once you take a wine from heaven, you'll want more everytime."

Nancy blushed at the comparison of her lips to heaven wine. "But if you drink the wine too much, you might want to carry the whole wine pot."

"I'll do that legally. But if I feel the urge when I'm not ready, then I'll stay with the wine pot without leaving." He smiled.

He held the nape of Nancy's neck and drew her closer till their lips met. They moved to the rhythm of their lips, slowly. They closed their eyes, diving into the ecstasy. Soon, they melted into one. Dave leant back against the wall, he helped Nancy sit comfortably on him. Nancy couldn't explain why her body moved on its own. She couldn't explain why she felt good doing that, or why her body wanted more. She wondered if she could control her urges which was getting unbearable. She found herself straddling Dave as she sat on his laps. She moaned into his mouth. She could feel Dave's erection poking between her thighs from his jean trouser. She could feel more pleasure when she moved her hips to a particular position but she couldn't pinpoint which exact position. She needed more and needed to stop.

No, she needed to stop. Dave's hands were clutching her back, pulling her closer to him. She needed to stop. She was getting intense, her moans were getting loud. She remembered the female gender stuff she read online, she wanted to question herself but she was diving more into the pleasure and couldn't ask herself. She remembered her mother's words and, at once, she stopped. She struggled to catch her breath while she buried her head into Dave's shoulder. She was trembling. She needed explanation for that. Dave, having known she didn't want to go any further, patted her back and calmed her down.

"Did I hurt you?" He asked after a while, when she had calmed down. She still has her head in his shoulder. She shook her head in negative. She still hadn't calmed down completely, she could still feel the hard throbbing between her legs. Her jeans trouser wasn't helping too. She climbed down from his laps and sat beside him. She looked at him and chuckled.

"That was...I have no idea."

Dave laughed. "Well...I don't know too."

"I just had to stop, I was getting too intense."

Dave faced her, "let me be frank. I've done it before, I know how it feels. But I won't rush you. Anytime you want it, I'll..."

"I'm a virgin." She spoke before she could think. Her mother has warned her against telling people that. In her words, "not everyone would like that fact that you've never had sex. They might set you up. You'd not like that." So, she kept the secret from everyone, including Wumi.

"Huh?" Dave was short of words. His face went blank.

"Don't look at me like that."

"No no no, honestly. I mean, that's surprising. This is Gen Z era, it's very rare, I mean, extremely rare for a lady of your age to be a virgin. How did you do it?"

"Well, this is Nigeria, we have typical Nigerian mothers who'd fry you alive if you lost your dignity. My mother belongs to that category. Growing up, she'd tell me stuffs about a woman's body. But she never told me hugging a guy would get me pregnant. She never minced words. Since my dad died, she didn't want to lose me. Losing a child doesn't necessarily means the child dying, it can mean the child losing his/her purpose or destiny. She made me know that if I bring an unwanted pregnancy or child into her house, she'd leave me to my fate. I wanted to school, to wear convocation gown, to walk with pride amongst my peers, not to hide myself when I see them. So, I locked up. I ventured my passion into nature, I never had a boyfriend. Well, till you came."

"Wow. That's amazing. But, you know I studied Medicine? I know that the female body, sometimes, due to the hormones and stuff, you might feel the urge. What do you do during those moments, or you don't feel anything?"

"At first, I didn't know what feeling it was. When I started reading articles about it, and asking my Mom questions, I started knowing what it was and how to avoid/endure it. Also, I was always with nature, I was doing a part-time job at my alma mater's zoo. It kept my mind busy from dwelling on the feeling." The throb between her thighs was slowing down. "So, I had no problem in those moments. I feel something, like mostly every month, but I kept myself busy with other things. Also, since I've not done it before, I had no intense urge to delve into it."

"Well, that's quite amazing." He looked at her closely. "How do you feel now?"

"I don't know, honestly. I've never felt like that before. I've read about sex online, but I don't think this is it."

Dave hesitated before speaking, "you know, if you want to talk about how you just felt, we can discuss it."

Nancy shook her head. She was definitely not going to start discussing how she felt between her thighs to him. She'd not feel embarrassed, she had never felt embarrassed about talking about something related to that. She just didn't know if she'd be able to do that without getting aroused. She didn't want to think about what she just felt.

"No, it's fine. Don't worry."

"No problem, then." Dave pulled her closer onto his chest. They'd be fine. She'd learn when the time's right.

"My Mom wants to meet you." She had told her Mom that she'd bring him home soon. She hadn't told him yet.

Dave moved back a bit. "She does?"

Nancy turned her head to look at him. "Are you scared?"

He stammered a bit. "Of course, not. I mean, yeah, but, no." Nancy placed her hand on his chest. "Don't panic. You both will make a great besties."

Dave, in his mind, hoped so. If this was before, he'd have trembled so hard that he'd have entered depression mode. But with Nancy beside him, their body meeting, and their hands holding each other, he felt at peace. He cuddled her closer, kissed her neck and whispered to her, "I love everything about you."