Late-Night Conversations

The phone vibrated softly beside me, dragging me out of the light daze I had slipped into while staring at the ceiling. It was late, way past midnight, and my mind had been dancing between exhaustion and restlessness. The bright screen illuminated my face as I unlocked my phone.

Tessa: Are you up?

I smirked, shaking my head.

Me: Look at the time. Is this the appropriate hour to ask if I got home safe?

There was a long pause. Three dots appeared, disappeared, then appeared again. She was either typing and deleting, or she had no excuse at all.

Tessa: ...…

Me: Don't have any excuse?

She sent a smiling sticker.

I chuckled. "Say something."

Tessa: I'm not really a social media person. I don't usually come online or anything. I only check the Anatomy Information group to know what the hell is going on. Aside from that, I've got no one to talk to, so I don't bother coming online.

I rolled onto my side, propping my head up on my pillow as I typed.

Me: Well, make an exception for me.

Honestly, I had no idea where this was going. I just liked talking to her. The way she responded, the slight sass in her words, the way I could almost hear her voice even through text—it was entertaining.

Tessa: Why would I do that?

Me: Because I'm a special friend. You can't find someone like me anywhere else. Plus, it'd be nice to have someone check on me every now and then.

Tessa: That's what Justin and Joshua are for.

Me: Yeah, but they're both guys. I want to hear a female voice before going to bed.

Tessa: Why? So you can dream about me?

Me: And have you haunt my dreams? No way. I'll just imagine you're my girlfriend with a sweet voice.

Tessa: Well, I'm not your girlfriend.

Me: Do you want to be?

There was another long pause. I could almost hear her groaning in frustration through the screen.

Tessa: Stop flirting with me and go to bed, Daræy.

Me: I should be the one telling you that. It's way past your curfew.

Tessa: That's it, I'm done. Goodnight, Daræy.

I panicked slightly. No, I wasn't done talking yet.

Me: Wait! I would like to join you in reading.

There was another long silence before she responded.

Tessa: And give you another chance to tease me? I won't. I would never.

Me: I'm being serious. Please. My academics have taken a hit, and I really don't want to fail.

Tessa: You have Joshua as a friend, and you're a transfer student with five points. Why do you need me, a low-class student with a CGPA you don't even know, to study with you?

Me: First of all, you're not a low-class student. Secondly, being friends with Joshua doesn't guarantee my academic safety. I can assure you he's playing Call of Duty right now. And most importantly, we can learn from each other.

There was a longer pause this time.

Tessa: Look, I'm sorry, my grades are too low.

Me: So I've heard.

Tessa: What?

Me: I heard you have two carryovers. One from the first semester and another from the second semester. Both for the same course. At first, I thought—

I hesitated before typing the next part.

Me: —"Is she really that dumb?"

The typing indicator appeared immediately, but I kept going before she could curse me out.

Me: But then I thought, no, she can't be. She looks smart. So why would she have carryovers twice for the same course?

Me: Then I heard you were a spoiled brat who hated both your course (Anatomy) and your school (NDU). You wanted to leave. You wrote JAMB again and got admitted to Uyo for Nursing, but you didn't like the course. Your dad hated the school because you had no family members there. So you both agreed on one thing—you'd take the exam again.

I paused, glancing at the time. 1:42 AM. She hadn't interrupted me yet, so I continued.

Me: This time, you got what you wanted—Medicine at the University of Port Harcourt. But you didn't attend. And I wondered why.

I sat up, staring at the screen, waiting for her to react.

Me: Then, that day when you were both hungry and angry, I spoke to your mom. And I finally got my answer.

Nothing.

Me: Your family went broke. The once-popular family of billions now has nothing. And no one knows why. The once well-known brat, Tessica Sawyer, became sweet and nice.

Still nothing. I exhaled, running a hand through my hair.

Me: I always wondered what kind of person you were. After that, I got my answer. Your true colors come out when you're extremely hungry. Otherwise, you're pretty good at hiding it.

Another pause. Maybe I went too far. But I wasn't done.

Me: And so I thought—for someone who supposedly didn't care about her grades, you did pretty well, having all B's and C's. So prove me wrong. Show me you're not a dummy. Make your grades go up.

The typing indicator appeared. Then stopped. Then appeared again.

I stared at the screen, waiting. I could almost imagine her expression—probably fuming, probably lost for words, or maybe both.

Then, finally, she replied.

Tessa: Goodnight, Daræy.

My jaw dropped. That was it? After everything I said?

I groaned, flopping back onto the bed. Was I too straightforward? Did I make her cry? That wasn't what I meant to do. I just wanted to—ugh.

Just as I was about to give up and turn off my phone, it beeped again.

Tessa: See you tomorrow night at CHS Auditorium by 7:30.

I blinked. Then, a grin spread across my face.

Me: Can't wait.

I turned off my phone and lay back on my pillow, still smiling.

I had succeeded.

Or so, I thought.

TESSA'S P.O.V :