For a brief moment… everything stood still.
The silence stretched.
Heavy.
Uncomfortable.
Mike could feel it in the air—the shift from suspicion to something else.
Something worse.
The first man's calm expression didn't reassure him.
It made things more dangerous.
Mike took a small step back.
Instinct.
Nothing more.
"I think I should be going," he said carefully, forcing his voice to remain steady.
No one responded.
No one moved.
Then—
It happened.
So fast that his mind couldn't process it in time.
A hand moved.
A sudden force.
And—
Impact.
Mike's head snapped slightly to the side as the blow landed.
Not enough to knock him down immediately.
But enough to disorient him.
His ears rang.
His vision blurred for a second.
"What—?" he started.
Another shove.
Harder this time.
He staggered backward, struggling to regain his balance.
"I said I don't know what you're talking about!" he said quickly, panic beginning to rise in his voice.
But his words didn't matter anymore.
They weren't listening.
They had already decided.
"You think say we dey play?" the second man snapped, stepping forward aggressively.
Mike raised his hands slightly—not to fight, but to defend.
"Please, just listen—"
Another strike.
This time, it came from the side.
His body reacted before his mind could.
He stumbled again, his back hitting the rough wall behind him.
The impact forced the air out of his lungs.
For a moment, he couldn't breathe.
The world tilted slightly.
"Wait—wait—" he tried again, his voice breaking now.
"You've been coming here!" one of them accused.
"No! I haven't!" Mike replied quickly.
"You've been disturbing her!"
"I swear, I just saw her today!"
His words came out fast now.
Desperate.
Trying to catch up with a situation that had already gone too far.
But it was useless.
Their expressions didn't change.
If anything…
They grew harder.
"You think we don't know?" the first man said again, stepping closer.
This time, there was no calm left in his tone.
Only anger.
Mike's chest tightened.
His mind raced.
"This is bad," he thought.
"Really bad."
He looked around briefly.
The people who had been watching earlier were still there.
Still silent.
Still doing nothing.
No help.
No intervention.
Nothing.
He turned back to the men.
His voice dropped.
More urgent now.
"Please… I didn't do anything. You're mistaken."
For a split second…
There was hesitation.
A flicker.
But it disappeared almost immediately.
And with it…
Any chance of things calming down.