THE HUNTING SHADOW – Episode 2

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Written by Damilare Mike David

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Written for REGEN Relationship Clinic

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• “Sometimes, silence speaks louder than confession. In that moment, Amara felt the ground shift beneath her feet.
  It was not just distance he was announcing. It was uncertainty..”

Late evening. The same wooden bench by the lake where they often sit. The sky is soft orange fading into purple.
John Adewale sits beside Amara Okoye, but something feels different.
He is unusually quiet.
Amara notices first.
She studies his face.
He is staring at the water, lost in thought.
The breeze moves her hair gently across her face.
She turns toward him.

🗣 Amara: “You’ve been quiet all evening.”
John forces a small smile.
🗣 John: “Have I?”
🗣 Amara: “Yes. And when you’re quiet like this, it means you’re carrying something.”
He exhales slowly.
🗣 John: “Amara… you’ve been thinking I’m taking too long.”
She freezes slightly.
🗣 Amara: “So you noticed.”
🗣 John: “How could I not? I know you feel like I’m delaying marriage.”
She looks down at her hands.
🗣 Amara: “I just don’t want us to keep waiting until waiting becomes our story.”
John nods slowly.
Then his tone changes.
🗣 John: “If that was the only issue… it would be easier.”
She looks up immediately.
🗣 Amara: “What do you mean?”
There is a pause.
A long one.
🗣 John (quietly): “I got a job offer.”
She blinks.
🗣 Amara: “That’s good, isn’t it?”
He swallows.
🗣 John: “It’s in the United States.”
Silence.
The wind feels colder.

Sometimes, silence speaks louder than confession.
In that moment, Amara felt the ground shift beneath her feet.
It was not just distance he was announcing.
It was uncertainty.

 The Breaking Point
Amara stands slowly.
Her eyes begin to water.
🗣 Amara (barely above a whisper): “I always knew.”
🗣 John: “Knew what?”
🗣 Amara: “That something would come between us.”
🗣 John: “This isn’t about leaving you.”
🗣 Amara: “It always starts like that.”
He stands quickly.
🗣 John: “Amara, listen to me.”
But she steps back.
🗣 Amara: “First it’s ‘I need time.’ Now it’s ‘I need to travel.’ What’s next, John?”
🗣 John: “This job can secure our future.”
🗣 Amara: “Or replace me.”
That hits him.
She turns and walks away.
John calls after her.
🗣 John: “Amara!”
She doesn’t stop.

Love does not always end in betrayal.
Sometimes, it trembles under opportunity.
And opportunity can look like abandonment when fear is already present.

The Calls
That night.
John sits in his room staring at his phone.
He calls.
Phone ringing…
Amara’s phone lights up on her bed.
She sees his name: John Calling…
She rejects it.
He calls again.
Rejected.
Again.
Rejected.
Days pass.
Short montage:
• John texting: “Please let’s talk.”
• No reply.
• Missed calls.
• Amara reading messages but not responding.
John looks exhausted.
Amara looks conflicted.

She was not angry.
She was afraid.
And sometimes fear chooses silence as protection.

The Text
Three days later.
John’s phone vibrates.
Message from Amara:
“I’m not angry.
I am only afraid.
I have an idea.
Meet me tomorrow.
Under the tree where we last met.”
John exhales deeply.
Hope.
Fear.
Confusion.
All at once.

When love is wounded, it does not always disappear.
Sometimes it searches for a solution.

 Under the Tree
Next day.
The large tree near the lake.
The same place they once laughed and dreamed.
Amara is already there.
Standing.
Calm.
Composed.
John approaches slowly.
🗣 John: “Amara…”
🗣 Amara: “I won’t stop you from going.”
He looks surprised.
🗣 John: “What?”
🗣 Amara: “I’m not selfish. I know this job could prepare a better future for us.”
John steps closer.
🗣 John: “Then why did you walk away?”
She looks at him directly.
🗣 Amara: “Because distance changes people.”
She pauses.
🗣 Amara: “You’ll meet new women. New friends. New life. And one day, you may not feel the same.”
🗣 John: “That will never happen.”
She studies him carefully.
🗣 Amara: “Then prove it.”
He frowns slightly.
🗣 John: “How?”
She reaches into her bag slowly.
🗣 Amara: “Let’s make an oath.”
John freezes.
🗣 John: “An oath?”
🗣 Amara: “A promise sealed. So no matter where you go… you won’t marry another woman. You’ll come back for me.”
He stares at her.
Shock.
Concern.
Confusion.
The wind moves between them.

Fear had now found a voice.
Not in accusation.
Not in anger.
But in a demand for proof.
Love wanted assurance.
But assurance, when forced, can awaken consequences no one expects.
Under that tree, their love was about to cross a line neither of them fully understood.

Scripture Reflection – Episode 2
“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” — Proverbs 13:12
“Do not arouse or awaken love until it so desires.” — Song of Solomon 2:7

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