From A Producer To A Global Superstar

Dayo sat behind his desk with the latest report open in front of him, but he had stopped reading it several minutes ago.

The words were still there, the figures were still clear, and Felix was already on his way to give him another update. None of it held his attention.

His mind had moved somewhere else.

He thought about Luna.

Then Jennifer.

The image of his daughter from the previous morning came back to him, especially the way she had reached for him when he finally came home. He had been away too much lately. Even when he was physically around, his attention was usually somewhere else, tied to a phone call, a meeting, a report, or something that could not wait.

A knock sounded at the door.

Felix entered with a tablet in his hand. "Dayo, I have an update on the—"

"Hold on."

Felix stopped.

Dayo looked up from the desk. "Just hold on to it for now."

Felix stared at him for a moment. "Hold on to what?"

"The update."

"I mean, we’re already this close." He held his hand indicating how close.

Dayo leaned back in his chair. "I know."

"Then why are we stopping?"

"We’re pausing."

Felix lowered the tablet slightly. "Pausing what exactly?"

"The whole thing for now."

There was a short silence.

Felix looked at him as though he was waiting for the rest of the sentence to explain itself. When it didn’t, he pulled the chair opposite the desk and sat down.

"You’re serious?"

"I’m serious."

"After everything we’ve done?" Felix asked. "We’re already this close to bringing Michael down. Silas is under pressure. The legal team is handling the material. Why would we stop now?"

Dayo looked toward the window before answering. "Because I have a family."

Felix didn’t interrupt.

"I know what we’re doing matters," Dayo continued. "I know why I started it, and I know what Michael and Silas have done. I’m not changing my mind about that. But I’ve been spending almost every day dealing with this. I’m barely home."

"You’ve been doing this for a reason."

"I know."

"Your family is the reason."

"Exactly."

Felix rested the tablet on his knee. "Then what’s the problem?"

"The problem is that I can’t keep telling myself I’m doing everything for my family while I’m never around them."

The words came out exactly how he wanted it and landed well.

Felix looked down at the tablet for a moment.

Dayo continued before he could answer. "There are things I can leave with other people. The legal team can handle what needs to be handled. The work won’t disappear because I take a little time away from it."

"But—"

"No." Dayo held up his hand.

Felix stopped.

Dayo gave him a tired smile. "There’s no ’but’ here. I’ve made my decision."

Felix sat back.

He was clearly not happy about it, but there was no anger between them. He understood what Dayo was saying. The man sitting across from him had been pushing himself for too long, and even Felix had noticed how often Dayo came into the office tired and left with another problem waiting for him.

After a few seconds, Felix picked up the tablet.

"All right."

Dayo nodded.

"We’ll pause."

"Thank you."

Felix stood and walked toward the door. Before leaving, he turned back. "You know this is probably the first time I’ve seen you choose to leave something unfinished."

Dayo smiled. "It won’t be the last or maybe it would be."

Felix gave him a look, then left.

The room became quiet again.

Dayo stayed behind for another few minutes, finishing nothing.

Eventually, he picked up his phone and sent a short message to the people waiting downstairs.

He didn’t need the driver today.

The security team could take the rest of the day.

He wanted to drive himself.

A few minutes later, Dayo walked out of the building alone.

The afternoon traffic was steady, but there was no urgency in him. He got into the car, started the engine and pulled away from the office without checking another report.

For once, he didn’t care what was happening on the screens.

The drive home was quiet.

Music played low through the speakers as Dayo moved through the city. He stopped at a light, watched people cross the road, then continued when the signal changed.

His thoughts slowly moved away from work.

That was when he saw it.

A red dress stood in the window of a small boutique.

Dayo slowed down.

He looked at it again as he passed, then checked the road ahead before pulling over.

For a moment, he remained in the car.

"This can’t be the one."

He looked through the window from across the street.

The dress was simple enough, but there was something about it that immediately made him think of Luna.

Dayo turned off the engine.

He stepped out and crossed the road.

A small bell sounded when he opened the boutique door.

The woman behind the counter looked up.

Her expression changed almost immediately.

"Oh my God."

Dayo smiled.

"You’re Dayo Jason."

"I am."

She covered her mouth for a moment, then laughed. "Oh my God, you’re actually here."

Dayo looked around the shop. "I’m looking for something."

She was still trying to contain her excitement. "For yourself?"

"No."

Her eyes moved toward the red dress in the window.

"For someone?"

Dayo nodded. "I saw that one."

The woman walked toward the display. "The red one?"

"Yes."

She turned back to him. "That’s a really nice choice."

"I hope so."

"Who is it for?"

Dayo hesitated for half a second. "Someone I love."

The woman’s face softened. "That’s sweet."

She picked up the dress carefully and brought it toward the counter. "Do you know her size?"

"I do."

She waited.

Dayo gave her the size.

The woman looked at him, then back at the dress. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"She’s slim?"

"Yes."

"Then this should work."

Dayo looked at the dress again. "She has a little more shape than that."

The woman laughed. "Okay."

Dayo smiled. "She’s not very big, but she’s..." He paused, searching for the simplest way to explain it. "She’s got curves."

The woman smiled. "I understand."

"Good."

She held the dress against herself briefly to check the length and then placed it on the counter.

"Do you mind if I record this?" she asked. "Just for my page. I won’t do anything without your permission."

Dayo glanced toward the phone she had picked up.

"Sure."

Her face lit up.

She started recording.

"Okay, so I’m here with Dayo Jason, and apparently he came into my shop to buy a dress."

Dayo looked toward the camera. "Apparently?"

She laughed. "You know what I mean."

"I do." Dayo smiled while shaking his head.

The woman turned the camera slightly toward the dress. "So tell me, what made you choose this one?"

Dayo looked at the red fabric. "I saw it and thought of her."

"That’s it?"

"That’s it."

She looked at him through the phone. "That’s actually really cute."

Dayo shook his head with a small smile.

The woman continued recording as she wrapped the dress. "So, are you taking it home tonight?"

"That’s the plan."

"She’s going to love it."

"I hope she does."

"She will."

The recording ended.

The woman put the dress into a bag and handed it to him.

Dayo paid, thanked her and walked back outside.

By the time he returned to the car, the day felt different.

Nothing had changed outside.

Michael was still dealing with the investigation.

Silas was still dealing with his own problems.

The legal team was still working.

All of it could wait.

Dayo placed the dress carefully on the passenger seat and drove home.

The moment he opened the front door, he heard a small voice from the other room.

"Papa."

Dayo stopped.

Jennifer appeared around the corner.

She had started walking more confidently, though her steps were still uneven. The moment she saw him, her face changed and she moved toward him.

"Papa."

Dayo crouched down.

Jennifer hurried forward, took two steps, lost her balance and dropped onto her hands.

Dayo reached her before she could cry.

"I’ve got you."

He picked her up.

Jennifer wrapped her small arms around his neck.

Dayo kissed her cheek. "My daughter."

She laughed and touched his face.

"You missed me?"

"Papa."

"I missed you too."

From farther inside the house, Luna watched them.

She didn’t interrupt.

Dayo carried Jennifer into the room and sat with her for a while. She kept touching his face, pulling lightly at his shirt and trying to say things he could only partly understand.

Luna eventually walked over.

Dayo looked at her and smiled.

"My God."

Luna stopped. "What?"

"You look really nice."

She looked down at herself. "What are you talking about?"

"Nothing."

"You just said I look nice."

"I did."

"Why?"

Dayo shrugged. "Can I not say my love looks nice?"

Luna gave him a suspicious look.

"What’s going on?"

"Nothing."

"You’re smiling."

"I’m allowed to smile."

Luna shook her head. "You’re hiding something."

Dayo looked at Jennifer. "Your mother thinks I’m hiding something."

Jennifer made a sound that sounded almost like a laugh.

"See?" Dayo said. "She agrees with me."

Luna smiled. "What did you buy?"

Dayo looked toward the bag near the door.

"I got you something."

"For me?"

"Yes."

She looked at the bag again. "What is it?"

"You’ll see after dinner."

Luna narrowed her eyes slightly. "Why after dinner?"

"Because."

"That’s not an answer."

"It’s the only one you’re getting."

She laughed quietly and walked away.

Dayo stayed with Jennifer.

The evening moved slowly.

Dinner was simple, and Jennifer kept demanding attention whenever either of them tried to eat. Luna had to move her chair closer when Jennifer started reaching across the table, while Dayo spent half the meal trying to keep his daughter from grabbing things she shouldn’t.

By the time they finished, Dayo realized how long it had been since he had simply sat down and eaten with them without checking his phone.

Nothing urgent had happened.

Nobody had called.

No report had arrived.

For once, that felt good.

Later that evening, Dayo and Luna were in their room.

Jennifer had been settled for the night.

Luna sat on the edge of the bed when Dayo reached for the bag.

"I was wondering when you were going to bring that out."

Dayo smiled.

He handed it to her.

Luna opened the bag carefully.

The red dress appeared beneath the tissue paper.

She stopped.

For a moment, she simply looked at it.

"Oh my God."

Dayo watched her reaction.

"You like it?"

Luna lifted the dress from the bag and held it in front of herself.

"I love it."

Dayo smiled.

"I saw it and thought of you."

Luna looked at him.

"You actually went into a shop and picked this yourself?"

"I did."

She laughed softly. "I wish I had seen that."

"You would’ve embarrassed me."

"I would have."

Dayo stood beside her as she looked at the dress again.

Luna touched the fabric.

"It’s beautiful."

"I’m glad."

She turned toward him, still holding it.

"Thank you."

Dayo leaned closer and kissed her forehead.

"You don’t have to thank me."

Luna smiled.

For the first time in days, neither of them had anywhere else to be.