From A Producer To A Global Superstar-Chapter 391: My Family Are Leaving?

The drive back from the studio was quieter than the earlier trip there. The city outside the window had settled into its evening rhythm, the streets still alive but no longer chaotic. Headlights stretched across the road in long moving lines while distant music from roadside bars mixed with the occasional honk of impatient drivers. Dayo sat in the back seat with one arm resting near the window, watching Lagos pass by in slow motion.

The studio session had lasted longer than he expected, and even though the work had gone well, the exhaustion that came after creative focus had started creeping into his muscles. It was not the kind of tiredness that came from labor. It was the kind that arrived when your mind had been active for too long and suddenly everything slowed down.

The collaboration song was finished. The rollout strategy was decided. Davido’s album sounded strong. Everything was moving exactly the way it needed to move.

But now that he was away from the studio lights and speakers, the quiet of the car allowed his thoughts to settle.

Outside, Lagos came to life as everywhere was bright after all Lagos was known as a city that never slept.

Vendors stood beside glowing roadside grills. Small kiosks lit by yellow bulbs sold drinks and snacks to late customers. A group of young men laughed loudly outside a shop while arguing about football. Motorcycles darted through traffic like impatient fish weaving through a crowded river.

Dayo watched it all without speaking.

When the car finally pulled into the compound of the house he had been staying in, the gate opened slowly and the driver rolled the car forward before stopping near the entrance. Dayo stepped out and stretched slightly, feeling the stiffness in his shoulders from sitting too long.

Before he could even reach the door, it opened.

Jeffrey stood there with his arms crossed and an exaggerated look of disbelief on his face.

"Ah ah."

Dayo raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

Jeffrey shook his head slowly while stepping aside to let him enter.

"So you still remember you have house abi?"

Dayo laughed quietly.

"Don’t start."

Another voice came from deeper inside the living room.

"No, let him start."

Dayo stepped fully inside and saw Janet sitting on one couch with her phone in hand, while Sharon was seated nearby, watching everything with a small smile. Abishola was also there, adjusting the edge of her wrapper as she looked up at him, and Jason, his dad, sat calmly in his usual place with the kind of quiet expression that always made it hard to tell whether he was amused already or simply waiting. A little farther in, Deborah was seated close to Janet, her attention fully on Dayo the moment he entered.

The teasing expressions on almost all their faces told him immediately what kind of conversation this was about to become.

Janet spoke first.

"You came all the way from the United States to Nigeria for a wedding together o ," she complained in a small voice. After all, Dayo was meant to make it up to her and Deborah.

Jeffrey continued immediately.

"After the wedding finished, you vanished."

Janet pointed dramatically at him.

"Gone."

Deborah lifted her small hand and joined in with a grin.

"Disappeared."

Dayo walked toward the couch and dropped into a seat with a tired smile

"I didn’t disappear and which one you doing repeating synonyms eh ?."

Dayo laughed.

Jeffrey leaned forward.

"Really?"

Dayo nodded.

"I’ve been working."

Janet scoffed.

"Working where? Because we don’t see you."

Deborah laughed softly.

"You came for wedding, then suddenly Lagos carried you."

Even Sharon shook her head, amused.

Dayo rubbed the side of his face and smiled.

"It’s not like that."

Jason finally spoke, his voice calm and steady.

"Then explain."

That made the room settle a little.

Dayo sighed lightly and leaned back.

"You already know I’m working on something here."

They did know. Even if they did not know every single detail, they had seen enough online and heard enough conversations around them to understand that Dayo’s trip to Nigeria had turned into something much bigger than anyone expected.

Abisola smiled and asked.

"That collaboration?"

Dayo nodded once.

"Among other things."

Deborah whistled softly.

"We saw the videos online."

Janet raised her phone and waved it slightly.

"You are everywhere now."

"As usual nah we are not suprise."

Dayo chuckled quietly.

"It’s not that serious."

That response immediately triggered laughter across the room.

Jeffrey pointed at him.

"You say it’s not that serious, but Nigerian blogs are shouting your name every day we came to nigeria not more than two weeks o ."

Janet added with amusement, "And we are here in the same house barely seeing you."

Abishola finally spoke, though the warmth in her tone did not stop the teasing.

"At least greet properly before they drag you finish."

That brought another short wave of laughter.

Dayo straightened up a little.

"Good evening, Mum."

Abishola nodded.

"Hmm."

He turned his head slightly.

"Good evening, Dad."

Jason gave a calm nod.

"Welcome back."

Then toward Janet and Jeffrey.

"And both of you, rest."

That only made them laugh harder.

Janet leaned back.

"See him."

Jeffrey shook his head.

"No, answer us first."

Dayo lifted both hands slightly in surrender.

"Okay. That one is my fault."

The teasing softened after that. It was no longer an interrogation, just the relaxed conversation that happened when people close to you knew you were genuinely occupied with something important.

Abishola stood up and walked toward the kitchen area. A few moments later she returned with a drink and handed it to Dayo.

"Drink first."

Dayo accepted it.

"Thanks, Mum youre the only one who cares hehe."

This earned him a glare but he just shrugged.

Sharon watched him for a second before speaking again.

"So how long are you actually staying?"

Dayo paused before answering.

"I’m not completely sure yet."

The room reacted instantly.

"Eh?"

Janet stared at him.

"That means longer."

Dayo shrugged.

"There are still things happening here."

Jason looked at him properly now.

"You might not return to the U.S. with us?"

Dayo shook his head slightly.

"Probably not immediately."

That answer brought a brief silence.

The joking faded just enough for the question underneath it to show more clearly.

Jeffrey broke the silence.

"You remember something important is coming up in the U.S. soon, right?"

Dayo already knew what he meant.

"The national competition."

Jeffrey nodded.

"That one."

Dayo knew that too. The national competition in the United States was not something people entered casually.

Sharon asked carefully, "You’re still planning to enter, right?"

Dayo nodded slowly.

"Yes."

"When?"

"After things settle here After all i am Olympic champion so it shouldn’t be a problem."

Hearing this everyone couldn’t help but scoff they have gotten use to Dayo’s ways of bragging.

Jeffery scoffed. "Dont forget i am competitive and you’re in race with me so dont slack coach said i have a chance to win you."

Dayo smriked hearing this indeed his brother has talent but not up to him but he wouldn’t make him less confidence.

"Alright we would see about that i would beat you hands down."

"Hehe we would after all you haven’t been training you have slacked unlike me I would show you."

Dayo just smiled at this without saying much.

Abishola, who had gone back to sit down, looked at him with the same mixture of concern and pride she had been carrying ever since everything started changing around him.

"So you want to finish the work here first."

"Yes."

Jason gave a slow nod.

"That makes sense."

Deborah smiled.

"Finish what you started here first."

The tension in the room faded again after that.

They talked for another twenty minutes, the conversation drifting between jokes, small stories, and casual questions about the work he was doing. Dayo did not explain everything in detail, but he answered enough that they could understand the situation without feeling shut out.

As the conversation went on, it became clear why they had really waited for him that evening. It was not to say goodbye. It was to see him before they left the next day.

Jeffrey was the one who brought it up first.

"We’re leaving tomorrow anyway, so if we didn’t corner you today, who knows when we’d catch you again?"

Dayo looked up.

"Tomorrow?"

Janet nodded.

"Yes. Me, Jeffrey,Mum and Dad. We’re going tomorrow."

Deborah spoke up quickly.

"I’m staying."

Janet glanced at her and smiled.

"Nope you’re going back to school so you stay with Janet."

Sharon said strictly.

Janet pouted.

"Deborah will stay with your family. We’ve known each other too long for that to even feel strange now. Besides, I’m staying here."

Dayo looked toward Sharon.

"Because of work."

She nodded. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"I’m your assistant. Where else would I be?"

That made him laugh softly.

"Fair."

Abishola shook her head with a small smile.

"So now the ones that are leaving are the ones you should pity. Sharon will still see you every day."

Janet immediately pointed at Sharon.

"Exactly. That’s not fair."

Jeffrey added, "She gets full access. We get nothing."

Dayo leaned back and smiled.

"You people are acting like I’m going off-grid."

Janet folded her arms.

"You practically always do."

Deborah nodded dramatically.

"He does."

This time even Sharon did not defend him.

"You’ve been hard to catch."

Dayo sighed with a smile.

"Okay. Fine. I’ve been busy."

Jason looked at him for a moment, then said calmly, "That part we know."

The room quieted a little at that.

Jason was not criticizing him. If anything, there was quiet understanding in his tone.

Abishola softened too.

"We know you work hard," she said. "That’s why nobody is really angry. We just wanted to see you properly."

Janet’s voice lost some of its earlier complaint.

"We’ll miss you, that’s all."

Jeffrey nodded.

"Seriously. Once you enter work mode, you become restless. You barely sit still."

Deborah smiled as she looked at Dayo.

"It’s like your body is always already on the next thing."

Sharon watched him quietly for a second before speaking.

"That’s why I’m glad this house is at least giving you somewhere calm to return to."

Dayo looked around at all of them, and for a brief moment the teasing gave way to something warmer.

"I know," he said quietly. "And I appreciate it."

That simple answer was enough.

Eventually Abisola checked the time again and groaned.

"We should actually sleep if we’re traveling tomorrow."

Jeffrey stood up and stretched.

"True."

Abishola rose next, smoothing her wrapper again.

"Don’t keep him up too long."

Jason stood more slowly than the rest.

Deborah remained seated for a second longer before finally standing and moving closer to Janet.

Sharon stayed where she was, relaxed, because unlike the others, she was not going anywhere the next day.

Jeffrey stepped closer first and tapped Dayo lightly on the shoulder.

"Try and rest too."

Janet came next.

"And don’t vanish for another three days."

Dayo laughed.

"I’ll try."

Abishola looked at him with the familiar mixture of warmth and concern only a mother could hold so naturally.

"Eat before you sleep."

"Mum."

"I’m serious."

That made Janet laugh.

Jason gave him a calm nod.

"Do what you need to do here. Just don’t neglect yourself while doing it."

Dayo nodded back.

"I won’t."

Deborah smiled at him.

"At least with me here, Janet won’t be too bored missing you."

Janet frowned at her immediately.

"Excuse me? I’m not the one missing him more."

Deborah laughed.

"I didn’t say that."

Jeffrey looked between them and shook his head.

"See these two."

Even Sharon smiled at that.

Then, one by one, the moment began to break apart naturally.

"Rest when you can. Tomorrow will still be busy."

Dayo sat there for a moment, letting the quiet settle around him.

The teasing voices had faded. The casual laughter had thinned out. Somewhere deeper in the house, he could still hear movement. A door opened. Another closed. Janet and Deborah’s voices rose briefly, then disappeared again into another room. Sharon was still around. The family was still here, just not all in the same space now.

He stood slowly and walked toward the window.

From there he could see part of the street outside the compound wall. Cars passed occasionally, their headlights sliding briefly across the pavement before disappearing again.

Lagos never truly slept.

He leaned lightly against the window frame.

In the span of just a few days, everything had started moving faster than expected.

The collaboration song was finished.

Davido’s album rollout had changed.

The internet was already buzzing about the snippet.

And somewhere ahead of all of that was the national competition waiting for him in the United States.

Dayo exhaled quietly.

A lot was coming.

But for the moment, the night was calm.

And for the first time that day, he allowed himself to simply stand there and enjoy the quiet before the next wave of noise arrived.