It was two weeks since my date with Cindy and so far, things were going well. I had also finally gotten over my inability to form coherent sentences around her. She was very outgoing and sometimes made me do silly things just to see her laugh. I was so lost in thought that I was unaware that a small smile had formed across my lips.
"Since when did the diagram of a dissected guinea pig have the same effect as watching a romantic comedy?" I heard Laura ask.
On Friday afternoon after school, I went to the hospital to see my mom. Before heading out, I packed a portion of the lasagna that our neighbour, Mrs Johnson, had sent to us the previous evening. After seeing that my mom would be in the hospital for a while, she took it upon herself to send us a meal every couple of days to keep us stocked up. Neighbours like her were truly a blessing.When I got there, I waited a while in the lobby to check my phone. I'd asked Cindy to call when she got there so that I could introduce her to my mom, but it seemed like she was running late again.
I had worked at Donny's café for about 2 weeks. How would it look if I just quit on them?"That decision is left to you. I'll arrange for a weekly allowance to be sent home while I'm here. I've still got some savings that should come in handy.""But what about the rest of the hospital bills?"
I made routine breakfast which I barely tasted and looked for anything distracting on TV but it held no interest to me. I decided to see if any of my friends were free. I needed to get my mind off Cindy and nothing seemed to help.Thirty minutes later, I was at Domino's with Idris, We waited for Ayo and Laura to show up. We had ordered pizza for the group while we waited.
Next, was the Teddy Bear store which Cindy went crazy in and made me this huge, pink monstrosity of a teddy bear. I decided that I'd give it to Ola first chance I got. I couldn't be caught dead with this thing!Afterwards, we headed out for a bite when it got dark, so I thought it wiser to go home rather than sit at a park late at night and my house was closer. I noticed that her phone had been buzzing for most of the day but she ignored it most of the time so I brushed it off too.
Her eyes opened slowly and she stared at me in disbelief before they flared up in anger. She withdrew her leg and got up in a huff of irritation."I just don't understand you, Michael! Are you even a normal straight male at all? Do you have any idea how many-"She broke off suddenly as if it was something she wasn't supposed to say."How many what, Cindy?"
We went back into the house and I locked the front door this time. I was sure Ola had her key when she returned the next morning. I flinched when Cindy turned around sharply at the sound."It’s for security reasons," I assured her. I led her upstairs to the guest bedroom. Thankfully, it wasn't in a terrible state because Ola usually invited Mara and Alice Johnson over for sleepovers. So, no pile of dirt buried in there from abandonment. I pointed out the bathroom for her and where the extra duvets were kept.
Laura picked up her bag and stood. "I wish I could go too but my mom asked me to be home early," Idris said.."Well, I'm free so I could go with you guys." Ayo piped up.
The surgeon opened up a medical chart before him. I happened to glance at his name tag as I directed my gaze towards the file before him. Dr. O.A Wale. He looked up after he found what I suppose he was looking for."Alright, I have here that your mother was transferred to my unit late last night due to a relapse in her heart condition. We had to carry out an angioplasty which was the quickest we could do because she was in a critical condition. She'll have to stay for a few days so we can check her vital signs but hopefully we will be able to release her soon."
*5 years later*It was the most wonderful time of the year according to the musician, Andy Williams. December 25th was quickly approaching and with less than three days to go, you could feel the excitement in the air. I had booked a ticket from the United States to Nigeria and I was set to return to my home country by Christmas Eve. I had
It was a couple of weeks before our final exams and we studied like crazy. But of course, Idris studied more than anyone else. That guy was like a machine when it came to studies while the rest of us were mere mortals. I had convinced Laura to tutor me in mathematics. It was a subject we all studied despite our different departments at school. It was also the bane of my existence. Laura and I sat on the floor in the sitting room with our mathematics textbooks laid out before us.
I did not know a lot of guys like Michael. Okay, so I did not know a lot of guys, period. Anyway, I had not felt as comfortable around a guy as I did around him. However, the day I saw a movie at the cinema with Michael and his friends, it had all started great until he went to the bathroom and returned agitated. I recalled the uneasy look in his eyes even though he tried to act like everything was okay. I remembered the shock I felt when he grabbed my arm. It made me wonder if there were other sides to him that I had not seen. Well, I guessed everyone had a side to them that other people did
I had only spent a couple of days at my new secondary school but one thing I was sure of was that it was very different from my former school. Everyone here seemed to know each other from somewhere. If it was not kindergarten, it was a primary school, church or they were family friends. I was a stranger in a new place with zero ideas of how I was supposed to survive the new term of school. I was in junior secondary school so you could imagine how it felt to be the new student. People stared when I walked past and they stared some more when we were in class together.
I was livid as I took Kiki out of the hotel and hailed a cab. The cab driver gave us a curious look but didn’t ask any questions. We must have looked a sight to behold. I was furious and it was written plain as day on my face while Kiki was in a wet bathrobe with fear in her expression. I gave the cab driver the address and he drove off. We didn’t speak until we got home and even then I could barely look at her without remembering the scene at the hotel. I did not understand where my innocent 13-year old sister had gone and who this person was in her place. “Caleb,” she whispered with a downcast gaze as her eyes grew misty.“What?” I snapped.“I’m sorry.”“Sorry doesn’t cut it just yet. You have a lot of explaining to do so you better start right now before I lose my temper any further. Tell me how you two met.”“At my friend’s brother’s party.”“Which friend is that?”“Coco, you don’t know her.”“Who is her brother?”“Her brother, Cole is a model, a popular one. Her brother threw a
The night I left town to be out of Donny’s sights was a night I cannot forget in a hurry. Besides, unintentionally scaring Michael and hanging around dark corners of the neighbourhood, I was also afraid of what could happen to me. Coming into town was a risk I had to take for Michael’s sake, especially since I learned that Donny was planning to build up his crime empire again. I had served Donny for several years but I was not sure if my life was safe. After all, I had seen him do many scary things. He had killed before, I saw it happen once. He did not pull the trigger himself but
*A Few Months Later*Michael Damari"That's the last of them," I said as I shut the trunk of the cab and stepped back.
I cleared my throat and tried again. I made my voice as welcoming as possible despite the turmoil of uncertainty that I felt. “I mean, welcome home dad.” “Sit,” he said as he slowly raised the tea cup and took a sip. “Where did you go?”
Cindy ForbesHis sharp gaze settled on me.“What do you mean?” He asked.