female hostel located at the other side
of town (behind the school). Back then while still
in
secondary school, I heard stories of it
being a
place where guys with cars wait outside
the
gate to pick girls of their choice.
Whereas Eko
hostel and other hostels as I later found
out
were newly built private hostels all
around
Abuja hostel.**
—————————————-
As we walked towards the gate leading to
Abuja hostel I got a call from Ella.
Ella: hi
Me: hi, what’s up?
Ella: I’m good. Was expecting your call
Me: I didn’t say I was gonna call you!
Ella: No you didn’t. But I felt you would
have
Me: you pulled a stunt on me and then
jumped on a bike and left after saying
crazy
stuffs and you expected me to call you?
Ella: I apologized in the text I sent.
Me: yea, you did
Ella: so?
Me: so what?
Ella: why haven’t you called me since
then?
Me: I was gonna call. So sup with you?
Ella: I’m good, where are you?
Me: your school.
Ella: Doing what?
Me: came to use to use the internet
Ella: who are you with?
Me: why all these questions?
Ella: nothing. Just wanted to know. Bye.
She ended the call after that. To which
Rose
nowspoke saying “she saw us”
Surprised at the revelation and wondering
where and why she (Rose) didn’t alert me
or
call out to her (Ella) when she saw her.
Or was
she assuming Ella saw us? “she saw us?
Where?” I asked and I stopped walking
“As we left the gossip center” she said as
she
kept walking.
Walking to meet her I asked “so why
didn’t
you call out to her or something?”
“she was inside that Camry that passed
us
when we made the turn from the gossip
center”. A tinted glass silver coloured
Camry
had honked for us to make way from the
road.
Then she added “We quarreled yesterday
when
she got back from the hospital”
Curiosity got the best of me when I asked
“what happened?”
“when I asked about you, she told me
what
happened and that she left you there. I
told
herthat wasn’t cool and she flared up”
she
answered me
“ok” I said dragging the word to suggest
I
wanted her to say more
“I really don’t like people raising their
voices
at me, so it ended with me leaving her
place”
she added
Not sure of what else to say, I said “sorry
about that”
“About what? Fury leave me alone” she
replied
laughing as we entered her hostel
building
“so whose car is that” I asked because
the
silence was now awkward
“Her friend” she answered reaching for
her
purse and pulling out her room key.
Walking past a couple of rooms, we got
to her
door. Turning the key in the keyhole, she
held
the door open for me saying “welcome to
my
humble abode”
Humble was an understatement. The
room was
not only bigger than Ella’s, but also had
its
contents well spaced out. An LG mini
home
theatre system, a hp pavilion laptop, a
reading
table with some books on it and a
reading
lamp, a mini refrigerator. While Ella had
her
hand bags line a section of her wall, I
couldn’t
see any or a single foot ware outside.
Perhaps
there were all arranged in the closed
closet.
Then a dressing table and a normal
female
sized mirror over it.
A single picture of her just right over
where
the home theatre was, and two glass
flower
frame (the type in Ella’s room) hung
separately. Obviously from Jude’s shop
too.
At that point I remembered Jude was the
only
one I had to hang out with for the
weekend
and began to dial his number.
“So what do you think?” she asked after
watching me observe the room.
“Are you a minimalist of some sort?” I
asked
turning to smile at her.
“Not sure I’ll call myself a minimalist,
but I
only keep things that are needed and I
make
use of. I enjoy my space” she said
heading
into the kitchen.
Jude: hehe, sup bro..
Me: Baba..morn sir.
Jude: what’s up.. I guess Frank has left?
Me: yea. Early just about the time the
rain
started.
Jude: ok. So what’s happening?
Me: nothing much. What’s tomorrow
going to
like?
Jude: Nothing much. Shops would be
closed,
but would chill out somewhere. Just
holla in
the afternoon to come pick you up.
Me: No sweats. Thanks
We said our goodbyes and ended the
call.
Rose called out from the kitchen, boiled
or
fried eggs?
“what I’m I having with the eggs?” I
asked
“I’m preparing noddles” she said
Surprised I asked her “thought I was
invited
over for tea?”
“First of all, you weren’t invited, secondly
you
asked what I cooked, to which I offered to
make you tea” she said laughing
“I don’t eat where in places I wasn’t
invited to,
guess I’ll take my leave” I said as I stood
up,
making my way into the kitchen
“Remember to close the door behind you”
she
replied turning to face me as I stepped
into
thekitchen.
A gas cylinder connected to a gas cooker
(one
was of the burners was lit, with a pot on
it
that can be best described as new),
another a
small sized deep freezer, a family sized
electric
oven, cutlery rack, flour mixer, and
medium
sized cupboard.
“wow, you kitchen is richer than your
room. Do
you sleep here? Anyways, I don’t cook,
but I
have a freezer and a mini fridge, i don’t
cook
but I have a has cooker, I don’t cook but
I
have an oven, I…”
“shut up Fury… You talk alot. Yea, I don’t
cook. The freezer is for my baking items,
I
bake cookies, pie and cakes. And
distribute to
people to sell for me. Also when ever any
student contacts me for a birthday cake
and
stuffs like that. So the perishable
ingredients I
make use of, I preserve them in there.”
she
said opening the pot on the gas cooker
To say I was impressed would be an
understatement because not only was I
awe
struck, I was also in love with this girl..
For
real this time. I mean here is a girl who’s
not
just good looking and smart, but
obviously
self reliant. Also I bake myself (paid
some
good money to learn), and for some time
now,
I make extra cash enough to take care of
my
subscription and stuffs.
Turning to see me looking at her in this
“you’re unbelievable” way, she turned
back to
the pot saying “So when ever I manage
to
cook, which i rarely do because of lack of
time
and strength, and with respect to soup or
stew, I just put them in smaller bowls
and
freeze everything. Major reason I eat at
Ella’s”
Finally finding my voice, I asked “but you
need
lots of electricity to power these items!
Besides the terrible low voltage, you guys
don’t seem to have regularly power
supple
here”
“Sure, I have a power generating set at
the
back of my room. It powers about 5
rooms on
this floor. They all contribute to the
fueling. I
don’t bake daily, but when I do, I mix the
previous evening and if I’m making use
of the
electric oven, only mu room gets the
light”
“so where did you learn all these?” the
main
question i was dying to ask but couldn’t
was
how did you get all the items, but
fortunately
she answered them without me asking
“Late mum. This are or were her stuffs. I
just
chartered a car to bring them here for
me.
Though dad bought the generator for me,
because they use the other one back
home”
she said as she went around the kitchen
getting one item or the other.
“sorry about your mum” I said
“thanks” she replied, in a way to suggest
hurt.
If i was nursing any thought of bedding
her, it
went out her kitchen window as i was
now
genuinely interested in knowing who
Rose
was. So i asked another question “so how
do
you cope? I mean school work and all
these?”
“You still haven’t told me how you like
your
eggs” she said ignoring my question
“I dunno.. Anyhow you prepare it, I’ll eat
it” i
said not sure of what to say.
She looked at me in a way to suggest my
demeanor had changed and asked “are
you
ok?” as she broke some eggs and began
to stir
“me? I’m good. Just hungry!”I replied in
a way
that suggested I wasn’t sure if what I
had just
said
Just then power supply was restored and
I
excused myself to fo and plug my laptop.
After
powering it on and it finally, booting, I
plugged the home theatre auxiliary cable
and
began playing my Yanni playlist
Minutes later she came out with a tray, a
plate noddles and fried eggs. Two forks
by the
side. Dropping it down, she said “Yanni,
volts
in 7/8″
Surprised I asked her how she knew the
artist
an track playing “His albums are just
about
the only cds in my Dad’s car”
Then she went towards the mini fridge to
bring
a can malt drink and a sachet of water.
“Breakfast is served, shift your as§ down
here
let’s eat” she ordered.
Picking up my fork, I was about to begin
eating when she took the sachet water,
tore it
open a drank a little from it. Which made
me
ask “so where’s my own water?, besides, I
was
expecting tea?”
“The malt is for you” she replied as she
began
to eat
“Are you planning to make me fat like
you?”
immediately I regretted the statement.
But calmly she answered “No”
This made me apologize saying “hey, it
was
meant to be a joke, no offence”
To which she replied “none taken.
Besides,
fattening you a little won’t hurt” she took
a
sip of water before adding “Fury eat”
Damn, this girl sure knows how to put
someone at ease. Yet to have a taste, i
made
my observation known, “you haven’t
eaten
anything, but the water is almost
finished”
“Gosh, Fury just eat please” she said as
she
stood up and went to the fridge to bring
two
more sachets. Placing one in front of me,
she
kept the other to herself.
I began to eat…
T.B.C
