Its him- Ese thought -the guy on the sidewalk, from yesterday-
She had been curious, wanting to know who Kalu was, so she had fixed her eyes on the door. From the location of the bunk where she was lying down, she could easily see whoever was coming in without being seen by the person, or so she thought. Because though she was able to see the first guy who came in and who also must be Kalu, judging from the awkward hug Teju gave him, she couldn't see the tall lanky guy behind him. He was a bit too tall for her to see him from her bed, the bunks in the room were blocking his face. She could see him up to his neck as he stood by the doorway and she found him somewhat familiar, then she realized it must be the guy from yesterday who was drenched by Ambrose. Her heart rate increased to about 1.5 beats per second. Since the incident yesterday, she had been thinking of him off and on, thinking of the way the expression on his face had changed from shock to annoyance then to something she could not still fathom even after thinking it through several times, all she knew was that she had liked it when he had smiled, then laughed. She could still remember vividly the way his face had lit up when he laughed and waved at her. She had not thought about seeing him again, let alone so soon, and in her room? She believed right then that the saying 'A small world' albeit a cliché, is an understatement.
"This is my friend Pago" Kalu was saying as Teju smiled up at him
"It's nice to finally meet you Pago, I have heard a lot about you from Kalu" she stretched her hand
"Not all good I'm afraid, it's my pleasure too, Teju, to finally meet the lady that has bewitched my good friend" Teju smiled, he shook her hand
"You guys should come on in, you can wait a bit in my corner while I tidy some things up and we would be on our way"
She led them to her corner, where she met Ese already sitting up on her bed
"Meet my friend and bunkie Ese" Teju introduced her
"Ese this is Kalu" they shook hands
"And this is Pago" Ese stretched out her hand for a shake and looked up for the first time. -it's not him-
She could not say if what she felt was relief or disappointment.
The pair of eyes looking at her now was not his. The face was smiling, but it wasn't the smile she had held her breath few seconds ago for, the smile she was expecting was one that seemed to reflect the heart. The face was now looking at her speculatively, and she realised she must have been gawking. She shook his outstretched hand hurriedly and murmured the perfunctory "nice to meet you"
"My pleasure Ese. Why are you not dressed" he asked
She was taken aback by his question "excuse me?"
"I mean is this how you plan to go out, not that it isn't cool or something but compared to your friend here, you look underdressed"
The three of them looked at Pago as if he had suddenly grown a pair of horns. Even Kalu was trying to make sense out of what his friend was saying.
"And who told you I am going out" Ese asked slightly confused
"I thought Kalu told Teju I'd be coming along and she in turn......." Pago trailed off as he turned to look at Kalu straight in the eye, questioningly. Kalu held his gaze for few seconds then looked at Teju. She was looking at him with the what-the-hell-is-your-friend-saying look. At that point Kalu would have gladly smashed Pago's head if he had a weapon. He knew the game Pago was playing but he didn't want to be drawn into it, not when something was at stake, not when Teju was at stake.
"Yes..., no..., ehm...eh" he stuttered. Teju decided to come to the rescue
"I believe Kalu forgot to inform me that you'll be tagging along" she said, giving Pago a plastic smile
"Now, how is that my fault? Pago said, "and it won't be cool for me to just follow you guys without someone of my own, you two will have yourself, I in turn will have no one. I'd just be your chauffeur, but Ese would remedy that if she'd agree to go with us"
Kalu looked at Ese pleadingly "will you please come with us?"
"No, I didn't plan to go out this night and I'm not changing my mind about that" she couldn't allow this tall hunk browbeat her into going out when she didn't feel like it
"It doesn't need planning Ese, you are okay just the way are, it isn't anything formal, it's just a casual evening" Kalu pleaded further.
"If you guys will excuse us, I need to have a word with Ese" Teju cut in as she took Ese's hand and pulled her through the backdoor to the back of the room.
"I'd appreciate it next time if you'd warn me before trying to pull such a stunt. I didn't like the situation you put me through" Kalu whispered to Pago when they were alone
"Come off it bro, you are all shaky and tensed because of this Teju babe. And besides, I never planned it, its not like I knew I would be pulling such a stunt on our way here. You never told me Teju has a friend, a pretty one at that"
"It's because I am just seeing her friend for the first time too, she never told me about her"
"Stop sulking, I need a babe this night too. You can't be having fun while I look on"
Kalu didn't bother to remind Pago of the number of times he had looked on while Pago had had all the fun
"I can't just allow this girl slip off that easily, she is a fresh fish. Anyway, it's just for MOZ 101, isn't it why we are here?"
"Teju is more than just a MOZ 101 babe to me" Kalu said uneasily
"Really? We'll see"
As they got outside the room, Ese turned on Teju
"What's all that about?"
"I don't know either, I was as confused as you were too"
"That guy is so annoyingly presumptuous"
"Yea" Teju acquiesced "but you like him, I noticed the way you gawked at him"
"I admit I was staring at some point, but that was only because he looked very much like someone I..." she trailed off
"Like who?" Teju asked suspiciously
"Like no one, forget it"
"Okay, if you insist. Ese will you reconsider and go out with us?"
"No Teju, I already said I don't feel like going out"
"Pleaessssssse, I promise we won't be out long and if Pago or whatever he calls himself starts misbehaving I'd pounce on him and teach him some home training his mum must have forgotten to add to Upbringing 101"
Teju knew she had her when Ese laughed
"But I am not even well dressed Teju"
"You are okay the way you look, you'll be okay in only wrappers even"
"Don't patronise me please"
"I wasn't patronizing you, I only said that to stress my point. Please dear, say you will come, for me"
"Okay, okay, I will, but I am not promising to be nice to him"
All Teju heard was "okay", she hugged her friend, then kissed her on the cheek and said "Thanks, now let's go inside, we've kept the boys waiting too long."
She had been curious, wanting to know who Kalu was, so she had fixed her eyes on the door. From the location of the bunk where she was lying down, she could easily see whoever was coming in without being seen by the person, or so she thought. Because though she was able to see the first guy who came in and who also must be Kalu, judging from the awkward hug Teju gave him, she couldn't see the tall lanky guy behind him. He was a bit too tall for her to see him from her bed, the bunks in the room were blocking his face. She could see him up to his neck as he stood by the doorway and she found him somewhat familiar, then she realized it must be the guy from yesterday who was drenched by Ambrose. Her heart rate increased to about 1.5 beats per second. Since the incident yesterday, she had been thinking of him off and on, thinking of the way the expression on his face had changed from shock to annoyance then to something she could not still fathom even after thinking it through several times, all she knew was that she had liked it when he had smiled, then laughed. She could still remember vividly the way his face had lit up when he laughed and waved at her. She had not thought about seeing him again, let alone so soon, and in her room? She believed right then that the saying 'A small world' albeit a cliché, is an understatement.
"This is my friend Pago" Kalu was saying as Teju smiled up at him
"It's nice to finally meet you Pago, I have heard a lot about you from Kalu" she stretched her hand
"Not all good I'm afraid, it's my pleasure too, Teju, to finally meet the lady that has bewitched my good friend" Teju smiled, he shook her hand
"You guys should come on in, you can wait a bit in my corner while I tidy some things up and we would be on our way"
She led them to her corner, where she met Ese already sitting up on her bed
"Meet my friend and bunkie Ese" Teju introduced her
"Ese this is Kalu" they shook hands
"And this is Pago" Ese stretched out her hand for a shake and looked up for the first time. -it's not him-
She could not say if what she felt was relief or disappointment.
The pair of eyes looking at her now was not his. The face was smiling, but it wasn't the smile she had held her breath few seconds ago for, the smile she was expecting was one that seemed to reflect the heart. The face was now looking at her speculatively, and she realised she must have been gawking. She shook his outstretched hand hurriedly and murmured the perfunctory "nice to meet you"
"My pleasure Ese. Why are you not dressed" he asked
She was taken aback by his question "excuse me?"
"I mean is this how you plan to go out, not that it isn't cool or something but compared to your friend here, you look underdressed"
The three of them looked at Pago as if he had suddenly grown a pair of horns. Even Kalu was trying to make sense out of what his friend was saying.
"And who told you I am going out" Ese asked slightly confused
"I thought Kalu told Teju I'd be coming along and she in turn......." Pago trailed off as he turned to look at Kalu straight in the eye, questioningly. Kalu held his gaze for few seconds then looked at Teju. She was looking at him with the what-the-hell-is-your-friend-saying look. At that point Kalu would have gladly smashed Pago's head if he had a weapon. He knew the game Pago was playing but he didn't want to be drawn into it, not when something was at stake, not when Teju was at stake.
"Yes..., no..., ehm...eh" he stuttered. Teju decided to come to the rescue
"I believe Kalu forgot to inform me that you'll be tagging along" she said, giving Pago a plastic smile
"Now, how is that my fault? Pago said, "and it won't be cool for me to just follow you guys without someone of my own, you two will have yourself, I in turn will have no one. I'd just be your chauffeur, but Ese would remedy that if she'd agree to go with us"
Kalu looked at Ese pleadingly "will you please come with us?"
"No, I didn't plan to go out this night and I'm not changing my mind about that" she couldn't allow this tall hunk browbeat her into going out when she didn't feel like it
"It doesn't need planning Ese, you are okay just the way are, it isn't anything formal, it's just a casual evening" Kalu pleaded further.
"If you guys will excuse us, I need to have a word with Ese" Teju cut in as she took Ese's hand and pulled her through the backdoor to the back of the room.
"I'd appreciate it next time if you'd warn me before trying to pull such a stunt. I didn't like the situation you put me through" Kalu whispered to Pago when they were alone
"Come off it bro, you are all shaky and tensed because of this Teju babe. And besides, I never planned it, its not like I knew I would be pulling such a stunt on our way here. You never told me Teju has a friend, a pretty one at that"
"It's because I am just seeing her friend for the first time too, she never told me about her"
"Stop sulking, I need a babe this night too. You can't be having fun while I look on"
Kalu didn't bother to remind Pago of the number of times he had looked on while Pago had had all the fun
"I can't just allow this girl slip off that easily, she is a fresh fish. Anyway, it's just for MOZ 101, isn't it why we are here?"
"Teju is more than just a MOZ 101 babe to me" Kalu said uneasily
"Really? We'll see"
As they got outside the room, Ese turned on Teju
"What's all that about?"
"I don't know either, I was as confused as you were too"
"That guy is so annoyingly presumptuous"
"Yea" Teju acquiesced "but you like him, I noticed the way you gawked at him"
"I admit I was staring at some point, but that was only because he looked very much like someone I..." she trailed off
"Like who?" Teju asked suspiciously
"Like no one, forget it"
"Okay, if you insist. Ese will you reconsider and go out with us?"
"No Teju, I already said I don't feel like going out"
"Pleaessssssse, I promise we won't be out long and if Pago or whatever he calls himself starts misbehaving I'd pounce on him and teach him some home training his mum must have forgotten to add to Upbringing 101"
Teju knew she had her when Ese laughed
"But I am not even well dressed Teju"
"You are okay the way you look, you'll be okay in only wrappers even"
"Don't patronise me please"
"I wasn't patronizing you, I only said that to stress my point. Please dear, say you will come, for me"
"Okay, okay, I will, but I am not promising to be nice to him"
All Teju heard was "okay", she hugged her friend, then kissed her on the cheek and said "Thanks, now let's go inside, we've kept the boys waiting too long."
About the Author
Soji Adeola Ayanleke was born about 3 decades ago in Kano.
He studied Electronic and Electrical Engineering at the Obafemi Awolowo
University, Ile-Ife, he speaks Yoruba and Hausa fluently and he is
trying to learn Igbo and Spanish. His hobbies are reading, writing and
playing some indoor games.
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