The girls didn't know the school as much as the guys, so Teju simply asked to be taken to "anywhere nice". Pago drove while Kalu sat in the front, the girls took the backseat. He took them to the Students' Union Building
" the restaurant here is cool and quiet, a nice venue for a quiet evening. Unlike New Buka that is always noisy" he had said. But the real reason he had chosen here was not because of the noise, it was because of Cynthia. Although they both had an understanding, she had been behaving weird lately, going mushy mushy on him. He didn't want to risk her seeing him with another girl just hours after leaving her bed.
Kalu saw through the reasons Pago gave
- when did noise start becoming an issue with Pago- he thought.
Pago had always thrived on noise. He even makes it when he feels the environment is too quiet.
They ordered at the counter, and took their meals to a table at the far end of the restaurant. Ese was quiet most of the time, she only spoke when spoken to. She observed as she ate her meal that Kalu was the chatty type and he is also kinda funny. Teju laughed at all his jokes even those that appeared silly to Ese. "
Many Yoruba words were gotten from Igbo" he was saying
"Do you know how the word "were" come to mean a mad person in Yoruba?" He asked
"No, let's here it" Teju urged
"It was said that the Yoruba people didn't know what to call mad people, not until a mad man from the east managed to cross the Niger and found himself in Yoruba land. He always had this sack with him with lots of trash worthy items in it and he would offer these items to the Yoruba kids saying 'were' mean 'take' in Igbo. Later the kids started giving him trash too and saying "were" to him too. They soon started calling him 'were'"
Teju and Kalu burst out laughing when he was through
Ese too smiled and said "that was meant to be joke right? It didn't actually happen?"
"No, it didn't. Actually... I made it up"
"Oh! That's brilliant of you, you'll make a good comedian" Teju cooed
Ese rolled her eyes in her mind. Make it as a comedian? Now her friend was taking the praises too far. It's not like the 'were' joke was exactly funny
"Thanks, but I'd rather be a doctor" Kalu said
"I thought you are only studying that because your dad is a doctor" Teju said
"Initially that was the reason, he chose the course for me, but I soon developed interest in it. I see it as a passion now"
"Just like my own father is making me study Elect/Elect Engineering" Pago not wanting to be left out, cut in
"That was what he studied too, and what he started with before he decided to diversify into other stuffs like...."
There was no stopping Pago whenever he started talking. He told them about his dad's companies and achievements, then moved on to the summer holidays he himself had spent outside the country and the number of countries he had visited.
In a weird way, Ese found Pago interesting. She normally didn't like braggers, but there was something about this particular braggadocio that made her want to listen to him even though she also lived his kind of life and had visited many of the countries he mentioned.
"If you go to most beaches in Valletta, the capital city of Malta, you'll think they are having a sunbathing competition because of the number of people of different colors, ages and shapes you'll see lying under the Mediterranean sun in various degrees of undress. I only go there for sightseeing or window shopping"
"What do you window shop in a beach?" Ese asked him with a confused look on her face
"What else, but the sunbathers" he replied and they all laughed
Pago wasn't just a bragger, he was an intelligent bragger. He knew how to hold an audience, and he had lots of stories to tell. It was as if the other three by way of a silent consensus allowed him to continue without interrupting him. They only talked when they had questions to ask and the number of questions asked dwindled as the night stretched.
At some point, Ese said they had better start going because she was starting to feel sleepy. Pago protested but he couldn't make them stay longer since Teju wanted to leave too.
Kalu drove this time and Teju sat with him in the front while Pago and Ese sat at the back.
"I had a great night" Pago whispered to Ese
"Surprisingly, I did too. I didn't expect I would" she replied
"There is no dull moment with me my dear"
"I am not gonna argue that"
"Anyway, I wanna thank you for coming"
-oh! He's got some manners after all-
"I had no choice, you practically blackmailed me into coming. You don't play fair Pago"
He chuckled "No, I don't. By the way, I like the way you say my name, you say it with a sweet accent"
"It's a good thing you like it, because I know I am not saying it rightly"
"Whichever way you say it is right by me querida"
"Now what does that mean"
"Querida means 'My dear' in Español. I knew the moment I set my eyes on you that we are going to be friends and hopefully something more, you must know that I find you very attractive, it's like I have been waiting for you to be admitted into the school. Little wonder I had no luck with the opposite sex in my first year"
"How many girls have you used that line for?" She asked smiling
"It isn't a line, just my heart speaking"
"I am not into the relationship thing now, not at the moment" she said but he could see from her eyes that his compliments pleased her
"I guess I am asking for too much too early, but can we be friends Ese?"
"I've got no problem with being friends"
"Good, I'll have to make do with that for now."
The car stopped and Pago realized they were already in anglomoz
-shit- he cursed in his mind
As Ese made for the door he held her hand and asked
"Can we do this again tomorrow evening? Just you and I"
"No, I'll be busy, I have a lot of things to do. I'm still trying to settle down"
"What about the day after tomorrow?"
"I will be busy throughout the week, so don't hold your breath"
"I am sure you'll find time, we can work something out"
"Suit yourself" she said, shrugging, then hurriedly got out of the car to meet her friend who was already out, before he could stop her again.
Pago got out to move to the front as the girls waved at them.
"How far?" Kalu asked as he turned the steering "I heard both of you whispering"
"She is stubborn, but she will fall I know" Pago said confidently
Kalu took a deep sigh "will you please stay away from her Pago? I don't want you hurting her, not when she is Teju's friend"
"Oga abeg carry us go house, you and dis Teju babe sef" Kalu was silent as he drove towards the quarters.
***
" the restaurant here is cool and quiet, a nice venue for a quiet evening. Unlike New Buka that is always noisy" he had said. But the real reason he had chosen here was not because of the noise, it was because of Cynthia. Although they both had an understanding, she had been behaving weird lately, going mushy mushy on him. He didn't want to risk her seeing him with another girl just hours after leaving her bed.
Kalu saw through the reasons Pago gave
- when did noise start becoming an issue with Pago- he thought.
Pago had always thrived on noise. He even makes it when he feels the environment is too quiet.
They ordered at the counter, and took their meals to a table at the far end of the restaurant. Ese was quiet most of the time, she only spoke when spoken to. She observed as she ate her meal that Kalu was the chatty type and he is also kinda funny. Teju laughed at all his jokes even those that appeared silly to Ese. "
Many Yoruba words were gotten from Igbo" he was saying
"Do you know how the word "were" come to mean a mad person in Yoruba?" He asked
"No, let's here it" Teju urged
"It was said that the Yoruba people didn't know what to call mad people, not until a mad man from the east managed to cross the Niger and found himself in Yoruba land. He always had this sack with him with lots of trash worthy items in it and he would offer these items to the Yoruba kids saying 'were' mean 'take' in Igbo. Later the kids started giving him trash too and saying "were" to him too. They soon started calling him 'were'"
Teju and Kalu burst out laughing when he was through
Ese too smiled and said "that was meant to be joke right? It didn't actually happen?"
"No, it didn't. Actually... I made it up"
"Oh! That's brilliant of you, you'll make a good comedian" Teju cooed
Ese rolled her eyes in her mind. Make it as a comedian? Now her friend was taking the praises too far. It's not like the 'were' joke was exactly funny
"Thanks, but I'd rather be a doctor" Kalu said
"I thought you are only studying that because your dad is a doctor" Teju said
"Initially that was the reason, he chose the course for me, but I soon developed interest in it. I see it as a passion now"
"Just like my own father is making me study Elect/Elect Engineering" Pago not wanting to be left out, cut in
"That was what he studied too, and what he started with before he decided to diversify into other stuffs like...."
There was no stopping Pago whenever he started talking. He told them about his dad's companies and achievements, then moved on to the summer holidays he himself had spent outside the country and the number of countries he had visited.
In a weird way, Ese found Pago interesting. She normally didn't like braggers, but there was something about this particular braggadocio that made her want to listen to him even though she also lived his kind of life and had visited many of the countries he mentioned.
"If you go to most beaches in Valletta, the capital city of Malta, you'll think they are having a sunbathing competition because of the number of people of different colors, ages and shapes you'll see lying under the Mediterranean sun in various degrees of undress. I only go there for sightseeing or window shopping"
"What do you window shop in a beach?" Ese asked him with a confused look on her face
"What else, but the sunbathers" he replied and they all laughed
Pago wasn't just a bragger, he was an intelligent bragger. He knew how to hold an audience, and he had lots of stories to tell. It was as if the other three by way of a silent consensus allowed him to continue without interrupting him. They only talked when they had questions to ask and the number of questions asked dwindled as the night stretched.
At some point, Ese said they had better start going because she was starting to feel sleepy. Pago protested but he couldn't make them stay longer since Teju wanted to leave too.
Kalu drove this time and Teju sat with him in the front while Pago and Ese sat at the back.
"I had a great night" Pago whispered to Ese
"Surprisingly, I did too. I didn't expect I would" she replied
"There is no dull moment with me my dear"
"I am not gonna argue that"
"Anyway, I wanna thank you for coming"
-oh! He's got some manners after all-
"I had no choice, you practically blackmailed me into coming. You don't play fair Pago"
He chuckled "No, I don't. By the way, I like the way you say my name, you say it with a sweet accent"
"It's a good thing you like it, because I know I am not saying it rightly"
"Whichever way you say it is right by me querida"
"Now what does that mean"
"Querida means 'My dear' in Español. I knew the moment I set my eyes on you that we are going to be friends and hopefully something more, you must know that I find you very attractive, it's like I have been waiting for you to be admitted into the school. Little wonder I had no luck with the opposite sex in my first year"
"How many girls have you used that line for?" She asked smiling
"It isn't a line, just my heart speaking"
"I am not into the relationship thing now, not at the moment" she said but he could see from her eyes that his compliments pleased her
"I guess I am asking for too much too early, but can we be friends Ese?"
"I've got no problem with being friends"
"Good, I'll have to make do with that for now."
The car stopped and Pago realized they were already in anglomoz
-shit- he cursed in his mind
As Ese made for the door he held her hand and asked
"Can we do this again tomorrow evening? Just you and I"
"No, I'll be busy, I have a lot of things to do. I'm still trying to settle down"
"What about the day after tomorrow?"
"I will be busy throughout the week, so don't hold your breath"
"I am sure you'll find time, we can work something out"
"Suit yourself" she said, shrugging, then hurriedly got out of the car to meet her friend who was already out, before he could stop her again.
Pago got out to move to the front as the girls waved at them.
"How far?" Kalu asked as he turned the steering "I heard both of you whispering"
"She is stubborn, but she will fall I know" Pago said confidently
Kalu took a deep sigh "will you please stay away from her Pago? I don't want you hurting her, not when she is Teju's friend"
"Oga abeg carry us go house, you and dis Teju babe sef" Kalu was silent as he drove towards the quarters.
***
A girl on a lower bunk bed in block K room 7 Mozambique hall was finding it hard to sleep, images of a tall, lean and muscular body kept intruding her mind whenever she closed her eyes. The problem was not really the body, for the body was clear. The problem was the face or faces. The position of the faces who seemed to be fighting for supremacy in her head gave her her longest spell of insomnia.
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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