she walked briskly
almost increasing her pace
she wanted to get to sonia before she was done with lunch at the canteen
she pushed open the door and walked in
scanning the entire area ,,her gaze fell upon two familiar figures by the far left corner
she walked over to them
“hey!”
sonia looked up and saw halima’s snorty face
“I need to speak with you in private”
she said
looking at jessy…probably expecting her to excuse them
jessy who was sitting beside sonia revved up and said
“what is so private that you cant say to my hearing”
“its not something I’d like a third personality to know about” halima replied her
jessy was about to say something when sonia stopped her and said
“its ok jess,,,just excuse me for a moment”
instead sonia stood up and walked halima to a corner
when they reached
sonia said
“so ,,,what’s it about?”
halima peered into her
“um Look…I just wanna clarify something,,,so I guess I’ll just go straight to the point,,,”
she paused
then asked
“what exact relationship do you have with Muna?”
sonia was dumbfounded
the question hit her like a brickwall
what kind of relationship did she and Muna share
brother and sister relationship?
companionship?
one sided love?
what exact relationship do they have
what did Muna think of her
well as far as she knew…
Muna cared about her and would do anything for her
but that was it!
nothing further than that
they had grown together
he had known her since
and she had now become like a sister to him
even her mother calls him her son
so what would she say shares with Muna …
her feelings were not enough
her looks would never be compared to this girl standing in front of her…
so what exactly does she have to offer
sonia opened her mouth and said
“he is my friend”
halima revved
she had heard this same word from a lot of people
claiming they are “good friends”
but she had to clarify the issue once and for all
“I just don’t want any misunderstanding between us,,,cos I don’t want to be seen as an imposer,,,so I’ll ask you directly,,,are the both of you dating”
sonia shook her head
“we’re not,,,we are just friends”
halima thought for a while…
“sonia,,,do you have feelings for him”
she was dumbstruck again
that was the money question right there
and there is the truth
the fact , which remained that
it wasn’t just feelings
it was deeper than that…an unexplainable bond since the very first day she set eyes on Muna…
the very first day the old man picked a little boy from the streets and brought him into his home…
she was sitted outside her house playing with her doll
when she saw the old man walking down the street
she was about to get up and go greet him
but she stopped when she saw a boy being carried by the man
the unreadable expression of the kid fascinated her
the way he waved goodbye at her fascinated her
she wondered how someone would smile and wave at someone you don’t even know…
her curiousity got the best of her
she kept tabs on Muna from that day on but nothing shocked her or bonded her more to Muna more than the day which she found herself running errands but wandered off and got caught in the wrong alley…known for notorious neighborhood thugs…
sonia was frightened to death
a little girl in the midst of wolves,,,she felt repelled
even though she was a little bit grown at that time barely puberty age but it was still wrong
why were they looking at her like that
it was wrong
it wasn’t until a man touched her shoulders and pulled her close that
a tiny boy ran forward and tried pushing him away
up till now she wouldn’t know what gave Muna the courage
barely 14 at that time but yet he…
halima broke of her thought
“sonia pls be honest,,,I need to know if I am disrupting anything going on”
sonia had a gloom
expression as she slowly shook her head
halima asked again
“are you sure?”
sonia hesitantly nodded
halima gave her a quizzing Look
like she wasn’t convinced
the suggestive way sonia acted when she saw Muna and her together raised her objectiveness
and also
she got bothered by the fact that when she called Muna that night
sonia picked the call
she could tell it was her
it was her voice
a lot of things ran through her mind at the time
what were they doing at the same place at that late time of the night
what was Muna doing to her with his hands that he couldn’t pick up his own phone
ok if they werent doing anything
why would a guy let a girl pick up his phone if they hadn’t any kind of deep relationship
halima then said
“Look I just wanted you to understand that,,,at first ,,,I had a bet with rita,,but as things went on,,,i started to fall for him, ,honestly sonia I’ve never felt this way about any guy before,,,its a feeling I can’t explain”
blinking
“so I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t causing A rift here.,,Muna doesn’t talk much so,,,I couldn’t ask him,,,but girl to girl now,,,I need to know that there is no problem with me proceeding, I really like him and I’ll really appreciate it if you are honest with me cos,,,it seems as if there’s something between you two,,,although I’m not clear about it”
well that does it
sonia couldn’t find the right words
what good would come out if she said her mind
it wouldn’t make any difference
things would still remain the same
“there is no problem halima,,,he is my good friend,,and I’m happy if he is finally happy”
her own words stung her heart
like needles piercing through
she selflessly denied it
she did what she thought was best for the both of them
what she thought was best for him
there is no way she could compete with halima
she had it all
rich parents,,lavish lifestyle
and beauty beyond measure
what did she(sonia) have
absolutely nothing!
what could she offer
Muna deserved better
and halima was definitely better
after a while,,,they ended their chat and parted aways…but halima had said thank you to sonia for her honesty
she even offered that they should be friends and made to hug her
which sonia openly accepted
she had a blank expression on her face as she walked back to her sit
jessy had quizzing look roaming all over her she asked
“well that took a while,,,what were you guys keenly talking about”
sonia looked up at her friends face
what would she say to her now…
if jessy realised what she just did…
she’ll probably hurt her
right here right now
…
…
The bell rang for closing time
all the students packed up and headed to their different homes
halima had an uplifted slightly happy mood as she packed up her stuff
she had cleared up the air between her and sonia and was really looking forward to spend time with Muna
she planned to walk home together with Muna so she could probably tell him her mind on the way…
but he had left even before they rang the bell, all the cleansweep boys had dissapeared, she wondered where they always go to and what they usually do
so then she decided it would be later in the evening when she goes to his place to work on their project
she would tell him her mind and let him know how she feels
she smiled to herself
at the prospects of the outcome
she was quite confident of it but then again like a bad viibe
Tamuno appeared by her desk the moment she was done parking
he winked at her
and she buffed
he then said
“what’s up”
she nodded
“so how about we go have some fun tonight” he said
she rolled her eyez at him
“must everything about you be only about fun all the time”
Tamuno shrugged his shoulders
“well yeah I’m young,, I’m rich,, what else,,life is about fun tho,,,”
she rolled her eyes again
he then said
“someone like you should know,,,I mean,,,you’re in my shoes too,,your parents are really rich,,you’re beatiful,,you’ve got it all,,,so why not just hang out with me”
she lingered on his statements
perhaps everyone thought that way too,,
perhaps people thought she was still rich
that her parents still bought expensive stuff and go to exotic places…
at that moment
halima felt withdrawn
she started thinking of home again
she revved up and made to leave
“hey where you going!,,,what about my requests”
Tamuno queried her
she calmly replied him
“I’ve got something important to do this evening”
she excused herself
Tamuno looked puzzled after her,,,
what could be so important
what could be more important than him…
**
Muna made sure he had held billz locked safely within his legs before he settled to attack his left ear
the ticks on the dog was starting to multiply and it was really beginning to worry him
“should I be buying disinfectant for you everyday eh billz”
bills looked at him with his two big eyes like duh!
who knows what was going through the puppy’s mind
*well duh,,,its your responsibility,,,I’m your dog*
he and the guys had to leave school
earlier to see if they could secure a spot on a band show coming up in gwaza city
this wasn’t an ordinary thing
it was like the biggest band event in the country
if not the entire west africa
international personalities would be present at the event
A band could even get the chance to get signed to a legit record label, that was their biggest dream
it would be a one in a lifetime opportinity happening nowhere else than in gwaza city, but then again,,,
*that place tho*
Muna thought,,,thinking of the history they’ve had with that city but he brushed off the idea, atleast this will give them a chance to fully establish themselves
*luck is shining upon us*
Muna thought
thank God for Dre
it was he who saw the advert on the wall and carefully tore it out
he took it to muna’s house and they studied the details properly divinely!
Muna was about to settle for the next ear as he turned billz to the other side a knock came on his door…
he wondered what yaro could be looking for
he had already paid him and returned his plates
so what then
he moved bills away
and dusted off the dog hairs from his body
and went for the door
he hinged it open but was surprised at what he saw
the two people standing outside his door was quite unexpected
so how come
Tbc
