Must Read: Selfless Desires - Season 1 - Episode 5

7 years ago

Must Read: Selfless Desires - Season 1 - Episode 5

Ama walked into the Adedeji Construction company, she saw Awesome coming towards her direction
In a terribly heart-thumping moment, he walked past her ‘You’re here to submit your resignation letter,right?’ He asked. ‘Please, drop it over there!’ Awesome said calmly.
Ama stood rooted to the ground, She was looking at him like he was from another planet. She found her tongue tied. She doesn’t know how to tell him that she needs his help.
‘Let’s talk please’ She blurted out.
‘I don’t have the time, I’m screening and interviewing job applicant, and that is supposed to be your job, so…’
‘It’s important, please’ She said pleadingly.
The urgency in her tone and the sad look she was wearing gave him away and his next word came as a surprise.
‘Okay, Go ahead!’
‘Thanks! It’s about Uj….

She was interjected by a staff from the Research and Interview department.
‘Mr Awesome, your attention is needed, downstairs’ The young lady said and smoothed down her well-ironed skirt.’Hi, Ama’ She concluded, while Ama simply waved at her.
‘Uhm…I will be there in a moment’ Awesome said.
The young lady nodded and left.
‘Uju is missing’ Ama said with tears.

The news knocked Awesome off his feet, all the anger and resentment he had had vanished in that moment. It was unadulterated love that made him hugged her passionately, while attraction held them for some minute.
‘I’m sorry’ Awesome said while wiping the tears away from her eyes. The news was too much for him to handle, he knew Uju back then, and the fact she was missing weaken him emotionally.
‘What should we do?’ He asked.’How did it happen?’
‘Well, she left for her sent-forth party, and I’m thinking I__sorry, we should go to her school and asked about her whereabouts’
‘Seems like a good plan, what could have caused it?.’
‘She was….her dressing was a bit out of line, the volumes were turned on, but that shouldn’t be a criteria for her being missing’
‘Let me attend to a few things, and we would be on our way, okay?’
She nodded. ‘I will be in my office’ She said.
‘Okay!’ He said and left.
The drive to Williams High School was moody, the atmosphere was tensed. Ama sobbed inwardly, while silence enveloped the car.

Getting to the school, He parked his car outside the gate and approached the gateman who gave them direction to the principal’s office.

The door creaked as they were ushered in.

A man who shouldn’t be more than fifty years sat behind his wide curved desk filled with both old and new files.
‘Good morning, sir’ Awesome greeted.
‘Morning, how may I help you?’ He asked in a coarse and harsh tone.
‘Okay, my sister is missing’ Ama blurted out.
The principal looked at Ama amusingly before giving out an evil short laugh.
‘So, This place isn’t a police station and what’s my business if your sister is missing, Do I look like a detective?’ He threw at her.
‘But, she is…..She was a student of this school’ Ama countered.
‘This school has more than a thousand students, so you expect me to keep tabs on your sister, if your sister is missing as you said, you have to go and meet the Guidance counsellor’ He said.

Ama eyed the principal vigorously, She knew his type, the man has almost the same character with principal of the school where she had taught.
‘Sorry, sir, I think she was a bit emotional and didn’t table the issue properly, we are not saying you ought to keep tabs on your students, that’s a herculean task, and I wouldn’t encourage my enemies to do that…..’
‘The safety of every student of this school lies on his shoulder, and you’re condoning this terrible act’ Ama cuts in.

Ignoring Ama’s statement, He continued.’She was among the students you organised a party for recently, and since then, She is nowhere to be found’.
‘Oh. Well, I don’t think I can help you guys much, but what’s her name?’
‘Uju Ebere’
‘A minute, please’ The man said and placed a call across to the vice principal.
‘Hello, Send me the names of students who attended the party we organised in the school, three days ago..Thanks’ The man said and dropped the phone. He was happy, they had kept the attendance of the students who attended the occasion.

His phone beeped, a minute later, He checked it.
‘Well, your sister was missing in our occasion we heard that the students organised a party for themselves, maybe she attended that, I can’t say, and moreover, we rounded everything up before twelve noon.’
‘Are you sure?’ Ama asked, she was finding it difficult to believe what he was saying.
‘I’m a very busy man, I don’t have the time to repeat myself’ He said with a touch of finality.
‘Thank you, very much, we would be on our way’ Awesome said and they left the principal’s office.

Inside the car, Various thoughts raced through Ama’s mind, She had no idea where her sister could be and that was slowly killing her. She felt she was responsible for her being missing. Few things are as bad as guilty conscience, it dispelled one’s happiness. However, it could only get worse when you don’t know how to right your wrong.
‘The federal and state government are owing construction companies over N600B in the past two years, and the huge debt is responsible for the inability of the construction firms to deliver many projects scattered across the country………Let’s hear from the president of the construction companies…..’ The news blast out from the Radio Fm.
‘What is that?’ Ama asked, but Awesome motioned her to keep mute.
‘We have never had it so bad, we’re in a bad shape, if the government can even pay a quarter of this debt, we can return to the various project sites, so on this note, I’m declaring a state of emergency in the construction sector to put the nation in a good shape’ The president, federation of construction industry concluded.
‘How can they declare a state of emergency just like that it’s sudden?’ Ama queried.
‘I need to see my dad,ASAP, I’m sorry I can’t drop you off’
‘It’s okay, I will take a cab’ She said.

There was another round of Silence, before he broke the silence.
‘Uju would be found, okay?’
‘It’s okay!’ She said and came down from the car.
Left alone, with her problems.