Must Read: The Player

6 years ago

Must Read: The Player

They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, that’s a lie. Some things that don’t kill you, weakens you to the bones.

Strolling home, different thoughts crossed my mind, mist where bearable except the idea of facing Hanatu to tell her that I had failed.Luckily, the house was quiet when I got in.

I figured out she must be sleeping so I entered my room, shut the door, sat on my bed and stared at the wall facing me. I knew I didn’t do my best in the exams but I had expected to scale through. My guys would most likely be gaining admission and I would be stuck doing menial jobs for rich families.

Was it a sign from God?…Or was schooling not in my destiny? Maybe I should focus more on Hana’s education.

I had an old boom box in my room, it belonged to my father. He played his Fela tapes in it, sometimes we danced to Raskimono.

The only cassette I had bought with my money was Druhill’s ‘The Dragon’, Tong song was my favourite, I fixed it in and let Sisqo’s voice wash part of my pain away.

“Fifi, Fifi, wake up!” a voice I knew too well said, waking me from my slumber.

Oge was in my room again, she was wearing a green tweed skirt and an orange short sleeved shirt.

” How did you enter my room? I’m sure I locked the door” I said.

” Did you pass?” she asked.

“I’m not in the mood for your questions!”

She climbed the bed like it was hers too.
” Answer me, Fifi.”

“It depends on what you mean by ‘pass’,” I replied.

“Tell me your result this minute!”
“You dey crase abi, who you dey follow talk like that?”

She looked at me, apparently hurt. She wanted to talk but stopped herself, turned her back and walked out. Against all the masculine heredity in me I went after her.

“Oge, I am sorry, oya wait.”
She didn’t stop, instead she increased her pace.

” I failed, Oge,” I screamed.

“Its not funny,” came the reply from a distance. she didn’t bother facing me, she stopped walking though.

“I failed, I feel very bad….I don’t know how to tell Hanatu,” I said standing in front of her.

She smelled of Vanilla ice-cream, and for a split second, failing wasn’t that bad. I gave her a sq££zed sheet of paper where I had the subjects and grades written in.

Her beautiful eyes scrutinized the information written in ink. I was stupid for wanting to kiss a girl that was staring at my failure.

” You are a mathematician, if only we could share your maths grade with the remaining subjects.”

I started laughing. She looked at me like I was crazy, then she laughed along.

“I will get the Nov/Dec GCE form for you, please pass that one” she said, giving me back my paper.

“Wtf, you are not my mother!”
“Are you sure I am not?” She said, smiling teasingly at me.

I frowned for a split second before smiling back. I wanted to kiss her there and then but I couldn’t, so I went for a hug.

We held each other like we were the only ones in the world. I felt stronger with each passing second, until Bro Emma appeared.

“Bros,” I said quickly disentangling myself from his lady.

“Fifi, how you dey?” he said, doing a bad job of hiding the pain from his eyes.

Oge was toying with her left earring. She was acting as guilty as hell.

Finally, what doesn’t kill you might not make you stronger, but it might make you see happiness in lesser things of life.

I left the two love birds and went back upstairs to face my small madam Hanatu