Hi guys, it took me about 5 days to come up with this story. am not that good in phrases and punctuations, they are my weakness. i need experts in the house to correct and fair critic's are welcome.



[center][center]Chapter one
It was about six forty five in the morning a knock on the door jolted Lucy as she sat up and gazed at the silver door knob, it was Madam Ozizoma who opened the door and walked in leaving the door open as she came in to seat beside Lucy on the bed, hugged her with a smile on her face.
“Nne happy birthday”
“Thank you mom” Lucy replied forcing a smile on her face.
Lucy looked skinny in her orange night dress as she stretched out her tiny arms that made them look like some piece of woods to make fire with. She yawned without covering her mouth even as she smelt the mint scented perfume she used since yesterday in her mother’s room.
“Nne, hope you slept well?”
“Yes I did;” Lucy muttered.
Get ready for school Nne chi avugo. “It is day break”
“Ok mom.”
She entered the bathroom which was floored with brown tiles; it felt cold under her feet. She barely let the water run over her body before she came out of the shower.
Today was her last day in school for her final year examination: The last paper to write as a secondary school student she’d bragged before her mom yesterday. Lucy looked at the clock hanging on the wall close to the portrait of Christ; the clock was a gift she received in school as the second best student in her junior secondary school examination.
It was already past seven the alarm didn’t ring for seven am to alert Lucy she was running late.
“What are you still doing in there Lucy?” Madam Ozizoma shouted from where she was busy in the kitchen.
“I am almost done mom” she could barely raise her voice loud enough; and wasn’t even sure her mother heard her.
The table was already set for her breakfast with teacups and sliced bread side by side. She poured herself warm water from the jug on the table, scooped in powdered milk, milo and sugar.
The walls that surrounded her school were high similar to that of the prison walls along the road to the Emir’s palace only that her school’s doesn’t have coiled electric wires hanging on it. Standing at the school gate was the security guard Ahmed; he always wore an old faded paramilitary uniform, he was fondly called Rogers because of his corrupt habits of taking bribe from students to let them go out of the school compound.
Immediately after the bell rang, the assembly was noisy and chaotic as every student struggled to join the queue, every student stood according to their class. Lucy always stood in front of her classmates as it is the norm due to body size and height, at the back were other students who giggled and whispered to one another and shielded their faces from the teachers. After the student’s had sung the national anthem, Madam Zainab the principal stood on an elevated podium, she was short, fat and light in complexion. She addressed the assembly with a microphone as her words came out in same breathe without pause. She pronounced words that start with “P” as “F”, which made the student’s joke about it. As she finished her address to the assembly she looked behind her where the staffs where standing and asked if any of them had anything to say, but none of them responded, she looked at them as if making sure no one was absent. She finally called on the head boy to lead the school prayer.
Philip was the school’s head boy he was taunted as the best student in Lucy’s class and he was a good orator, he represented the school at the last regional debate of which he came first. He is dark in complexion with a patch on his front hair. He made a short announcement before leading the school prayer.
“Almighty and merciful God,
Before you ever living God…
Lucy cleared her throat, willed the words to come out, but she missed up the lines as her mind was clouded with the euphoria of her birthday.
She tried to control her pulse as they dispatched from the assembly walking back to their various classes. Lucy has never been nervous in a long time like today because her friends has promised to turn up the day for her; it made her sweat under her arms even with the morning sun she had been standing under during the assembly.
“Happy birthday” “happy birthday Lucy”
It was a general chorus she received from her classmates which made her more nervous that she wished the floor will cave in and swallow her. The wishes kept pouring in from every corners if the class, first it was a group of girls, then her friends she kept on blushing until the last person left her desk.
It was almost time for the exam; Lucy peered into her Agric note for the last time as soon as she observed the class was calm, everybody was busy doing their last minute revision.
Kelvin walked into the class with another boy as they sat on their seats, Lucy didn’t notice she’d been looking at him for too long as he sat down. Kelvin is cute, he seems to be the crush of the girls in my class but it gets into his head which made him unserious with his books, Lucy knew within her that she had something for him but will never want to admit to it to her friends, he is not my type of person she will say each time they gossip.
She looked at her wrist watch it was 9:55, the class groaned as the external examiner walked in with the question papers. He was 25 minutes late from the stipulated time. He was slim and tall with short beards like a red northern goat, he always wore a native dress and his trouser never touched his ankle.
Philip became the overall best graduating student of our set during our ceremonial graduation. He received a lot of gifts for various feats he’d achieved. I came second behind him, my favorite teacher Madam Caroline and my friend’s showered praises on me. It was an exhausting day.
Lucy’s father returned home late from work that night when she was asleep. He took a cold shower and after he’d eaten dinner he sat on the cushion in the sitting room to continue studying a site plan he has been working on.
“I tried reaching you all day but your cell phone was switched off” Ozizoma said as she walked into the sitting room.
“Why did you call?”
“It’s about your daughter’s graduation, you promised to attend but you never turned up. Absorbed in his work, he kept mute as if he wasn’t aware of her presence in the room.
“Did you hear a word of what I just said?” Ozizoma asked with rage
“I’ve been busy all day woman, and as you can see, I’m still very busy. He eventually responded.
You see! “Some other time, you come home after being away the whole day” you have neither seen nor heard from your own family for a whole day, not even had time for your daughter and frantically refused to attend her graduation. Instead you talk about work! Work! Ozizoma exploded.
“Please don’t start now, Ozizoma” I’m not in the mood for your nag tonight. He spoke as he made to leave the sitting room.
Is that so? What are you in the mood for then? Work, money, contracts akwaya! She said
Yes!!! I supply all you need to take care of yourself and Lucy. What else do you want from me? He interrupted her as he walked in to the bed room.

Chapter Two
It was the month of august when my SSCE results came out, My father brought the printed slip home with him one evening, he smiled as he hugged me before handing the slip to me, I opened it with excitement seeing that it was good, my mother looked happier than everyone in the house. She sang and danced around the house as if she had won a lottery.
With a good performance like this in your jamb I’m sure university of Abuja will gladly offer you admission, He said as he sipped water from the mug he was holding.
“I shook my head, a smug look on my face” does admission comes that easy? I said to myself. I’d applied at the university to study law. I’d always held barristers in high esteem right from my childhood. “Their style of dressing with the tattered wigs seated on their head” it makes me remember Aunty Mary who is a barrister. I’d like the way she pronounced her words when she speaks and Her English would make someone want to listen to her often. But she would say it’s only a profession she was forced into, she’d never wanted to become a lawyer and very soon she would drop the certificate and start up a bakery for cakes she said to my mother during her last visit. Her decision kept me perplexed which makes me want to ask her, why a person will want to trade a revered profession like that to go and bake cakes. I felt it is not polite of asking an elder what to do with their lives I said to myself. Aunty Mary was still single, At her age she was as beautiful as I have always known her, she never seemed to age. She’s tall and has a dark chocolate complexion with a pointed nose like the white woman I saw when mom and i went to the US embassy. She walks slowly which makes her body sway like a dock. I still have odd reasons why she wants to remain single after her last relationship crashed with her fiancé a month to their traditional wedding. She found out that her fiancé was a single dad; he had a child with another woman and never disclosed it to Aunty Mary. She always insisted she had peace being single, with her too many philosophies about trusting men. Very soon you will close in on your menopause mom will always joke with her, I will adopt a child if it happens she replies mom. Yet she got a lot of prepositions from men and even married men at work, at cocktail party’s invitations.
It was on a Monday morning after I have had my breakfast and finished with the house chores. I sat close to my bedroom window looking at the cashew tree that had begun to germinate fruit, it was planted very close to the fence where my father’s old Mercedes Benz was parked without tires and big stones were used to support the car at different sides. He said it was the first car he drove he even joked that it was the car that made my mother agreed to marry him. It has been raining cat and dog, the rain had started in the early hours of the morning.
Just yesterday I wore uniform as a senior student, overnight it was all over. The good old days, Lucy thought, she didn’t realize Ozizoma has been standing at the door until she broke the silence in the room and asked.
“What is she looking at when the clothes she washed yesterday have been drenched in the rain?”
“Ewo! Lucy exclaimed as she jumped up from where she sat. She was about to leave the room when her mom told her not to go into the rain, she had already parked them in a bucket.
Lucy was unloosening the ribbon on her hair as she watched her Ozizoma walked to the window to adjust the curtain.
“Nne your hair is old” when will you make it?
“When my father comes back” when did your father become a hair stylist?
I want to collect money from him and make a better hair this weekend, Lucy responded as she picked up the broken mirror on the table.
Nne you better not waste money and make a decent hair her interrupted as they heard a car drive into the compound, is that not the sound of your father’s car? What has he come home to do at this time of the day? Mom asked. I looked at the wall clock it was past eleven the rain has stopped. The car parked in front of the house as the engine stopped.
He walked in to the sitting room as he dropped the newspaper he’d brought on the table;
“Welcome sir” I said to him as I picked up the newspaper he dropped on the table.
“I am travelling”.
Traveling? Mom asked.
Yes I am travelling to Kaduna to supervise a new site he said; dad is an engineer he works with a construction company here in Abuja.
He looked exhausted as he made way to his room; mom and I stood at the door as we watched him toss the clothes he’d selected from the wardrobe into his suitcase. Then he stopped and realized that he has been in a hurry, he emptied the suitcase on the bed and took his time to fold the clothes neatly.
I will return in a week time he said as i helped him carry the suitcase to the car, Daddy; I want to make my hair this weekend dad. He brought out his wallet and gave me some notes of money that were carefully arranged in it. Thank your sir i said, squatting as i collected the money from him. Use the remaining for something else he said as he ignited the car.
Lucy was still waving as he nosed the car towards the drive way, Madam Ozizoma stood at the verandah as she rested her whole weight on the rail, she made sure she could no longer hear the sound of the car before she went inside, dad’s absence will be a bit of a freedom to me I thought as i watch my mom go in.
It was already past five when Lucy finished the laundry that was left over because of the rain. She opened her mom’s door and leaned on it and watched her as she lay on her bed, she couldn’t tell if she was into a deep sleep. The scrapping sound the door made had already woken her up.
“Nne ogini” what’s the problem? Madam Ozizoma spoke in low voice.
“I want to go visit Sandra?”
Why? Because your dad has travelled, you have seen opportunity to go out akwaya!! Lucy didn’t say a word. “Come back before it gets dark biko”.
“Ok ma!!” Lucy replied as she closed the door behind her.
Sandra is my childhood friend, we’ve been friends since when we were still neighbors at 3rd avenue close to the St’ Mary’s Cathedral church where Sandra and her family still lives.
Lucy stood in front of the mirror in her room to put on powder on her face, she smiled as if she just noticed the weight she had gained, “a pound of flesh in the past few months” she said.
On her way to Sandras house Lucy walked slowly on the street, her shadow trailing behind her on the tarred road. The evening sun cut through the trees as it settles towards the east. She arrived in front of an upstairs painted in a light blue color with various sizes of satellite dishes hanging on the wall. There were four flats in it, Sandra’s was at the top right. Opposite the building was another one similar to it; it was where Lucy and her family occupied before they parked. Climbing the stairs was what she never enOzizomaed doing; she entered the open black painted burglary proof covering the verandah. She knocked twice on the door that was half open, an elderly woman came out from inside.
“Good evening mah!! Lucy recognized her, she was Sandra’s grandmother.
“Thank you my daughter, how are you?”
“I am fine mah” mah I am looking for Sandra;
“Bola your friend is here” as if the name Sandra wasn’t right to use at this moment. Very few people called her Bola.
Lucy!!! Come inside, a tiny voice from the house shouted my name, I recognized it, it was Sandra’s. The elderly woman was already seated on a white plastic chair in the verandah as I entered the house. Sandra stood up from where she sat on the floor, we hugged as we greeted. Our breast touched each other before she backed away. I sat on the black sofa close to the dinning. The sitting room has taken a new look from the previous time I came to see Sandra. The air condition hummed on the wall, there was a flat screen TV that hung on the wall showing a music video on MTV channel, the deep freezer close to the dinning made its own sound too. My attention was on the TV but still kept my eyes on what Sandra was doing on the floor covered with a brown rug. She was loosening her hair as she said she’s been carrying the hair for almost a month now.
Do you care for anything? Sandra asked
No!! “Thank you I’m okay” Lucy bit her lips and tried to think of something to say not connected to admission. But she had to say it; it’s been two months the admission list is not yet out what could be the reason for delay? Sandra was silent as if the person was asking from the TV. Then she finally answered; well I heard it’s ready but trust the corruption that goes on within staffs selecting their candidates, she spoke as she ran a comb through her hair and looked at herself in the mirror she was holding.
I don’t seem to understand how corruption still strives in the university to the extent that it becomes glaring and nobody say anything about it. Lucy responded. The girls kept silent as they watched TV go off; “Oh NEPA” Sandra muttered and hissed, the freezer and the air condition made a vibrating sound like a car that is ignited and refusing to start. Immediately an eerie darkness was in the room that was when Lucy realized she has to leave. I have to leave now jenny, I don’t want my mom to be worried about me.
Okay Lucy please give me a minute let me turn on the generator for my grandma, it’s just both of us that are home.
That reminds what about your parents? Lucy asked
They travelled to visit my Aunt who lost her Mother in-law in a car accident;
I’m sorry dear!!
Thanks Lucy; Sandra responded as she walked in the dark room to where she kept her family mobile phone, she used it for light and disappeared into the balcony. As she was about to put on the generator the light came back, the TV made a scratchy sound as it came on.
“Mama let me walk my friend she’s leaving; Ok, greet your parents the granny said.”
They will hear Lucy responded.
At home Mom was furious for coming back late, I searched hopelessly in my mind for something to say, something pleasant of an excuse but I couldn’t say anything. I’m sorry Mom, I said coldly.
Your dad called; “a cold chill descended on me” he said he had arrived safely. I sighed deeply when she said nothing else.[/center]

*seats down,bring out popcorn* fire on!!!

Already seated.