CHAPTER TEN
Francis is in one of the two compound toilets. He unbuckled his belt and slide down his trouser together with his inner Tommy Hilfiger boxers to his knee. He already had a burning cigarette on his lips. He climb onto the short pavement on which the latrine’s ceramic bowl was cemented on. He had his two legs slightly spread apart and the lower end of his shirt folded up under his left armpit –the very hand with which he used to support the cigarette on his lips.Then he squatted down to pass out excreta.
The latrine is his favorite place to smoke. He enjoys the relative peace that the facility offers. He as well loves the cool breeze that comes in through the base of the toilet door directly onto his anus. He enjoys the feel of the playful tease by the breeze on the pubic hair around his anal region. Francis doesn't mind the stench from his feces. He in fact likes the odour he gets when the stench from his feces blend with the smoke from his cigarette. Francis literarily gauges his state of health by mean of the severity of the foul lingering smell that comes from his excreta. The latrine as well offers him the sanctuary to ruminate on past events; evaluating where he had made mistakes and where he needed to work more on. He would soliloquize each event one at a time; bursting out into hysterically laughter at intervals. He even calls out on the names of the persons involved. Fellow tenants finds it all very hilarious. Some even gossips that he communes with his ancestors when inside the toilet.
Francis have been feeling very proud of himself for having resisted another temptation to cheat on his beloved wife who is with their children in the village. He had attribute his feat not to his making, but to the fervent prayers of his wife. His wife has never for once seized to pray for him. She will compassionately plead with God to please show her husband mercy and open his eyes to see the futility of the path he has chosen for himself. She will advise, persuade and cajole him to give up his habits, all to no fruitation. Francis, like most men do, will pretend not to be in the least bothered about it all but within himself, he knows the truth of what his beloved wife is always saying. He had in time past promised to give up on his habits but it keeps drawing him back. Smoking and heavy drinking are both habits Francis will give anything in the world just to put an end to. For these habits, he had been exploited, beaten up, abused, seduced and trampled upon. He prays and wishes in his hearts that none of his children takes after him.
Francis retracted his knee as his buttocks raises. He then reached deep into his trousers’ pocket –still anchored at his knees- to retrieve the packet of cigarette he had in there. He needed to replace the current one which is almost burning out. He got the packet in hand, then turned to take a cursory look at his excreta. He did not like how it looks. It's texture was lighter than normal and far too greyish. So Francis on the spot prescribed for himself a few shots of Mama Alero’s traditional medical herbal mixture (Agbo jedi-jedi). He removed the almost burnt out cigarette from his mouth and replaced it with a fresh one. Then he joined the burning end of the former against the end of the later to ignite it. He draw on the cigarette spontaneously to have it burn better. Well aware of the sustained complaints against it, Francis offhandedly dropped the burnt out cigarette on the toilet floor. Then he squatted back down again to continue defecating.

***

Chinole seems to be enjoying it all. She is enjoying the attentions she is getting from Austin, but most of all, she enjoys the effects she is having on him. She had forced herself to do away with the thoughts that Austin is being romantically attracted to her when he had not even voiced it out. She was forcing herself not to attach too much meaning into an innocent gesture which could have been intended to be a prank gone wrong.
What Chinelo wasn’t sincere enough to own up is that all what she hoped to be false are actually what she prays and dearly wishes to be true. She wish that his gesture at the Well wasn’t innocent. She wish he wasn’t play acting to be transfixed. And of course, she most wish that Austin develops a feeling for her.
Chinelo fears she was becoming too romantically obsessed about Austin; a feeling she strongly wish no one should know about. Not just for the fear of her father and how he is most likely to react, but for the sake of feminine pride. She will stay by their window which happens to be directly opposite Austin’s door to monitor his movements.
She as well become repeatedly conscious of her looks, especially if Austin is around. She particularly disliked what she felt to be the quite diminishing look of appearing in her ill-fitting school uniform. Chinelo will tactfully avoid having Austin see her when on her uniforms. But this could be particularly difficult, most especially when Austin is on night duty shift. Austin duty shifts affords him the opportunity to get to see how and when every compound kid prepare for school. The degraded looks her school uniforms gives off about her troubles her a lot. She only just wish the days will roll off faster to June when she will no longer be duty-bound to put on these degrading uniforms. As far as Chinelo was consigned, she is a big girl.
Chinelo wants Austin to see her as grown up; with the impression that she is free from controlling parental influence. But she wants to go it subtly, so as not to give off the very wrong signal. Chinelo was becoming increasingly conscious of her looks and mannerism around the opposite gender. She began –though clandestinely- to get makeup kits and beauty enhancers form money off her piggy bank. “If I have gotten Austin attracted, then I shall keep him rooted by making him salivate for me” she had thought to herself.

***

Living at the toilet-end in a public compound is an experience whose who have done so would not want to relive. The toilet-end is the most difficult and unsettling part in a public compound. This is the spot closest to the latrine. Most home seekers often avoid it because of the many problems associated with it. Because of it close proximity with the latrine, a lot of the resulting effects of the abuses on the facility is first experienced by those who live closest to it. Many of these abuses are intentional. They are driven with the sole intent of having to further unsettle and inconvenience those who lives closest to it. These tenants are the ones who endures the horrifying sights and foul smells of an abused public latrine. It is in fact a common joke that "before the effects from the abuses begins to affect tenants further down the line, the tenants closest to it must be long dead".
Aunty Alice lives precisely on that spot. Her room is the first room on the boys’ quarters when one starts counting from the inside out. Directly in front her room is the compound's toilets. They are only separated by a space of about five meters. To the left of her room further in; was dug the compound’s soakaway. When full, the soakaway overflows it's waste matter allover; making a very disgusting mess in front of her room. At that point, Aunty Alice will literarily quarrel with almost every man in the compound just to get them to hasten up the process of getting a dislodgement. Many of the other housewives will gossip and mock her that she is only showing interest because it disturbs her the most. Some of them even go to the length of encouraging the spouses to withhold payment a little while longer than necessary by pointing out to other people who are yet to pay.
Majority of the compound women do not defecate directly on the pit latrine. Fearing for their health, they prefer using a small five litter plastic pails. When done, they will have the feces flushed off in the latrine. This practice is common in the neighborhood, especially in compounds that uses similar toileting system. It is regard as normal for a woman to head for the bathroom with these –sometimes colorful and quite artistic- pails to defecate. Sometimes, the practice takes on its head when there are persons occupying either of the two toilets at about the same time the women wants to make a flush. These women who might not be patient enough to wait, will simply drop off their pail of feces by the side of the toilet; very close to aunty Alice entrance. They will leave hoping to return when the latrine is free to make proper flush. ....and so will the shit-bucket stay for days on end in that same position until Aunty Alice will have them (both package and content) all thrown away. Sometimes, especially towards late in the evening, some of these women –mostly out of sheer wickedness- will prefer defecating directly on the bathroom floor and flush it off with water into the gutter behind.
For some of the women who cann't afford a plastic pail, a synthetic nylon bag is the next best thing. The problems associated with the nylon bag method is that each bag can only be used once and it has the propensity of getting the sewage pipe blocked. This practice is mostly common with people who lives very close to a flowing body of water like rivers, stream, canals or anything of that sort. The preferred method of disposal is by conveniently flinging the feces containing nylon overhead, out into the body of flowing water. This style is called “shot-put”. A name derived from a similar athletic sport of shot-put.
Aunty Alice will always complain that those who lives further down the passageway, away from the latrine, are the very people that abuses the facility. These tenants are those who put less effort toward it's maintenance. She hates it most when parents make their children defecate around the vicinity of the toilet. She will insist that it is either you go inside the toilet or you go defecate inside your living room. And they sure do defecate inside their living rooms. This practice is most common in areas that are not too safe at night. Tenants will prefer to relief themselves inside their living room instead of taking the risk of going outside to make use of the toilet at night.

***

Francis satisfied his stooling, proceeded to take a cup of water from the toilet bucket he had earlier filled with water for the purpose of flushing his excreta. He washed his anus clean with it. He dried his hands on his folded trouser still anchored on his knee. He removed the burning out cigarette he had on his lips and like the others, threw it on the toilet floor. He then straightened up, standing erect over his feces. He pulled up his boxers first and then his trousers. He buttoned up the single button on his trouser in place but left his belt unbuckled. Then he climb down from the pavement and gave a one last review of his feces before proceeding to flush it off with the water from the toilet bucket. Unfortunately, the water was not enough to flush it off properly for there were still droplet of feces left behind. Francis did not give it much of a thought.
He proceeded to unlock the door and step out. When outside, he noticed Aunty Alice sitting on a wooden bar stool. She was looking outside to the main street beyond. Francis greeted her. But Aunty Alice, a spinster in her mid-thirties, is always very critical of greetings especially the ones coming from tenants who just finished using the toilet. She had come to understand that these greetings are just smokescreens to conceal their guilt. Francis still standing by the toilet door, took out his packet of cigarette together with the lighter inside the packet and light himself one more stick. He took a deep draw and blew the smoke far out into the air. Without giving much of a passing look at Aunty Alice, he walked out through the Boy’s quarters exist while buckling on his belt as he went. And off to Mama Alero’s place for some jedi-jedi.

***

Aunty Alice went inside the toilet to inspect the facility. She had become the unofficial janitor of the compound’s toilet. A job she had taken for herself as a result of the close proximity between her living room and the facility. She was disgusted at what she saw. The toilet floor was flooded with water and as well, littered with burnt out cigarette filters. On the ceramic bowl were droplet of feces clearly suggesting insufficient water. She quickly ran out. Not able to bear the sight any further, she closed the door behind her. And so began a long session of complaining, cursing and quarrelling; which lasted well into the night.

Tanks for the update

Thanks for the update

All these feel so real! Thank you Adekunle!

CHAPTER ELEVEN
It was a cool Sunday afternoon. Chinelo is alone in the kitchen preparing the family’s meal. Her mother had gone to her town’s women meeting, while her father is hanging out with friends at Mama Alero’s stall some few blocks down the street. By the side of the Well, in the very place reserved for the purpose of washing, were the compound children. Some of them are washing plates for their various families, while some others are keeping them company. The area was rowdy as every single one of the children is trying hard to see that he or she is not the last to leave the backyard. It is a little game they play among themselves. They will all begin at about the same time to wash the dishes. Each concentrating on the utensils from his own household. The first person to finish is automatically the winner, while the last person is mocked. So each time their little game starts, the washing areas around the Well will automatically become rowdy; as siblings will all begin to work together as a team in order to finish first. Some teams will go as far as inviting their friends from other compounds to come wash with them. In their game, players do not like washing pots. Pots are considered to be time consuming, especially when one had to have them scrubbed properly in order to remove the burnt content left therein. So each time the players brings out their dishes for washing, it is almost customary to see them throwing taunts at the one with the highest number of pots to be washed. And in very rare cases where the one with the highest numbers of pots comes out first, it makes it all the more entertaining; as such will brag that he is so good at what he does that even having the highest number of pots did not stop him from coming first. The climax of the whole event is the celebrations that follows after every win. The celebratory song is always composed on the spot. The songs, by necessity, only exalts the winner by stating the difficult situations he had to overcome to emerge victorious, while at the same time mocks the losers.
Chinelo was watching it all. She is delighted that her younger brother Chiagozie won with the help of Ebuka. Jide is crying foul. He stated that Chiagozie is not to be considered the rightful winner because he had his elder brother’s assistance. Chiagozie mocked him by bringing out his tongue at him. He reminded him of previous times which he had won through the help of Bunmi or even Tobi his friend from the next compound. Jide is such a bad loser. He will never admit to have been beaten fairly. He loves complaining and apportioning blames when things are not going his way.

***

Austin had passed by the well three times within the space of fifteen minutes. Going back and forth as if to be looking for something of his. The first two times he initially passed, Chinelo did not see him as she was busy with the pot of soup cooking on the stove. On the last time, she was facing the activities taking place around the washing area. She was laughing at the little jokes from the children. Some of them even brought their childish complaints to her to pass judgments on. She clearly seems delighted by the whole thing. Austin observed how free the children are with her. He could not help but fall even deeper in love for her. He wanted to make his earnest expression of it to her but his guts seems to be failing him. Three times he had attempted, and three times he had failed. Austin was sincerely afraid of the resulting effect of his intended action. He was even more confused as to how Chinelo will react to it all. Austin had rehearsed in his room on how to approach her, what to say, how to say it and when to leave. He knows that either of these could be the most likely outcome. Chinelo could both accept his proposal and come a bit closer or she could harshly reject his proposal and run far away from him; and even possibly report his advances to her father. Austin was just too afraid to gamble it.
Austin made up his mind to attempt it the fourth and final time. His time, he was determined to succeed. He was going to walk up to her and tell her exactly what he felt irrespective of how it may sound or even how she may feel about it all. After all, he is a man and men are not expected to hide their feelings. So he took a look at the mirror to ascertain his looks one last time. On the mirror, he determined what facial expression was most suitable for the situation. He settled for a straight-to-the-point face. Not looking too serious, as well as, not looking too causal. The straightened up his shirt collar and readjusted his trouser one last time. Then he open the door and went out towards the kitchen

***

The area around the well was now peaceful and quiet as the children have all gone inside their respective rooms after their little game. The washing area, as expected, was littered with used detergent sachets and food particles not properly flushed away into the gutter. The entire area was disgustingly marshy and quite slippery. It will remain so until the following day when the woman contracted by the compound comes to wash it all away.
Austin was glad to find Chinelo still there. She was turning the garri in the garri bowl with the turning stick. She was looking quite busy.
“Chinelo!” Austin called in a voice that made his heart skip.
“Hmmm” Chinelo breathe out her answer as she turned to face him.
Austin immediately felt disorientated as Chinelo looked him dead straight in the eyes as if to read out his thoughts.
“When was the last time NEPA restored power?” Austin asked. In trying to avoid looking and sounding stupid, Austin deviated from his intended mission. Though he managed to maintain a straight face, his eyes blinked multiple times as he asked the question. Her gaze had seemed fierce and disorienting to Austin.
“Late in the morning. At about 11:03am” replied Chinelo.
She then turned back to continue turning her garri before it gets too cold for effective turning. Austin stood by the edge of the kitchen with his arms akimbo. He exhaled and wondered aloud the pathetic state of the nation’s power sector. Then he began walking rather slowly towards the backyard for the fourth time. He wondered what have become of his guts and what was so unsettling about Chinelo that makes confessing his love for her such a difficult task. He stayed at the backyard for a few moments to idle away the hour. He then turned back and proceeded for his room where he is to go lick his wounds.
“Chi! What are you cooking? I will eat o!” Austin causally called after Chinelo as he passed by the area around the well overlooking the kitchen.
Chinelo turned her neck to look at him. She gave out a very warm smile as she replied “No problem”.

***

Chinelo had actually hastily turned back to what she was doing just to conceal the disappointments that were about showing up on her face. She did not want Austin to see them. She had observed for about two days now, how Austin had been roaming around areas she happens to be present in. And each time, he always appears to be disturbed about something. Like something he is finding difficult to make up his mind on. As a very sensitive woman, Chinelo had observed from the side of her eyes how he looks at her. She has also observed his many back and forth movements. She had equally noticed that Austin seems to have something very pressing to say to her but knows not how to go about it. She felt as a woman, it is very lady-like to be subtle in making a man feel at ease. She felt like a midwife on a mission to deliver the most darling words she wishes to hear. With a mischievous grin on her face, she proceeded to work.

***

Austin was lying on his back to the mattress. He is gazing at the ceiling; lost in the thoughts on what has befallen him. The knock on the door brought him back to reality. He agilely stood up by raising both legs skywards, then throwing them down in a single fluid movement as his upper body raises. He went straight to the door after making a couple of adjustments on his collar, he raised his shirt to have it sit properly on his body and wipe out the frustration from his eyes with the back of his hands. The knock had only come once; an indication that the person behind the door is not in a hurry to come in or had both hands engaged to attempt another knock.
When Austin finally opened the door, he was shocked to find Chinelo standing there with a tray in hand. On the tray were set two stainless bowl-like plates. One happen to be bigger than the other and will presumably contain the garri, while the smaller one contains the soup. She gave off an even more heart-melting smile, knowing too well now, how her presence have been manipulating and dictating Austin’s character. She excused herself; for which Austin had to step out of the way for her to pass into the room. He was still too shock to utter a word. She slide off her slippers at the doorpost and went inside the room. Chinelo set the tray on the ground; for Austin had no table or even a side stool in his room. She took out the dishes one after the other and placed them nicely on the ground to the side of the mattress. She then picked up her tray and made for the door.
“But I was only being playful.” Austin had managed to sheepishly say, as she was trying to maneuver her feet back into her slippers at the door.
“...And I was only being playful too” Chinelo replied back in a manner that was jovial but at the same time clearly says ‘Don’t be silly’.
Austin not knowing what next to say, repeatedly thanked her for her kind gesture. Chinelo then turned to leave. She had almost made it off Austin’s paved veranda when, almost like a light bulb, Austin felt the need of asking her after her studies.
“How is your studies? I hope things are not being made unnecessarily difficult back in school?” he asked
Chinelo immediately turned towards Austin still standing by the door. Relinquishing the moment to having a little chitchat with him, she had her tray pressed against her bosom –covering from her chest down to her upper waistline. She held it in place by having both arms around it in crossed direction, as if to give a hug. Consciously aware of her quite unsettling disposition towards Austin in context to what she sincerely feels in her heart, she shyingly looked downwards. With her head slightly bent over, she drew patterns on the ground with her leg.
“My studies are all going well. I thank God for bringing us this far. With his grace, by July, I would be through with anything that has to do with secondary school. I can’t wait to start being a proper big girl.” Chinelo replied.
Austin’s veranda was paved by the previous occupant of his room. About two and a half meters from both sides of his door was erected a dwarf bracket-shaped brick wall opposing each other. The brick wall was primarily aimed at demarcating one’s veranda from that of his next door neighbor. This is to ensure that no one trespasses on the other. But the brick wall have become multifunctional. It could either serve as worktop or as a seat depending on the need at that time. Austin had himself sit across the left wall. He had his right leg on the cemented floor to support his body weight while his left leg dangles freely over on the other side.
Austin and Chinelo chatted about a few things -mostly irrelevant things. Both were tactful in how they approached issues. Carefully avoiding topics that could possibly trigger emotional sentiments. None wanted to give off the impression of desperation.
Their chats was going smoothly when suddenly Chinelo had the voice of her father from the entrance to the main building. She turned to take off. As she was about dashing off towards the kitchen, she felt a firm grip on her arms. She turned only to find Austin a few inches from her face. His eyes were looking directly into hers. She could see the passion that lies therein. She could feel the sincerity in his touch. Above all, she could hear the love in his voice as he opened his mouth to whisper these few words into her ears.
“I love you Chinelo and I want you to be mine”. Austin had said
These words sounded like a distant echo in her head. These were exactly the words she was dying to hear. She looked at Austin deep into the eyes, then the lips of his mouth, and back again at his eyes. Chinelo blinked her eyes as if to remind herself where she was, she bite her lower lips, looked down and turned away. She then forcefully jerked her arms off his grip, as she runs away for the kitchen.
Austin was rooted in his position as he watched her go. Everything had happened in a flash. He wasn’t too sure if she had heard his last few words. He shrugged, turned back and went inside his room; for there was some serious feasting to be done.

I was enjoyin d story untill I discovered dat dere was some sort of Child molestin

Hmmmmm


Tanks for the update

Thanks for the update

great story....what of Gloria?? and is Austin not too older than chinelo good work

'serious fasting'

KingzleyTLB:
great story....what of Gloria?? and is Austin not too older than chinelo good work

Chinelo is 18 already. Read from chapter One.

Wadewaltz:
I was enjoyin d story untill I discovered dat dere was some sort of Child molestin

is an 18 still a child?

CHAPTER TWELVE
Jide is at the backyard. He is counting through wads of one thousand naira notes. He is surrounded by his peers, as they all looked on in surprise. Tobi, his friend from the next compound, is by his side. He has his right hand thrown over Jide’s shoulder. Though Jide is only about a year older than Tobi, Tobi have somewhat become Jide’s unofficial spokesman. Tobi is essentially Jide’s praise singer. He is always full of admirations for the older guy, who never seizes to run out of innovative ideas. Jide and Tobi are almost inseparable. Wherever you find one, you are most likely to find the other. They go to school together, and they as well, return home together. Tobi helps Jide with household chores and Jide equally does likewise. Today, both of them are mocking and cajoling the other boys.
“You guys are just small boys. You do not even know anything at all. All you know is how to cry like babies and beg your mommy for food. I and Jide are the biggest boys in this entire area. We have enough money to feed all of you for a whole year and still have some change left.” boosted Tobi.
Jide only just nodded in affirmation, as he wet his fingers with saliva to aid him in sorting through the notes.
“…Fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four….” Jide counted aloud.
His friend Tobi later joined in the counting. Soon enough, everyone was counting after Jide. The total sum was twenty nine thousand naira. All the boys shouted in astonishment. They were astounded at how such a huge sum came to belong to a boy their age. Ebuka was the first to speak.
“Jide how did you get this money? Who gave it to you?”
Jide and Tobi both burst out in laughter, but Tobi laughed the hardest. Jide, who now seems to have an air of authority over himself, settled himself down on a makeshift throne made out of bricks stacked to one side of the backyard. He allowed his friend do the talking on his behalf. All of the boys paid rap attention as Tobi narrated what the newest big deal in town is all about. Tobi will stop at intervals to pick on the boys one after the other. When one of them is being picked on, the others will all laugh at that one. The one being picked on will not reply, knowing well enough that any reply will further expose his ignorance, hereby giving more fire power to Tobi; who will certainly never fail to seize on it. They only register their displeasure by frowning their faces.
“Have you guys heard of ‘Baba Ijebu’?” asked Tobi.
“Yes!” chorus the crowd.
“Is it not that one that they call Premier Lotto? I know it now. Papa Oyinbo used to play it.” Further answered by Ikem (one of Nonye’s older siblings).
“If you know it, then tell us what it is all about” said Tobi to Ikem, as the other boys laughed at his obvious ignorance. Some of the boys even started calling him ITK (I too know) just to further piss him off. Ikem remained silent.
“Premier Lotto is now the new local stock exchange in the neighborhood. Who knows what a stock exchange is?” asked Tobi.
None of the boys replied in the affirmative, for none of them knew what a stock exchange really is. Attempting an answer when it is Tobi that is asking, is certainly not an option; for they all knew it is more of a trap than an innocent question. Tobi continued without bothering to answer what a stock exchange was. A move that was, as well, deliberate.
“A player is expected to predict a minimum of two correct numbers or a maximum of five correct numbers from a pool of numbers 1 to 90. Two correct numbers is a win, while five correct numbers is a jackpot. Winnings are dependent on the amount staked. At the end of every game, a draw is cast to determine the winning numbers.”
“What if I want to play just two numbers that I am very sure of? Will I be allowed to do so?” asked Ebenezer. Ebenezer lives in the same compound with Tobi. Like Tobi, he enjoys hanging out in Jide’s compound
“Yes! One is allowed to play just two numbers if he so wishes. Such a game is called TWO SURE. If you are playing above two numbers, maybe between three to five numbers. It is called a THREE DIRECT, FOUR DIRECT or FIVE DIRECT. It all depends on which one you may want to play.”
“What about someone with just one sure number?” asked Ebuka.
“You cannot play just one number. A sure number is called a BANKER and bankers are highly sorted after. One could either look for another sure number to pair with or you can just play a permutation using your sure number against the other eighty-nine numbers”
“But that will be very expensive” said some of the boys
“Yes! But one can decide to perm them at the rate of five naira (#5) each, times the entire eighty-nine games. You work it out yourselves to know the cost”
“That will be four hundred and forty five naira (#445)” said Chiagozie who was speaking for the very first time.
The boys all looked at him. Most of them were surprised at the speed with which he came up with an answer.
“Are you sure?” asked Tobi, who is not too happy that someone among this group of boys he had regarded so lowly could do arithmetic this fast.
Some of the boys reacted by making the calculation in their heads. They wiggled their fingers as if to point to an imaginary blackboard. Some others simply cleared the sand in front of them with their foot, as they squatted down to make their own calculation on the ground. Chiagozie, still quiet, just stood crossed arm as they amused themselves trying to verify his answer. Ikem was the first to confirm chiagozie’s answer before the other boys did so too. Including those who did not even finish their own calculations, all joined in saying that he is correct.
“Hmmn, Chiagozie is a class ahead of us” said Jide enviously, while Tobi nodded in affirmation.
Chiagozie simply laughed at them both as he turned and went on his way. The boys all watched him go. Then they turned back their attention to Tobi.
“…as I was saying before the cockroach interrupted.” said Tobi trying to spite Chiagozie whose brother Ebuka was still present.
The boys all laughed that Chiagozie is being referred to as a cockroach.
“Jide, how were you able to win such an amount of money?” Ebenezer asked, directing his question at Jide. But it was Tobi that answered.
“Jide played a two-sure with one hundred naira (#100) from his money for lunch. He got his number from Fela, the madman that daily walks up and down the street.”
The boys were all surprised. They never expected anything good could actually come from any madman, let alone from Fela.

***

Fela is a lunatic in the neighborhood. “Fela” is not his real name –no one knows his real name. The name was adopted based on his striking resemblance with the late afrobeat rascal Fela Anikulapo Kuti. Fela is always covered in mud and charcoal dust. His hairs are all dreadlocked and looking very unkempt. He wears rags for cloths and never bothers to have them washed. Fela is very troublesome. He enjoys scaring and chasing girls anywhere he finds them.
When Fela is momentarily calm, he will quietly go about the neighborhood begging for garbage to dispose off for a fee. Or will sometimes be seen sweeping the street. After sweeping a couple of meters, he will drop his broom and begin to beg for handouts form passersby. But when Fela’s insanity returns, one could see him scantily dressed, as he dances and chases girls around. Fela seems to have a personal dislike for girls. He will throw stones and other trash at them. And when they insult and mock him, he will scare them off by threating to give them a chase. Some women and young girls alike have lost their phones, bags, purses, and other valuables while trying to run away from Fela.
Fela loves to smoke. He would lie himself flat in front of one of the many shops that line the street and smoke on his cigarettes, one after the other. These moments are always his most peaceful moments. Mischievous passersby are always left disappointed that when they try to spite him up, they get only silence in return. Fela will not even bother to look their way, so long as there is a cigarette in hand. The little money he makes from disposing garbage are all mostly spent on cigarettes. And when there are no more money, Fela will resort to begging or render service for pay.

The advent of Premier Lotto (Baba Ijebu) resulted in the demand for sure winning numbers. It was a generally held believe that lunatics are particularly gifted in predicting numbers correctly. So this led to many prospectors buying Fela gifts of cigarettes just to have him predict for them a winning number. Fela’s predictions often plays out, sometimes they don’t. But these did not stop people from trying.
On that fateful day, Jide -who was already becoming something of a habitual gambler- was determined to get it right this time; not minding what it takes. This reckless determination was born out of his many failed attempts in the past. Pervious predictions had gone wrong. Sometimes it could be just one number that is right from the lot. He has heard of the tales that lunatics are good at predicting numbers but he had repeatedly brushed it aside by not putting much interest in it. Jide felt that good predictions only comes from a perfect mastering of the game chart.
Fela is in his favorite position in front of a shop. He is lying on his back. His head rested slightly raised against the wall. Haggard and filthy looking as he was, but he obviously don’t seems to give a damn. For Fela, the whole world can go to hell for all he cares. Behind his right earlobe hangs an unlighted cigarette, while one burns in between his middle and index fingers. He took a draw and blew out the smoke at intervals. He had his lips squeezed round in order to make a circular patterned smoke. He enjoys watching how the circular smoke starts small, and then continues to expand as it finds space, until it diffuses away into nothingness. Fela was taking his time to enjoy the last two sticks of cigarettes in his possession.
“Fela, please give me Baba Ijebu numbers” Jide requested.
Fela did not flinch. He was not interested in this naughty boy, and even less interested in what he has to say. The mystifying sensation from his cigarette was highly gratifying for him to disrupt just to listen to a nut.
Jide observed Fela’s disposition for a few moment. He came to understand that Fela was acting in the exact mannerism of a child; slowly chewing on the last few bites of a very delicious meal, knowing well enough, that it is to be the last he would get. Jide then walked away to the nearest kiosk and bought two packets of Benson & Hedges. He returned to Fela’s position and flashed the two packets at him. The effect was instantaneous. Fela widen his lips in a devious smile, showing off his smoke stained teeth. He was so happily interested in what was in Jide’s hands to care enough about his personality. He stretch out his hands as it to snatch it off from him. But Jide was fast enough to immediately retract it off his reach.
“Give me Baba Ijebu numbers” requested Jide the second time.
Fela was disappointed that he was denied what his very soul wanted so badly. He frown his face to register his disappointment. Without thinking, Fela said “46” and then he stopped.
“46 what?” asked Jide. “I can’t play just 46”.
“46” Fela repeated not minding what the nut of a boy was saying. All that he was interested in is just those fresh packets of cigarettes he is having.
After much persuasion to have Fela say something else failed, Jide decided to give him just one of the packets and walk away with the other. The move was deliberate. He needs two correct numbers to be sure of a win. One number means he will have to play a permutation against the other remaining 89 numbers. The cost is huge, while the winnings is meager. It is never worth the risk.
Jide threw one of the packet of cigarette at Fela; whose attempt at catching it midair failed. He turned swiftly around to dive in on the packet from where it had landed. He had the packet set in between both palms, swinging it from side to side as if to be rocking a baby to sleep. He gave off a very wild cheer as he looks at the packet in his hands. When he looked up again, he saw the nut of a boy leaving, but without throwing over the other packet. He did not know his name. So without thinking again, he called a number after Jide as if his name was the number.
“47” called Fela with a mischievous grin on his face.
Jide had what he wanted. 46 and 47 were his lucky numbers. He threw the last packet at him. Leaving him behind in a wild celebratory laughter. Then he ran off to a nearby Baba Ijebu Kiosk and had the attendant play him those numbers with a stalk of two hundred naira (#200). When the draws were cast and the results finally out. He won!

Tanks for the update

Please did u stay in a face me I slap u compound becos ur description of d compound and its people is very concrete and good. Nice writing d story is lit

Well done OP

Thanks for the update OP

@OP, your description of these people, places and life seem great. Captivating! Ride on

CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Austin was growing increasingly disappointed. He did not know exactly what to expect. He had wondered if really the event of the previous day was real. It had all happened in a flash. He doubts if Chinelo had really heard what he said. He felt like grabbing her by both arms and shake her violently to consciousness. He wished to yell into her face for an answer.
Austin loves Chinelo so dearly. This love was making him feel helpless with each passing moment without a word from her. Austin had hoped to pick up the bits and pieces from her gesture. He had hoped to sew them all together into his personal strand of self-consolation. But these pieces were simply nowhere to be found. She had gone about her business in her usually diligent manner; smiling when spoken to and laughing heartily to good jokes. They had both met, one on one, for a couple of times. Though for very brief moments, her face had remained blank. Devoid of any emotions whatsoever. No questioning looks, no mischievous grin or winks and no knowing smiles. Just the very same old Chinelo. They had at one time locked eyes but Austin was the first to look away. Chinelo must not see the desperate emotions in his eyes. He will not have himself presumed to be weak.
As days rolled by, Austin’s disappointments gave way into despair. He began wearing long faces. He as well began avoiding people whenever possible. He would have himself locked up in his room until it was about time to prepare for work. When he wants to leave his room, he would plug in his headphones and set the volume at the loudest, just to shot out distractions and further lock himself up in a world of his own. He will salute an elder person when he come by one, but will not bother to hear their reply. It was as if his ego has been bruised. He felt like one who said something he wasn't supposed to say. Considering that the girl was still a teenager and of a perceived lower standard (according to the defeatist mechanisms of his heart), he felt all the more wounded. Even if he had loved her, he felt like he wasn’t supposed to say it. His love was dear to him as much as his ego was too. Confessing his love to her hadn’t make him feel any better. He had only just sold his manly pride for a bowl of eba and vegetable soup. The girl has not responded. A no response was by far worse than a response in the negative. Austin felt like the earth should open and swallow him up. He had been fooled by the nice gestures into saying what was better kept secret. He had given his most precious pearls to the dogs and it was about time he gets it back.

***

Chinelo heard what Austin said. It had in fact remained in her head. The moment have repeatedly played in her head. It all seems like in a Nollywood movie scene. She could feel how his firm grip had vibrated her flesh with the tremble of his anxiety. She could still see the love in his eyes. She could feel how his stonecold sincerity stammered those words out of his mouth. She knew they were not words just spoken out of sheer impulse. And they were certainly not words in any way driven by lust. She may not know what sincerity looks like, but she sure do know how it feels when she sees one.
Chinelo loves Austin so very dearly; if only what she was feeling for him could really be called that. The words he had said to her were the exact words she dying to hear. Though she more or less had expected them, but they really left her in grave shock for no reason she had been able to place her hands on. She had remained cold and calm and often more contemplative. Most especially when she is alone. She had felt like jumping on top of him and kiss him to dizziness, but it was not ladylike to do so. By her gender, she is expected by society to remain calm and conceal her emotion for as well as possible, by pretending not to have noticed or feel affected by the event of the previous day.
Chinelo has been seeing less and less of Austin as the days went by. She will sit by her window to observe his door. Whenever his veranda is empty without his slippers lying around, then no one is in. For the last few days, the veranda has remained empty. No slippers, no hanged sponge or sprayed towel. It was as if there was no longer an occupant living there.
She was developing in her this ferocious urge of wanting to say something to Austin; just anything. She felt just a few words about anything will do just fine. Having to make the guy sweat and second-guessing what her decision could likely be is one thing, but not saying anything at all is a whole lot of different things all together. Keeping mute will only shrivel away the feelings. This was something she had always wished for and she wasn’t going to let it all fade away by keeping mute. Austin have asked her out and she had ensured a reasonably dignified wait-time. Now was the time to move a step further.

***

A typical morning for a lot of neighbors starts with a few shots of local gin (kai-kai) to fire up the nerves. It is common to see women –particularly Yorubas- bearing on their head as they hawk about, heavy load of the different variety of the substance. These substance comes in different colors, forms and textures. Some of them are medicinal, while some other are just for the intoxicating sensation they give. The local gin comes in different names but one could generally referred to them by its collective nomenclature “Ogogoro” alias “kai kai”. Local gin connoisseurs have a slogan by which they amused themselves. When one shouts the word “Ogogoro!”, it is expected that the one says “E no dey sour” in reply. Ogogoro should not be confused for Agbo –Yoruba for medicine.
Agbo is enjoyed purely for its medicinal purposes. It is made from blending various herbs and roots. These herbs and roots are most often boiled together in hot water to allow for proper mixture and as well effectively have every essential properties extracted. Most Agbo normally have a bitter or foul taste to them. Some could give off repugnant smells. Sweet tasting Agbo are extremely rare to come by. Agbo could either be water based or liquor based. It all depends on what the choice of the drinker is. Some neighborhood fellow who are not proud enough of their drinking habits, like to give off the impression that though they may be seen to be drinking, but their drinking is necessitated by the need for a healthy well-being. These particular kind of characters are never devoid of sickness. They will announce out loud to the Agbo hawker one ailment or the other, so as to get off their back their intrusively inquisitive neighbors. But they will quietly point out to the Agbo seller that their prescription should be liquor based. The most commonly mentioned ailments are waist pains, constipation (Jedi-Jedi), and typhoid and malaria fevers. These characters are always the first to make jest of another by calling them drunkards. They are always readily available to point out the difference between Agbo and Ogogoro. There is basically an Agbo for every ailment. Dosage strictly depends on how much the drinker can stomach.
Ogogoro on the other hand is a colorless locally distilled gin. Though it may have a variety of other uses, but it is principally sorted for its very potent intoxicating quality. Ogogoro is very cheap and budget-friendly. One can get a shot for a meager sum of thirty naira (#30). Most people prefers it primarily because if it's budget-friendliness. One can get to his desired state of intoxication cheaply and more quickly. The recent crackdown on local distillers by the government following a reported case of more than 72 dead persons who drank from an adulterated gin have only affected the price. It did not scare away drinkers and their crave for it. Many of the local distillers only ended up adding a touch of modernity to it all. Ogogoro starts coming in well packaged; ranging in various sizes and colors.

***

One cannot separate a Homeboy from partying and merriments. One is as well reverenced based on how hard he parties. Objectively speaking, Homeys do not engage in crime for crime sake –though being successful at crime helps promotes one’s prestige within the Hood. In many cases, the underlining reason for them taking to crime is just to support their party-hopping and merry-making lifestyle. Cheap drugs like Codine, Taramadol, Marijuana and others makes them party harder.
The laughter coming in from the direction of Mama Alero’s stall was very loud and by all indication a hearty one. The Christmas season is already in the air. So it was common to comeby people making merries. The people of the neighborhood likes to celebrate and make merry. It is an integral part of their way of life. Some in fact lives for these moments. Few meters away from Mama Alero’s stall is the neighborhood snooker table. The place is the central hotspot for Homeys. They hang out there mainly for the spirit of solidarity and camaraderie that exhumes from therein. It is at spots like this that bosses gets to be boss. The atmosphere in and around the center is always robust and friendly, but there always seems to be a very subtle sense of stratifications. The easiest and most common way to search out the bosses is to lookout for the heavy gamblers. These guys bet the highest amounts; more to uphold their prestige among "men", and if the day is good….make some very good winnings.
The operator of the game center is named Segun. He runs a small bar alongside. Segun is a very likeable and quiet guy. His quiet nature makes it possible for him to effectively run a spot like his. It is in spots like his that drugs are distributed, crimes are planned, successes are celebrated and finally, loots are shared. Segun have had his fair share of police cases; all of which he always come out untainted. He does not partake in the crimes. He simply just minds his business.
Today, the street boys are planning for their annual street carnival on his property. The street jamz (as they are commonly called) is a musical concert. A Disc Jockey is the heart of the entire show. He plays continuously into the wee hours of the night. Any other acts outside that, are just mere side attractions to spice up the event. Street jamz are a very common event on almost every street within the neighborhood and folks takes it very seriously. These street parties are always meticulously planned. Neighborhood folks all conceives of the event as the climax of a whole year round of merriments. They pull out all the stunts to make sure the event is a memorable one.
Preparations are already underway. The street is already decorated to create the right kind of ambiance. The decorations are made to cover the entire length of the street, and they are either tied on electric poles or on streetlights. The theme of the event is printed with assorted images of semi-nude girls on banners. These banners are placed at the various entrance points into the street. Funding for the event is always by freewill donations.

***

Jide is in the crowd. As a resident of the street, he is at liberty to attend. It is to his pride that the awesomeness of his street jamz becomes the talk of the town. Jide despises the street guys for their selfish and cowardly attitudes towards the NEPA menace. He felt that for one to be a complete Homey, one has to balance up merry-making together with some form of manly courage. But he was going to lead the way for others to follow. His feat the other day with the NEPA staffs have been widely discussed by the other streets guys in stunted reverence. The boys have continued to hail him whenever they come across him. He was determined to shock the boys a second time. The money from his lotto winnings was indeed burning a hole in his pocket.

***

The agenda of the meeting was read and soon the fund-raising started. Segun was anchoring it all. In this kind of event planning, it is always ideal to have a generally liked person presiding. For that is one sure of getting a lot of people involved. The event is for everybody irrespective of your status or cultural leaning. So long as one is a resident of the street, he or she is at liberty to decide whether or not to get involved. The bidding soon started in earnest; though rather slowly but it began to build on momentum as the time progressed. A bottle of cheap wine was presented for the auction. Like expected, the sum started from as low as fifty naira (#50). The lower homeys bade more according to their rank and overall worth. Only a few tried to be more generous in their biddings. And these ones had a few eyes wiggled their way. The sum continually progressed from tens of naira, to the hundreds and finally to the thousands. This was the league the bigger boys play. Francis, who was sitting on the wooden bench in Mama Alero’s stall started off the league of thousandnaires when he pledged the sum of one thousand naira (#1000). The crowd applauded. Everyone knows Oga Yellow. They all knew him to be financially better than he looks. He is more or less the street clown. Francis paid cash on the spot. Mama Alero hailed him; wiggling her big buttocks alongside as he brought out the money from his pocket to pay.

***

Baba Tee is the local chairman of the N.U.R.T.W (National Union of Road Transport Workers) and the boss of the neighborhood motor park. He oversees the activities of the motor pack touts. He is in fact regarded as the Thug-in-Chief; with a lot of boys (Agberos) under his control. He is highly respected by the local boys. A lot of them, in fact, aspires to be like him some day. As a resident of the street, a lot of the boys considers him the grand patron of the street carnival celebrations. A lot of the activities of the neighborhood rarely happens without him knowing about it. Baba Tee is in fact the boss of bosses.
Baba Tee was sitting on the edge of one of the snooker tables – an act which only someone of his standing can possibly attempt. Segun will not allow anybody sit on his snooker tables but certainly not Baba Tee. Baba Tee has the power to completely shot him down. He is very powerful and well connected. A lot of the boys are loyal to him. These boys outdo themselves to win over his admirations. They will raise both hands high in the air, and then stamp both feet one at a time in salutations. Some of them have even waxed records; singing only his praises. As a thug lord, he is highly coveted by politicians. Baba Tee never fails to deliver his polling units in the case of an election; even if it meant ballot snatching, vote stealing, vote buying and other manipulations or even outright threatening of electorates.
Baba Tee had two beautiful scantily dressed ladies standing to his sides. A bottle of Cicero was placed between them. The three of them had red plastic cups in hand from which they seeped from. He cuddles the ladies closer to himself. They chatted quietly among themselves with Baba Tee bursting out in hearty laughter at intervals. Baba Tee was in fact enjoying himself. He was patiently waiting for the mouse to have their fun before him, the dreaded cat, gets involved.

***

Jide was by the side watching it all. He too was patiently waiting for the time the big boys will play. He loves the way Segun has been going round trying to persuade those that have made pledges to pay instantly in cash. Some of them paid up immediately like Francis. Others gave excuses for their inability to pay instantly. Segun was empathic about cash payment. And whenever someone fails to redeem his pledge instantly in cash, he will mutter loudly enough some very hilarious and degrading comments that will throw people off their feet in laughter. A lot of people made quick dash for home to get money, while some others have their friends or neighbors lend them some cash which they promised to pay back later.
In front of where Jide was standing were two boys. The boys were standing on the pavement of the big gutter that runs the entire length of the street. Jide knows them to live at no 41 on his street. Their compound is more popularly known as “the swimming pool”. It is notorious for always being flooded during the rainy seasons. The compound seems to have sank a couple of inches into its foundations, making it very easy for one to see over the roof of the compound while standing on the main road. The gutter that runs the street is in itself higher than the gutter in the compound. So draining off the water can only be done by pumping or bailing up with bucket. To enter the compound, tenants have to pass through a small wooden platform that serves as bridge. In one of the nights when there was a heavy downpour, tenants woke up from their bed only to find an ankle deep water had flooded their rooms.
Jide do not like the boys. They were far too flamboyant and garrulous that one could easily mistake them as sons to a very wealthy parents. The boys are Timothy and Femi. These boys are notorious for slaughtering people’s chickens that were unfortunate enough to have strayed into their compound. These boys will most certainly make a nice meal out of it within a twinkle of an eye. They are as well, widely known for the petty crime of stealing people’s clothes. After stealing these clothes, they will take them out to any of their colleague not living within the neighborhood, there they will exchange the clothes for something else –most likely with another stolen clothes.
The boys were both discussing in hushed and reverenced tones about Baba Tee. Jide was too annoyed to listen to what they were saying. He felt Baba Tee is just being blown out of proportion. He considers Baba Tee to be a self-serving mediocre who was being accorded more respect than what he is truly worth.

***

The bidding was still within the region of eight thousand naira (#8,000) when Baba Tee, speaking through one of his concubines, made a head rolling bid of fifteen thousand naira (#15,000) cash. There was an uproar as everyone cheered and hailed his name. Baba Tee simply smiled and raised his cup in acknowledgment to the cheers. Some of his boys were already gyrating and singing in his name. Segun allowed it all to continue until it steadyingly began to subside. After everywhere was calm enough for proceedings, Segun continued. Within him, he felt that there was absolutely no need to ask for any more biddings because no one will possibly want to outdo Baba Tee. But for the sake of formalities, he decided to ask using the famous line used by Achilles in the Hollywood movie titled “Tory”.
“Is there anyone else?” Segun asked.
“Yes!” came a voice from nowhere. The voice seems to belong to a teenager.
“Is there anyone else?” Segun asked again, but this time in a firm voice. He stretched out his neck; out in the direction of the audience. With his right hand, he cupped his right ear in an effort to better detect from where the “yes” sound will come from this time.
“Yes!” came the reply again, but this time everyone knew where it is coming from. Everyone turned towards that direction including Baba Tee who still had a smile on his face. He was probably expecting the “yes” to be a prank by a naughty teenage boy. This thought, he seems to share with the other people around. Timothy and Femi both turned to look at the person who had spoken behind them. Their initial surprise gave way to mockery and later to bone-cracking astonishment.
“My name is Jide Olaoye from no 55. I am pledging the sum of twenty thousand naira (#20,000) cash” said Jide as he was emphatic with the word “cash”.
The crowd was not as rapturous as it was when Baba Tee made his pledge. This is due more to the fact that the people were stunted to disbelieve. Some of the boys were now watching it all in restrained anger; waiting to bounce on the little boy for trying to take them all for a ride. Jide brought out from his pocket a wade of one thousand naira (#1,000) notes and almost in a slow-motion like manner counted out twenty pieces.
By counting slowly, he allowed the shock grow in severity over a period of time. His body seems to soak in on the electrifying chill in the audience, as his back began to swell almost into a hunch. With each counted naira note gently flipped over, a particular section of the crowd cheered. This section of the crowd are made up of those who particularly bear grudges against Baba Tee’s acute sense of showmanship. Baba Tee is always too full of himself. Many people only had to put up with his excesses more as a result of him being a tyrant.
With a mischievous grin on his face, Jide handed over the money to an impressed Segun, who had initially walked over to him with the intention of cracking a couple of mocking jokes at him. Segun needed not to count the money. As a man who frequently handles money, the wade of naira notes in hand felt just right for twenty thousand naira. To maximize the effect, Jide felt the need to leave at once. He placed both hands inside his pockets. With his neck raised high and his eyes fixed straight overhead, he gently strode out of the venue; passing through what is considered the podium from where Segun had stood to coordinate the event. With Jide, went Tobi, Ebenezer, Hassan and his entire crew. Jide walked at the head of the line like a mafia boss.

***

The event ended with Baba Tee having to make a face-saving bid of twenty-five thousand naira (#25,000). Ten thousand naira more from his initial pledge but this time, he announced it himself and as well paid in cash. He ignored the cheap bottle of wine he was entitled to as the person with the largest pledge. In his mind, there was the burning desire of wanting to know more about that teenage boy who just took the shine off him.

*****

It was already sundown. Austin did not go to work. He was down with malaria and had call in to report so. He was feeling dizzy. So he set off for the Well with a fetcher in hand. He needed to pour water over his head to relieve the dizziness. The compound seems deserted. Everyone seems to have all gone out.
Austin had just finish his ablution when Chinelo emerged from the main building. She too need some water from the Well. As Austin stood up to check out who it was, both of their eyes were locked on. Without thinking, Austin with his right hand crossed his face to wipe off droplets of water still there. He then walked up to Chinelo who was standing fixed in her position. He stretched out his dry left hand to touch the side of her neck with both their eyes still locked on.
“Chi, how are you? Why have you continued to treat me this way?” Austin asked in a passion-laden voice.
Chinelo broke the gaze by looking downwards. What follows was totally unexpected by Austin.
“Yes! Austin yes!” came an equally emotional voice.
When Chinelo looked up again, she had tears standing in her eyes. She planted a lightning fast kiss on Austin’s cheek. She turned and then ran off inside, leaving the fetcher behind.

Well done OP

Thanks for the update

Weldon,





OP tanks for the update

This suspense is too much oo.come and quench the fire you started.

You reduced my suspense!
Well-done

amadiwati:
You reduced my suspense!
Well-done

Just continue to stay glued. The story had only just began. Like I said before, it is a true life story of two love birds and how they both choose to end it. It will definitely blow your mind.

And Jesus wept...........Afta readin dis horrible story

the update is slow..pls poster make it fast

Wadewaltz:
And Jesus wept...........Afta readin dis horrible story

Wadewaltz:
And Jesus wept...........Afta readin dis horrible story

Nice story.

moseph:
Nice story.

Thanks Dear

CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The street was rowdy. People gathered in various clusters to discuss what had happened. Women grim in shocking disbelieve at the victim’s misfortune. Young men made jokes out of what has happened. Little children were scolded by their parents to go inside the house and remain there. Nosy neighbors from the other streets were all trooping in to bear witness to what had just happened. Several versions of the story were already going round. Every single one of them claiming to have been told by an eye witness.
In front of compound no 55 was parked the Police R.R.S (Rapid Response Squad) van. At the back, sitting in between two policemen was a badly beaten man on handcuffs. That man was Brother Fidelis. He had been so badly beaten by the mob, that one could barely have recognized him. His eyes were swollen, his head was broken with blood gushing out from the wound, and he as well had blood in his mouth. His torn shirt covered in blood sat like a rag on him. His trouser was all rumpled up as a result of the dragging and pulling. On his body were various bruises and some deep cuts at intervals.
Brother Fidelis was looking completely messed up. He just continued to mop into the distance. The police inspector together with his men were doing their best to hold back the mob who had women, especially mothers, in majority. With their siren blaring, they took the criminal away. As they were leaving, the women booed and cast aspersions on the criminal. Some even tried to throw stones at him but decided against it for fear of being arrested alongside.
Here is what happened.

***

Brother Fidelis had returned from his usual morning cry (early morning evangelizing) the day before. He had his bible hugged across his chest, with his right hand holding it in place. Like he always does, he greeted only those he considers to be believers and totally ignored the unbelievers. He had always have little tolerance for unbelievers. Brother Fidelis was indeed a radical Christian. During the wee hours of the night while the other neighbors are asleep, Brother Fidelis’ voice will be ringing out loud in ferocious prayers. He would bang his feet and clap his hands at intervals as if to further punctuate his presentations to God. He would pray for his enemies to fall down and die. He would as well beg God to in earnest, bring his judgment upon the world.
Brother Fidelis never seizes to make jokes out of smokers and drinkers. He would impress it on them that their portion is in hellfire. Brother Fidelis is popular in the neighborhood for his daily morning cry (an early morning preaching sessions standing at any of the neighborhood junctions).
“Repent and be born again or you will die in hellfire” bellowed his voice from the megaphone he uses. “Unless you repent from your evil ways and be born again, you shall not see the kingdom of God. Those of you into fornication, repent now! Those of you into the sin of adultery, repent now! Those of you into idol worshipping, repent now! All of you that steals, repent now! For it is written that it is appointed for one to die, after which, judgment follows. You have to repent now and be born again. And old things shall pass away and behold, everything will become new.”
Brother Fidelis voice is a familiar feature of dawn in the neighborhood. He is so frequent and as consistent as a cockcrow. So neighbors sometimes adjusted their time by the sound of his voice. He always starts at 4:45am and ends at 6:30am.

“Brother o’yoyo! Brother o’yoyo!” sang a half-naked Nonye as she ran off from their room to welcome Brother Fidelis.
As she ran towards him, she threw herself as him. Brother Fidelis caught her in mid-air and lifted her up to himself. She was wearing just pants. Her frame was small and seems fragile. Her hairstyle was ponytailed behind, with various ornaments of decoration adorning it. She had the beautiful face of her mother and the agility of her father. And as the last child of the family, special attention is always given to her looks.
“Brother, Chinonso poured water on me yesterday” complained Nonye in feigned annoyance.
“Sorry dear, I will make sure I deal with Chinonso severely” replied Brother Fidelis. Brother Fidelis words are always reassuring to Nonye. She enjoys hearing them.
“Brother, Jide gave me a knock on the head” Nonye complained again.
“Where on your head did he knock on? Brother Fidelis asked, pretending to be enraged.
“Here brother, here!” replied Nonye bending her head for Brother Fidelis to have a look it; as with her hands, she pointed to the spot.
“Sorry my dear, I will also deal with Jide squarely. Whenever you see him, just call him for me” said Brother Fidelis.
“Brother, my mommy said that I am not a princess. She called me an ugly girl yesterday”
“Don’t mind your mommy, she is just being naughty. I made you a princess and only I have the power to enthrone or dethrone anybody. You are a princess. You are a very beautiful princess indeed.”
Nonye blushed red in childish pride. Ever since Brother Fidelis pronounced her a princess, she had been carrying herself as such. She will never seize to announce to anybody with a listening ear that she has be made a princess. Every tenants, both male and female, in the compound and even beyond knows that Nonye is a princess. Even family visitors were not spared. One could make her day by simply just addressing her as a princess. The younger boys will mock her when an adult is not around. They will spank her and call her ugly princess. This disrespectful attitudes from the boys are always reported to Brother Fidelis for decisive action. And Brother Fidelis never disappoints. He will round up the boys and have all of them go on their knees. He would then instruct Nonye to pick out the particular boy who had spanked her. The boys will silently plead with Nonye, by mean of hand gestures, not to point at them. Some even go as far as addressing her as Aunty Nonye just to pacify her. The offending boys are usually given a knock or two on their head by Brother Fidelis. He will then force them to give her a slight princess bow and tell them never to spank her again.
Brother Fidelis dropped her off by their door so she can go on and prepare for school. Then he proceeded for his own door. He opened it and went inside.

Brother Fidelis spent the whole of the morning inside his room sleeping. He needed to recover his strength, lost from shouting at the top of his voice for the better part of an hour. He woke up at about 12:00pm but laid still on the bed. He was idle. There was nothing to do. The compound was quiet. The children have all gone to school. Some of the women have equally gone to their various businesses. Those that are around were all asleep. The men are rarely around. He just lay still; gazing at the ceiling of his room.
A knock on the door brought him back to consciousness. The knock was not bold as would be expected from an adult. “What could bring a child home by this time?” he had wondered. He opened his door only to find Nonye standing by it. His initial shock gave way to a realization and then to indifference when he later discovered that the time was already 1:10pm. Nonye’s school closes at one o’ clock. It takes the school bus approximately ten minutes to drop her off at home.
Nonye was on her school uniform. Her school bag was hanged behind her back and she had her lunchbox in her hands. She was looking very exhausted.
“My mommy is not around and our door is locked” Nonye announced in a voice that sounded exhausted.
“Come in and wait for her. She probably have not returned from the market” said Brother Fidelis.
Nonye went inside and sat on the edge of the mattress. There are no chairs in the room. The room was stuffy. So Brother Fidelis went behind the house to put on the generator.
In the neighborhood, generators are more an item of class than it is of necessity. This is the principal reason it is budded “I Pass My Neighbor”. The most common type of generators in the neighborhood are the 8kva type. Because of the epileptic state of the nation’s power sector, generators was becoming a necessity in many household. They're primarily used to power the fan, the light bulbs, the television and probably charge a few cellphones. It is common place to see the room of one with his generator running besieged by neighbors seeking to have their phones charged. The proliferation of these generators in the neighborhood has led to a couple of environmental problems like noise pollutions and a degradation of the air quality in and around the neighborhood. The bigger your generator, the higher one is regarded by his neighbors.

With the generator running, Brother Fidelis came inside to change over from NEPA. The light bulbs –including the fancy lights- all flickered on. The fan started rotating. The television came on, but its screen remained blank. The video player also came on. On its display were indications that the loaded disc left in it overnight had started playing from where it stopped. Brother Fidelis took the remote controller from the side stool and controlled the television down to AV. The blank screen instantly gave way to a graphical scene of child pornography.
Brother Fidelis is a sexual deviant whose sexual leaning is towards little children. He finds them sexually appealing. The younger and more innocent, the better. There have been reported cases of child molestations within the compound in the past. It was once gossiped among the women folks but they were all taken to be just baseless gossips aimed at slandering a fervent servant of God. Some of the children who have now grown into teenage girls could still recall the horrifying moment when the one who they had considered to be a Christian model had molested them. For some, he had fondled their immature breasts. For some others, they had endured the painful experience of having his fingers inserted into their private parts. Most of these girls were too afraid to tell their parents. For the few who did, they were rebuked and warned never to repeat such a thing outside.
Nonye find the scene on the television to be very hilarious. She laughed and pointed to Brother Fidelis that the naked dancing children on the screen reminded her of when she and the other compound children had danced naked while taking their bath by the well. With each funny dance step comes a harder laughter. She was indeed innocently enjoying herself.
The effect of it all was different for Brother Fidelis. He found it all to be erotic. His penis were beginning to harden into an aching erection. He went straight for the bed and lay faced-down, in an effort to conceal his protruded trouser. After a few moments, he instructed Nonye to pull off the school bag she had been carrying on her back ever since. Nonye obeyed and removed her sandals too; also on the instruction of Brother Fidelis. He then asked her to come and sit on his back, for he was feeling a little pain there. Nonye was very enthusiastic to do so. Sitting on his back to help him relief his pain was the little she can do to assist her beloved Brother Fidelis. It as well sounded more like an invitation to play. She eagerly jumped on top of the bed and went straight for his back. She sat on his back and put both hands around his neck and made several hopping movement, as if to be riding on a horse. She laughed hard with each hopping movement. Brother Fidelis laughed too. After a moment. He instructed Nonye to lie still on his back. Nonye obeyed but got up after a few moment. Lying still on his back was no fun. How naïve she had been. She innocently wanted more fun and Brother Fidelis was more than willing to offer it to her.
Brother Fidelis asked her to dismount which she obeyed eagerly. He made her lie still on the bed facing upwards. He then asked her to close her eyes and Nonye obediently did as she was told. With her eyes tightly shot, she felt Brother Fidelis hands going under her skirt. She was enjoying the tickling sensation of his hands under her skirt. Brother Fidelis then raised her skirt and slide down her pants. Nonye surprised at the dimension the supposed fun was headed, opened her eyes and innocently enquired from brother Fidelis.
“What are you doing to me?” she asked looking straight into his eyes.
“Just lie still and close your eyes. It will be fun” Brother Fidelis reassured her.
“Ok” stated Nonye as she obediently closed her eyes again.
“If you open your eyes, the angels of God will see” added Brother Fidelis.
Nonye is always afraid at the thought of offending God. She is always consciously aware that offenders are to burn in hellfire till eternity. Her mother had help to paint a gloomy and horrifying picture of hell in her mind. “The fire is a thousand times hotter than earthly fire and it never goes out. Offenders have not only the heat of the fire to endure, they will also have to contend with maggots and other tormenting demons.” Her mother would always remind her. It was indeed a place she never wish to be.
Everything was blank. Then suddenly, she felt a very sharp pain from her genitals. The pain was so great that she had let out a loud shout in agony. She opened her eyes wide in horror at about the same time Brother Fidelis’ big hands came down to cup her mouth. When her eyes were clear enough to interpret forms, the gentle playful and caring Brother Fidelis who was with her a moment ago, had given way to a ferocious wild beast who is now riding violently on her. With each movement came tremendous pain. She screamed very hard but strangely, no sound made its way out, as the beast has suppressed them with his palms against her mouth. She struggled to break loose but couldn’t. The beast now had his entire weight on her and from him, sweaty sickly smell hit her nostril. Also from him, came a very frightening deep throaty noise. Hot tears streamed down her eyes. They came out from the side of her eyes. It traced a path through her sideburns, avoiding her earlobe and then, they disappeared into the side of her hair. She closed her eyes in a silent heart-felt prayers. She pleaded for God to send help but very strangely, God could not help out. He was probably too busy to listen to her. She was after all just a child.
Soon, she felt a warm fluid slather on her thighs. When she opened her eyes, the beast was gone. In his place was the same gentle playful and caring Bother Fidelis she had always knew. He pleaded for her to remain calm. He then gently withdrew himself from her small framed body.
“Shhhhh. Don’t cry. I am here with you” Brother Fidelis whispered softly into her ears.
Nonye was trembling with fear but she obeyed and did not scream. She was sobbing quietly. She did not like this kind of fun. It was just too painful to be fun. She had only wanted to hop on his back like riding a horse. She had never expected to be ridden on by a beast.
When she finally sat upright, she discovered red fluid on the inside of her thighs. The red fluid had also soiled the part of the bed her buttocks rested on. On the lower part of her thighs; the same region she had felt the beast’s warm fluid, was a thick whitish fluid that looks to her more like the pap her mommy used to make. Brother Fidelis told her to sit still while he went on to the other side of the room where household utensils are kept. When he returned to her, he was having a bowl of water to his right hand and a face-towel on his left. With it, he wiped clean her thighs starting from the pap-like fluid. As he began to clean the red fluid, Nonye naively enquired “Is this not blood”. She asked
“No it is not.” Replied Brother Fidelis.
“What then is it?” she further queried.
“They are fluid from the red marker I had in my pocket. I most have spilled over when you were riding me like a horse.” Brother Fidelis lied with a smile on his face.
“Ok!” said Nonye feeling somewhat satisfied with the explanation.
When done with cleaning her up, Brother Fidelis took the bowl of slightly blood red water to the same corner of the room he had brought them. He left the hand towel soaking in the bowl. He intend disposing them off secretly and discreetly. For Brother Fidelis, all evidences must have to be destroyed.
He returned back to her with a pack of Lucozade Boost. He got her fully dressed up. And he allowed her to sip on her drink while sitting by his side. After a reasonable interval, Brother Fidelis spoke again.
“You must not tell anyone what happened today.” Said Brother Fidelis as he looked straight into her eyes to press home his point. Nonye seemed uninterested in what he was saying. She was still feeling sharp pains in her private region. She hungrily soaked on her Locuzade Boost as if it were to dampen down the pains. All she wants now was her mother. She wanted her so very badly, to help her relieve her pains like moms always do. But that hope seems to be dashed against a brick wall when Brother Fidelis said to her “If you tell anybody, you will go to hellfire.”
The thought of the beast that had just finished tormenting her, waiting for her again in hellfire, troubled her. And when she looked directly into the eyes of Brother Fidelis, she immediately knew there was something frightening in there.
Brother Fidelis made her finish her drink and then he collected the empty pack which he also hoped to later get rid of himself. He then proceeded to escort her, hand in hand, to the door. He did not notice the awkwardness of her movements. She walked with her legs slightly apart. Every step was a step in pains but like Brother Fidelis said, “no one must know about it including mommy”. She was feeling weak and a bit of a headache, probably as a result of the struggles and the suppressed screams or even the tormenting thoughts of meeting the beast again in hellfire.
At the door, Brother Fidelis pointed to her a portion in the passageway of the main building where she can sit and wait for her mother to return. She nodded in agreement and Brother Fidelis went back inside and shot the door behind him
Nonye initially sat at the recommended spot, but had to run out for the more open and better lightened compound frontage. The dark shades of the passageway had only succeeded in scaring her further. It had seemed to her that she was seeing strange horrifying apparitions appearing and disappearing. Apparitions from the tormenting pit of hell. She could hear their guttural and wicked laughter in her head.