₦airaland Forum

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" . . . 29, 40, 160. Next group: 18, 12, 39, 68. Next . . . ."

Ade complied with the order and stealthy stood, from seat twenty-nine at the same time as others did, in rows. Merged; stood up in rows; stumped and shuffled; merged. On and on like that they kept on in a calm chaos, meeting other scholars and becoming acquainted one with the other as they were grouped.

Ade traipsed majestically, shoulders held high and moved to a cleared space by a large bay window. She passed the wait for her teammates looking out to a garden barricaded with columns. Writhing movements just behind a particular pillar caught her attention. She adjusted her position to get a better view. And she saw. The white boy from earlier making out with a girl. Yuck—

"We are together!"

Ade jumped and caught herself. "Maeve..." she breathed.

"Sorrrry. I'm just so happy we got paired together. Like wow — so, you're into contemporary dance, too?"

''Yeah." Ade nodded, smiled.

"Huh. Cool." Maeve pivoted, craning her neck in every direction. "I wonder who our fourth partner is. And the first."

"Yeah. The first. The instructor said it's the seat number 16. But she's not present. So we should just go ahead and form our group. Pick a name, leader..."

"Ohh, a name! I have tons of it. Can't wait to pick one. Cassiopeia? How's that? Is it cool? You know, I thought it's stellar ... so, like likening our group to the stars. Shooting talents. Or Thundrettes. Or. . ." Ife's approach to their spot slowed her blabbering, but then, it billowed again, when the redhead reached them. "Oh. My. God. You're with us, too?! Wow. What luck! Roommates and dancemates? Like, how crazier can fate get?" Maeve gripped onto Ife's arm and the fragile girl freaked, her heart kickstarting in an overt manner.

Ife righted her reaction too late, her panic blatantly displayed to her new friends at Maeve's unexpectedly forward physical contact. Her arm was dropped.

Maeve sheepishly muttered an apology, albeit a tad bit confused.

"We're done for today now, I guess? It's just for sorting us. I say we should head home, maybe?" Ade suggested.

"Yep, sure. Definitely." Maeve agreed, oblivious to Adunade's dominance naturally slipping to be exerted in gatherings. She snapped and popped syllables all through her speech as she said, "Let's walk together," more to Ife before Ifelayo could glide off. Without them.

The south-westerner nodded, mute.

"So, as I was saying," Mae began, walking amidst the two: white-haired and raven-looking, out the class. "I have thought of so many ideas for this before coming. We are gonna need a costume. You know, something to brand us, set us apart. And a vlog! Where we can post our videos, personal experiences, gain followers and all that. What do you think?" She bobbed. "We'll need all the support we can get. To beat the other teams and come out first. I sight-counted about forty groups in there..."

Adunade chuckled. "It's all good. Great plans." She swung her higher education notes against the gray denim jeans cladding her thighs, enjoying the lull of the minty and fruity, partly-cluttered breeze and Rosen's company.

"And you? Ife? Chirp something."

Ife stalled in words and steps, flinging mental luggage away to think up a response. She spoke in a small tone, "Um - - awesome. I. I like some matching sneakers. And. Something. Flowery. For the outfit."

"Hmmmm, we could consider that. Definitely use those ideas," said cherry-on-a-sundae Mae.





          They waltzed into the dorm, the door ajar and on the third floor, non-plussed at what might have intruded their room. Maeve ever taking plunges, surprisingly and not-so surprisingly, choked on her breath to the hearing of her roommates.

She grasped her fingers to her chest, squeezing her flannel shirt. "Oh my God." Gulped. "You scared the shit out of me."

"Who's there?" Ade came in afterwards. And then Ife.

Both girls looked to the athletically tall newcomer, dressed in a night's thief attire, and on a purple-dyed afro hair, with plump lips.

The girl stood, unshaking. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to? I was um directed here by a security guard. This is my room."

"Oh." Adunade relaxed. "You're welcome. Sorry about the abrupt entry, too. We're staying here also."

The new girl nodded in understanding and following an afterthought, offered, "I'm Pemisire."

Maeve cut into Pemi's introduction and snatched the girl's outstretched arm towards Ade. "Hi, Pemi. Maeve. Nice to meet you. And cool name."

Pemi grinned. "Nice to meet you, too."

"Adunade. Omowunmi."

"I-fe-layo Bakker."

"Bakker? Urh... didn't know that." Maeve sauntered to her bed and collapsed onto it. It bounced her. "Woah, so, we're complete now–Hey, what seat number were you supposed to take? In the main hall this morning."

"Sixteen?" Pemi said.

Mae and Ade's eyeballs expanded. Ife crossed to her space, and sat down. Observing with pulsing eyes.

"Okay! This is God working right here. WE. ARE. TOGETHER. IN. THE. SAME. GROUP." The blue-haired gyrated, jubilating and jumping here and there, doing crazy but mad dance, moves to the delight of the girls. "Ade is going to be our leader," she declared at last, slouching her steps. "I want that. Ife our writer. Pemi, costu—"

"Oh, no. Why me?" Ade questioned with a shake of her head.

"C'mon. Why not? We need a leader. And it really isn't that much of a big deal. You're just going to represent and answer and all that. You're still the same as us! I think it suits you better, I don't know?" Giggles. "You appear intelligent," Maeve disclosed. "And you just seem very... very something of yourself." She felt pleased, like she had given a great oration and let the feeling showed forth in her countenance.

Pemi's lips pulled to each side of them, pressed together in force; she stole glances at Ife, tried to get her mind frame into the scope of the younger girls around her. She wasn't that old. Sixteen. But her thinking and perception were far advanced than her roommates' due to playing 'big sister' to her own big sister at twenty years old. Maeve's mention of God earlier grinded on her nerves also, swollen her mood for personal reasons. She tried to placate her emotions and will's machine, dragged it like a stubborn mule least it go charging against her responsibilities, jobs, and ills at home and began to ruminate and introspect on them. In a futile attempt at solving problems she had no control over.

"Alllright, then, let's celebrate our first day..." Mae was saying.

"Yes. It wouldn't be bad," Pemi chipped in.

Rosen threw her full hair to the side, as if to say 'I told you.' Having a person agree with her suggestions was always mostly the effective ingredient she needed to drive them in and make anyone buy.

Ade asked, "But how are we going to do that? In school?"

"They'll allow us out." -Maeve.

"And, there's this party closed to a place I know." Where I work. "I heard our students, Pearliers, will be using there. It's open for anyone to attend. But no adult stuff though. Just fruit drinks......."

"That's sweet and fixed. We should go."

"No problem." Ade caved in finally as Ife was opening up to say a thing.

"Uh, what, Ife? What do you wanna do? Think you'll be slipping outta this with me? Hell to the nah way."

Skinny, dark-skinned Bakker, clothed in nerd's outfit shut up, knowing there's no winning with Maevy. And no clue had she if that was a good or bad thing.