You really ain't going
away without a fight
You can't be reasoned with,
I'm done being polite.
__
There were helluva loads of things the universe was yet to give a name to that moment, one was the fear of punching Elo's gut out.
TJ stared at the darker boy, hand balled into a vein popping fist, as he kept his cool, trying not to do the regrettable.
The darker boy in turn, paid no attention to the angry duo glaring fire and brimstone at him. Instead, he typed away, improvising a means of silent communication with the system's keyboard, as the sound filled the room like the pitter patter of a fading rain.
TJ was furious, Jiki was at the brink of hitting the living daylight out of him. That, Elo was fully aware of, but that didn't stop the darker boy from ignoring them.
He was fed up. Totally, of everyone feeling like they knew him more than his own self. They had an idea of what he felt back then, but none of them felt what he felt. The taunting, side talks, he could swear the whole school still made jokes about the fateful day.
Coach Anya, the same man Elo had looked up to. The one man he had expected to protect his pride had sized him up, much to his horror and had bursted out laughing. They'd totally come to a false conclusion without giving him a chance.
Of course, they thought people like him weren't given glances, not more, chances.
If the old man needed him, he'd have to work for it. Grovel even.
He made for his lightpen, aiming to quickly round up his business and flee. Any more minute with the angry duo still waiting for his response was going to be a total disaster.
Too bad, they gave him less than a second. TJ's balled fist made an angry contact with the wooden desk housing his system, causing a rattling noise.
"Guy what?" He cast TJ an angry look.
He was slightly terrified, TJ rarely got pissed off. If anything was certain, the boy craved peace and sane conversations.
Elo watched TJ take calming breaths, the balled fist, loosening, and he too let out a breath.
"Dude... I'm trying to keep my shit together," TJ whispered calmly. "But Nigga I swear, if you ignore me one last time..." He let the words hang in the air, a promise of future, painful collision.
"Me not responding is good enough an answer!" Elo groaned, shutting down his system.
"That's your fucking problem El!" Jiki lashed out, bending to meet the boy face level. He'd been silent all these while, a seething mess.
"You think everyone has to pop into that little mind of yours and figure things out!"
"No! I think y'all should leave me the fuck alone and not bother thinking of a way to pop into this little mind of mine! I don't care if coach wants me DOA, I'm not going!" Elo barked, finally standing up. He began packing his stuffs, in the process, knocking down a stray mouse pad.
"That's what you've always wanted Elo." Jiki calmly stated. "Guy, you spent your month's pocket money on church offering, praying to God that the Man would change his mind."
Elo frowned, plopping down on a chair.
"That was five years ago. Dreams and priorities change dude." His frown deepened. "Can we...can we just drop this please. It has been all we've been on about since morning, honestly it's exhausting." He pleaded, tired of everything, tired of taking several trips down memory lane.
The fairer boy sighed, hand going to his static neck, to relive it of cramps. He nodded, honestly, he too was tired of the whole case. "Fine, that's your choice to make not ours."
Elo let out a relieved sigh, a tight smile sneaking through his lips. "That's what I've been wanting to hear." He faced TJ who returned his small smile. "You guys, I'm sorry for my little outburst in the morning."
TJ snorted, making a face. "You call that madness a little outburst?"
The shorter boy shrugged. "I try. I'm trying to be modest!"
Jiki exchanged glances with an amused TJ before chuckling. "Asshole."
"Hey! That's your title not mine."
"So... We good?" TJ asked after they quit messing around.
"Sure." Elo grinned, making himself comfortable. "No one stays mad at the birthday boy anyway."
"Wasn't he the one who said we ruined his day?" Jiki asked TJ who shrugged in mock confusion.
"Nigga be tripping, just let him be."
They settled back on the ICT lab's chairs, a comfortable silence loomed.
"We still up for the party?" TJ asked, suddenly brightening up.
"Hell yeah!" Elo stood up, hoisting his laptop bag on his shoulder, while the duo joined him.
"Who's going to inform the girls?" Elo asked, once they were outside the ICT lab.
They gave him disbelieving looks.
"What?"
" Are you seriously looking for someone to clean your mess right now?" Jiki asked, walking ahead.
Elo groaned, realizing how much trouble he was in with the girls.
"You're in trouble," TJ whispered, patting his back in mock sympathy. "Big one."
The darker boy shrugged his hands off, causing him to laugh.
"Now that's the real trouble." Jiki whistled, grabbing their attention when someone began making their way to where they stood.
"Speaking of trouble." Elo and Jiki bursted out, trying to hold back their laughter.
To TJ's horror, Abike sashayed to where they stood, acknowledging Jiki with a friendly wave and giving her brother, her middle finger. "Birthday blessings asshole. Hope your brain got a levelling up too?"
Elo patted her back, grinning mischievously. "Oh sis, the people who tolerate you on a daily basis are the real heroes. They deserve the good wishes more."
She scowled while TJ and Jiki tried to stifle their laughter. "Fuck you El!"
"Ewww sis! That'll be incest."
She hissed before turning to TJ.
"Hey." She smiled, her voice filled sudden sweetness.
TJ returned her smile, signalling to his friends to save him. Much to his horror, they were nowhere in sight anymore.
"So..." Abike drawled out, her hand making its way to his.
"Wassup?" He withdrew his hands, shoving them into his side pockets.
"I'm good, just that someone decided to not wish me a happy birthday today."
"Oh really? But I did." He tried explaining, giving up when she narrowed her eyes at him. "I posted for you okay, didn't see you earlier. But now that you're here, happy birthday, hope you get whatever it is you prayed for."
"Awwwn," She cooed, making the boy feel every shade of uncomfortable. "That's the best birthday wish! Where's my birthday gift?"
"Umm..."
The warning bell rang, signalling that recess was almost over.
"Later?"
"Yeah sure." She moved closer, causing him to take a step back.
"You owe me a dance TJ" She whispered, while he stared, wide eyed.
"Do I?"
"Tomorrow." She stepped back, causing him to sigh in relief. "Consider it my birthday gift. I really do hope I get what I prayed for too."
"See you later." She gave him a side hug, before skipping off.
__
Chimdi, quickly but carefully dabbed a dash of peach gloss on Lara's already glistening lips.
"Smack your lips." She ordered Lara, who, tired with a stiff ass and static neck, obliged.
"Careful! You might smare the gloss at the wrong spot Lara." She cautioned, while the girl huffed.
"Better now?" Lara groaned, her impatience, rising in growing seconds.
Chimdi nodded, before flashing the girl a box sized, hand mirror.
The girl's reflexion on the sheen mirror, showed a mature beauty and a fluoride smile.
"Can your face ever?" She cooed, admiring her makeup. "I be looking like a money bag! Can I stand now?"
Chimdi's eyes narrowed, while she searched for any glitch on her perfectly done work of art. Satisfied, she nodded.
"Lord!" Lara stood up, stretching. "Remind me why I hate making up again?"
Chimdi shook her head, emitting a tired yawn. "Because you're too lazy to sit for few minutes."
"You call that few minutes? It felt like eons dear."
Chimdi rolled her eyes, using a face-wipes on a makeup brush.
"Oh please, Some people sit for two to three hours to get the perfect facebeat babes. Don't even utter a word." She dropped the brush on the multi layered makeup box, reaching for another.
"The longest I can sit for, is an hour. I can't kill my self."
"Beauty they say is pain."
"Pain fire. I'd rather go natural." Lara's right hand patted her hair, relaxing the stray strands of her gelled kinky hair.
Chimdi huffed, before casting a look Nene's way. The darker girl's attention was focused on her cell phone, totally oblivious to what was going on in the room.
She'd been like that since the brawl contest she had with Elo the previous day.
Elo had called them late yesterday evening, with bucket loads of apologies and turn up information to the girls and in turn, got reprimanded by Lara and Chimdi, with an unusually silent Nene.
It was a usual bustling Saturday afternoon, with girls pairing in groups, either gossiping or playing afro pop songs from the speakers of glitter-bathed boom players.
The hostel, freshly scrubbed and mopped, from the metal coloured gates to the cubicle like bathrooms, smelt of anticeptic and air freshener, graced with the presence of girls raging from skinny to thick, donning casual clothings and crazy cutoffs.
"Her majesty." Chimdi called, curtseying in a mock bow as she walked to Nene's bed. "What do you want? Wine or a special invitation to get your makeup done?" She sat on Nene's bed and the dipping of the mattress was the only action that caught the darker girl's attention.
"Did you hear what I just said?" Chimdi asked, waving a free hand over Nene's face when the girl made no move.
"You need band aids or bandages for the broken heart Nens?" Lara jeered from her side of the room, throwing out clothes in various directions. "Who saw my camo?"
"I did." Nene jeered back, while Lara's face immediately took a relaxed form. "It was heading to the laundry room."
Lara sent her a glare. "Not funny!"
"Seriously girl, are you getting touch ups or what?" Chimdi asked, scrubbing her face with a baby wipe.
"I'm not going." The girls stared at the darker girl in shock.
"You're joking right?" Lara asked, leaving her heap of strewn clothes to make her way to Nene's corner.
"I'm serious. I don't really feel like partying."
Chimdi's eyes widened in mortification. "Shut up! You're supposed to be the evil twin! What have you done with the real Neneoma?"
"Stop being dramatic Dee." The darker girl let out an unconvincing laugh, checking an imaginary time on her wrist. "You guys should hurry, Dee you've not even touched your face, go..."
"Okay girl, less jokes. What's going on with you?" Chimdi took down her flaring wrists, edging closer to get a closer view of her face.
"Nothing really. I'm not feeling anything."
Chimdi narrowed her eyes at her. "Really."
The girls stared at each other before facing the melanin, each with a slight idea of what was going on.
"Did Elo say something?" Chimdi prodded, which earned her a negative shake of the head from the darker girl, which seemed too fast to be convincing.
Nene avoided their gazes, hands fiddling with her customized phone pouch.
"Tell me, did Elo ask you not to come?" Lara chipped in, but Nene was quick to tarnish such thought.
"No! Elo can't say that."
The girls exchanged knowing looks once more.
"So, why don't you want to go? Elo will feel bad if you don't come." Chimdi casted Lara a conspiratory wink before facing the darker girl.
"He probably hates me now." Nene mumbled, trying to sit upright. But the girls were quick to hold her back.
"So... He did say something?" Chimdi prodded suggestively, dropping the already dried up wipes in her hand.
"Nope he didn't! You two should stop playing detectives and let me be. Haba!!" Nene snapped, forcing herself to get off Lara's grip.
Chimdi clicked her tongue, arms akimbo. "Growling won't get us to stop this time Nens." She sat down beside Nene this time, whole focus on the darker girl.
"Elo did say something right?"
"Fine yes!" Nene gave in, hugging her knees and burying her face in them.
"And..." Chimdi and Lara prodded.
"And I don't know how to react okay!" She finally looked up, eyes glassy with brewing tears.
"He was probably kidding." The darker girl sniffed. "He doesn't like me like that okay?"
They stared at her, confused.
"Did he say he likes you?" Chimdi asked, her approach like a Deer threading on a wild cat's territory.
"He said I treated him like a spare fiddle. And that I have never cared about his feelings even if it was shoved to my face..." She paused. "I...I. Did I really treat him that way?"
"Kinda. Ouch!" Lara yelped, rubbing the part Chimdi's nails dug into seconds ago.
"What!"
"Seriously?" Nene nothing but atone asked.
Chimdi sighed, getting the darker girl to calm down. Where should she start, the girl had been oblivious for the past three years.
She took Nene's hands, motioning to Lara to come closer.
"Babes... The problem isn't about you treating El like a spare fiddle or whatever adjective he used to describe how he feels, you just weren't aware of his feelings. He's liked you for quite a while and you had no idea, so..." She nudged Lara, urging the girl to help her out.
"Umm, Yeah." Lara blurted out, causing Chimdi to palm her face in frustration.
"He's liked me for quite a while? What do you mean?" Nene asked, brows wrinkling, brain, a web of tangled mess.
"We are obviously not in his mind but, he's liked you since forever babe! Remember, it's always El. Whenever you're down, free snacks, the teasing... I mean aside from the random fights with Larabear, he lives for pestering you."
Nene shocked, stared on, confused.
"Okay, remember that asshole in SS1 that played you, the bruises on Elo were results of a brutal fight Nens." Chimdi shook her head, waving them, as if the action would make the girl understand.
"Ooh."
Yet again, the only words that left the darker girl's lips.
"So get up Bea! Time's not on our side. You have to go tell him how you feel!" Lara said, dragging Nene up.
Chimdi internally rolled her eyes. "No Lara bear. This is not some dumb high school movie where the girl finally realizes she likes a boy and practically announces..."
"I didn't say I like him back." Nene halted Chimdi mid speech.
They stared at her in horror.
"Wait a second! You don't?" Lara asked, trying to shake some sense into Nene.
"Hold on, did you tell him how you feel too? What was your response?" Chimdi asked, a bevy of possible awkward scenario flashed through her mind.
And that moment, a hostel girl walked past their room, Anne-Marie and Marshmallow's Friends blaring through the speaker of her boom box.
Chimdi groaned, could the situation get any better?
"I didn't say anything." Nene blurted out, squeezing her fingers nervously. "I just stormed off. What did you expect me to say?"
The girls groaned again.
"Seriously, I was just tongue tied okay. The whole thing hit me like a speeding Mack truck." She sat down back. "I don't know how to face him guys, I need help here."
"Oh shit." Chimdi heaved out. "But first, we have to know. Is this feeling one sided or mutual?"
Nene cleared her throat awkwardly. "I don't really know. But now he spoke up, my feelings aren't exactly just neutral!" She groaned. "Damn Elo! He can't just make me fall for him from nowhere nah!"
The girls cooed, Lara took her by the hand, dragging her up again.
"Look Bea, everly there is going to be a little bit of awkwardness between you two but, it'll dissolve before you know it."
"But-"
"No buts babes, that won't stop you from celebrating his birthday. And he'll probably think you don't care if you are absent."
With that, they manueverd her to a nearby chair where Chimdi began working on her face.
"Nothing much abeg, I just want to fill my brow and mascara." Nene explained while Chimdi continued her work.
Moments later they were done, except Chimdi who was contemplating between wearing a skinny jean and a skirt.
"No, no, not the jean abeg. You want to put those chopsticks on display?" Nene asked, already back to her old self while curling the edges of her neatly packed hair.
"I liked you when you were a lovesick puppy!"
A lipstick landed on her arm. "Fuck you! I wasn't lovesick you fool. But you know you have chopstick legs?" She retorted, wincing as Chimdi threw another object her way.
Lara laughed, before handing a leather skirt to Chimdi. One, way too short above average level.
"Now this is better. Better to show those legs of yours than to have them mistaken as chop sticks." Nene teased, applying finishing touches on her almost perfect glossy lips.
"No way!" Chimdi objected, picking up her discarded jean trouser. "It's too short."
"Wear bumshots inside." Lara urged her on, throwing the skirt back at the skinny girl.
Chimdi grudgingly dressed up and soon they were set.
__
When they all settled inside their ride, Sir Alfred, Chimdi's driver switched on the car's radio and Snoop Dogg's voice filled the small space, talking about the what it takes to be young, wild and free.
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