Chapter 4: Back to the present

April 22, 2019

FIRST DAY OF THIRD TERM

My mom had a tradition that she liked to do every year. On the very first day of a new term, she'd take pictures of us in our school uniforms. CJ and Nenye hated it but I didn't mind taking just one picture especially when later in the future I get to reminisce on how cute and innocent I used to look.

My JSS1 (7th Grade) first term picture reminded me of the time I cut my hair and my JSS2 (8th Grade) second term picture reminded me of when I stopped wearing braces.

"Mom we're going to be late," CJ complained.

This term was special for him; it was the term when seniors were excused from pretty much every activity in school. Except for prayer time. That was never going to happen.

"Just one more," mom said as she fumbled with her phone. We watched her squint at the screen as she tried to find the camera button.

"We've taken like three pictures, isn't that enough?" Nenye complained.

"No, it's not, you children are growing too fast, by next year CJ is not even going to be in secondary school again! Besides you like taking pictures don't you," Mom said.

"Yeah but not while wearing this thing." She gestured to our school's uniform which comprised of a navy blue blazer and tie and a light yellow shirt. She had on long black pop socks and she wore her skirt a bit past her knee exposing a bit of her caramel coloured skin.

"We're Africans for Christ's sake why did they have to add this thick blazer to our uniform."

"You know the more you complain the more time we waste," I pointed out. She gave me the stink eye.

"Umu m (meaning my children) you are looking sharp," Mom said in her thick Igbo accent as she took another picture.

We were interrupted by a car horn outside.

"Okay, that's enough, Vicky is here," Nenye said as she picked up her school bag and went for the door.

"Zaram are you coming?"

"Yeah," I said and hugged mom goodbye.

"CJ do you want me to drop you in school?" Mom asked CJ.

"No thanks mom, I can't do anything that will spoil my rep," he said as he kissed her on the cheek and closed the door behind him.

"How are you going to get to school?" I asked.

"Andy and I are going together," he said as he started walking the short distance to Andy his classmate's house.

Vicky's driver honked again.

"Get in now or we're going to leave you," Vicky shouted from the back seat of the car. I rushed to the car and got in.

Throughout the drive to the school, Vicky and Nenye talked about the student parliament elections that were to happen today. The old members of the student parliament from the senior class were going to step down for their juniors to take over.

"Who do you think is going to be president of the Student Parliament?" Vicky asked.

"If it isn't going to be Toriola then I don't know who else, the boy has been practically begging for that position since we first entered secondary school."

"Wait has he actually been begging for it," I asked. Both of them looked at me like I just asked a very stupid question.

"No, the boy just acts all responsible and shit," Vicky finally said.

"Plus he's a total goody-two-shoes, it kind of makes me sick," Nenye finished.

"Oh," I said and adjusted my tie.

"You better not suffocate yourself with that noose of a tie around your neck," Nenye joked or mocked I was not sure.

I just smiled and adjusted the tie to loosen it. The both of them started talking again and I blocked them out after hearing Vicky start complaining about her mom's new husband and his son.

°°°°°°°°°°°

When we reached the school's parking lot, I got out of the car with my light brown backpack hung partially on my left shoulder. The whole parking lot was filled with either parked cars or the ones that were driving in or out and the students that were being dropped by their parents.

Our school was called Pure scholars international academy and it was a private school. Just like most private schools in Nigeria you had to pay a crapload of money all in the name of school fees and other "fees."

At least It was one of the best secondary schools in Abuja. Everyone in this school either had to know someone or had to be related to someone important before they could even have a chance of getting in.

My dad was one of the school's lawyers and he was part of the school's board of directors. The main reason why he could afford to send all three of his children to this school was that they had reduced the school fees of the children of the staff that were going here.

I walked to my class that was located on the first floor of the school's main building. The SS2 class (junior class) was located directly above ours and the SS3 class (senior class) was opposite the SS2 class.

The class was noisy as usual, we were about twenty-something in a class and the majority of our classmates had resumed. I spotted my friend Kolade sitting down at the back seat. As usual, he was busy doodling on his notepad. I walked to the seat beside him and dropped my backpack on it very loudly to attract his attention. He didn't look up from his notepad but he smiled and said.

"Good to see you too." He looked up at me and I smiled back at him, then he eyed me from head to toe and said.

"How is it possible for someone to be so short at the age of 15."

"Shut up," I said and sat down beside him. In JSS3 (freshman year) we were basically the same height but the boy had a growth sprout after the third term and I stayed the same. Now he likes to intimidate me because of my inability to grow taller.

I snatched his notepad from him to look at what he was drawing. It was just a bunch of poorly drawn stickmen figures.

"Wow you're such a talented boy," I said sarcastically.

He shrugged at me and replied, "What can I say I'm just too talented."

I shook my head at his reply.

During lunch break, I and Kolade had our lunch on one of the school's staircases. This was a tradition that we started on the first day that we became friends. Which was the day after valentine's day last year. It's kind of a funny story of how everything happened.

Kolade had a crush on Nenye and he wanted to ask her to be his valentine. But the poor boy made a big mistake by doing that in the school's dining hall, in front of basically everybody.

That's not even the worst part, the boy decided to sing his proposal to her and she just... well she didn't really do anything. Her friends did most of the heartbreaking when they started to laugh at him. Soon enough everybody joined in to laugh at him.

That was how Kolade was rejected on valentine's day. The next day I saw him eating at this very spot and decided to join him because he looked so sad eating all alone. From that day we started eating together on the staircase and became friends.

After some weeks of us being friends, I found out that he was part of a royal family and was a prince. Which was kind of unbelievable because the boy acted nothing like a prince. At least not like the ones they show on Disney.

After lunch, the school had an impromptu assembly to announce the names of the new members of the student parliament. The assembly hall was filled with rows of benches that were already occupied.

I walked to where my fellow SS1 (sophomore year) girls were seated. Kolade went to the section reserved for SS1 boys. I looked at where he was sitting in the front with some boys. We made eye contact and he stuck out his tongue. I shook my head and mouthed, "very mature."

He laughed and turned away. That's when a boy with a short curly afro came and sat down beside him. I couldn't see Kolade anymore. The boy's hair was blocking Kolade's head. He turned his head and for a moment we made eye contact until he looked away.

He must have been a new student because I couldn't recognize him. I thought by the third term the school would have stopped accepting new students.

Our principal walked on to the mini stage in the front and started to address us. I could see some of the SS2 students that had been chosen to replace the student parliament and Nenye was one of them.

I wasn't surprised because even though she acted so disinterested in anything that involved studying. She was still very intelligent. They always picked her to go for competitions but she declined most of them, at least the ones my father would let her turn down.

We all started to clap as the principal started to call names. Each student that had been called would walk to the stage to receive their student parliament tie. It was navy blue but with yellow stripes.

"And the position of president and vice president of the student parliament goes to... Toriola Ajasin and Chinenye Okafor," Our principal said as the crowd burst in applause. Mainly for Nenye, everybody loved her.

Even though she could be a total bitch sometimes, she was still nice to the juniors and they adored her for it.

After school Kolade followed me to the school parking lot. His driver had already come to take him home but he asked him to wait a little.

"I can't believe they made your sister Vice president," Kolade chuckled to himself.

"Don't you think saying something like that just makes you sound bitter that she broke your heart last year," I said.

We now started arguing if It actually made him sound bitter until we got to the car to find Vicky leaning on it with her arms folded. The driver was patiently waiting inside the car.

"What are you two children arguing about," She asked.

"Oh nothing," Kolade replied.

"Where's Nenye?" I asked looking around for her.

"She's at the principal's office," Vicky said.

"Already!!?" Kolade exclaimed.

We both gave him a look and he looked away with a sheepish expression on his face.

"The principal said he wanted to have a brief meeting with the newly elected students of parliament."

"...O...kay?" I replied. She didn't look very excited at all.

"What are we waiting for," Someone said from behind us that was definitely not Nenye. The person's voice was way too deep to be hers.

I turned around to see that it was the boy with the curly afro.

Vicky rolled her eyes at his arrival and said.

"We're waiting for Nenye, I told you about her and her sister didn't I?"

She gestured to me and I smiled and waved at him. Why the hell did I wave? Kolade started to laugh again, probably at how awkward my expression was.

He looked at me for like five seconds and I began to feel the urge to touch my head to check if I had grown a second one. I didn't though, doing that would just make me scatter the hair that I suffered to arrange this morning.

"Hi I'm Chidindu," He said and drew out his hand for a handshake and I could see the hesitation in his eyes like he was not sure I was going to accept it.

"Nice to meet you I'm Zaram... uh, Chizaram but you can just call me Zaram," I said as I shook his hand. His very soft hands. Doesn't this boy do work in his house?

"Why are you two shaking hands like as if you're in a business meeting," Nenye's voice said from behind us. I quickly withdrew my hand at her statement.

"Let's go," Vicky said as she entered the car. I waved Kolade goodbye. The boy's eyebrows were raised in surprise. "What," I mouthed. He pointed to me and then at Chidindu and started to make a kissy face. I flipped him off and got into the car.