AWERO

HISRETURN

"Bi o ba de le ba mi ki omidan omoshalewa" his words hit my ears in a subtle way forcing me to pause as i intended climbing on the rails of Ajanaku's canoe, wasn't sure how to react but i was more confused bout who he had referred me to. Maja had been the only friend i knew for the last Ten years since the passing of my mother "Iya jeoyemi". I looked behind to see Maja's figure slowly been swept behind by the thickness of the bushes and the sparse aligning of tall trees as our canoe paddled across the river that linked the two settlements of Mojoda and Beti. I had spoken to Maja three days earlier informing of my intents to return to Mojoda my hometown, it had been eighteen years since i was last there so i wasn't sure of what awaited me but i knew i was more than prepared for a new chapter in my life and as i watched as the faces of a few people who had came out to wish their families and friends farewell disappeared behind the bushes i was more determined for the journey ahead.

The canoe paddled across the Iyanrin river seamlessly and swiftly and within an hour we were at the riverbank of Imagbon a remote island that separated the two settlements,it was rumored that the late obas of both settlements had warred on the possession of this island in the past but after eight years of losses recorded on both sides theystruck an accord and thus none of the kingdom had a direct claim to the island.

Ajanaku had requested we all got down to buy refreshments because it was going to take another two hours before we arrived at the riverbank of Mojoda, i alighted and made my way to a the first shed my eyes could make out."ki ni e ma ba wa ra ba yi booda pupa" she said with a smile, wasn't sure if it was her voice or the smile that sentshivers down my body, she had this aura arounds her, i couldn't quite fathom what it was or how she did it but i was so certain if i had more than ten minutes on the islandi wouldn't have had to wonder. I smiled back at her, she blushed, paced back and my eyes took in every inch of her body, her hair were neatly plaited, the tiro gave morehighlight to her eyes, she had a dimple on her left cheek, her gele flailed flawlessly as the gentle breeze crashed against it, my eyes peered through her "buba" to make a nice curve arounds her chest and not even her folded arms that wrestled to keep them from my eyes could stop the tip of her n****e from forming shape as they stood to stop my eyes from straying downward, her voice struck me again "A ni booda pupa ki le fe ba wa ra" she stretched each syllable as she spoke them as if to make a point and unfortunately i had not the wit toanswer as they were somewhere lost in the lustfullness of my thoughts, i could only gesture with my hand, pointing towards the wraps of ikokore and some bush meat.

She had them wrapped in palm fronds, i collected them and just as our hands touched, electricity pulsated through us forcing us to lock gaze, her lips tilted to the sideand mine creased to outline a smirk and in that moment i found that my wits had returned. "ki ni oruko awelewa yii o" i questioned, "Agbeke ni booda wa" she replied stillsmiling, "Booda ke? Omotoye ni oruko te mi awon to si so e na ni Agbeke wan o pa iro kan kan ni to ri omo ti a nke si ni o" i teased and at this point her smile hadbroadened revealing her gap tooth, we spent the next five minutes trying not to admit we might really like each other and the s****l tension between us wasn't therebefore Ajanaku called out to the rest of us that weren't back on the canoe. I quickly offered to pay her but she refused but instead insisted i could pay her the nextwe met, i searched her eyes with mine for i knew there was no chance we could possibly meet again but if there is one thing i was more certain it was the fact that icould never say no to free food not especially when it was being offered by a pretty lady of course so i thanked her threw her flirtatious smiles and went back tocontinue my journey.

By the time we arrived at the riverbank of Mojoda the sun had almost escaped the sky ,it once shiny yellow had bleached to an almost non-existent orange, we could hearthe rhythm of the toads resonating through the shards of the bushes and the once crowdy riverbank had almost quieted down. I alighted from the canoe, very weary, i couldhear the growls of my stomach, it rang almost as loud as the gentle breeze that kept spewing on my face as Ajanaku had steered us from the island to here, i could feelmy legs weakening but this was no time to be weak or be sorry for the distress i currently faced because i had only but completed the first part of my journey for mygreatest fear lies some six hundred metres ahead.

So many thoughts flashed through my head all at once. "what if no one recognized me?" "what if they had changed the "Falomi's" heirloom and no one believed i was indeed theson of their late brother "Tunbosun" there were so many "ifs" and "buts" but no answer came and as i inquired my way back to my late grandfathers compound i could only but hope and prayto the gods that they believed my story or the heirloom i had on me which was what was left of my fathers would speak where my words failed me.