Untitled Episode
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*CHAPTER 1: TOLANI'S SECRET*
Everyone thought Tolani had everything.
Tolani Lawal, 22, was the rich baddie of UNILAG. Light skin, big hips, Brazilian hair down to her waist, nails always done, Benz car, rich dad in Banana Island. Girls wanted to be her, boys wanted to date her. Her i********: had 150k followers. She posted "Soft life only."
But Tolani was lonely.
Her father gave her money but no love. Her mother lived in London with her new husband. Her friends followed her only for money and free lunch. And the one boy she ever really wanted - Jidenna - never looked at her twice.
Jidenna Okoro, 23, Law department, dark, tall, rich, fine boy from Ikoyi. He was the only boy in UNILAG who did not chase Tolani. And that made Tolani obsess over him.
"I don't understand, what does that Zara girl have that I don't have?" Tolani asked her mirror one night in her expensive off-campus apartment. She was crying. Her makeup was smudged.
Zara was everything Tolani was not. 21, dark skin, simple, broke bookshop girl. Always reading. Always wearing thrift clothes. But Jidenna loved her.
That same night, Ayomide knocked on Tolani's door.
Ayomide - 23, Jidenna's best friend. The calm guy with glasses. 5'11, dark-skinned, simple. He was the only guy who was never intimidated by Tolani. He always told her the truth.
"Tolani, you called me. Why are you crying?" Ayomide asked.
Tolani cleaned her eyes quickly. She did not want anyone to see her vulnerable. "I'm not crying. Who is crying?"
Ayomide sighed and sat down. "Tolani, stop. I know you since 100 level. You form strong girl but you are soft inside."
Tolani broke down. "Ayomide, why does Jidenna not like me? Am I not fine? Am I not rich? What does Zara have?"
Ayomide looked at her. For the first time, he saw not the baddie, but a small girl who just wanted love.
"Because you chase him. Zara doesn't chase him. And love is not about fine face or money. It's about peace," Ayomide said gently.
Tolani looked at Ayomide. This boy who always wore simple shirts, who never asked her for money, who always told her the truth. Why had she never noticed him before?
"Ayomide... why are you always nice to me even when I am rude to you?" she asked.
Ayomide smiled. "Because I know you are not wicked. You are just spoilt. And jealous."
That night, they talked till 2am. For the first time in a long time, Tolani laughed genuinely.
*CHAPTER 2: THE PROFESSOR'S TRAP*
In another part of campus, Zara was in trouble.
Zara was in the library trying to finish her project. Prof. Williams, 48, pot-bellied, bald, HOD, had given her an impossible topic. While other students got simple topics like "Feminism in Things Fall Apart", he gave Zara "Post-colonial Deconstructionist Analysis of Metaphysical Syncretism in 21st Century Nigerian Literature" - a topic even PhD students would fear.
"Prof, please, this topic is too hard. Can I change it?" Zara begged in his office.
Prof. Williams leaned back in his chair. "Zara, you are a stubborn girl. If you cooperate with me, I can give you an easy topic and even an A. You know what I mean."
Zara knew. Every girl knew. He wanted to sleep with her.
"Prof, please, I cannot," Zara said shaking.
"Then you will fail. You will have an extra year. Your poor mother will keep suffering. Think about it," he said wickedly.
Zara ran out crying. She ran to the bookshop. Jidenna was there waiting for her with lunch.
"Babe, what happened?" Jidenna asked when he saw her tears.
Zara explained. Jidenna's fist clenched. He wanted to go and beat Prof. Williams.
"Don't! He will expel you!" Zara held him.
Jidenna called Ayomide immediately. "Guy, where are you? That bastard lecturer is threatening Zara again."
Ayomide was still in Tolani's apartment. He stood up. "I'm coming to the bookshop now. And I'm coming with someone."
"Who?" Jidenna asked.
"Tolani," Ayomide said.
Jidenna was shocked. "Tolani? That your enemy?"
"She is not my enemy. And she can help," Ayomide said and cut the call.
30 minutes later, Ayomide and Tolani entered the bookshop. Zara was surprised to see Tolani.
"What is she doing here?" Zara asked, wiping her tears.
Tolani, for the first time, did not have pride in her voice. She said, "Zara, I know I have been a b***h to you. I am sorry. I was jealous because of Jidenna. But no man should make us fight. And that Prof. Williams... he did the same thing to my friend in 200 level. She had to leave school."
Zara was shocked.
Tolani continued, "My father knows people in the school senate. If we can get evidence, we can finish that man."
For the first time, Zara and Tolani looked at each other not as rivals, but as two girls who had suffered from the same system.
Jidenna looked at Ayomide and smiled. "You did this?"
Ayomide shrugged, pushing his glasses up. "I just told the truth."
That night, the four of them - Zara, Jidenna, Tolani, Ayomide - made a plan to trap Prof. Williams. The plan would change everything in Unilag
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*CHAPTER 2: THE TRAP*
The bookshop was small, hot, and smelling of old paper. But that night, it felt like a war room.
Zara sat on a carton of books, her eyes swollen from crying. Jidenna stood beside her, holding her hand tightly, his jaw hard with anger. Ayomide leaned against the shelf, pushing his glasses up, calm as always. And Tolani, in her expensive red gown and gold heels, stood in the middle of a dusty bookshop where she had never entered before in her life.
It was the most unlikely team in UNILAG.
"So what is the plan?" Tolani asked, crossing her arms. Her voice was still proud but no longer wicked.
Ayomide brought out a small black recorder. "Zara, you said he always calls you to his office by 7pm when everyone has left. Next time he calls you, you will go. But you will put this in your bag. It will record everything he says."
Zara shook her head, scared. "If he sees it? He will kill me. He will make sure I never graduate."
"He won't see it," Ayomide said softly. "I will be outside the building. Jidenna too. We won't be far."
Jidenna squeezed Zara's hand. "Babe, you don't have to do this if you don't want to. I can tell my father. He can talk to the VC."
"And what will your father say?" Tolani cut in. "That a lecturer is asking a girl for s*x? They will ask for proof. Without proof, they will say Zara is lying to get grades. I know how these rich men think. My father is one of them."
Everyone went silent. Tolani was right.
Zara took a deep breath. "Okay. I will do it. I'm tired of being scared."
Tolani looked at Zara with new respect. "You are braver than me."
The next day, as expected, Prof. Williams sent a message.
_Zara, come to my office today by 6:30pm. We need to finalize your project topic. Don't be late. - Prof. Williams_
Zara's heart beat fast. She showed the message to the group chat they had created - "OPERATION WILLIAMS".
Jidenna replied instantly: _Don't go alone. We are coming._
Ayomide: _Turn on the recorder before you enter. Don't put your bag down._
Tolani: _I told my father's lawyer friend. He is on standby. If anything goes wrong, call me._
At 6:25pm, Zara stood in front of the Faculty of Arts building. It was almost empty. Most lecturers had left. Her bag was heavy with fear and the recorder.
She climbed the stairs to Prof. Williams' office on the second floor. The door was slightly open. She knocked.
"Come in," his deep voice said.
Prof. Williams was sitting in his large chair, his pot belly pushing his shirt. He smiled when he saw Zara, a smile that made her skin crawl.
"Ah, Zara. My best student. You came. Good," he said, locking the door behind her. The click of the lock made Zara shiver.
"Sir, you said we should discuss my project," Zara said, her voice shaking.
"Yes, your project. But also your future," he said, moving closer. "Zara, you are a fine girl. You are brilliant. But brilliance is not enough in this world. You need connection. You need someone to help you."
He touched her shoulder. Zara moved back.
"Sir, please, I just want a normal topic like others," Zara said.
Prof. Williams laughed. "Normal topic? For a girl who thinks she is holy? Okay, I will give you a normal topic. But you have to be nice to me. Just one night. One night with me in this office, and you will have an A. I will even recommend you for Youth Service in a big company. What do you say?"
Zara's eyes filled with tears, but she remembered Ayomide's instruction - make him say it clearly.
"Sir, are you saying I should sleep with you for grades?" Zara asked loudly.
Prof. Williams did not hesitate. He thought she was finally agreeing.
"Yes! Finally you understand. All these small girls do it. Tolani, that rich girl, even her friend did it in 200 level before she left. It's normal. Sleep with me, and your problem is over. Refuse, and you will spend one extra year. Your poor mother will die of BP. Choose."
That was all they needed.
Outside, Ayomide and Jidenna were standing by the window. Ayomide had connected the recorder to his phone via Bluetooth. He had heard everything.
He looked at Jidenna. "We have him."
Jidenna wanted to break the door and beat the man, but Ayomide held him.
"No. If you beat him now, he will say we attacked him. Let Zara come out first."
Inside, Zara said, "Sir, I need to think. Can I go?"
Prof. Williams was angry that she did not agree immediately. "Think? You have 24 hours. If you don't come to my house tomorrow night, you have failed. Get out!"
Zara ran out, tears rushing. She ran downstairs into Jidenna's arms. She was shaking badly.
"I got it," she whispered, bringing out the recorder. "He said everything."
Ayomide took the recorder, his hand shaking too. "You did well. You were so brave."
Tolani arrived in her Benz 10 minutes later. When she heard the recording, she started crying.
"That's exactly what he told my friend Faith. Exactly the same words. This bastard!" Tolani screamed.
That night, Tolani called her father. Her father was a powerful man who knew the Vice Chancellor.
"Daddy, I have evidence of a lecturer harassing students for s*x. I want you to help me," Tolani said.
Her father was shocked. "Tolani, you sure?"
"Yes, daddy. And if you don't help, I will post it on i********:. I have 150k followers. Let us see if UNILAG will like that scandal," Tolani threatened.
Her father knew Tolani was serious when she wanted something.
"Okay, send me the audio. I will call the VC tonight," he said.
As Tolani hung up, she saw Ayomide looking at her. He was smiling.
"What?" she asked.
"You are not just a baddie. You are a good person, Tolani," Ayomide said.
Tolani felt her cheeks heat up. No boy had ever looked at her like that - with respect, not lust.
"Ayomide... thank you for making me better," she whispered.
Ayomide moved closer, his voice low. "You were always better. You just needed someone to remind you."
Their faces were inches apart. For a moment, Tolani forgot about Jidenna completely.
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