Chapter 4
802 Words
Abiriba and the Green Lace Dress
His parents were waiting at Sam Mbakwe Airport in Imo State, his father behind the wheel and his mother in the passenger seat with a worried look she couldn’t hide when she saw him hobbling. Abia State didn’t have an airport, so they drove two hours to Aba.
Aba was loud, crowded, and familiar. David spent five days there, mostly on the couch with his foot propped up, letting his mother fuss and his younger cousins orbit him like he was a visiting dignitary. On day six, the whole family packed into two SUVs and headed to Abiriba, their hometown in Ohafia LGA, for the holidays.
Abiriba was all red earth, palm trees, and noise during December. There were parties every night—traditional dances, late-night pepper soup, and the kind of gatherings where everyone was related to everyone else. The centerpiece was his sister Anita’s wedding.
That’s where he met Lucy.
She was Anita’s husband’s cousin. Not too tall, curvy, with a confidence that came from knowing she looked good and not caring who noticed. Her buttocks were full and prominent, and she wore a green lace dress that left little to the imagination. David saw her across the reception tent and made a beeline, pain in his foot forgotten.
Lucy was easy to talk to and easier to flirt with. She laughed at his jokes, let him hold her hand during the dance, and by the end of the night she was looking at him the way Chidimma used to—like he was the answer to something. She fell fast, head over heels, calling him “Agent” and telling her friends she’d met “the one.”
When the thirty days were up, David returned to Kano. Two weeks later, he sent Lucy the ticket.
She came.
He didn’t waste time. In his apartment, with the door locked and her bags still by the door, he took her. She was nervous, clinging to his shirt, but she didn’t say even though it was her first time. When it was over, she lay against his chest, breathing hard, calling him hers. David didn’t correct her.
Back at the office, work had resumed as usual. George was the first to enter his office ”Oga Sir, how was the holidays” beaming with smiles.
George was David’s subordinate but they were close and were more like friends. He was one of the few people David trusted completely.
Coincidentally, George showed David a minor injury he had hours earlier when he was peeling oranges.
David winced. “Speaking of injuries… remember that file I said I’d finish before I left? Didn’t happen.”
“What happened?”
David rubbed the back of his neck, looking annoyed at himself. “On my last day at Abuja before I travelled, late. walking back from EFCC Academy to my car. Road was dim, no streetlights on 4th. I saw this girl I couldn’t even catch her name or know anything about her. She was taking a walk with her friend as I was about to say hi, cut across the street, and…” He gestured down at his foot.
George raised an eyebrow. “And?”
“I misstepped. Cracked my toe on the curb. Hard.”
George burst out laughing, then stopped when he saw David’s face. “Oga Sir, You’re serious.”
“Dead serious. She was with a friend. They both came running, asked if I was okay. I was more embarrassed about eating pavement in front of her than the pain. Told them I was fine, limped off before I could even ask for her number.”
“So you spent Christmas hobbling around your parents’ house, thinking about the girl you didn’t get the number of?”
David smiled “Nah” and grabbed his crutches. “You know me better than that, I’m a party boy. I’ve opened and closed many chapters within these few days. But there’s something about this lady hovering at the back of my mind and I wonder if I would ever see her again.. besides it’s not as if I’m based in Abuja”
George shook his head, grinning. “You’re an EFCC agent, David. You chase fugitives across three states but you can’t ask a girl for her number after falling on your face?”
“Not the same thing,” This has never happened before, I really was embarrassed by the fall”
“Welcome back Boss. Try not to break anything else. And if you see her again, use your words before your feet do. Eh hen one more thing, I saw your name on a memo today, You will be going for a course in Abuja soon. Who knows, you might get lucky.
- Writer
