Near Miss

EIGHT

Thank God for movies. How else would they have learnt to make a fire? The night was treacherous; but Seyi and Morenike slept totally oblivious to the dangers of the forest. The next day was a quest to make their way out of the forest.

“I think we should follow the river. It must lead somewhere.” Seyi said.

“What if it leads deeper into the forest?” Morenike asked.

“We must remain optimistic.”

“Ok” She said simply.

“Tell me about yourself.”

“What will you like to know?”

“Anything outside the obvious.”          

“I am a single child.” She ended abruptly and said- “And You?”

Seyi rose to the occasion. “I am an orphan and I am also an only child.”

Morenike rubbed parts of her body that were exposed to assault by mosquitoes. They kept on going and chatting. After a while they could not ignore the dark clouds and winds.

“My parents died in a plane crash last month”.

Morenike’s jaw dropped for a few seconds before she collected herself and said- “I am sorry to hear that, but how did you find the courage to come to camp.

“It was easier than staying around the pity and gloom.” Seyi went into the details of the horrible happenings that have befallen him. He told her about Datare and all the failed dreams.

“We have to look for shelter.” Morenike said when it was becoming apparent that they were not making it out of the forest that night.

They found a huge tree that held a promise of solid branches to sit on for the night. They sat with their legs to the side of the branches; Seyi rested on the tree and Morenike on Seyi. The conditions during the night were worsened by the heavy downpour of rain.

It was the eve of departure and the excitement temporarily gave way to the rigor of packing. The clothes were the easy part; Ken’s paintings had to be done painstakingly.

“This is tiring.” Ken complained

“It will soon be over.” Datare said. Her sleeves were rolled up; ken took note that she is a hard worker.

“It will start all over again when we get to New York. More reason to be glad that you will be with me babe.”

Datare smiled and looked down yet again. Ken immediately lifted her chin. “Do not worry, he has moved on.” He sensed her guilt.

She nodded and smiled and then nodded. This is it. Good bye Sey.

The rain that started mildly poured all night and continued to drizzle when the day broke. Morenike shivered terribly and Seyi could do nothing about it. He hated the helplessness. By the time the rain stopped Morenike continued to shiver with a fever. They stayed on the fat branch and watched water flow through dead leaves on the ground. By noon the sun shone and gave the much need heat to dry their clothes and their bodies. Morenike was weak but they kept on moving. Seyi kept her talking; and boy did he learn a lot. She spoke of her family and implied that there was a high moral standard expected of her. She was obviously concerned about not disappointing her parents. Seyi found this a bit too heavy a burden to carry. No wonder she was so perfect at everything. Seyi could not shake the feeling that there was a lot of feelings and emotion beneath the hard surface. Surely there must be something else driving her apart from the desire to please her parents.

“Do you love him?” Seyi asked trying to get under that perfect exterior.

“Uhh, who?”

“Your fiancé, do you love him?”

“We were talking about family.” Morenike tried to collect her thoughts.

“He is practically family, isn’t he?”

“Well until….”

“Do not change the topic; do you love him?”

“Of course! Why would I marry someone I do not love?”

“How did you meet?”

“He had always been a part of my life since childhood” Morenike said again painting that perfectly laid out scenario.

“You mean you have had it in mind to get married to him since you were a child.”

“No child thinks of marriage, idiot.”Morenike joked, but she was getting impatient with Seyi’s questions.

“I had a solid crush on him in my teens.”

“What is his name?”

“None of your business.”

“Okay, when did you decide that he is the one?”

“Well my mother suggested….” He did not allow her finish.

“You were arranged?”

“Don’t be silly, you are just annoying.” Seyi grinned.

“You are getting hitched the old fashion way. Somehow i thought you too smart for that.”

“What is that supposed to mean.”

“You come across like the kind of girl who knows exactly what she wants out of life.”

“This is exactly what I want!”

“Somehow I find that hard to belief”

“Why?”

“You seem like a lady with ideals and ideas”

“Ideas are far from reality.” Morenike slowed down. She was tired again. Seyi touched her fore head; it was burning. He decided to keep her taking.

“So you would rather embrace reality without trying to find out what a little chance may bring.”

“Is your own relationship an occurrence of chance?”

“She was not an imposition; if that is what you mean.”

“He was not imposed on me. Does it even occur to you that I may be comfortable with being with someone I have know most of my life; someone whose background is no surprise.”

While they spoke they made a slow but progressive climb out of the valley. From a vantage point they agreed on the direction to move and kept on walking. By night morenike was extremely weak and hungry. Seyi could not sleep all night he kept watch and never left Morenike alone. She mumbled occasionally and shivered wildly. Seyi was terrified. God help her. Help us; help us find a way out of this jungle.

The police station at Ibadan was filled with relatives of the corpers that disappeared on the last day of camp. The police was optimistic, but the relatives were not convinced it has been four days and not one of them had been found. Some parents were angry, some mothers cried, other relatives just wanted to understand how the national youth service could send corpers to such a place despite the risk.Uncle D sat among these people but he was very quiet. He prayed desperately for Seyi’s safety. The situation looked bleak but anything can happen by an act of God.

By morning Seyi had dozed off while holding Morenke firmly on his thigh. She said something. Seyi woke up and tried to make out what she was saying. Her lips were dry and chapped.

“Bsss, Bsss,” Seyi leaned closer. “Birds”

“Birds.” He repeated not comprehending.

She continued to whisper, and then Seyi understood. There were ravens calling in a distance. This could be…. no. He would just go and check instead of raising their hopes unnecessarily. He eased away and placed her head gently on the ground and jugged off to see for himself. Could the birds be hovering above a road?

It had been nothing short of a dream since Ken and Datare’s arrival in New York. There was nothing stressful about unpacking in Ken’s little condo. Datare was on some kid of energy that ken knows nothing about. He just watched her arrange and organize. Ken started getting ideas. He is just an artist and will always be. Datare may not be a bad manager for the gallery he had always hoped to acquire. It was just a thought he did not voice it.

Seyi stopped and hoped it was not a mental illusion when he heard the descending hum of an engine. He moved quietly and approached cautiously until he saw with his two eyes the asphalt. It was really a road. Relief washed over him. There is really a God and he heard his desperate prayer. He looked left and right; there was no one in sight. He waited safely behind the elephant grasses. It was a very long while before another vehicle passed. Seyi went back to the place he left Morenike and found her sitting up. Wow God did help her. Together they walked slowly to the edge of the road and waited. It was almost nightfall and only two vehicles had passed since they had been waiting. They were cars and Seyi stubbornly refused to attempt to stop a car. Just before dark a truck approached slowly. Seyi bolted without warning and stood in the middle of the road waving his hands.

“Are you crazy? What is going on?” the driver said to Seyi in heavily accented Yoruba language when he eventually stopped.

“Please help us.” Seyi said motioning for Morenike to come out.

“What happened?” The man was genuinely concerned.

Seyi took him through their ordeal and explained that they had been stuck in the forest for some days. As he spoke, the Driver helped Morenike into the passenger side of the truck. Seyi learned from the driver that they were along the road linking numerous farming settlements at the outskirt of Oyo state.  Lucky for them, the man was driving his consignment to Ibadan. He drove through the night; by dawn they were at Ibadan. The driver graciously dropped them off at a hospital and the hospital contacted the police station. Before any of their family members came the police questioned them on the exact location of the clearing. Seyi eagerly gave all the information he thought might help because he hoped that by the time the police get there Dumebi may still be alive.

Seyi waited at the reception of the hospital while Morenike received treatment. He was given food and precious water while he waited for the chance to see Morenike before her family arrives. He felt like he had known her all his life; the thought of her suddenly disappearing was a bit scary.

“How are you feeling” Seyi said when he was finally allowed to see Morenike.

“Okay I guess considering what could have been.” She looked into Seyi’s eyes. “Listen Seyi thanks for saving my life more than once.”

Seyi smiled remembering her strength and agility. “We saved each other.

They exchanged numbers and addresses and promised to find each other.  The press had gotten wind of the story and was at the hospital seeking interview with Seyi and Morenike. Morenike’s Folks came first. She introduced Seyi to her parents; understandably their attention was trained on their daughter for the flash in time in which they were at the hospital. They were gone the next moment. Almost as if they wanted to erase morenike’s presence at the hospital or even her part of the ordeal.

Two weeks ago Ken and Datare made a quick trip to Las Vegas and had a quickie marriage. There was no soul there to witness it but it was done anyway. Afterwards they treated themselves to a very romantic weekend at a honeymoon suite in one of the numerous hotels in the city. Things have gone more than great for over a month that they left Nigeria. The works that ken turn out while he was in Nigeria made a fortune so they lived a little. The idea that was in Ken’s mind about the gallery materialized on return from Vegas. It was nothing huge, but classy minimalist and really fancy. They showcased other artist’s works and host exhibitions of ken’s works and those of his artist friends. Since work started at the gallery, Datare had discovered a love for little black dresses and simple silver jewelry. She no longer feels guilt about Seyi. Even the blind should be able to see that she made a good decision. Today was particularly uneventful at the gallery. Most enthusiasts of works at the gallery have grown quite less excited and are eagerly awaiting something new. Datare decided to leave early so as to be able to impress upon Ken the need for speed. She locked up and activated the alarm system. She always feels reluctance when the time comes to switch off the lights. She just loves the way each work exists under its own spot light. Out on the street she felt a wave of dizziness then things went black.