Maya and Lola

Chapter6 The panel

Maya didn't sleep that night.

Neither did Lola.

They stayed in the library until the security guard found them at 9pm and chased them out with his torch. "What are two small girls doing here in the dark? Are you mad? Go to your hostel!"

They walked back in the rain, holding hands under one small umbrella, not caring who saw them anymore. The picture Chiamaka had sent — their kiss — was burning in Maya's phone.

"What will we do?" Maya asked, her voice small again. The brave warrior from the phone call was gone. Now she was just scared.

Lola stopped under the rain, in front of the female hostel gate, and pulled Maya close.

"Listen to me," Lola said, water dripping down her beautiful face. "Tomorrow at the panel, no matter what Chiamaka shows, no matter what Mrs. Adeyemi says, don't deny us. Don't say we are just friends. I am tired of lying. I hid for months with Chiamaka, I hid for three years with you because you were shy. I don't want to hide again. If they want to suspend us, let them suspend us. But let them suspend us for the truth."

Maya looked at Lola, at her wet eyelashes, at her serious eyes.

"But your mother—" Maya started.

"My mother will wake up tomorrow from surgery and I will tell her I am in love with a girl named Maya Obi, and that Maya saved her life," Lola said firmly. "If my mother loves me, she will understand. If the school doesn't, then it's not a school I want to be in."

Maya started crying again. "Lola, you will lose everything."

"I already lost everything once when I thought I lost you behind that bookshelf," Lola whispered, kissing Maya's forehead in the rain. "I will not lose you again. Promise me you won't deny us tomorrow."

Maya nodded, crying, hugging Lola tight. "I promise."

8am. Mrs. Adeyemi's office.

The office was small and hot and smelled like incense. Mrs. Adeyemi was sitting behind her big table. Chiamaka was already there, sitting next to her father — Chief Bello, a big man in agbada, looking very angry. On the other side, there was an empty chair for Lola's guardian because her mother was in hospital, and a chair where Maya's mother was on video call — a small woman with glasses, looking confused and worried.

"Good morning, ma," Lola said, holding Maya's hand as they entered.

"Leave each other's hand!" Mrs. Adeyemi barked immediately. "What nonsense is this? Are you mad?"

They quickly separated, but their fingers brushed.

Maya's mother on the phone spoke first. "Mrs. Adeyemi, good morning, what did my daughter do? Maya never troubles anybody. She is always in her room reading."

"Mrs. Obi," Mrs. Adeyemi said, adjusting her glasses. "Your daughter was found alone with another female student in a locked library after hours. And there are allegations of... inappropriate relationships and blackmail among these three girls."

Chief Bello scoffed loudly. "Mrs. Adeyemi, with all due respect, my daughter is the victim here. This Lola girl collected money from my family and then went to be doing lesbianism with this Maya girl. And this Maya girl threatened me on phone last night! I have the recording! She is a criminal!"

He played a voice note. It was Maya's voice from last night, shaking but brave: "I will post it on every blog... I am a writer... I know how to make stories trend."

Maya's mother gasped on the video. "Maya! Did you threaten a Chief?"

Maya wanted to disappear. "Mummy, he was—"

"Quiet!" Mrs. Adeyemi hit her table. "Chiamaka, show me what you told me you have."

This was it. The moment.

Chiamaka smiled. A slow, evil smile. She stood up and held up her phone.

"Aunty, I have proof that Lola and Maya are doing this thing. They were kissing in the library yesterday after you left. I have video. And I also have proof that Lola was blackmailing me for money!"

Lola's eyes went wide. "I never blackmailed you!"

"Do you have the video?" Mrs. Adeyemi asked.

Chiamaka clicked play.

Everyone leaned in. Maya closed her eyes, waiting for the shame of her first kiss to be displayed in front of parents.

But what played was not the kiss.

It was a different video. An older video. Lola, in Chiamaka's car, crying, saying: "Please Chiamaka, please help me, my mother is dying, I will do anything, I will be your girlfriend, just help me, please."

Chiamaka paused it.

"See? She begged me! She used me for money! She is a gold digger! She used me and now she is using Maya!"

Lola broke. She started crying. "Yes! I begged you! Because my mother was dying! You said you loved me! You said you would help without condition!"

Chief Bello stood up, angry. "Enough! My daughter is not a bank! You, Lola, you will return every kobo my family ever gave you! And you, Mrs. Adeyemi, I want both of them suspended! Especially this Maya girl who threatened me!"

Mrs. Adeyemi looked at Maya. "Maya, what do you have to say?"

Maya was shaking. Her mother was crying on the phone. "Mummy, I'm sorry..."

But then she remembered her promise in the rain. Don't deny us.

Maya took a deep breath. She stood up. She looked at Mrs. Adeyemi, at Chief, at Chiamaka, at Lola.

"Yes, I threatened Chief Bello," Maya said loudly, clearly. "Because he told the hospital to stop treating Lola's dying mother if Lola didn't leave me. Yes, I kissed Lola yesterday. And yes, I love her. I have loved her for three years. Lola did not blackmail Chiamaka — Chiamaka blackmailed Lola. I have messages. And if you want to suspend me for loving someone, then suspend me. But don't suspend Lola. She was just trying to save her mother."

The room went completely silent.

Maya's mother on the video call was silent. Then she spoke, her voice trembling.

"Maya... is this true? You... you love a girl?"

Maya cried. "Yes, mummy. I love Lola. I am sorry."

Everyone expected her mother to shout, to curse, to disconnect.

But Mrs. Obi did something no one expected.

She laughed. A soft, sad laugh.

"Maya, my daughter," she said, "You have been writing love stories about a girl named L. in your diary since you were 15. I have been reading them when I clean your room. I was waiting for when you would tell me. You think I don't know my own daughter? If you love Lola, then Lola is my daughter too."

Maya's mouth fell open. "Mummy... you knew?"

"Of course I knew, you introverted child," her mother said, wiping her eyes. "Now, Mrs. Adeyemi, please don't suspend my daughter for loving someone. Suspend her if she failed exam. Not for love."

Mrs. Adeyemi was speechless. She had handled many cases, but never this.

She looked at Chief Bello. "Chief, you told a hospital to stop treatment on a sick woman because your daughter was rejected? Is that true?"

Chief Bello adjusted his agbada, uncomfortable now. "I... I was protecting my daughter."

"And Chiamaka," Mrs. Adeyemi turned to Chiamaka, "You recorded a girl begging for her mother's life and you are using it to blackmail her? And you recorded two girls kissing without consent?"

Chiamaka's smile was gone. "I... I..."

Mrs. Adeyemi stood up. "Enough. I have heard enough. Here is my judgement."

Everyone held their breath.

"Chiamaka Bello, you will write an apology letter to Lola and Maya, you will delete all videos on your phone in front of me now, and you will go for counseling for three weeks. If I see any video online, you will be expelled."

Chiamaka started crying loudly.

"Chief Bello, you will call St. Gerard's Hospital again and ensure Mrs. Bello's surgery goes on and you will pay the remaining balance for her post-surgery care as compensation for what you did last night. Or I will report you to the University Senate."

Chief's face was red. "You cannot—"

"I can," Mrs. Adeyemi said firmly. "Lola and Maya, you will both sweep the library every evening for one month for staying after closing hours. And you will not... you will not kiss in public places on campus. Do you understand? This is still a Christian school."

Maya and Lola looked at each other and nodded quickly, trying not to smile.

"Now all of you, get out of my office! I have a headache!"

Outside the office, the sun was shining after the rain. Students were already gathering, whispering, looking at them.

Chiamaka ran past them, crying, with her father following, shouting at her.

Lola and Maya stood alone in the corridor.

Lola turned to Maya, her eyes shining. "Did you hear? One month sweeping library together. Every evening. Just you and me."

Maya laughed, crying. "Mrs. Adeyemi just gave us a date spot."

Lola pulled her into a corner where no one could see and kissed her quickly, softly.

"Our first official kiss as a couple that doesn't have to hide," Lola whispered.

Maya blushed. "Mummy knows. I can't believe mummy knows."

"Your mummy is cool," Lola said. "My mother will be cool too. Let's go to Kaduna now. Surgery is at 7am tomorrow, remember? We have a bus to catch."

Maya checked her phone. Balance: N347,890 left. Enough for two bus tickets to Kaduna.

She took Lola's hand.

"Let's go save your mama," Maya said.

They walked out of the admin building hand in hand, while the whole school stared.

Behind them, Chiamaka was watching from her father's car window, her phone in her hand. She had deleted the videos as ordered, but she had already sent one video to someone else last night — a secret number — before deleting.

She smiled through her tears and typed:

"Plan B. Post it tonight. I want them destroyed."

On the other side, the unknown number replied:

"Consider it done."