THE UNEARTHED AFRICAN BEAUTY.

CHAPTER THREE: FIRST TIME IN THE CITY.

Sheilla hadn't known that she would stay at home for such a long period of over five months before being requested to go to the city by her chosen university to register officially. She was really bored. Her peasant parents were busy in people's farms trying their best to amass money for her travelling expenses and other necessities. She had wanted to help them in their daily work but they refused her adamantly. They told her that the best help she could give them was to do her best in researching on whichever course she wanted to study. Even though she pitied her parents,she knew that she could only adhere to what they had told her.

While Sheilla was busy preparing herself for the upcoming journey to the big city of Nairobi, Faith was,on the other hand, trying to reason with her parents in order to get permission to attend the same university as Sheilla. Her parents clearly knew that the high performance displayed by their daughter wasn't due to her painstaking efforts but due to the help she got from Sheilla. Even though they could berate her for that,they didn't want their daughter to embarrass them farther.Faith herself didn't know that her parents already knew of all the dirty tricks she had played on Sheilla. She coquettishly asked them for permission until they relented and made a huge concession. They knew that they would lose a lot of face once the matter of their daughter pestering Sheilla for academic help was leaked out. They also knew that their daughter didn't have any interest in dealing with machine but they still agreed to let her have her way. They dotted on her a lot considering the fact that she was un only child of the family. They couldn't tolerate anything bad happening to their daughter."Yey!! Mom, dad,you two are the best! I love you to death !"Faith jumped up and gave both of her parents a peck on their chicks. She was so happy that she wouldn't have to struggle academically anymore. She knew that Sheilla would do the studying for her as usual.

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Back at the Disi family,the D-Day for their daughter, Sheilla Disi to go to the city had come! Sheilla was so happy that she was grinning from ear to ear. Her results had come out and she had performed exceptionally well. She topped the nation and got herself a scholarship to one of the best universities in kenya. She knew that with her avid reading attitude,she would surely make her parents proud.

She was reluctant to part ways with her parents when they bade her farewell at the bus station. She really knew that she would miss them a lot. At the same time,she prayed to her God that everything would be well with her in the city. This was the first time ever that she was going on such a long journey alone.

She boarded the Easy coach bus and still waved at her parents when the bus started off. She could see her mom and dad shedding tears of joy and sadness. Joy because she was going to perfect her life and sad because they would miss her. She felt pain in her heart and at the same time,felt inexplicable joy.

"Yo! Sheilla,how are you?" Sheilla was immensely surprised to hear a familiar voice from behind her. It was the voice that she dreaded the most. She turned around and saw a face that was smilingly at her. She was at a loss of what to say.'umh,.. ah.. you..you..are..also here?'She stammered as she tried to squeeze out a smile from her timid face."Don't be afraid Sheilla. Of course yes I'm here. I need to assure you that I won't disturb you in the future,ok? In fact,I would like us to be friends from now on."

Sheilla was pleasantly surprised. She looked at Faith strangely and thought that she was hearing things. She scratched her ears to see if there was any tar that might have caused her to mishear. Having confirmed that there was nothing wrong with her ears,she turned to look at Faith. Faith was wearing a modern town girls clothes. She had put on black stockings that accentuated her legs perfectly.She a maroon miniskirt and a pink top that left out a pierced navel. In addition to that, she was sitting next to her parents who were deep in slumber.

"Oh, okay!No problem." Sheilla answered in a low disbelieving voice. Inwardly,she wondered why the parents of Faith were ok with Faith's dressing code considering her young age..'You must be aware that the place where we're going to is a strange place. Since we know each other,I think it will be good if we stick together,right?' "Yes, you're right. I never thought of that. Do you mean that you are going to the same university as me?" Sheilla asked in bafflement. She had forgotten that she was the one who assisted Faith with the examination answers.'Yes! Is it hard for you to believe?' The two chatted for a while before Sheilla fell asleep on the recliner chair.The Easy coach bus is known for its comfortability. The chairs can be switched in an angle that can make it easy for passengers to sleep comfortably. But this comes at a huge cost.

When Sheilla woke up,the bus had stopped at a stopover point in Nakuru. There was a high end storey building with a restaurant from which excellent food aroma wafted. Sheila's stomach growled. She slowly went into the restaurant together with the other passengers. She ordered some cheap food and beverage. She didn't want to waste money on junk food. She had read a book on how to survive in the big town. After having had her fill, she went in the rest room to help herself. Here,she couldn't help but be shocked for a whole minute! She had never seen a toilet with a bowl,a switch for water and a tissue roller!She had to be assisted by a hotel assistant or else she would have created a mess!😂

Next up,the bus brought the people to the city. The city of Nairobi was bustling with activities. Many people were moving up and down the narrow lanes. Vehicles were squeezing in between and business was booming. Hawkers were everywhere as they tried to hoodwink naive customers to buy their counterfeit goods. Sheilla was amazed by the grandiose state of the city. Her mouth was wide agape in that she forgot that she was the only one remaining in the vehicle. All the other passengers had already alighted.The driver honked the hone in order to bring her back to her senses. She was jolted from her rivarie and quickly went to the driver with a note in her hand to ask for directions.

Luckily,where she was going wasn't a far off place. It was just around the corner or else,given the alley ways of the tall skyscrapers,our Sheilla would have lost her way. She was stupefied by the scene that she saw in front of her. The school complex was as grand as the description of a rich man's mansion! The towering buildings that encompassed all the facilities of the school starting from the administration block to the hostels on the far end. Students were strolling everywhere. Some in twos and threes. There were also those sharp eyed seniors who were eying the new students in order to get new catches. Sheilla was luck because,due to her ordinary bearing,those swindlers didn't pay attention to her. A kind girl sauntered over and introduced herself as Laura. Laura was so enthusiastic. She told Sheilla a lot of things as she guided her to the administration block for registration. Sheilla was so happy that she had made it.