SOMEWHERE IN AFRICA

Chapter 5

One of the words on the marble says, It is not the numbers of children that made the parents achievers, a child is enough to propagate them to the world.

Akinola was the only child from their union and they had succumbed to destiny, having tried so had at their medically right time but without any result.

He was a brilliant child who refused to bow to the pressure from the inability of his parents to adequately foot his education bill. He truly had everything worked out for him while the tide favours them and was once a proud child every parents in their neighborhood cherished and asked their own children to always emulate.

Akinola and Ekunsumi, the surviving child of Chief Ibikunle, were of the same age group and were growing educationally together in an expensive high school that paraded the best of the teachers in the city. The institution was meant for the well to do in the city and while the going was good, Akinola had gain his admission into the high school of learning.

On several occasions, he had wanted to have a one-on-one chat with Ekunsumi but wasn't successful as a result of the personal guards who were employed by her father to look after her whenever she was temporarily out of her parents' sights.

One Tuesday afternoon, the mid-day break time bell rang and the whole students in the school compound stopped their studying activities to enjoy their half-hour break. There was presence of section of the students who converged under the shed of a mango tree in the school compound in other to cool off. in their midst was Akinola who suddenly rose on his feet having saw Ekunsumi walking alone towards the school rest room area. He waste no time as he walked faster to catch up with her. Having got closer, he said...

"Ekunsumi!" she stopped and turned towards where the sound of her name was coming from then, she said...

"Akinola, it's you," she said with a lovely smile as she stretched forward her right hand for his in hand shake.

"Yes," he said holding her hand as he continued. "today makes it the fifth of my attempts, trying to have a chat with you, and I was always scared off through the presence of those guards that were always with you."

While this was going, one of the guards sighted them and raced down towards them. On getting to the spot, he was angered by how he met them, without waisting any time, he mercilessly kicked and beat the hell out of him after which he took Ekunsumi out of the spot leaving him alone in pains and tears.

Few minutes after, he painfully managed himself back on his feet and walked slowly back to the classroom and was unable to cope perfectly with the rest of the day activities in the classroom before returning back home after the closing hour bell was rang.

Late in the evening, he was already at home and was having his whole body attended to by Folakemi, his mother. While this was on, a knock on the entrance door was heard.

"Who is at the door?" she said looking towards the door.

"Your landlord of course." the visitor boldly said.

"The door is not locked, you may come in." she said, rounding off the treatment on her son.

As soon as he entered, he met her taking care of her wounded child but seemed to be less concerned as he mentioned no word concerning that.

"Good evening baba," she said, as slightly bent towards the floor in respect.

"Is your husband in"? he asked with a frowing face.

"No. he had gone out and is expected back home any time from now."

"Hmmm!"

Gone out again? he's fond of roaming aimlessly about in the city, what if my presence here is all about how he would get a job and become free from poverty?

"Howu!" she interjected and continued. "Baba, with this our present situation, his sitting idle at home won't be a good idea as well, give us any hope out of our present situation. If he does as you just said, how then would we be able to feed and as well, pay up our house rent debts to you...?" she opined and continued.

"Our elders inscribed on the marble ' he who does not cut or fire an arrow at a palm tree for it to give in return, its liquid content, won't be able to drink the expected palm wine '.

"His purpose for going out on daily basis is for him to get himself a job through God's mercy..." He interrupted having sighted a plate containing food on the dinning table and moved towards the table as he said.

"Did you just say through God's mercy?" he said, and laughed. "You people will never receive mercy from Him," he jokingly said as he continued.

"Isn't this a plate of food," pointing at the food on the dinning table.

"Does a man who have no job and in debt to his house owner deserved to eats while his landlord sleeps and wakes in hunger?" he asked why seriously demanded an answer.

"Baba...," she said but was instantly interrupted.

"Just spare me that," he angrily responded while looking away.

"None of those shits," he continued. "will I entertained from you people any longer. You are wicked human beings who care so much about themselves but care less about others' plights.

"I built this property with my sweats hoping to peacefully eats my reward at old age when I might have lost my agility, and won't be able to work as hard as I did, during my younger days..." she seemed to have heard enough of him as she interrupted and said.

"In what way have we offended you to have deserved these derogatory words from you?"

"If you don't know by now and care to know now, as debtors, you people feed fine and very well while your creditors lavishly survived," he ironically said, squeezing his eyes while facing the food on the dinning table.

"May you be forgiven for being so exaggerated," she said, moving towards the pot of soup she placed at a corner of the room which she's yet to return to the cupboard.

"Here is it," she opened it and slightly bent it forward for him to see the content.

"Kindly have a look," she continued. "and tell me, if you would be able to feed on this kind of soup..." she started having a trembling voice as she continued.

"By this time tomorrow, it will be exactly the eighteenth day we had had the privilege of cooking any food in this house, thanks to some of my friends whom I had ran to in other to have some soup ingredients for this," pointing into the pot of soup as she continued. "to be achievable. A soup without meats and fish... may your life never become so degenerated..." she involuntarily knelt and down in tears as she couldn't say a word further and on this position, Oluwafemi, her husband, came in.

"Ha! you're back," said the landlord, looking at him as he moved towards his wife.

"A renowned debtors of this era." he jestly said as he continued.

"A shameless debtors who wore a garment of debts to a party he had invited to by his creditor..." pausing for a short while, while looking disdainfully at him bringing his wife up from her kneeling position.

"when would your next useless postponement of the payment of my money be?"

"By His grace, that shall, unfailingly be month end..." he said, focusing his attention on his wife.

"I knew that would be your reply. You didn't informed me of your breakthrough," laughing so seriously going up and down in the room clapping his hands...

" you're speaking so boldly as you're now an employee of a reliable organization who's entitled and expecting his monthly payments.

"Let this be known to you, there are no more monkeys on the farthest hills. It's not going to be business as usual, I have decided not to award you any bush clearing job so as to set off part of your house rent debt to me... What has my masquerade done for it to decided not to have it's usual morning dance? I'm now a healthy man," he walked majestically forward and backward, waving hands and stretching legs as he spoke on.

"as you can see, I'm now hale and hearty and henceforth, I can now do those bush clearing jobs I usually gives you myself. By the end of this month, here it again," he said as he repeatedly beats his chest with both hands.

"if all owing rent hanging on your neck were not paid, I shall unleash on you, the wrath I have within myself."

Having made his intention known, he walked angrily out of the room and slammed the door on them.

It was a brief moments of sobber reflection for both of them after their landlord had left as both of them couldn't say a word to each other. Their past reverberates in both of them while they thought about the past. Many houses owned by them fell under different circumstances; Some were sold to set off debts after the tide had turned against them while some were legally took over by creditors and others mysteriously burnt down by fire.

They lived on with this, trying so hard to ensure their son's education wasn't affected.

The following day was another beautiful school day and Akinola had arrived and partook in the day's classroom activities. At the break-time, he was whiling away time when he saw Olanike, one of Ekunsumi's friends while walking alone. He called and sought her audience for a short while. Having stopped, he moved closer to her and said,

"This is meant for your friend, Ekunsumi," he stretched forward his hand and handed her a letter, enclosed in an envelope as he continued.

"Could you please lend me a hand in giving this to her?" She collected it and looked at it, both front and back with a smile and said...

"Be rest assure, it will be delivered to her." she turned and moved on leaving him on the spot, having assured him.

Shortly afterwards, Olanike met her friend on her way and she handed over the letter to her saying...

"It's for you and came from your lover," she interrupted and said.

"My lover?"

"Yes of course." She affirmed and said, " don't you have a lover here or

what?"

"You've started another jokes of you, right?" please let me be. I'm not for this. My purpose here is basically about my future, I don't joke with it." she dropped the envelope and turn back on her, trying to leave but had her path blocked.

"You go no where until you accept and read this out in my presence." she confidently said while forcing the envelope back on her. Having been so adamant, she unwillingly said...

"Okay," she collected it back and promised to read it but not in her presence.

"Go ahead," she said while looking majestically at her as she leaves, then, she continued.

"in know time, the cat would surely be let out of the bag for all to see as no one would denied the fact about knowing how a woman gave birth to a new baby."

She left her alone on the sport and walked towards a nearby tree where she sat alone.

Having sat down, she opened and started reading silently the content of the letter.