Pantie Rule

05 | Busted!

Nothing interesting really happened afterward, we had our siesta, after the annoying bell almost made me deaf.

Emecheta, the hostel timekeeper is really huge and fat, so when she handles the bell, know that all hell's going to break loose. Then our evening prayers and our evening prep.

Saint Maria High School, is a Catholic missionary school. I'm not Catholic, however, when you're in Rome, you behave like a Roman. Initially, I thought the prayers were rather boring until I paid intentional efforts towards understanding the meaning of every line and voilà! It wasn't that boring after all!

After the prayers, Lewechi talked about Noah and how he was finding it hard to start up a relationship, but I wasn't listening. They just filtered through my ears. I had a strong feeling something bad was going to happen tomorrow. Something extraordinary. Something strange.

Which is why when I saw my skirt torn the next day I wasn't amazed. No. Not until I had asked the juniors in the room who had done it and no one accentuated to the fact that they did.

They're lucky I wasn't a wicked senior - a bully.

Actually, Lewechi and I were the only seniors in the room, the rest were juniors. Ugh. Who made this arrangement? And also, there were two empty bunks. One was for Fatima Abdulramon. The Muslim girl who had been brutally raped to death on the basketball court. She was probably the only Muslim in Saint Maria. She was found stark naked, and spread-eagled, all bloodied in her private area. I cried for days. She had been a JSS 2 student and she had been very nice.

No one knows what brought her there, or who raped her till today. It was one of the greatest mysteries the school had ever encountered. That's why the mid-term break had been really long.

One of the junior students in my room says she sees Fatima in her dreams, sometimes, and I don't bother asking questions. I remember saying I hated horror.

The second bunk was for a girl, Sylverine Okafor. Trust me, she was extremely strange. I mean really really strange. For a girl to be awake at night and be staring at you-not once, not twice, not thrice-I mean, you should know something is up. Thankfully, she hadn't returned after the mid-term break. I have a strong feeling she was behind Fatima's death. I don't know. Maybe.

So, I wore my skirt that way, because I walked up and down but couldn't find anyone with a needle and thread. Not that none of them had but they were all stingy and bloody liars. I don't blame them. In the Nigerian boarding system one has to learn to be those two things-a miser and a liar-or else you get sucked dry. Time was far spent, and I wasn't a fan of wearing other people's clothes, so borrowing a skirt wasn't on my agenda.

Thankfully, I sourced out my cardigan from my box and donned it. If I held it in the right places it would cover the cut well. Lewechi laughed at me all the way to school. "You should leave it for the boys. That hole showcases your butt cheeks well." She had said and I couldn't help but laugh while getting mad.

In school, I constantly tugged it down to cover the tear. I had asked a fellow classmate for a needle and thread and luckily he had. When I told Lewechi that I had gotten it from a boy. She whispered in my ear, 'boyfriend material'. Trust me, this girl is creeping me out. By the way, I hadn't seen Martin in class today. I hope he hadn't guessed my answer and committed suicide already, but that was the least of my problems. I had a skirt to sew!

During recess, I excused myself and hurried behind the school. There was an uncompleted building behind there, close to a thick bush and that was just the perfect place I could think of to get my skirt done. I wasn't going to the toilet. It'll be stench infested by now. So, there I was in that lonely place. I looked around to be sure no one was around then pulled my skirt, standing only in my pantie. Shit! Why hadn't I worn a pantyhose? Imagine a boy sees me in this-boys like that guy I saw in the toilet. He'd devour me before I'd even have the power to shout.

No! Think no evil, Omotara. No boy would see you.

Quickly, I set to work and in a few minutes, I was done. I heard a shuffle behind me, beyond the window, in the bush. Maybe it was one of those animals. If it's a wild animal it would devour me.

If it is a wild boy, he'd devour you also. My mind blurted.

'Shut up!' I screamed internally. Whatever it was, I didn't want to leave my life to chance, so I quickly wore my skirt.

"Hey."

I whipped around. My mouth fell open. My heart picked up pace. A boy was leaning on the door frame with folded arms and amused eyes. I could tell that those eyes had seen my forbidden fruits! The scum! I quickly looked down to ensure I was covered. I gulped and looked up at him, anger and fear rising up in me.

He smirked and edged his long chin to me. "Nice undie you got there."

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