After taking care of some club executive stuff, my friends and I exited the Science building, heading straight for the Sports Complex.
We had roughly an hour before the events for day two started, and I knew I had to get to the pool soon to prepare. But right now, all I wanted was to spend some time with my girl.
My girl.
Whilst Felix, Deladem and Nadia walked ahead of us, yapping on about the new season of the Umbrella Academy, Shola and I lingered at the back, fingers intertwined and strolling at a leisurely pace. I relished the feeling of her hand in mine, so much so that the thought of letting her go stung my heart.
"So..." I gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "What do you have planned for tonight?"
"Argh work," Shola released a deep sigh. "Now that Mawuli has been demoted, we have a lot of paperwork to handle. We have to inform the Science department and the entire university about the new development as well as the changes we've made in the club, and Dr. Kankam wants it all finished by tomorrow morning so we can get the word out."
"Oh yeah, did he drop any hints about what's going to happen to Mawuli?"
"No, but honestly, things are looking pretty bad for him. There's a high chance that he might get expelled."
"For sabotaging a robot?"
"It's not just that," she replied. "After today's meeting was adjourned, Dr. Kankam said Chad came to tell him that Mawuli has been pilfering money from the club's treasury account."
"Really?" My eyebrows flew up.
"Yeah." A worrisome look touched her features. "Chad said at first, he didn't want to say anything because Mawuli was his friend, but after seeing how far he had gone just to get what he wanted, he decided to spill the beans."
"Wow." I stared ahead of us, picking up on the sounds of loud, incessant chatter, coming from the Sports Complex. "I knew Mawuli was a jerk, but I didn't think he was capable of stealing."
"Neither did I," Shola added. "He always liked to brag about how rich his parents were and the connections they had in the job sector, so this piece of info came as a real shock to me."
"You guys are still going to look into it, right?" I steered as both in the direction of the entrance. Students loitered around in their numbers
"Absolutely. Dr. Kankam said he was going to handle it personally with a little help from the police. I just hope for Mawuli's sake, that they don't find anything incriminating cuz if they do, he can kiss his university certificate goodbye."
"Four years of academic hardship gone down the drain." I shook my head.
Following Felix and the rest into the building, we'd just made it past the sliding doors when a familiar voice caught my attention.
"If it isn't the sweetest lovebirds." Akunna walked up to us with a smug smile. Seeing him here meant Deon wasn't far behind, and I was proven right when Nadia ran to trap her boyfriend in a hug.
"Well, it's good to see you guys finally talked things out." My roommate hooked his thumbs behind the handles of his green backpack. "Akwasi was on the verge of crying when he saw that message you sent this morning."
"That-That is not true!" I felt my face heat up. "Yeah, I was a bit worried, but I wasn't going to cry."
"Aww, you look so cute when you're embarrassed," Shola cooed and I struggled not to blush. Felix, Deladem, Deon and Nadia joined our little circle.
"Good morning Penfield!" The cherry greeting from the PA sound system reverberated throughout the entire building, signaling the start of the competition.
"I should probably get going," I said, hooking my sports bag over my shoulder.
"Wishing you all the best out there, pal." Akunna captured my free hand in a bro handshake. "Go knock them dead like you did yesterday."
"Yeah, we'll be rooting for you all the way!" Felix shouted, then blew a plastic horn in my face, making everyone laugh.
"We know this is just day two," Shola started once the laughter had died off. "But we're pretty sure you've got this in the bag, so all you have to do, is to take it."
My heart felt like it was minutes away from exploding. I remembered coming to Penfield and thinking that I wasn't going to make any friends. But here stood five people and a girlfriend! All their support and faith filled me with a strong sense of determination. I was ready to win this thing, by any means necessary. Even if it was beyond my reach, I would stretch and push to get it for not just me, but for all of us. "Thanks guys." I sent each of them a grateful smile. "I really appreciate the support."
Shola's grin expanded, then she let go of my hand to cup my face, placing a dainty, but passionate kiss on my lips.
"Oooh," our friends chortled out and Shola and I had to break apart because they wouldn't stop teasing and poking fun at us.
Another announcement seeped in, and I had to take my leave. The six of them waved me off as they made their way into the swimming court. I decided to take the longer route to the locker rooms so I could slip through the back door. That way, Coach wouldn't notice that I came in late.
After a brisk walk through a series of hallways, the metallic barrier squealed open when I pushed it, startling Nana Kwame, Ethan and four other guys who were perched up on a bench, surrounding a plastic bag filled with orange tubed pills. At the sight of me, one guy, whom I'd never seen on the team, quickly twisted the mouth of the plastic bag and pushed it into an open backpack.
"Gyan relax." Ethan swatted the strange guy on the shoulder. "We know him, he's not a snitch."
The guy in turn shot me an uneasy glance that readily stirred up a sense of mistrust in my gut.
"What's going on?" I stepped further into the room.
"Nothing much," Ethan said, tossing a pill into his mouth before taking a sip of water. "Just grabbing some merchandise for tonight's party."
My eyebrows dipped low in suspicion.
"Why are you using the back door today, Akwasi?" Nana Kwame switched the topic over to me.
"I didn't want Coach to know that I was late. The competition is about to start."
"Ah shit," Nana Kwame mumbled. "We better get out there before she loses her marbles."
"Mhm." With that, Ethan slapped a wad of fifty cedi notes into Gyan's hand. "Pleasure doing business with you."
"Likewise," Gyan grinned widely, then stuffed the money into his pocket. "I'll keep you posted if anything interesting comes my way."
"Awesome."
They both shared a handshake before Gyan took his leave, giving the side of his pocket a good pat. Nana Kwame grabbed the bloated backpack and quickly shoved it in a secluded part of the janitor's closet.
Walking over to my locker, I opened it and began swapping my clothes for my swimming gear.
"So, you're in the IM and freestyle race with me." Ethan chocked himself against the locker beside mine.
"Yeah." I pulled my jeans off, leaving my jammers. "Why? Does it surprise you?"
"A bit. I didn't think I'd have to battle my childhood friend for my title," he chuckled, picking up a pair of goggles from my locker and toying with them. "But you do know I'm going to win this, right?"
I shot him a brief look. Ethan stared back, gauging my reaction and a small scoff escaped my mouth. "What makes you think that?"
"Really dude?" He quizzed in a tone that specifically gave an 'I can't believe you're asking me that question' vibe. "I've been swimming competitively for years now. Not to mention the fact that I'm the two-time reigning champion of Penfield's Annual Swimming Competition!"
"The fact that you've earned that title twice in a row, doesn't automatically mean it's going to be yours a third time. I may not have as much experience as you do, but I still think I can win this."
"Spoken like a true rookie," a cocky grin crawled up his face. "Anyway, I wish you the best of luck, buddy. You're gonna need it."
Placing my goggles back into my locker, Ethan sauntered past me, confidence wafting off of him like a strong, musky cologne.
I stared at his broad back as he headed out with Nana Kwame. I wasn't afraid of Ethan, mostly because this wasn't my first time going against him. I had battled him once before in the beginning of the semester and won. I had also beaten his rival, Yooku, in a relay race, during Regionals. To me, both victories meant that I had the capabilities. Even with the little experience I had, I believed deep down in my heart that I stood a chance against Ethan.
Pulling my water bottle out for a drink, I found the plastic container empty and stepped out into the lounge, heading straight for the water dispenser. I had only filled it halfway when I heard...
"Yo, Akwasi!"
I turned around. "Oh hey, Seth." He looked better and healthier than the last time I saw him. Maybe he had found solace in the fact that Amina had transferred to a different university. "How's it going?"
"Ah same old, same old." The big guy shrugged. "Coach has me on a tight leash, but it's all good. Thanks to her, I haven't had a drop of alcohol in a while and I feel...strangely great."
"That's good to hear." I smiled, taking a gulp of water from my filled bottle. "So, will you be returning to the team soon?"
Seth rubbed the back of his neck. "Frankly, I dunno. That decision lies with Coach, so I don't wanna get my hopes up. But you're doing great out there, you know." His eyes lit up with genuine honesty. "Your race yesterday was fire! The moment you dove in, I knew you were gonna win."
Trying to keep my face from heating up, I let out a soft chuckle, "Thanks, Seth. But all that success didn't come easy. I had to practice my butt off and if Princess hadn't helped me, I don't think I would be as good as I am now."
"Ahh Princess." That gleam of honesty in his eyes disappeared, making way for mischief. "So what did you give her in return for helping you, hmm? Did you guys...you know..." he made a circle with his left hand and stuck his right finger in the circle repeatedly.
I nearly choked on my water. "Oh God, no!" I vehemently shook my head. "No! None of that happened. Why would you even think that? Princess is Ethan's girlfriend. There's no way I'll let something like that happen between us." And as the words left my mouth, the incident at the Regionals afterparty surfaced in my brain and I quickly killed it off. "Not in a million years," I huffed.
"Bro, don't tell me you believe that shit about them dating?" For some reason, Seth's tone was now riddled with mockery.
"Well...they are in a relationship and they've been together for a while now so..."
Seth burst into a loud cackle, which left me even more clueless. "What? What's so funny?
"Oh God, dude," he wheezed through a second bout of laughter. "There's a lot you don't know about," he chuckled, then wiped away some stray tears of joy. "But since I want to be a good friend to you, I'll tell you the truth."
"Ok?" Curiosity wafted into my system. "What is it?"
"First of," Seth started, regaining his composure. "Princess and Ethan are not dating, they never were. It was all an elaborate lie told by Princess to cover up the fact that she's a hardcore gold digger. Why do you think everyone calls her Ethan's fuck buddy?"
The words weighed down on me like rocks. "Wait, wait, so they're not in a relationship?"
"Yep." Seth nodded. "I was there when they made this whole agreement between them. Princess came to Penfield as a local village girl on a scholarship, and because she didn't want people finding out about her poor background, she made a deal with the Mayor's son. He gets to fuck her any time he wants and in return, he gives her money, not less than 500cedis. Smitten by that large ass of hers, Ethan agreed and voila, here we are." He clasped his hands.
Like a jigsaw puzzle, everything else fell into place. Now I understood why their relationship felt like an on and off switch. Because it wasn't a relationship. It was all an arrangement to fulfil both pleasure and selfish wants.
Ethan wanted sex, Princess wanted money. So they came together to give each other what they desired. That explained why Princess was so devastated when Ethan ended things with her earlier in the semester. I remembered how desperate she was to get back with him. She even called him her rock and said she couldn't survive in Penfield without him.
Back then, I didn't think much about the statement, but now it made sense. Ethan truly was her source of livelihood here, and that's why she wanted to reconcile with him.
It had absolutely nothing to do with love. She was just afraid she wouldn't get anymore money from him, so she did everything she could to get him back and that included stringing me to the Val's day dance as her date. She was just using me to get closer to Ethan, and the moment it worked, she ditched me at the dance to go sleep with him. Later, she used the money he had given her to buy me that expensive Rolex watch as a thank you gift. It all made sense now.
"Yo dude, you ok?" Seth looked concerned. "You're awfully quiet. I know this is a whole lot of info..."
I tuned Seth out and silently reprimanded myself for falling into something this shallow and stupid, all in the name of being a good friend to Princess. Everyone abandoned her after the break up with Ethan. I was the only one who felt sorry for her and went to visit her, only for her to use me to get what she wanted. How selfish could she be?
Cracking my knuckles, I stood with a firm decision in mind. Princess wasn't who I thought she was, and there was no point in keeping someone like that in my life.