In the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, there only existed a thin line between the worlds of the living and dead. It has now evolved into a day set aside for elaborate costumes, mythical stories and spooky legends. It is unknown whether there is some truth in these stories like the ones revolving around witches, and wizards. Vampires, ghosts.
But it isn’t something one would intentionally delve into. Halloween was just fun, a day where you could dress however you want without a care in the world. A day where you could consume as many sweets as possible. And the one day you let your imaginations run wild. A day to carve eyes into large pumpkins and decorate your front door.
Formerly known as All Hallows Eve, halloween is the day of the dead. And no matter how colorful or vibrant the festival was made, it could never overshadow the darkness and the lingering chaos.
-
“—the ghosts of those who died on this day” Obi deepened his voice, pulling up his socks to his knees. He leaned towards his phone on the bed, from where Ola let out a sigh. It was a voice call.
“That was terrible” He graded his short story and Obi rolled his eyes. “I could never believe in ghosts” He said and the latter just scoffed in response. “I don’t believe in anything” Obi reiterated, standing in front of his mirror.
He had on just a tube across his chest that had been severed at the arm for fashion. Thread hung around the neck and pricked his glistening skin but he didn’t care. Below, he had on a leather skirt and netted socks that went all the way up. He turned to his side to admire his figure and Ola’s lips just dropped. “You think it’s good?” He asked.
“What?” He screamed.
“It’s amazing” He added. “You’re really, you’re really going all out” Ola searched for his words as he looked at the time, it was just about eight pm.
“Well halloween is one day out of the year you can dress like a slut. And no one can talk shit. It’s the one day you get to experiment with a lot of things” He said, rubbing gloss on his lips and then picking a jacket in his hands. Of course, after everything he had to cover up till he at least got to the party.
The almighty Hallow Fest that everyone kept talking about. “You’re coming right?” Obi asked, scrambling with his purse. “Yeah, not as if i have much of a choice” It was true, Obi had forced him out of the house to come for the fest, rather than have him mop around sad on the one night you can have all the fun without judgement.
It was literally darkness, the amount of fun you could have are infinite.
He tilted his phone, as Ola sent him a photo. It was a picture of what he was in. Nothing but a custom suit across his bare body.
Obi rolled his eyes and tossed his phone away.
“What are you supposed to be?” He asked, unimpressed and you could hear Ola smack his lips together. “Fuck it. We don’t even do halloween in Nigeria” He was right, the closest they had to the real thing was a festival on this open ground where there were games, hookups and free alcohol. There was no trick or treating, or elaborate pumpkin decorations. It was just a party. A lame excuse for teenagers to get wasted.
And you can sign Obi up for that.
His door then opened slightly as Mira stood at its hinge. He paused, in the process of wearing his dark Adeline jacket, a scoff escaping his lips. Mira walked forward, opening something in her hands.
It was on closer inspection that Obi realized it was eyeliner. “This will really make a statement” She said, forgetting for a while that she was still angry with him. But that was no excuse for him not to slay the one day he decided to go out.
She inched closer to him while he closed his eyes.
The cold tip of the pencil drew over his eyes, and into his temple and it took just about two minutes to be done. After she was, he stepped back to face the mirror. And although normally he would hate looking into it, today was not so bad. He was in his element afterall, not some dumb uniform.
Or a fucking shirt and khaki trouser. “That’s much better” Mira assessed her handwork from afar and Obi smiled at her through the mirror. He finally slid his arms through his jacket sleeves and picked up his bag. Sliding a dark glasses atop his nose, he turned around.
“Remember to stay safe, okay?” Mira said. “And if anything should happen, never hesitate to give me a call” She usually gave him the talk whenever he was going out in the night. And tonight was no different. All he usually did was nod and then walk out. Mira was cool, so he didn’t have to worry about curfews and all that.
Nothing past midnight, was all she said. And that was very graceful of her.
He walked towards her as a smile appeared on the corner of her lips. “You sure you’re okay?” She asked for the nth time, hoping maybe he’ll finally tell her the truth.
But instead he placed a kiss on her cheeks and he nodded. “Of course, i am Mira” He said.
And then he brushed past her shoulders. She pushed a lump down her throat, watching his back fade through the door. And she muttered to herself, something of a habit now. “They grow up”
“They grow up so fast” Came a shrill whisper.
“We outside” Obi yelled into the streets, from where he could hear the music from a distance.
Halloween was also a day to play shitty music without having any complaints from neighbors.
It’s understandable because when you’re drunk, shitty music is good music. “I’m on my way” Ola said, through the phone. “Meet me at the statue”
Obi walked the distance, his feet slipped in the black leather boots he’d borrowed from Mira. And his hands slid to end the call. Of course he had to look his best, he’d set out in his mind that today was the day he’d tell Abdul the entire truth.
And how he, was really Neighborguy118.
How he was the guy Abdul had fallen in love with. And if maybe he was going to be rejected, at least he had to do it with style and in an Adeline jacket.
But the chances of that happening were slim because he’d gotten to know Abdul over the past few days, and as his real self ever since they exchanged phone numbers. And unlike on the app, they conversed more of real life things, which in hindsight meant the cliché boring things.
They talked about books, and their futures.
And more books and exams and high school. And occasionally, they made fun of their other classmates, bonding over the trauma they shared from Ayo. The connection felt real, even though there was no flirting whatsoever.
But Obi actually didn’t care. He knew the part of Abdul he had fallen for, now he had to show him his own part which he fell for. And staring at his dress, he hoped he wouldn’t run like others have.
He’d hoped nothing will change, especially after the somewhat big revelation.
As he danced towards the statue, with Ola and Fiyin coming from the other end, his eyes shut at the moon which was fully out and illuminating a fistful of stars. As he got closer, the music boomed louder and the streets were filled with people in their various costumes. Tents and canopies were scattered along the large field beneath the lights.
Obi felt a shiver up his spine, sighting Ola from the corner of his eyes. He had his glasses on now, which he only seldomly wore. And in some way, it matched his suity costume. But that was the only purpose it served, because Ola didn’t really have that big of an eye problem. They halted for a moment, looking at the chaos and vibrance around. “Tonight’s going to be good” Obi hyped.
“I’m not sure about that” Ola turned to Fiyin, who was here because Debby wouldn’t stop bugging her. “Look, what else than a party to take your mind off how shitty this month is. You know?” Obi said, taking their hands like in a big pep talk.
Fiyin chuckled slightly before looking him deep in the eyes. “You’re right” She forcefully agreed, pulling her arms away. She walked a bit forward before pausing. “Your eyeliner game is fire, by the way” She raised her thumb with a smirk.
Obi nodded, as he took his jacket. And then the trio walked into the fest like the power dynamic which they’d like to think they were. However, beneath all of this semblance were three messes.
That much was true.
-
The champagne shut in the air, gushing out of the bottle in DaSilva’s hands. He let out a deep chuckle, bending it over into the sink. Mira shook her head from a distance, slouched on the chair.
He turned around to her, pouting his lips.
“Come on girl, no work tonight. Tonight’s for us”
He poured the drink directly into his mouth as he walked towards her. You could hear the buzzing music of the fest from across the streets and he slowly bumped his head to it. Placing the bottle of champagne on the table, he sat and crossed his legs. “Now why are you being such a downer?”
Mira shook her head, her mind going back to how Obi had lied to her. “Is this about Obi?” He guessed and by the way she looked at him, he got his answer. “What is it now?” He gritted his teeth.
And Mira just let her arms fall to the table.
“I dont know. Must they grow up?” She asked.
“They grow up so fast. It’s like they turn eighteen and then they make the decision to cut you out of their life forever. They make the decision for both of you that they no longer need you” She ranted.
“They keep things from you, and fucking lie. All the fucking time” She outraged and DaSilva uncrossed his legs, asking the obvious question.
“Obi?”
“Of course, Obi”
“Teenagers lie like half the time Mira. You know that because you were one. I know that because i was one” He said.
“Not Obi. He was different”
“We were different, i mean we used to tell each other everything after this pact we made when he was ten to never keep secrets. We were so close, i don’t know what went wrong” Mira had tears in her eyes as she grabbed the champagne.
DaSilva just mumbled a laughter. “He can’t stay ten forever Mira”
“They grow, and they become independent. They have to be on their own to find themselves in a very hard world. And you of all people should know that because you were just like him”
“I remember one time that you completely shut off the world because you were going through some phase i don’t even know” He paused. “It’s growing up Mira. And he doesn’t hate you, he just needs some time for himself to maybe figure out things”
“So you don’t have to hate him or blame yourself for him pulling away. It’s just life” Mira passed the bottle back to him after a gulp. There were glasses in front of them but these uncultured beings chose not to use them. Rather, they gulped it directly.
“It’s just life” He scrunched up his nose a bit.
“And eventually, he’s going to grow and then he’s going to come back to you and everything would be back to normal. But for now, just give him space to blossom” He let out a jestering laughter.
“As ridiculous as that sounds, allow him to grow”
“Well, can he not?” Mira whispered as DaSilva walked over to the stereo, putting on an ABBA song. He turned to Mira. “You’re a clown for real”
She pouted her lips. “Your clown”
“My clown” DaSilva whispered, swinging his arms in the air as the song started playing. Mira lazily stood to meet him, and slowly she glided her waist to the side. She was entering her element to one of her best songs, and she was in the arms of Silver, one of her best friends. He reminded her much about the friendship between Obi and Ola.
They danced ridiculously around the poll as tears still fell from her eyes. Sniffing, she fell in a squat to the ground and looked back at DaSilva who burst out into laughting fits. He dropped to the ground as well and for more than a minute, they stared at each other deep into each other’s souls—
—allowing the alcohol to kick in their systems.
-
“You came?” Deborah squealed from a distance, and these two were operating on a dynamic that was weirdly rooted. Fiyin was like the only female friend Deb hung out with, that there were even some rumors that she was lesbian. Or maybe emo.
Which was way worse, and that was because of the way she dressed. She pulled her in for a hug, with Fiyin giving the same excuse as Ola.
“I didn’t have much a choice”
Though Debby had threatened to literally come to wherever she lived to pull her to the party, she still had a choice. Every human being has a choice.
And deep down in both her and Ola, they wanted to come to the most talked about party of the year. And it was why they were here.
There was color in everything, in the neon lights around the street light polls. Color in the mystical makeup of some, color in the atmosphere with soot falling from the skies. But the scent of alcohol and weed covered up any other. “Of course—“
Covered up all that color.
Deborah pulled her into the crowds and she stared at her hands for a moment and tried to pull them away but her Debby’s were too tight around.
Fiyin was dressed in a lacy tinkerbell gown, with wings attached to her back. They were the white wings she’d worn during a school play back in junior school and she just recently found them.
Overall her costume managed to cover most of her body, at the same time, leaving most of her arm out. It was why she wore a lavender glove on her left hand and why she wasn’t bothered when Deb pulled on them. They pushed through the bodies of the people that danced to such worldy music.
“Where are you taking me to?” Fiyin yelled.
“Somewhere quiet” Was what she thought she heard, but then again with the amount of noise, it could have been anything. They made their way further away from the fest and passed the lounge where a couple people had their tongues in each other’s throats and hands in unspeakable places.
It grossed Fiyin out actually.
Shit like that used to arouse her, the euphoria that came with sneaking and messing around behind the school bus on in the bushes. She used to love it, but after Collins, things had changed. And stuff like kissing or anything sexual in general grossed her out. She couldn’t even watch porn, because her eyes might have opened to how unrealistic it was. She loved this new feeling, and she hated it.
It was a thing of mixed feelings.
They finally came out of the other end of the lounge and into another street. And Deb left her hands in the open. Fiyin was struck by a tree in front of her as she looked around.
“Careful” Deborah muttered, sliding her hands through a lock and opening some gate before them. Fiyin looked up to the lights above her and her eyes caught a sign plastered against the gate.
KEEP AWAY.
“No” She muttered, reading what was beneath it and Deb swung the gates open. “Welcome” She gestured with her arms out wide.
“Somewhere quiet?” Fiyin shook her head. “This is the literal definition of quiet” She chuckled.
“I’m not going in there”
“Come on. Where’s the fun in halloween?” Deb came forward to take her hands and she pulled her through the gates. “You brought me to a fucking cemetery on fucking halloween” She said.
“Screw the party. May the day of the dead begin” Their feet dug into the sands, with several tombstones scattered around them. There was uniformity in the shadows under the streetlights.
“Fuck this” Fiyin cussed.
-
The birds chirped loudly in the trees and Ola strode down the quiet streets. He too, had somehow managed to roam far with a can of origin in his hands. His third can the entire night.
He staggered slightly, finally remembering what had brought him here, he was looking for the restroom and someone had directed him down.
He just kept on walking, and walking. And the music kept on fading away with each step. Now, he was far from the party and even further from his friends. He scrunched up the can of alcohol and threw it into the shrubs, then he halted.
Turning his back around, he walked closer to the bushes and managed to unzip his pant suit. He realized he was now further from the restroom than he initially was. So this was his best option.
Pulling out his weenie, and peeing in the bush.
He turned his face to the dark skies, hearing some howling in the distance. It was a full moon again, and the thought of werewolves dashed through his mind. But he let out a laugh. “They’re not real”
The splatters of his urine against the mulched leaves splashed back against his converse as he kept on for close to a minute. It’s the side effect of taking three cans of origin in less than two hours.
When he was done, he pulled back his pants but something caught his attention in the bushes. He paused, narrowing his eyes in the distance.
It was a subtle sound coming from the shrub and then a shriek. The leaves wavered in the air, making a rustling sound. And Ola inched closer to it, having not learned any lesson from the american horror movies he watched. Never—
Never go in the direction of a strange sound.
“They’re not real” He muttered, now assuring himself as he got close. He stretched his arms to the bush and then all of a sudden, a snake fell into them. He gasped, letting a scream into the air.
And he ran.
Attempting to hold his falling trousers by the waist, he fell to the ground with a thud. And he heard some laughters coming from the bushes.
He somehow managed to pick himself up, before he scrambled away, going in the opposite direction from where he came. His heart jackhammered against his chest as he kept running. He felt the lactic acid build up in him but he couldn’t stop.
“They’re not real” He shook his head.
His intoxication certainly didn’t help his senses, rather it heightened it. So there he was, spooked by the slightest of sounds. He just kept running, and the more he ran, the much further he went.
He pulled out his phone from his pockets, trying to focus his blurry eyes on the numbers. He dialed Obi as halted breathes escaped his lips.
God, this better not be another panic attack.
Because he didn’t have his pills.
I mean, he’d learned his lessons but who brings his anxiety pills to a party. It was just meant to be a night where he’d have the most fun and then come back before ten, a promise he made to Mary.
He finally halted, his hands falling to his knees as the phone rang in his ears. He squinted at how far he’d come and how close he was getting to those howling noises. Yet Obi wasn’t picking his phone.
He hated to be that person but his throat was sore, he needed water. And he needed his meds. It took all within him to not collapse on the ground.
“One” He began counting, an attempt to slow his breathes through concentrated exercises. “Two—“
“One”
He started all over, involving his fingers this time.
“Two” He joined his index and his pinky together before he looked to his phone. He hung up the call, but the truth was Obi too was doing his own thing and he needed all the courage he could get to walk to Abdul who was by the bridge. It wasn’t essentially third mainland, it was just a twine made bridge to the other side of the street. And a part of it was used for games like thug of war.
There were some benches around a particular tree where Abdul he sat. And Obi straddled closer to him, slipping his muted phone into his pockets.
“I can do this” He encouraged himself as he stepped closer, hoping he was invincible to the few people that were making out across from him.
Not that their minds focused on anything other than the tastebuds which they explored. It was calmer here, which kind of made sense why he was here. You could still hear the music but from a safe distance and Abdul had a book in his hands.
“Who does this?” Obi stepped forward.
Abdul looked up from the book, recognizing that voice. “What?” He asked, shock subtle in his voice as he looked at Obi from head to toe.
“In a good way or bad way?” Obi enquired. His eyes squinted with nervousness as Abdul tossed the book aside. “In a—“
“In an alot way” He raised his eyebrows and Obi took it as his queue to sit beside him. “I am alot” He said, and Abdul turned to face him. The corner of his lips morphed into his signature smirk that somehow set butterflies free in Obi’s stomach.
“I know”
There was silence for a while before he asked.
“Who does what?” His brows arched, and Obi stared the book’s very hard cover. “Who brings a book to a halloween party?” He completed.
He raised his two thumbs up and reverted them back to himself. “This guy” He whispered and Obi let out a slight chuckle. Shit, he blushed.
Shit, he couldn’t do this. What was he thinking?
“Abdul Faruq does” Even his name was attractive as Obi bit his lower lip. It was his turn to give him an assessing gaze and he didn’t hold back.
“Who are you meant to be?” He asked, picking at his costume which was a sleeveless grey top, that Obi could mistaken for a sleepwear. The only good thing about it however, was how well it revealed his biceps. It was impressive for a person his size. Abdul had a much slender bod and you could see the outline of his torso through the shirt.
The ends lifted a bit when he raised his hands to yawn. He’d been reading that book in the same position for a while. And then his eyes met Obi’s.
“A lazy Nigerian youth” He said, letting his arms fall but his clothes remained wrinkled. Obi saw a flash of a belly button around his slightly hairy torso and he turned away embarrassingly. It was too much, it really was. “Obi” He called.
And he cleared his throat. “What?”
“You missed the joke” He said, disappointingly.
“I got it. Lazy Nigerian youth, you couldn’t be much clearer with the gym top and sweatpants”
“So original” Obi said, not holding back his sarcasm. Abdul let out an odd laugh as he turned away. He had a drink in his left hand while his right made it’s way to his hair. “And you are?”
“I don’t know. Just someone fun and i just saw it as a chance to experiment with some things” He clenched his jacket closer to him. “You like it?”
“Of course i do” Abdul stared intensely. And his eyes wavered to Obi’s lips. It was deliberate. Like he intentionally knew what he was doing. Obi was restive in his heated seat as he parted his lips.
“You remind of someone. How i pictured someone in this book” He raised the book from his laps to the table. And Obi looked at the graphic cover, of what seemed to be two boys with their backs against each other but their hands intertwined.
“Oh really?” He didn’t have a definite reaction. It just shocked him that he was in Abdul’s mind.
“How so?” His eyes read below the title.
GHOSTS FROM OUR PAST.
And he let out a calm chuckle. “Well, there’s this guy” He took the book, pointing to the one on the left. He had chiseled facial structure and dark glasses to shield his eyes. He had a septum ring and his left ear was pierced. Obi had none of that.
“And he’s free. And wild. He’s vibrant, and has like so much youth. He’s the kind of guy that doesn’t care much about expectations and society”
“Except i do care about expectations” Obi teased, rolling his eyes. “You get what i mean” Abdul said.
“Is it because i’m here in a skirt?”
“It’s a lot of things Obi. It’s who you are” It was sweetest thing anyone had said to him. He turned his face to Abdul who did that smirk thingy.
This was the guy he’d fallen for on that app, and looking at him in that moment, it made it feel real. Real in the sense that he was afraid to come clean.
He didn’t want this to change. Not the way he intentionally flirted. Or the way he looked at him.
Abdul’s fingers traced the edges of the book, as if teasing it. He had dark knuckles and his nails were long, half of which were painted black. He flipped it over and then said. “He’s also queer—“
Obi’s eyes widened. He was lost.
“In the book, the guy is queer” There was an awkward silence as Obi searched his mind for one possible reason why he said that. Was it the vibes he was giving off that made him relate him to a fictional queer character. “What?” He finally said.
“No, i didn’t mean it that way. I just said it” He laughed embarrassingly then shook his head. “I just said it because i was surprised. You never get to see that in a Nigerian book” He continued.
“Oh” Obi softly exclaimed.
“Yeah” He tried not to make it awkward. Was it what he was looking for? He was left with more questions than answers. However, he was happy to know that Abdul wasn’t homophobic at all.
“I’m not really a fan of books. So i don’t know” He said, trying to drain the tension between them.
“But i won’t even be surprised, this is Nigeria” He added, shifting closer to him but only to see the bridge. He’d never been here, because the park was always closed when he got back from school.
His eyes went above it to the moving ferris wheel and the photo booth by the corner. Each flash, was a reason to smile. You could hear euphoric screams from the ones that rode on the wheel.
With a stint of tearful ones in between.
His heart jolted for one particular girl who he’d seen having the worst time of her life on it. And even though he’d never been on it, his toxic trait was thinking he’d ride it perfectly. And look pretty while doing it. The fear in his eyes, melted and a smile found its way to his lips.
“What are you looking at?” Abdul broke into his ears and he budged. “There” He pointed at the ferris wheel. Then he dipped his hands into his pockets, bringing at coins to the bench. Obi looked at him embarrassingly. “What are you up to?” He could guess it was up to no good with that mischievous smirk across his face. “Come on”
He stood from the bench, tucking the book under his armpit as he stretched his hand out to Obi.
“Come on. Don’t you want to ride it?” He held up the cash he had in his right hand as he pointed to the colorful wheel. It took a moment for Obi to stand, mentally battling if this was a great idea.
“Come on, Obi” Abdul persuaded, his side profile sharp in the shadow of the moon. It was in the light that Obi noticed he had a detective mustache. And side beards that almost met.
As attractive as the Sherlock Holmes’ thing was, he had to look away from it. He had to look into his open palms which he took into his. “Fine” Came an exasperated sigh as he bent his head.
“Yes” Abdul said, victoriously as they ran towards the ferris wheel booth where they had to pay. Obi looked around for maybe Ola or Fiyin as he entered under the shed, but he didn’t check his phone to see the twenty missed calls Ola had left.
And the message from Fiyin.
-
Fiyin: i’m at the cemetery if you’re looking for me.
Deborah stopped, letting go of her hands as she sat on a tombstone. The graveyard was silent, not a drop of pin to be heard. And it showed just how far they had come from the festival.
Fiyin looked around, taking notes before she sat.
There was dust on it, as her eyes navigated to the name engraved in the stone beneath her.
RICHARD DAVIS
19th September 1941 - 5th January 1970.
She gasped as Debby looked to her. Her eyes went to the same thing and she adjusted in her seat. “That was just before the war ended” She whispered and Fiyin looked to her. “Biafra war”
“You know it?”
“Of course i do” Fiyin said immediately. Of course she did, who didn’t know the one war that claimed millions of Nigerian’s lives. It was all she knew.
“Do you come here often?” She changed the subject and Deb shrugged her shoulders. “Occasionally, when i want to feast on dry bones”
Disgust rattled Fiyin’s face as Deb burst out laughing. “Honestly, i won’t even be surprised at this point” She said and Deb punched her lightly.
“You don’t have much of a personality either asides basketball” She threw her shades back, though only a few days late. “Fuck you” She said.
“Humans are shitty actually” She added.
“And you’re?”
“An alien. At least i wish to be. That would be so cool” Deborah seemed like the sort of person with a wild imagination. And she really was.
Fiyin just let out a soft chuckle, trying to relate because no, she didn’t wish she was an alien. And no, wishing to be an alien was not a normal thing.
But that was the thing, Deborah wasn’t a normal girl and at the same time, she wasn’t a pick me.
She was just different, and the world could use that sometimes. She fluttered her lashes, bringing out a packet of sweets from her pockets.
“You haven’t answered my question” Fiyin broke the silence. “Do you come here often?” She asked, somehow dead serious. “I told you” Deb replied.
“I told you the only logical answer to that”
“Shut up”
“You sure do ask alot of questions” She said, slipping a sweet into her mouth. “I’m just trying to get to know the great Deborah Albert” Fiyin said and Deborah jumped to sit right to her.
“How about you give me a chance to get to know the great Fiyin Bamidele instead?” She asked, offering a piece of something in the packet and Fiyin reached for it, peeling off the wrapper.
“Ask away” She said unenthusiastically, because there was really nothing all that interesting about her, except her trauma. She didn’t have a fancy life, she didn’t play sports. She was just Fiyin.
This was the opportunity for Deborah to get to know her and she as well, didn’t hold back. Her eyes went to her gloved hands, the same she had seen that day with the scars. And she asked.
“Is that apart of your costume?”
“N—Yeah, kinda. It’s quite original if you ask me” Fiyin replied, chewing something in her mouth and Deborah nodded. “Fi, tell me the truth” Her voice went low, lower than the chirping birds above them and Fiyin turned to look in her eyes.
The atmosphere had gone tense, and she put the sweets away. “I saw your arm that day” Debby didn’t hesitate to let her know she knew she was lying. And she wasn’t having it. Fiyin on the other hand, raised her shoulders more defensively.
“It’s nothing” She insisted, recollecting that day in her head. “I just, fell” She found a lie in her head.
“You fell?” Deb echoed and she nodded. “That’s original” It was her who bore the sarcasm now as she chuckled slightly. “Fiyin, i know self harm scars when i see self harm scars” She continued.
And Fiyin cleared her throat, feeling quite embarrassed that she was caught in a lie. She handed her back her sweets and proceeded to stand. Deborah held her back for a minute.
“Listen, Fiyin”
“You don’t understand” Came a change of tone from the person in question. Honestly, what did Deborah say expect?
“Actually i do” She yelled in the open, they didn’t have any fear someone will hear them. The least of their worries were the decaying ears around them.
“I grew up harming myself, and it was this cycle where i always tried to kill myself” There was a crack in her voice. “I’m not trying to kill myself” Fiyin said. Actually, she wasn’t. There was a few times she wanted to swallow a bottle of painkillers after Collins but she couldn’t go through with it.
Because for some reason, she didn’t want to rot in hell. That was the only reason, and unlike how it’s glorified, death by pills is actually much more painful. It involves your body slowly shutting down and she didn’t need any more pain.
So she didn’t go through with it.
“But i think you need help” Deborah said, a very poor choice of words in that moment. “Is that what this is?” Fiyin stretched out her hands.
“Is that what this is? Is that why you brought me here? Because you have some savior complex inside of you, where you have to help somebody?”
“Where you have to save someone” Deb was speechless at her words as she battled with her bags. “No” She replied with a quivering voice.
“You actually did. And you might think you have to go through all of this because you can bear it but you really don’t have to—“
“Bullshit” Fiyin yelled in her face, before backing away. “All of what? You don’t know the slightest thing about me. No one in this world does” She reacted and Deborah stepped back. “Hawking?”
You see, in this moment you can see why Fiyin never wanted to cross paths with one of her classmates whenever she went out hawking. It always came back to her in the most horrific ways.
“What?”
“I followed y—”
“You followed me. Fuck Deborah, this is why you don’t have any friends. You’re fucking creepy” She yelled from a distance as she pulled away. Slow steps had embarrassingly turned to a run, as she looked for the nearest way back to the Fest.
Tears stung the back of her eyes as she felt a certain type of pain in her throat. She just kept running, removing her gloves after some distance.
“Fuck. Fuck” She cussed, her hands slipping down her face as her braids fell to the side. She wasn’t proud of how she’d handled it back there, leaving Deborah who just wanted to help, in tears.
But she also didn’t like the way she felt.
Something about reminding her of her scars made her feel triggered. And she just wanted to let out the loudest scream from the highest pinnacle she could find. The tears begun to fall after a while as she looked to her phone if Obi had replied. She neared the party as she thrusted through bodies.
It was then, she knew how bad of an idea this was.
By the time she got to the center of the crowds, the clock struck ten. And she halted, looking up at the fistful of stars in the skies. And there he was—
—Obi. On the ferris wheel, next to Abdul.
Strapping the belt, the wheel slowly moved till they reached somewhat of a height before it stopped. From there, they could see the vast distance of the festival through the streetlights.
It was a sight, away from all this Lagos madness, and atop it instead, it was a sight. And heaving a deep breath, Obi took it all in. He looked to Abdul who desperately searched for the perfect picture out of the ones he took. Some of them, with Obi.
He looked away, pretending not to see him stare at a particular one with him. The winds from the altitude hit him in his face and blew his skirt open.
He was thankful he wore the netted socks.
But somehow, the motion managed to catch Abdul’s attention. Now the phone was on a different photo, one with him and a particular girl in a hijab. Obi felt a sting in his heart, seeing how close they were. He didn’t have the right to feel jealous, because they were nothing—
—he wasn’t even sure they were friends.
“Who’s that?” He still asked, and his face turned to the screen. “Oh that. That’s my sister” He said, with a smile across his face.
Relief washed over Obi’s embarrassed face.
The thought of incest still crossed his mind and he still felt jealous at how close she was to him, his arms around her shoulders. “Oh” He exclaimed.
“She’s getting married next week. Yeah” Abdul added. “I think you said it once before” Obi said.
“No, i don’t think i did” He replied and Obi tapped his thighs. “Yeah, you did. The time you told me about how much pressure your family was putting on you to find the perfect wife as w—“
He paused, realizing the mistake he made.
Abdul didn’t tell Obi that, he told Neighborguy118.
“Shit” Obi cussed, looking down at high he was from the ground. And the impact it would have if he just jumped from the ferris wheel that moment.
But then, slowly it started moving and they progressed steadily towards the clouds. “I don’t understand” Abdul said, arching his brows.
“How?” The way he scrunched up his face showed he’d already done the maths, and by his last question, they were already a hundred feet in the air. And the fireworks just sparked off beside them. It illuminated his moist eyes, and Abdul’s.
“You’re neighborguy118?” He had said.
-
“Hey” Someone said with a shrill voice from behind and Fiyin turned around, taking her eyes off Obi. It was Anna, with a bunch of girls behind.
They had on the slutty nurse costume and the cap, and white thigh high socks and a shirt that was barely buttoned. Fiyin assessed her in a second.
“Hi”
They’d barely talked in like a month. “How are you doing? It’s like a barely see you” She said, fluttering her lashes like a glam doll. She had on a southern accent, making something she picked up from her last travel. Because she as well hadn’t been in school. It was a pro of being a politician’s daughter, you always went on campaign rallies.
“It’s no surprise since you’re now hanging with the losers, right girls?” She turned around to the girls who maniacally nodded. Fiyin rolled her eyes, brushing past her shoulders. “You can turn your back all you want” Anna yelled at her.
And she halted.
“You’ll still come back to us. Suddenly you feel you’re too good to be with us, but it’s going to change soon. You realize they’re two people in the world” Fiyin didn’t bother to turn around.
Her voice alone was enough.
“There’s us. And there’s them” She said, before carrying on with her dolls. Fiyin heaved a deep breath as their footsteps drew away. There was much more pollution that settled in the air that she couldn’t tell which made her this nauseous.
But amidst the soot, she’d sighed Ola puking in the nearby shrubs. She rubbed her eyes before running across the road to meet him.
“Ola” She called, her hands reaching for his back as he let out an exhaustipated yawn. There were tears in his eyes when he looked up. And he looked a combination of dirty and hungover. Fiyin slowly patted his back as she noticed the ferris wheel had also come to a halt, meaning Obi would be out any minute now. She held unto Ola, who stood up straight before leaning right into her.
“Ghosts are fucking real” He whispered, as if it were a top secret before he fell asleep. She held unto his arm as she sighted Obi too from afar, he increased his steps once they’d made eye contact.
And once he’d reached her, he panted as if he’d been running from someone. Fiyin looked at him, as he looked to Ola. “Long night?” She asked, and he sucked his cheeks a bit. “I need to go home.“
“Me too” Ola muttered, in her arms.
“Ghosts are fucking real, Obi. I was wrong—“
To be continued…