Dedicated to bisoyelove he actually made the artwork in the media for Uthman. The gesture means a lot.
~Uthman~
I never knew I could have jamb tension. I thought I was better than that but walking into the hall where I did my jamb proved me otherwise. Two days later, If I thought what I felt walking into that hall was tension, then checking my result must be a panic attack.
I thought this has to the with the jamb syndrome fear that has been passed down from generation to generation. Eventually, I checked it.
Dear Uthman Gbadamosi, your result for 2020 UTME is 345
Physics: 78
Chemistry: 77
Biology: 79
English: 111
I was the only one at home when I checked it and I shouted and fist bumped the air.
Nah, I danced around like a lunatic in my room.
I couldn't keep calm and I chatted Akin up. He just did his own today so his result was not yet out.
I was about to call Jade when I got an incoming call. It was from dad. I instinctively paused, wondering why he was calling me.
Maybe he saw a text message from UTME of my result. Afterall, it was his number that he registered me with.
'Hello Sir'
I said into the receiver as soon as I picked it up.
'Hello Son.'
His voice was full of excitement and I paused again. What's wrong with this man?
'I just saw your result. I knew you could do it. I knew you would always make us proud. I'm so proud of you right now.'
Wow. My lips stretched into a small smile before I could help it. My dad's appraisal. Something I've never gotten since mom died was like chocolate in my mouth.
'I did not forget the gift I promised you. I'm definitely going to surprise you.'
I nodded, forgetting he wasn't here with me.
'Okay Sir. Thank you Sir'
'Yes.'
I replied and I could hear the laughter in his voice.
'You should call your mom and let her know of the good news. I'm sure she'd be glad.'
And we hung up. I stared at my phone before searching for mom's number. My finger lingered on it but I did not call her.
I later dialed Jade's number but it went to voice mail. I left a message for her on WhatsApp but she wasn't online.
I got on my bed and laid down but I was too giddy to keep calm. I ended up walking down stairs. When I got to the sitting room, our enormous sitting room, I was momentarily shocked by how huge it was and how empty too.
Too empty.
If this was a normal family, the family would have gathered around to to celebrate my success.
I realized I really missed Moji and mom.
******
'So you mean you scored 345 in Jamb?'
Akin asked again.
For like the hundredth time.
I nodded and smiled.
'Wow. That's amazing. I should have just borrowed just half of your brain before writing that exam.'
'We wouldn't even have borrowed you.'
Jade replied him.
We were all seated in class. I meant the five of us. We've arranged our chairs in a sort of circle so that we were all facing each other.
It was exactly a week to our WAEC and classes ended already. We were majorly in school to revise by ourselves but we spent the time lazying around, pranking ourselves, gisting, playing games. We've played ludo, scrabble, monopoly, chess countless times.
We were making memories. We just finished playing scrabble when I remembered I've not told the rest of the gang about my jamb score.
'We? Who are the we? I was talking about Uthman's brain, not yours.'
'Ta' Jade replied, sticking out her tongue. 'His brain is our brain. Let that sink in.'
Hana and Dan burst into laughter and Akin gave Jade a wierd look, all the while shaking his head. I looked at Jade who was sitting right beside me. She was fully back to her normal self, smiling, joking, laughing and just being Jade.
'Uthman, just get a room already. Your eyes are going to drill holes into her body.'
I looked away from Jade to Akin who had a lopsized grin on his face.
'Akin, what's your business? Is it you he's stating at? And I'm not even complaining.
'Ohhhh, that's chessy'
Dan and Hana said at the same time and they both turned to look at each other with a smile on their faces.
'Is this a kind of soulmate something? Something like telepathy?'
Dan said and grabbed Hana's hands.
'Now, that's chessy.'
Jade said and I turned to look at her. She was looking at the duo as if they were barbarians.
'Who cares?'
Dan replied and processed to kiss Hana on the lips right there and then.
'Eeh God. What am I seeing now? You people should be more chaste na.'
Dan broke off the kiss to answer Akin.
'Chaste ko, paste ni.'
I shook my head and turned to look at Jade, she was still looking at Dan and Hana like they were barbarians, with a lips pursed in that cute way. I remembered the last time we kissed.
The first and only time.
Because the next two did not count as kisses to me. They were just pecks on the lips. I missed the feel of her lips against mine. How our lips seems to fit perfectly together. And the extremely sexy and dangerous sound she makes....
I stopped and sat up.
God. No. I can't allow my train of thoughts to go that way. It's a very dangerous territory.
I don't think she was ready for any form of skinship after what happened. We've not even held hands since it happened. The most we've done was when we went to visit her at home, when I held her.
A chaste holding.
'Uthman!'
Jade shouted my name and that brought me out of my reverie.
'Hmm?'
'What happened? You were lost in thought.'
I dismissed it with a wave of my hand.
'Nothing. And guys, are you not going to check your result? It should be out by now.'
'Yeah, right.'
Dan replied and he brought out his phone. An iPhone X. We all waited in silence as he checked his. After some minutes, he released a deep breath. He then stood up and fist bumped the air.
'Baba God. Eshey oo'
'What did you score? Don't tell me you score 200 oo with all these your karamo()'
Akin said, looking at Dan with a bored expression.
'235 guys. 235! Wow. I'm so happy.'
We all mouthed congratulations to him and he bowed in a dramatic way.
Trust Dan with his extremely dramatic way.
'The next person should call their registration number and password so this boy that passed jamb would help them check.'
I rolled my eyes just as Akin snatched the phone away from him.
'Thank you but we'd rather check it ourselves.'
He checked his and he scored 250. Hana check hers too and she scored 230.
'I can't imagine not passing this jamb tho. My dad will just get rid of all my video games.'
Akin's dad has never been a fan of his mindless obsession with video games and I was pretty sure he would do what Akin said.
'But then, even if we failed jamb or we did not do this well, our parents would send us to private universities.
I nodded at what Dan said, partly believing him. Private universities did not even exists in my dad's dictionary. He was of the belief that private universities does not really have enough facilities to teach Medicine.
Not like I care.
'Jade'
I called out and turned to look at her. She looked up and met my eyes.
'Are you not going to check your result?'
'Not yet.'
Came her reply. She was the first person to do jamb amongst us and strangely, she was refusing to check her result. Was she scared?
'You've not checked your result? Really? And you've done it how many days ago? Aanu se mi. Wait till they change your result.'
I shook my head at Akin's words.
'Or have you checked it and you're not telling us?'
'No way. Jade can't do that. She is just scared of checking it.'
Hana replied, acting as Jade's spokeswoman.
'As in. I envy you guys. My heart was literally in my mouth while you guys were checking your. Now, imagine if it was mine. I might just have an anxiety attack.'
Akin burst into laughter.
'Really? Jade? You're scared of checking ordinary Jamb result? I thought you were stronger that that.'
Jade chuckled.
'There's nothing like strongness when it comes to matters like this. And guys please, let's take about something else, I might just have an anxiety attack while you guys are talking about it.'
'Eeh eeh'
The gang chorused and burst into laughter. I chuckled to myself silently.
Talking about attacks, I realized we've not discussed her panic attacks. The one Akin said she has. The one I witnessed one of her episodes. It was then I realized we've not really had an alone time since it happened.
I desperately wished we could have an alone time. I looked at her and she was looking at me too, with a smile on her lips.
********
~Jade~
'Jadeshola, are you really not going to check your jamb result? It's been more than 10 days since you wrote that exam.'
Mom said. We just finished eating dinner and Zee and Fatima were packing the plates. Fatima had checked hers and she scored 225. She was going to leave for Lag any time soon.
Zee had started spending more time at home after it happened. There was a day she spent long hours talking with Dad and mom in their room and when she came out, her face was stoic and her eyes were swollen. Obviously, she cried in there but I did not ask her what they discussed.
'Mom, don't mind Jade. She is just acting dramatic over this thing. It's not like you won't ace it.'
Zee answered her and I shuddered. The prospect of checking my result scared me more than anything. Especially when the system I used for Jamb went off like 5 times when I was doing the exam.
'You should check it. You just can't ignore it forever.'
'Okay Ma, I'll check it. Maybe when I'm done with all my external exams sha.'
'Aah aah'
Zee and Fatima exclaimed and they turned to look at me with raised eyebrows. Zee shook her head.
'You're abnormal.'
'I know. I took after my sister'
Everything was almost back to normal at home. I mean with Zee, it was like she never left though she still spend considerable amount of time with her mother. On a norms, she should have gone back to school but ASUU was on their strike again.
Awon striker aiye.
I retreated earlier than usual to my room to read. We had just five days to WAEC and my first paper was Economics. I sat by my study desk to read but my thoughts kept straying.
You should check your jamb result.
I'll check it later.
Eeh eeh. Wait till they change your result for you.
They should kuku change it and add a 100 marks to my score.
What if you already score more than 300
I mentally scowled.
I'm not Uthman.
But you should definitely check your result and stop being overly dramatic.
Egbami. Shebi it's my result.
It's our result!
Now, I was definitely going mad with the internal debate in my head. I stood up just as someone opened the door and entered. It was Zee. She even stopped knocking but then, was her knocking any different from entering without knocking?
'Oya, let's check your result.'
I opened my mouth to say something and she put out her hand to stop me.
'No arguments. We are checking your results now. Right now.'
I heaved a sigh just as she walked closer to the middle of the room.
'Oya, what's your reg number and password?'
I heaved another sigh and called them for her. I walked closer to my bed, barely feeling my legs.
Zee did not say anything for a while and I closed my eyes. God! I knew it. I've always had the fear of jamb at the back of my mind ever since one of my too brilliant aunt flopped it when I was still in primary school. They were still doing PBT then. And also, I've heard countless stories of how jamb changed people's destiny.
I opened my eyes and met Zee's eyes. Her eyes were huge.
'Wait, is their site broken on not. You couldn't possibly have scored something this low.'
God! My legs failed me and I fell back on my bed. I knew it! Since my system had gone off while I was doing the exam, I had this premonition. God!
Zee's laughter brought me out of my reverie. What?
'God, you should have seen your expression just now. I should have filmed it. It was a epic.'
I sat up. That was a joke? She was still laughing hard and I snatched her phone from her. My eyes scanned the page as I looked for my total score.
295.
What?
'You've outdone yourself once again. Sis. Congratulations.'
Zee hugged me and I did not know when I started crying.
God! Now, I'm overly dramatic.
'Cry cry baby. Oya stop crying.'
She said whilst still laughing and she wiped my tears with her fingers.
I cried harder.
Now, when I'm too happy. I don't laugh or jump or shout like a normal person. I cry.
Tears of joy.
Before I knew it, Zee was out of my room and she returned with mom.
'Oko mi, I knew you could do it. You've made us proud once again. Congratulations.'
Someone please teach me how to stop these stupid tears.
********
Four days to WAEC and we were in the cafeteria eating. We wouldn't be eating like we used to in the cafeteria once we started our exams. I glanced around, missing the cafeteria already.
'Wow, you and Uthman are the perfect couple. Imagine the two of you having kids, they'd be geniuses.'
Dan said after I told them of my jamb result.
'My bestie is too intelligent. Imagine if the system she used did not act out, she might have scored three seventy something or even more than.'
I smiled as I swallowed the food in my mouth. We all ordered for the same thing. White Rice with fish sauce and chicken. If I had known I did that well in the exam, I would've checked my result since instead of torturing myself.
'I wonder how you guys do it. The both of you are just too brilliant.'
I smiled and looked at Uthman. Our eyes met and he smiled at me. I smiled back. We've not really spent time together since it happened. I mean, we were always together but in the company of our friends.
We really needed an alone time together.
'So the new prefects would be selected tomorrow?'
'Does that mean we officially stop being prefects?'
Hana asked, answering Akin with another question.
I shook my head.
'Technically, we are still prefects. The newly elected ones would be just acting in our steal. We officially hand over during our valecdictory service.'
Hana and Akin nodded in unison and Dan said.
'How time flies.'
I know, right?
I looked at Uthman as he was peeling the chicken's skin off it's bone. I watched as he used his fork to pick the chicken, as he lifted it to his mouth. He used the tip of his tongue to wipe the sauce that was on the corner of his lips.
His pink tongue on his lips.
His pink tongue on my lips.
I distinctly remembered the last time we kissed. In the park, on the swing and how his lips felt against mine.
That wasn't the last time you kissed tho. You've kissed two more times.
What? Those perk on the lips doesn't count as kisses.
So, that was the only time we kissed and we've not kissed after then.
He had made no move to kiss me after then.
My hands subconsciously reached for my lips and I carresed them unknowingly.
Are we not going to kiss again?
Was I supposed to make the first move?
I mentally saw my subconscious mind shook its head at me.
Your WAEC starts in two days and here you are thinking about kissing. Shéy wón fi shéy é ni?
I rolled my eyes at my subconscious mind.
Just shut it.
But then, why wasn't Uthman kissing me again?
What if we only ended up kissing once in six months?
Or once in a YEAR?
NOOOOO
'What?'
I saw four pair of eyes staring at me, widely.
'No what?' Akin asked 'And why is your hand on your lips?'
What? Did I say that out loud? God save me. I dropped my hand from my lips.
'Nothing. I was having a mental debate.'
The rest went back to the food while Akin eyed me.
'You're really wierd.'
I stuck out my tongue at him.
'Wierd is the new cool'
I turned to look at Uthman. His eyebrow was raised and he was looking at me quizzically. My eyes involuntarily dropped to his lips and I looked away.
I looked down at me food and tried to calm my breaths and my racing heart.
I looked up again and Uthman was still staring at me. We maintained eye contact until the corners of his lips turned up in a lopsided grin.
Almost like he knew what I was thinking about.
No way.
Yes way.
I was about to get into an internal debate again when I heard the click click sound of a shoe making its way towards us. I looked up just like the rest.
It was Ayisha and she has a small smile plastered on his face. She was also carrying a tray of food.
'Hey guys, do you mind if I join you guys?'
She did not wait for anybody's reply before she sat down. The only empty seat was in front of Akin and he was frozen as she sat across him.
'Hi'
She said and made a small wave with her hand.
'Hi'
Was that Akin's voice? I exchanged a knowing glance with Uthman who was grinning from ear to ear. We would have loved to tease Akin but then, first thing first.
That seat was where Michelle would've sat but she stopped sitting with us since I got back to school. I've even stopped seeing her around. I really needed to see her, especially after Hana had told me she had something to do with it. I wanted to ask her where I'd gone wrong with her for her to do something that wicked to me.
I wanted to ask her how she managed to sleep at night and how she live with herself with that much bitterness and evil in her heart.
How do you live with yourself with that much bitterness, hate and evil in your heart? You can't truly be happy with yourself if you're evil and bitter towards other people. Spread love and goodness and positivity and see how much your heart would warm up. If someone is spreading love to you, then you should reciprocate. Life is already hard, don't add to its hardness by spreading hate, evil and negativity.
How many of you did Jamb jammed? Jamb, the utmost destiny changer 😂😂. It turned many prospective Doctors and lawyers into farmers and chemists 😂😂 but then with the way the world is going and the current situation of Nigeria, it really doesn't matter what you study. How many people are actually using their certificates? Just find what you're passionate about and make it worthwhile.
Jade seems to be going crazy thinking about kissing. Smh. Ó ga jù.
See you when I see you.
Don't forget to click the star button below and for the umpteenth time, I love you guys and I really really appreciate the love you've shown BTGOL so far.
Love, Riri.