Chapter 16: Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

*****

I woke up feeling refreshed by the next day. Being open minded and positive about how my day was going to be, I stepped into the shower, humming to different tunes as the water pelted my skin. The refreshing feeling made me not want to step out of there.

Kukuma sleep there ode...

A laugh eluded my lips as the thought slipped out of my subconscious self.

I picked out a pink chiffon top with a pair of blue jeans and put them on shortly afterwards. I had barely touched my phone, so I swiftly ransacked my bag surreptitiously hoping that my dad had called or texted, begging me to come home but I knew better than to expect that. He was a hard hearted man after all. No calls from mum or any of my siblings. Thinking of siblings, I hadn't heard from my newly married sister, she was probably too occupied in her honeymoon to give me a call and I didn't want to bother her with my issues.

I walked out of the bedroom heading straight to the kitchen for a quick breakfast but Tana beat me to it.

"Hey sleepy head" She greeted cheekily.

"Good morning" I replied with the same expression.

"You slept in, as usual" She announced flipping the pancakes with the spatula.

"Really? What time is it?" I asked, a little flustered.

"Go take a look" She said with that cheeky grin I had come to admire over the years. I swiftly took my phone out of my pocket, thinking about it, I saw that it was past ten in the morning.

"Wow" I exclaimed, shocked at how much time I had spent trying not to brood over my plight.

"So... You're coming with me to the office right?" Tana asked tilting her head towards me with a worried look on her face. I shook my head in the negative but she disagreed vehemently.

"No way Titilola, I don't want you brooding and sulking in this house all day"

"But... " I started.

"No" She said with an air of finality.

"Okay fine" I conceded, groaning right after.

****

Thirty minutes later, we were off to her office. I seldom visited her place of work for reasons I couldn't even point out. But it looked much better than the last time I visited. The interior decor was superb. Tana ran a modelling agency, so her workers scurried around the place, taking pictures, doing make up and all the petty things associated with such occupation. The storey building was beginning to look small as business was booming.

So she said...

My favorite place was the costume and designs section, for obvious reasons.

"Good morning ma'am" A worker greeted. Such greetings were heard from all corners as Tana and I walked further into the building.

Finally, we were up in her office.

"Welcome ma'am would you like some tea or coffee?" She teased with a mock bow.

"Cut it out abeg" I said amidst a chuckle. It sounded forced...

"No brooding Lola, you're here to spend the day with your best friend" She faced me squarely with her arms folded across her chest. I admired the long sleeved peach jumpsuit she wore with black pumps. She always slayed every outfit.

"Yes ma'am but I might have to step out later" I said looking around her office. It was quite large,with turquoise wallpapers, a huge mahogany desk placed in the middle with a desktop computer,amongst lots of files piled on top.

A freezer laid at one end of the room, I could imagine it being stocked with lots of junk food, Tana would never disappoint. A book shelf I had barely noticed was at one side of the office, filled with books of different literatures and genres.

Typical...

"Where are you heading to?" She asked bringing me out of my temporary observation.

"I just want to get some cash, register at a good fashion school, you know, the earlier the better" I said with a shrug, whilst playing with my fingers.

"Oh... That's quick, but I'm with you, just call me if you need anything" She said smiling reassuringly. I groaned before rolling my eyes at her sweetness. These people were beginning to treat me like a kid, I truly appreciated their care but I didn't want to feel that way. It made me feel helpless.

"Thank you ma'am" I said with a hint of sarcasm in my tone.

"Can I go now?" I asked rhetorically.

She looked up from her laptop and answered with a blank expression on her pretty face.

"No you can't"

"Ah why na?" I whined with a pout.

"Where exactly are you going sisi?" She asked, ignoring my question.

"To the bank na, I actually want to register at  Mrs Josephine Effiong's place" I finally spilt the beans. She stared tentatively at me, as if trying to get anymore words out of me. When she finally realised she wasn't getting anything else she began typing on her laptop very swiftly.

"What are you doing?" I asked almost taking a peek at her laptop screen, before she looked up at me. Without another word she turned the device in my direction. Still puzzled, my eyes left hers and stared at the screen taking cursory glances until they landed on the jaw dropping amount. I was stupefied at the cost of enrolling in a fashion school.

"A hundred thousand naira for enrollment? Sixty thousand monthly, for a year?" Tana read out, I was as flabbergasted as she was. It sounded ludicrous but it still happened to be a prestigious one.

"Well..." I hesitated.

"I still have enough money in my account, it's just a year right?" I wasn't even sure about what I was saying. Tana gave me a disapproving stare

"Tana just let me handle this, I'll figure something out, maybe I'll do a part time job as well" I said trying to placate her.

"Easier said than done Lola, but if that's what you want I can't get in your way" She said sighing in defeat.

"Okay I'll just head to the bank now so that I can enroll ASAP"  I announced getting up from the very comfy swivel chair.

I could get used to this.

"Bye baby" I said blowing kisses at the unsuspecting Tana.

Work mode? Definitely on...

"Yeah yeah, call if you need anything Lola,promise you'll do that" She said with major emphasis on the word 'promise'. Tana knew me as a kind of obstinate person. I don't think it's pride, I just don't want people seeing me as a burden. I'd rather get things done myself, my way...

Call me headstrong but it is what it is...

"I will, pinky promise" I said sticking out my left little finger. She grinned and I mirrored her expression, stepping out of the office. I shut the door behind me, taking a breath with one mission on my mind.

I was outside the building and just a few minutes later, I hailed a cab heading for the bank. The queue I met was nearly frustrating. And after waiting for over an hour, I received the shock of my life.

"I'm sorry ma'am, your account has been frozen" The cashier had said.

"That's impossible" I said in a loud whisper amidst shock. I was soon at the manager's office. The whole thing had my father written all over it. Thinking about it, that explained why I couldn't transfer money via my banking app, I assumed it was a network issue and decided to come to the bank myself but my supposed father had beat me to it.

I was too overwhelmed to say anything so I walked out of the bank, in a state of confusion. How was I supposed to follow my dreams if I didn't have a penny to my name? All my benefits had been taken away.

Everything!

Not minding where I was, I let my feelings get the better part of me, I cried all the way down to Tana's office. I didn't mind the stares. Some perverts tried to take advantage of my sorry state to hit on me but I had blatantly ignored them.

*****

I walked in gloomily not minding the stares I got from the employees. I couldn't care less about what they thought at that point.

"Titilola? What's wrong?" Tana asked, concern etched on her facial features.

"He froze my account, all my money, my savings, everything's gone" I spluttered covering my mouth afterwards in a bid to curb my sobs, they were growing louder by the second.

She gasped "No, no, no" She shook her head vigorously, rushing to my side, in a bid to comfort me.

"Tana what did I do to deserve such a life? I just want to be happy" I lamented as she held me close. My whole being was shaken with sobs.

"Don't talk like that,It's gonna be fine, we'll figure something out, we will" She said as if trying to reassure herself more than she did me.

We stayed crouched up in the same position for a pretty long time before she got back to work. She did all she could to cheer me up but it was all in vain. My mind had been in a state of gloominess and coming out of it wasn't going to be easy.

Time flew by before I knew it and soon it was closing hour. Tana was closing up early because of me and I felt guilty but she didn't want to hear anything about me being a burden to her. I wondered how I got such a friend who would readily give up her time and money for me. She was surely God sent.

We were soon off on our way, silence hung in the air.

"Would you like to eat out? I'm too hungry to cook or heat up anything" She moaned breaking the awkward silence.

"You can get something for yourself, I'm not hungry" I said quietly.

"Lola you have to eat something, you can't starve o" She said in her typical elder sis tone.

"I'm fine, really, just go get what you want, I'll wait for you here" I said again.

"Alright, I'll be right back" She took her handbag and stepped out of the vehicle while I sat in, fiddling with my phone. Minutes later, she was back with a couple of polythene bags which she dropped In the back seat.

"Breathe sis, it's a phase, it would surely pass" She advised after taking a worried glance at me. On cue, I released a breath I didn't even realize I was holding. She drove off shortly afterwards.

*****

"We're home..." She announced, bringing me out of my thoughts. I must have zoned out in the middle of the ride.

With a nod, I got out of the vehicle taking out my bag, and the polythene bags in the backseat.

We walked in, with the only sound coming from Tana, who was fiddling with the house keys. The neighborhood was a quiet one after all. No gaudy sounds of surrounding standby generators that usually characterized Nigerian neighborhoods as a result of constant power outage. The neighborhood was quite posh, electricity was constant and only out on very few occasions, not without prior notice to the inhabitants, though.

I know right...

I stepped into the apartment inhaling the scent that I was soon to be accustomed to...

A shower, a long shower  was the first thing on my mind and I headed straight for it. I needed to clear my head.

"Lola when you're done, please join me in the living room" Tana said after knocking lightly on the bathroom door.

"Alright..." I said, surprised at what my voice sounded like. Sadness did take a toll on my features including my killer voice.

I loved hearing myself speak, it was soothing, even to me. Laila said it was seductive and too hard to resist,I always laughed at her description. I had always received compliments about my voice and losing it was somewhat a big deal for me.

I stepped out of the bathroom, feeling a bit better and of course, refreshed. I slid on my night gown and headed to the living room where Tana said I should join her. I guessed it was for a tête-à-tête.

I gave her a questioning look as she was sprawled on the couch with her food placed on her laps. Holding the TV remote up, she switched the channel to Nickelodeon. She sighed as 'Alvin and the chipmunks' came on.

Big baby

"Tana you called?" I asked interrupting her moment.

"Oh yeah, come sit" She said tapping the spot beside her.

"I wanted to ask if you've heard from anyone of them" She said taking a spoon full of rice into her mouth.

I understood immediately. I hadn't received any calls from any of my family members. I wasn't exactly expecting my siblings to call since we hardly stayed in touch but my mum hadn't even bothered to check on me after what had occurred the previous day.

"No huh?" She asked again after the moment of silence. I shook my head in the negative.

"I told my parents" She said hesitantly,

I was shell shocked. I didn't expect her to do it, so soon. I didn't want her parents getting involved.

"Tana how could you?" I exclaimed in bewilderment.

"I had to,okay? Lola we need their support, we can't do this on our own. I need you to trust me" She said in a bid to placate me.

"Tana we're adults" I countered.

"Yes but we're still kids in their eyes, in God's eyes, Lola. Maybe they can help you talk to your father, he could listen" She continued and I scoffed.

"That's not happening, my dad never listens to anyone" I disagreed. I knew my father better than they did. He was too headstrong, I probably got that feature from him.

"Now you're being negative, stubborn and obstinate all over again" She snapped.

Okay this is getting out of hand

She sighed exhaustedly. "Listen we're not supposed to be fighting right now Lola" She smiled apologetically. I mirrored her expression, giving her a bear hug.

"Can you trust me? Will you let me help you?" She asked patting my head lovingly

"I'll try but don't help me too much, I'll get lazy" I said and she giggled

"Okay now, go and eat" She said in a commanding tone. I sat up immediately.

"I thought I said I wasn't hungry, I told you not to get anything for me" I argued

"Is it me you're telling that one, it's like you want me to beat you, you want to have ulcer under my roof abi?" She said menacingly. I gave in immediately. I checked the polythene bag and discovered that she bought my favourite.

Sweet Nigerian jollof with grilled chicken and salad

I salivated and moaned unconsciously at the aroma.

"I'm not hungry" Tana mimicked my earlier brooding state. I laughed softly, quickly digging into the heavenly meal in front of me. I savoured every bit of it.

********