Chapter 12: TheNews.
The next day, I moved into my new apartment, one of twenty four units or should I say room or hostel?. Any which, it was a very nice place with every basic living room appliances and kitchen appliances too that any young Bachelor could need. My mind was numb over how quickly my life had changed, and I grieved for Mom almost like every hour. I wished she was here to see me in such a comfort.
She deserved so much better out of this
life, and I hoped that she was at peace wherever she was now.
When the school day ended, I strolled across the academy's back yard, perspiring in the Kaduna heat. I entered my apartment, and turned the air conditioner all the way down to 16⁰C.
I didn't have to pay the electricity bill, so why not enjoy it?
My thoughts turned to Ayo. My brother was normally a happy kid, maybe he was too trusting of his friends who took advantage of him most of the time.
Since Mom died, he barely uttered a word and acted disinterested in everything. He didn't even cry over Mom. Something was terribly wrong. I didn't know how to fix him and hoped being at a new school would snap him out of his strange self.
I rode along with Director Dogonyaro and Justice Bianca when they had delivered him to the Private Boarding school.
Nice place. We weren't able to get Ayo
excited about it. When I said goodbye, he didn't even watch us go, he just shuffled away wherever the staff led him, like a dead man walking.
I later came to understand that Justice Bianca was Ebube's Stepmother, the lady who dropped him off at school every day.
How she loved the boy. I wondered why a whole Justice should be the one driving her stepson to school herself when she have dozens of drivers at her beck and call.
Of course, I had never seen her face clearly before now, so how could I know that much? Still, I was satisfied that she was keeping her promise to me and Ayo.
I couldn't help wondering though why she was going through all of this trouble just because I had made friend with Ebube.
So many unanswered questions plagued me.
There had to be another reason for Dr. Dogonyaro and Justice Bianca to treat me this way. Why was I the only active student granted the privilege of having an apartment?
Who were these older graduates
living here?
Where were they?
I hadn't seen another soul enter or leave any of the other apartments. It was as quiet and vacant like a haunted house.
In fact, I felt all alone. For the hostel in the
academy, at least I had other students to talk to and associate with. But this, it seemed like a curse and a blessing.
Being alone allowed me to cry over my
mom without appearing weak in front of the other students.
Were Dogonyaro and Bianca trying to isolate me?
If so, why?
During the rest of the week, I stuck to a triangle routine, attending classes, returning to my apartment, and calling Ayo every night.
He would talk to me, but continued to be listless, only answering my questions like a Robot, never initiating anything on his own.
I intended to bring this up with Director Dogonyaro, to see if he could find out from the staff at the other school how my little brother was progressing psychologically.
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By the end of the week I needed some company. So I asked Ebube if he would like to sleepover. He told me that he would have to consult his Stepmother first.
Friday night came and I had no place to go,
nobody to see, and nothing to do. This was bad for me, because it got me dwelling on the thoughts of my late Mom and Ayo's situation which made me depressed and bored even with the presence of satellite TV with a million programmes.
I wished I had someone to talk to.
My wish came true on Saturday evening when I heard a knock at my door.
I glanced through the peep. An older girl stood there, pretty face except it was distorted by the peephole.
A girl? Oh yes! Thank you heavens.
I opened the door.
Fear engulfed me when I saw three other people who I hadn't detected from the peep standing off to the side. Two guys and one other girl.
All of them looked to be in their mid twenties, fit and agile.
Was this an home invasion or something?
I stood back and got ready to slam shut the door if there be any slight detect of threat,
but then I relaxed after doing a double mental scan at the second girl. She looked really familiar.
One of the guy smirked and said, "hey guy,
we're your neighbors. Wanna invite us in?"
Could these be the special students who had graduated? Why had they suddenly appeared from no where?
I didn't know if I could trust them but was curious enough to take a chance.
"Sure, come in." I said.
They entered my apartment, ladies first, then the guys. The last guy in closed the door.
Trapped with my back against the living room wall, they stood there looking at me all over, sizing me up.
I was a bit tensed and shy at the same time.
The guy who spoke at the door extended his hand.
"I'm Yinka"
I took his offered hand. "I'm Runso but I prefer you call me Phood"
"Yeah, Director Dogonyaro told us." Yinka's grip on my hand was firm. From the way he towered over me, he appeared to be about six-and-a-half-feet tall and a glint of mischief in his eye.
He released my hand and nodded with his head toward the others. "Here are Ibrahim, ,Christiana and Ogechi.."
The other three didn't shake, just nodded in
greeting.
Ibrahim was shorter than Yinka, but still formidable.
He had the shape of an inverted triangle, powerful built chest, firm biceps, narrow waist, and same low cut as Yinka.
Christiana, the girl I had seen through the peep, was average height, nice athletic figure with wide shoulders, little breast, hazel eyes, and a cute nose that curled up at the end. She look like a girl that can translate 'good morning' as an insult.
Ogechi had long hair with a reddish tint at the edge which I'm sure was artificially dyed, pale almost blue eyes which was rare, large bicep for a female accompanied with large firm breasts, fair in complexion and just enough freckles to give her face a firm character. Long legs and a slender waist that fit perfectly into her form fitting jeans like a heroine.
My breath caught after realizing where I had seen her before. She was the girl whose picture was on the AU55 badge I had found. Except the name on the badge had been Khadijat, not Ogechi.
This girl had been at the AU55 conference. Why?
Did she have anything to do with what happened to that Man we saw on TV?
I guess my gaze must have settled on Ogechi a bit too long, because Yinka cleared his throat to draw my attention and said,
"Snap out of it, guy."
I could feel myself blushing.
Ogechi smiled but said nothing.
Whenever guests visited, Mom always offered refreshments. Feeling embarrassed, I said,
"I don't have anything to drink. Just recently moved in and I haven't had time to stock in my Fridge."
"Not a problem," Yinka said. "We just wanted to introduce ourselves."
He then told me where each of them lived in relation to their room numbers.
"I was wondering. where are the rest of the
tenants?" I voiced.
"There is no rest of the tenants," Yinka said. "We are it and all for now."
He stopped talking, and we all stood there.
My gaze drifted back to Ogechi. I couldn't help myself.
Then Ibrahim spoke. "Director told us that you lost your home to a fire."
"Yeah," I said.
"And Your mother, too."
That's right."
"Sorry to hear that," Ibrahim said. "What a tragic break in the family chain. Please accept our condolences."
I nodded.
Christiana spoke next. She didn't look very friendly with her arms folded across her chest.
"What we're really interested in knowing is why you're living here? Nothing like this has ever happened before. Why you? Why a kid who hasn't even graduated yet?"
Me, a kid? What an insult. Ekaiteh's clone.
I didn't know how to answer her.
But I said "Justice Bianca is
doing me a favor because I'm friends with her stepson."
Christiana narrowed her gaze. "Justice Bianca made the decision?"
How did she know Justice Bianca? I was not too surprise anyway. I said nothing.
After a moment of silence, Christiana abruptly took some strides and opened the door and led the way out. Yinka and Ibrahim followed.
They were leaving already? "Hey, wait." I called.
Ogechi hesitated and called after them, "hey guys, I'm going to stay a bit longer with Phood."
Then she looked at me and smiled. "That is, if you don't mind, Phood?"
What?! I don't mind! She could stay all night as far as I was concerned. I've starving from lack of bodily presence.
I shook my head as a gesture to say I don't mind.
Ogechi glanced at Yinka, and I sensed some sort of telepathic communication had passed between them. He nodded and walked out without a word.
That shattered my fantasy. She obviously was staying behind to play me or something. Information hunt maybe. She want to drill some Information I didn't have.
"Can I sit down?" she asked after the others left, but she didn't wait for me to respond before sitting on a chair across from my sofa. I sat on the sofa.
She regarded me by tilting her head in that
feminine way that girls do when adjusting their hair with their finger backward. Her voice sounded like she was from one of the South-Eastern states and sometimes like an Arabian.
"This is the first time, I mean the only time, that any of us have heard of an active student being offered an apartment." She said. "I'm sure you can understand how that makes us curious." She paused and then continued. "You're not the only one who's curious." She studied her fingernails for some seconds "These apartments are reserved for TheNews."
"TheNews?" I repeated the words loud and questionably.
"Dr. Dogonyaro didn't tell you about us?"
Confused, I shook my head. " Nope".
"Did Dogonyaro ever told you that you had any special skills?"
"No. Only that he told me that I'm the only person who's been able to make friend with Ebube."
She didn't say anything and got a faraway look in her eyes as if digesting my response.
I was afraid she would leave if I didn't keep up my end of the conversation. So for the room not to be left alone with my miserable self, I searched for something
to say and could only think of this lame statement:
"I earned my first diamond during my second week here."
Ogechi studied me some more and flashed me a smile.
"Consider yourself very fortunate to enjoy the privileges of living here. You must be very unique. It took each of us about four years."
She was right. I was previously told by director that the occupants were given twenty-five thousand as weekly allowance and I just received my first anonymous Bank alert and an anonymous ATM card was delivered to me this morning by a delivery service.
The urge to dig her badge from my wallet was overwhelming. I really wanted to ask her about it.
My sense radar screamed, "Danger-Danger-Danger." This wasn't
the time. I would need to get to know her better first.
Someday, I'll ask her. Not now. Still, it made
me wonder.
"You implied that TheNews have special skills." I asked.
"Did i ?"
"Yes. You just asked me if Director ever told me that I had special skills."
"Yeah yeah, I did." She affirmed.
"What's yours? I mean what's your special skill? What makes you TheNews?" I asked.
She narrowed her eyes; the same way Christiana had a few moments earlier. Then she relaxed and smiled.
"Oh, Phood, I have many skills."
Hey, I wasn't enjoying this. Was she flirting with me?
Ogechi laughed. Her laughter sounded nice and pleasant to my Masculine ears.
"I suppose you've heard the expression that if I tell you, then I'll have to kill you?" She said.
Her expression suddenly hardened. Then she added "It's like that if l reveal to you my so-called special skill set."
Her demeanor scared me a bit this time. I had to remember that if she graduated from the ROYGBIV X ACADEMY, she had been a troublesome kid at one point in time.
Was she vicious or violent like Ekaiteh or more?
Ogechi laughed that her sweet laugh again but this time it wasn't that pleasant, it sounded like a witch laugh gliding on a long broom. "I'm Just messing with you, Phood" she said.
Was she? But I had detected a real threat in her voice earlier. Who were these people? I wasn't able to dwell on that thought for long before she said,
"You're such a sweet boy, and innocent too. So I'm going to tell you about one of my skills." A pause. " I'm a polyglot."
Sounded to me like something kinky. My eyes widened. I haven't heard such a word before "What does polyglot mean?" I asked.
Eres un niño curios0," Ogechi said. "Spanish for you are a curious boy.
In French, Vous êtes un garçon curieux.
In German, Du bist ein neugieriger Junge.
In Swedish, Du är en nyfiken pojke. I'm almost fluent in nine different international languages including Arabic, Hebrew, Swahili and two more I would not want to tell you now.
My Jaw dropped open.
"I can also speak seventeen different Nigerian languages fluently and others like ten halfway." She added.
All I could think to say was, "Wow, wow wow wow. How do you keep them all straight without crashing your brains or going gaga?" I asked, feeling frightened now.
"I can't explain it. It's just a gift I was born with, a skill that allows me to go places in books and TV and do things that most Nigerians won't utterly find necessary. I learnt all those languages by myself. I inherited the trait from my grandmother. She spoke more than 40 Nigerian languages and as a business woman she also speaks 6 international languages fluently in her lifetime"
"Like what? Forty?... Are you kidding me?" I said, looking more serious.
But the serious expression returned to Ogechi's face. She looked at her Apple smart iwatch.
That reminded me of mine. I found a brand new one as well in my drawer, plus an iphone 7, two wireless earbuds, two nano SIM cards, a ROYGBIV X ACADEMY IDcard, a jack knife and a unique rechargeable powerful flashlight the day I packed into the apartment.
"I should be going." Ogechi interrupted my recall as She stood and walked to the door.
"Wait," I said. "I still don't get it. What is TheNews?...w...wh...who are TheNews and what is it that you guys do?...because it doesn't sound like Journalism to me."
" No wonder director find you smart" Ogechi said. " You're right, we aren't related to Journalism but we make TheNews."
" See, you're getting me lot more confused"
She twisted the door knob and took a step over the threshold. She glanced back at me over her shoulder. "Sure, you ought to be confused at the moment." She said with low tune." it will be best when you find out by yourself soon. TheNews , we are messengers. We deliver messages we are asked to deliver."
Messages? Why is this girl ping-ponging over my intelligence?
"What kind of messages?" I asked with more curiousity.
While walking away, she uttered, "The kind of messages that you don't ever want to go or receive willingly."
She shut the door.
Silence fell back into my room.
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