Astonishing

Ogar watched uncle Travis walk out of the house. He heaved a sigh wondering what descision his uncle will make.

"Will he be reconciled with aunt Sheila anytime soon? Ogar wondered as he wiped water from his hands.

He had not expressed any feeling of loneliness but after returning from aunt Sheila's home, he suddenly remembered he had a crotchet sweater which had been collecting dust in his box.

As much as they had been planning their wedding, he had noticed that his uncle had invested his attention on other things. Ogar suspected it was all in the bid to forget about aunt Sheila. From his observation so far, keeping himself busy had been of no use. He knew because he felt the same way about Minka.

He wondered how Minka felt when she didn't see him. His heart sank as he longed to hold hands with her. He craved to inhale the fragrance of her body deodorant. She might be wearing a new hairdo. Of course, it was imperative because she is the daughter of aunt Sheila, known for her good looks and gorgeous outfits.

He wondered what she might be doing at the moment. Was she thinking of him as well? Was he the only one thinking of her. Did she miss him at all? Did she ask after him from his uncle?

Maybe she didn't because she did not want to seem too forward.

She may not also be comfortable with uncle Travis knowing about them.Ogar looked at the time. It said past ten on the morning. Oh no! Time is flying. He needed to put things together before the evening.

The world cup would be commencing. Football is one game that Ogar adored much like his uncle who preferred to watch it, at a bar among his peers.

Ogar was hoping his uncle will let him go with him this time. He usually said that he was too young. He had not come of age to drink alcoholic beverages but Ogar thought otherwise. Many colleagues of his had been introduced to alcohol at the start of their teen-age. In fact, there were a few of them who seldom brought alcohol to school. They knew they were taking a huge risk and minimised the number of times they did so in order not to be caught and expelled.

Ogar recalls how he was taunted, the moment they asked him to have a taste and he declined. They scoffed and laughed and called him a woman, some others called him a baby boy who was not sensitive to his environment. At that point he felt bad and nearly gave into it. He remembered his uncle's voice in his head.

He heard his uncle's voice persistently warn against drinking, over and over again. The same way he kicked against the abuse of drugs.

There were seminars in school to discourage those things. There are several colleagues of his who didn't heed the warning.

When he looks back at those times, he is grateful because most of those children got carried away by youthful exuberance.

He could recall that their seats were empty on the day they graduated. None of them had made it to the senior secondary school certificate examinations class.

None of them wrote their secondary school leaving certificate examinations. A crucial step in gaining admission into the university, had been missed.

He recalled seeing one of them a few days back calling on him. He turned back and he could barely recognise him.

"It's me. Ekok in your class"

"Ekok?" Ogar dropped his mouth open on astonishment. The lad had long dreadlocks covering his head that had always been well shaven.

He had a stick of cigarettes on his hands.

"Ekok Bassey?" Ogar asked to be sure before reacting further.

The lad nodded,

The stench had been too much for Ogar to bear but he had to bear it.

"How far na?"

He inquired, repeatedly scratching his head and his body. His clothes were soiled and torn in some places.

"I dey okay" Ogar responded in pidgin.

"See as you dey shine Ogar. You know say you dey shine?" (See how you are shinning. Are you aware that you are shinning?)

Ogar shook his head. He was confused on what to say. Shock washed over him. He never thought he will see his classmate like this. He never wished this on anyone despite the fact that they taunted him and teased him often for not hanging out with them.

"I know say you write WAEC. You write am abi?" ( I know you write WAEC . Did you write it?). Ogar felt a lump in his throat as he nodded. He wished he didn't have tell him that but he asked and what could he do?

The young man grinned exposing yellowish-brown teeth. He clapped him hands loudly as he looked left and right at those who intentionally did their best to avoid him. He didn't seem to be a bit bothered about what they had been doing. The environment was not a concern of his. So were those who were around. He heaved a sigh and parted his lips wider to expand his smile.

"Na your own good pass na. At least you get future. You know wetin you dey do. See my life na, Ogar see my life na. You don see am?" (Your situation via good. You have a future. You know what you are doing. Can you see my situation?)

Ogar didn't respond. He felt shattered and could not bear to look at his colleague anymore. He used to be the best in mathematics during their junior secondary school days. His father was an executive in the cocoa farmers association. He had several houses all over Ikom, Calabar, Lagos and Abuja. His cocoa farms were the biggest and had the most up-to-date machinery for farming.

He wondered how his father will feel about him now. The other counterpart of his was shot at by the police after being suspected to be a part of the robbers that raided the bank, in the wee hours of that morning. He had been one of the oldest in their class. He was about twenty when he died. He had recently began hanging around those boys who were new in town.

It was said that he had been a member of a cult. They had recently clashed with a rival gang. Each time Ogar remembered these things, it sent chills down his spine.He walked out of the kitchen and shut the door behind him. He was grateful for the life he had in him. He was thankful for the opportunities that awaited him. Everything took time, he had to be patient. He needed to learn and grow, even in love.