Chapter 27

Magic Land Night Club

"Magic Land Night Club is the most happening place in Iddo here,’’ Martin piped out in his accustomed high-pitched, belli-like voice, looking so excited and radiant. They have got nearer to the club’s gate now. The tinkling sound they have been hearing from the bushy path has became sonorous now. The rhythm of the Fela Kuti’s song, "Shakara’’ was so deep that it was pushing against every ground, tearing the night silence apart. The boys were feeling the strong rhythm inside their stomachs and hearts.

"You’re welcome to the Magic Land guys!’’ Taj was addressing Adrian and Richard but they were far away in thoughts. Though they heard him but surprised or rather shock has filled up their heart to their throats, not letting words out.

As they headed towards a very wide compound, fenced with low walls, they could see some few tent-like buildings with thatched roofs in them. Standing outside, one could see an Olympic sized swimming pool, full of glamorous ladies and gentlemen, almost half-clad. Flowers were planted around the fence. Hanging on the entrance wall was a human size wooden frame of a realistic water colour painting of a half-clad lady, wearing only a black G-string and a man in only floral shorts and singlet. They were both holding bottles of wine and glass cups and have wild, seductive smiles on their faces.

There were plastic chairs and tables almost in every nook and crannies of the compound in their twos and fours. Some of these seats were occupied by men and women who laughed uncontrollably; talked endlessly and carelessly as they were gulping down wines or beers from the pile of bottles and glass cups on their tables.

"Are we going inside this place?’’ Adrian just found his lost words, his body shaking for too much amazement. The place looked like a dream to him. He couldn’t belief they would enter such tensed and lively place. Perhaps, most people in the night club were men and women far older than them. He couldn’t imagine Martin as young as he was has ever entered the compound. Martin ushered them to follow him through the wide-opened iron-gate. He threw a wads of naira note at a gate man who hailed him, "Black scorpion!’’ to Adrian and Richard’s mind-blowing gasps.

"Yes, I’m somehow popular here, so don’t be at lost,’’ Martin said proudly, trying to make Adrian and Richard close their gasping mouths. "This is the place we usually come to make merry whenever we felt our brains was getting dull. All work and no play, they say, makes jack a dull boy.’’ Martin added the adage slowly as if Adrian and Taj haven’t heard it many times before.

"We wouldn’t want to be dull jacks that is why we gave ourselves some senses and discovered a way out of that prison called college,’’ Taj said with a cackle, displaying his dimples.

Adrian and Richard nodded sheepishly. They didn’t know what else to say. They felt so confused about the whole scenario.

As they entered the compound, Martin ushered the boys towards a set of seats with four chairs and two dining-sized tables. Adrian as well as Richard was still day-dreaming. He couldn’t belief or imagine himself sitting in this kind of place, not for ten years to come.

Any semi-naked lady who cat-walked pass, Adrian and Richard would turn off their faces sharply away from them. Sooner, there came many of such ladies to the extent that it became tiring for the greenhorns to look away. The half-clad ladies seemed to be everywhere they turned their faces to. It as like when they were running away from houseflies in a dunghill. The courtesy of not looking at another man’s or opposite’s sex nakedness which they’ve been thought by their religious studies teachers didn’t apply to that place at all.

"What will you drink guys? Martin said to Adrian and Richard. Before the boys could wake up from their day-dreams and say anything, he had turned away from them. He called unto a young lady who was wearing a white long sleeve shirt, tight plain black skirt that was high above her knees and black hilly shoe. Her well-ironed dresses were tucked in. She looked corporate and was balancing a large plastic tray on her raised left palm. She was very fair in complexion, but as the club lights peered unto her skin she looked white and bright, but his knees were dark like the back of a burnt pot. "Waitress…Wait…!’’

"Wait…’’ Taj was about joining Martin in calling unto the waitress when she turned towards their direction, walking businesslike, like a doctor who wanted to attend to an emergency patient.

Adrian was still day-dreaming. He felt as if his real self was in school, reading or sleeping while his spirit was in the Magic-Land Night Club. He felt like standing up and scuttled towards the school and occupied his real self which he had abandoned in the school. But he did not know what was pinning him down, hindering him from doing so.

Unlike Adrian, Richard has started feeling at home. He had woken up from his own day-dream. Adrian has been trying to get his attention to see may be he was awestruck as he was. But, the boy was following Fela’s "afro-beats" music which rang and boomed out of the big speakers that hung on the walls of the night club. He was shaking his head and legs to the rhythm of the song and did not even know may be Adrian was looking forward to getting his attention through facial signs. The beautiful waiter walked to their table now.

"You’re welcome to Magic Land, sirs,’’ she said amid seductive smiles, deliberately exposing her cleavage as she bent slightly. "I’m here at your service. Please, what can I offer you?’’

A cold surge ran through Adrian’s spine, feeling like cold or iced water was poured on his head down. He opened his mouth longer enough for a housefly to fly in if it was a day time. He was amazed that a lady, old enough to be their teacher or aunt was referring to them as "sirs,’’ and also exposing her chests for them to have a sight.

"Thank you, my pretty lady,’’ Martin said, having the air of a grownup, a big man. "Eh…you can offer us eight bottles of larger beers and four plates of pepper-soup.’’

"Alright, sir,’’ said the lady respectfully and she cat-walked away from them, looking gay.

"Please make sure they are very chilled. The ones we drank the last time we came weren’t chilled enough. Just as if they were kept away from the refrigerator for whole month. You can’t be selling a drink of one hundred naira for three hundred and still couldn’t buy a decent generator…’’ Martin’s voice wasn’t audible to the lady anymore. His voice was drowned by the bashing afro-beats of Fela.

"Let’s agree we lack stable electricity power supply in this part of the world, but they ought to possess decent generators that would be working two-four-seven to power their refrigerators,’’ Taj added out the hearing of the waiter, nodding his head to the sound from the speakers.

"Yes, even for their business growth’s sake,’’ Martin added.