61

"Amanda" was the first word out of her mouth.

When I groaned in frustration, "What is it?" I had no idea. Her eyes flickered with surprise before she smirked.

"See this girl o," she said to her friends, laughing, "Na me she dey talk to like that?"

(Pidgin English translation: "Is she speaking to me like that?")

"No na it can't be you na, unless she's no well for head," Fatima replied.

(No, it can't be you, unless she's lost her mind.)

Damilola added, "Abi."

"Anyway, disregard that sef." "I'm mostly here to warn you to stop talking to Frederick," Silver growled.

"How come I should do that?" I wanted to punch myself as soon as those words left my mouth. Was I crazy to say that, sef? I muttered inwardly.

"Ah, Fatima, you're right, this girl is a craze." Silver chuckled, but not in amusement; she appeared angry.

(You were correct, Fatima; she is insane.)

I gulped as three of them took slow, menacing steps towards me, prompting me to take equal steps back in response.

"It's as if you've lost your place, Fatty." "Please allow me to refresh your memory." The instant smirk that covered all of their faces shook me to my core. I knew they were going to do something horrible to me right then and there, just like they always did in the past....

"What are you doing, get away from me," I cried pitifully.

"Damilola," Silver exclaimed.

"Yes," a beaming Damilola replied.

"Go get me some water," she said.

"With all delight" Damilola dashed out to get the water.

Damilola returned with a bucket of water before I could even attempt to flee. What I mean is, I couldn't even run because they were completely blocking my path. There was almost no way out.

Silver issued another command, "Hold her." And, as they had done before, her two friends obeyed her like mindless idiots.

"Stop this right now! What are you girls up to?" As they firmly held me in place, I pathetically struggled, tears filling my eyes.

"This is for you thinking you can become all buddy-buddy with Frederick," she said, and then dumped the entire bucket content on me. Damilola and Fatima let me go, and I could still hear them snickering until it faded away into the distance.

I turned around to face myself in the mirror. The girl who stared back at me looked like shit, my eyes were puffy, and my uniform had seen better days. Overall, I looked terrible.

"Pathetic," I muttered as tears streamed down my cheeks.

"You really are pathetic, Amanda," I said to myself.

I rushed out of the restroom, not caring that students in the hallway stared at my sorry state, because I didn't want to stay in school any longer. It's not like this is the first time they've seen me in this state....

I dashed through the library door, rushing to retrieve my bag. I arrived at my destination quickly and carried my bag. I ignored Frederick's wide-eyed stare. So he did exactly what he said he would do: he waited.

I bolted from the library as if I were on fire. However, I was stopped by someone's grip on my hand.

"What happened, Amanda?" As I tried to leave, Frederick grabbed my hand and pulled me back. I tried to break free from his grip, but it was incredibly strong.

"Give me a break, Frederick; I'm not in the mood." I muttered, afraid to speak louder than a whisper for fear of bursting into tears once more.

"I don't care whether you're in a good mood or not, Amanda. Tell me, who did this to you?" I turned to face him, about to tell him to piss off, but his expression stopped me. He was clearly irritated. But, why? It wasn't like he was the one who had water thrown on him.

"Nobody," I muttered.

"Don't tell me lies Amanda. Do you think I'm stupid? "Who did this to you?" I asked.

"Does it really make a difference?" And why should you care, it's none of your concern!" In frustration, I yelled.

"Of course it matters!" When he said this, he widened his eyes, as if I were insane to ask him such a question.

"And I care because it affects you, Amanda," he said softly. At his words, my features softened slightly.

"You shouldn't," I advised.

"What should I not do?" His face was filled with perplexity.

"Care about me," I said, with a sad chuckle in my voice.

"Everyone deserves to be cared for, Amanda, Everyone," he said, his eyes filled with pain. I averted my gaze from him because his stare was far too intense.

"Now please just tell me who did this to you," his tone betrayed his desperation to hear my response.

"It was Silver and her friends, happy?" I sighed, returning my gaze to him. He didn't seem surprised by my response. I continued after a short break.

"It's nothing special; it's just a normal occurrence. Welcome to my world "I said with a sad smile, leaving him standing alone in the hallway, as I usually do.

.......................................................

"Are you sure that's what my mother said, Mr Ola?" I inquired.

After that uneventful event at school, I went home right away, thanks to my principal's flexibility in allowing me to leave so early. Despite the fact that they did contact my parents about my actions. As if they were bothered to care.

It was now evening, and I was being driven to a restaurant to meet my soon-to-be fiancé. Apparently, both of our parents thought it would be appropriate for our first meeting to take place in a restaurant where we would have dinner.

"Yes, Ma, she said you're going to the restaurant alone and that she and your father won't be able to accompany you."

"OK, thank you," I mumbled.

Mr Ola called my attention after five minutes.

"We've arrived, ma'am," he said as we packed outside an elegant-looking restaurant. The structure practically screamed 'money!' I wasn't bothered because, after all, my parents were filthy rich and could afford it.

"Thank you, Mr Ola," I said as I exited the car.

When I walked into the restaurant, I was asked for my reservation. I simply said my name, or rather my surname, and was immediately escorted to a more reserved area of the restaurant. When I walked in, the first thing I saw was a table and two chairs opposite each other. A man was already seated in one of the chairs, but I couldn't see his face because his back was turned to me. But his hair looked strangely familiar for some reason.

I didn't look at his face until I was in my seat, and boy was that a mistake on my part.

With widened eyes, I choked out.

"Frederick?"

"FREDERICK?" I was perplexed by the male sitting across from me.

"Hi," he said, a nervous smile on his face. I must say, he did a good job of cleaning up. He wore a black tailored suit that appeared to be Armani, and his hair was neatly styled. Overall, he appeared to be quite edible. But forget about that; right now, I was beyond irritated.

"Hi? Hi?!!" I exploded. Was this guy being serious? He could only mumble 'hi' out of everything he could say.

"Amanda Please accept my apologies and allow me to explain "He spoke nervously. Oh, I was going to murder this kid.

"What is it, ehn? What do you mean, na? That you duped me? That you embarrassed me?" I said this while staring at him with all my might.

"It wasn't my intention," he muttered, probably too embarrassed to look me in the eyes.

"Oh my God, I'm so stupid," I mumbled to myself. "Today, when I was telling you about how my parents engaged me to a total stranger, you pretended like you didn't know a thing about it, when apparently," I gestured all around us, "you knew all too well about it."

He raised his head once more. "Amanda I'm...."

"What, you're sorry?" "Yeah, you've said that already," I cut him off, rolling my eyes with anger written all over me.

"And sorry, but that won't do."

"I know I made a huge mistake, but please would you at least listen to what I have to say," he begged, his eyes pleading. I exhaled a sigh. As someone who was never given the opportunity to be heard, I knew I had to give him a chance to explain himself before jumping to any conclusions.

With another sigh, I said, "Fine," though a frown remained on my face.

"Thank you," he said with a relieved smile.

"Now I'll explain myself," he began.

"I just found out about it recently, a few days before you did," I interjected.

"And you didn't bother to, I don't know, tell me," I said sarcastically.

"I know that was a mistake on my part, but I just didn't know how to break the news to you," he says, and I believe him.