The Nightmare

In the aftermath of the traumatic events that I endured, I finds solace in the newfound sanctuary of my father's new apartment, a haven away from the torment of my own home. Cut off from my family and ostracized by my community, my resilience and determination to overcome adversity becomes the driving force behind my journey.

As I navigates the challenges of isolation and rejection, I discovers unexpected allies in the most unlikely of places. From the compassionate gesture of a stranger to the protective intervention of a kind-hearted police officer, I begins to realize that kindness and empathy still exist in the world, despite the cruelty I has faced.

Haunted by the whispers and accusations that continue to plague me, I grapples with my own self-worth and the weight of shame that threatens to consume me. In the darkness of the night, I contemplates my place in the world and the daunting prospect of rebuilding shattered sense of identity.

Empowered by the support of those who see beyond the surface and recognize my resilience, I found the courage to confront my inner demons and confront the shadows of my past. With each step towards healing and self-acceptance, I uncovers the strength within myself to rise above the labels and prejudices that seek to define her.

As my journey unfolds, I must navigate the intersecting forces of fear, judgment, and redemption that shape my path towards healing and forgiveness. In the face of overwhelming adversity, I discovers the transformative power of resilience, compassion, and self-discovery.

Through the unwavering determination to reclaim my dignity and voice, I emerges as a symbol of hope and resilience in the face of profound challenges. My journey is a testament to the enduring power of the human spirit to transcend adversity and find redemption in the depths of despair.

My name is Salama. I'm from the city you want to visit; I'm 16 years old. I want to become a Doctor, and as a science student, I am the best student in my class. I am in my SS3, my final year in secondary school. We are about to write the final year West Africa Examination Council (WAEC), and I am fully prepared for the upcoming exams, but I'm depressed right now at the state of committing suicide.

My mom intensely detests me as a selfish, portentous figure. I'm the puzzle in her war, and nothing of me impresses her, nor was there anything I would do to make her happy.

It's a bright full moon lighting through the balcony, which seems quite close at grab, a sleepless night full of thoughts of depression and anxiety. The dead night whispered a sweet air into my heart, asking me to jump out of the window to the widespread stone lying down behind my House. There is this room on the second floor in the Diamond Estate, near Jubilee Lake. A fan on the ceiling and I'm in my dead rope thinking of hanging myself on the fan above with a noose

I sat on the African native Ottoman, I moved to the floor restless, and my heart beat faster. I started painting on the board on the wall opposite my bed to distract myself from thinking. I put the LED light on and drew the window curtains wide open. I was on the pending board in the middle of the night, and I heard my phone ringing right at the bedside. I got gripped in fear but stepped forth towards the bed to see who was calling. By that time of the night, it was my Dad ..."Hello, Salamualaikum." In a disturbing voice, kinda like spasmodic dysphonia, I was all pressed, and I couldn't pretend while speaking to him.

Dad: "Waalaikum salam, how are you?"

I replied in the melancholy voice, "Fine, sir."

Dad: "You are not fine dear. What's happening?"

I started crying, and I couldn't explain "Sorry, dear. I understand please stop crying. I called to inform you that I will be returning home tomorrow, but I sent some drivers with some cars I bought. I've been trying to reach you guys, and the network wasn't good until now. I got some gifts for you, and when I return home tomorrow, you can explain them to me. I'm really sorry on behalf of their silly ways. I promise you something great you will live forever to appreciate. And I Hope you are better now?" He Pityingly.

I was relieved a bit and stopped crying... "I will be fine sir." In Compassion

Dad: "Promise me you will."

I reluctantly "Yes sir, I promise."

Dad: "That's a good girl. Just know that I love you... I will forward you the driver's numbers to direct them."

I responded, "Okay, sir, thank you."

Dad: "You're welcome dear. Bye..."

I ended the call with a deep sigh.

As I got here inside the new apartment, trying to check out the rooms to pick the one I would spend the rest of my night in, I saw some weird things I wasn't comfortable with, which got me scared and more depressed.

Some rooms here need maintenance; they look unkept in the dirt. I saw bloodstains on the walls, and it was horrifically cold.

In grace to my anxiety, 'I think there is something privy wrong about here. I don't know if Dad knew about this, but he should have checked everywhere before buying this House.' The thought in my head kept on.

This other room on the first floor looks like heaven. 'I guess here is the best place for me to lay my head tonight.' I murmur

I never comfortably slept at night or watched movies before bed, and I guess I'm about to start.

I lay down and turned the AC on, switched off the light and the fan blowing high, dropped off to sleep and lay down comfortably covered inside a soft duvet with sweet fragrance, turning for a last look at my phone and reminiscing my encounters with the Policemen, my family troubles and that shakes me to sleep slowly took me in a chill woo and took me down to a nightmare hue.

On the list in the world, I met myself as the time moved faster, and it was exactly 20 minutes to 3:00AM, prompting my eyes to get wide into sleep. I heard some high-notes mumbling voices, A squeaky noise. I saw some shadows moving towards me, and it was Kinky Board at my front with a wild-large human score; I found myself on top of a large Desert with gigantic Scorpios and rattlesnakes all coming after me.

I began running, but I remained exactly in a spot, stagnant but illusively running; at the same point, I was running with no budges and kinda like I was tied down. Trying to depend on myself, but it left me; they approached closer to me, and a woman appeared on Black shores bathed in blood, and her followers appeared next to her, surrounded by me with awful gazes; they approached closer, coming after me in their horrific eyes.

I was scared and couldn't save myself, I turned around and saw a wooden House and I puffed....! I was able to turn at the house and ran towards it. The door was opened, and I got inside in sweaty haste; they almost caught me in the act, and I desperately shut the door.

The woman in blood appeared inside the House, and I rushed into the next room and found a passage down the tunnel leading to an underground compartment. There, I hopped into a hole of rattlesnakes, and I drowsily struggled to trail off into a safe. The women in blood were about to take hold of me,y me so I anxiously screamed louder in squeak. I woke up in power, fear in, a shock at exactly 8:00AM in the morning.

It was the sunny flashes through the window that got me; the room was cold, like an ice world,d looking so fresh and pretty. I was hungry, tired, frustrated, traumatized and scared.

A thought popped into my head. "You didn't pray before you slept last night; what about living here and living with my family? How about going out somewhere and never returning? How about the suicide, but what would my father feel, what about my promises when I commit the suicide? I'm in danger but I must find ease."

My treasures of joy and peace are extorted; these thoughts kept going in the womb of my mind till I heard a bang on the gate at about 9:00AM, and then I remembered I hadn't prayed.

I ignored the gate banging and I went straight to the restroom and took a shower. I returned to the prayer mat with the power spirit in me and posted in prayer and the gate kept on the banging.

"Who's banging the gate so hard like that? And what if it's my dad, but dad has his keys." Thought couldn't stop in my head in the prayer as the bang, bang, bang continued until they were doing it wrong, and I was done with the prayers, so I hastily rushed out towards the gate, and I found Policemen in black outside as I glimpse through a hole. I opened the gate, and there was Suleiman, his colleagues and some people in the neighbourhood.

"Good morning sir." I patiently greeted him.

Mr Suleiman cheerfully replied "Good morning, how are you? .....We received some calls from the neighbours that they heard a yelling voice from the compound at midnight and the same this morning, and we are here to make sure everything is fine.

We've been here knocking at the gate for quite some time, but no response,e and we're about to scale through the fence to check if everything is fine with you, and there you open."

"Sorry for keeping y'all out here until now; I woke up late and I was observing my prayers before coming out.' In blissful expression... "Yeah, I reluctantly shouted in the middle of the night and this morning because of the awful nightmare I had, which pow me up with an unintentional yell. But my apologies to y'all for the inconvenience; please forgive me." I humbly.

Suleiman further, "As well, your Dad rang me twice and asked me to check for you because he has been trying to reach you through your phone, and there was no response. Hope you saw the calls?"

With a happy sigh, "Yes sir, the network was bad last night, but we were able to speak on the phone later on." I responded

"Okay, that's good. These two of my men will be here to look after you till your Dad return. Make sure you reach out to your Dad as often as possible, because he was worried about you when he called." Suleiman said.

The neighbors started returning to their places, but a young man aged 19 or 20 stood by as Suleiman drove off. The two Policemen were standing next to me, and at a full length, we were about to return back inside in, and I lifted my head in a glance into the young man's face, and in my final efforts, I was falling faster into the house..... Instantly "Sorry, excuse me please sister, what's your name please?"

I paused and puzzlingly "why?" In awe, we all gave him a gaze.

He was silent for some seconds, and the next thing, "Sorry, but you are honestly beautiful, and I can't help myself, that's why."

"Okay thank you." I contemptuously responded, and I offered myself inside the compound, and the Policemen followed. The young man remained in his good standing as we crawled in, leaving the gate behind us unshut; I returned to shut the gate, and he was still there with a gaze, and I shut the gate.

There was a security guard room by the gateway inside the compound, and I asked one of the Policemen to stay in there and the other to come along with me inside. I offered him a room downstairs, and I went straight upstairs to my room. I glided through the window, and I was able to see outside the gate in my curiosity, and I saw the young man walking south into a nearby House, some feet away from my place.

No one ever stared at me like that and that got my heart pledging for him.

'Who's that young man? Where is he from? Is that their house? Why was he so brave to say that in front of the Policemen? What does he do for a living? Was my response to him okay or was I rude or arrogant? Maybe I wasn't right in the way I responded to him. But Whatever! .....I owe him nothing. Who asked him to say such a thing to me? He should go to hell if he feels bad about how I responded, I don't care. But wait... Am I that beautiful?'

This is crazy. I shook my head. I was talking to myself, questioning and answering all by myself like a folly for just a compliment. I grinningly laughed at my folly.

I thought of a mirror, and I went straight to the restroom, trying to figure out how beautiful I looked, forgetting the mirror in the main room. What a mad hatter right?

I got to the restroom, and it was a short mirror on the wall, and I craved a full mirror to see myself in full.

Oh! Yeah! I look good in my light chocolate skin, with dimples, full hairy straight eyebrows, I got full and long hair, I have natural pink lips but my upper vermilion is a bit chocolate mixed with pink, while my lower labium superius oris is pink, I got chubby full body, normal ladies height, fresh, clean and silky smooth skin. I'm outspoken but shy, outstanding in terms of patience, I'm bold with the nature, I speak and understand good English, and I am an introvert. But I'm on point.

I my poor darling self was trying to understand what beauty means and I was trying to figure out why the young man said such.

I returned to the main room and there was the full mirror and at this time I was looking at myself in full shape, turned around to check myself out. Smirked

Foolishly laughing at myself letting the peace hold inside me in a sweet breath and I laughed in the mirror, walked towards the mirror, dance in the mirror, talking to myself ridiculously, and this was the moment I realized myself and how fun could be living alone enjoying my company and I strivingly letting go my worries.

Before this time I was inferior with low self-esteem, and I don't know what I was like, who I am, how I looked in the eyes of others as much, because my mom and siblings always reminds me how ugly I look, how disgusting I could be, how evil and how useless. They taunt me with the wrong words and life got messy for me.

I was hopless and seemed useless, I don't believe in myself, but the young man made me feel something special about myself with the kindest words and gesture. And at that time of hurdles it was the right words I wanted to keep going. I was able to figured out who I am and I shaved up to my Queenship crown.

Checked time and it was already 12:00PM and I haven't taken my breakfast, I forgot to call my Dad and the drivers, I forgot about the Policemen outside and to offer them something to eat. I was kitch by the young man thoughts and I was drawing all sort of useless arts out of my head. I starved myself and the security men.

I hastily rushed downstairs in my cool temperament to tender my apologies to the Policemen and I met them chatting about football clubs and players 'Messi and Ronaldo, Barcelona and Madrid bla bla bla.' Which I couldn't comprehend.

"Hello, good afternoon officers, please what do you prefer for lunch?" I asked with dignity.

"Good afternoon sister, please anything. You can prepare anything." They replied intently....

"Sorry for keeping you without offering something to eat. I was busy inside that was why." In mended manner.

"Oh, no problems." They grinningly responded

Before I started doing anything in the kitchen I remembered I haven't called my dad so I quickly went up stairs to get the phone and I called him twice, but no response.