The Arrival

As we arrive at the bus, people already on board gaze out at us. The bus has three rows of benches, with four people occupying the last two rows. The first seat is vacant, as if nobody wants to sit there or prefers the back seats.

"Egole, mmadu ato?" (How much for three people?) My mom asks the bus driver.

"Seven hundred naira, mmadu ofu, two thousand one hundred naira, mmadu ato" (seven hundred naira for one person, two thousand one hundred naira for three people) he responds.

"Okay, go in." She tells me.

I pull off my bag and climb into the bus, sitting with my bag on my lap. As I settle in, I notice him getting in next, sitting so close that our shoulders touch. He doesn't seem bothered, but I am uncomfortable.

My mom gets in next, and the driver takes our luggage to the bus boot. Someone else gets in, making my heart race faster. I instantly look out the window, trying to distract myself.

The wind blows through clothes, caressing my skin. I reach for my phone in my pocket but struggle to pull it out due to our cramped seating. But wait, this doesn't feel like my lap at all. I pinch it to be sure, and I don't feel any pain. Have I developed superpowers, or am I touching his lap instead?

He raises his head, turning to face me, his twists falling on his eyes, and a neutral expression on his face.

My eyes widen, and I quickly pull my hand away. "Uhm, sorry, sorry. Didn't notice," I say, forcing a smile and bowing my head continuously, awaiting his reaction.

His lips curve into a smile,"It's fine," he says, his voice and closeness sending shivers down my spine.

I fake-smile and turn away, gazing out the window, my heart racing. I can't bear to look back in the bus, so I keep my gaze fixed outside. But then my phone starts ringing in my pocket. How can I answer it when I can't even retrieve it? I let it ring until it stops, but it starts ringing again, drawing attention to me.

The boy raises his head, turning to face me. "Aren't you going to answer that?" he asks.

My eyes widen, "Uhm, no, it's not important."

"It keeps ringing, doesn't that make it important?" He asks.

"Uh...," I feel his hand on my lap, his fingers tracing their way to my pocket and pulling out my phone. My heart reacts to his touch as I feel it dropping heavily.

"Here, pick it up," he hands me the phone.

I stare at it as it rings, "O-okay," I take it from him. It's my sister, Nicole, calling.

I lower the volume and answer the call, placing the phone close to my mouth.

"Hello," I say in a low voice.

"Are you guys close yet?"

"I don't know, call mom and ask."

"Just hand her the phone, I want to tell her something."

I glance to my side, his head is still resting on his bag. I think I'll probably hand it over.

"Okay, wait a minute," I tell her.

I press my back against the seatback, raising my arm and stretching it behind the boy, moving a little closer to hand her the phone properly. She looks at me, "It's Nicole." I say, and she takes the phone.

Just as I'm about to pull back, he raises his head, turning to me. Our faces are inches apart, and my heart races. I quickly pull my arm away and turn to face the window, my heart still racing.

My eyes dart around outside, my mind filled with thoughts. What does he think of me? Does he think I'm a pervert trying to get close to him while he's asleep, or does he think I have feelings for him? I feel something touch my neck, and I'm afraid to turn and see what it is. But I have to know, so I slowly turn my head. It's just my phone, he's handing it to me, his head still on his bag.

I take it from him, switching it on, it's already 7:20.

Should I at least say thank you? Is all my ignoring worth it? We might not meet again, or maybe we will. I still need to thank him for saving me from falling and handing me my phone. Does he even care? If he does, he would have questioned my behavior. It's just a dream, all in my head; he might have a girlfriend back home, so I think I should just thank him and apologize

"Uh..." I start to say, but the bus suddenly stops.

He raises his head, turns to my mom, and they discuss something. What could they be talking about?

The bus driver gets out, opens the door, and people start stepping out. My mom gets out, and I wonder if we've arrived, but it doesn't look like it. The boy steps out, talks to my mom again, and walks away. I didn't even get to thank him or apologize.

My mom gets back in, and a few others do too. This doesn't feel right, I should have said something.

I watch him walk away and get into a car. I wish I had thanked him when I had the chance. Way to go, Amanda.

As the bus starts moving again, I feel a pang of regret. I should have thanked him, and now he's gone. I'll probably never see him again, and that's a good thing, but the memory of his smile and his piercing eyes lingers, making me feel guilty for not being more grateful, all because of some silly dream.

I was so lost in thought that I didn't even realize when the bus had stopped.

"We're here," my mom tells me.

The bus driver stands up and comes around to open the door for us. We get out with the rest of the passengers and walk behind the bus to collect our belongings. The driver carefully hands my mom the bag, and she pays him the fare, along with the other passengers. Then, he gets back in his bus and drives away.

We're standing in a bustling area with parked buses, many people and vehicles passing by, and a few open stores along the roadside.

"Where do we go next?" I ask my mom.

"We'll take a bus going to FUTO," she responds, searching for something in her bag.

"Okay, then lead the way."

"Wait a minute, I want to check something," she says, pulling out her phone and scrolling through it before placing it to her ear.

"When we get there, how do we find your lodge?" she asks, likely speaking to one of my sisters.

"Okay, okay, bye then," she says, bringing down the phone and putting it back in her bag.

"Let's go, dear," she tells me, bending to pick up the bag and starting to walk. I follow closely behind her to where the buses are parked.

As we walk to where the buses are packed, I can't help but think about the boy, wondering if I'll ever see him again. My mom stops in front of a bus and asks the driver, who's seated in his seat,

"Bus nka, or ne je FUTO?" (Is this the bus going to FUTO?) He steps out, toothpick in mouth, and says, "Yes," pulling up his pants.

"FUTO!" he shouts, moving around.

"FUTO, FUTO!" he continues to shout.

He then turns to us "Madam, je nodu Ana" (Madam, go and sit down).

"Egole?" (How much) my mom asks.

"Two two hundred," he replies.

"Okay," my mom says. "Let's go in," she tells me.

I walk in and sit in the first row, close to the window, since there are only three rows and I want to get out easily when the bus stops.

"Oga biko bia tiye akpam na boot" (Sir, Please take our bag and put it in the boot), my mom says, her skin glowing in the sunlight.

The man takes the bag from her, and she climbs in, sitting next to me. This makes me remember when the boy was sitting next to me, come to think of it, I still don't know his name, but he knows mine, wow. People start getting in, and soon the bus is almost full.

The bus driver gets in, and I think the bus is already full. The door closes, and he starts the engine, moving slowly before getting to the main road, and we begin our journey.

It's been a while since I visited the village, and I think this place has changed a lot, the roads and buildings have really improved. The ground isn't sandy as I remembered, the ground is now tarred and suitable for vehicles. I can't wait to see what grandma's house looks like, there could also be some changes too, who knows?.

I rest my head on the window, thinking. That was probably an opportunity to have a friend, I think, but I threw it away, or rather, I misused it all because of some silly dream.

It's not like I need a friend so much, I've learned to be alone, something that was never intended of me. I was pushed away and kept in the dark countless times, so I got used to living my life alone, happy and also bored.

But sometimes I wonder if I truly do need friends, can I truly survive this world without anyone in my life? Would anyone even want to get married to me? I remember being made fun of back in high school, my classmates told me I didn't bathe well because my face was reacting to something, and what hurt the most was when the girls I considered friends laughed at his words, every single one of them.

Well, that's in the past now, even if I'm hurting deep down, I'll smile it off. We can't live with old and bad memories, like my sister would always tell me, 'We move'.

I feel the bus slowing down and finally stopping, the driver gets out to open the door. Are we there yet?

"We're here," my mom tells me.

The door slides open, and people on my row start getting out, and as expected, I don't find difficulty stepping out.

I look around, there's a big board upward with

"Federal University of Technology, Owerri" written boldly on it. This looks different from everything I expected, I don't see students, and there are no buildings visible at all. Why?

"We'll use a motorbike to get us to their lodge," my mom says, probably noticing my reaction.

I can't help but notice the absence of motorbikes, like they're no vehicles at all. But then, a young bike man, likely in his twenties, approaches us.

My mom stops him and talks to him, them she signals to me to get on. I hesitate before climbing onto the bike, because the man is really shorter than me, what if we fall?. I adjust my position to make room for my mom, careful to avoid any physical contact with the bike man.

My mom hands him our large bag to carry at the front, and she gets on, holding her own bag and the snacks bag.

As we begin moving, I can't help but marvel at the university campus. FUTO is nothing like I expected. The environment is impeccably clean, with perfectly manicured trees and bushes lining the road. The campus seems to stretch on forever, and I can't believe how wrong I was to assume it would be similar to a high school building, just larger. My sisters have never mentioned the vastness of the campus, and I am in awe.

The bike man drives us through the winding roads, passing few students and faculty buildings. I spot a river flowing alongside the road, and my wonder grows. The campus is mesmerizing, and I can't get enough of it.

After the long ride, the bike man finally comes to a stop at the entrance of an open gate. My mom pays him and takes down our bag, then he zooms off, leaving us to stand alone in a street lined with story buildings that likely serve as hostels.

A store behind us catches my attention, with soft drinks displayed at the front.

I turn to my mom, who is on a call with one of my sisters, I'll just wait.

I walk over to rest against a pole, waiting for her to end the call with my arms folded. A few students pass by, seemingly unbothered by our presence.

I can't help but think that FUTO's campus is truly vast, and I wonder how IMSU will compare.

Just then, my mom says, "Le ya, or na bia" (Look at her, she's coming).

I turn around to see my elder sister Nicole approaching us. She wears tight blue crazy jeans that accentuate her hips and a sleeveless black top, her long black braids falling against her shoulders.

Her light brown skin glows in the sunlight as she walks towards us, swinging her arms and clapping continuously. She has grown taller and more beautiful since I last saw her over a year ago.

"Ah, mummy, good morning," she says, hugging my mom.

She meets my gaze, and I can't help but exclaim, "Wow!" She smiles and walks over to me. "Mandy, you've grown o, fine girl," she says, embracing me.

"Not only me o, you've grown too, really well," I reply, a smile spreading across my face.