ROSA, MY LOVE
CHAPTER 1
One Saturday afternoon, I was going to the supermarket to get some beverages. The sun was overhead, so, I was wearing a face cap to shield my eyes from the sun. I lived in the hospital compound where my dad had worked for many years. He no longer worked there. He had been retired a long time ago. Actually, as I speak now, he is in heaven. I can bet my last kobo on that. He was selfless and generous and like Job in the bible, was always careful not to do anything bad. That is a story for another day, by the way.
Today, after haven locked the door of my single room in the “Face me I face you” compound where I lived, I proceeded to go to the main road so that I could get a bike that will take me to Ngassa Supermarket. As I stood by the road, waiting for the bike, I wondered what was happening that afternoon. No bike was coming or going. What has happened to all the bikes in this town? I thought to myself.
Directly opposite to where I was standing, there was a small shed. It was owned by one elderly woman who sold makara and beans. She also lived in my neighbourhood but I wasn’t close to her. As I stood there, I observed that she was talking to a girl. I wasn’t interested in what they were saying. It wasn’t my business, but I was interested in the way the girl looked. She was short, brown and pear shaped. What actually caught my attention was the size of her behind. For a man who patronized big bottoms, I was really fascinated. Just as I was taking stock of her natural endowments, an okada happened to pass by. I however didn’t take it because I was still admiring the girl.
She collected some money from the elderly woman and wrote something on a ledger she was carrying and left. As soon as she was gone, I walked up to the elderly woman and made some inquiries.
“Good afternoon, Mam.”
“Good afternoon, my son. How are you?”
“I am good, Mam. Please, I wish to enquire about the lady who just left. Does she do daily savings?”
“Yes, she does. You want to start saving?”
“Yes, Mam. I want.”
“Then that is good. I will connect you to her if you are willing.” She proposed.
“Yes, Mam. I am willing.”
“Ok, my son. That thing is good. That is how I manage to pay my rents.”
The elderly woman lived alone in a single room. She had neither children nor a husband. She had been living in that compound for many years, even before I moved in, but I had never seen anyone visit her. Sometimes I wondered where she came from. In my superstitious mind, I had once concluded that she was a ghost. I had heard stories of people dying in other countries or cities and after they had been buried, they resurrect and move to other areas and live normal lives again.
“Tomorrow, when she comes, I will tell her that you want to start saving too.” She spoke.
“But Mam, tomorrow is Sunday. Why don’t you just give me her number, I can call her myself and tell her.”
“That’s a good idea.” She agreed.
She pulled out her old choronko from her worn out handbag and searched for her number. After haven given me the number, I got a bike and headed for the supermarket. When I got back home, I dialed the number. She picked as soon as I dialed.
“Hello”
“Hello”
“Good afternoon.”
“Good afternoon. Please, who am I talking to?” She asked in her soft voice.
“It’s a potential customer. I want to start saving in your bank. Your number was given to me by one of your customers.” I explained.
“Hello, HELLO!!”
The line seemed to be breaking because of network issues. I cursed under my breath, walked out of my room and went behind the house where I had noticed had a good network coverage. However, as soon as I got behind the building, I stopped in my tracks. There was a chubby girl there, having her bath in the open, n***d like the day she was born. Angrily, I retraced my steps and came back to the front of the house.
“Can you get me now? Hello!!” I continued the call.
“Yes, I can get you. What were you saying?” She asked.
“I said I want to start saving in your bank.”
“Oh! That would be great. Where do you live?”
“I live in the hospital compound. But you can only meet me at home on weekends. I am almost always at work.” I explained.
“Where do you work?” She asked.
“At the insurance company. The big building opposite the filling station. When you come there, say you are looking for Mr. Obi. They will show you to my office.”
“Alright, I will come there on Monday.”
“Alright, have a nice weekend. Bye.”
“You, too.”
I ended the call and at the same moment, the chubby neighbour who had been bathing n***d behind the house passed by me, walking to her room, swinging her fat behind seductively. I confronted her immediately.
“Why do you guys like bathing behind the building when you know that there are males in the compound, and anyone could walk in on you at any time?” I asked, vexed.
“I beg leave me.” She replied nonchalantly. “As you see like that you don take am? Eye no dey shoot beef. You see na see you no snap am.”
“You still haven’t answered my question?” I persisted.
“Abegi, are you the landlord? That bathroom is too tight. I hate bathing inside. What do you want me to do?” She asked.
I had no answers for her. Instead, I went angrily into my room and turned on the music. That was the case with those kinds of neighbourhoods. You see all sorts of persons. You don’t have privacy and people don’t care about privacy. Since all the apartments are single rooms, and are close together, whatever happens in everyone’s home is sure to be known by everyone. Since there is a general toilet and bathroom, whenever you feel pressed, everyone knows you are going to use the toilet. You can’t even sneak.
The worst one was at night. It was like all the couples had made a roster and had decided the intervals in which to have s*x. By 11:00 PM, the first couples will start. You will know exactly when they start because of the m*****g of both the man and the woman. Some women even do commentary, “Ohh! Oh! Aaa! Aaahh! Baby you are doing it, you are doing it. Harder, harder, yes, yeeessss!!’, and everyone in the compound will be hearing. As soon as they finish, another couple will start, ‘Baby open your legs well na.’ the man will say. ‘I have already opened it na. Do you want me to become Van dam?’ The woman will reply. And most of them have children, living in the single room with them. As much as I longed to leave that neighbourhood and move to a classy apartment, I sure will miss all the drama.
It was Sunday now and I couldn’t wait for Monday when I will be able to see the daily savings girl and her broad behind. I had no intentions of doing daily savings. I was saving my money in a reputable bank in town. I was just looking for a means to get close to the lady because I couldn’t resist what I saw. I wanted to see how that behind really looked like when there was no skirt or panties covering it.
On Monday, I went to work anticipating her coming. However, I was disappointed when it was 3:00 PM and she still hadn’t come. I decided to call her line. She picked and told me that she had had a busy day. She said since it was Monday, and the start of a new week, she had too many customers to attend to. That is why she hadn’t come. However, she promised that no matter how late it was she was still going to come.
“But I would have closed from work by that time.” I reminded her.
“What is the big deal?” She asked. “I can come to your house. It’s part of my job.”
“Good one.” I said in my mind. Then aloud, I said, “But you don’t even know where I live.”
“Give me the directions.”
“You know that mama who sells makara and djaram beside the hospital road?”
“What is ‘djaram’?” She asked.
“Beans”
“Oh! Yes, I do.”
“Good. When you come there, just look for her and she will show you to my door.”
I was home now and it was around 4:30 PM. However, the sun was still overhead, burning hot. I heard a knock on my door and I went to check. It was her. I excitedly asked her to come in. She did and since I had no seat in my single room, she sat on the bed. She was wearing a short, white mini skirt and a green top. The mini skirt made her behind, which so far was my favourite part of her body, well pronounced. I offered her ice cream from my small fridge and as she ate, it suddenly started raining heavily.
TO BE CONTINUED…
© Stories of my life
