FAR AWAY FROM HOME (PAUSED)

𝙾𝙽𝙴.

Picture of 'Mimi' above (you can still imagine her how you want to though).

*********
Fourteen years later.
Murtala, Muhammad international Airport.
Lagos.

          Ayomide (Mimi) Lade

They say taking big steps or making a life-changing decision is never easy.

Well, I have no idea who 'they 'are because that certainly didn't apply to me. Trust me, when you have been waiting three years for something, deciding to grasp it isn't hard, at all.

Maybe moving to another country, not to mention another continent, is something entirely new and daunting for someone to do. Okay, maybe I am the someone. But I am ready to embark on the journey no matter the obstacles.

This is the reason why I had decided to come to the airport early and I'm tightly grasping my ticket just in case it decides to bolt at the last minute. Yes, the ticket— not me.

My earlier arrival also serves other purposes. Firstly, I do not want anything to stop me from boarding my flight, like a flat tire or a sudden runaway pilot.

Secondly, my family can get quite emotional. If my calculations are right, which they usually are, thirty minutes should be more than enough time for the goodbye and whatnot, especially if they have been saying goodbye throughout the drive to the airport.

And that is why now, as I stand in my mum's tight embrace, my emotional detachment serves me well. I can tell she's trying not to shed a tear which is a huge feat for her, considering she cries whenever anything important is happening in any of her children's lives.

"Be good, Ayomide. Honestly, I'll miss you, do call frequently. If you don't" —She sniffs—"I will."

I could laugh. But no. I refuse to. I have to keep a straight face to make this faster. I am going to miss my family —no doubt about that. But we could, and will still talk on phone. "Yes ma, I'll try."

When she releases me, I smooth down my sleeveless A-line purple dress which keeps creasing and rumpling up with every movement I make.

Deciding to pair it with leggings was one decision I do not regret, at all. I straighten up and adjust my sling bag before facing my brother, the next in line for the goodbye.

Dressed in blue jeans and a white shirt, low cut contrasting beautifully with his sideburns which he keeps trim and clean,  Adejare's -  whom we fondly call AJ- eyes glints with happiness when he speaks. "Avoid trouble, most importantly boys. Avoid boys. I'll be watching you."

Of course, he will be happy. He knows how much finally getting this scholarship means to me. The fact he came to even see me off means a lot to me— considering the fact that he hardly goes anywhere without his fiancee.

I slant my head to the side in confusion before muttering lowly. "Really? Watching me? That's it?"

He shrugs and then smirks. "Don't doubt my ways."

"Just focus on yourself." I plead with him, trying to quell the happiness rising within me at the fact he came. If he has a whiff of how excited I am at this, he won't let me live it down. Even though he's twenty- four he still behaves like a seventeen-year-old at times.

I might miss him slightly.

He laughs and I turn my attention to my little sister who is standing beside him. When she notices me looking at her tear stained face, she turns her head away and pulls down her yellow face-cap to hide her eyes.