THE MASKED GIRL

16

RECAP

My parents were both origins of Adamawa state, they met and got married there. My father was transferred to Abuja a few months after their marriage and they moved back here permanently after a year of their marriage life. I was born two years after my parents moved to Abuja and my whole life was based here, my parents rarely visits their hometown with both their parents dead.

I was beyond excited when we were to visit our relatives, I was only seven years old then. That was when Suhail and I meet, he was my cousin who I met when I sneaked out to play.

Both my parents being from Adamawa, I have two sides of the family in the same state. The house where my parents lived was on my father's side of the family and that is where we stayed at our Adamawa's house. Suhail is my maternal cousin who also lives in the same area as my father's side of the family hence why I didn't think he is my cousin at first because I was not introduced to him when we arrived.

I may be only seven years old but I can never forget how we met. I got bored of staying inside the house and my cousins refuse to play with me because I cannot speak hausa well and Mommy told me to bond with them before we go to her side of the family the next day. So I find my way outside and joined a group of kids I see playing on a heap of sand in front of an uncompleted building.

They were playing with some kind of toy car I have never seen before, it was made from a can of a soda. I asked to play with it and they agreed but only if I do something for them. They tied the rope they use in playing with the car to a rock and asked me to drag it and I couldn't for the rock was huge and instead of helping me they gathered around and laughed at me. I started crying when I realized they pranked me and that was when Suhail came to my aid, he came like a superhero and shooed the mean kids away.

"Is it yours?" He asked me as he untied the car from the rope and I shook my head no. "Then why are you pulling the rock?" He asked as he walked towards me.

"Because I want to play with it," I tell him and he chortled noticing how badly I speak the language. "Where do you live?" He asks as he helped me up and cleaned my tears.

I pointed to my house with my finger and he walked me home he was only older with three years. I made him follow me inside eager to show him to my mother so imagine my reaction when she recognized him as her eldest sister's son, I was very happy.

We visited his house the following day and to cut story short I stayed there. He is the only child so it was just me and him and he does not make fun of my hausa. We become inseparable in the five months we spent together, he was my best friend.

My parents were always busy with work and I school that Adamawa become just a chapter in my life. I went from disturbing my parents by asking when we are going back since we came back from our visit to never asking when I see we were not going back soon. I lost contact with Suhail but I don't think a day has passed in my life without him on my mind.

So ten years after when Mommy finally got a break from work while school is on vacation, I get to go to Adamawa again. He is the only reason why I want to go to that state again and I have not seen him in ten years, ten good years. I am quite excited and at the same time nervous about meeting him again he should be twenty now.

I may be outspoken and carefree but the opposite gender always makes me quiet and this is Suhail we are talking about, the guy I have been crushing on since forever. Yes, I crush on artists, celebrities, fictional men, and random handsome guys for fun but I belong to Suhail. I have been picturing the adult him for a while, sometimes even imagining having him at my house saying he came to visit. My weird behavior always gets the best of me. But now that I am possibly going to meet him, I feel somehow reluctant.