======================================
That question.
That introducing but scary question.
She stared at the young man and struggled to produce hearable words but she couldn't.
"Young lady, I believe you have a name." He commented and eyed her suspiciously. He watched her stutter a few words as she closed her eyes. The short and plump girl looked terrified.
"Awelewa." She finally mumured.
So we're making progress, the young man thought. Students like this could be found on every corner of every form of schooling. These were the ones who were easily looked down on. The ones with the insecurity issues. The inferiority complex mindset was oozing in their crumbling bones. Some might think being shy was the problem but no, that wasn't it at all in her case. To him, she looked like she had been through a lot.
All these ideas were made just because of a question.
He made up his mind to be very gentle with her.
"Awelewa, that's a beautiful name. It means beauty right?" He smiled at her.
The only thing that stopped her from returning his kind words was a ruffled cough from the students accompanied by another eruption of laughter.
At this point, Awelewa wondered if he said that just to make fun of her. She looked at Abasi and saw the menacing look on his face. If looks could kill, Deji would have been gone by now. After all, he was the one that "coughed".
"Will you all shut up?" The young man exclaimed with a fierce look.
"Who made that sound?"
The once nice looking man looked terrifying as he asked the question. Its response was a change in the atmosphere as the room became silent.
What happened next was rather pitiful than funny. Simultaneously, most fingers pointed towards Deji's direction.
Hilarious betrayal.
His dark face was overwhelmed with shock as it was evident in his sudden change of expression when the man walked to a corner and brought out a long, thin and grey whip. The popular "koboko" was a very effective medium to enact discipline in almost all Nigerian child-adult environment and its results were always quite impressive even though it usually came with bruises and colourful words. Deji stared at this young man with pure regret as he knew his fate.
"Deji Adediran, if this weren't a private school, I would have made you bleed." He chuckled but his eyes looked everything but cheerful.
He continued and moved closer, "Unless you are suffering from a severe case of tuberculosis where you believe spreading liquid germs on innocent persons is okay, then I wouldn't have to give such conditions."
Not a word was said.
The strange man liked that. Deji's trembling composure gave him an edge and this made him proceed with further questions.
"Now tell me, what did I say that warranted such noise?"
"Ahhhh it's nothing sir. I'm just recovering from cough sir." Deji nervously lied.
"Guy shut up abeg." Abasi yelled from the back and rolled his eyes. He considered darting towards Deji but quickly glanced at this new man.
He changed his mind due to what he saw.
"Abasi sit." The man said and Abasi did so. He turned back at tall, dark student and continued.
YOU ARE READING
Awelewa's Tale
Spiritual"Their recurrent threats to make things worse if a soul knew what she was passing through changed nothing even when she never told anyone. Her daily pleas and cries fell on deaf ears as they continued hurting her physically and emotionally." ...
