The Wrong Crowd [Wattys 2020]

Chapter 12

Dedicated to Amaraglo ❤️❤️

As soon as the taxi driver pulled up outside the closed gates of Delta Park, Ore took out cash from her black purse and handed it over to him. She didn't wait for him to count the money, instead she opened the car door and got out, slamming it behind her with all energy.

The driver gave her an evil glare but didn't say anything. Soon after, his hindlights glowed an amber colour as the car stuttered a bit and
drove away.

Ore heaved a deep sigh, she was already feeling a migraine which made her hold her head in excruciating agony. The gateman on duty came out of his small quarter and pointed his torchlight at Ore who shielded her hand over her eyes.

The man assessed her outfit fully and grunted in annoyance.

"Where you dey from come?" he asked her as Ore edged closer.
[Where are you coming from?]

By this time, he had switched his torchlight off and was taking out a key from his jacket pocket.

Ore scratched her head as she thought for something to say. If she told the man that she went out for a party, it would lead to further questioning and she'd be staying outside for much longer. She vouched for a much more plausible excuse.

"I took my roommate to the hospital," Ore stated, twirling the ends of her short skirt.

The gateman gave her the once over and smacked his chapped lips.

"So na hospital you go like this abi?" he questioned.
[So you went to a hospital dressed like this?]

Ore began to shuffle her feet, her gaze landed on the ground and remained there for a full minute before she heard a key sliding into the lock.

"Ahhh, thank you sir," she exclaimed happily. "It won't happen again."

The man hissed at her back and locked the gate. He grunted under his breath as he dragged his feet on the concrete, slowly making his way back to where he had come.

Ore clutched her purse tighter in her sweaty palms. The cool night breeze tickled her exposed thighs and she mumbled some obscenities before climbing up the well worn steps of her hostel block. The darkness welcomed her with open arms and swallowed her whole.

Ore jerked clearly awoken at the loud creak of her room door. She squinted her eyes at the bright light that flitted in as she flung her wrapper to a corner. Mercy thought Ore would still be asleep so she didn't bother sneaking in with her bare feet. Her jaw slackened as she spotted Ore staring at her wide-eyed.

Ore sprang up from her compressed sleeping foam and sluggishly made her way to a frightened Mercy who was holding a shiny black object in her hand. Judging from the way she shifted about and kept her gaze down, Ore knew she was scared of the confrontation.

Ore gripped her chin forcefully lifting her face to stare at her.

"So you get mind to leave me to my disgrace abi?" she asked through clenched teeth.
[So you have the mind to leave me to my disgrace right?]

"The way I just go embarrass myself for there, thinking say I dey follow one kine better person," she added.
[The way I embarrassed myself thinking I was following a human being]

Mercy's eyes were already brimming with unshed tears and she began pleading with Ore whose anger was boiling inside her.

"No even try touch me," Ore stated lifting a warning finger.
[Don't try and touch me]

"But it wasn't my fault na," Mercy croaked out.

"You say what?" Ore asked cleaning her ears to check whether she had heard correctly. After the disgrace Mercy brought upon her, she still had the guts to utter those dirty words from her mouth.

"I said it was not my fault," Mercy repeated more clearly.

Ore landed her a resounding slap that made Mercy to flinch and stare at her in shock. Ore was past caring, all she wanted was for Mercy to rein apologies until her mind came down.

"If you know say no be your fault, why you come say make I follow you?" Ore beat her chest and huffed in disbelief. "A whole me na im you carry go cause gbege?"
[If you know that it wasn't your fault, why did you say I should follow you?] [A whole me that you took along to cause trouble]

Tears were streaming down Mercy's cheeks and catarrh was dripping from her nostrils. She couldn't believe this was the Ore she had known. The same girl who had been shy and very quiet from the beginning, she barely uttered a word to strangers.

Hostellers who were now awake were beginning to gather around the room like a fly. They began whispering harshly to themselves in hopes of finding out what led to the argument.

"Kneel down and apologize to me before I go answer you or else . . ." Ore countered.

Mercy wiped her tears with the ends of her skirt and spat on the floor in irritation.

"Never will I bow down to a mere man," she replied loudly.

At that, Ore charged at her and the rest was history. She scratched Mercy's skin with her long nails and tackled her to the floor. Ore soon rained heavy blows on her before her block mates burst through the door to separate the entangled mess.

"No try me again for this your life, you hear?" Ore shouted. "Even though say you old pass me no mean say you go dey yeye me!"
[Don't try me again in this you life, do you hear me?] [Even though you are older than me doesn't mean that you can trample on me!]

The hostel marshal who had been offering her morning prayers in her room was disturbed by the noise and stepped in their midst.

"What is happening here na?" she asked looking from one to the next.

Ore pointed for her to ask Mercy and Mercy lunged from the tight grip of her hostel mates. She wanted to charge at Ore for the abuse but Favour, the hostel marshal held her back.

"If you try anything here," she stated, clearly annoyed at the rubbish going on.

"You two." Favour snapped her polished nails. "To the supervisors office this minute."

Mercy was the first to leave the hot room and as she began walking past various rooms on her wing, probing eyes casted her worried glances. Mercy's long skirt had been ripped into two, her braided hair had slid from her band and was shooting out in different directions. She was putting on bathroom slippers and sweat clogged the armpit of her long sleeved shirt.

Favour ordered for Ore to follow suit. Ore gave a long hiss and grabbed her wrapper from her bed. She tied it across her chest to cover her skimpy clothes and marched out of the room with an irritated Favour in only a singlet and red boxers in tow.

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Author's note: The show is over. Do you think Ore acted a bit too much? After all it wasn't her fault in the first place 🤪