It all began in 2020

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER TWELVE

DEBO

After I realised the reason behind my father's impropriety, I knew I had to get a job sooner or later. I was tired of the fruitless walkabouts and the overwhelmed look that took over my face in the afternoons. I was tired of the countless prayers I did in the mornings, and the reaffirmation of hope I have myself. I was tired of everything.

In all honesty, it isn't easy being a man. And I know that women have their share of problems, but sometimes, I just wish everything could be easier for us. I remember when I once blamed my parents for bringing my brothers and me into this world, even though they knew taking care of us would be an arduous task for them both. When my mother heard me make this statement, she immediately sat me down and explained to me that we are the ones to get them out of their wretchedness. She told me that if God didn't have an amazing plan for us, then she wouldn't have conceived the pregnancy, or she could have had miscarriages countless times. It wasn't what I wanted to hear, but it made me appreciate everything that was happening.

After Aanu left for school, I went into the bathroom and had my bath. Since I knew I couldn't stay at home and remain idle, and I didn't know of any other job vacancies available, I decided to head over to the hospital to visit the wounded man I saved.

I went into my room and opened the drawer that Tunde and I shared. I reached into his wallet and carried a thousand naira from it. "Brother Debo. Why are you carrying my money?" he asked me.

"Don't worry, I would pay you when I get back," Even I doubted that statement, but I guess it is what I had to do.

I quickly put on some casual clothes. A white polo and a brown pair of chinos trousers before slipping my feet into my Adidas slides. They were fake, but at least they served the required purpose.

When I got out of the house, I got into a taxi and gave the driver directions to the hospital. I dropped down from the cab, paid the man, went into the reception and asked for the person that was rushed into the emergency ward yesterday.

"I am sorry, but three people were taken into the ER yesterday. Do you mind telling us the person's name?" one of the nurses said.

"I don't know his name oooh. I just saw he was badly injured and I brought him here myself yesterday. He's not tall, kind of dark, seems to be in his early twenties."

"We're sorry but if you didn't know his name yesterday and don't know it now, then that means he isn't registered on our database."

"Can't you just let me enter every ward and look for him?"

"We're sorry, but that's against our policies."

I threw my hands on my head, confused as to what do no next. I went to sit down on the waiting chair and I kept on waiting for some sort of miracle to happen. Luckily, a doctor came walking by and I stopped her immediately.

"Ma! Ma!"

"Yes?"

"Please do you work in the emergency ward?"

"I'm headed there right now. Can I help you?"

"Thank God. Um, I dropped a young man here yesterday afternoon and I came over to check up on him. You know, to see if he's okay?"

"Are you the man that was waiting to see a doctor yesterday?"

"Yes. Yes. That was me."

"Well, I think I might know who you're talking about."

"Thank you so much ma."

"Um yeah. Just follow me and I would take you to where he is."

I followed the woman, sniffing the strong chemicals that gave a hospital the unique smell. My ears were filled with wails and the lights that shone from the ceilings and diffused off the well-polished floors brightened the walls of the hallways.

The doctor opened a door, and there I saw the man I was looking for. But he wasn't alone. Beside him sat a woman beautifully dressed and well covered. With the way her perfumed smelled and the way she looked, I could tell that she was from the northern part of the country. She turned towards me and I could see the wetness in her eyes. The doctor left us alone and immediately, she stood up to hug me.

"Thank you very much, sir. You don't know how much of a favour you've done to us." Her voice was cracked, which meant she was crying a few minutes ago.

"You're welcome. I thought it was the least I could do seeing how badly he was injured."

"We thank you. We really do."

"But who are you to him, if I may ask?"

"I'm his sister."

And then she introduced herself to me as Sahar Abdulhamid and told me she got to know of her brother's whereabouts through the find my iPhone feature. I honestly didn't even know his phone was on him, and that was when I saw an iPhone placed on the table beside his bed with a shattered screen.

"Good thing he had his phone on him, I guess."

"Yes. It really is. We didn't see him throughout the whole of yesterday and we were worried sick about him, so that was when I decided to track his phone."

"That's good. But his name wasn't registered on the hospital's computers, how did you know he was here?"

"I showed one of the staff his picture."

"Ooooh. That makes so much sense now."

"I'm grateful, honestly. I don't even understand how he was so badly injured. It doesn't make sense to me."

I narrated everything that happened to her and then she swore that she would ensure that her brother received the justice he deserved. We talked about ourselves and then exchanged numbers, promising to talk to each other much later. I sat down with her, our faces downcast as we looked at the man whose wounds were now stitched up and was breathing slowly. The slow beeps from the heart monitor placed by his bedside kept our ears busy, but that was until we saw the moving lines turn into a straight line and we could hear nothing but a long beep.