BACK IN TIME

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“Tris…Tris..”
Mr. Ben’s voice jolted her out of her revere.
“Let’s go have lunch”.
Beatrice Ben, Tris, as she was fondly called opened her eyes to discover she was still stuck in traffic. Damn!, as much as she wanted to spend the rest of the day with Dad, she had plans for the weekend.
They left the gym at about eleven am and now it was two fifteen pm. The car was still adjacent to the eatery she had noticed before she took a nap. So much for living in Lagos she sighed to herself.
The alternative street which could have been used to avoid the traffic had been completely blocked by the ladies and gentlemen of the OWAMBE group of companies. Probably a big 50 birthday celebration because she noticed a group of middle-aged women dressed in matching attires of pink laced buba and iro, with grey coloured wraps around their head and waists. Couldn't they just get a hall?...

The air-conditioning and the vibes of Alessia Cara’s Wild Things from the speakers of father’s SUV kept her away from the rest of the world. She had not refreshed after the 2 – long hours of workout & she still felt all sticky and sweaty. Now Dad insisting on lunch…she sighed, rearranged her hair, replaced her mascara, a little of MACs deep raisin lipstick, looked in the mirror by the passenger’s seat to admire herself and stepped out of the car.

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Sitting on a spot from where she could view the road, she watched Dad eat while she sipped on her plain yorghurt. Everything they had seemed to contain cholesterol to her. From the shredded rice, to the rolls, sausages - everything. She had to keep her weight in check. Dad couldn't care less. He just laughed. From where she sat, she could observe there was no movement on the road, as everyone turned off their engines and she noticed some coming into the eatery as well to fill their stomachs.

"Hey Tris, you know we used to live here before you went abroad ...."He continued with his meal noticing she wasn't paying attention. She heard him but she wasn't listening as her olfactory nerves were sending no signal to her brain. She was busy reflecting on the previous day.

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She had just got into the country. It’s been twelve years and her parents missed her. She never wanted to come home until she was done with her program in Ophthalmology. Now she was, plus Greg proposed. She sure needed to be home.

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The relationship between Tris & Gregory Klein was one of a kind. You know that feeling when you meet someone and you know you want to spend the rest of life with him. From the onset of their relationship, Tris knew this and if not for her mother's warnings about African culture she probably would have proposed first. They had a good time the morning before her flight and she sure missed him. It was funny how many times Greg called, barely three hours and he was missing her already. She was now blushing subconsciously paying attention to the ring that beautified her left hand. She noticed her Dad laughing and she hopped out of wonderland.

Dad was through with his lunch but still insisted they stayed a while longer. She reached for her Ipod & played One Direction's - You & I. All the while, there was something she was seeing but she wasn't looking at. She reduced the volume of the speakers of her earphones in a bid to be conscious of the environment. As she moved her eyes around, she noticed a bell...

A really big one directly opposite the eatery. It was placed in front of what looked like a playground. The image was striking she stared inquisitively for quite a number of minutes. Then, like a drunk suddenly awake from a deep slumber, she spouted in her really cute British accent, "Dad!.., did you say we lived around here before I went abroad?!" ..."Yes Tris, what's the...?". She didn't let Dad finish, she dashed out of the eatery across the roads & into the playground like it called on her.

Tris was always known to be a drama queen so Dad didn't follow her but watched from the transparent glass the eatery had as its coverings to see what his daughter was up to.

She touched the bell, admiring its beauty. Then a sudden pain shot through her cerebral hemisphere and she held her head. Unconsciously, tears flowed out of her lacrimal glands & pictures flashed in her subconscuious - pictures she couldn't see. The more she tried to see what was in her head, the more intense the pain got. But she didn't stop, she tried harder,...and...

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Dad & Mom were journalists who worked late into the night to put food on the table. On this night, they had called to say they would not be coming home. So, thirteen year old Tris with all the stupidity of her childhood walked out of the house into the streets of Lagos at about eleven pm in a bid to play fair. She knew that at this time, all the kids would be in their houses and she would finally have the swing all to herself. Each time she tried on the swing during the day, she would get bullied by other girls because of her small size and the night was her perfect opportunity.

The streets were empty and filled with a dead silence accompanied by the sound of crickets chirping in the dark. The power outage in the area created the black night and the only source of light apart from the full moon was coming from the chamber where the bell was hung on the playground. "Just one round"..she said to herself, as she increased her pace. She felt like she heard something so she stopped to turn. She was now under the spotlight created by the tungsten bulb above the bell and it was difficult to see in the dark areas. It was too late as she noticed two figures moving fast towards her. In an attempt to escape, her head made a force-filled collision with the bell and she lost it. She could see they had taken off her clothes and took turns to have a fill of their lustful desires. In and out, each time she felt life leaving her. Why she couldn't respond to all the external stimuli was what she couldn't understand, as she never struggled or screamed..

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At this time, Tris had gathered so much attention, Dad was freaking out as her eyes were now blood-shot. This was the worst memory of her life that had been buried deep in the turns of her brain and reawakened by the sight of the bell - the very one that made her lose it. After the incident that night, she was admitted in the hospital where she was until her parents relocated, so no one else knew about it.

The day felt like it was happening again, it was like she went.... BACK IN TIME

_{Thanks for reading}