A FRIEND: A STORY FOR YOU

"Bar-man," she screamed. "Attend to everyone. Give my friends what they want and let the bills be on me." She said as she rose up from her seat and staggered to the dance floor as the song hit up. She was under the influence of alcohol. The dj sure knew when to hit her.

"Yah!" Shouted the drunkards, her so called friends, as they ordered bottles of beer, Andre, Red Label, and the likes... She danced and danced and danced until there was not much strength left in her and she slumped.

Nobody but for a young man who was just walking into the bar ran to her aid to help her stand but when he couldn't, he sat her down and walked away to a seat. She sat like a humpty dumpty on the dance floor like she was paid to do so by the bar owners to entertain their customers. "More drinks bar man. More drinks" she shouted.

Mevvy was a woman in her late forties, though she looked twenty. She was a wealthy woman, married to one of the opulent men in the Owerri city, with three grown children who were studying abroad.

Despite the fact that she is a mother she still ran around the streets of Owerri, going from one hotel to another with young men. Her husband, who was always fed with rumors of her wife being seen with men, caught her red handed on that Friday evening when he drove to the hotel where the spy he had paid to spy on his wife had called him to see for himself. He filed a divorce immediately and his children stood sides with him, and she willingly accepted. This gave her the fuel to pump her fist.

"Ma'am" a voice shouted from the group of drunkards seated round tables, "We need more drinks".

"Bar-man" called Mevvy, "Do whatever they say. I am rich! I am rich!" She screamed, beating her chest and tried to get on her feet. As she did that the man who had helped her earlier went to the dance floor where she sat and helped her
on her feet.

"Ma'am" he called her in a low tone. "Boo" came her reply, and then she belched. The scents the belching gave birth to reeked of alcohol and the young man being uncomfortable with how bad they were turned his face away.

"More bottlessssss" she sang. "More bottles for him bar man." she finally said. "Ma'am, that’s not why am here" He said to her and then waved a hand at the bar-man, who already was coming with the bottles of alcohol, to take them back.

"Then, you are not my friend." she told him pointing an index finger to his face.

"I am not, and those drunkards over there... " he said, slowly, amidst whisper, pointing a finger towards where the drunkards were seated, "aren't your friends either" he continued, "they are here to milk you off and leave you empty. If any is your friend here, he would have taken you home long ago before I entered here. Believe me, they will at once leave you to your fate once they've milked you empty." He told her and walked away.

Drunk as she was, there was not a thing from the words she was told she took to mind. They only entered from one ear and flew away from the other. The only words that came to her mind when said were; "Ma'am, more bottles".

She tried dancing again and fell to the ground as she was no more in control of her body. Her body laid there in a seemed lifeless state.

Soon, darkness began to creep in as the day swept away waiting for a new dawn to shine its bright again. The drunkards gradually left the bar leaving Mevvy lying on the ground, unaware of their leaving.

"Ma'am" called the bar owner as he walked to Mevvy's helpless body lying on the bare floor. “Thanks for the patronage. Please, here's your bill." He handed her a piece of paper on which there were writings and calculations.

"Yeah! She managed to say as she stood up with the help of the bar owner, and staggered to her seat to get her bag to clear the bills.

"Oh! She shouted as she unzipped her bag and found its inside empty. "Where is my bag! She screamed. Shock got hold of the bigger part of her and she fell to the ground again and became unconscious. Her phones were gone. Her laptop gone! Her purse, her ATM cards and check books went with them. She was left empty!

Minutes later... As she still lay on the ground lifelessly, the man who helped her to stand on her feet walked into the bar again. Whatever it was that was in him that told him he was still going to meet her was right.

"Ma'am! Ma'am!" He screamed as he ran towards her, he had sighted her lying on the ground.

"Ma'am!" He continuously screamed as he shook her seemingly lifeless
body.

"Bar man!" He shouted as he rushed to the counter, "what happened to that woman?" He asked him in a loud voice.
"Are you related to her, Sir?

"That isn't an answer. Are you going to tell me what happened to her now?" His voice told anger had gotten hold of him. It was obviously written on his face.

"Okay," said the bar man, trying to quench the fire he guessed was about breaking out. "They made away with her properties." "Properties? He asked in a confused state. "Her purse, laptop and phones." "Oh my God! " He exclaimed.

"And..." the bar man continued, " ... in her right palm is a piece of paper. It is her bill. She didn't get to settle it before they stole her purse. Am glad you came, sir."

Without uttering a word, he left the counter to the ground where she lay, he carried her and off, he left for his house.

In his house, his cook, an aged woman, took care of her. The next morning, she regained her consciousness and had every part of the incident that took place the previous night related to her. In her memory, the incident was vivid and some words kept re-echoing in her head. "I am not your friend, and those drunkards over there aren't either."

She felt really sorry for herself and cried like a baby. "Not all who claim to be your friends are truly your friends. They were just waiting for you to turn your face away so they would stab you, and you did. They did. They stabbed you really bad.

They were not your friends. I am not your friend either, I only brought you here because you were in dare need of help." The man said to her before he rose from the seat at the foot of the bed where she was.