MARCH MADNESS - DAY 6
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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
BAKARE's FAMILY
For as long as I could remember, my life routine had always been the same everyday of my life. I wake up in the morning, prepare for school, have some Pap for breakfast after which I helped mum to move the basket of corn she intends to sell for the day to her shop - her shop was a small portion on the road side, close enough so people could see and patronize her. She had huge a Umbrella, extended up with the support of iron rods to shield her from the sun. And when I get back from school, mum will tell me where she had kept my food after which i to wash my school uniform, finish my school assignment then return to help her with the corn sales. I was 18 and in my last term at my senior secondary school. I attended a government school since my parents couldn't afford the tuition for a private school. Mother had enrolled me in a private lesson in our community headed by Mr. James. He had been helping students in the areas with their studies. Mother had pleaded with him to allow her pay the lesson fee thrice because she couldn't afford to pay it at once - he agreed. And because of this, mother would gift him corns whenever he passes by, even though he would refuse, mother would be adamant until he accepts it.
Dad was a commercial bus driver, he had good days at work and bad days. But, the bad days take the lead. There was always an incident; The police extorting him everyday, the thugs collecting money on every street he drives past, the passengers that sometimes cause unneccessary headache because they felt they are a little bit better than these drivers, there was a day he narrated how a boy of my age called him stupid because, he had tried to settle the argument between the boy and his conductor. I felt my blood boiling, I wished we could time travel back to that moment so i could deal with the boy. Sometimes it was the bus- which suddenly stopped along the way and causing dad to lose day's income. Whenever the bus developed some hiccups, mom knew better not to ask dad for anything -He was temperamental at that period, little things ticked him off. We knew he wasn't angry at us. So we let him be.
WAEC was approaching, so mother gave me thursdays to sundays to myself, I had to study hard she would always say.
"Olayinka mi, study well. Don't forget I and your father do not have any wealth or properties to will to you. Please read well dear." Mother would say in Yoruba, she doesn't speak english. She doesn't know how to.Sometimes she uses "pidgin"
"I will take care of you and father, don't worry" i will reply smiling.
"I don't need you to take care of us. I just don't want this kind of life for you. Who knows, we might die tomorrow or next. But, I want you to live a fullfiled life. So gbó" she would say holding onto her ear - a sign she makes to ask if i was listening to her.
"You won't die. Father won't die too." I will take you both everywhere.
She would smile, then ask if i had eaten. She says I need to be full before reading so I can assimilate better. I don't know where she got that from.
Two weeks before my WAEC, she came back in evening, with her empty basket.she called out to me in our 1- room house, there were other houses of the same structure in the large compound It was like a small village of its own.
"Yinka"* she called as she entered.
"I am here" I looked up from my physics note, I was reading the topic "Elasticity."
"Welcome mom" talking in yoruba
"How was sales today?" I added as she sat on the mattress.
" It was fine. Is there anything for me to eat?" she asked in a low tired voice.
"I made jollof rice" I smiled.
"where did you get the pepper" she asked, surprised.
"Dad gave me some money. I was even able to buy some meat" I said, feeling proud.
"ooh, let's eat then"
"I have already eaten mine"
I served her food and in a minute she was halfway through it.
"Ehnn ehn, your wife asked of you today" mother said as she ate
"my wife!!!" I said
"since when do I have a wife?" I asked, playing along with her joke.
"Ayomikun, that very rich girl. The one that pays alot for small corns." She said.
"Mom I know her but she's not my wife" I said,laughing.
"But you guys were always talking"
"Mum, i am always nice to all your customers"
"I don't even like her, she looks like one of those spoilt brat" I added.
"You have bad mouth" mother said before she went back to her meal.
I kept laughing and drifted off thinking about the girl. She was pretty and sounded intelligent. But a girl like that to be interested in me!!! Not possible, at least not after what happened. At first she barely says hello, she buys her corn and leaves. Then she saw me holding a Dan brown novel one time, and we had bonded over that. The only thing we talked about were novels. She said she had some I told her I haven't read. I rejected her offer. I wasn't going to be her charity case. The day of the incident was when she almost tripped at our stand/shop, the rain made the area muddy and her slipon had slide straight off. I caught her before she fell, my hand grazed her side boobs and i apologised. The next time she came around, she ignored me. I felt it was because of the incident but I was only trying to help. I wondered why she asked of me. Mum must be dreaming I thought. I discarded the thought and went back to my reading
Day 6 prompt:Let's eat
Word count : 1024
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Total word count:6,089