Believers authority
I have been offered admission💃💃💃💃
I remembered a few days ago I made my introduction post, and I included that I am still expecting Lagos State University to give me admission.
Everyone was dropping their prayers and I was here shouting Amen!
Thank you Emmanuel Omale Peter Sodipe Denu Bon Bolaoluwatito Odukoya CONFIDENCE EKEH Eniola Johnson
Ikponmwosa Kenneth Ebenezer Madubuike to mention but few.
It has finally happened, last night!
You know, I first did Jamb exam in 2020 and I had 234 but I couldn't get into the school.
So I had to take another one last year, 2021, and I had 203.
I did the screening process in December and LASU started releasing admission list in mid-January.
And the news was everywhere that they might not release any other list, because of their Stream 2 plan.
In fact, one of the LASU officials told me to buy the screening form for stream 2 (that's a lot of money compared to Stream 1)
Everyone was concerned, I got calls from my sisters, in fact my immediate elder sister was asking if I should put in for another school, or rewrite Jamb.
The thing is, I just can't phantom myself rewriting that exam, and I know Abba does not want me to school out of Lagos.
it was on my mind while we were preparing for Light It Up Conference, but I didn't give in to the depressive feeling.
My Pastor called me some days to the Conference and taught me more on "Believers Authority" and how that God is concerned in this matter.
Fast forward to the Conference, on the first night after Daddy Olatunji B. Alonge session, I just found myself on a Prayer walk, blasting in tongues (omo I prayed that night) I didn't go back home until after 40 minutes of praying.
It was then Psalm 24, dawned on me, that Everything belongs to God, and I am his child, all things are to answer to me.
In as much as I wanted to study "Guidance and Counselling" the course I was given is a wonderful one too "Early Childhood Education"
And this is my testimony, thank you dearest Abba for this.
Join me as I celebrate💃💃
It will pay off someday
How you work to bring your dreams to reality matter. By
visioning and actualizing your best self you act with
intentionality, integrity and imagination. Your goals,
passion, purpose and possibilities can be manifested
through diligence, creativity, curiosity, focus, energy and
execution. Do not apologize for working on self whilst no
one is watching. This is essential, so you can shine when the
world watches.
"Heights by great men reached and kept were not obtained
by sudden flight but, while their companions slept, they
were toiling upward in the night."
_Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Sometimes it seems like your hardwork goes unnoticed, but
do not let that deter you. Be led by your passion, be fueled by
your purpose and be catapulted by the power of your
determination. Remember your greatest returns come from
your investment in self. The above-mentioned quote is a
reminder that your life and your work is a journey to unfold
your best self.
No one said life was going to be easy, however you know
even through some of your challenging moments, its worth
the effort. Life is your greatest gift, living it well is to become
more to so you can give to yourself and others.
So continue to do your best work, even when no one's
watching. Never stop investing in yourself, learn more, train
more and grow more. Should this require you giving a little
extra, make the effort and commitment, I assure you, you
have the capacity to be more. If you can live through these
moments, you'll get the moments to live for. Be patient, be
of good courage and be gentle with yourself throughout the
process.
"Create the highest, grandest vision possible for your life,
because you become what you believe."
_Oprah Winfrey
Continue believing in yourself. Trust the
process.
Opportunities are everywhere😍
We always think opportunities are seasonal like "Christmas" where Santa Clause comes and give us presents on a platter of gold.
So we keep preparing and waiting for that perfect moment when everything will be set.
Well, if there's anything this century has taught me is that you cannot sit down waiting for #opportunities to come around.
You have to take the bull by the horns.
One of the best Soft skills you can have right now is to be "a problem solver"
It never gets old because there's always one problem or the other.
Will you take action today?
Start with the issues around you and think of ways you can solve them.
Sometimes, when we may be discouraged, we are tempted to believe that only the “lucky” people receive the best opportunities and that we just don’t have that lucky quality.
However, anyone can encounter numerous opportunities when we put in the work to step into the right place at the right time.
As you engage your dreams for the New Year and find avenues to drive your business ventures, I've compiled a list of quotes on opportunity.
How do you strike when the proverbial iron is hot? Here’s your inspiration:
Quotes on Opportunity
“It's through curiosity and looking at opportunities in new ways that we've always mapped our path.”
_Michael Dell
“Failure is only the opportunity more intelligently to begin again.”
_Henry Ford
“If a window of opportunity appears, don't pull down the shade.”
_Tom Peters
“Someone's sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.”
_Warren Buffett
"A wise man will make more opportunities than he finds."
_Francis Bacon
“Pursuing your passions makes you more interesting, and interesting people are enchanting.”
_Guy Kawasaki
“The entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as an opportunity.”
_Peter Drucker
“In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”
_Albert Einstein
“Opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people don’t recognize them.”
_Ann Landers
Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn both to their advantage.
_Victor Kiam
And if maybe you're unsure or you're trying to figure out how to go about it, I would love to share my knowledge with you and help you out😊
Please drop what you need to know in the comment section below, I'll be glad to be of help.
I remain Oyin your favorite Fashionpreneur and dietician
Let's keep helping each other grow💪
Thank you all
🔹I checked the number of views on my post and I was heartbroken💔
🔹I was lamenting about how I was getting a ridiculous number of #views on my post and how I noticed my post views have been declining.
🔹Till now, I haven't figured out what I'm doing wrong or different.
🔹It might seem like I'm looking for instant gratification, but I'm not. It's just a feeling that comes with when you know you are not getting your #desired result.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
🔸The day before yesterday, I saw a video on Whatsapp and it felt like I was being spoken to directly.
🔸It made me realize that being focused on the number of people that didn't view/read my post made me forget to appreciate those who take out their time to read and comment, every time.
🔸And I apologize for being ungrateful🙏.
🔹Even though I want to reach a larger number of people through my posts and get known, it won't hurt to focus on giving the best to the people I can reach, right now, no matter how small.
🔹At some point, we are all concerned about winning big and don't want to be left out, that's why you'll find a 17 and 19-year-old burning a human head because they are looking for the faster and quicker, but unknowingly a dangerous way out.
🔸Thankfully, I'm not desperate, and I understand the importance of taking things nice and slow even if it doesn't seem like it's working now.
🔹Truthfully, I'm learning to appreciate the little I have while aiming for the bigger things too.
🔸Most times, shutting out negativities and focusing on positivity helps give the motivation that you need at your lowest point and I'm glad I found something to hold on to and keep me going despite my 'views predicament'😂
🔸One mentor of mine talked about giving out Value and not focusing on Viral. I think that resonates with me well now.
🔸Keep dishing out, let people gain something from it, and then, you'll be viral in their heart.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
🔹A big shout out to people who always tip my posts no matter how little it is. Thank you all
❤To those who read, react to and comment on my posts, thank you✨
❤To my ghost viewers, thank you. I hope to get a reaction from you someday too☺
🔸Kindly follow and connect with me slimydee, Let's help each other grow with worthy contents🥂
Undergraduate?
I'm finally an Undergraduate!!!
Around this time in 2020, I was expectant
Waiting on Unliag to grant me Admission to study the course of my choice
I really studied hard for that exam
And I did real well as expected, I got 282 of 400😩
Despite that, after waiting for a long time, I wasn't offered admission
I went ahead to change my institution to another school that was still giving admission,
Well, with my score, even the Professors there assured me that I'll be given admission,
But reasons best known to the University (Ekiti State University)
I was still not offered admission
Exactly 1 month to the commencement of another JAMB,
I became aware of my predicament
So I had to buy a new Jamb form and begin preparing for another exam
As God would have it, I wrote the Jamb but my score was not too good(I scored 228)
My parents got worried, what 282 couldn't do, would 228 be capable of doing it??
But I persisted
Funny thing is, I chose the same course, in the same school with a lower score
I didn't even reach to any professor I knew
My parents actually just left me alone to do whatever I wanted, at least I have a well paying job
Nevertheless, I checked Yesterday
And found out that my Admission is in progress
Which definitely means, I'll be resuming Ekiti State University soon
I was excited, and I got my siblings and my parents crying when I gave them the news yesterday
We ran around, spent money with a high score the year before for crying out loud, but God did it with no stress at all this year
This isn't what I'd planned since my childhood though
I always wanted to graduate the University at age 18 which seemed feasible because of my fast education,
But I guess I'll be resuming the University at 18(We won't be resuming till later this year, I probably would be 18 when we're resuming)
Well I'm glad, lots of things have happened during the time I spent at home
But I'm grateful to God it all turned out good
God is good 😍
Reason why you should aim higher
Everyone laughed at him and thought he was stupid
or just bluffing
And it most definitely sounded like it
I mean
what was he even thinking?
yes
The unimaginable
how could he even suggest or conceive that?
Hilarious indeed
I know you try to be polite but even you can't help but laugh too
You probably would be rolling on the ground laughing if you heard him.
Oh sorry!
You don't even know the story
or maybe you have heard it before
It's the Tortoise and the Hare's story
The Tortoise challenged the Hare to a race.
So now you understand why everyone was making fun of him
But as crazy as it sounded
he won
Yes he won
Because he started out and never gave up
He dreamt big
Actually he dreamt bigger than himself
The Hare started out fast but being overconfident of his ability decided to take a nap midway
Only to find out when he woke up that the Tortoise won the race
just by going slowing and never giving up
there are many lessons to be learnt from the story but for today I'm picking
Dreaming out of the ordinary.
If you want to stand out you can't be ordinary.
You have to be extraordinary
You have to be unreasonable with your dreams.
Let people think you must be crazy to think you can achieve what you dream.
Yes
your dreams must be crazy enough to make people laugh when you say them
Only then can you break out of the mediocre mindset.
Train your mind first to see the big picture ahead of you.
If you can't dream it
how can you ever achieve it?
If you know what you really want
then why are you waiting?
What is holding you back from taking the first step towards going for what you want?
The difference between the hero and the coward is what you do and not what you feel.
they both have fears and doubts
the hero is more disciplined and fights off the fear
but the coward keeps dwelling on and feeding the fear
nobody sees the feelings only the actions that precedes
So Hello dear #readcashfam
Are you ready to aim for the moon so you can possibly shoot the stars if you miss or fall in between the clouds?
All it takes is to first to conquer your fears
take the first step to greatness and commit to reaching as high as possible.
It's a beautiful new day and I hope you go all out for your big dreams.
Entrepreneurship or traditional employment?
Hello I’m Priscillia! Priscy for short.
I don't use social media often because for the past 6 years through my degree I’ve been a beautypreneur, and now I’ve started my post-grad job search. Being my own boss I’ve always been on the outskirts of social media, occasionally dipping my toe in the waters of “congratulations! “ and thumbs ups but never needing to take a full plunge.
Now that I’m looking for a job in Marketing, I’ve had multiple career coaching crash courses in the past month that have taught me a lot of lessons. The biggest being that it’s more difficult than I thought to translate entrepreneurship experience to the corporate environment. Every company wants 5+ years of experience, what’s hidden between the lines is entrepreneurship doesn’t really count (even though I’ve been the head of marketing, finance, product development, HR and customer service, web and graphic design and more for 6+ years 😅).
This transition from entrepreneurship to ‘traditional’ employment is not one that I read about often, because entrepreneurship is often romanticized as the land of milk and honey, but there are people like me who exist in the duality of ‘yes, and’. Yes I’m an entrepreneur and I love what I do AND I would like to work in a corporate environment because I’m passionate about telling compelling stories for all kinds of brands, not just my own. I am inspired by the thought of making people feel seen and heard and I have done this as a Beautypreneur, Brand Manager, Marketing Specialist and Podcaster.
As I work my way through the job search process, I’m sharing my musings in hopes that someone else making this transition might feel a little less alone and a little more seen. 😊
.
Glancing back at my life journey😪
My mum, with her eyes filled with tears told me while I was on my laptop yesterday.
She made me tear up too. We alone know how far we have come in this journey called life.
I remember when my mum could not get me a cough syrup of NGN300.
My mum with a defiant stance told the pharmacist that if he wasn't going to give her the syrup on credit, then she'll leave me there 😂
She said she'll leave me there so that he'll hear me coughing and if his conscience allows him to let me die...
My mother threatened this man😂
Eventually he gave her the syrup and she promised to pay back in two days.
I remember when she'll take me with her while she puts her stand of barbecue to sell at parties so she could put food on the table.
I was still young, but I was very sensitive.
I would watch my mum cry for help. I would watch her ask herself who she was going to ask for help.
In our one room flat in Ewédogbó in Lagos, we hustled the Lagos hustle.
Despite all this, I attended one of the expensive schools in that area.
She use to tell me, "Favour, you're an Ajébuttér and you my child will be treated as such".
When I started being inquisitive about how to make money online, she didn't deter me.
She supported me by handling some of the chores, buying petrol every single day, contributing to buy my laptop and what have you.
There was a day I had to wake my mom around 2:30am so she could help me put on the Generator because I had a project to submit and my phone battery was critically low.
She did it but unfortunately I was scammed.
She lost hope for some time. But when I cashed out from this same internet, she believed in my dreams once again.
My mum said she remembered how far I had come and that was why she felt the need to tell me how proud she is of me.
From my journey so far I have been able to conclude a few things.
🌹Allow yourself dream big.
🌹You owe it to yourself to be great in a legitimate way.
🌹Make mistakes, but do not give up.
Why I got my girlfriend pregnant at 19
When I asked one of my friends why he got a lady pregnant at an early age of 19, guess the reply he gave me😁👇
"As a young African teenage guy who was just leaving home for the first time, one of the shock I experienced was how sexually active my peers had become.
Coming from a very strict cultural and religious background, sex or discussions as pertaining sex was more or less a taboo.
Arriving in Nursing School was the first time I was leaving home to be in an environment that to a greater extent was not regulated as I had freedom to do as I pleased.
Sex was one of the major things that aroused my curiosity — not that I was completely ignorant about sex, I had gleaned a bit from from television, books, peers at home and even adult conversations I had eavesdropped on.
When I finally navigated the “waters" to get a girlfriend, I was then faced with a problem — how do I access contraceptives to protect ourselves especially as pertaining pregnancy.
It was very difficult because of the culture and also the religious nature of our immediate environment. I as a teenager could not access contraceptives without being judged or even punished.
With no one there to tell me how to manage the urges that were coming with the hormonal surge of my teenage years cos even the school was shy to talk about it, I had to rely on peers.
They told me there was method they used - a method I discovered too late that they didn't have optimal knowledge of.
So I delved in using their incomplete knowledge on the withdrawal method and boom, my teenage girlfriend became pregnant.
I was responsible but can I say that family failed me, that the Church failed me, the society is not exempted and even the school that was established to give me basic form of knowledge deemed sexual knowledge "too advanced" to be given".
So what do u think about his response, is he right to have said that the family, church, society and school failed him?
Share your thoughts below please 🙏
Burning Coles - Episode 7
Mrs. Cole lay down on the three seater sofa in the sitting room, waiting for her husband to return. She slept off watching TV.
Mr. Cole came back around 2:00am, banging on the door.
She went to open the door for him. He staggered into the house with the stench of alcohol and cigarette cloaking him like a heavy robe. There was nothing new about that but she noticed something different about him.
“What’s this all over your face?” She asked him looking at the red and purple streaks of lipstick, on his face.
“What is it?” He asked with disdain written all over his face.
“Akin, these are lipstick marks on your face. Not just from one person but at least two.” She said furiously.
“And so? Woman, move away. I need to sleep.” He sneered and jostled her out of his path.
“Akin, how dare you? It’s bad enough you don’t cater for the needs of your family. You go out every night and drink to stupor, now women? Really?” She was infuriated. Everything about the man disgusted her. At that moment, she didn’t care if he beat her up or killed her; she had had enough and needed to let out her hurt. “You are such an ingrate Akin; I regret ever meeting you.”
“What!” He turned around sharply, his sudden movements inconsistent with his drunken state. He, clearly, had been snapped out of his stupor by her biting words.
“Are you out of your mind?” He began, as he swayed menacingly towards her, eyes flashing like red pointers and fists out stretched. He was ready to teach her some lessons.
Mrs. Cole saw him coming close; she knew he was going to pounce on her at any moment if she didn’t act fast. She took a calculated turn around and bolted for the kitchen, slamming the door and locking it safely behind her. She slid wearily to the floor with her back against the door, panting heavily and silently congratulating herself on her timely escape from the clutches of blows.
Mr. Cole pounded noisily at the door. “Useless woman, why did you run away? You should have stayed so that I’ll beat the living day lights out of you” he staggered as he made his way towards their bedroom.
Mrs. Cole sat behind the door, listening and waiting till she heard him leave. When she could barely hear his receding footsteps, she lay on the kitchen floor and bawled like a baby, “Oh God, why? Why am I going through all these? Why is life so unfair to me?” Hot tears rolled down her face uncontrollably. She cried until no strength was left in her then she stood up and went back to the sitting room. The thought of going to her room and lying on the same bed with her husband disgusted her. She turned off all the lights and slept on the three seater.
The next morning, she was up by 5am. She said a short prayer committing the day into God’s hand and got up. The thought of the fight between her husband and her and what led to it flashed through her mind and with it came an overwhelming feeling of sadness. She told herself that she wasn’t going to start her day that way so she brushed the thought away but the feeling lingered. She went first to the kitchen to heat up water the children will use to have their bath. Then she went to their rooms to wake them up.
Bayo’s room was a mess as usual; the windows were shut and the whole place, stuffy. “Why is this boy always closing all his windows?” She asked herself as she opened them. “Bayo, Bayo wake up” she tapped him “get up and get ready so you won’t be late for school”.
Bayo was always the most difficult to handle when it came to waking up so Mrs Cole usually went to his room first. He tossed in bed for half a minute while his mum persisted in tapping him, making each tap more painful than the previous, all in an attempt to get sleep off his eyes. He finally responded “hmmm”, first rubbing his eyes and then stretching. After about a minute, he was fully awake. He realized what was going on and quickly pulled his top sheet to himself as if he was hiding something.
“What is it Bayo?”
“Nothing mummy. Good morning.” He said hoping she would press no further.
“Good morning my foot,” she pulled the cloth away from him. “What is it you are hiding?” She thought he hid something under the cloth little did she know that the ‘something’ was his nakedness.
“Bayo what exactly is wrong with you? Why have you been sleeping naked these days?” She asked.
Bayo used one hand to cover himself and the other hand was stretched to retrieve the cloth from his mum. “I’ve not been sleeping naked.” He told her. “I woke up to use the toilet in the night and…” He started his usual lines again but his mum cut him short.
“Which useless toilet? Is it toilet that said you should not wear your boxer when you were done?” She had a hunch that there was more to what he was saying. “Bayo, you had better stop lying; you know I’ll get to the bottom of this and something tells me that when I do, you will be so sorry.” She pointed her right index finger at him in a warning gesture. “Get up and get ready for school. Go to the kitchen to get hot water. I must not come back and meet you on the bed; is that clear?” She spoke sternly.
“Yes ma,” he said.
Mrs. Cole left his room, went to the ladies’ room to wake Bolu up then she went to her room. She saw her husband fast asleep and snoring. She shook her head, quietly closed the door and went back to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for the family.
By 7am, Mrs. Cole, Bayo and Bolu were all set. Seyi was up, had brushed her teeth but not yet had her bath because she wasn’t going out. She had breakfast with them. Mr. Cole hadn’t come out of his room. His food was in the warmer. He was a part-time lecturer at Shinning Star University. He ran a very flexible schedule and got to work around 10am every day.
“Seyi take care of the house. Make sure you are security conscious and use your time wisely. Call if anything arises.” Those were the same instructions she gave her every morning.
“Okay mummy,” Seyi responded and rolled her eyes.
Mrs. Cole saw her saucy attitude. “Ejo e ko (it’s not your fault).” She told her and hissed. She turned to Bayo and Bolu, “Eyin omo (children), let’s go.” She carried her bag and stood up.
Seyi followed them out of the house and helped open the gate, she waved as her mum drove off.
She went back into the house and tidied up the kitchen and dining where they had just eaten then she went to her room. She lay on the bed looking straight at the ceiling trying to paint a mental picture of her plan for the day. Gradually her eyes began to close and then off to dream land she went.
It was the sound of her phone ringing that woke her up. She looked at the caller’s ID. It was Sope. “This girl will have my head; I haven’t given her the gist of how yesterday went.” She said as she picked the call.
“Hi Sope!” She said hoping her friend won’t pounce on her.
“You know you are not serious?” Sope didn’t disappoint her.
“I’m sorry Sope; my data was exhausted.” She tried to give an excuse.
“And you couldn’t call?” The tone of her voice revealed her annoyance.
“I didn’t have airtime too” She hoped her explanations would suffice.
“Whatever!”
“Sope, I said I’m sorry.” She knew her friend. She never stayed angry with her for more than a minute.
“Do you now want me to beg you before you give me the gist?” Sope was no longer angry but was eager to hear all Seyi had to say.
Seyi chuckled, “I knew you’ll forgive me. The gist is not exactly what you’re expecting. The guy is a bastard.” She started.
“Ha! What happened?” Sope was in shock.
Seyi hissed, “ He asked me out; I wasn’t even expecting it.”
“So is that why he is a bastard, Seyi?” Sope asked.
“No nah, wait till you hear the full gist. He tried kissing me. I mean who does that?”
“Well guys could be like that, sha.” Sope explained to her.
“Oh please, spare me! That’s not even the problem. Can you imagine that idiot has a girlfriend?”
“Wait! What? It’s a lie.” Sope couldn’t believe her ears.
“I swear! My brother saw his picture and recognized him as his friend’s older sister’s boyfriend. Can you imagine?” Seyi was boiling.
“This guy na big fool!” Sope was even more upset than Seyi.
“I’m telling you. You sef look at it o, he hasn’t called me since yesterday evening. Is that how someone who claims to care would behave? I’m sure he’ll have one useless excuse.”
“We don’t even want his call. He should keep his call to himself.” Sope said.
“Hold on Sope, a call is coming in” Seyi said as she checked who it was. “He is the one calling.”
“What does he want? Abeg he should leave you alone o.” Sope already disliked him.
“I don’t even want to hear his voice. Anyway, how are you? What are you doing today?” Seyi asked, changing the subject of discussion.
“I followed my mum to her office; I’m tired of staying at home.”
“I know right; it’s frustrating.” She looked at her phone and placed it back to her ear. “Can you imagine? He is still calling o.” She informed Sope.
“You know what? Pick the call and hear what he has to say; we’ll talk later.”
“Alright dear, take care.”
“Bye.”
Seyi ended the call and picked Goke’s call, “hello” her tone was flat.
“Hi love!” Goke said.
Seyi was pissed to hear him refer to her as “love”. “What right does he have to call me that?” she thought. She didn’t reply.
“How are you?” He asked when he didn’t get a reply.
“I’m busy.” That was the only response she could think of. She wished she could sound harsher, perhaps raise her voice at him and tell him never to call her again. She just didn’t want to speak to him ever again.
“Oh, I’m sorry; I’ll call you later then?” Goke wanted to know if that would be better.
Seyi ended the call without giving him a reply or allowing him to say another word. She knew he’d be surprised at her action but didn’t care. Instead she hoped it would drive home the message that she was not interested anymore.
Immediately the call ended, she heard a knock on the door. She knew it was no one else but her father.
“Yes?” she sat up in bed wondering what he wanted.
Mr. Cole opened the door and came in. He was wearing a white singlet and a short
“Good afternoon…sorry morning sir.” His presence alone made her nervous.
“Do you know where the iron is?” He asked.
“I think it’s in Bayo’s room. Let me check.” Seyi got up from the bed.
“Okay” he said as he stepped out of the room and waited at the entrance of Bayo’s room.
Seyi went into Bayo’s room and immediately came out with the pressing iron, “Here it is sir” She said, handing it over to him.
Mr. Cole collected it from her and asked, “What did your mum prepare for breakfast?”
“Yam and fried egg sir,” she replied hoping that was all. She wasn’t free or comfortable around her dad.
“Okay” Mr Cole said and went back to his room.
Seyi released her breath, she didn’t even realize she had been holding it, as she walked to her room.
To be continued...
Burning Coles - Episode 6
“Fine, I guess” she told him.
“Hmm the Funke I know is not doing too fine from that voice” he said.
Mrs. Cole began to remember the love and care Emeka once had for her. He knew her so well. He knew when she meant ‘yes’ even if the words coming from her mouth was ‘no’.
She chuckled “I’ll be fine, thanks” she didn’t want them going down that lane.
“You know it won’t be a bad idea for us to see again, say to discuss what’s up with us and the likes. What sayest thou?” he asked.
Mrs. Cole remembered the funny way he always spoke, composing his sentence after the pattern of the Old Kings James version of the Bible. “so you have not changed this your way of speaking?” she chuckled.
“No my lord, thy servant changest not his way” they both burst into laughter.
“In that case, they handsmaiden shall be so delighted to honour thine invitation” she said.
“That’s good, I’ve always known you to be a good learner” he complimented her.
“Thanks dear” she had said ‘dear’ before she realized it. She covered her mouth wishing she could take it back. Although dear these days was a general term used to refer to friends and meant nothing, she hoped it wasn’t going to bring back memories because it was one of the pet names they used for each other.
“We could meet at Evelyn’s Kitchen. I hear the food there is really nice. It’s not too far from where we met. Is that okay” he asked.
“Oh I know the place, haven’t been there before though. I guess we could try it out.”
“Okay great, is tomorrow okay?” he asked.
“Yes, what time?”
“You’ll be the one to decide that, my work is very flexible as a matter of fact, I work from home most times” he told her.
“Okay, I usually leave the office by 4pm but I could leave earlier. I usually pick the children around 4:30 so let’s work towards 2pm. That should be fine” she said.
“Okay cool. Tomorrow 2pm it is then.”
“Yes” she smiled.
“Thanks for the call, you made my day” Emeka told her.
“Well, it was actually you that called” Mrs. Cole said.
He laughed “oh that’s true, anyway it was so good hearing from you again. Take care of yourself. See you tomorrow” he told her.
“You too, bye” she gradually dropped the phone, smiling as it dawned on her that she was going to see Emeka the next day. She was so excited and really looking forward to it.
As she was basking in the joy of the moment, Mr. Cole opened the door leading to their room and barely acknowledging her, walked straight to the wardrobe, put on a T-shirt, changed his shorts into a pair of jeans, “I’m going to the bar” he told her and left.
Mrs. Cole watched him but didn’t say a word. The mere sight of the man, dampened her countenance. When he left, she resumed working on her laptop.
After about 2 hours, she was tired and decided to suspend the work. She saved it and shut down then laptop then went to the kitchen to fix dinner for the family.
She was in a good mood that night, she decided to make pancakes, she knew all her children liked it. Bolu came to join her in the kitchen.
“Where are your siblings?” she asked her.
“Sis Seyi is sleeping, bro Bayo is in his room” Bolu replied.
“That boy is always in his room and I’m sure the door is locked as usual” Mrs Cole said as she measured out the flour.
“Guess what’s for dinner” Mrs Cole asked, excited. She always liked the beam on Bolu’s face every time she smiled.
“What mummy? What?” Bolu jumped with excitement.
“Pancakes!” Mrs Cole smiled.
“Yeeeeeeeey thank you mummy. You’re the best” Bolu said and hugged her mum.
Mrs. Cole was moved by her daughter’s gestures. As Bolu held on to her, she remembered why she was still in this marriage. She knew her children where worth all the sacrifices.
“Why don’t you go and call your brother so the cooking can be faster” Mrs Cole told her.
“Okay mummy” Bolu said and zoomed off to call Bayo.
As was her usual custom, she barged into the room without knocking or being told to come in. Bayo, on the other hand, wasn’t prepared. His door wasn’t locked this time around.
“Bro Bayo, mummy said…” she froze immediately she opened the door. Her hand glued to the door knob and her words stuck in her mouth. The innocent girl was traumatized by what she saw, it was the last thing she expected to see when she opened the door to her brother’s room.
“What’s your problem, Bolu? Don’t you know how to knock?” Bayo asked, angry and ashamed at the same time. He had been caught red handed and there was no hiding this time around.
He quickly put on his trousers and a T Shirt “I said you should get out of my room” he shouted at his sister who was still in shock. Her innocent mind could not comprehend what she had just seen: her brother masturbating. As he kept shouting at her, she transited from shock to fear. What she had just seen, nothing or no one could ever wipe off her memory. “What could be worse?” She wondered. She felt like a terrible sinner. She began to blame herself, tears immediately began to well up in her eyes.
“What is it? Why are you now crying?” Bayo asked, wondering the reason for the tears.
The tears began to flow and she began to sob. Bayo walked up to her and began to pat her but as he did, she cried more. He didn’t want their mum to hear so he began to beg her to stop crying. This only made things worse. “Bolu please I’m begging you, stop crying” he pleaded.
Mrs. Cole heard Bolu’s voice and from the kitchen shouted “What is going on there?”
Bayo pleaded harder “Bolu please don’t let mummy come and see you crying. I will buy you sweet” he tried to bribe her.
Nothing he did or said pacified her.
Mrs. Cole couldn’t take it anymore. She left what she was doing in the kitchen and went to check up on Bolu. “Bolu what is it? What happened? Why are you crying?” she asked as she squatted to the level of her height.
Bolu couldn’t speak. No words could come out even if she tried. She looked petrified. She threw her hands around her mother’s neck.
Mrs. Cole hugged her “It’s alright my dear” she said softly as she looked up to Bayo who was standing in front of her and asked “what happened?”
Bayo shrugged his shoulders. “Mummy I don’t know, she just got to my room and started crying. Maybe a bee stung her or something” he lied but unfortunately for him, he was terrible at lying.
“A bee? From where would it have come? Won’t there have been a bite mark on her body?” Mrs Cole asked, not convinced with his reply. She patted Bolu on the back, “Sorry my baby, stop crying, mummy is here now you hear?” she consoled Bolu who gradually stopped crying and managed to gather the strength to whisper in her mum’s ears “mummy I’m scared”.
Mrs Cole couldn’t fathom what could have made Bolu scared all of a sudden. She wondered if it had anything to do with what she opened up to her about her uncle, Gboyega earlier that day. “Don’t worry my baby, uncle Gboyega will never step into this house again” she assured her.
Bolu stopped crying but remained quiet.
Mrs. Cole stood up wondering what could have triggered the panic she just witnessed Bolu have. It was a drastic contrast to the excited Bolu that had just left the kitchen. “Come, I’ll put the TV on Cartoon network for you” she told her as she held her hand and walked towards the sitting room.
“Bayo, join me in the kitchen, I’m preparing pancakes” Mrs. Cole told Bayo.
“Okay ma” Bayo followed them behind, his heart racing as he prayed within him that Bolu would keep her mouth shut about what she had just seen.
Mrs Cole turned on the TV while Bolu sat on the couch opposite it watching Peppa pig.
She returned to the kitchen and with Bayo’s assistance, prepared dinner. As the last pancake slice was being fried, Seyi who had just woken up and was very hungry walked into the kitchen.
“Ope o (Thank God) pancakes. I’m so hungry” she said as she cut a little from the fried slices.
“Sleeping beauty is awake” Mrs Cole said smiling at Seyi
“And she is hungry” Seyi said. “What inspired pancakes?”
“What can I say? I was in a good mood and I felt like making them, it has been a while.”
“Yes it has” Seyi agreed “where is Bolu?” it was unusual not seeing her in the kitchen when her mum was preparing any food she liked.
“She is watching TV in the sitting room” Mrs Cole told her.
“That’s unlike her” Seyi said. “I hope she is okay”
“Bayo go and check on your sister?” Mrs. Cole instructed him.
“Who? Me?” he asked, almost stammering.
“No, your twin brother in Japan” she said sarcastically and hissed. “How many people are bearing Bayo here?”
“Don’t worry mummy, I’ll go and check on her” Seyi said and left the kitchen. When she got to the siting room, she met Bolu sleeping. She took the remote control and reduced the volume of the TV.
“I better wake her up, dinner is ready” Seyi thought. She tapped her gently “Bolu…Bolu” she called her name in a soft tone.
Bolu woke up and initially looking around wondering where she was “where is mummy?” she asked Seyi, with sleep still in her eyes.
“She is in the kitchen. Food is ready” Seyi told her.
Bolu got up and went straight to the kitchen.
“B Baby, how are you?” her mum asked her with a smile.
“Fine.” She usually didn’t say much whenever she just woke up.
Mrs. Cole served two slices of pancake in a plastic plate and offered Bolu. “Is two okay for you?”
Bolu nodded then collected the plate and went to the dining.
“How many can you finish, Seyi?” Her mum asked as she took a plate ready to serve her.
“Four for now” she smiled.
Mrs. Cole served four slices in a plate and gave Seyi. “Pour out juice for yourself and your siblings.”
“What of you?” Seyi asked “don’t you want juice too?”
“And for me too. That’s how I always forget myself”, she shook her head.
Seyi took three glasses and a plastic cup then poured out the chilled chivita she took from the fridge.
“How about you Bayo?” Mrs Cole asked.
“Me?” Bayo seemed disoriented and agitated.
“Bayo what exactly is wrong with you tonight? Why have you been shaky and jittery? How many slices can you finish?” Mrs Cole asked, holding a plate for him.
“Four…four is okay ma” he stammered.
She served his food and handed it over to him. “Go and sit with your sister on the dining table” she told him.
“Mummy please can I go to my room?” he asked.
“No! Go and stay with your sister. When did that rubbish start? Don’t let me get angry with you this night” she snapped at him.
“I’m sorry ma” he apologized and took his food to the dining.
The dining table was wooden and oval shaped, it was surrounded with six chairs. Bayo sat three chairs away from Bolu while Seyi sat right beside her.
Mrs. Cole came to join them at the table. “Bayo when you are done eating, go and iron you and Bolu’s uniform for school tomorrow. Okay?”
“Okay ma” he answered.
“Seyi, I know you are tired of staying at home. Are you sure you don’t want to start considering A-levels?” Mrs Cole asked her.
Seyi knew her mum was right. It had been five months since she finished from school and the universities she had applied to study Law didn’t seem forthcoming. “I’m beginning to consider it, mummy. I’ll get more information about the good ones available” she told her mum. Seyi wanted nothing more than to be out of the house.
Bayo was the first to finish his food, “mummy thank you” he said as he stood up and took his plate to the kitchen. He washed it and went to his room.
“Mummy thank you for the meal” Seyi said. “I think I’m ready for bed, it appears I’ll be sleeping early tonight” she told her mum.
“Alright dear” Mrs. Cole said then quickly added “before I forget, how was Sope’s place? Hope you enjoyed yourself.”
“Sope’s place?” Seyi wondered what her mum was referring to.
“Is that how fast you have forgotten how you were begging me that you wanted to go to Sope’s house?” Mrs. Cole juggled her memory a bit.
“Oh, Sope’s place. It was fine. I didn’t stay long, I wasn’t feeling too well so I asked the driver to drop” Seyi lied again. It’s true what they say, ‘you always use one lie to cover up another.’
“Really? Hope you are fine now” Mrs. Cole asked.
“Yes mummy, much better. Thank you.”
“That’s fine. Take your sister inside. Both of you should go and sleep. I’ll wait for your daddy to come back” that was Mrs. Cole’s daily burden.
“Goodnight mummy” Seyi said as she held Bolu’s hand “let’s go and sleep”, she told her baby sister.
“Goodnight mummy” Bolu said as she followed her sister.
“Goodnight dear” Mrs Cole said as she watched them go inside.
To be continued...
Super Eagles crash OUT of AFCON 2022 - latest updates
Nigeria out of the Africa Cup of Nations with a 1-0 win in Sunday’s last-16 clash.
The game was won up just 63 seconds into the second-half when Youssef Msakni was given all the time and space he could ask for as he took aim from 25 yards.
His bouncing, dipping shot caught young goalkeeper Maduka Okoye off guard and his weak parry was unable to prevent the ball from nestling in the corner of the net.
Alex Iwobi then left his studs on Msakni as he controlled the ball and was initially booked for leaving his opponent writhing on the turf. VAR wanted a second look, however, and the red card was produced to further damage the Super Eagles’ chances.
For a side that won all three of their group games and even rested the majority of their stars for their previous match, tournament favourites Nigeria looked out of ideas in the face of some heroic defending.
Umar Sadiq had the best chance to add to the cup’s growing repertoire of late drama, only to see his shot roll across the face of the goal and wide of the far-post. Tunisia will play Burkina Faso in Saturday’s quarter-final.
Match highlights
GOAL! Msakni from distance for Tunisia
RED CARD! Iwobi is dismissed minutes after coming on
The inquest begins for Nigeria
21:18 ,
All eyes now turn to March’s World Cup qualification showdown with Ghana for the Super Eagles.
The identity of their long-term boss will be a key factor as Augustine Eguavoen is only the interim coach, amid talks of Portuguese manager Jose Peseiro coming in.
Reports suggest the former Sporting CP boss is yet to actually sign his contract after being announced as the incoming manager.
The big names keep tumbling
21:11 ,
We may be on for a surprise winner of this year’s AFCON with Nigeria the third giant of the continent to fall.
Ghana were first to go after a shock defeat at the hands of Comoros before holders Algeria also slumped out at the group stage.
Who could be next?
Next up for Tunisia...
21:04 ,
Burkina Faso await for the Eagles of Carthage on Saturday at 7pm back in Garoua.
What a win for Tunisia
20:59 ,
The winning moment
20:55 ,
Full-time! Nigeria 0-1 Tunisia
20:51 ,
NIGERIA ARE OUT!
TUNISIA GO THROUGH!
20:50 ,
90+5 mins: A header flicks the set-piece on, and into touch. Tunisia are nearly there...
20:49 ,
90+4 mins: Ben Slimane replaced by defender Rekik before another Nigeria free-kick.
20:49 ,
90+3 mins: Sadiq manages to break into the area and attempts to tee up a teammate, only for a Tunisian foot to once again shut things down.
20:47 ,
90+2 mins: Simon has a chance to load the box from a free-kick and Tunisia clear nicely, before a smart counter straight to the corner flag to hold up the ball.
20:46 ,
90+1 mins: BIG CHANCE!
Sadiq is fed through the right channel and rolls a shot beyond the goalkeeper... and wide of the far-post.
20:45 ,
90 mins: Five minutes added on...
20:43 , Marc Mayo
88 mins: Aribo off for captain Musa - can he be Nigeria’s saviour?
20:43 ,
87 mins: Are we set for more late drama in this AFCON clash?
Note: This update is from the time of 20:43pm - 21:18pm
More updates coming your way 🤗...
Burning Coles - Episode 5
She quickly turned her face away “Goke, please stop it. I need time. I’ll have to think about this and get back to you” she told him.
He moved away and sat back in his seat “I totally understand. I’m sorry if I rushed you. It’s not my nature, I just really like you and was expressing my feelings that’s all” he explained.
Seyi remained quiet. She was beginning to wonder if sneaking out and lying to her mum so she could see Goke was worth it. She began to feel so uneasy and uncomfortable. She didn’t feel free around him anymore. Deep down, she wanted to go back home but didn’t know how to tell him. “What have I gotten myself into?” she asked herself.
Just as the thoughts were running through her mind, she began to feel her tummy churn. “Goke I’m not feeling too good” she told him. “I think I need to use the toilet, my tummy is rumbling” she placed her hand on her tummy and began to retch bending over ready to vomit.
“What is the problem?” he asked with so much concern. “Will you use the toilet at the eatery?” he placed his hand on her shoulder.
“No. I think I’ll just go back home. I won’t be able to make it to the eatery. Please can you take me back home?” she asked looking so unwell.
“Okay if that’s the only choice we have, then let me drop you” he started the car and quickly turned around. He drove pretty fast, looking at her from time to time to ensure she was okay.
When he got to the gate leading to her estate, he asked “where is your house?”
Seyi pointed straight “just keep going”.
He drove a few meters.
“You can stop now, thank you” she said still holding her tummy and bending over. “I’m sorry, I spoilt our plans, we will have to reschedule. I’m really sorry” she explained as she came down.
“It’s okay, I’m glad I was able to see you again. Please think about all I said, take care of yourself.”
“Okay bye” she shut the door and rushed towards the gate. Thankfully, she had a copy of the key to the gate and didn’t need to wait for anyone to open the gate for her. She ran through the kitchen door and went straight to the toilet. It was in between her room and Bayo’s room. The two rooms shared a toilet and bathroom. Everyone but Mr. Cole, who was in the sitting room watching TV, were in their rooms.
When she was done using the toilet, she went to her room.
“Sister Seyi, what happened?” Bolu asked. “I thought you went out.”
“I’m back” Seyi said as she dropped her bag on the floor and threw herself on the bed.
“What happened?” Bolu was both curious and inquisitive.
“I wasn’t feeling too good” Seyi answered hoping that was sufficient enough to quench Bolu’s thirst for information.
“Sorry, how are you feeling now?” she asked with concern.
“Much better, strangely” Seyi herself couldn’t explain what just happened. One moment she was fine, the next moment she was so uneasy so much so her tummy began to rumble.
She thought of either calling or sending a text to Goke but as she brought her phone out of her bag, she got disinterested and instead flung it on the bed.
“What did you eat?” Seyi asked Bolu. Hunger pangs were beginning to set in. The feeling of excitement had masked the hunger all along.
“Jollof rice and chicken. Mummy left yours in the warmer” Bolu told her.
Seyi stood up to change her cloth before going to the kitchen. As she was about walking out of the room, she took a closer look at Bolu. “Is that makeup on your face?”
Bolu giggled.
“It’s not funny Bolu, what are you doing with my make up?”
“It was mummy’s own, not your own” Bolu immediately became defensive. “Is it only you that has make up?”
“That’s your business, just don’t touch my things. Did mummy allow you use her make up?”
“She is sleeping” Bolu said and stuck out her tongue.
“I pity you, let her catch you. How old are you that you are using make up?” Seyi hissed and left the room.
“Leave me alone” Bolu said rudely.
Seyi went to the kitchen and found the warmer on the tiled kitchen counter beside the microwave. She dished the rice into a ceramic plate and took a piece of chicken from the pot then went to the dining to devour the meal.
As she took the first spoon, her phone rang, it was Goke. She picked it after the second ring.
“Hi Goke” she said.
“Hello Seyi, how are you feeling?”
“I’m better, I’m really sorry I messed everything up” she told him.
“Haba, it’s okay. I’m glad you are better now. We can always meet some other time. Make sure you rest well” he sounded very caring.
“Thank you, I will”
“You are welcome dear”
There was silence.
“I love you” Goke said without mincing words.
Seyi didn’t know what to say. She didn’t feel it was right to tell him she loved him too when they were not dating. More so, she believed “love” was a strong word to use just anyhow and she wondered if what she felt for him was love of something else. She felt a strange and entirely new feeling she had never experienced before. She was both excited and uneasy at the same time. She wasn’t just settled deep within her.
“Thank you” she mumbled and immediately ended the call. Her appetite was gone, she managed to finish the food.
She couldn’t keep it to herself any more. She needed to talk to someone and the only person that came to her mind was Sope. She sent a WhatsApp message to her but noticed it didn’t deliver.
“What could be wrong?” she wondered. “I hope my data has not finished?” she said as she quickly checked her data balance. “Oh no, the useless thing didn’t even last two weeks” she was annoyed as she took her plate to the kitchen, washed it and went to her room.
On her way to her room, she decided to check on Bayo. His room was directly opposite hers. As she tried opening the door, she realized it was locked.
She knocked “Bayo open the door” she said and waited for his response.
“I’m coming.”
“Why are you always locking your door, only God knows what you are always doing” Seyi was getting tired of waiting.
“Didn’t I say I’m coming?” Bayo repeated himself as he opened the door.
“Sorry sir, I didn’t know we had to have special IV before we can enter your room now” Seyi said sarcastically as she walked into his room.
“Sorry, that’s not what I meant” Bayo apologized.
As Seyi walked into the room, she spotted their mother’s internet modem on the bed. “What is mummy’s modem doing here? You know she mustn’t know, she has warned you not to use it because it’s for her work” Seyi was referred to as ‘small Police’. Bayo hated when she snooped around looking for loop holes with which she threatened him and Bolu.
“It was just this afternoon I took it, I wanted to watch something on YouTube, please don’t tell mummy” he begged.
“On one condition” Seyi said with a mischievous smile as she sat on the bed.
“What condition?” Bayo asked already nervous.
“Share Hot spot with me, my data just finished” Seyi was smart and always had a way of making her younger siblings do whatever she wanted.
“But mine isn’t much, that was why I took mummy’s modem” he told her hoping she’ll understand.
“Then mummy will know you took her modem” Seyi said cunningly.
“Fine, only little.”
“Deal” Seyi replied. “Where is your phone?” She asked.
“Beside you” he said reluctantly.
Seyi turned to her right and saw his phone close to the pillow. She picked it and handed it over to him “type your password.”
Bayo did and quickly closed the YouTube app.
“Is it on?” she asked.
“Is what on?” Bayo was distracted by the app he was closing.
“The Hot spot of course, what else?”
“Oh,” he turned it on “it’s on. I’ll have to put my password on your phone” he informed her.
“This is not the first time I’m using your wi-fi, I don’t need the password,” Seyi was so confident of that.
“Well you do because I changed it” Bayo smirked, glad to have faulted her smart mouth. He stretched his hand to collect her phone then he typed the password. Immediately he did, a WhatsApp message from Goke entered her phone. Bayo wasn’t the inquisitive type but for reasons, he clicked the notification and opened the chat. “Who is Goke?” he asked, still looking through her phone.
“Give me my phone” Seyi struggled with Bayo to collect it.
“Chill I know him” Bayo said as he enlarged his profile picture. “This is Feyikemi’s boyfriend” Bayo said still stirring at the picture.
“What? Who is Feyikemi?” Seyi was dumbfounded.
“Sijuade’s senior sister” Bayo replied and added “how do you know him? I heard he is a very bad guy. He knows how to get any girl, as in he is that bad” Bayo emphasized.
“Who told you all these things? Who is Sijuade?” Seyi could not believe her ears.
“My classmate. We just started talking some weeks ago. She was even telling me how she is so concerned about her sister because of the guy she is dating and that she is always with him” Bayo told her.
“Are you sure about this, Bayo?” Seyi’s head was spinning.
“Very serious.”
“I swear guys are useless” Seyi said, stood up and walked towards the door still shocked about the news she had just heard. She was so lost in thoughts, she forgot her phone.
“Your phone” Bayo picked her phone and stretched it to her.
Seyi turned back and collected it.
“Do you still need the Hot Spot?” Bayo asked.
Seyi continued walking out of the room without even realizing Bayo was talking to her.
“That’s weird” Bayo said wondering what was wrong with his sister. “Let me quickly return mummy’s modem before she wakes up” he turned it off and went to his mum’s room to return it, praying and hoping she was still sleeping.
Alas, as he opened the door leading to her, he saw her wide awake. She was sitting up in bed wearing her glasses about opening her bag. He froze.
“What is it?” Mrs. Cole asked wondering why he looked so dazed.
“Nothing ma” he said, his response obviously contrasting his fearful appearance.
“Is your sister back?” Mrs. Cole asked. She wasn’t ready for Bayo’s drama.
“Yes ma, I think she is in her room” he said. “Should I call her for you?” He added, trying to get out of the room as soon as possible.
“No don’t worry” she said as she opened her bag searching for something. “Where is this modem again?” She asked already getting upset.
“Your modem?” Bayo asked.
“Yes I can’t find it and I want to use it”. She said without looking up as she kept searching the bag.
“Wait, I think I saw it on the dining table” Bayo lied, let me go and check. He left the room without waiting for a response from his mum.
He lingered in front of the door for some minutes and knocked on the door.
“Come in” Mrs. Cole said.
Bayo opened the door “this is it” he stretched it to her.
“Mrs Cole collected it “why is it hot?” she asked him, looking at him above her glasses.
Bayo had been caught red handed and he knew it. “Em…em” he stammered. “I’m sorry ma” he apologized.
“That’s what you always say. I know what I’ll do to you. When you don’t have money to buy anything tomorrow during break time in school and when you don’t have and money for credit and data, you will know you are sorry.” His mum meant every single word she had just uttered.
“Mummy please it won’t happen again, I promise” he begged.
“My friend will you get out of my room” she shouted at him. “What you did is called stealing and lying, in case you didn’t know.” she hissed.
Bayo left the room feeling bad.
Mrs. Cole brought out her laptop to work. She turned it on and waited for it to boot. As she did, her mind went to Emeka again. “What is wrong with me? Emeka and I are both married. The past is in the past” she tried convincing herself.
She picked the complementary card he gave her and looked at it again. “He must be well to do” she said as she replayed in her mind the 15 minutes she had with him some hours ago. “Who says I cannot call him? It wasn’t like I asked for the card, he gave me” she told herself as she picked her phone and before any opposing thought came, she was already dialing his number.
Unfortunately, he didn’t pick the call.
Mrs. Cole dropped the phone, disappointed. “I don’t know what I was thinking. Am I a child?” She reasoned.
She decided to focus on her work, she had a presentation the next day at work and had not finished preparing the PowerPoint slides. As soon as she opened the document she was about to work on, her phone rang. It was Emeka. Her heart began to race, her fingers trembled as she reached for the phone and picked the call.
“Hello” the male voice which brought back old memories said.
She was speechless.
“Hello?” he repeated himself this time around in a questioning tone. “Please who is on the line?” he asked politely.
“Hi, it’s Funke” she managed to gather some words. “Is this Emeka?” she asked even though she could bet her next month’s salary, it was him.
“Hey Funke, so good to hear from you. You won’t believe it, I was just thinking about you. I was saying to myself “why didn’t I collect your number?” I’m so glad you called” he sounded excited.
“Really? That’s interesting. I was hoping my call wasn’t too early” Mrs Cole confessed.
“Early? Of course not. The timing was just perfect” he said. “So how are you doing?”
Mrs. Cole knew that her life took a down turn when she made that decision that day in her father’s house. She wished more than anything that she was Mrs. Nwafor not Mrs. Cole.
To be continued...
Burning Coles - Episode 4
“You don’t say!” The man in his mid-forties exclaimed.
“Emeka!” She screamed his name, her face flushed with a pleasant surprise. That was the last person she expected to see. “It’s so good to see you,” she said as she hugged him warmly.
“It sure is,” he responded as he hugged her. “I was sitting right there when you walked in,” he pointed to the table at the corner. “I kept arguing with myself that it wasn’t you but someone that looked like you.”
“It is me oh,” she replied, her voice bubbling with delight.
“You look good as always; who would have thought that aging will look this pretty on you?” He complimented her.
“It’s been what… twenty years?” Mrs. Cole asked still amazed at who was standing in front of her.
“Eighteen years actually,” Emeka corrected.
“Oh wow! You remember the exact period.”
“How could I have forgotten such a life changing experience, Funke?” His facial expression revealed some hurt.
Mrs. Cole read it and immediately knew what he was talking about, as her own mind journeyed down memory lane.
“Mummy, the snacks and drinks are ready,” Bolu tapped her mum, snapping her out of her thoughts.
“Is this your daughter?” Emeka asked, smiling down at the young girl who was already showing the promise of becoming a stunner like her mother.
“Yes,” Mrs. Cole replied smiling as she ruffled Bolu’s curls. “This is Bolu, the youngest; this is Bayo, the second and…” Turning to the right where she expected her eldest daughter to be, “Where is your sister?” she asked.
“She went to use the toilet,” Bolu replied.
“You have lovely children; there is no doubt where they got their looks from,” Emeka said.
Mrs. Cole couldn’t help but smile; then turning to them said, “Won’t you greet?”
“Good afternoon sir,” they chorused.
“One minute, please?” Mrs. Cole, with her right index finger daintily raised, asked to be excused. She turned to the attendant, “How much is my bill?”
“2,920 naira,” he responded
Mrs. Cole brought out her debit card to pay.
Emeka immediately brought out his wallet and said, “Funke please let me handle it.” He stretched his hand forward to give his debit card to the attendant and told him, “Add it to my bill.”
“Thank you, Emeka. You really didn’t have to.” Mrs. Cole said with a smile.
“Oh please, it’s the least I could do for such a dear friend I have not seen in almost two decades.
“I really appreciate it,” Mrs. Cole said as she picked up the snacks and handed the paper bags containing them over to Bayo. “Bolu, go and call your sister; I don’t know if she’s delivering a baby in the toilet,” she said to Bolu as she turned to leave.
“So are you here on a visit or what?” Mrs. Cole wanted to know.
“Not exactly. My family and I moved to Lagos about two years ago. I got transferred from Abuja.” He told her as they walked towards the exit.
“Your family?” Mrs. Cole didn’t realize she wasn’t the only one with a family.
“Yeah, my wife and two sons live at Ikoyi,” he told her as he held the door for Bayo and her to exit the building while he followed behind.
“That’s really nice,” Mrs. Cole said as she fought thoughts of jealousy that were beginning to creep into her mind.
“I could pay you a visit one of these days,” Emeka said as he brought out his complementary card and handed it over to her. “Let’s keep in touch,” he said.
“I sure will. Thank you once again.” Mrs. Cole collected the card and smiled.
“Alright take care, my regards to your husband” he said, then left.
“Husband!” That word made Mrs. Cole’s heart ache especially when she realized that the tall ruggedly handsome man, exuding so much charm and confidence, walking towards the parking lot and entering a black SUV was the man who should have been bearing that title.
She entered into her car and waited for Seyi and Bolu.
“Mummy, who was that man?” Bayo asked.
“An old friend,” she said. “Where are your sisters?” she asked, changing the subject quickly.
“There they are,” Bayo pointed at the door as they came out. “I wonder what took them so long,” he said.
“I wonder too.”
Seyi and Bolu approached arguing.
“Bolu, you never mind your business,” Seyi snapped at her younger sister.
“Everything is my business. You too, why can’t you let me check your phone?” Bolu asked.
“Because it’s my phone not yours.”
“Both of you should enter the car and stop fighting like cat and dog, I don’t have all the time in the world.” Mrs. Cole told them as she turned on the ignition of the car.
“We need to get home in time so your daddy doesn’t get upset,” she told them.
“Mummy, please can I go to Sope’s house later this afternoon?” Seyi asked again. She had still not gotten a convincing response.
“So it’s because of Sope’s house you are giving everybody that cold attitude, right?” Mrs. Cole asked. “I was talking to you the other time and you were barely responding. Now that you want my permission, you are now behaving as if all is well.”
“Mummy, it’s not like that.” Seyi tried to defend herself.
“It’s like what?” Mrs. Cole asked as she reversed out of the car park.
“I’m having menstrual pain,” Seyi said.
“So, you decided to suffer in silence because you are the first person to have menstrual pain. Better eat and take paracetamol when we get home. Is it with menstrual pain you want to visit Sope?” Mrs Cole asked.
“No ma, when I take the paracetamol, I’ll be fine.” Seyi quickly said.
“Iwo lomo (suit yourself),” Mrs Cole told her.
“Mummy, please may we take our snacks now?” Bolu asked eager to dig into hers.
“Wo (look) do whatever you want,” she snapped. She was beginning to get cranky, transferring her disappointment and frustration on the innocent children. She knew that it all stemmed from seeing Emeka again.
As she drove home, she started thinking about her life: what it was and what it could have been if her parents didn’t ruin it by not allowing her marry the one person she truly desired to marry. “At over forty, he still looks so good. See his car, he works with a multinational oil and gas firm. I’m sure he probably lives in a mansion. Oh, how I wish it was Emeka I got married to and not that idiot that calls himself a husband.” She didn’t know when she started entertaining negative envious thoughts, comparing her husband with Emeka. She hated the state in which she had found herself. “Why me? Why did all this happen to me? God knows, if I could reverse the hand of time, I wouldn’t have listened to my parents. In the end, did I still marry someone from our village? When a rich influential man from Lagos told my parents his son was interested in me, they stupidly and greedily didn’t object just because of money. I was foolish to think they cared about me. Where is the money now? The useless husband spends all he has on alcohol and my parents are not here to suffer with me,” she went on and on with thoughts of regret and bitterness until she got to the gate of the house.
“Do you need a prophet to tell you to come down and open the gate?” She snapped at Bayo.
Neither Bayo nor his siblings could grasp what was going on with their mother.
Bayo got down and opened the gate.
Mrs. Cole drove into the compound and parked the car.
“Seyi, carry my bag and the remaining snacks inside for me,” Mrs. Cole told Seyi as the turned off the car and released a deep sigh without even realizing it.
“Mummy are you okay?” Bolu asked.
“What kind of question is that? My friend come down from the car and go inside!” She barked. Her mood was sour and she hated it.
They all got down and went inside. Mr. Cole was seated in the sitting room, watching TV.
“Good afternoon sir,” the children greeted him.
He looked towards their direction and continued watching TV, ignoring them.
They left the sitting room and went to their rooms.
“Daddy Seyi, good afternoon,” Mrs. Cole said after the children had gone.
“What is good about the afternoon?” He asked, angry. “What is the time?”
Mrs. Cole looked at her wrist watch “12:45”, she replied.
“Is there a reason you are just coming back at this time?” he asked, raising his voice.
Mrs. Cole didn’t respond.
“Oh, so now you have decided to give me the silent treatment?”
“No, it’s not that. The children…” she tried to explain.
“The children what!” He cut in sharply. “The children what?” he repeated.
“Listen to me and listen well, let this be the last time you would take forever before returning home from church. Am I clear?”
“Yes,” Mrs. Cole mumbled. She was so upset and deep down wished she could strangulate the man to death. The only thing that kept her in this marriage was her three children. She angrily walked out of the sitting room and went to her room.
As she got to her room, she sat on the bed and cast her mind back to when she met Emeka at the eatery. She remembered he had given her his card. She reached for her bag which Seyi dropped on her bed together with her snacks and drink. She found Emeka’s card and kept stirring at it.
Thoughts of regret began to linger again this time around, causing her intense sadness. She didn’t know when tears welled up in her eyes and began to drop.
She brought out her phone from her bag and saved his number. She felt if at all she was going to call him, it was too early to do so.
She dropped her phone on the bed and stood up to change her church attire into a long free dress. As she was doing that, her phone rang. She looked at the caller’s ID, it was a strange number. She wasn’t expecting any call. She picked the call and said, “Hello”.
“Hello, good afternoon,” a male voice replied.
“Good afternoon,” she said, wondering who it was.
“I’m sure you are wondering who this is,” the voice said with a chuckle.
“Yes, I am,” she said bluntly, she wasn’t in the mood for games.
“That’s fine. This is Pastor George.” He replied.
“Oh, Pastor George, good afternoon sir,” she said with a smile. “I’m sorry, I don’t have this number saved on my phone.”
“No problem. Something happened to the other line and I lost my contacts. I got yours today from someone in church. I hope you don’t mind?” He asked.
“No problem at all sir.”
“It’s just that I’ve been having this really strong burden for you and I still feel we should see to talk and pray.” He told her.
“Thank you, for your concern sir” Mrs. Cole sincerely appreciated it.
“We could meet in church sometime during the week,” she suggested.
Okay that’s fine. How is Tuesday, before Bible study?” He asked.
“Let’s make it 3pm; I’ll need to get home early. I won’t be attending Bible study.” She explained.
“Can I ask why?”
“It’s complicated sir,” she knew the simple answer is because her husband won’t allow her. Permitting them go for Sunday service is the best he did.
“Okay, 3pm it is then.”
“Alright sir, take care sir.”
“Bye” He ended the call.
She dropped the phone and continued changing her dress then heard a knock on the door.
“Who is it?” She asked.
“Mummy, it’s me,” the feminine voice replied.
“Come in,” she replied her, pretty sure it was Seyi.
She opened the door and came in. “Mummy,” she paused as if to get her mum’s attention.
“Yes, what is it?” Mrs. Cole wasn’t even looking in her direction, all that was on her mind was preparing lunch in time so Mr. Cole won’t start another fuss.
“You haven’t still said anything about if I can go to Sope’s house,” Seyi told her mum, this time around, her tone was low and so polite.
“That’s because I have not made up my mind” Mrs. Cole said, as she removed her jewelries and placed them on the dressing table.
“When will you make up your mind please?” Seyi was so gentle and calm.
Mrs. Cole looked at her, “so, it’s because you want something from me that you are acting like someone stole your money?”
Seyi smiled a little, “please mummy, please.”
“That’s how she will be begging me like I have something that belongs to her. How are your thighs?” She asked.
“A lot better,” Seyi replied promptly.
“Okay. I want you to join me in preparing lunch. Once it’s ready, you can leave.” Mrs. Cole said as she picked a hanger from the wardrobe.
“Thank you, thank you mummy; you are the best,” she jumped in excitement then felt some pain in her thigh. “Ouch” she groaned.
“What is that?” Mrs. Cole turned around to ask.
“Nothing ma,” she quickly replied. “What’s for lunch? Let me go and start.” Seyi was eager to get it over with.
“Parboil seven cups of rice, bring out the chicken and the bowl of blended pepper from the freezer; I will join you soon.”
“Okay ma”, she said as she turned around to leave.
“Jo sanu mi (please have mercy on me), be careful with fire and hot water o, don’t let what happened yesterday repeat itself.” She warned her.
“Okay ma, I will be very careful.” Seyi said as she exited the room. On her way to the kitchen, she sent a WhatsApp message to Goke; “My mum has given me permission to go to Sope’s house. I’ll let you know when I am almost ready so you can start coming.”
She waited awhile for his reply as she entered the kitchen but didn’t get any so decided to drop the phone and start up with the cooking before her mum came.
Just after bringing the bowls of chicken and pepper out of the freezer, she heard a message notification tone. She dropped the bowls and quickly picked her phone to check what message it was. Goke had just replied; “Okay great, I’m ready when you are.”
Seyi smiled and dropped the phone then continued what she was doing. She felt a prick in her conscience and a thought crossed her mind, “Is this right?”
She ignored it and continued washing the seven cups of rice she had measured.
Again, she felt uneasy and that question popped again, “Is what you are doing right?”
“There is nothing wrong in going to see a friend” She replied, ready to argue.
“Was that what you told your mum?” Her conscience interrogated her further.
“Both Sope and Goke are my friends.” She replied.
“Your mum doesn’t know about Goke.”
“Leave me alone!” She snapped aloud, obviously distressed by the thoughts.
She started singing to avoid hearing anymore of what her mind had to tell her. Even though the thoughts stopped, the uneasiness and lack of peace persisted.
Some minutes later, her mum came to join her in the kitchen. She saw that Seyi had started parboiling the rice as she had instructed and she praised her, “Kuse (well done), let me prepare the sauce for the jollof rice.”
“Okay ma,” Seyi said and began to bring out the ingredients she knew her mother would need.
“That reminds me Seyi” her mum started, “there is something that has been on my mind to talk to you about.”
Seyi turned to her and listened with rapt attention. Her mother and her hardly had discussions. Aside the regular “mummy good morning”, “mummy I need this or that”; they never really had that mother-daughter intimacy. This was partly because Seyi as much as possible locked herself out of the affairs of the home, no thanks to her father’s unruly nature.
When Seyi was much younger, things were a lot better. Quarrels between her parents were less frequent. Her home then was a home but ever since her father gave in to drunkenness, she detested her home and always sought every opportunity to be as far from home as possible and unfortunately for her mum and her, they gradually drifted apart.
“Okay ma,” Seyi said wondering what it could be that her mother wanted to talk to her about.
“You know you are no longer a child. You are done with secondary school and the next phase of your life is going to the higher institution.” Mrs. Cole said as she poured oil into the pot on fire.
Seyi listened, still not sure where her mum was headed.
“This is the period of your life when boys will be hovering round you like flies. They’ll claim to love you; some will tell you they can’t do without you and tell you all sort of lies just to manipulate you into falling for them,” she reduced the heat under the pot and gave Seyi her full attention. “This is not the time for all that. You can have male friends but please don’t let it go beyond that I beg you, keep yourself pure.”
Seyi stood there speechless, her mind in overdrive as several thoughts chased themselves through it. “Does my mum know about Goke? Has she gone through my phone? That couldn’t be, she doesn’t know my password”, she tried convincing herself. Her mum had never given her the “boy talk” before. “Why now of all times?” She wondered.
“Do you understand what I’m saying?” Mrs. Cole asked still facing Seyi.
“Yes ma, I understand.” Seyi had no choice but to say that she understood. She didn’t want more talk from her mum.
Mrs. Cole turned back, increased the heat under the pot and continued cooking.
Seyi’s phone beeped with a WhatsApp message notification. She picked it and checked the message. It was a message from Goke.
“Hi dear, what time should I come and pick you up?”
Seyi read the message and didn’t know how to respond.
“Was that Sope? I know she’d be expecting you.” Mrs. Cole said.
“Ermm.. no not Sope…Yes she would.” Seyi was not happy lying to her mum but just didn’t know how to stop.
“You shouldn’t go late to her place; I guess you could call her to send her dad’s driver.” Mrs. Cole said.
Seyi didn’t know how to respond anymore. The initial excitement she had had disappeared. She knew what she was doing was wrong; she felt she was repaying her mum’s good with evil. “Okay ma, I’ll do that.” She said and began to compose a message to Goke.
“Does that mean you won’t eat till you get back?” Mrs. Cole asked, concerned as she diced onions into the oil on fire.
“I already had snacks and a drink; I’m not really hungry” Seyi told her mum then sent a message to Goke:
“You can start coming. Let me know when you are at the gate leading into the estate, I’ll meet you there.”
“Mummy I want to go and get ready.” She told her mum.
“Okay” Mrs. Cole said as she continued cooking.
Seyi went into her room. Bolu was sleeping. She stood in front of the rectangular mirror hanging behind the door leading into their room and looked at her reflection. As she did so, she realized she didn’t know what she was doing anymore. “What have I gotten myself into” she reasoned? “Well it’s not like I am doing anything bad; I’m just going to hang out with a friend” She tried convincing herself.
She took her small makeup purse containing her brown powder, eyeshadow, eyeliner and some lipsticks and began to touch up her face. She didn’t want to look too made up so she just used brown powder and a little lipstick.
As she was brushing her hair, Bolu woke up.
“Where are you going, sister Seyi?” she asked.
“Out” She didn’t even look at her sister.
“To see who?”
“None of your business.” Seyi styled her hair and was more or less set. She didn’t bother changing the clothe she wore to church since Goke was the reason she wore that clothe in the first instance.
“I will tell mummy,” Bolu threatened thinking that will make Seyi give her more information.
“Bye bye go and tell her” Seyi said and picked her phone to dial Goke’s number. “I officially have the most annoying sister in the world” she said under her breath as she placed the phone to her ear and waited for him to pick up.
“Hey Seyi” he said immediately he picked the call.
“Hi Go…” she quickly cut and didn’t mention his name so that Bolu won’t know who she was talking to. “Where are you now?”
“I’m close to your estate. You can start walking towards the gate.” He told her.
“Alright, I’ll do that. See you soon.” She ended the call.
“Hmmmmm.. boyfriend is not good o, boyfriend is not now o, boyfriend, boyfriend” Bolu began to sing.
Bolu had not been more annoying. She pissed Seyi off so much that she felt like slapping her but had to control herself and leave the room before she did what she’d regret and will definitely prevent her from going out to see anybody.
When she got to the kitchen, she told her mummy she was ready to go.
Mrs Cole looked at her and asked, “Where is the driver?”
“He is at the entrance to the estate. That where I agreed to meet him.” Seyi explained.
“Any reason in particular?” Mrs Cole asked.
“No, nothing.”
“Okay then, maa pe (don’t stay out late),” her mum told her. It would be better you pass the kitchen door out so your father doesn’t see you leaving and start asking questions or stop you from going out.” Mrs. Cole knew her husband very well. He was so unpredictable yet she knew with the mood she met him in after church, Seyi won’t be allowed to go anywhere.
“Thank you mummy,” Seyi said very grateful and pleased with her mum. She passed the back door and off she went.
The gate leading into the estate was only a stone’s throw away as their house was the fifth on the street. When she got to the gate, she looked around but didn’t see any car parked. It was then she realized, she had seen Goke just once and she had no idea what kind of car he drove. She waited for a few minutes and dialed his number again.
“Hello Goke, where are you?” She asked, gradually running out of patience.
“I’m so sorry dear; I was held up in traffic. I’ll be there soon.” He explained.
“Okay, what car are you driving?” She asked and added, “so I’ll easily spot you when you come.”
“A blue Kia, don’t worry I’ll call you as soon as I get there,” he told her.
It was sunny so Seyi went under the gate man’s shed and sat there waiting for him.
After another five minutes of waiting, she saw a navy blue car drive towards the estate and gradually come to a halt. She watched as the driver of the car parked it and picked his phone. It was when her phone started ringing she left the shed where she had been waiting and walked towards the car.
Goke spotted her and came down to meet her. He wore a pair of sun shades which he removed when he saw her. He had on a matching mint green Guinea top and trousers. He was a 5 feet 11”, dark complexioned, good looking young man in his early twenties.
He walked towards Seyi and hugged her, “I’m so sorry for keeping you waiting. That’s not my usual nature, I had a little issue locating this place. That, together with the traffic is the reason for the delay. I’m sorry,” he apologized.
“It’s okay,” Seyi said. She took in the sweet fragrance of his perfume. “You smell nice,” she paid him a compliment and smiled.
“Thanks dear, you look amazing too. I had no idea I had been chatting with someone this beautiful,” he said as he motioned for them to walk towards the car.
“But you have seen me before and I’ve sent you my pictures a couple of times,” Seyi reminded him.
“True that, but you are much more beautiful today than ever before,” Goke said as he opened the passenger side door for her. He was full of sweet words that could sweep any lady off her feet.
“Thank you,” she said both for the compliment and the gentlemanly gesture.
Goke closed the door for her and quickly, passing the front of the car, entered through the driver’s side of the car.
“So how were you able to pull this off, your parents allowing you to see me?” he asked.
Seyi chuckled, “It’s a long story; let’s just say I pulled some strings and here I am” she shrugged her shoulders and gave a shy smile.
“Oh, how are your thighs? I was so carried away by your beauty; I totally forgot” he said.
“They are better; thanks for asking” she smiled.
“So where are we headed this beautiful afternoon?” He asked. “I was hoping you had somewhere in mind,” he added as he started the car.
“I don’t really go out, I believe you’ll be in a better position to suggest a place. Preferably, somewhere not too far because I have to be back before 6pm.”
“Okay then, in that case, should we go to the eatery I saw when I was coming, not so far from here?” He asked.
“That’s probably the one we stopped at after church when I went into the toilet to call you. I had to tell my mum I was having menstrual pain when she asked me why I stayed that long in the toilet and my annoying sister won’t let me have peace in that house. I’m so glad to be out of that place.” Seyi said.
Goke chuckled, “Is it really that bad?”
“My house? Yes oh, it is, trust me.” Seyi said.
“Really? Don’t worry you’ll tell me about it. Can we go there then?” He asked.
“Yeah I guess,” she replied.
“Okay then.”
There was a brief silence then Goke spoke, “I’m guessing this is your first time”
“What is my first time?” Seyi wasn’t sure she knew what he was referring to.
“Hanging out with a guy,” he said.
“Well, I don’t really have male friends. My dad and brother are the only two guys in my life and those ones..sef are not really in my life. So, I guess to answer your question, yes it is” she replied then added, “Why did you ask?”
“Nothing, just wanted to know. I must take care of you so you will know how good we guys could be” He turned to her with a gleam in his eyes.
Seyi smiled back, a bit shy.
“I’m sure it’s not news that I really like you, Seyi” He said to her, careful to look into her eyes and make her feel the intensity of his words.
Seyi could feel her heart beat faster. She didn’t know how to respond. His gaze pierced through her soul.
Goke went on, “And there is something about guys I should let you know” he said as he gradually parked the car beside the road.
They had not gotten to their destination. Seyi wondered why he was stopping. They were still within the residential area. No other car was on the road.
He needed her full attention and as much privacy as he could get. There probably won’t be such in the fast-food restaurant they were going to.
“When a guy likes a lady especially the way I like you,” he started, fully focused on her “he can do anything for her. Absolutely anything.” He stressed. He held her hand and looked straight into her eyes, “Seyi, I really like you and I will want you to be my girlfriend. I want you to give me a chance to show you how much I care for you.”
There was silence in the car. Seyi didn’t see it coming, she knew they were not just friends but she had no idea Goke had such intentions. She was speechless.
“say something Seyi,” he said, almost begging her.
“I really don’t know what to say; I’m quite overwhelmed. Your girlfriend? I wasn’t expecting it,” she said.
“I hope I wasn’t too forward. I’m not even sure how you feel about me,” he said seemingly concerned.
“No, no it’s not that. I like you too; it’s just that I’m new to all these.” Seyi said.
“Don’t worry; I will take care of you. I promise. Nothing will happen to you.” He assured her.
“But I don’t really know you; I’m just getting to know you” Seyi opened up.
“That’s the more reason why we need this, so we can get to know ourselves better”
Seyi immediately began to remember her mum’s warning and all she said about guys hovering round her like flies. So many thoughts began to flood her mind, “Is he one of the guys Mummy was referring to? Am I ready for a relationship? I’m just getting to know him. If I have a boyfriend, perhaps people will stop looking at me like a small girl more so, he has promised to take care of me”.
As these thoughts kept running through her mind, she noticed Goke moving closer to her. She wasn’t sure what was going on. His face gradually came close to hers and she realized he was about to kiss her.
To be continued…
Burning Coles - Episodes 3
“It’s so good to see you, Mrs Cole” He said as he walked closer and extended his hand for a handshake.
“Thank you, Pastor,” she replied as she shook his hand.
“How are you?” He asked.
“I’m fine, thank you.”
“No, I don’t want the cliché response everyone gives their pastor. How are you doing, really?” He repeated himself. This time around, in a more serious tone.
For a split second, Mrs. Cole was tempted to open up to him about all that was going on in her home. After all, he was her pastor but she quickly brushed the thought aside. She didn’t want him to see her or her home as a mess.
“Well, things have been quite challenging but I’m doing okay,” she told him.
“Hmm, ‘okay’ doesn’t seem good enough for me. You want to talk about it?” He offered.
Mrs. Cole thought about it for some seconds and replied, “Nah, that won’t be necessary. Thanks for the offer sir . I’ll be just fine. Do have a great week ahead.” She politely found a way to end the conversation and left without waiting for his response.
As she walked towards the car, she pondered on the offer the pastor had just made. She’d have loved to share her burden with someone but she didn’t want to appear weak or vulnerable.
Mrs. Cole was a very beautiful woman in her early forties. She had always been the envy of many men. Despite being a mother of three, she had a lovely stature and always took good care of herself. It’s a pity her husband never admired her and all the compliments she got were from strange men.
Back in her university days, she was the cynosure of all eyes. Although she never made her looks a priority, she still always appeared beautiful in whatever she wore especially when she went for lectures. She wasn’t really an outgoing person and had only a few friends. It was never news to her when she was told by any of her friends that a particular guy liked her or showed interest. As a matter of fact, she always had the same response, “These guys should just leave me alone.”
“What do you mean they should leave you alone?” Racheal, her then best friend asked her on one occasion, while they remained seated in the lecture hall after an afternoon lecture.
“Racheal, but you of all people know how I need to focus on my studies and have good grades. I’m the first child and my parents pay through their nose to send me to school. I cannot afford to ruin all this by hanging out with these guys,” she explained.
As the conversation went on, one of their course mates walked up to where they sat and greeted her. It was obvious the greeting guy was there for her, he barely said a word to Racheal throughout the five minutes he spent blabbing. He went on speaking about himself, from his name, to where he was from, to his hobbies, his likes and dislikes and on and on he went until Funke stylishly cut him short and told him politely that she had somewhere to be. That was the excuse she used to escape his endless chattering.
She stood up and signalled to Racheal for them to leave.
“I can drop you off wherever you are going even if you want me to drop you in America, I will,” the guy said, in a desperate last attempt at being witty. He was obviously distracted by the beauty and presence of the lady he had always admired; he didn’t realize he wasn’t making any sense and unfortunately for him, he would not have been anything close to Funke’s type even if she had one.
Funke didn’t find his half joke, half trash-talk funny at all. “Thanks, but we are fine. We already have an arrangement,” she told him and walked towards the door of the lecture hall.
As soon as they got out, Racheal who had been silent all along said, “Na wa for that guy o; E no even get chill. No comma; no full stop. He was just pouring like tap wey no get control.”
“I dey tell you, guys though. They are all the same,” Funke didn’t seem interested one bit.
“Haba, why would you say that? Have you paused to take a look at the guys that like you? Have you ever thought of giving them a chance?” Racheal asked.
“Didn’t you see that guy?” she pointed out.
“Abeg, leave Dotun alone jare, that one should go and park well. I’m talking of Arnold. That guy makes sense die,” Racheal tried to convince her. “You are lucky I am not you, Funke; these guys won’t have suffered this much. You need to see how Arnold always calls and texts me up just to ask about you. That guy really likes you, Funke.” Racheal told her.
“See Racheal, the guy is not even a Christian; I’m not interested. Dotun oh, Arnold oh, I don’t want,” Funke made it clear.
“But no one said you should marry any of them. Just give them a little attention that is all.” Racheal still tried convincing her.
“Nope, it’s not happening.” Funke replied as she continued walking, without giving more than a casual glance towards her companion.
“I’ve heard you o. So where is the arrangement you said we had? See how we are trekking like someone that is in search of employment” Racheal said.
“Ehn, let’s keep walking. We will get a cab at the school gate. I’d rather take public transport than enter that guy’s car,” she said without mincing words.
“That’s exactly what I’ve been trying to tell you. See, listen to me!” Racheal tried resuming her speech with renewed enthusiasm. She tapped her shoulder as she further made her point, “We really don’t have to suffer like this. You don’t even have to date any of these guys just allow them to spoil you a little, then when you are satisfied, let them know you are not interested. Is that one hard?”
Funke paused and peered at Racheal strangely, “you are joking right?”
“I’m serious, Funke. It’s really not that much of a big deal. You won’t be the first lady to do it or do you think these guys are ready to get married and settle down? Look, all I’m asking you to do is use your beauty. Even the Bible says that wisdom is profitable to direct,” Racheal tried convincing her.
Funke continued walking and stated through gritted teeth, “I’m no longer having this conversation, Racheal. If you want to date any of them, please feel free. My mind is made up.”
“It’s ok oh; I cannot force you,” Racheal replied and ended their discussion of the issue.
That was first semester 200 level. By second semester 400 level which was Funke’s final year, things were still very much the same except that she was now more receptive to guys but still maintained her standards. She was determined not to settle for just any Tom, Dick or Harry.
She was a Christian and knew she couldn’t date a guy who wasn’t. That was her number one criterion. Others such as good looks, warm personality and so on followed closely on her ‘list’. She was not really keen about him being wealthy; she wasn’t going to turn a guy down just because he didn’t have a car. She knew every guy had a potential to be rich on the long run and those that were rich could lose it in the twinkle of an eye.
She kept scrutinizing guys that came her way until she narrowed them down to one; Emeka. Emeka was three years ahead of her in school. He had graduated from engineering two years earlier but had never stopped liking her and showing her how much he cared for her. On many occasions, he’d buy her gifts and bring them to her on campus. He’d always call to check on her and she knew that he really liked her. The feelings were mutual but she still wanted to be careful in making her choice.
After she graduated from school, she finally decided to say ‘yes’ to Emeka. She was so excited about her decision and after about two months decided to tell her parents the good news. But alas, she got the shock of her life from their response.
“Funke after all we did for you, this is how you choose to repay us?” Her mother started.
“Mummy what are talking about?” Funke couldn’t fathom why her parents were displeased with the good news she had just delivered.
The atmosphere in the sitting room that afternoon was really tensed. Her father remained silent as he rhythmically tapped his right foot on the floor.
“Can someone please tell me what I have done wrong?” Funke asked. “I have lived my whole life to please you. I didn’t have a boyfriend in school; I graduated with a good second class upper in accounting, I didn’t get pregnant or anything like that. What else do you want from me?” She said not realizing she was beginning to raise her voice.
“Will you stop shouting at us, are we your mate?” Her mother snapped.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know my voice was raised,” she said, still upset.
“Funke,” her father finally broke his silence.
“Sir,” she replied.
“What is your full name?” He asked.
“Olufunke Owojiru ,” she answered, wondering at the relevance of that question.
“An Owojiru can never and I repeat never marry someone from another town let alone state. Not to talk of tribe,” he informed her.
“What?!” Funke couldn’t believe her ears. She felt a wave of heat flow right from her head to her feet and immediately, she began to sweat profusely. “Nobody ever mentioned it to me,” she told them as she stood to her feet.
“Now we are mentioning it,” her father told her and added “I don’t know what or how you want to tell this Emeka or whatever his name is now but let this be the last time you mention him to us. Is that clear?”
Funke paced back and forth in the old, sparsely-furnished sitting room. She didn’t respond.
“If you like don’t hear, go ahead with the relationship and you cease to be our daughter”, her father stood up and went inside.
“What?!” Funke turned to him the moment he said it. “Ha daddy” she broke down in tears as she watched him leave. “Mummy” she turned to her mum who was still seated on the tattered couch. “Mummy please help me beg daddy” she pleaded.
“Your father has spoken, you know he doesn’t repeat himself. Don’t make him do as he has said. You have younger ones who are looking up to you. You, of all people must lead by example,” her mother stood up and went inside too.
Funke remained in the sitting room and cried. Just then, her phone rang; she looked at the caller’s ID and saw it was Emeka. The mere sight of his name made her cry even more. She didn’t pick the call. He called two more times and left her a message which read thus:
“Baby, I’m already at the restaurant, what’s going on? You usually get here before me. Hope you are okay? How did the meeting with your parents go? I can’t wait to hear the full gist.”
She read the message but didn’t reply. Instead she turned off her phone. She didn’t want more messages and texts from him. They only broke her down more.
Emeka tried calling her again and realized her phone was off. “What could be happening?” He wondered. “Maybe her phone battery went flat.” He told himself. He was always positive and optimistic in his thinking. He waited another 45minutes and when she didn’t show up, he left. He called a few of her friends to ask if they had heard from her but got the same response. None of them had spoken to her and when it was getting embarrassing, he stopped calling them.
Days went by and Emeka had still not heard anything from Funke. He could not take it anymore. He got her parent’s home address from one of her friends and decided to find out if she was okay.
He parked his car outside the compound and knocked on the rusty gate which led into the compound that housed their small bungalow.
“Who is it?” A female voiced asked.
“My name is Emeka; please, I’m here to see Funke.” He replied.
There was silence.
Funke’s father came out accompanied by her mother. He opened the gate and asked, “What did you say your name was?” There was evident hostility in his voice.
“Emeka, sir” he replied and greeted “good day sir”. He stretched out his hand for a handshake.
Funke’s father looked at his hand and slowly looked at him from head to toe. “How can we help you?” he asked with an expressionless face.
“I’m looking for Funke; I was told this is where her parents live” he said, wondering the reason for the hostile response he got.
“Well, Funke doesn’t want to see you. She said you should leave and never come back.” The elderly man in his early sixties said.
Emeka was dumbfounded. That was the last thing he expected to hear from them. He stood there speechless.
When the silence was getting too long, Funke’s father made an attempt to shut the gate.
Then Emeka said, “I’ll appreciate it if she comes out to tell me that herself.”
‘Se eti eleyi di ni? (Is this one deaf?)” Funke’s father asked. “I said she cannot see you; you can leave now” he said.
A voice spoke from behind them spoke, “Daddy, please don’t talk to him like that, he at least deserves some respect.” Funke said as she walked towards the gate. Her eyes were red; her hair was so unkempt. She wore an oversized dress.
“Funke, is this true?” Emeka asked still unable to believe his ears.
Funke’s parents moved aside but stood close enough to hear whatever she was going to say.
Funke looked at Emeka and before she could say anything, hot tears rolled down her cheeks.
“No, no please, tell me this is not true, Funke.” Emeka’s eyes were moist with tears.
“I really wish it wasn’t true, Emeka. My hands are tied.” She cried.
“No they aren’t, Funke. You always have a choice and you know it.” He told her.
Funke couldn’t say anything but cry.
“So you have made your choice?” He asked.
Funke tried to hold his hand “please try and understand Emeka.” She begged.
Emeka removed his hand from hers and turned his face away as a drop of tear fell from his eyes. “Have a great life, Funke.” He turned around and left.
“Emeka please don’t go, please” she cried the more.
Her father hissed and went inside while her mother patted her on the back and said, “You did the right thing. Your very own, one from our home town, will come for you.”
Funke looked at her mother with disgust and brushed her hand off her back, “please leave me,” she said and went inside.
“Gbo to ba fe gbo; (listen if you want to listen) that is your cup of tea,” her mother said and also went inside.
*********
“Mummy, I’m hungry.” Bolu’s voice cut into Mrs. Cole’s thoughts.
Mrs. Cole had been so lost in thought; her mind was miles away. “Aren’t we on the way home? You will eat when we get home.” She told Bolu.
“I don’t want to go home,” Bolu said and folded her arms.
“What do you mean you don’t want to go home? Will you rather live under the bridge? Better be thankful you have a place to call home” Mrs. Cole told her.
Bolu remained silent.
“But mummy, it is true.” Seyi joined in. “None of us are eager to go home because we know what we are going to meet at home.” She spoke up and didn’t mince words in stating the truth just as it was.
“Why would you talk like that Seyi, did you keep a monster at home?” Mrs. Cole asked.
None of them responded. Their silence in itself screamed ‘yes’ to their mother’s question.
“This is your father we are talking about, you know?”
“Please let’s just branch somewhere and buy ice cream or something before we go back” Bayo said with pity written all over his face.
Mrs. Cole couldn’t argue with them anymore. She knew they were telling the truth. “Okay, we’ll buy ice cream but we won’t stay long so that your father won’t…”
Seyi cut in, “our point exactly.”
“Hmmm, it is well.” Mrs. Cole sighed, she had no other argument.
She took the next turn to the right and drove into a filling station.
“Yeeeeeeey, thank you mummy.” Bolu, enthused from the back of the car.
Mrs. Cole smiled “what if it is fuel I want to buy?”
“After buying the fuel, you will stop at the eatery and buy our snacks too.” Bolu was so smart and always had a way of getting to their mum’s heart.
“You seemed so sure, ‘B baby’” That was the pet name Mrs. Cole gave Bolu.
“Yes mummy, I’m sure.” Bolu said beaming with smiles as she watched her mum pack the car in front of the eatery.
Mrs. Cole chuckled, “okay, come down everyone; we won’t stay long o.”
Before she could finish her sentence, Bayo and Bolu had flung their doors opened and were out.
Full of excitement, Bayo said, “Mummy I heard they make really nice chicken pie here. Can I have chicken pie pleaasseeeee?” He clapped his hand together and made an innocent face that he knew his mum couldn’t resist.
“Okay, okay, I’ve heard. What do you want?” She turned to the ladies.
Bolu, jumping with so much excitement said, “mummy, me I want scotch egg with my chicken pie.”
“See your mouth B baby, who said you were having chicken pie in the first instance?” Mrs. Cole smiled.
“How about you?” Mrs. Cole turned to Seyi who had been quiet all along.
“Anything,” she said uninterested about what was going on.
“What’s with the nonchalant attitude, young lady?” Mrs. Cole asked her.
“Nothing,” she replied with a straight face.
Mrs. Cole was not ready to have her cheerful countenance altered by one adolescent’s mood swings, so she didn’t pursue it further.
“Let’s go in,” she told Bayo and Bolu, leaving Seyi crawling behind like a turtle.
The eatery was fully air-conditioned. The smell of freshly baked pastries welcomed them and to the left were some chairs and table with a few people seated.
Mrs. Cole didn’t pay attention to any other detail but walked straight to the counter and greeted the young man wearing a red T-shirt and face cap with a name tag which she used to identify him as Daniel.
“Good afternoon,” the attendant greeted. “What can I get for you? He asked politely with a smile.
“Ummmmm,” Mrs. Cole browsed through the snacks in the show glass. “Do you have chicken pie?” She asked.
“Yes we do; it is 380 naira”, the young man said.
“Yes!” Bayo exclaimed.
“How about scotch eggs?” Mrs Cole asked.
“Yes, 150 naira ma.”
“Mummy wait, ask about sausage” Bolu pointed to the sausages.
“Better make up your mind” Mrs. Cole told her. Turning to the attendant, “how much are your sausages?”
“150 naira”
“So which one do you want?” Mrs. Cole asked Bolu.
“Mummy do it like this, buy scotch egg for me and sausage for Bayo, so that he’ll give me half of his own and I will give him half of my own” Bolu said without even consulting Bayo to know what he wanted.
“Who told you I am to give you out of my own” Bayo asked Bolu with a frown.
Mrs. Cole interrupted their drama “please can I have four chicken pies, two with scotch egg and the remaining two with sausage.”
“Okay ma. Are you eating here or taking it away?” He asked.
“Take away, please” she replied.
“What drinks?”
“5-Alive pulpy”
“Alright ma’am,” he turned around to dish the snacks while Mrs. Cole reached into her bag to bring out her wallet.
Just as she did, she heard a familiar voice call her by her first name, “Funke,” she turned around and couldn’t believe her eyes.
Emeka was right behind her.
To be continued…
Next episode continues tomorrow
Burning Coles - Episode 2
The next morning, before anyone, Mrs. Cole was up. She went first to the girls’ room to check on Seyi and Bolu. She opened the door gently and tiptoed in order not to wake them up.
Bolu was initially lying down with her back towards door, when she heard the screeching of the hinges of the door. She had already woken up but chose to still remain in bed.
“My baby, did I wake you up?” Mrs Cole asked in a low tone as she continued tiptoeing into the room.
Bolu shook her head in between mild sniffs.
“You were awake? It’s not even 5am yet. What’s the problem? Why are you crying ?” The concerned mum asked as she sat beside her.
Bolu sat up in bed, her mother’s old wrapper which doubled as her cover cloth covered her from the waist downward. She fondled with the tip of the wrapper and found it hard to look at her mum straight in the face. She did that either when she had done something wrong or was scared.
Mrs. Cole knew something was wrong “did you have a bad dream?” she asked with her eye brows furrowed as she racked her brain to find out what could possibly be wrong.
Bolu shook her head again.
“What’s is the matter?” Mrs. Cole rubbed her daughter’s cheeks.
Bolu sniffled.
“I know, it’s your dad, right?” Mrs Cole looked at Bolu’s face to try to know if that was it. Bolu burst into tears. Mrs. Cole hugged her tightly “I’m so sorry you have to see all these at such a tender age. You and your siblings are the only reason why I’m still in this marriage. You are too young to understand but one thing you must never do is marry a man like your father” she told her as she held back her own tears.
She looked at Bolu who had not stopped crying, she wiped her tears with the wrapper and sighed, “don’t cry my baby, everything will be fine, you hear?” Mrs. Cole herself wasn’t sure if that was true, she just had to remain strong for her children.
Despite all her mother did and said, Bolu still didn’t stop crying, there had to be more to her tears than her father’s hostile attitude.
“Mummy” she said sobbing.
“Yes dear” Mrs. Cole was all ears
“What of Uncle Gboyega?” Bolu asked still sobbing.
“What about your uncle?” Mrs Cole didn’t understand what her brother had to do with anything that was going on.
“Will he do it again?” Bolu asked.
“Do what again?” Mrs Cole adjusted her sitting position “do what Bolu? Ba mi soro (talk to me)” she could feel her heart racing.
Bolu uttered no word.
“Bolu, I’m your mother, you can tell me anything. What did he do to you?” she held her hand. “Did he touch you?” she asked praying the answer to that question was “no”.
Bolu burst into tears again “he said I must not tell anyone, especially you. He said what happened is normal” she said innocently.
“Ha!” Mrs Cole exclaimed not minding if her voice woke Seyi up. She threw her hands in the air, “Gboyega has killed me. He said what?!” She could not believe her ears. “Is it a crime to keep my children in the hands of my own brother?” She queried herself rhetorically.
“God, why are you so wicked to me?” She bit her index finger as she looked up to the ceiling. “That useless man that calls himself my husband is a drunkard now my brother? Ha! God why me? Bolu jo (please) tell me what happened” she begged the poor girl.
“The day you and daddy went out and left Uncle Gboyega with us” she sniffed repeatedly and tried to hold back her tears.
“Beeni mo ranti (yes, I remember). Gboyega spent a week here last month” she affirmed.
“Sister Seyi went to visit her friend, Sope. Uncle Gboyega now sent Brother Bayo to buy credit for him. So, it was only me and him in the house. He now started watching something on his laptop, the boy and girl in the movie were naked. He said I should also remove my clothes. I refused and instead ran into me and Sister Seyi’s room but he chased me” she cried.
“Ha! Gboyega, is this how you repay me?” Mrs. Cole was close to tears.
“As he was about to remove his trousers,” brother Bayo came back. Then he…”
Mrs Cole cut in “so he didn’t touch you?” she asked, hoping her brother didn’t rape her daughter.
“No, he didn’t. Brother Bayo started calling his name to inform him that he had brought the credit. That was how he ran out and left me.”
“Thank God. God is good o” she rubbed her hand on her daughter’s face and arms as one searching for scratches and bruises “thank God he didn’t do anything to you.”
Bolu continued recounting the unpleasant incident “later, he told me never to tell anybody what happened that if I should tell you, you will beat me and report me to daddy. I’m sorry mummy please forgive me,” she cried. “Don’t beat me”, she pleaded. She innocently believed him and thought what had happened was her fault.
“Bolu none of what happened was your fault, as a matter of fact, thank you for opening up to me. It’s all my fault, I shouldn’t have left you in care of that fool, I should have taught you how you must not allow any man touch you. I thank God he didn’t rape you.” She was indeed grateful that didn’t happen.
“But mummy I am scared that if he comes again, he will do it again” Bolu expressed her fear.
“God forbid! That idiot will never step into this house again. Not him, not any man. Not when I’m alive. I will call him and tell him that if he ever comes close to this house again, he’ll sleep in the police station. You hear? Don’t cry again. Never allow any man touch your okay?” She wiped her tears.
By this time, Seyi had woken up. Her mother was no longer whispering and so her voice woke her up. “Mummy what happened?” Seyi turned towards their direction with sleep still in her eyes.
“My dear, don’t worry. Go back to bed. I just came to check on you both. How are your thighs?” Mrs. Cole stood up and walked towards Seyi.
“It’s less painful” Seyi replied as she looked at the wound dressing on her thighs and patted it with care.
“Pele dear, when you want to have your bath, let me know so I can assist you” Mrs. Cole told her.
“Mum?” The look Seyi gave her screamed, “I’m-not-a-baby look.”
“Wo (look), I know you are not a baby but this one oh, I will help you. You children are my life. Is that clear?” She couldn’t afford to allow anything happen to them. The mother hen instinct had just been heightened, she was ready to protect her young even if it was at the expense of her life.
“Yes ma” Seyi answered reluctantly.
“Mummy, are we going to church today?” Bolu asked.
“Oh, that’s true, today is Sunday” Mrs. Cole didn’t even remember there was something called church.
“Yes mummy, it’s been like a month now. Sope even said her mum has been asking after you” Seyi informed her.
“You know it’s not my fault. Your father hasn’t allowed us to go to church all this while, let me talk to him again. Who knows what miracle God will do, he might just allow us.”
“I pray so oh. I’ll love to see Sope, it’s been a while” Seyi smiled and immediately started planning how she was going to arrange for Goke to come to her church so they will see.
“See your mouth like Sope, is Sope the reason you are going to church?” Her mum reprimanded her.
“No but…”
“No buts, don’t even but anything. God should be your reason for going to church. You hear me?” Mrs. Cole placed her hand on the tip of her right ear.
“Yes ma, I’ve heard” Seyi murmured.
“Let me get going, I’ll come back to check on you. If your father says we can go to church, I’ll come and tell you so you can get ready” she informed them and left.
Seyi picked her phone to check if Goke had sent her a message. Still nothing. She felt disappointed. “This one cannot even check on someone,” she said and flung the phone on the bed then lay back to sleep. As soon as she did, her phone rang. She was eager to check if it was Goke but was more disappointed when she realized it was just her 5:00AM alarm. She had intentionally set the same ringtone for her alarm and her incoming calls so it would trick her into waking up. She snoozed the alarm and turned to continue sleeping then it occurred to her “if the Mohammed would not go to the mountain, I can take the mountain to the Mohammed. Goke has probably not sent a message because he feels he doesn’t want to disturb me.” She decided to pick her phone and send him a message.
“Hello Goke”
She waited for a very long minute and saw he didn’t reply. She opened the chat and realized he had read her message. This made her upset “what is wrong with this guy?” She decided to call him.
The line was busy. She waited for some minutes and tried calling again, the line was still busy.
“What could be going on?” Seyi reasoned. She decided she wasn’t going to try again. She instead decided to open Instagram and check what it had to offer. Some minutes after, her phone rang. It was Goke.
Her heart missed a beat. She picked the call “hello” she said eager to hear his charming voice.
“Hi dear. How are you?” he said and waited for her response.
“I’m fine, haven’t heard from you in a while” Seyi could not hold it back, she had missed him.
“Yeah, I’m so sorry dear, I was just talking to my project supervisor. It’s been taking so much of my time” he explained to her.
“Project supervisor at 5:30am? Isn’t that pretty early?” she asked.
“Well yeah it is but he’ll be traveling out of the country today and I needed to tidy up some things before he leaves”
“Oh okay” Seyi didn’t ask any further question.
“So how have you been?” he asked.
Seyi smiled, “I’ve been okay except that I had a minor domestic accident yesterday. Hot oil poured on my thighs but I’m better now” she told him hoping to receive some comforting words from him.
“Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry about that. How are you now?”
“I’m much better, thank you” Seyi smiled.
“Please take it easy, nothing must spoil that your fresh skin” he said.
Seyi couldn’t help but smile when she heard his words “how do you know my skin is fresh?” she asked “all you’ve seen is my hands, legs and face.” She knew her words were about to provoke something she didn’t bargain for. She was heading towards an erotic dimension and she knew it.
Goke chuckled “I know, I don’t have to see it. I imagine it every time” he told her.
“Hmmmmm really? You want to see more?” she asked, not sure exactly where she was heading with that question.
“You want to show me more?” he responded. Goke wasn’t new to this but he knew Seyi was and so he decided to take things slow, didn’t want to rush her.
“I don’t know, I haven’t done this before” she opened up to him and began to feel shy.
“No pressure dear” he told her. “When next are we going to see?” He asked her.
“It’s not likely I’ll be going out anytime soon because of my thighs but I was hoping you could come to my church so we’ll see after service”
“Hmmmmm” Goke wasn’t so comfortable with that arrangement. “How about I come pick you after you get back from church and we’ll hang out together?” he suggested. “Will your parents be okay with that?”
“They don’t have to know. I’ll tell my mum Sope’s dad’s driver will be coming to pick me to take me to Sope’s house. I’m sure she won’t have a problem with that.” She conspired.
“Cool then, sounds like a plan”
“Yeah” she smiled. She was really looking forward to seeing Goke, despite the state of her thighs. She wanted nothing more than to spend time with him.
“Alright dear, take care of yourself. See you later today” he told her as he rounded off the conversation.
“Bye” she replied and ended the call. “Yes!” she exclaimed with excitement as she dropped the phone and jumped out of bed to dance. Immediately she stood, the sharp pain she felt in her thighs brought her back from fantasy to reality. “Ouch, ouch” she groaned and gently sat back on the bed.
“What I’m I going to wear, I have to look good for Goke?” She thought, searching her brain. “I’ll have to wear a skirt because to this wound. She stood up and opened her wardrobe, brought out a black and white polka dotted flare knee length skirt and a baby pink body con top.
Bolu turned towards her direction and asked “has mummy said we’ll be going to church?” She wondered why her sister was already getting set.
“Does she have to say so before I get ready?” Seyi replied.
“Sis Seyi, who were you talking to on the phone?” Bolu was always inquisitive.
“What is your business?” Seyi ignored her.
“Hmmmm you know mummy said we should not have boyfriend”
“Ehn, who now said I have a boyfriend? He is just my friend that is a boy. It’s not the same thing” Seyi knew that was not entirely true. What she had with Goke was definitely more that ‘just friendship’. “You are too young to understand” she told her.
Bolu, though young, was very sharp. She knew something fishy was going on but decided not to press further.
Mrs. Cole went to Bayo’s room to check up on him. He was still fast asleep. She walked closer to his bed and noticed he was sweating. The fan was off and the room was quite stuffy. She decided to remove the blanket that was covering him and adding to the heat he was experiencing. As she removed it, she noticed he had no clothes on aside his T-shirt.
“When did this boy start sleeping without his boxers?” Mrs. Cole wondered as she searched around for his boxers. “This place is just too stuffy” she walked towards the windows and opened them. “It’s bad enough that he locks himself in, does he also have to close the windows?”
The time was 5:30, usually she would still have allowed him to sleep till 6am before waking him but she decided to wake him regardless.
“Bayo… Bayo” she tapped him. “Wake up”
Bayo tossed on the bed for some seconds.
She tapped him harder “wake up Bayo. It’s morning. Where is your boxers?” she asked him.
The mention of the word ‘boxers’ rang an alarm in his head and jolted him from sleep. He immediately pulled the blanket over himself.
“Mum! Do you mind?” he asked, embarrassed.
“What is it? What are you hiding? Am I not your mother?” Mrs. Cole asked.
“Mummy now, can’t I have some privacy again” he said feeling really embarrassed.
“Sorry oh, sha put on something. When did you start sleeping naked?” she asked him.
“I’m not naked, I must have removed it when I went to urinate in the night” he told her.
“Iwo lomo (suit yourself). Today is Sunday, I’ll talk to your father and ask him if we can go to church today. If he says ‘yes’, then you’ll need to get ready. You know Sunday school is 7:30am.” she informed him.
“Ok ma” he replied and turned to the other side to continue sleeping.
Mrs. Cole left the room and went back to her room which she shared with her husband. She prayed that as she asked him about their going to church, he would oblige.
She gently walked to his side of the bed and tapped him on his shoulder. “Daddy Seyi” she said in a hushed tone. ‘Daddy Seyi’ and ‘Mummy Seyi’ were the names they called each other on the best of days. When they have arguments, Mr. Cole mostly referred to her as “woman”. Gone were the days when they used pet names like ‘sweetheart’, ‘baby’ and the likes.
After tapping him twice and calling his name once, she didn’t get any response then decided to make another attempt. “Daddy Seyi, good morning” she said still with a hushed tone.
“Yes, what is it?” he said as if he was being bothered.
“I didn’t mean to bother you, I just wanted to know if the children and I can go to church today?” Mrs. Cole said, hoping he would not flare up.
“You people should go and not disturb my life jare” he said and turned to the other side to continue sleeping.
“Thank you” Mrs. Cole was happy, she really desired to be in church. There was this warm welcome she received from the members and Pastor George, a new pastor that was recently transferred to their branch. He’d call every time he noticed she wasn’t around.
She went to her children’s rooms and told them to prepare for church because their father had given the go ahead.
Mrs. Cole prepared breakfast for her husband and served it in a warmer on the dining table. She also served small portions for the children so no one would disturb her with tales of hunger pangs during or after service. By 7:15am, everyone was set and they left for church.
Bayo sat in front, while Seyi and Bolu sat at the back.
Some minutes into the trip, Seyi spoke up “mummy, Sope’s dad’s driver will be coming to pick me in the afternoon. He’ll take me to Sope’s house and bring me back in the evening” she lied, she had already crammed her lines and delivered them effortlessly.
“What are you going to do in her house again? Aren’t you going to see her in church?” Mrs Cole asked.
Seyi definitely didn’t see that coming. “I’m just going to say hi” she lied again, hoping her mum would not suspect foul play.
Bolu whispered to Seyi “I will tell mummy, you want to go and see your boyfriend.”
“Better shut up your mouth” Seyi replied in a whisper and threatened to beat her if she said anything.
Mrs. Cole didn’t seem comfortable with the whole idea of Seyi going to visit her friend “why are you always the one going to visit, has she ever come to visit you in your house?” That was the question typically asked by African parents.
“Mummy, it’s because of daddy. I don’t want Sope to know what goes on in our house. She has offered to come many times but I always had to find an excuse for her.” That was the first thing Seyi had said that was true. In her defense, her house was in no way conducive to host any guest and they all knew it.
“Okay but don’t stay out late, you know your thighs are just healing. Ideally, you should stay home to rest” Mrs. Cole told her as she turned into the church premise.
“Mummy pleeaasseeee” she elongated her plea and hoped it would somehow convince her mum “I promise not to be late”
“We are already at the church, we’ll talk about this on our way home” Mrs. Cole told her as she parked the car.
“Do you all have offering?” she asked them
“No” they all echoed.
“Bayo pass my purse” she pointed to the silver purse she placed at the foot of the front passenger’s seat. She always kept her bag under the car seat, Lagos was notorious for theft.
Bayo brought it out and gave her. She brought out three bills of hundred naira note and handed each to the three of them. “Oya (quickly) come down and go to your different Sunday school classes. We’ll meet after church, enjoy service” she told them as they alighted from the car.
She was the last to get down. She adjusted her head tie and with the rearview mirror, gave her make up a touch up. She got down from the car, locked it and walked towards the building. She entered the building and observed the arrangement. The chairs were arranged in circles, there were about seven groups including that for the children and another for teenagers. She spotted the Sunday school group which she usually attended and walked towards it.
She sat down on one of the empty seats and was handed over a Sunday school outline by the group leader.
“You are welcome Mrs. Cole, we are looking at ‘A believer’s Reaction to Temptation’ with Joseph and David as our examples from the Bible” Mrs. Dedeke, the Sunday school leader for her group explained. She always did that to anyone that joined in order to help the person catch up.
Mrs. Cole nodded and smiled. “Thank you” she mouthed as she looked at the paper in her hand.
“Alright, so as we were saying, what should a believer do when faced with temptation?” Mrs. Dedeke asked.
The man sitting to Mrs Cole’s right lifted his hand.
“Alright sir”, Mrs Dedeke pointed at him.
“We are in the 21st century, we can’t compare how things are now to how they were in David or Joseph’s time. Even God, Himself, understands that body no be wood. Once a person gets saved, all his sins that is: past, present and future sins are forgiven so if something happens and the believer falls, all he needs to do is get up and keep going. After all, the Bible itself says ‘though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again’ So let’s not be hard on ourselves” he said.
“Well no one is talking about being hard on anyone,” Mrs. Dedeke responded. “It appears there a few wrong notions that need to be corrected. First, the Bible in the book of Roman chapter 6 verse 15 says ‘what then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? God forbid’, there is no excuse for sin. The fact that we are in a sinful era only means grace abounds much more to say no to sin and to shine as light in this dark age according to Romans 5 verse 20 and Isiah 60 verses 1 and 2. If Joseph was able to put his feet down and say ‘no’ to sin because he feared God, God expects no less from us”. She paused to make sure the young man was following her.
She continued “I keep hearing people say ‘God understands’, He may be a very understanding God but He is also a righteous and holy God. His standards are unbending. He says let everyone that names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity 2 Timothy 2 verse 19. Also don’t forget that the temptation that we are referring to here is not just sexual sin but it cuts across every area of our lives. Remember, Jesus too was tempted yet without sin. Do you understand?” she asked him.
He nodded.
“I hope we are all following?” she asked as she looked around at the remaining eight people in the group.
They all nodded.
“Now on the issue of our past, present and future sins been forgiven. It is true that God died for us and has cleansed us of all unrighteousness but it is not a license to sin. And if we fall, the Bible says God is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us all unrighteousness when we confess our sins 1 John 1verse 9. Let’s not omit the “confession of sin” part. You just don’t sin and ‘move on’, there must first be godly sorrow first which will then lead to repentance” she explained.
The young man jotted down some of the things she said in his jotter.
“Does anyone have any objection or contribution on the issue being discussed?” Mrs. Dedeke paused to make sure they were all on the same page.
They shook their heads.
She continued teaching for another 20 minutes and allowed people ask questions.
Mrs Cole really enjoyed the class.
Towards the end of Sunday school, Pastor George, the mounted the podium which was beautifully designed with flowers tucked into two lovely crafted vases positioned at each end. The lectern was made of glass and beside it was a 24’ flat screen TV from which the pastor or anyone who stood behind the lectern read scriptures and had access to what was projected on the other two televisions facing the congregation. He announced that the teachers should begin to round off their classes. He then asked a person from each group to share what they had learnt. When it was the turn for Mrs. Cole’s group, she saw him look at her. Just as she was about praying that he won’t call her, the young man who sat beside her who had earlier made a contribution signaled that he had something to say.
“Alright, bro Tope”, Pastor George pointed at him. He was so good with names. He knew the names of almost everyone in the church.
Bro Tope shared with the church some of the issues Mrs. Dedeke had addressed.
Pastor George rounded off the Sunday school session with a short prayer afterwards, the chairs were rearranged and everyone took their seats.
After church ended, Bayo went to his mum and collected the car keys. His friend, Segun was with him.
“Come, I will show you. The game is in the car” Bayo told Segun as he collected the key and they left.
Seyi was with Sope. “I’m going to see Goke this afternoon” she told her.
“And your mum will allow you?” Sope asked.
“Of course not but don’t worry, my mum is not even an issue, trust me. You know I have my ways” Seyi smiled as they walked towards Sope’s mum’s car.
“I trust you, is it not the Seyi I know” Sope responded and gave her a hi-five. “Anyway sha, gist me how it goes and greet the fine boy for me o”.
As they approached the car, Seyi greeted Sope’s mum who was also just approaching the car.
“How are you, Seyi?” she responded warmly. “What of your mum?” she asked.
“She is fine ma, she should still be inside the church auditorium” Seyi told her.
“Oh really? I didn’t see her. My regards to her” she said as she entered the car.
“Alright ma, I’ll convey.” Seyi turned to Sope “I’ll call you to give you the gist”, she hugged her and waved at her as she entered the car.
As Seyi watch Sope’s mum drive off, she suddenly remembered she had a baby sister she was meant to watch over. She quickly went to the children’s church to get Bolu and afterwards they went to the car to wait for their mum.
Mrs. Cole walked towards the exit of the auditorium and as she approached the door, she heard her name being called from behind. She turned and saw Pastor George approaching.
To be continued…
Watch out for the next episode tommorow.. if u have not yet subscribed, please do so now.. I love u all😍
Burning Coles - Episode 1
“You must be out of your rotten mind!” Mr Cole bellowed.
“Me, I’m not out of my mind o” Mrs Cole replied, bunching up her husband’s T-shirt in her fist, she rocked from side to side, ready for a fight. “Have I asked too much? All I need is some money to take care of your children.” She shouted back at him almost shedding tears.
He chuckled sarcastically. “Abi e ri obirin yi ni? (can’t you see this woman?),” he clapped his hand in amazement. Then immediately, the sarcastic smile on his face turned into a frown. “Woman, listen to me and listen well. You have no right to tell me what I am to do for my children. Is that clear?” He spoke firmly with alcohol heavy on his breath.
“Don’t you have any shame Akin? Your children are in their rooms and can obviously hear you shouting at me” she told him as she released his T-shirt from her grip.
“There you go again, calling me shameless. Funke, I’m shameless abi? (right?)” He asked, tapping his chest with his hand.
“You said it yourself, I didn’t say anything.” She eyed him.
“Wo, iwo obirin yi, waa rin nkan ti ma se si e leni (look, you this woman, you will see what I will do to you today)” he said and rushed at her.
Funke was standing opposite him, the wooden centre table in the sitting room stood between the both of them. She ran in an anticlockwise direction when she saw her husband coming towards her from the left.
“Where will you run to now, with that your sharp mouth?” He asked as he caught her by her left arm and raised his right hand, ready to hit her.
“Daddy please don’t beat mummy again” Bolu, their seven-year-old cried as she stood some meters away from them.
They turned and saw their young, innocent daughter looking fearfully with tears rolling down her face. Mrs. Cole felt so sorry for her as she wondered how long she had been standing there and how much violence the poor child had witnessed not just at that moment but in her seven years of existence.
“Go back to your room now!” Mr. Cole shouted at her.
Bolu stood there crying.
“Are you deaf? I said go back to your room before I come and beat you!” He shouted louder still holding on to Mrs. Cole who stood there helplessly as she watched her child scamper away.
“Let this be the last time this repeats itself” Mr. Cole warned his wife as he flung her arm out of his grip and she landed on the couch.
She quickly got up and moved a reasonable distance away from him before she said, “you need help, you need serious help, even your children are afraid of you.” She shook her head and walked away.
“You are the one that needs help, useless woman,” He retorted, panting and sweating. He plopped into his favorite seat opposite the TV and continued drinking his beer.
Mrs. Cole was fed up. Frustration and misery had become her acquaintances. She went into the house to check on her children, the only reason she was still in the marriage.
The Coles lived in a rented three-bedroom bungalow. Their three children: Seyi, Bayo and Bolu occupied two of the rooms while the third being the master bedroom was for Mr. Cole and his wife.
Mrs. Cole went first to Bayo’s room. Immediately she opened the door, he jerked and hid something.
“What’s that?” His mother asked him.
“Nothing mummy, I just wanted to…” he was trying to cook up a lie when she cut in.
“See, I don’t have your time right now,” she was too tired both psychologically and physically to argue with him. “Dinner will be ready in 30 minutes.” She said and left the room.
Bayo was thirteen years old, the second child and only boy. He was in SS1 and in recent times loved staying in his room. No one really knew what he spent most of his time doing behind closed doors. His room in itself was almost always a write off; it wasn’t palatable enough to make one want to perpetually remain locked in it. Mrs. Cole couldn’t fathom why he hardly came out. The windows were always shut making the room very stuffy. His dirty clothes littered the floor and the ‘clean’ ones were never folded or hung. His bed was never laid and his bathroom was an eyesore.
Mrs. Cole was tired of telling him to tidy up his room, these days, she’d just enter the room, say what she had to say and leave.
She went to check on her other two children, Seyi and Bolu who shared a room. Seyi was sixteen and the first child while Bolu was the baby of the house. If Seyi could have her way, she’d have wanted to have a room to herself but with the number of rooms in the house she had no choice but to share with her sister. She couldn’t wait to leave the house. She had just finished secondary school at Federal Girls’ College, Ipetumodu, an all-girls’ boarding school and she earnestly prayed she would get admitted into the higher institution that year. She desperately wanted to leave the house for anywhere more peaceful, even if it meant leaving on the street. She was fed up of the consistent rancour and fighting between her parents and couldn’t stand it anymore.
Mrs. Cole opened the door that led into the girls’ room. There were two beds which were positioned parallel to each other with Bolu’s bed being closer to the door and Seyi’s own farther away but closer to the window. Mrs. Cole found Bolu on her bed crying while Seyi sat on hers, backing her sister and whoever it was that cared to come into the room. Her ears were plugged with her ear phones as she faced the window and focused on her phone.
Mrs. Cole saw Bolu crying, went to her bed and sat beside her.
“Bolu, I’m sorry you had to see that again.” Mrs. Cole knew it wasn’t the first time Bolu witnessed a physical fight between her parents and she doubted it would be the last. “It was just a misunderstanding between your dad and I,” she tried to explain to her.
Bolu hiccupped a sob, “mummy will it ever end?” She asked as tears rolled down her cheeks.
Her mother was silent. “Come here” she said and hugged her tightly. “I hope so, I really do.” Her eyes became moist with tears, she fought back the tears. “We’ll be fine, you hear?”
Bolu nodded.
“But guess what” Mrs. Cole pulled Bolu away from her embrace and with a smile, looked at her.
“What?” Bolu asked less concerned.
“I’m preparing your best food,” she smiled and hoped that will cheer up her daughter.
Bolu’s somber face broke into a smile. “Dodo? (fried plantain)” She asked hopeful.
“Oh, I thought it was beans,” Mrs. Cole teased, holding back her smile.
“Noooooo mummy I don’t like beans.” Bolu folded her arms and looked away.
“How won’t I know my baby’s best food? Don’t worry, I’ll give you the largest portion but you must promise to eat your rice and not waste it this time around” she fondled with her nose.
“Okay I promise” she smiled.
“That’s my baby” she stood up from her bed and walked towards Seyi who didn’t seem interested in what was going on in the house any longer.
“Young lady” Mrs. Cole, standing some meters away from the foot of Seyi’s bed, called out.
Seyi heard but didn’t respond, she hid under the disguise of her ears being plugged and continued fondling with her phone.
“Seyi, I know you can hear me, come to the kitchen and help me round off dinner” she told her.
“I’m not hungry” Seyi said without removing the ear phones or looking in her mother’s direction.
“Whatever, just leave me” Seyi waved the back of her hand at her.
“Okay I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to act like “I-know-all”, will you forgive me?” she smiled.
Seyi didn’t respond.
“I’ll tickle you oh, I don’t care who is watching” she told her.
“Ok beebee, I’ve heard” Seyi had no choice but to comply, she was very ticklish and knew that Sope never made empty threats especially when it came to tickling her in the public.
When Seyi got home that evening, she picked her phone and checked if she had any new follower on Instagram. Lo and behold, there he was ‘officalgokeup’. She smiled and took a comfortable position on her bed as she fed her eyes with his posts. They were mostly pictures of himself and a few with his friends. A particular lady’s picture kept recurring and Seyi started wondering who she was. She tried to check if she was tagged but didn’t get as much as her name. “Who is this girl?” she asked herself but before she could get a response, a direct message came in from none other but her new crush, Goke.
“Hi”
“Hello, I see you’ve found me” she replied.
“I told you I was going to search for you. I’m a man of my words.”
Seyi smiled. She liked the sound of that. “You have nice pictures” she paid him a compliment.
“I was just going to say that about you too. You are really beautiful” he told her.
He was the first person to ever tell her that. The secondary school she attended was an all-girl’s school. That, together with the fact that she didn’t really have male friends made all this very new to her. Her mom also was always too busy fighting with her father to ever tell her how beautiful she was. Every time she looked at her reflection in the mirror, all she saw was a regular face, nothing out of the ordinary so being told by a guy that she was really beautiful was new and definitely sparked up something in her for the guy.
“Thank you” she replied.
“You are welcome. I didn’t see any guy in your pictures, does that mean you don’t have a boyfriend?” he asked.
Seyi felt that with that question, he was being too forward but gave him the benefit of doubt “he is probably an open person” she told herself.
“No, I don’t” she replied hoping that response didn’t make her appear weird. She knew that it was the norm for ladies her age to have boyfriends and had always wondered if there was something wrong with her for not having one. She sometimes wondered if she was ugly or unattractive. She had gone to the extent of wearing short and exposing clothes to get guys’ attention but this only attracted good-for-nothing fellows who wanted to destroy her life and it earned her insults from her mother.
It was one day when her mum sent her to the market to get some things for the house and without her mum knowing, she wore a short skirt and tight off shoulder blouse. Right from the moment she stepped out of the gate till the time she got back, she received nasty comments from different guys. First it was the gateman at the estate’s gate that told her he wanted to marry her then the Hausa meat seller at the market that called her “fresh meat” and the worst was a beggar by the road side that told her to follow him home. Did he even have a place he could call home? She was so disgusted and told herself that was the last time she was going to dress that way. As if all that was not enough, when she got home and her mum saw her, she pounced on her with insults.
“Seyi, is this what you wore to the market?” her mother asked with utmost surprise. She couldn’t believe her eyes. She didn’t wait for her response “is something wrong with you?”
Seyi knew what she did was wrong so didn’t bother arguing or defending herself. She remained quiet all through the time her mother scolded her. She received the insult of her life that day and didn’t need a prophet to tell her never to repeat it again.
However, now meeting Goke, she felt there was something about him that was different from the other guys. He gave her the kind of attention she had been starved of from her father and guys in general. She was eager to know more about him.
She summoned courage to ask him if he had a girlfriend. “How about you, I saw a lady featuring in a number of your pictures. Is she your girlfriend?”
“Hehehehehe no o, she is my younger sister” he told her.
For some reason, that last message he sent brought her some relief.
They went on to exchange phone numbers and asked a couple of questions. She got to know he was a final year architecture student in Shinning Star University but was on holiday.
“That’s the same university my father lectures in,” she informed him.
“Wow what a small world.”
They moved on to phone calls, that was the beginning of incessant chats and calls between the two of them. She became pretty addicted. Within an hour of not hearing from him, she’d either send him a message or call him. She didn’t even notice she was the one initiating 90% of the conversation they had. All she knew was, she liked the feeling it brought. Her phone became her best friend, she was not away from it for more than a maximum of 5 minutes except when she was asleep and it was the very first thing she searched for the moment she woke up. Now she had a reward for her little relationship with her phone: a scald on her thigh from hot oil.
Her mom brought her food and asked her to sit up to eat. She did but with her eyes glued to her phone. She had just opened her chat with Goke and realized all he said last was ‘kk’. He had not checked up on her since them, she was greatly displeased.
“Drop your phone Seyi and eat your food” her mother instructed her.
She reluctantly placed the phone down, still wondering why Goke had not chatted her up for over 5 hours.
She ate her food and took her drug and after some minutes told her mum she was ready to go to her room.
“Okay dear” her mom said as she gradually lifted her up from the chair and supported her as she limped to her room.
After sorting out Seyi, Mrs. Cole entered Bayo’s room and carried Bolu to her room. Then she went back to the sitting room and finally got the chance to rest her aching back. She didn’t even realize she had not eaten since morning. The last and only meal she had had that day was bread and egg which was breakfast. She was too tired to eat anything now. She lay down on the three-seater sofa and waited for her husband to come. Since that unpleasant incident when he beat her blue-back, she decided to make the sitting room her temporary room till he returned after which she’d go in to sleep.
He finally returned at 12:30AM. She opened the door for him. He reeled in as usual but didn’t insult or abuse her as was his usual custom. Mrs. Cole was too exhausted to start a conversation about how he didn’t care if Seyi was alright. She just locked the door behind him and went to bed.
Thanks for reading, subscribe and stay tuned to this page for the remaining episodes. Episode 2 drops tomorrow. Please share one thing or the other u learnt from this story in the comment section. I love u all 😍
“Law School” Review: Reasons To Watch This Legal Korean Drama Even If You’ve Never Studied Law
Law school Korean drama review
The Korean drama Law School has been enjoying high ratings and even topped Netflix ranking lists worldwide, which implies that it’s good. If you haven’t already started watching Law School, we compiled reasons why you should do so.
We also shared our thoughts about the drama at the end of this Law School Korean drama review. This article contains spoilers – you don’t wish to read spoilers, do watch the 1st episode before reading this.
A drama that highlights the flaws of Korea’s legal system
Law School centres on 4 main characters: Yang Jong-hoon, Han Joon-hwi, Kang Sol A, and Kim Eun-sook.
The unexpected murder of a professor causes chaos in Hankuk University’s law school. 1st year students Kang Sol A and Han Joon-hwi find themselves tangled in the drama, along with criminal law professor Yang Jong-hoon and civil law professor Kim Eun-sook.
The 1st episode alone highlights the flaws in Korea’s legal system and how people can get unwittingly convicted for crimes they didn’t commit, while the actual criminals get away scot-free.
HIGHLIGHTS
1. The murder of the professor
The drama starts with a mock court trial for the Hankuk University law students. The case is about a murder caused by drug poisoning. Mid-way, Professor Seo Byung-ju walks into the courtroom to watch the trial. Shortly after he enters, we see that he’s in discomfort. One of the students, who is playing the suspect in the mock trial, looks up at the professor with a piercing gaze. We don’t know about their relationship yet, but judging from his cold stare, it isn’t good. We catch a glimpse of the students’ personalities during their break. Han Joon-hwi, the student who was staring at the professor earlier, seems to be playful yet aloof. Kang Sol, who plays the judge, appears to be absent-minded. We are also introduced to another Kang Sol – nicknamed Kang Sol B – who has a strong presence in the courtroom. She plays the prosecutor. Since the class has 2 people named “Kang Sol”, the letters “A” and “B” are used to differentiate them. Seo Ji-ho, who takes on the role of the suspect’s lawyer, is put off by Sol B’s attitude. The dislike he has for her is obvious. Jeon Ye-seul, who plays the courtroom guard, exchanges glances with Sol A – the absent-minded judge – throughout the mock trial, and it seems like they are good friends. The break drags on and the students begin to wonder why Professor Seo hasn’t returned. Sol A sends Ye-seul to find him. Ye-seul enters his office and finds the professor slumped in his chair. Thinking that he’s asleep, she approaches him to wake him up, but realises that he’s dead.
2. Kang Sol A is a relatable student amongst her high-flying peers
This scene goes back in time to March 2020, a few months before professor Seo's death. We know that Yang Jong-hoon was a competent prosecutor before he became a professor. This information was revealed to us when Professor Yang inspected Seo Byung-ju’s office after the latter was discovered dead. We see his intimidating side when he calls on Sol A to answer his question. Sol A seems taken aback and does not answer immediately. Seeing this, Joon-hwi comes to her rescue and answers on her behalf. One can immediately tell that Joon-hwi is smart and understands the law well. However, Jong-hoon insists that Sol A answers his questions. With the help of Sol B, Sol A stammers out her answers, but Jong-hoon is unsatisfied. Unable to withstand the pressure, Sol A runs out of the classroom. Jong-hoon heads out to find her and tells her that he thought she was seeking an apology. It’s a confusing statement, but a flashback explains it. The flashback shows Sol A at her admission interview. One of the interviewers is Professor Yang. Sol A declares that she wants to study law because she wants to receive an apology from the judicial system. She was wrongly accused of assault in the past when she was only trying to save someone. She ended up being sued and had to compensate the other party. Sol A believes that becoming a lawyer is the only way the poor can have justice. Jong-hoon asks how she expects the law to apologise and she answers, “That’s for you to teach me, Professor.” She wasn’t accepted into university through academic achievements, but through special admissions instead. This explains why she seems to be struggling in class. We also see Sol A being the only person aside from Joon-hwi who is affected by Professor Seo’s death and Professor Yang’s arrest for the murder of the former, while the rest of the class continues to focus on studying.
3. The drama tackles similar to real-life crimes
The outrage over the release of Lee Man-ho in the drama is similar to the outrage over the release of Jo Doo-soon, who was convicted for raping a child in 2008. The case is one of South Korea’s most infamous cases. Doo-soon was only sentenced to 12 years in jail after raping an 8-year-old and leaving her with permanent physical damage. The reason for the lighter sentence was because Doo-soon was under the influence of alcohol – in Korea, being drunk is a valid defense for rape. Furthermore, he claimed that he was too drunk to remember what he did. In 2020, before Doo-soon was released, the Korean public was horrified that a ruthless criminal like him would be released soon. Many petitioned to keep him behind bars for a longer time, and even vandalised his home after his release because they believed he would commit similar crimes again. In Law School, Lee Man-ho’s crime is similar to Doo-soon’s, so it’s clear that the drama has taken inspiration from real life. Law School dramatises it by showing Man-ho’s attempt to aggravate Professor Kim Eun-suk, who was the judge who reluctantly sentenced him to only 11 years in jail. The use of such real-life cases make the drama seem more realistic, and it gives viewers an insight into Korea’s judicial system and its flaws.
Verdict: 4/5
The first few episodes of Law School has an interesting plot that goes beyond Professor Seo’s murder.
However, be prepared to get bombarded with legal jargon. The characters in the drama have the tendency to speak fast when it comes to regurgitating their knowledge.
Also, the camera angles of the 1st episode can induce motion sickness, but the camera work improves in later episodes.
If you do not pay attention to the dates, you may end up confused because the drama jumps from one month to another. It will help to take note of the dates so that you can understand the sequence of events in the drama.
Law school Korean drama review - All about law and justice
Law School is suitable for those who love dramas about law and justice. Fans of Penthouse may find Law School appealing as well, as there are several similarities between the 2 dramas, such as the theme of justice and the use of Greek goddesses as symbols – Hera and Themis.
The age of shadows (trending Korean movie)
Profile
Title: The Age of Shadows(English title) / Secret Agent(literal title)
Director: Kim Jee-Woon
Writer: Lee Ji-Min, Park Jong-Dae, Kim Jee-Woon
Producer: Kim Jee-Woon, Choi Jae-Won, Choi Jung-Hwa
Cinematographer: Kim Ji-Yong, Kim Jae-Hong
Release Date: September 7, 2016
Runtime: 140 min.
Genre: Action / Period-1920 / Spy / Award Winning
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea
Preview
Set in the 1920's, during the Japanese occupation of South Korea, Lee Jung-Chool (Song Kang-Ho) was once a member of the Korean independence movement, but he now works as a police officer for Japan. He receives an order to take down the Korean independence group the Righteous Brotherhood.
Lee Jung-Chool introduces himself to art dealer Kim Woo-Jin (Gong Yoo) and pretends to be interested in his Korean artworks. In actuality, Kim Woo-Jin is the regional leader of the Righteous Brotherhood. Both of these men are well aware of each other's true identities and intentions, but get closer to each other seeking out more information.
The Righteous Brotherhood learn there are spies within their group and attempt to clamp down on the moles. Soon, the identities of Righteous Brotherhood members are leaked and they flee to Shanghai, China. Meanwhile, Lee Jung-Chool and Japanese police officer Hashimoto (Um Tae-Goo) lead forces to Shanghai, China. There, members of the Righteous Brotherhood decide to acquire explosive for an attack on the Japanese government in Korea.
Notes
Filming began October 22, 2015 and finished March 31, 2016.
This movie is the fourth film in which Song Kang-Ho and director Kim Jee-Woon have worked together (prior films are "The Quiet Family," "The Foul King" and "The Good, The Bad, The Weird").
Cast
Song Kang-Ho
Gong Yoo
Han Ji-Min
Um Tae-Go
Shingo Tsurumi
Lee Byung-Hun
Shin Sung-Rok
Heo Sung-Tae
Kim Dong-Young
Seo Young-Joo
Park Hee-Soon
Go Joon
Kwon Soo-Hyun1
Choi Yu-Hwa
Foster Burden
Jung Do-Won
Additional cast members
Lee Sol-Gu - Oh Nam-Won
Jung Yoo-An - Hwang Ui-Seo
Kwak Ja-Hyoung - Seo Jin-Dol
Yoo Sang-Jae - Hunter Park
Jo Young-Gyu - Kim Hak-Jin
Han Soo-Yeon - Mae-Hyang
Nam Moon-Chul - Kim Hwang-Sub
Yoo Jae-Sang - inn errand boy
Lee Soo-Kwang - Hideo
Hiromitsu Takeda - Takeda
Jeong Ha-Dam - Hanako
Baek In-Kwon - Park Woong
Kim Eui-Gun - Heo Jung-Goo
Jo Ha-Suk - Kang Jong-Ki (Shanghai source)
Park Sang-Hoon - Ha Il-Soo's subordinate
Hong-In - Ha Il-Soo’s subordinate
Choi Yoon-Ra - Umano's female secretary
Hwang Moo-Young - Heo Chul-Joo's relative
Joo Suk-Tae - prosecutor
Park Ki-Sun - judge
Oh Ha-Nee - Hwang Seo-Im
Keum Sae-Rok - train dining car bartender
Ha-Min - first class female passenger
Jung Mi-Nam - loudspeaker police officer
Kim Tae-Joon - train station employee
Kwak Min-Ho - member 3 of exterminated Righteous Brotherhood
Baek Chung-Kang - bar male singer
Kim Jeong-Woo - bar bartender
Kim Yoon-Joo - gisaeng 2
Jeon Yeo-Bin - gisaeng 4
Lee Sang-Hee - mother of baby
Jo Wan-Ki - cop arresting Ludvik
Jeon Bae-Su - prison officer of Seodaemun Prison
Won Jin-A - nun
Shin Mi-Young - Korean senior nun
Heo Hyeong-Gyu - Jung Woo-Sik
Ok Ja-Yeon - Lee Jung-Chool's wife
Yang Myung-Heon - Attorney Poshijinchi
Choi Hee-Do - Japanese man in dining car of train
Kwon Oh-Soo - court audience
Ji Eun - bomb material dealer
If u have watched this movie, please leave a comment below and if u have not watched it yet, make sure u do.. it will be worth ur time 😍
My unexpected wedding night experience 😭
The moment everyone had been waiting for came. The pastor, in an enthusiastic tone, announced:
"Emm, Brother Fide, it is now time for you to kiss your wife..."
My groom took a few steps towards me and planted a soft unsophisticated kiss on my lips. This was followed by a mixture of applause and screams from the audience. I eagerly waited for the sensual work that had begun to be brought to completion.
For the remaining part of the wedding, I wondered what our first would be like. I was expectant and turned my little brain into a questionnaire. I couldn't wait to escape the crowd and have time with my beau.
As the day wrapped up and we got ready to drive off, my 'god-mother' held my hands and took me to the front of the car where no one will interrupt us. With a smile that spoke volumes she said,
"Today, you are going to be with a man for your first time. Make sure you are sweet in bed."
I drove away without a discourse on what, being "sweet in bed" meant. We happily blessed our driver's hand with a tip and walked into a three-star hotel on a silent street in Bamenda, Cameroon for a one-night honeymoon experience.
The upscale interior decor was refreshing to the eyes. Various works of art garnished the walls around us. It was a pleasant sight.
The eyes of a brown-skinned receptionist at the welcome desk greeted us. As we negotiated for a room, I could only think of the three letter word that makes the world go round.
The room didn't fall short of my expectations. The red sheets on the bed spoke the language of love. It was a calm and convenient cubicle. It seemed like the perfect place for a romantic adventure.
After a quick shower, I put on my lingerie and hopped into bed, eagerly awaiting my trip to "lala land". I knew Mr N.'s "little man" will experience a moment of inflation. I knew he will then insert it somewhere between my legs. I knew, as a pioneer, it will hurt a little but the pleasure will far surpass the pain. What I didn't know is that I was in for a struggle.
Like the fishermen, who became Jesus' friends, we tolled all night but caught nothing. As our time in the hotel expired, I begged the time to linger so we could try some more but as the cliche stipulates, "time waits for nobody."
When some family members saw us the afternoon after, dressed in matching clothes, they started ululating . Little did they know that we had not consummated the marriage.
I was totally disappointed in myself. What was I missing? How could I really be 'sweet' in bed? We kept trying for the next one week with the same results. Then Mr. N had to leave for work. He worked as a Marine Electrical Engineer in Equatorial Guinea and was going to be away for two long months.
The level of disappointment in myself grew. It was a mixture of confusion, uncertainty and doubt. After examining my lady parts, I concluded that there was no way a thing that big was going to go through and stay there.
I also thought I had been bewitched by some ill-meaning family member. Thoughts were running through my mind like waves in a torrent.
The over one week of trying to eat the fruit of marital goodness seemed like a wild-goose chase. The only results I had were soreness,
I wondered why a thing that novels, movies and friends said was so good had turned out so gruesome. Those had been my 'formal' educators on sex. When I started menstruating, my mother warned me sternly, "If a boy touches you now, you will get pregnant." That was about all she ever told me about sex. My father? He lived his life as though sex didn't exist. As if that's not how he produced me. He never went near that topic. Not even in a joke.
Then my biology teacher had managed to teach about sexual intercourse when she inevitably had to cover the topic, 'reproduction'. The reaction from the class was enough to make a coy lady quickly digress to something else. Yet, among the jeers and boos she pressed on. For the first time, I heard words like, 'erection', 'penis', 'vagina', and others in the sex dictionary pronounced by real lips in the open. It was a pretty rough ride for the teacher, dealing with curious teenagers but she pulled through.
My other form of sexual education was in the church where I was taught that godly principles required that I remained untouched until my wedding night. It was said that the greatest gift I could ever give my husband on our wedding night was my virginity. Anytime the topic of sex was mentioned in a church youth gathering, there was a rehash of this same phraseology, "keep your primary or secondary virginity as a gift for your husband."
So, on my wedding night, I matched like a queen into the hotel room with my bridal tiara still on my head as though I was going to receive a "bride of the year" trophy. But the gift I had kept as strictly instructed refused to be unraveled. Our various attempts at penetration failed. It was a night void of coitus.
It took another two months before our breakthrough came in a moment of pleasure mixed with pain. I was glad that the spell was broken. It did not however stop me from wondering if my case was anomalous.
Some months later, I had a chit-chat with a friend who shared a similar experience. She and her to-be husband tried to unlock the gate to her womanhood but kept hitting the wall. She said she thought she needed to have surgery done in which a hole will be created for 'it'. When I told her my experience, we laughed together.
I understand that a lot of parents, pastors and role models in the society refrain from talking to young people about sex because they do not want to stir the wrong emotions. But there are age appropriate discussions that should take place. What you will tell a 3 year old, may not be what you will tell a 13 year old or even a 30 year old.
A 3 year old may need to know that what she calls 'pee-pee' is actually called a vagina while a 13 year old need to know that she is in a period called puberty and some parts of her body may be more sensitive to touch than others. But a 30 year old needs to know much more than that.
What was your wedding night like or what plans do you have for your wedding night??? Don't be stingy. Lol. Abeg share with me below. Thanks for reading 😍
How our wedding night went😲 (awkward? Weird? Fun?)🥵
Is the wedding night really all it's cracked up to be? With statistics showing that anywhere from 25% to 52% of couples don't even get around to having sex, we figured we ought to find out what they're doing instead. Here are seven true tales from brides and grooms of how their big night actually went down.
1. Spent the night in the hospital instead
"At our reception, my husband decided to do the worm on the dance floor. About 20 minutes later, my best friend found me and frantically said, 'Do you know your husband is bleeding to death in the kitchen?' I ran into the kitchen area outside the main ballroom and found my husband and my dad's cousin trying to stop the blood spurting from my husband's chin with paper towels. While doing the worm, my husband accidentally slammed his chin into the dance floor before his chest and split his chin open. My husband, who looked very green from all the blood running down his tuxedo, said he needed a drink of water. Because it was close to the end of the reception and the bar was closed, I searched everywhere for a bottle of water. When I finally found one and ran back to the kitchen, my husband was gone. I thought I'd find him in the back of an ambulance, but instead, I found him back on the dance floor with a butterfly bandage over his chin being body passed by his friends. After the reception, we headed to the hospital for stitches, which is where we spent the night!" — says Rebecca
2. Passed out drunk
"I got super drunk at my wedding and passed out on my wedding night. We had planned an after-party in our suite so there were 10 to 15 people over partying while I slept. They ordered pizza and I was told people were jumping up and down on my bed trying to wake me. I didn't know any of that happened, and I had the worst hangover the next day. We had to be up at 6 a.m. to take a plane to Maui, Hawaii for our honeymoon. It was horrendous." — says Damon
3. I had to sleep for a better part of three days to recover
"I had expected my wedding night to be this crazy time, up all night, the works. We got into a hot bath and I don't think I could carry a conversation. All I could think about was how tired and hungry I felt, so we ordered pizza. While we waited, we watched The Wedding Singer—and I passed out. Not a light sleep, out cold. My husband had to shake me awake to eat before I passed out again. I did not know I would be so tired. I had to sleep for the better part of three days to recover." — says Leah
4. A storybook wedding night
"I asked my best man and his parents to help me set up the hotel room. When we entered there were rose petals on the floor leading to the refrigerator and the bed. At the fridge were chocolate covered strawberries. The petals leading to the bed showed that the bed was also decorated with a rose petal heart as well as LED flickering candles, which added to the romantic feel. My wife loved it! She was surprised because she didn't think I could have had time to do it. She also said it was the most romantic thing anyone had ever done for her." — says Andrew
5. Determined to do the deed
"I made it a point to make sure we had sex on our wedding night. Even though we partied until 2 a.m. on our wedding night and we were completely exhausted (and a bit drunk), we still did the deed as newlyweds. The funny thing is, I had this sexy, intricately strappy lingerie outfit I planned on wearing, but I ditched that plan and my husband didn't blame me one bit." — says Jenna
6. Encountered an unexpected visitor
"Let's just say my aunt walked in on us! She thought we were at our own after-party and made the hotel staff open the door. We obviously didn't answer and froze to make her go away. Then in she comes with two other people with all of our gifts! We were mortified and started yelling at them to go away. Mood killed. No after-party after that. And nothing else either.... except sleep." — says Lauren
7. Tears of alcohol
"Leading up to our wedding, my recently married friends kept reminding us to enjoy ourselves, because not only is the night short, but it's also really expensive. So we did; we got wasted. My wife completely forgot about her father-daughter dance. Plus she slept on the bus ride from the venue to the hotel. When we retired for the night she cried because she didn't remember much from the night. It was kinda funny." — says Mark
Amazing parts of the Korean series "boys before flower"
Boys before flower also known as boys over flower is one of the most trending movie in the Korean movie industry although it has been long released, it's still trending so well in Korea and other countries of the world especially Nigeria.
The series comprises of 4 seasons with a total number of 25 episodes each and rumor also has it that another season which will be the fifth season will be released but it hasn't been released up till date.
I'm from Nigeria and I can't bet u that majority of children, teenagers and youths have seen this movie in Nigeria infact I'm sure this is the first Korean series that majority of them watched. This series was like the biggest break into Korean movies in Nigeria.
I was 11 years old and in Jss 1 when I saw this movie, I love every part of it. I remember that it was a friend who gave me the first season to watch, not so sure of what kind of movie it was, I reluctantly collected it and took it home and then later watched when my parent were not around. On watching the first season, I took all my savings as at that time and bought the rest seasons as I couldn't afford to miss the remaining part 😂😂. After watching the movie, i craved for more seasons but there isn't and that led me into getting other Korean movies so I can bodly say that boys before flower is my break into Korean movies😍.
I started getting so addicted to Korean movies that I could literally spend all my savings on it but the funniest thing is that I wasn't even feeling that I'm spending so much on it (the fun of it couldn't let me feel it 😂). I loved it with every naira in my pocket.
Back to the series, the series was released in the year 2009, the main actor and actress in the series are Kim Hyun-joong, Lee Min-ho, Kim hyun-joong, Kim Bum, Kim Joon, Kim So-eun while their names in the series are Geum Jan-di, Goo Joon Pyo, Yoon Ji-hoo, So Yi-jeong, Song Woo-bin, Yuki Matsuoka and many others.
The series is about a working-class girl who gets tangled up in the lives of a group of wealthy young men in her high school. You wouldn't want to afford to miss this movie if u haven't seen it yet. Get one for yourself today, you won't regret doing so.
Please share your own experience of the series "boys before flower" in the comment section below👇
How to be a successful leader
Firstly let us look at some definitions of a leader by different people below;
◽A leader is someone who knows the way, goes the way and shows the way _John C. Maxwell.
◽A leader is a person who has a vision, a drive and a commitment channeled through requisite skills to make the vision a reality _Kolade Omotayo.
◽A leader with no followers is just taking a walk _John C. Maxwell.
◽A leader is someone who has a high level of interpersonal effectiveness which is the capability to influence others competently _Kolade Omotayo.
Characteristics of great interpersonal effectiveness
1) Awareness - A state of consciousness.
2) Ability - To lead a function of influence.
3) Commitment - What keeps you going in the face of adversity and challenges. Commitment ignites action. Without it, people will not follow you.
There's a difference between interest and commitment. _Ken Blanchard
Core attributes of leaders
*Vision
*Self discipline
*Integrity
*Competence - knowledge, skill, experience, passion, dedication, risk.
IN ADDITION
_ Learn to be a good follower
_ Be inspirational
_ Develop situational awareness
_ Lifelong learning
_ Empower by delegating
_ Solve problems and resolve conflict
_ Listen deeply
_ Take on more responsibilities
@Slimydee
