HOW MUCH REALLY?

The sun was excruciatingly scorching. She could feel her already dark skin getting darker,if that was even possible. She hoped the place wasn’t much farther,

Apo shopping mall.  she hadn’t gotten used to the heat yet even though it was up to a month since she had first come to Abuja. After three weeks at the orientation camp, Idara was still trying to get accepted at her place of primary assignment two weeks later. That was where she was coming from, fully dressed in her 7/7 NYSC uniform (she didn’t know yet that she didn’t have to go in full uniform all the time).

It was more unfortunate that the smoldering heat did not agree with her khaki combat jacket and trousers, few hours ago she had opted for tying the jacket around her waist to get some relief. It didn’t help much too that she chose to wear the jungle boot instead of a pair of white sneakers, she’d always felt it made her look smarter. She adjusted her fake ray ban shades as she made to cross the busy road. She jumped back as a loud honking startled her.

“ Otondo as you fine like this you no go look where you dey go?” a keke (tricycle) driver said. She had never quite understood why corps members were called  “Otondo”. She smiled at him.

“Oga abeg you know where be Apo shopping mall?” she asked him in pidgin

“eh. Na drop?” as he was saying this the car that had almost run her over had parked just in front of the keke and was honking furiously. She looked at the car and could see that the driver was beckoning on her. She looked at him, and then back to the keke man who was smiling knowingly. Maybe he just wanted to ask for directions. People tended to be more trusting of ‘corpers’. She walked towards him. He was making a call, he put down the phone and asked hurriedly

“Where are you going?”

“Apo shopping mall” she replied

“Let me drop you”  he opened the door and went back to making his call. She looked at the air conditioned car, she didn’t know what kind of car it was, she had never been good with stuff like that. It was tempting, but she wasn’t naíve, lifts usually came at a price.

“Thank you very much sir, I’ll take the keke”. She made to walk back but the man put down his phone again.

“ I almost had an accident trying to stop for you. no need to be afraid, I’m an officer”he said pointing to the military uniform at his backseat. She looked back again at the keke, it had already loaded two passengers, two rather fat women. The A.C car won.

The weird, middle aged man pulled back into the road and continued with his call. Good. She hoped he would keep making the call till she got to her destination so they wouldn’t have to talk or exchange numbers. When they got to a traffic jam he put his hands inside his pigeon hole and brought out a rather hefty bundle of money. 500 naira notes, he put it on the pigeon hole. She looked away. He finally dropped his call.

“Are you in a hurry?” he asked

“Not particularly” Isoken was yet to call her. She probably hadn’t even had her bath yet.

“Let’s go somewhere. I like your physique. You are tall and slim. I want to f#@k you” he said without removing his eyes from the road.

She was speechless. She just starred at him. He glanced at her

“That’s fifty thousand naira. It’s yours if you go with me”

She had seen scenes like this in movies, heard stories, had even been told that things like this happened in the capital city of Abuja, but never before had it happened to her. Such blatant disrespect. She took a deep breath. after all na she find trouble,she thought.

“ Thank you very much sir. But I think you must have misjudged me. I’d like for you to drop me here” she held the door. The traffic cleared up and he began moving again. He hit the lock button. He reached to the pigeon hole again and brought out another stack.

“Look. I have a wife and four kids. I’m not asking for a relationship. We won’t be up to an hour. I’ll drop you at the mall when we are done, maybe we’ll do a little shopping. Be smart. That’s a hundred thousand naira now” he said this without even flinching. Idara could feel her eyes growing into saucers. What had she gotten herself into. Surely this was a ritualist. Who holds all that money in cash and tosses it at a complete stranger?

“Please sir. Drop me here. I’m not going again, thank you very much” She was getting anxious But he kept driving. For the first time since she got into his car he turned and looked at her, gave her a full glance over, then reached to his source and brought another stack.

“Why are you even forming sef, what kind of girl are you? How much do you want.  I really want to f$#k you. 150. That’s as far as I’ll go”.

Idara winced at his choice of words. He was so damned vulgar, so disrespectful, she was getting mad.

“Please get that money off my face and drop me before I scream”. It seemed he could here the note of seriousness in her voice because he slowed down, eased into a clearing and parked. She tried to open the door but it was locked somehow. She turned to him and he was looking at her, shock clearly registered on his face.

“What kind of girl are you? What Abuja girl refuses that kind of money? Who are you? If you were my younger sister I would beat you for being stupid”.

She stared at him for a while.  How pathetic. She wondered at what had made him so remorselessly disrespectful.Then her face softened as her anger turned to pity. Pity for this sad, pathetic fellow. She decided she would teach him a little lesson in respect……………………………

 TO BE CONTINUED

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