Believe - Episode 9

 

Four years ago in December 2013, Lizben schools had just vacated for the first term of the 2013/2014 academic session.

“AY, has your dad arrived?” a girl standing opposite Ayo, asked.

“My dad ke, abi you are sleeping,” Ayo replied looking up at the girl. “Have you forgotten he travelled out of the country?”

“Oh! I forgot.” The girl covered her mouth with her palms. “I hope your mum is coming then.”

“I don’t know . She promised to be here by 10 and” – she glance at her wristwatch – “it’s now quarter to 11. She’s still not here.”

“She would come, maybe its traffic.”

“What about your parents?”

“My daddy is here already. He’s currently in the headmistress office.”

Ayo looked down at her feet. “I wish my dad would just appear.”

“It’s not only appear, it’s disappear.”

“You know what I mean Anu,” Ayo said. Anu who has been standing all the while, quickly sat beside her best friend.”

“You know what?” Anu asked. “Let’s go meet my dad, so he can help you call your mum.”

“Okay!” Ayo agreed and stood up from her seat

All episodes of this story can be found here >> https://www.ebonystory.com/story/believe

. Anu also did the same. As they walked to the door, they heard a familiar voice.

“Please excuse me,” the voice had said. “Is this basic 6 diamond.”

“Yes ma’am,” the teacher in charge of the class replied. “Please, who are you here for?”

“Ayomide Cole.”

Just then, Ayo flew into her mother’s open arms.

“Good morning ma.” Anu greeted

“Morning my dear. How are you?”

“I’m fine ma. We were…”

“I was just about to go to Anu’s dad” – Ayo placed a finger over Anu’s lips – “so he could call you to know your whereabouts. You promised 10 and this is almost 11. You…”

“Will you stop and let me explain,” Mrs. Cole interrupted. “You know this is the first time of coming to your school. So, I Kind of had a hard time locating your school.”

“You could have come with Anu’s dad.”

“To be honest, I didn’t know when he left.”

“Okay mum. I forgive you.” She hugged her mother again.

“Oh! Mrs. Cole you are here already,” Mr. Lawal said from behind mother and daughter.

“Yes I am.” Mrs. Cole turned to face the speaker. “In fact, I just got here.”

“It’s a good thing you came now,” Mr. Lawal said. “We could all leave together.”

“I’d really appreciate but I came with my car,” Mrs. Cole politely declined.

“It’s okay then. We would take our leave. Anu, let’s go.”

“Dad,” Anu called. “I would love to ride with Ayo’s mum.”

“Okay, no problem.” He faced Mrs. Cole. “Please, take care of her.”

Mr. Lawal left afterwards while Mrs. Cole went to the headmistress office to collect Ayo’s report card as instructed by Ayo’s class teacher. After collecting the report card, the trio rode home together in Mrs. Cole’s car.

Few minutes later, they arrived at Plot 5 & 6 Cole’s Estate. Anu didn’t drop at her home, instead she followed Mrs. Cole and Ayo to theirs. Just after they had gotten inside the house and settled down, Ayo walked up to her mum looking at her pleadingly.

“What do you want?” Mrs. Cole demanded from her daughter.

“Mum?”

“Yes, dear.”

“Can I bring out the scrabble board game from my games locker?”

“No!” Mrs. Cole objected. “Not until I check your report card.” She brought out Ayo’s report card from inside her bag. “Remember your promise” – she held out a finger – “to take the first position and if you don’t, I should…”

“Never let you play the scrabble board game, ever again,” Anu completed. Ayo shot her a disapproving look and Anu also stuck her tongue out.

“Thank God you were there Anu,” Mrs. Cole said. She opened the report card. “Well” - she looked at Ayo – “you took second position which means no more scrabble game in this house.”

“Ohh!!!” Ayo cried. “Please mum. Don’t do that. I really did tried my best.”

“Yes, you did. 96.4 is a better improvement than last term but a promise is a debt. It is not meant to be broken.” After she said that, she stood up and left the children in the sitting room.

“I warned you not to make that promise but you insisted,” Anu teased.

“What’s your percentage, Anu,” Ayo asked with a frown. “96.4 was higher than your last term’s percentage. So I bet you didn’t take first either.”

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

“Is it 100 percent?” Ayo chuckled. “Because that’s the only percent I won’t believe.”

“100!!! That’s impossible.”

“Thank God you know. I know you’ve never had above 95%.”

“Well, I did have more than 95%,” Anu said walking stylishly across the room.

“Look at you,” Ayo mocked. “You would have said 100.”

“Ohh, you don’t believe right?”

“Seeing is believing.”

“Don’t believe. All I know is that I had 96.7 percent.”

“96.7!” Ayo screamed.

“Yes dear.”

“Devil,” Ayo murmured.

“I heard you,” Anu teased further, making funny faces at her.

“Why is it that it’s when I had 96.4 that you know you will have 96.7?” Ayo faked a tear.

“Come on. Smile joor.”

Ayo didn’t even look at her. She just walked towards her bedroom.

“Haba!” Anu was startled but Ayo still walked out on her. “That’s rude.”

Ayo stopped and said, “So now I’m being rude.” She turned to face Anu. “What about when you were being wicked?”

Anu smiled. “When was I ever wicked?”

“Why do you always have to take first position?”

“AY, you know I didn’t do that intentionally,” Anu pleaded. “I know it’s the scrabble board game that’s paining you.”

“Of course it is,” Ayo answered.

“Okay AY, I will plead with your mum to give you the board game and we go back to being friends.”

“Not friends but sisters.” Ayo said and hugged Anu. “But are you sure, she would give it to me?”

“Of course. She only want to let you know how important a promise is.”

“True.” Ayo smiled. “Talking about promise. It makes me wonder what position she took this term.”

“Who?”

“You know exactly who I’m talking about.”

“Your friend?”

“Our friend,” Ayo rephrased.

“You know I only talk to her because of you.”

“Okay, I hope one day you agree with me that she’s our friend.”

Anu smiled while both of them ran happily to Ayo’s mother.

***

“So you are saying. You have never beaten her academically,” Bukky asked surprisingly.

“Yes never, until last Saturday,” Ayo replied. “And something tells me she made me win on purpose.”

“I have that feeling too,” Bukola said, not sounding surprised. “If that’s so, it means she recognized you the moment she saw you.”

“Yes and she made me win intentionally.” Ayo sighed. “At least she fulfilled her promise.”

“What promise?” Bukky was bewildered and she didn’t hide it. “I’m confused.”

“Let’s just say I didn’t tell you the whole story.” Ayo said and looked sullen.

Read " Hope " by the same author ( HABEEBLLAH DAMILOLA )

. “And I didn’t win because I’m better than her but…”

“Because she wanted you to win,” Bukky completed. “But that still don’t make sense to me.”

“You know what Bukky?”

“What?”

“I need to study and you are not helping.”

“Okay,” Bukola agreed. “I guess I would see you later then.” Though she agreed with Ayo but she isn’t willing to leave. She wanted Ayo to say it herself.

“Yes later.”

“Bye.” She said and walked towards the door. She turned to look at Ayo but the latter didn’t look up from the book she just resumed reading. ‘This is the first time she won’t see me off to my house,’ she thought and left awkwardly.

Longest chapter so far. I believe you are mesmerized.

Now, you've gotten to no more about our new character, Anuoluwa Lawal, Anu for short. Readers what do you think of her?

Please comment your reviews in the section below.

I plan to add the comment of the best reviewer of the previous chapters in this book when I eventually produce it. I'm giving readers a chance to write.

Also, any ideas how the story should progress from here would be welcome and the person would be recognized as a co-author. I promise that. I have my own ideas up till the end but want to hear yours.