Jasmine - Episode 4

 

I went straight to Kemi's room. I could no longer bear the burden alone. It was high time I told
her. Kemi and I had been together since our secondary school days and she had always been
there for me. She was a really good and spirit-filled Christian, and she had always been a source
of encouragement to me in different ways. When I got to her room and saw her, I knew right
there that she would be angry I didn’t tell her about it sooner, after our long years of friendship.
Luckily for me, none of her roommates were around when I got to her room and she was about to
take a nap when I entered . I took a seat beside her and bowed my head as I tried to gather the
courage to open up.
“Jasmine, what is it? Tell me, please” she was as agitated as I was.
“Kemi I need to tell you something…” I started to speak but my voice faded before I could go
on.
”…I can’t hold it in anymore,” before I could finish my statement, tears started rolling down my
cheeks.
My friend put her arms around me and reassured me.
“Oh! Jasmine, are you ready to tell me what has been disturbing you all this while?” She said as
she patted my back.
“Please, stop crying. Whatsoever the problem is, remember that we have a God that is bigger
than all the problems in this world.” she added.
Kemi's words calmed me down a bit and her assurances gave me the strength to continue.
I cleaned my face and tried to find the right words that would subtly describe what happened to
me

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

. I didn’t find any.
“Kemi, I was raped…” the word came out soft and direct, and tears welled up in my eyes again.
“What!” Kemi exclaimed with her mouth wide open.
“By who…? When…? How? She stood up and rushed the questions.
“Samuel” I said simply.
“Which Samuel? “She asked in disbelief.
“Brother Samuel in our fellowship”. I added and heaved; glad to finally be free of the weight of
secrecy that had burdened my heart for many days.
“Bro Samuel, our Bible Study Secretary?” Kemi still couldn’t believe it.
“Yes”, I replied.
Kemi sat back down and asked me to narrate the full story from the very beginning.
And I did.
I started from how Samuel proposed marriage to me, though she already knew about that and she
had been praying alongside me; I went on and told her about the Birthday invitation and finally,
how I woke up hours later only to realise that I had been raped. By the time I finished the story,
Kemi was back on her feet and both of us were silent for a couple of seconds. I was waiting for
her to blame me for what happened but as a true friend that she was, she didn’t though she was
disappointed I didn’t tell her sooner and she made it clear she was not happy about it.
“So why didn’t you tell me when it happened? Am I not supposed to be your best friend, or don’t
you trust me again?” She asked, looking at me with pity in her eyes.
“I am sorry my dearest friend, I trust you. I was just so shocked and ashamed of myself at the
same time. I wasn’t thinking right” I explained as tears spilled from my eyes.
“Okay dear. This is not the time for me to scold you anyways”. She said while patting my back.
Kemi hugged me as I cried my eyes out. Opening up to her made me feel like the incident had
happened again. It was like reopening a wound that was almost healed. We were both hugging
and crying for the next one minute or more. When we were done, I cleaned my face and Kemi
offered me a handkerchief. I collected it and thanked her. She also used the palm of her hands to
wipe her face clean.
“Do your parents know about this? “ She asked, breaking the silence.
“No. I have not…The…They will be too shocked and disappointed”, I answered her with much
uncertainty.
“I am too ashamed”, I added when I saw her frown.
“I know you are but still, you should have told them. You should have reported to the police too,
drugging you and raping you is a criminal offense?” She explained.
Kemi was getting angrier with each sentence.
“But why did you go to his room alone, you should know better. I have told you not to always
trust people blindly, this should teach you a lesson.” She said.
“I have learnt my lesson, my dear. I don’t think I will ever trust any man again in my life. I
trusted Samuel because I thought he was a Believer not knowing he was a deceiver. Kemi, you
don’t need to even tell me, I have learnt my lesson.”
“At least did you visit the hospital after the incident” she asked.
It never crossed my mind to do so and I asked her, “Hospital for what?”
“Don’t tell me you didn’t go to the hospital,” Kemi cut in as soon as I asked. “That is one of the
things you should have done, if you had told me immediately I would have taken you to the
hospital right away. Forensic examination would have been carried out and it would have served
as an evidence to nail that beast. Besides, emergency contraceptives would have been given to
you to prevent pregnancy and antibiotics to prevent possible STIs and antiretroviral treatment
would prevent HIV. What if you become pregnant or get infected, what will you do then?” She
rattled out the possibilities one after the other.
“God forbid! What kind of things are you insinuating? I won’t be pregnant or get infected in
Jesus name! I quickly rejected the possibilities.
“So why are you still talking to that idiot, I can remember he called you aside after fellowship
and after class few days ago, don’t tell me he was begging you or something?” She asked
curiously.
I readjusted myself on the mattress and explained,
“That is the reason I am here, you won’t believe what I am about to tell you.” Kemi braced
herself and I continued. “Samuel took nude pictures of me and he is threatening to release the
pictures on social media unless I agree to date him. The pressing issue is; few minutes ago he
called me and I told him I was still thinking about it.” I picked up my phone, opened the
messages and showed her the messages he sent.
“You must be kidding me! So he still has the guts to blackmail you. I don’t blame him though; I
have you to blame! If you had reported to the police immediately and you have gone to the
hospital to do forensic examination, there would have been enough evidence to put him in the
cage where animals like him live.” She said, angry to the point of visibly shaking.
“I hope you are not planning to go to his room because of this stupid message that he sent to
you” she added.
“I don’t know what to do exactly, and that is why I am here. I need your advice, please help me
Kemi.” I looked at her closely as I clasped my hands, “I am so confused” I said.
“So you only remember me when you are in trouble and when you need advice, no problem,”
she was still very angry.
“Kemi, I am so sorry, but this is not the time to scold me. Please let’s think together; is there any
other way I can save the little pride and dignity I have left? I can’t let Samuel release those
pictures, he has sent a dozen to me already, only God knows how many he has on his phone”
“There is always a way. Give me a minute to think about something…“ She said and tried to
calm herself.
“We need to get evidence, a very substantial one at that.” she added.
“So where do we get the evidence from now? Can we still do the forensic examination?” I asked
excitedly.
“Forensic examination at what time, Jasmine?” She shook her head as she wondered at my
ignorance. “So you don’t know it can only be done within 24hours after the incident. We will
need to set him up to get some evidence.”
Kemi was still thinking about a way out when my phone rang.
It was Samuel calling. The one hour I asked for had passed already and he was still expecting
me. I was agitated and confused, “What should I tell him?” I wondered aloud.
“Give him an excuse and try to talk to him calmly. Also, tell him you will come after class
tomorrow”. Kemi advised. It seemed she had all the answers and I made up my mind to do
everything she advised.
I picked the call and told Samuel I would come after my class the next day.
He was satisfied and happy with my response. He laughed and said he would be expecting me,
little did he know I would also come prepared.
“Tomorrow is another day” Kemi said as we continued to think about what to do next.
Though I tried, I couldn't get Kemi's questions off my mind. “What if I am infected with
Gonorrhea, Syphilis or worse still, HIV? What if I become pregnant?" A deep fear rose within
me as I considered the implications.