Living In The Ghetto - Episode 12

 

The following day, Mama was surprised when Chimaobim told her he was going to visit a friend. It was 5:09PM, after they were back from school and had eaten the delicious potato Mama had prepared for them. They salivated and praised Mama on how good her culinary skill was, and they will never loose it for anything. Mama laughed and shushed them by telling them to learn it too . Mama later narrated to them how the potato had gotten the attention of everyone.

She bought potatoes from the market while she was on her way home. Mama had stopped teaching when she couldn't cope with the kindergarten class she was assigned to in the new school she had a stint in. Papa linked her to start a little business which she bought goods and supplied it to people who sold in their shops and also sold some at retail prices. She always closed earlier. If the market was overwhelming, she would close late by 2:00PM. It had always been before 1:00PM. Her earliness made it easier for her. She would be there before 8:00AM, then purchase the goods before other sellers like her came for it. They sold green vegetables and it was required they purchased it the morning they'll sell it.

After buying the potatoes, she bought dried fish from Iya Titi who kept teasing her while she hassled the prices with her.

"Ah! Iya Chimaobim, you like to dey price market," she teased.

Mama smiled lightly while still fixated on the fish as her hand moved all over the fishes, arranged on the flat basket that laid on the table.

"Oya, since you don't want to give me two of them for four hundred naira, let me add hundred naira," she said without raising her face.

Iya Titi drifted her head backward and took a quick glance at Mama Chimaobim. She grumbled

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. "Na because of you o. Oya bring five hundred naira. Na three hundred I dey sell am for other people," she said.

"Thank you," Mama Chimaobim said moving her mouth and gesturing at her. They laughed before she walked away.

She had encountered  Kevwe outside the compound. Kevwe had a bucket of water on her head while her outfit was soaked. She hummed while she tirelessly walked with the bucket of water.

"Well-done, Kevwe," Mama Chimaobim finally said after observing her for some minutes.

"Thank you," Kevwe replied.

Kevwe had been looking for an opportunity to talk to Mama Chimaobim at last, but she didn't know if it will make her appear forward. Mama Chimaobim had gone inside her room, while Kevwe sat on the entrance slab with the rag she used to support her bucket on her head. She spent about five minutes in the room before she came out holding a tray that had potato peels on it. 

"You dey cook potato?" Kevwe asked.

"Yes," she replied.

Kevwe wriggled her body and gestured. "I don tire and I no fit cook. I no even get wetin to cook sef, Mama. I no know if you go fit give me small food. Even if na two potatoes, I go manage. I wan use am hold belle. My stomach just dey do me anyhow, na only garri I don drink," Kevwe rattled all at once

Mama Chimaobim smiled. "Ah! You came at the right time. I don't mind."

Kevwe quickly ran towards her and hugged her tightly. She protested to help her throw the potato peels away and Mama gave in after a quick beg. Kevwe threw it into the dustbin, and washed the dirty tray with a water from her big bucket. She returned the tray back and Mama Chimaobim thanked her.

She made to walk into her room but was interrupted by whistling and claps from Mama Oyinda's room.

"Hunger don beat some people sotey na beg Dem dey beg. This life Sha. Kai! Na we go laugh at last," Oyinda rattled and laughed noisily. She kept babbling and clapping at intervals.

Kevwe fumed in anger and wanted to rushed towards the door, fling it open and beat her to stupor, but she stopped after making the move. She thought it wasn't wise to create a scene causing Mama Chimaobim discomfort. The last time they fought, Mama Chimaobim was the one that enjoyed the painful outcome. She still swore she wasn't going to let it slide. If Oyinda goes free today, she must fight the fight she had been clamouring for another day. She walked into her room and jammed the wooden net and it closed. Biting her finger, she laid on her bed that languished on the floor and stared on the wall as she swam in thoughts.

She stood up immediately she smelt the aroma of the food that mama Chimaobim was preparing. Mama Chimaobim was done cooking the potato while she prepared the stew with the vegetable she had preserved for herself in the market.

Read " The Thorny Path " by the same author ( Obinna Tony )

. She had sold everything so quick and had to sell out the two out of the three she had kept for herself. She had bargained she would cook a soup with the other two but had to postponed it till the next day. 

The aroma had saturated everywhere to the smell of everybody in the house.
"Hah! This woman don start again with her delicacies. Make she open buka," a woman said. Her slippers smacked against the floor producing a sound as she walked by. Mama Chimaobim giggled in the room.

Kevwe peered through but her eyes couldn't contain what she saw. It was Oyinda collecting food from Mama Chimaobim.

"Thank you, Ma," she said bending down a little to indicate a sign of respect.

"Help me to call, Kevwe," Mama Chimaobim said. 

Kevwe overheard her and didn't wait before Oyinda would say okay, before dashing out from the room. She smiled immediately her eyes locked with Mama Chimaobim.

"Eh, I was already asking about you."

Oyinda rolled her eyes at Kevwe as she leaned against the wall and walked past her. She twisted her mouth in disgust. Mama Chimaobim handed another plate of food to Kevwe and she thanked her. It was four piece of yam when Kevwe opened it. She was glad but at the same time angry that Oyinda had shortened her ration.

"The bad thing about her be say she dey do like say she no get long throat," she babbled away as she quenched her singing stomach with the potatoes.