Devil's Eve

It’s Friday evening. You come out from your hostel, touch your hair and take one last look in your sizeable mirror before slipping it into your purse. You know he’ll like you. As you walk to the front of St. Peter’s where he’ll come pick you up in his Avalon, you bask in the nude admiration coming from the passersby. Your perky breasts move ahead of you and your full buttocks are packaged, strong and firm in the dark leggings you wear.

A Reverend Sister in white sees you. She makes a sign of the cross and walks hurriedly into the church premises.

An hour later…

You’ve seen a lot of the Balewa girls come out from their hostel and hop gingerly into cars. Where is he?, you ask yourself. Frustration grows in you. And you feel mockery exuding from everyone who passes you. You want to cry. But you don’t want to destroy your make up. He may still come, you tell yourself.

Thirty minutes more…

You walk hurriedly on your stilettoes. You’ve been trying his number. He doesn’t pick. You remember you’ve seen his car come from the Hilltop junction more than once. So you move there. Perhaps with hopes of seeing him at the Hilltop gate. Or for fear of going back to your hostel and lapsing into a warm pool of shame. You try his number again. Then you feel like dashing your phone to a thousand pieces on the tarred road. The sobs are coming now. Then a car stops by you. And your heart flips.

But it’s not an Avalon, it’s a Venza. It’s not him just three young boys. They call to you. Plead with you. And you walk away. Not too fast so you don’t lose them, and not to slow so they don’t think you’re cheap. The car glides smoothly beside you, like a guardian angel, playing Davido’s Assurance. Somehow you know he’s not going to come, so you hop into the car. Then they drive you to Jives for a fun filled night.

But you never come back. Your whole life careens into an eternal flow of still darkness.

Three days later…

Three boys are arrested for allegedly raping a U.N.N female student to death. Your parents bath the medical center in tears, wondering how three boys were able to get to and rape their only child.