The bus finally got to its stop and the passengers came down. Unlike the first time where she just left without a word, this time she looked up at me as if she was waiting for me to call the next shot.
“Umm… my sister’s place is a few minutes’ walk from here.” I said, placing my hands inside my pocket.
“Oh I see. So I guess you will be leaving now?” I couldn’t tell if it was the thought of me leaving that kept that look of pain plastered on her face or if it was the shoes she had on.
“Are you okay?” I asked, looking at the way she leaned sideways to release pressure from one foot. I knew nothing about this girl or her story so I didn’t want to jump into conclusions on what I thought she was doing at this late hour with the kind of clothes she had on.
“Yeah, it’s just this…” she shook one of her long legs.
“Where do you live, I can take you home.” She looked at me crazy. “But only with your permission.” I quickly added.
“It’s alright, I’m okay… I wouldn’t want to add to your worries.” What were my worries? Could she see them? Was I walking around looking like a wounded man? Sometimes I wondered if people ever felt self-cautious as if they are walking around their streets with a sign on their forehead that made people stop to stir.
“No, I insist. Let me take you home.” I wrapped her arms around my shoulders and we began our journey. Upon getting close to her place, she told me to stop at one dark alley that she would take herself home from there. I hesitated but the look she gave me told me not to argue. Anyway, I had done enough already and it was seriously getting late.
“I hope you find your aunty.” She said as I turned around to leave.
“You know what? I’m not really sure if she would be there. The last time I spoke to Ester was 5 years ago when I …” I quickly caught myself.
“When you?” she asked.
“Don’t worry about it, just go home and be safe okay?”
“Well if you don’t mind, I could offer you a place to lay your head for the night. It’s the least I can do after what you’ve done for me tonight.”
I’ve always had good luck with trouble. It just knew how to draw me in and consume me, but for tonight, I really needed a reliable place to stay. I wouldn’t want to march down to Ester’s place and not find her there so I took her generous offer.
“What’s your name?” I asked. She paused, contemplating if it was the right move to make.
“I’m Daniella.” She finally said.
“Daniella.” I repeated, nodding my head to it.
“Yeah I know. My parents thought it was nice to disguise our family’s current situation by giving me a fancy name.” I pretended as if I didn’t hear what she said and she led the way to her home.
“I’m victor by the way. My parents… well, I don’t know what they were thinking when they named me. Unlike you, I don’t have a story to my name so you should be thankful.” I had to pause for a minute because that was the first time in months that I’d spoken to anyone about my family. It was as if we were in a give and take situation. The more she spoke and accompanied it with a welcomed smile, the more she made me open my mouth.
“My family doesn’t have much but we are trying. You seem like someone who has tasted wealth before so what’s your story?” she asked.
“My father is a business man. I was too but not anymore.”
“Wow!” she exclaimed. “So what happened?” She waited for a story and I wished I could give it to her.
“Story for another day.” The sour taste of what my life had been and what it was now hit me. Would I have to go back to my father who has disowned me already? I asked myself. My father had warned me that if I married Cynthia, I would no longer be no son of his. He never settled well with her from the instant I introduced her to him. He would have rather saw me wedded to one of his friends daughter but I was rebellious and went against his will. And yes, Cynthia in the end did become my down fall.
She pointed to a faint light from a faraway distance. “That’s my house. It might not be what you’re used to but it’s the best I can do at the moment.” Compared to where I’d been living for the past years, I couldn’t complain. She told me to take off my shoes as soon as we got to her front door. She also took hers off and held the shoes against her chest. I followed her lead.
She whispered, “If my parents should hear a sound, I’m finished.” It made me wonder just how old she was that she had to be discreet whenever she comes home. We made it past the little kitchen that was even smaller than the room Iffy had when she was newly born. In my efforts in sneaking through the tiny space, I knocked over a spoon and the metal hit the floor.
“Daniella is that you?” a tiny sleepy voice asked from another room in the small house. I looked around, thinking I was about to get caught.
“No mom, it’s not me.” She snickered. I guessed her mom understood her daughter so she didn’t push much further.
“This is where you will be sleeping tonight; my room.” She juggled through her purse and brought out the key to the door. I was reluctant.
“Is there no other room I could just hide in till the morning?”
“Victor…” She used my name for the first time and for some reason, I felt the sincerity from the voice that called out the name. “As you can see, there isn’t much space in this house so…” to save her the trouble, I walked into the room. She told me to wait as she looked for the light switch. She flicked it on and the whole room came alive. There was a little bed on the floor on the right side of the room. For a girl who said her family had little to nothing, she had quite a lot in her own space. She moved effortlessly, to recover some clothes that were lying on the floor. I became embarrassed when I realized she felt my eyes on her. I pointed to the floor and she nodded.
“Of course you take the floor.” She said, humming a tune to one of Timi Dakole’s song. It was actually my favorite. She moved to the wall and began the task of changing her clothes. I didn’t know if to stir, I tried facing the wall to my right but all I could see was the image she had left in my head. She bore no shame as she removed her cloth. She went on her business as if it wasn’t a new thing to change clothes in front of a complete stranger.
“Daniella, how old are you?” I asked the question that had been bothering me since I first laid eyes on her.
“24…” she replied. “But I could easily pass off as 28.” She added. I silently cursed under my breath. “Next month, I would be 34.” I thought to myself.
