Chapter 3

Chapter 3

I continued at home as if I hadn't found out about my dad's death. Although, I told few of my friends, and they promised not to reveal the secret to anyone. I returned to my duty at home as well as going to school. I never stopped my normal routine at home, but it became harder for me to concentrate,each time I made mistakes with calculations of the goods I supplied, I got beaten, sometimes to the point of sustaining injuries. I got beaten from the back so that people won't notice the marks. After the beatings, mostly in the evenings, I would still have to run a few errands before I could lay my head to sleep.

My cousin, John, usually returned from work at about 11pm. Even though I was already asleep, he would wake me to warm his food and still send me outside to buy things for him. I continued to lose weight because of the stress, but nobody cared. I completed JSS2 as the best student in my class against all odds and moved to JSS3.

My guardians could not believe that I would be doing so well. They concluded that if I was emerging as the best student, then it meant that I was not in class with brilliant students or probably our teachers were not good enough. While I was not getting encouraged at home, my teachers in school loved me, they gave me lots of encouragement to do more. I was often used as an example for my classmates. Being the best, I was always getting favoured by my classmates. Many of them shared their snacks with me and ensured we became friends. By the time I finished JSS3, I had become popular at school. My friends in school always came to visit me even though I didn't get the chance to know where most of them lived.

Many times I remembered my parents and how things fell apart in the blink of an eye. I also imagined what life would have been like, if I had stayed back in the village with my grandmother. I was convinced that I had made the right decision to be here. Not because it was well with me, but because I saw myself improving in every aspect of my life even though I have to pay the price. I became comfortable because I had adapted to the life I was given, in order to achieve my dreams.

I completed JSS3 in 1999, I was happy I made it through. I began to look forward to the new session when I will be in the Senior secondary school. All my mates enrolled for summer lessons in preparation for the senior class which would be more comprehensive than when we were in Junior classes, but I didn't. I was meant to understand that apart from supplying goods, I also have to be in the shop to sell in retails to customers that came in to buy from the shop throughout the holidays. I was sad because I wouldn't be joining my mates for summer lessons. I made arrangements with my friends to always bring me notes as well as spend time with me whenever they got a chance to come around to teach me a few things from what they have learnt.

While the holidays were on going, I was informed that all arrangements for me to switch to another school have been completed. This was another devastating moment for me because I was going to lose my friends. The moment I had spent in Dolphin high school had suddenly come to an end. At first when it was being discussed at home that I will change school, I thought it was just so much talk,but now it became reality.

I shared the news with my friends. They were really sad because we had things all planned for the senior school. Gradually, my school mates stopped coming to visit me even before the end of the holidays, except for Martin. I told him I would be resuming at the Methodist boys high school, Victoria island. He said I was lucky because this was one school that a lot of people would love to be. He encouraged me that although I will be faced with a lot of competitions but I will survive because the level of learning there was wider than what we had in Dolphin high school. I felt better after hearing this.

The holidays soon came to an end,I was taken to Victoria island to complete my registration. Deacon drove me in his car. He paid for a new pair of school uniform and stationaries. The following week I started the senior secondary school in Methodist boys high school, Lagos.

Sound track : uptown girl by Westlife.