CHAPTER 8

Muejiz walked, dragging himself beside Tomi, with a big, dark, designer shades on. He was hungover from the party, the previous night.

"Why didn't you get yourself a coffee and now you're looking like a widow who cried all night?" Tomi inquired, feeling sorry for him.

"It's your fault I'm hungover. You and your boyfriend gave me too much to drink and no time to sleep. My eyes burn and my head feels like it's holding a convention." Muejiz complained as he walked in front of Tomi, leading the way to the hall where the departmental orientation is to take place.

"....If I die today," He complained, walking backwards into the hall, facing Tomi as he kept lamenting. "....I'll let the whole world know, you and Fred caused..." He continued, turning towards the doorway of the hall to enter but stopped halfway.

"Shit!" He exclaimed and rushed out, pushing back Tomi, as he sited King with two, amongst the friends on King's table at the previous night's party, sitting on the last table, at the back of the orientation hall.

"W-Wa-What... What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Tomi lashed, as she was being pushed back beyond her control.

"I can't! Oh God, I can't do this today. I just..." Muejiz panicked

"What's the heck are you blabbering about?" Tomi cut in furiously. "Are you okay?!" She asked, this time, with concern.

"Do I look okay to you? Why did I meet you in this lifetime?! You're ruining my life." Muejiz complained.

"Of course baby, it's my job as your friend! So what is it?" She asked inquisitively.

"King!" Muejiz called.

"What King?" Tomi asked confused.

"Last night's King!" He said, almost shouting at her in anger.

"Wait he's here?" Tomi asked, drawing her neck into the hall to check. "You must be kidding me. Has that mother fucker been following us? Is he in some kind of gang that wants to kidnap you and..." She asked continuously.

"Chill Grandma! He's in our department and a freshman like us too." Muejiz confirmed.

"Wait! Are you stalking him? You only met him in an unfortunate incident last night!" She inquired strangely.

"It's a long story but I just can't go in. Not after what happened last night, I can't face them..." Muejiz responded as his anxiety grew.

"That's strange. What happened to the " I'm a free spirit" vibe you've always had?" She asked looking surprised. "Unless... Huh! You did not!" She commented with eyes wide open.

"What?!" Muejiz asked confused.

"You slut! Now I get why you didn't get enough sleep." Tomi confirmed, grinning evilly.

"Wait, What...?! Nooo! What the hell are you thinking, dirty soul?" He stuttered defending himself. "Look, I only slipped my contact in his chest pocket during the kiss last night." He revealed.

"How did you...?" Tomi asked, eyes rolling in surprise. "Never mind. Common, let's go in, it's no biggie... I mean it happened like what, a few hours ago? He might not even notice the stuff you dropped in his pocket!" She completed as she held his hand, dragging him into the theatre hall.

"Hey yo! King's boyfriend!" One of King's friends hailed as he saw Tomi and Muejiz entering the hall.

King dropped his head down shyly. While Tomi turned towards them and gave the middle finger, 'fuck you' sign, in their direction.

"Woooh!" The whole class shouted.

All through the two hours of the orientation, Muejiz was unease, cursing Tomi silently. King was busy staring down at Muejiz and smiling.

After the orientation, Muejiz got his things ready in a hurry to leave quickly. "You're right. He probably didn't notice." He whispered to Tomi.

"Notice what?" She asked, not getting his statement.

"The contact I slipped into his pocket of course." He answered.

"You mean this contact?" King, now standing behind them, responded, holding a piece of paper to the air.

"It says, "call me if you're interested!"." He continued, reading the content of the letter.

Muejiz froze.

Tomi looked at her phone and faked a surprising look, "Oh look! Fred is calling me. I gotta go."

Muejiz lip-synced to Tomi, "You're dead to me!"

"Uh! Who cares?! Enjoy... Okay bye!" Tomi said, rushing out.

"You know, it's a bitch move writing your contact on paper and instead of giving it to me, you placed it in my pocket. What if I had washed it off without noticing?" King continued as Tomi left.

"Then fate doesn't want us to happen," Muejiz responded sharply and started to leave the hall.

"Fate huh?!" King inquired, following him outside.

"What makes you think in the slightest I'm into guys?" He asked, surprised.

"Hmm, let see, 'cause you were watching the guys in the party instead of the ladies, and when your friends throw a bet to kiss a random chick for a thousand naira. You raised the stakes to kiss a guy instead, for five thousand..." Muejiz fired as King's eyes opened wide in surprise.

"How did you know that?" King asked, cutting in at Muejiz in awe. "Wait, do you have like a tracker on me or something?" He asked jokingly, pretending to search his body and they both laughed.

"I guessed." Muejiz defended.

"That's a weird guess, I mean, you know you could've guessed wrong, or something close, not being exact about everything," He said. "And by the way, that doesn't even prove anything, I could just be staring randomly and only raised the stakes to kiss boys cause of the money involved. Plus, you know it's kind of a bad thing for a guy, having feelings for another guy. I mean, our society frowns at the idea of Homosexuality. It's believed to be morally wrong." King expressed.

"Well, Our society lives based on what it believes to be right and true. But sometimes our truth might be a lie and our believes, false! They don't understand nature and whatever humans don't understand, they rule out to be wrong. Not to worry, our people will wake up to the reality and join the rest of the world soon," Muejiz explained. "And, I never guess anything wrong..." He completed.

"Hmmmmmn! Interesting. I mean you're interesting." King complimented.

"Do you mind getting a drink and a bite with me, I'm famished?" He requested as they approach a cafeteria.

"I need just a caffeine spiked drink, I'm a little hungover from last night," Muejiz replied.

"Oh! Now I see why you're wearing the shade." King responded and they both laughed.

They entered the cafeteria and took a seat. Muejiz was served a bottle of 'Fearless', an energy drink with a considerable amount of caffeine content. While King took a minced pie with a bottle of Pepsi.

"So, about our topic..." Muejiz continued.

"Mmhmm?!" King mumbled.

"You didn't clarify what your stand was on being with another guy." Muejiz inquired.

King smiled and winked at Muejiz...

* * *

They next went to King's apartment he rented off the campus. Inside, Muejiz and King got encroached in a hot, romantic lovemaking session, with both sweating profusely, yet ignoring the heat from the environment and their bodies, they ribbed off their clothes, rubbing and romancing their genitals and sensitive body parts. They dropped and rolled themselves on the bed as they went down low on each other, hard.

The next day, Inside Abubak'r's home...

"I can't believe we've been unable to track down any of the other kids for two days now." Abubak'r lamented frustratingly.

"I keep telling you, Sir. We need to get your son here! He alone can find the others. We are just wasting more time while the world is being led to the slaughterhouse." Raphael pushed.

"I think he's right Baba. We need to trust that Muejiz will handle it all as Mother had predicted." Zainab said, agreeing to Raphael's suggestion.

"Hmmmmmn! Go get your brother then!" Abubak'r instructed Zainab.

"Will do so in the morning," Zainab confirmed.

* * *

It's an early Monday morning. Tomi and Muejiz were in class early, as students trooped in, in groups.

"You did not! So let me get this straight, You met this guy from a gamble kiss at a party, like Friday night? And the next night you had sex with him?!" Tomi inquired, with surprise in her voice.

"Shhhhhh! You're too loud. It's still fourteen years in this country." Muejiz begged.

"Oh! Just shut up. You and I know in this country, the fourteen years is for the poor. You're like the African version of 'The Crazy Rich Asians', you'll only end up with just a slap on your wrist..." Tomi lamented.

"Really, You think? Even if I do, what about King?" Muejiz asked, frowning.

"What about him? Keep that aside jhor. Tell me everything, was it good? Is he big down there? You know where..." Tomi fired inquisitively.

"Okay, I'm not doing this... Tomi! It's a Monday morning and the weather is cold for such talks..." Muejiz said, pushing her off.

"Weather for two you mean? I bet your head is filled right now with images of him going down with you..." She continued pressing on.

"Speak of the devil!" She commented as she saw King walking into the class. "Oh, God! My ovaries are popping, he's cute. He's like a frigging cute fairy. Your babies will be awesomely cute..." She complimented.

"What babies?" Muejiz asked in awe. "And wait till I tell Fred what you just said about King, looking cute as a fairy." He completed.

"Bitch I'm not falling for him, I'm only admiring God's beauty in him." She defended.

"You know, I felt naked immediately I walked in through that door," King exclaimed as he got close to Tomi and Muejiz.

"You should go naked. I believe it makes someone mad." Tomi said, shrugging at Muejiz.

"Really?!" He asked humorously winking at Muejiz. He then gestured to Muejiz to make space for him to sit.

"Tomi! can you please don't kill me twice?!" Muejiz begged.

"Tell me, King," Tomi said, lowering her head and whispered, "How was my boy in bed?"

King whispered back, "He was heaven. But I want you to, please, not upset the cutie again." King began adjusting his glasses flirtingly.

"Ok Professor! But we ain't done talking about this..." Tomi feigned.

The lecturer, Dr Mrs Funke Olaitan, came in, talking about microorganisms and how they invade and relate with the human body, she was so lively as everyone was being carried along. She asked a question about the actions of disease-carrying viruses once they get into the human system.

Muejiz stood up, answering the question when suddenly, everything started to slow down and the world stopped. Everyone stopped moving except for Muejiz.

Zainab suddenly appeared, walking into the class and headed straight for Muejiz.

"I thought as much. What brings the all-powerful princess of Arabia to my little shrine of a school." Muejiz complimented, bowing to his sister jokingly.

"By princess, you mean the next Queen of the UAE?!"

Muejiz, with eyes wide, opened, "You must be ki..." He exclaimed but was interrupted by Zainab.

"That's not why I'm here... It's time. They've come for you, just as mother said they would. The prophecy is true..." Zainab revealed.

"What? No! I mean not now? I'm still too young! I've got a life here now. I can't just leave and go on a crusade to save the world? I'm..." Muejiz said, panicking.

"These aren't excuses you're giving right? Our mother died for this course... You can't..." Zainab stuttered angrily.

"What the hell?! What's going on?" Shouted King, as though waking up from sleep to meet an ongoing robbery.

"That's not possible. How did he..." Zainab asked in surprise.

Muejiz chanted a word in a strange tongue that immediately knocked King out.

"I see, a fairy huh? You've got yourself surrounded with lots of supernatural creatures..." Zainab said scanning through the class with her eyes.

"Well you must be back home latest tomorrow, General's orders!" She reported and left just as she came.

Everything returned to normal. It was like time and everyone on earth froze all the while for Zainab and Muejiz.

Muejiz pretended to still be answering the lecturer's question as things came back to normal. No one noticed what happened but King, who's now sleeping. Muejiz kicked him, waking him up.

"What happened?" King asked, looking sleepy.

"Hey fine boy, is my class that boring for you that you're sleeping?" Dr Olaitan inquired from a drunk-looking King.

"Not so ma. He had a very long Saturday to Sunday morning." Tomi responded.

King held his head, like having a slight headache. "Shut up!" he feigned then winked at Muejiz.

Muejiz smiled at him, knowing King has forgotten everything he saw during the time freeze, as the sleep spell included a memory wipe too.

* * *

Later that night, Fred, Tomi, Muejiz and King were having dinner at an eatery as they discussed...

"So, your family have an emergency and wrote, directly to the chancellor, who then wrote directly to the VC demanding that she gives you time off school for as long as you want?!" Fred asked, surprised at the level of connection.

"God! Where was my family when you were sharing this kind of Power, Money and Fame?" He completed mockingly.

"Seriously? You find this interesting?" Muejiz responded.

"It is. If you ask me..." King replied.

"You know how Fred is. He's fascinated by things like that. He's aiming to own 40% of the world's wealth before he leaves the Earth." Tomi revealed.

"Wooh! Man, that's too much. Why can't you just aim for riches that will make you contented and comfortable?" King asked.

"Look at Muejiz! That's the real definition of content and comfortable. Being able to bring us all to Banwill (the name of the eatery they were in) and sponsor our dinner, that's content and comfortable." Fred expressed, replying to King.

"Wait you're paying for all these Presidential dishes we're eating right?" He asked Muejiz with anticipation in his eyes.

"I called you all here, so of course I'm paying. Take this as our last supper." Muejiz replied.

"What?! Last supper? Oh! You better not be dropping off this school to go school abroad, cause bitch, I will hunt you down, and kidnap you back here..." Tomi fired, with mouth stuffed with chicken.

"Ahn! No, I'm not doing that for all the money in the world. Y'all just won't understand. But I hope this ends well and I'm back before we know it." He said, faking a smile. "I've got to go get ready for my trip tomorrow. Here's the money to foot our bills." He completed, handing Fred some money.

"Let me walk you down to your room," King said, standing up to also leave the table.

Fred and Tomi looked at each other and giggled as the love birds left the table...

"I will see you before you leave tomorrow." Said Tomi, to Muejiz.

"And king, take good care of my boy tonight." She instructed at King, who smiled and nodded in agreement.