A Name That Will Stick

"I'll come with," he says, and my eyes widen in surprise. "I wanna say hi."

"Huh?, Uhm, aren't you having an exam?" I ask, my voice shaky as I look up at him.

"Yeah, I already took mine."

"H-how was it?"

"It was good. Come on, let's go," he unexpectedly pulls me by my wrist, wrapping his arm around mine.

Ahhh!!!!!, Heaven help me!!!, What is this??! People might think we're a couple!!! I can't believe this. Calm down, Mandy, calm down. I'm sure he doesn't feel anything.

Should I pull away?, Uhm maybe I should, but wouldn't that seem rude, especially when I feel stares at me. What do I do!!.

"Excuse me," someone calls from my side, their hand grasping my arm.

My heart skips a beat as I swiftly turn to face him, freeing my arm from his grasp.

"What?" I ask, slightly annoyed.

"Hey, I just wanted to ask you something," he replies, his eyes locked on mine.

"Ignore him," the bus boys intervenes, gently pulling me away.

"Uhm...what if he wanted help with something?"

"He could have asked me if he needed help," he says, his voice low as his head is still facing the front, his twists covering half of the side of his head.

My heart still racing, I nod in agreement. "Uhm...yeah, okay."

As we continue to walk, I can still feel the weight of stares and smiles from onlookers. But they've got it wrong.

I spot where my mom is sitting and slow down. "Uhm, my mom's there, you can say hi now."

"Where's she at?" He asks, releasing his grip on my arm, ah finally!

I point to where my mom is sitting. "There!"

"Oh, cool. Let's go then," he replies.

"O-okay," I stutter, starting to walk with him.

We finally get to where my mom is sitting, but the girl who was sitted next to me is no longer here.

"Have you done it?" My mom asks, squinting as she looks up at me.

"Hmm," I nod, stretching out the slip for her to see.

"Good, keep it in your bag," she says, smiling.

I take the slip back and walk over to my spot, placing my bag next to me, after already carefully placing it in.

"Ahh, you're here!" my mom exclaims, seeing him standing there.

"How was the exam? It was okay, right?" she asks.

"Yeah, it was," he responds.

"That's good, dear. I've heard students complaining that it was hard."

"It wasn't to me," he replies, his smile sending shivers down my spine.

Mom chuckles. "Are you here all by yourself?"

"No, I'm here with my aunt, but she's busy at the moment."

"So you're just waiting for her, right?"

"Yeah."

I wonder how mom and the boy got so close that they talk to each other like this. How does she even know he was also having an exam?. Could she have asked, or did he tell her?. But when?

My eyes widen as he suddenly approach me, sitting right next to me with my bag in between.

I avoid eye contact, gazing forward at the people milling around. I thought he just wanted to greet my mom, what is he doing sitting next to me?

"So, you ready for this exam?" he asks, his voice low and smooth.

I slowly turn my head, and our eyes lock. His intense gaze holds mine, his light brown eyes piercing. I feel drawn in, like I'm drowning in their depths. I should look away, but I can't.

"Uhm...I guess so," I manage to stammer.

He raises an eyebrow. "You don't look it."

My heart races as his gaze bores into me. I can't even remember the last time I blinked.

"I'm just...nervous," I admit.

He nods understandingly. "That's normal. You'll feel more focused once you're in there."

His smile makes my heart skip a beat. "Really?"

"Yeah." He leans in, his voice taking on a conspiratorial tone. "You'll be fine. Just take a deep breath and trust yourself."

"Uhm..." I quickly turn my head back to face the front, my mind racing. What just happened?!

"You good?" I hear him ask.

"Uhm...yeah, yeah I'm fine." I force a nervous laugh.

I can't possibly turn to look at him, his gaze is just too intense, and I fear I might just explode!

"Hey, you wanna run through some questions before you head in? I'm happy to help you out."

I shake my head, still avoiding eye contact. "Uhm...no, no, I've read enough." I keep my gaze fixed on the ground, feeling his eyes on me.

I check my phone for what feels like the hundredth time. 10:11. I still have some time before my exam.

"You want to start again, I can see."

My heart skips a beat as I raise my head to face my mom.

"Start again with what?" I ask quietly, trying to keep the conversation between us.

"Avoiding him." My eyes widen in surprise.

"I heard everything," she says with a gentle smile. "He's just trying to help. You should be willing to accept it."

I furrow my brows, feeling a bit defensive. "But..."

"Don't be silly. He's simply trying to assist you, so you don't have to worry too much about it."

What about my heart?, I fear it might pop out if I keep talking to him!.

"Soo?"

My eyes widen as I slowly turn to face him. Our faces are inches apart, and my heart races with the closeness. I feel like I could get lost in his eyes forever.

I quickly divert my gaze to my lap, focusing on my black phone pouch.

"Uhm, fine," I concede, not wanting to seem rude, especially since my mom encouraged me to accept his help.

He sits up straight, pulling out his phone and tapping on the screen. "What's your course?" he asks, looking up at me.

"Uhm, journalism and media studies," I reply.

"Cool," he says.

I wonder if he thinks I'm cool or just the course!

My eyes broaden as he leans in closer, my bag the only barrier between us. "So, I'll start with literature. Ready?" he asks, his eyes locked on mine.

"Uhm, yeah," I nod, trying my best to maintain eye contact despite my desire to look away.

"So, first question," he says, glancing up at me before looking back at his phone. "The author of a novel sustains the reader's interest through the use of... a) suspense, b) ambiguity, c) prologue, or d) anecdotes."

That's an easy one!

"Uhm, it's suspense," I reply confidently.

He chuckles. "That was easy. I'll find something a bit harder."

I watch as he scrolls through his phone. Please don't give me something too hard, I don't want to fail and feel embarrassed!

"Found one," he says

"Don't worry, it won't be too tough." His intense gaze makes me really nervous. "You ready?" he asks.

"Uhm, yeah," I reply.

He smirks, "Okay." Then, with a attempted seriousness, he says "Brother Chu, chu-me...Chume"

But I can't help it, I burst out laughing. His English accent has butchered the name, making it sound hilarious!

"What's funny?"

"Didn't I get it right?"

"That's what's written here."

"Chu-me? chume?"

"...."

I compose myself, noticing he's stopped talking and is now staring at me with a slight smile and an intense gaze.

"Cute."

I wonder if I actually heard him right! Did he say I'm cute?does he think I'm cute?oh my!

"Uhm..." I stutter, my mind racing.

"We should move on," he says, his eyes fixed on his phone. "I'll find another question." He glances up, his gaze piercing. "Ready?"

"Uhm, yeah."

"The questions seem easy to me, but I'm not sure about you," he says, his daring gaze making me doubt myself. I hope I don't fail the question.

"When to the sessions of sweet silent thought, I summon up remembrance of things past." He reads the lines with a subtle smile.

"I can tell that's Shakespeare's text already," I mutter.

He chuckles, "That's right."

I smile and look down, it's a good thing I don't have a really light skin, or he'd have seen my face red, from the very first day we met.

"What's the predominant figure of speech used in the above text?" he asks.

"Alliteration!" I respond, without even waiting for him to read the options.

"Okay, okay, that was correct," he says, dropping his phone and flashing a charming smile.

"You're a real smart cookie, ain't ya?" His gaze lingers on my face, making my heart race.

"I'm no art student, but I gotta say, those questions are a piece of cake," he comments, his focus still fixed on me.

I feel my face flush, unable to control my hormones.

"I think you'll do just fine answering those questions correctly. You got this," he encourages, his gaze holding mine captive. I'm drawn in, unable to look away, and I catch myself smiling.

I force myself to break the spell, turning my head to notice two girls passing by.

But suddenly, my face is pulled back to face him, his hands holding my chin. "You're really something else, you know that?"

"H-huh?" I manage to say, my voice really low.

His smile widens, and I feel a jolt of electricity.

"For real, I just hope we get through," someone says in the background.

I blink rapidly, freeing myself from his grasp. "I'll just...uhm...wait for my turn," I stutter, turning away from him.

What was that?, What just happened?

"We've never had a formal introduction," I hear him say.

"I'm Kendrick, my Ibo name is, uh, Ike-me-fu-na or something like that," he says with a chuckle.

I can't help but giggle at his pronunciation.

"You find that funny, huh?" he asks, turning to face me with a raised eyebrow.

I quickly compose myself, trying to play it cool. "Uh, yeah, " I say, struggling to maintain eye contact.

He grins. "Yeah, I get that a lot. Wasn't raised here, that's why."

I nod, "Oh, I see."

He leans closer, his smile turning seductive. "So, what's your name?"

I swallow hard, trying to ignore the flutter in my chest. "Uh, I thought you already knew."

"Just wanna hear you say it."

I feel my face flush, but I manage to stammer out a response. "Uhm...my name is Amanda."

"Ah-man-da," he repeats. His tone is smooth, like honey, and I feel my body respond to it.

"Nice meeting you, Amanda," he says, holding out his hand for a handshake.

I hesitate for a moment, feeling a bit overwhelmed by his intensity.

I turn to my mom, seeking approval, but she's too engrossed in her phone to notice.

Then, I take a deep breath and turn back to him, placing my hand in his. His grip is tight, but gentle, and I feel a spark of electricity as our palms touch.

"Uhm, it's nice to meet you too, uhm, Kendrick," I say, smiling nervously.

"You can call me by my Ibo name, Ikem. My mom calls me that," he says, his gaze still fixed on mine, his hand still holding mine.

"Call me that," he repeats, his voice low and gentle.

"Uhm...it's nice to meet you, Ikem," I smile nervously again, exposing my teeth.

"Good," he finally lets go of my hand, leaving it feeling bereft. "I'll be leaving now. Hope to see you some other time," he stands up, pocketing his phone.

"Goodbye," he says.

I look away, blinking rapidly as I drop my hand onto my bag. My heart is still racing, like what the hell is happening?!

"Take care, dear," my mom says.

Geez! I never expected that to happen, what was that?

I raise the hand I used to shake his, staring at it as if it holds some secret. I can still feel the warmth of his palm and the intensity of his gaze.

"So, how was the revision?"

I turn to face my Mom, trying to compose myself. "Uhm, it was good, good."

"He's a really good boy, isn't he?" she asks, smiling.

Good boy? Those eyes of his are not good at all! They'll kill me!

I turn back to face the front, noticing people staring at me. I feel like shouting, "It's not what you think!" but I simply don't have the courage to do that.

I still can't get over Kendrick's touch and gaze. Will we even meet again? Who knows?

I take a deep breath and let it out, trying to calm my nerves.

"Twelve o'clock! Twelve o'clock! To the hall!" A man shouts.

He walks past us, and I turn to my mom, confused. "What hall? It's not even twelve yet, it's only 11:15."

My mom looks around, her head turning left and right. "Follow the people going," she says, still looking around.

I see a few people walking to the right, and even some who were sitting stand up and start walking.

"Follow them," my mom says, tapping me.

I stand up, hand my phone to her, and take a deep breath.

"Good luck," she says.

I reach for my bag and pull out both slips. Taking another deep breath, I smile and begin following two girls in front of me. They're walking slowly, and I don't want to be obvious, so I take a deep breath and step aside, then forward, passing them. I'll follow other people instead.

As I walk, I see a building ahead with people stepping inside. Could this be the hall we were told to come to?

On reaching there, I climb the stairs and enter the hall, I'm struck by its vastness.

The room is filled with rows and columns of benches, occupied by a sea of people, and there are few vacant benches at the back.

I make my way towards them, taking my seat in the second-to-last bench, noticing the two girls I followed earlier, taking a sit next to me, along with another girl.

Just as I settle in, I hear a voice behind me. "Hello."

I turn to see a boy tapping the backrest of my bench.

"Please move this bench to the other side," he requests.

But why?, "Uhm... okay," I reply, standing up to face him.

He's about my height, and our eyes meet for a brief moment.

To my surprise, the bench is already being carried away by the two girls who were sitting next to me.

I follow them as they transport it to the last column, where they finally set it down.

They settle back on my bench, one of them taking my spot. Really?

I furrow my brows and walk around to sit next to the girl who is sitting next to them. It would be stupid of me to have asked her to stand up, since I didn't even help in lifting the bench.

So, now that we're here, what do we do next? This place looks like nothing we're writing our exam in, it's crowded with people sitting on arranged benches.

I sigh, opening up my slips, feeling relieved that I have both of them now. It's a good thing I overheard that girl saying something about it, or I would have never known that I was supposed to come with my JAMB result slip.

Also, this part of the bench isn't actually bad, as long as I'm not in the middle or sitting between anybody, I like it.

As I look around, I notice the girl next to me adjusting her position. She's wearing trendy circular lenses and has long purple braids packed behind her. She rests her arms on the backrest of the bench in front of us, her back slightly arched.

I just want to get this exam over with and go home, anywhere home, whether it's our village or our house in Ogun State. I'm ready to be done with this.

The girl next to me suddenly rests her back, unfolding her slip, and I deliberately look away, not wanting to get distracted by whatever she's doing.