Chapter Fourteen

1

Hamza's departure felt like the heavens had been lifted off my shoulders. The air in the house seemed less stuffy,more easy to breathe. I felt more relaxed than I'd been in days. Although,in all honesty,he hadn't troubled me like he used to; that was just his aura, I suppose.

Days rolled by uneventfully, each one bringing us closer to the end of the term.. and exam. Iman finally went for the long-anticipated quiz with Ruth and other classmates. Though their efforts were above mediocre and their results beyond average, they didn't make it to the next round.

Although it was a tough blow on Iman, she took it graciously... so long as we did not breathe a word to her about it.

"Other opportunities will spring up" she told me, with such an infectious burst of confidence that I believed it too.

I asked if this meant things were back to normal between she and Ruth; if they were back to ignoring each other. Iman gave a nonchalant shrug and said they still had other "projects" to carry out.

"What type of project?"

" You'll see."

A week to our examination, Iman began staying longer at school. She said they were deep in preparation for their mysterious"project" and being one of the perfects,her presence was needed there.

"Well, I won't come to your school twice in one afternoon" Lawal told her, that annoying scowl on his face," you'll have to bring yourself home".

It would have become an issue as mummy argued about the hike in the cost of transportation and Iman pointedly refused to use public transportation.

"I'd rather trek than subject myself to danger, thank you very much."

" Go ahead then. I've said my own. I won't go there twice in one afternoon."

He wouldn't budge and neither will she. Then, thankfully, Suleiman spoke up and offered to help.

" Can you even drive?" Iman asked almost spitefully. He flashed her a winsome smile and replied in the affirmative.

" How about a license?" I asked, feeling left out and wanting to sound like I knew a thing about the road and its rules, even though I wasn't sure if the license would be required for the route to school was a road tucked away from the main road. But then, there was those awful traffic officials posted at every corner. Lawal said he had a solution to that.

That concluded it and from then, once she was done, she'd call him and he'd go and pick her up.

All was well until the day she failed to call at the usual hour and the sun had begun its climb to the other side of the Earth.

When we could no longer take the suspense of not knowing, Suleiman was told to go regardless, leaving Lawal and me at home, tensed and apprehensive. Mummy was not yet back from the market.

I began imagining different ways Iman might have been hurt, scaring myself and bothering Lawal in the process by voicing out those morbid thoughts. He attempted to banish me to the room; I refused to be banished.

So we sat silently, with my eyes trained on the window, waiting to hear the honk of a car, Lawal seemingly lost in a world of likes and retweets. But every now and then, I would catch him staring at the wall clock and his eyes fleeting to the window.

It was as the flaming sunset had died down and twilight upon us that we heard a car honk and our pent-up agitation dissolved in single expelled breaths.

2

Suleiman looked grim, his mouth clamped tight and thin. Iman stood beside him,her fingers clutching her school bag like life support. Although she still had her aura of cucumber calmness, there was something else lurking in the dark brown depths of her eyes.

"Why are you late? What held you up?"

The duo exchanged a look heavy with meaning. Iman gave an almost imperceptible shake of the head and Suleiman's lips tightened even more. I wonder if Lawal noticed it, I only did because I was watching them intently.

"Traffic was bad and her phone had died. That's why she couldn't call."

Before he could be questioned any further, Suleiman excused himself and left the living room. Iman smiled faintly and did the same.

That incident ( whatever it was) caused a shift in their relationship. It was subtle at first and I paid no attention to it, but I soon realised that Iman was finally warming up to my favourite person. And what was more? He was also friendlier to her too! My jealousy could barely be contained. I felt that Iman had usurped me.

I had little time for those thoughts though, when examination descended on us with all the rage of a roaring storm. It was my first as a senior student. Iman helped me with skills to weather the storm by trying to get me to understand the topics confusing me. I took advantage of one of such sessions and asked her about Suleiman. About what changed between them.

"Don't talk like I hated him. There was just never an opportunity to get to know him."

" And now that you do, he's become your best friend,abi ?"

Iman only shook her head in amusement and urged me to focus on the problem before me. I winced; chemistry.

3

Naja'atu requested the presence of Iman a day after we had rounded up our last paper. I was more than a little surprised and a bit stung that it had not been me for I always thought that Naja loved me best. We had a lot of memories to back up that thought and besides, there was the issue of her first invitation months ago.

What changed? I wondered miserably. Don't get me wrong, I wasn't interested in going to spend days with Naja'atu and her husband. It was the fact she had specifically asked for Iman and Iman alone that had me worried.

I remember thinking of how suddenly Iman was becoming the favourite person of my favourite people. Childish, yes, but I wasn't reputed for having matured thoughts back then.

She, on the other hand did not find the idea appealing.

"I'll be useless to her. Let Layla go instead or better still, let's go together" argued Iman.

"Your sister is not stupid, I'm sure she has a reason behind this. And you know how Layla is. Let her remain here,abeg, before she goes there to embarrass us." mummy countered, ignoring the angered look I gave her.

So when Naja came with her husband for the girl, I ensured she realised how upset I was.

Iman wasn't gone for long but when she returned, she came back different. I couldn't place a finger on it, but something had changed within her.

I could only wonder what it was.