Dirty Hustler - Season 1 - Episode 3

4 years ago

Dirty Hustler - Season 1 - Episode 3

☆☆☆☆☆

Broda’s phone rang out loud waking the both of us up.

Broda got up immediately from the bed and picked up his phone then he briskly walked out of the room.
I eyed him and hissed. Broda was too secretive for my liking. I was honest and open to him. He hardly talked about himself and always hides to receive calls. Anytime I asked him why he does this he’d ignore me, I got tired and stopped asking.

I was so sure he wasn’t cheating. We were almost always together and besides Broda wasn’t that type of man. He never turned to look at beautiful women when we go out, neither did he flirt. All Broda wanted was money, I sometimes got scared he would end up using me for rituals.

I started dating Broda when I was 15, that was two years ago. Broda had moved into our compound and stayed in the room next to my family’s. We lived in a ‘passage house’ or ‘face me, I face you’.

My mother was a poor widow and I had to drop out of school to assist Mama so Nkiru could remain in school. We did menial jobs such as washing people’s clothes and working on their farms. I hated my life.
Mama and I usually returned home late in the evenings, so I didn’t know Broda had moved in. It was Nkiru that told me all about him.
“Sister, there’s this new guy in the compound. This guy looks like those black Americans, it’s like he jumped out from the TV” Nkiru quipped.

“Abegii, make I hear word. You’ve started with your hype.”

“Sister, see ehn, if I lie, make I die this night.” Nkiru placed her index finger on her tongue then pointed to the sky.
I rolled my eyes.

“He’s very rich too, anytime he throws his dustbin, I usually peep to see what is inside-”
“Nkiru!!! Your amebo will kill you one day!” I laughed at her.

My sister folded her arms and pouted. “Let me shut up then.”

“Okay, sorry na…continue please, please na..” I begged her.

She eyed me. “As I was saying, inside his dustbin there were plenty tins of sardine and plenty chicken bones, the bones alone were the size of my fist…” She held up her fist. “Very, very big! And if you see the fine clothes he wears ehn!” She kissed her fingers.

“The guy get swag abeg, his perfume alone sef, when he comot for compound you go still dey smell am after 3 hours.”
“Ehen…He must be very rich o!” I exclaimed.

“Then why he come chook head for one room?” Nkiru hissed. “People dey talk say he be armed robber, them say he come hide for here.”

“Ahn ahn…All these poverty stricken people no dey mind their business. They are just jealous. I don’t think so.” I frowned.
Nkiru eyed me and laughed. “Love nwatiti! See how you are defending someone you have not seen!”

“Abeg leave me!” I blushed. “Our neighbours talk too much.”
Nkiru raised her nose at me. “Okay o… My sister wan marry armed robber.” She laughed and dodged my slap.

That night I kept on thinking of the guy Nkiru told me about, I imagined him according to Nkiru’s description and I fell in love with him.
If he was as rich as Nkiru claimed, then he could change I, Mama and Nkiru’s life for better. We would stop working for people and start eating plenty sardine and chicken. I could even go back to school.

He was our ticket out of poverty and I must get him.

“Take this 200 naira go buy bread make we chop.” Broda woke me from my day dream. He threw the money on my exposed belly.
“Pure water don finish?” He lifted the empty bag.

“Yes.”
“Okay… We go manage drink tap water till money come.”

I stood up from the flat student sized mattress and picked up a short dress that was within reach to wear.

” They say the tap water for this area dey make person purge.” I mumbled.
“Ehen… Madam Doctor, go fork the mallam for gate make he dash you free pure water na… Idiot! You think say money dey fall from tree.” Broda eyed me and la!d on the mattress.

I walked to the door then turned to him. ” If I fork am na him whole shop he go dash me.” I said and ran outside as fast as I could.