Must Read: A man

7 years ago

Must Read: A man

PEMISIRE HAD BEEN THINKING on how she
could wash down her despondency, and that of
Richard but no idea came up. She had tried to
calm herself and had succeeded in doing that,
Richard was just left still crying on the
hospital bed there. “I have told you before,
there is no God.” Richard said, pressing his
lips together after.

“I don’t want to start arguing on this again,
you know yourself that he exists.” Pemisire
replied.

Richard turned his head toward her and
smiled faintly. “Where was he when I needed
his help? Where was he when everything
became tough? Have you ever wondered why
you worked as a Bartender?” He asked her.

There was a brief silence for a while before
Pemisire replied. “Richard, I do. Maybe
because of you, who knows?”
“No! He worths to be questioned. Why are
some people rich and some very poor?” He
asked further.

“Your questions can only be answered later.

When the time comes, you will know. By the
way, when will you call your mother again to
speak with her?”
Richard hissed as he turned his back at her.
“I am not ready for any atrocious woman.”

“You should be passionate to the
unpassionates, good to the bad.” Pemisire
said.

“Em… Unknown, you don’t know this woman,
do you? She sent me out of her house all the
time I went there and until I picked the urgent
call that led to my accident.” He said.

“Forgive the person who doesn’t worth it, you have to be kind.” Pemisire told him.

Richard gave a soft chuckle and shook his
head. “I have a problem with you, it’s this
problem of lack of understanding. Can you
forgive someone who killed your sister?” He
asked.

Pemisire stood at once and turned her back at
him. Though, the guy was just saying his own,
he never knew Pemisire had lost her sister.

Pemisire soughed and faced Richard. “I think I
have to leave now, I want to catch a friend of
mine.” She said.

“It is not that I wish you sister death, I was
only expressing my mind, hope it’s not that
you’re angry with me.” He faced her too.

“No.” Pemisire forced a smile.

“What is no? You were more cheerful than
now, you must be angry.”

“No, what you said and my departure are
coeval. Don’t think I’m leaving because of
that.” She replied.

“You don’t look like a Bartender, you speak
eloquently. What made you take up that job?”
Richard asked her.

“If God wants you to know, I’m sure you will
know soon.” She smiled and waved as she
walked out.

****

“It wasn’t easy because today is Sunday.”

Helen informed Pemisire.

“Really? So how much did you buy the
phone?” Pemisire asked Helen as she sat down on the bed and admired the phone.

“I hope you know that’s not a new phone, it’s been used by someone before. So, I think you should be using my MTN sim that I don’t use any longer.” Helen told her.

“Really? That’s cool, at least it will safe
hundred naira or more.” She smiled.

“Yeah, hope you like the phone.”

Pemisire smiled. “I have no choice, fairly used
mobile phone. Anyways, I love it.” She replied.

“Thanks, you won’t lack anything good.”

She added.

“Abeg! It’s because of you that I cancelled
Church-going, you should prepare me what to
eat.”

“Get me the sim as soon as possible, let me
start getting set to prepare the food.” She
stood up.

“Yeah.” Helen stood up to get her sim card for Pemisire. She had used it before she couldn’t find it again and now found it some weeks before then.

****

MONDAY.

“So, Doctor, when will he be discharged?”

Jay asked Doctor Martins.

“He should be discharged on Wednesday. He
is now really better, just want to watch him till
then.” He replied.

“I hope this is not a type that he will keep
sitting on the wheelchair till everything would
be fine.” Uche chimed in, stroking his beard.

Doctor laughed. “I can’t say for now, he might be discharged tomorrow or Wednesday.

But, all I can say is that he must not engage in
anything stressful for a month, he should take
his drugs regularly, eat and relax.” He told
them.

“Alright sir.” The guys looked at each other
and echoed.

——–

Jay and Uche were heading to Richard’s ward
when they saw Pemisire approaching. “Hey.”

Jay waved first, smiling.

“Hey Jay. Uche, it took you years to get the
clothes yesterday, isn’t it?” She asked, trying
to be familiar with the guys.

Uche sniggered. “You! You’re alo accusing
me? I got stucked in the traffic.” He replied.

“Traffic? On Sunday?” She laughed.

“So, how are you?” Jay asked.

“How’s Richard?” She asked her own question.

“We are heading there.” Uche said.

“I hope he has stopped crying. Anyways, I’ll
see for myself.” She said, turning back to lead
the way.

It was in the afternoon, the lunch time of Uche
and Jay. It was an opportunity seized by them
to quickly check on Richard. “What do you do
for a living?” Jay asked her as they walked on.

“You should have asked your friend.” She said,
dismissing the question with a wave of left
hand.

“Rich!” Pemisire smiled as she approached the bed.

“Hmmn…lustrous, glowing, shinning, flickering
set of teeth.” Richard smiled.

“King of wheedlers!” Pemisire chuckled and sat down.

“Foolish guy, have you ever qualified me that
way?” Jay bustled in.

“Ha! I’m still looking forward to seeing the
bright sun of that day.” Richard smiled.

“Which day? What is your friend talking
about?” Uche asked.

“You know he’s been lying down for long, who knows?” He laughed.

“Looking forward to seeing the day you guys
would be sensible. If you had white teeth, I’d
have told you, but you have nothing better
than what you have there.”

Pemisire was impressed. She never knew she’d meet Richard in that cheerful mood. She
wanted to ask how he was when she glanced
at her phone and rushed up to another side.

“It is the useless phone you bought, not my
fault.” She told Helen on the call.

“I said I didn’t! It was the work of the useless phone. Only God knows where you got the thing from.” She laughed as she replied Helen.

“Greet your students, bye.” She said and
walked back to Richard’s place.

“Can you see our friend has turned his back at
us because of you?” Jay said, contorting his
mouth.

“What’s my own business?” She smiled.

“Take care of our Richard, we have to leave.”

Uche said as he stretched his hand forward to
get Jay’s attention. “We have to leave, we
suppose dey go now.. ”

“Yeah, we will be back soon.” Jay said as he
waved at them.

****

Lawrence and his guys just got to Ibadan in
his Nisaan Jeep, trying to trace where
Omolayo Estate was.