Chapter Twelve

She did not waste time on the meal, in less than ten minutes she had wiped everything off from the plates. The wraps of semo had disappeared and all that was left of the soup was just the smears of her fingerprints as she had licked it. If there was one thing that Adaeze did not use to play or take lightly, it was her food.

She had been taught at a young age by her mother that a person could only be what they ate. And when she ate, she did it to satisfy her hunger. And no other reason.

By the time she was done, all that was left of the smoked fish and chicken were bones that had been stripped of all forms of flesh. They looked so naked and wretched that one might just pity them. The bottle water was empty as well, lying on its side in the tray. The only thing that was still halfway filled up was the 5alive.

She took it and poured a generous amount into the glass cup before her, filling it to the brim. Then she relaxed into the soft cushion of the booth, crossing her legs at the ankles as she looked out into the busy roads of Ikeja.

She picked up the cup and took a medium sized gulp, feeling the cold liquid run down her throat. She nodded her head in appreciation, this was the best way to step a meal like the one she just had down.

She picked her phone and within the next few minutes, placed an order for Uber. Her ride would arrive in the next ten minutes.

Just as she dropped the phone back on the table, the waiter that had taken her order reappeared beside her with his hands clasped behind him, “I hope you enjoyed your meal, ma’am?”

“Yeah,” she nodded as she took another sip. What was it with these waiters and sneaking up on people? Was it a job requirement or what? It was the same thing the air hostess had done back then on the plane. She wondered idly if they got any joy in making people almost jump out of their skins.

But she did not mention any of what was going through her head, instead she smiled at him and continued, “it was good indeed, I really enjoyed it.”

“I am happy to hear that.” He told her as he removed his hands from behind him and revealed the POS machine on one hand and a board on the other. “Your bill, ma.”

He tore out a sheet from the board and placed it gently on the table in front of her, she picked it and perused its contents. Wow… who knew eating could be so expensive in Lagos? Everything she had bought cost her over ten thousand naira. She let out a whistle, back in Owerri the exact same meal would have easily been half that amount.

“This is exorbitant!” She rasped as she let the bill drop back to the table.

“Times are hard ma, it is the economy.” He pushed the POS towards her, “cash or transfer?”

She rolled her eyes, she was not going to gain anything by bickering with him. She was not supposed to be surprised that food was expensive in a place like Ikeja, getting to live in a place like this would cost an arm and a leg.

“Transfer,” she muttered as she reached for her purse. She ruffled through its contents for a while then pulled out her ATM which she handed over to him.

He swiped her through, gave the POS to her to give her pin, took it back from her so he could complete the transaction. And when he was done, he nodded at her, “transaction successful.”

“Of course it would be successful, would I be here if there was nothing in there?” She muttered angrily, not knowing what it was about his comment that pissed her off.

He quietly picked up the tray of empty dishes and dried up bones, leaving behind the glass cup and the pack of 5alive, and then he turned and walked away.

She picked up her cup once more and took another drink.

As she looked out the window into the streets once more, she realized that she had been doing some heavy spending ever since she set foot in Lagos State. Each Uber ride she book cost her nothing less than a thousand naira, and then that shopping spree she had gone on had taken more than a hundred K from her account. Although that was mostly due to the gift she had bought for her friend. And now, if she was going to be eating at this restaurant every day for rest of her stay here, that meant she had to budget down another hundred k or thereabout just for feeding alone.

Lagos was just so damn expensive.

Although she was not worried, she had more than enough in her account. And this was courtesy of her parents and her fiancée who just kept pumping money into her account. With what she had currently she could easily survive for six months this way in Lagos state without having to worry about money.

But then, just because she had a lot did not mean she had to be wasteful when she was spending. Moreover, she was planning to open up a business once the wedding was over. For that she was going to need all the money she could get her hands on.

Just then, her phone began to ring, it was the Uber driver.

“Are you here?” She asked the moment she picked it.

“Yes,” he replied. His voice was sounding tiny, like that of a young girl.

“Okay, let me come outside.”

She cut the call and got to her feet, making her way down the stairs towards the exit of the restaurant. As she closed in on the door, the guard there opened the door for her and she walked back into the hot sunshine and noise that was associated with Lagos city.

She stood at the entrance for a few seconds, trying to search for the car that had come for her. She heard a honk, and found that it was from a Kia, whose model she did not know. But she could see that the plate numbers matched the ones that she was waiting for.

She walked towards it, as she approached the side window opened and the driver’s face peered at her.

“Ada?” He asked.

“Yes, Yusuf?” That was the name she had been given as well.

“Yes.” He rolled the window up, beckoning her to come inside. She went to the back door and tried to open it but it was locked. He opened the window again and poked his head out, “you will seat down in the front seat.”

“No,” she replied. “I want to seat at the back.”

He frowned at that and then unlocked it, she climbed in and closed the door after her. Wondering what difference it made where she sat. But she could see that he was taking her decision personal, his face was screwed up and he looked pissed at something.

Adaeze shook her head, it did not make any sense that he was angry at her because of her choice of seating position. Maybe he was just from somewhere that had gotten him really angry. That had to be it; it had to be transfer of aggression.

He kicked the car into motion, it had a smooth rumble that was almost nonexistent. He reversed and made a clean exit from the restaurant then swerved into the main road.

As usual, the traffic slowed down their journey and it took longer than would have been expected.

Abike lived on the inner roads of Ikeja, it included a lot of turns that with time Adaeze gave up on trying to memorize the route. All she did was look out for notable landmarks that would be easy for her to remember.

That was a safety tactic that had been taught to her by her father. He was the traveling person in the family, most of the time he had to go to places he had never been in his life. So he was always vigilant whenever he was going on such trips. One could never know when that information would come in handy.

As they drove, she noted the giant catholic church, the police station, even the basketball court among a list of others.

Until eventually they got to Abike’s street.

Yusuf drove the car down the road and stopped at the very gate of the duplex.

“We are here,” he said sourly.

“How much?” She asked, pulling out her phone.

“Can’t you see it on the screen?” he asked her rudely, staring out the window.

“Bros, calm down o. I am not the one that vexed you, do not take it out on me abeg. Give me your account number abeg.”

“Do not give me orders, this is my car and you will not tell me what to do!”

“Do you want your money or not?”

He frowned at her through the rearview mirror. She just could not understand the reason for all this hostility from a total stranger. What had she done to deserve such a treatment?

With his frown still in place, he called out his account number and she paid him his fare.

“I have sent it―”

“Get out!” He said at once, not even checking for confirmation.

She opened the door and stepped out, the moment her feet touched the ground, he floored the pedal and sped away, almost making her lose her balance. She had not been able to close the door, so due to the sudden movement, the door had snapped shut like a gunshot as he tore down the road.

“Fucking bastard!” She cursed and held onto her purse. If she had not been holding her purse that was how he would have driven off with it.

She turned and looked at the gate, the house number was written clearly on the body. She was at the right compound alright.

She approached the gate, and just as she got there it was opened from inside and three men stepped out, they were all dark-skinned and muscular and they were carrying what looked like construction tools.

She pursed her lips in puzzlement as they walked by without acknowledging her. Then she made her way through the gate.

The compound was a beehive of activities, people were all over the place. There was someone that was painting the fence, another was using these giant shears to trim the flowers that lined the fence. Another painter was on a ladder that was leaning against the building, he was painting the main house.

Canopies and their metal frames were scattered all over the compound, littering the ground. There were plastic chairs stacked into each other and placed in a corner so as not to be in the way.

The people that filled up the compound were not even family, they all were workers that were making preparations for the wedding on Saturday.

None of them paid her any mind as she made her way through until she got to the door. And there, just like with the gate, it opened up just as she was getting there.

“I promise you, the design will be ready by Thursday.” A heavyset woman said as she stepped out, speaking to someone behind her.

“It had better be, if not there will be fire on the mountain and there will be nowhere for you to run― Ada!!!”

Adaeze let out a shriek as she saw her friend. They ran into each other’s arms, screaming with delight as they hugged. It had been so long since they saw themselves, keeping contact only through social media apps.

“Are you just coming?” Abike asked her, she was a beautiful young lady with dark skin. One of those kinds of complexions that could be described as ebony. She also had brown hers, they were the most striking part of her features because it was usually the first thing that people noticed about her. “Hope you did not have any trouble on your way to this place?”

“No,” Adaeze replied as she was led into the house. “It was just my Uber driver that was just being stupid and unnecessarily rude.”

“Hmm, what happened?”

As she recounted the story, starting from when she had ordered the Uber till he had almost made her fall at Abike’s gate, she looked around the house.

It was a comfy and tastefully furnished duplex. All the lights that were on were just colored lights that gave the living room a soothing ambiance. A television the size of a deep freezer was pinned to the wall but tilted slightly for better viewing. It was on a cartoon network that Adaeze could not recognize. There were leather couches placed in front of the television, speakers were also placed at strategic points in the living room although the place was quiet at the moment. The television was on mute.

“Eeyah…” Abike muttered when she concluded her story. “That is how they used to do na.”

“How? He is not the first Uber I am taking since I got to Lagos. But he is definitely the first to behave like a total idiot.”

“Some of them do not like their passengers taking the backseat.”

“What? Why? If I am paying for it, then I get to seat wherever the hell I want.”

“Apparently, not with all of them. You are even lucky, some of them will rather cancel the ride than have you sit at the back. The thing is that they feel it downgrades them. Like your father, for instance, he has drivers in his employ right? He sits in the backseat and gives orders. When it comes to Uber, some of them feel like their customers' seating at the back makes them a boss over them. Or something just as silly, I am not really sure.”

“What the…” Adaeze muttered as it suddenly made sense. Yusuf’s mood had changed the moment she had said she wanted to seat at the back. And that also explained his outburst when they had gotten to her destination. It had been like he was trying to put her in her place. “But… he is my driver. As long as I am paying him to get me from point A to point B, then he is definitely my driver for that moment no matter how short it is.”

“Please do not try to use that logic with them, it will waste your time.” Abike led her towards the passage, “anyway, thank God you got here in one piece.”

“Everything has been great so far, going according to plan. Now it is the wedding that I am looking forward to.”

“Of course, you are not the only one. And on that note, I bid you a warm welcome to my humble abode.”