Chapter Four

Bukunmi stepped into her house, drenched in sweat, looking like she wanted to die.

She was extremely tired from walking all over the streets of Lagos, with her very tight shoes which were not helping matters at all, as they had given her blisters.

"Sissy, are you fine?" Ben asked, taking his eyes off the T.V, and switching it to her direction, as she opened the door.

"I am not fine, Ben. I feel like I'm going to die," She said and slumped on one of the sofas.

He chuckled. "Sorry about that. So, any good news?” He asked.

She shook her head in negativity.

"Wow! But you've been out since morning in search of a job. You're only just coming back at almost 6'0clock in the evening. How can you say you didn't get any job?" He asked.

She sighed. "Well, some organizations will make you wait for a very long time only to tell you they don't have vacancies, some will say they don't need someone who studied Creative writing. Some will offer just a very little amount of money as salary, while some bosses want you to "sex" your way in," She explained.

"Ibukunoluwami, what are you teaching your brother?" Her mother asked, startling her as they didn't know when she had come in.

"Mami, good evening. What are you talking about? I'm not teaching him anything," She said.

"You just mentioned the word, "sex" to my son. Don't you know he's still a child?" She asked in an aggressive tone.

"Ah, Mami. I'm not a child, I'll be fifteen soon," Ben countered.

"So, you think you've grown wings because you'll be turning fifteen, isn't it?" She questioned.

"Mami, he didn't mean it like that..."

She cut her off. "Did I ask you what he meant? Do you think I don't understand English? Or is it because I didn't go to university? It's better to be able to provide for your family even without having a degree, than to have one and still be a liability in your mother's house while trying to corrupt the mind of the only son in the family," She said sarcastically.

Bukunmi was able to get the gist and know what her mother was implying, much to the point of making her heart ache badly. She couldn't say a word anymore, she just fiddled with her fingers with her head bent low.

"Why did you keep quiet? Are you sad? Isn't it the truth I'm telling you? The Bible says: 'The truth shall set you free.' I know the truth is bitter and I've told you the honest truth; it's left for you to accept it," She said.

Bukunmi swallowed hard and decided it was time to go inside and ignore her mother.

She grabbed her faded black bag from the sofa and proceeded to her room with uneven steps.

"Please, have your bath and stop stinking up the whole place. You can't even afford to buy good deodorants and body spray that'll keep you fresh for the whole day and more, what a shame!" Her mother said, shaking her head, with the aim of taunting her.

Bukunmi stopped right in her tracks, clenched her fists and deciding that she couldn't take it anymore, turned around, looking defiant and about to give her mother a solid piece of her mind.

"Mami, what have I ever done to you?" Bukunmi asked, eyeing her fiercely.

Her mother clapped her hands dramatically and laughed at her mockingly.

"What did I ever do to make you hate me so much? Is it my fault that I've not gotten a good job even after coming out with a first class degree from the university? Is it? I don't see myself doing anything other than writing, but because of your constant irritation, I took the pains to go outside today to seek for a good paying job.

"Yes, I didn't get a job, but that is not my fault at all. Would you rather I sleep with men old enough to be my father just to secure a job for myself? Talk to me, Mami. Let me know what you think. You keep comparing me to my mates, making it seem like I'm lazy and comfortable with being jobless and still depending on you for every single thing which you'd even insult me first before giving it to me. Even to drink water in this house is a problem because I'm not paying for it.

"Let me shock you, Mami. Those people you keep comparing me with are not as brilliant as I am, but their saving grace is that they have either rich parents or connections. Mami, are their parents not your mates? Why are you not rich? Why don't you have connections? If you did, I wouldn't be suffering to get a job by now because my writing skills are top notch.

"Everything I'm going through is all your fault and not mine. If you were connected to the right people instead of Mummy Agnes and Aunty Ezinne, you wouldn't have needed to borrow money from Uncle Gbenga which in turn will make him throw us out of Daddy's house soon," She said.

Her mother was in a daze and Benjamin stood up abruptly with his mouth open, unable to believe his ears.

Bukunmi laughed out loud on seeing the confusion written on her mother's face.

"Are you shocked that I know? Well, I found out when he came to our house last week Friday. That was when I decided to get a job against my will, but do I get any credit for doing that? Of course not! You're always blabbering about how much of a disgrace I am, but honestly, you're the one who's disgraceful."

Her mother raised her hand to give her a slap, but Bukunmi was quick enough to hold her hand and stop her from giving her one of her tight slaps.

"Mami, enough! You know why I said you're disgraceful? It's because when I needed you the most to defend me, understand me and be loyal to me, you sided with the enemy. You've made my life a living hell simply because I've not been able to get a good job. How can you then call yourself my mother? Mothers do not act this way. I'll get a job, I promise you that, but don't act nicely to me when I finally do. You're one who changes according to situations, and I will never forgive you, I swear," She said and dropped her hand, shot her a vicious glance and walked out of the room, sobbing as she left.

"Bukunmi had the guts to talk to me like that?" Her mother questioned no one in particular, in awe and total disbelief,after she had left.

Benjamin shrugged. "Honestly, Mami, you've taken things too far. Sissy has endured so much from you, she ought to have said all these things a long time ago. Aren't we family? Aren't we supposed to stand by each other during trying times?" He asked.

"Gbénu é dakè (Keep quiet)!" His mother thundered.

"You said it yourself: The truth is bitter," Benjamin said and walked out of the room, annoyed by his mother's actions.

*****

Bukunmi entered her room and bolted the door from inside, not wanting to get any visitors. She kicked off her tight shoes, pulled off her wig and flung it to the wooden chair in front of her dressing table and proceeded to unbutton her white shirt which was soaked in sweat and had apparently begun to turn a lighter shade of brown.

Guilt pricked her conscience even though she tried to ignore it. She rarely talked back at her mother and tried to tolerate her actions, but she had crossed the line. She knew she had done the right thing by revealing how hurt she was at her mother's words and actions towards her, but she had always been taught to respect her elders.

If Granny Alhaja Pelumi found out about the harsh things she said to her mother, she was going to be done for. Her mother knew how to twist matters upside down in her favour, and although Alhaja Pelumi had lost her one of her legs due to the amputation she had to undergo after surviving the bad car accident two years ago, she was still able to punish she or her brother whenever they made a mistake.

She heard the sound of a knock on her door and heaved a sigh.

"Sissy, it's me," Benjamin's voice called.

"Yeah? What do you want?" She asked.

"I just wanted to make sure you're fine," He said.

She felt touched and smiled. Her brother was the only one who hadn't looked down on her and had stood by her through thick and thin, in the midst of all her mother's troubles. It was relieving knowing you had someone who had your back, unlike Granny who only took disciplinary actions, following what her mother said blindly, without bothering to conduct a proper investigation.

"I'm okay. You can go now," She said, depicting harshness in her voice, contrary to how she really felt.

"You don't have to be that way. I'm not the one who offended you, am I?" He asked.

Again, guilt tugged at her heart. She wasn't doing the right thing by transferring undue aggression to her loving brother.

"It's fine, Ben. Really, it is," She said, with a calmer tone.

"Okay then. Once Mami is done with cooking, I'll sneak some of the food into your room, cause I'm sure she'll be unwilling to give you food with the stunt you pulled off today," He told her.

She sighed. "Ben, do you think I did the right thing by talking back at Mami?" She asked.

"Of course, you did. Don't let anyone make you think otherwise. Mami got what was coming to her," He said.

She smiled. "You think so?"

"I don't think so, I know so. Once you get that job you've been hoping for, don't forget to buy me a smartphone like you promised. I believe in you, sissy," He said.

Tears trickled down her eyes gently. For someone who had been battling with so much inside without necessarily getting support or encouragement for so long, her brother's supportive words meant a whole lot to her.

"Are you fine?" He called from outside.

"I am," She said and wiped her tears with the back of her palm.

"Okay, I'd run along then," He told her.

"I'd have come to give you a tight hug for being such a sweetheart, but I stink. I need to have my bath," She said.

"You do need to have your bath, sissy, and I don't need hugs. They're freaking cheesy. Also, if you tell anyone I was being all nice and sweet to you, I'll deny it," He warned.

She heard his footsteps leave and she smiled to herself. Eleven years ago, she had thought of Benjamin as an annoying little kid who derived pleasure only in turning her room into a mess.

Still, he was her baby brother and she took care of him and shared everything with him after their father's death because her mother was too busy thinking about how soon she had become a widow and always locked herself in the room, leaving them at the mercy of their grandmother, Alhaja Pelumi.

Over the years, he had grown up to be the top student in his class, 6 ft. tall which angered his 5'7 sister, a fair skin with pink lips contrasted to her dark skin and bloody red lips, which she was actually proud of, an athletic body and the dream of every teenage girl.

Her brother always had her best interests at heart, and although he didn't like to show off how much he respected her and looked up to her and was hell bent on annoying the life out of her, he was the only one who really cared about her...and she knew it. He was just pretending to be tough and unconcerned because he felt that it was cheesy for a guy to be emotional and loving.

Bukunmi had finished pulling off her clothes and tied her towel right above her chest and stared at herself in the mirror. She noticed that she had lost some weight and the bones on her chest were starting to become obvious.

She had dark circles and eye bags around her eyes and she was starting to look older than her age, majorly because she lacked good cosmetic products and enough rest. Most times, she couldn't sleep because of how worried she was about getting a job and escaping her mother's daily worries.

Sometimes, she didn't eat throughout the day because her mother always had something to say about her not bringing money to the table, but eating more than everyone else, which of course, was a lie. On those days, Benjamin would save her a portion of his food or leave snacks on her windowsill.

She heaved another one of her deep sighs, and ignored how pathetic and malnourished she looked, then grabbed her phone which was cracked beyond repair and needed to be changed.

She was going to do her regular routine of setting up a new playlist to listen to while having her bath when a message popped unto her phone screen.

She had been given a 500MB data bonus from the network she used to browse and operate on all her social media platforms. She screamed happily out of joy and excitement, then sat on her bed.

For weeks, she had been offline on all her social media platforms simply because she couldn't afford to buy data. She lived off her neighbour's WiFi, but ever since he travelled to the village a few weeks ago, her life had been miserable.

She was grateful for being able to get a data bonus and proceeded to check up what had been going on with everyone she communicated with via social media.

As she turned on her data connection, a notification popped up on her phone screen from a platform she had been writing on for years without getting paid.

She curiously tapped on it and saw that her online friend for the past eleven years had sent her five different messages. They read:

"Hi."

"You've not been online. Hope you're good?"

"Been missing you, sure you're okay?"

"When do you intend on completing 'Lies and woes'?"

"I've missed you. Wish you could just reply."

A broad smile crept up to her face. After the death of her father, she had started writing on that platform. It was an avenue for readers to read novels even though the authors weren't paid.

For over six months, she hadn't been getting reads or anything, and she was a tad close to giving up, when one day, she saw a comment from him, which was the sweetest message she had ever gotten. It read:

"You're a brilliant writer, sweetie. I loved reading your book from the beginning to the end. Don't ever give up on writing. It's your birthright!"

That little message meant the world to her and she was grateful to the sender whose username was just one letter, "T", that she had slid into his DM to express how grateful she was.

Just like that, they became good friends even though they had never met. She let him know everything about her and told him all the things that bothered her, and he was always there to comfort her and encourage her to keep on pushing and writing despite her low reads.

She soon became quite famous on the application and got so many readers and fans, but he remained her favourite. He had been there for her when no one was, and gave her reasons to keep on writing, and for that, she was forever grateful and felt indebted to him.

"Hi. Sorry I've been offline," She typed and sent to him.

She sat on her bed, fiddling with her fingers and waiting for his response.

She was well aware that he was from a rich home because he usually told her all about parties and lavish events he attended. He had attended one of the best Federal government's secondary schools in Lagos while hers was a local one.

She remembered that when she turned fifteen, he had left Nigeria to study at a University in Chicago, and during that period, they barely talked because he was always busy with school.

Her present situation now reminded her of when she'd sit all day waiting for his message to tell him about all that had happened that day, and ask him all about Chicago. At a point, he had stopped coming online and as days rolled into weeks and weeks into years, she had forgotten all about him and had begun a new life as a 19-year old in 200 level, studying Creative writing at the prestigious University of Benin, Nigeria.

That day, she had received a message from him after so long. He had told her he was back from studying Business Administration and had begun his National Youth Service Corps in Nigeria.

She had wanted them to meet since she was much older, but he had declined, saying he preferred being her online friend and so, their friendship began again. He sent her money at times when she complained about being broke, but she had stopped telling him when she was without money, so it didn't seem like she was begging.

Yet, he sent her gifts every Valentine's day and during the Christmas period. She always worried about how he knew her exact location and feared he was a stalker, but Nneoma had told her not to worry since nothing bad had been happening to her so far.

She had always seen him as more than an online friend because he was always there for her, and soon stopped worrying about him stalking her since he obviously intended to cause her no harm.

"How have you been?" A new message from "T" popped up on her phone screen.

"Kinda bummed. You?" She immediately replied.

"I'm fine now that you're online. What's the issue with you though? Your book got rejected again?"

"Yeah. Now, I want to get any job at all, even if it's not writing related. Sadly, I've not been able to," She texted.

It took about five minutes before he sent her a new message, but she felt like she had been waiting for eternity.

However, when the message came, she couldn't tell if it was good news or bad news. It read:

"Heard that Welling Fam Heights is employing. Guess it has something to do with writing and the pay seems pretty okay."

The smile on Bukunmi's face dried up instantly. She hated anything connected to Welling Fam Heights as she knew what they were capable of. She had tasted what they could do to a person at a very young age, and although she didn't know why, she knew they spelt nothing but doom.

Bukunmi was outrightly not interested, but her fingers still found a way to type this:

"How much is the pay?"

She immediately regretted sending that message, because what was the point of asking when she had told herself she wasn't interested?

"200k per month," He responded soon enough.

Her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets in both awe and disbelief. Was he for real? A whopping sum of two hundred thousand naira every month would go a long way in changing her life for the better. She'd be able to pay off her uncle in just two months and buy her brother a smartphone, change her wardrobe, buy foodstuff and probably buy a car in two years, she reasoned.

She immediately shook off the thoughts. No! She couldn't let herself be swayed by money. Her eyes drifted to her father's photograph resting on the wall. He looked so handsome and full of smiles in the picture.

She swallowed hard, remembering her promise to get justice for her father someday. What if this was fate's plan all along? She knew she hadn't gotten the job yet, but if she had a shot at it, why then should she withdraw from it?

They say, "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer." By going to work with Welling Fam Heights, she was going to know everything about them with time and the information could hopefully give her evidence about their criminal acts and bring them to book.

"It's not about the money," She whispered to herself.

"This is for justice!" She said, not loudly, but her tone hinting on finality.

So saying, she sent a singular message to "T" which read:

"Where's the address?"

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Much love.