by Kiru Taye
The old him would argue that as he no longer stood as their teacher and as long as they were legal, he could do whatever he liked. Or he’d give her a fake smile and nod but the minute she left, he’d stick his middle finger up in a rude gesture and do whatever he liked.
The old him had died with his brother. The new him nodded, stepped out, and spoke politely. “Thanks for stopping by.”
“No problem. See you in a few weeks at your presentation.”
He didn’t stay to watch the car reverse out of the spot. Instead, he headed inside and up the stairs. His feet felt like they were weighted with lead, each step heavy, and his body felt as if it would crumple in on itself. He opened the door to his apartment, walked in, shut it, and leaned against the wooden slab. Slowly, his legs gave out on him and he slumped to the cool tiles on the floor, holding his head in his hands.
A small creak announced a door opening. Henry stepped out of his room wearing a pair of blue shorts. As soon as he saw Ike on the floor, he hurried over.
“What happened?” Water drops glistened on his friend’s head and shoulders.
“I’ve been banned from associating with students of Hillcrest.”
“Shit,” Henry exclaimed and sat down on the floor in front of Ike. “How did that happen?”
Ike told his friend about his conversation with Mrs. Bello, expecting his friend to say ‘I told you so’ at the end.
Instead, Henry placed his hand on Ike’s shoulder. “I feel your pain. What are you going to do?”
Ike scrubbed his face. “I have no other choice. I can’t see her again. I have to end it.”
The phone in his shorts rang and he pulled it out of the pocket. “Speak of the devil. It’s Lara. What am I going to say to her?”
“Just tell her it’s over. That you guys can’t see each other anymore.”
“But that will mess her up. She still has exams to complete. I will never forgive myself if she fails her finals because of me.”
“Okay.” Henry snatched the phone off his hand.
“What are you doing?” Ike sat up straight.
“Let me deal with this,” Henry said before pressing the button to answer the call and turned on the speaker. “Hi, this is Henry.”
“Oh, Henry. Hi.” There was a pause on the line as she sucked in a breath. “Can I speak to Ike, please?”
“He is busy right now. I’ll let him know you called and he’ll call you back.”
“O...kay. I’ll talk to him later. Thank you.”
“Bye,” he said.
“Bye.” She hung up.
Henry handed the phone back to Ike. “You’re just going to have to avoid her until her exams are done.”
***
Lara’s foot drummed against the floor of the bus as she rode it the few stops from her house to Ike’s. Excitement made her body tremble.
She’d finished her last examination paper yesterday. So she was officially free. Free from high school. Free to date Ike openly.
They’d seen each other whenever possible these past few weeks. Although he made her use most of the time to study, she was still glad that she’d had his company. He’d helped her out when she’d gotten stuck with any subject. Before each exam, he’d sent her a short message wishing her the best.
Now, she couldn’t wait to take their relationship to the next level. She planned to surprise him so she hadn’t informed him that she would be at his soon. But they’d agreed previously that once her exams were over, there wouldn’t be any reasons why she couldn’t go to his whenever she was free.
She hadn’t seen him for a couple of weeks so she couldn’t wait to see him again.
“Good afternoon, oga gateman,” she greeted the man who guarded the entrance.
“Welcome.” He waved her in.
She walked down the long drive but stopped in her tracks as she saw Ike coming out of his building. With him was a girl she didn’t recognise at first. The girl was leaning against him and they were talking in low tones that seemed way too intimate from where she stood.
Lara’s heart stopped and her legs became sluggish as she got closer. Another person joined them. Henry, his flat mate.
“Ike,” she called out but her voice came out so low, she wasn’t sure if he heard her.
Ike looked up and saw her. His expression registered surprise. He extracted himself from the girl whom she now saw was Gloria Rawlins and came towards her.
“Lara, you should’ve called me before coming over. I’m on my way out.”
“I called you several times but you didn’t return my calls.” She glanced over at Gloria who was staring at her with the usual malice.
Ike pulled her aside. He scrubbed a hand over his face before he spoke. “I’m sorry about that. The thing is, we can't see each other anymore.”
“Why?” She glanced at Gloria.
“We just can’t.”
More distracted with the fact that Gloria was here, she didn’t fully absorb his words.
“What is Gloria Rawlins doing here?”
“She’s my friend.”
“She’s your...” Suddenly, the penny dropped and she stared up at Ike. “You are breaking up with me.”
He just stared at her with a distant look in his eyes and his voice sounded flat. “I’m sorry.”
“You’re sorry?” Her gut rolled and she doubled over as she grew sick.
“Are you okay?” he asked, sounding concerned as he reached for her.
“Don’t touch me!” She flinched away from his touch.
She’d been such a fool. How could she not have seen this? She’d been so consumed by him that she hadn’t seen that he could have any other girl in their school. She wasn’t anything special. But Gloria was pretty and popular. Why wouldn’t he want her?
Tears burned the back of her eyes and her throat hurt.
She glared at him and then at Gloria. “I hate you!”
She stumbled backwards, turned, and ran towards the gates. Tears fell down her face as she walked on the street. Her vision blurred as her lenses clouded. She pulled the frame off her face and swiped her eyes. Half-stumbling, half-walking, she didn’t know how far she walked until she felt the presence of a car beside her and someone called out her name.
She wiped her face again and glanced back with a squint since she didn’t have her glasses on to find Malcolm sauntering towards her. She didn’t want to talk to him. So she continued walking.
“Hey, Lara,” he called out. She could hear his quickened footsteps behind her. “I just want to talk.”
Chapter Seven
Lara didn’t stop. Her heart ached and her shoulder slumped as if she carried the weight of the world. She wanted to go crawl into a hole and cry for the next year. She didn’t want to talk to anyone, least of all Malcolm.
“Malcolm, leave me alone,” she said in a choked voice.
“I’m so sorry, Lara. I really am. Please, just talk to me.” His voice sounded pained, as if he were genuinely sorry for the things he’d done in the past.
She stopped walking and clutched her bag to her chest, her head lowered.
Malcolm caught up and came to stand in front of her. “Thank you for stopping. I was just driving past and saw you. I wanted to say that I’m really sorry for all the things I did in the past. I know I was an asshole and you probably would never forgive me. But I’d be grateful if you could.”
Lara sucked in a deep breath and blew it out. “I forgive you, Malcolm.”
She did. She hadn’t thought about him in weeks, anyway. Right now, she had a bigger sorrow to deal with.
“Thank you so much,” he said and came closer. “Are you crying? What happened?”
She shook her head. Tears smarted her eyes as the pain of breaking up with Ike crashed over her. “It’s nothing.”
“Don’t say that. You’re upset. Did someone do something to you?” He placed his hand on her arm, the tone of his voice concerned.
Perhaps it was just hearing him soun
d so worried about her when she’d never thought he could be so kind—she broke down in sobs as she spoke. “It’s Ike.”
“Who is Ike?” he asked gently. “What did he do to you?”
She realised he probably didn’t know Ike was Mr. Thomas. She didn’t even know his first name until a few weeks ago. But she didn’t clarify. Probably best if Malcolm didn’t know. “He’s my boyfriend. He broke up with me.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do?”
She shook her head and pressed the heel of her right hand to her eyes. She wiped her glasses against her top before wearing them again. “No. I just want to go home.”
“Okay. I’ll take you home.”
“No. Don’t worry.”
“I can’t let you go home in this state. Let me take you, please. I promise I’ll drive you straight home.”
She didn’t have any energy to argue with him, so she sighed and nodded. Perhaps if she let him take her home, she would get there sooner and have some peace and quiet all to herself. “Okay.”
He took her arm and led to the car. It was a small, red, 2-door VW Golf hatchback. He opened the door and helped her in. Then he got in the other side. Lara noted that he was being very nice, much nicer than he’d been to her at the start of the school year. She gave him her address and he drove her straight home. She’d been expecting him to start asking her out like he used to, but he didn’t say anything all the way until they got to the front of her house.
“Thank you,” she said as she unlocked the door.
“You’re welcome,” he said. “Take care of yourself.”
She was so shocked that Malcolm had been so nice to her without even asking for anything in return. But it didn’t take away from her sadness.
Luckily, there was no one home when she arrived. She went straight upstairs to her bedroom and stayed there for the rest of the day.
Each time her phone buzzed, she rushed to pick it up, only to toss it aside when it wasn’t Ike calling or texting her. She hoped he would call and tell her it had been a mistake or just a moment of madness. That he wasn’t breaking up with her.
Two days later, Lara and Lola were sitting out on the terrace when a visitor arrived. Lara was shocked to see Malcolm walking through the pedestrian gate after the guard opened it.
“What’s he doing here?” Lola asked.
“I don’t know,” Lara replied as she stood up.
Malcolm was carrying a small shopping bag from a popular eatery in the neighbourhood. He came up to them.
“Hi, Lara. How are you doing?” he said, smiling at her.
“I’m okay, thanks. What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I came to see how you were doing. After the other day, I was worried about you. And since I don’t have your phone number, I thought I should pop by and see how you are coping.”
She was still wary of him. Of men in general. But this caring Malcolm was different from the arrogant boy she’d known in school. Perhaps finally graduating from high school had matured him.
“Thank you for coming by, but I’m okay. You don’t need to worry.”
“Okay. That’s good.” He smiled. “Here, I brought this for you.” He held out the bag in her direction.
“What is it?”
“It’s meat pie and some soft drinks.”
“You didn’t have to buy anything for me,” she said, not reaching for the bag.
“I know. But I went out to buy some snacks for my mum. I drove past your house on the way to the restaurant and I thought about you. So I decided to buy some for you.”
Wow. Malcolm was thinking about her, enough to buy something for her? She was speechless for a moment.
“That’s really nice of you,” Lola said and took the bag from him.
“Thank you,” Lara said when she found her voice.
“No problem. Enjoy it. I have to go now. My mum is waiting for her food.”
“Okay,” she said but didn’t move towards him.
Lola nudged her.
“See him off,” her sister said in a low voice.
Lara pushed her hand off but followed Malcolm down the drive. At the gate, she bid him farewell and he did the same.
She returned to Lola who was peeking into the bag and taking out the snack.
“What’s going on with Malcolm?”
She shrugged and sat down. “Nothing.”
“Don’t give me that. You guys were squabbling in school and he was spreading nasty lies about you. All of a sudden, he’s coming to our house and bringing you meat pie.”
Lara puffed out a deep breath. “Malcolm and I have settled our differences. It turns out he can be very nice when he wants to be.”
“Really? Just like that?”
“Yes. Just like that.”
“So what did he mean by what happened the other day?” Lola took a sip of lemonade.
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Come on. You’ve got to tell me. You know I won’t stop nagging you until you tell me.”
“Okay, if I tell, you have to promise not to tell anyone, including Aunty Judy. Promise me.”
“Sure, I promise,” Lola said.
Lara swallowed. “I had a boyfriend and he broke up with me on Thursday. I was crying when Malcolm found me. He was so nice to me and he brought me home.”
Tears welled up in her eyes again. The pain hadn’t gone away no matter how much she tried not to think about it.
“Oh, no.” Lola stood from her chair and came over and hugged her. “I’m so sorry.”
It felt so good to have someone to hug her. Malcolm had tried but she hadn’t allowed him to touch her. She hadn’t trusted him enough to relax in his arms. When she’d calmed down enough, Lola returned to her chair.
“Who is the boy you were dating?”
“It doesn’t matter.” She’d promised Ike she wouldn’t tell anyone. Even though he’d broken it off and she was heartbroken, she couldn’t bring herself to betray him. “He doesn’t want anything to do with me anymore. It seems he found a new girlfriend.”
“Just like that? Men as such bastards,” Lola said.
Lara grimaced. She’d never thought she’d ever allow that word to be used to describe Ike. He had always been good to her until this week. They’d only known each other for less than a year, but he’d had more impact in her life than anyone else she’d met. She wouldn’t be forgetting him in a hurry.
“Well, let’s forget your ex and enjoy this gift from Malcolm. At least, it seems he has come to his senses and is treating you the way he should’ve done right from the start.”
“What? Malcolm doesn’t want to be my boyfriend.”
Lola laughed and shook her head. “For my older sister, you are so naive when it comes to boys.”
Lara laughed. “What do you know about boys? You’re only sixteen.”
“I’ll be seventeen in a few months. And I know that I’ve had more boyfriends than you.”
That was certainly true. Lola had always attracted male attention. She knew she was a beautiful girl and wasn’t afraid of using her looks to get what she wanted.
“Seriously, Lola, you scare me sometimes. Don’t tell me you’ve had sex?”
“As if. I’m not going to give it up to any old person just like that. I’m waiting for my Prince Charming.”
“But you’re the one who claims to have had loads of boyfriends.”
“Yes. I have to kiss loads of frogs before I find my prince. It doesn’t mean I’m doing more than just kissing.”
“Perhaps that’s what I should do. I should start kissing loads of frogs instead of waiting for the prince.”
Except, she thought she’d found the prince in Ike. Instead, he’d turned into the big bad wolf.
“Yeah, you should, starting with Malcolm. He wants to be your boyfriend.”
Lara couldn’t help laughing at her sister’s words.
But a week later, Lola was proved right when Malcolm turned up a
t her house again, this time inviting both of them out for a drive to get ice cream. Because Lola was with them, Lara was able to relax and join in the jovial conversation. She found out that Malcolm was the last child in a family of four siblings, with three older sisters who were either already married or at university. He was close to his mother and spoke quite fondly about her.
“Can I talk to you privately?” he asked when they arrived back at her house.
“I’ll see you inside,” Lola said as she got out of the back seat. “Malcolm, thanks again for the ice cream.”
“You’re welcome.” He waited until Lola had gone through the gates before speaking. “Lara, I’m having a party next week, and I’d like you to come to it.”
He opened the glove compartment and took out a sky blue envelope. “This is the invitation.”
“Thank you, Malcolm, but I’m not really a party kind of girl.”
“Well, this is a small party to celebrate finishing our exams and graduating from high school. It also happens to be my birthday. I really hope you’ll come. Please.”
Pressing her lips together in a grimace, she sighed. Going to a party so soon after breaking up with Ike didn’t appeal to her. Then again, why should she sit at home and mope around just because he preferred being with Gloria?
Malcolm had been making an effort these past two weeks. His party sounded like it would be great fun. Still, unease weighted her body about spending more time with him.
“Okay, I’ll think about it.”
“Fair enough. My phone number is on the card. Also, I want you to come to the party as my girlfriend.”
Shifting back in her seat, she gaped at him. He couldn’t be serious. “What are you saying?”
“I like you very much, Lara. I know I didn’t go about it the right way before. But I’ve changed. I’m serious about you. I’ve been telling my mum and sisters about you and they want to meet you.”
“Malcolm, no.” She shook her head and unlocked the door. She couldn’t deal with this right now. Not so soon after Ike. Her emotions were still all over the place. Climbing out of the car, she shut the door. Malcolm got out, too, and came around, standing by the bonnet as she walked to the gates.