Yu sabi di kain happiness wey go make yu sleep for night open yor front teeth? Di kain one wey yu go wake up for morning and yu still dey shine teeth? E no matter weda conductor no give yu yor change, or sey persin wey dey drive motor splash dirty water for yor bodi. Di kain feeling wey be say even if yor food wey yu pack trowey for ground, yu go just shake head continue dey waka go. Na dat kain happiness I dey feel today.
Na awa last exam before we enter next session. After all di reading wey I don do, I just want relax. I don dey count down to di last day, becos I sabi sey flenjo go boku. We no go need read again. We no go need do vigil, dey answer past question. We fit sleep like say tomorrow no dey. We fit dey press phone from morning till night.
Femi and Patrick na my course mates. Dem don dey talk sey e get one place dem want make we go after exams. Dem call am adventure. I neva go for any adventure before so I no fit wait to go wit dem. Dem talk sey dia guys-dem, Ahmed and Ikenna, dey come. My friend Bimbo go come too.
As I dey waka go exam hall, I see Femi for road.
“Rachel, haw far? Hope sey yu don ready for awa outing? Wen exam finish, make yu meet us for car park o. No waste time.”
Before I leave house for morning, I tell my mama sey I get choir practice. I no fit tell am sey I dey go adventure. She go first ask me, “Nne, wich one be dat?”
Mama na old school. She no go sabi, so I no bother.
As I enter exam hall, I just want pour my whole brain for di paper. My reading no fit waste. Na me and dis exam. Normally, I be scholar. As I dey write, I no fit even wait make I write finish, dey go meet di guys. I just dey excited. Di excitement reach sotey, I no even wait make invigilator shout pens down. I don komot.
Wen I reach car park, Ahmed bin don reach too. I no too like di guy but na Femi friend, so I dey tolerate am. He no sabi talk, and I no sabi haw him and Femi be friends. But dat one no concern me. I just greet am, komot my face, begin dey wait for di remaining people. Bimbo come shortly after. I neva happy to see persin as I bin dey to see am. I no fit manage anoda minute wit di Ahmed. Na so e do me reach. Femi and Patrick waka come, dey stroll like sey no be dem we dey wait.
“Na wa for una o! Yu just leave us yer to dey wait. And una still dey catwalk on top. Abeg make we dey go.” na wetin I talk.
Femi answer say, “No vex abeg, we go buy some tins wey we go chop… abi we no go chop?”
I no talk anytin again as I hear chow. Femi talk sey we go drive small. Den wen we drive small, we go come down continue di waka wit leg. I no tink sey e go bad wen e talk am. But as we dey drive dey go, Femi begin drive inside bush. Na so e off motor. Na now I begin dey tink sey dis one no go easy o.
“Femi, wai yu dey stop for yer?” Bimbo ask am.
“Shhh, I no tell una sey we go trek small?”
“Ehn yu talk dat one but yu no talk sey na bush we go waka pass.”
Na im Ahmed put mouth dey talk rubbish “See, if una no want go, yu fit still turn back dey go house o… abi wetin sef?”
I just give am bad eye, becos I no want follow am talk.
We komot from di motor begin waka. Evening nak and everywer kon dark. Femi dey talk say make we just dey waka dey go. We reach one place and everywer just dark. Kpoto-kpoto fulll ground. I bin dey wonder haw becos rain neva fall for dis awa side for like two weeks now. I begin dey worry becos we don waka reach fifteen minutes, and we neva still see anywer wey be like adventure. We begin dey hear noise but we no sabi wer e dey come from. I start dey fear o, no be small. E be like say no be only me reason am becos Patrick ask Femi wetin dey sup.
“Guy, wer yu carry us come like dis? I no dey like dis kain tin.”
“Make una chill. We go soon reach. Relax nau.”, Femi answer am.
I dey hear wetin dem dey talk, but my mind no fit rest. My mind just dey tell me sey na yer I go die. I neva marry, I neva born, I neva even do school complete, but na for yer my life go end—just like dat. I hope sey my mama and papa go even find my dead bodi, make dem fit do burial. E go worse pass if dem no see bodi. For my side, na taboo be dat. I decide to say my last prayer.
“I hail yu o, Mary! Yu dey full of grace. Papa God dey wit yu. Yu dey blessed among women. And di pikin wey yu carry for belle, bros Jesus, dey blessed too…”
Femi cut me.
“Rachel, wetin yu dey talk?”
“I dey say my last prayer, as una don bring us yer make we die.”
Ahmed begin laff. “Rachel abeg, make we hear word. Wich one be we bring yu yer make yu die? Make yu cool yor temper. Nobodi dey die.”
As Ahmed talk dat one, na so we hear gun shot. All of us bend down dey shout. God abeg, wich kain wahala be dis one? For my life, if I hear adventure, I go pick race.
Writer: Itseme Akede; Illustrator: Charles Oyovbaire
