AREA '61 (7)

 Episode 7

"Bello hall it is,"

Nonye whispered and stared at the scape of grass and solar lamps in front of Balewa hostel. She was seated on the B sculpted from concrete. She leaned her head back a little and it touched the stem of a tall pawpaw tree. She smiled as her eyes pinpointed the stars above.

"You're not giving up, are you?"

Nonye looked to her left and was almost surprised at the sight of Cathy. "So you can be quiet for that long," she said under her breath and looked away. Cathy grunted with irritation and sat right beside Nonye. She poked her head with her finger and giggled when Nonye shot her a glare.

"What are you doing here again?"

"I'm trying to convince you against your crazy Holmes mission. Even if there is a secret cult group, do you think they'd like someone sniffing them out?" Cathy said.

"Can your friend be done fixing her nails already? You have somewhere else to be," Nonye replied nonchalantly.

"I was surprised to find you here too. You literally left Okpara with all it's, em, beauty for Balewa."

Nonye smiled, "I'm glad you noticed. Here's spacious and nice. Also, I can conveniently watch the night lovers and spy on their rendezvous. I noticed this guy comes for three different girls in this same hostel three different days of the week."

"Scum," ejaculated Cathy.

"I think not. He must be very organized to arrange his affairs in order."

"You're..."

"Silly?"

Nonye's back grew tense with expectation. It relaxed when Cathy grinned and shook her head. "Nah," she said, "You're very broad-minded. I didn't think of it that way. He's still a scum though."

Nonye's little smile brightened her face. She looked away from Cathy and began slowly, "There's another reason I prefer this spot. This pawpaw tree actually has a legend." Cathy groaned. She continued, "It was planted by a combined art student who was asked, 'When you graduate, what will you be remembered for?' I hope to carry on her legacy and do more than plant just a pawpaw tree."

"You want to plant an asparagus?"

Nonye nudged Cathy who burst into her giggle that always made Nonye think of babies.

"Well, if you want to leave a legacy so bad, carve your name on a stone and toss it into the Lion fountain. You'll be remembered for generations! Anyway, I have to go. You should pay me a visit one day. Victoria Lodge, room 305. I have food and water. Oh, and a really nice mp for grooving. You're always welcome."

Nonye stared at her as she stood up. "Tempting offer. Good night," she said thoughtfully and hardly smiled as Cathy gave a hearty bye and went into Balewa hostel. Cathy still had another hearty bye ready when she reemerged with a girl doting on her colourful nails. Nonye wasn't there though; she was in Bello hall walking through the corridor of houses and wondering which had the answers she needed for her feature. If she was going to cover Area '61, she needed inside information on Bello hall.

"Definitely not trying the house of kindness," Nonye said the next day as she stood behind the door of room 240 and made obnoxious faces. She gasped and ran for the toilet end when someone yelled, "Bye, Matty!" from behind the door. She poked her head out to see the familiar beauty close a door and sashayed down the corridor and to the steps. Nonye sighed and walked until she found the house of angels.

"I oughta give it a try," she whispered and knocked. She listened intently, then knocked again. She knocked again and an impatient, "Who is there?" greeted her face just as she pushed the door. It was locked.

"Hi. Good afternoon. I'm Nonye. I'm working on a feature and I would like to have a brief talk with you. Can I come in?" Nonye cleared her throat to remove the quiver of fear from her voice. Then she listened for a reply. When none came, she knocked gently. She heard a muffled command of "Go away!" Then she backed away.

"Angelic," she spat and left. Her restless determination asked her to try another door but her introverted nerves were panting from the first encounter. She felt more than ever the urge to quit as she walked down the stairs with drooping head and spirits. On her way out was a tall fair girl. She stood in the way and gave Nonye a cross-eyed stare. Nonye looked to her right, to the girl and to her left. Then she tried to edge past the girl but the girl chuckled.

"Sorry. Are my eyes doing it again?" came a rich voice that was lovely to listen to. Nonye stopped and watched as the girl blinked hard and opened her eyes. It was almost magical, the transformation. Nonye's eyes could suddenly see clearly how pretty the girl was. She smiled and said, "I like your walking step. It's so cool."

"Uhm, thank you." Nonye was surprised her hasty generalization that all Bello hall residents were the same had been disproved so quickly. Her spirits rose at once.

"I'm Nonye."

"Edna."

"Lovely name."

"Thank you." Another pretty smile.

"Do you mind if I talk to you for a bit? I'm working on a feature and..."

"Sure! I love conversations. Let me buy some snacks."

Nonye stared as she darted to the canteen and returned with packets of biscuits and a nylon of cakes.

"House of perseverance," Nonye read as Edna opened her door and ushered her in.

"My friends aren't in, but they won't mind if we use their room. Mine's a mess. Do you like cake or biscuits? I think you should try the Choco chips first. Sit here."

"Thank you," Nonye said confused. She accepted the biscuit but kept it on her lap gingerly. It might have been drugged and a bite would finalize her as the next cult sacrifice.

Edna sat on her chair and faced Nonye on the bed. The sunlight from the window touched her face and made her orbs golden. She talked and Nonye felt a wave of comfort, "You're in mass communication, I guess."

"How did you know?" Nonye almost jumped from the bed and ran for her life. She suddenly realized she had felt that she had been watched for a long time.

"You're our usual visitors. You guys always come here for... Beats. I'm surprised though. I was expecting you next semester. I don't really know of any happening event in the hostel except that the Hall governor's sister is getting married."

"That's okay. I'm here for something different." Nonye took a deep breath and recalled her script, "I want to write a feature concerning the recent deaths in the school. I don't know if you have anything to say on that."

"Mh. Sure. What do you want to know about that?"

"Do you think it's the school's fault or is something else at fault?"

Edna bit into a cake and said, "Well, I don't think the school likes the fact that two of its students are dead. Forget the school fees they'll lose; it's bad for their PR. I do believe though that the school can do more to prevent such events from happening again. Does that sound newsworthy?"

Nonye stifled a smile at that last question and nodded to Edna who ate another cake happily. Nonye shifted grounds, "Thank you, Edna but... Don't you think it's odd? The deaths happened in a space of days. One was a fresher, the other was a 200 level student. First a girl, now it's a boy. It's as if they're being preyed on, maybe by a cult, or something."

"Or they're just careless. This isn't the first time a fresher died before matric. In my first year, one was found beside Fidelity bank. They are inexperienced but only you can let yourself play the fool."

Nonye nodded and wrote on her note. She was impressed by Edna's composure. Very convincing. "What about the psychology student? He wasn't a fresher."

"The story of his death is still a mystery. People have already claimed that he was used as a sacrifice for the god of the waterfall. Superstition always makes up for things above man's understanding. But I might just believe your cult theory if the next student to die is in 300 level. We don't pray for that but..." Edna chuckled and burst out laughing. Nonye chuckled and thought how she wanted a friend she could talk to like this.

Nonye's phone beeped. It's a message from Cathy. It read, "Hiii. Can you come over today? I'm not feeling too well. Come in ten minutes. I'm going to buy my drugs now." Nonye swiped the message away thoughtlessly and smiled at Edna. "Thank you for your opinion, Edna. I have another question. You've been in this hostel a long time, right?"

"This is my fifth year here and second year as the Hall governor."

"Oh! Congratulations to your sister," Nonye said with a broad smile.

"Thank you!" Edna lurched forward and gave Nonye's hand a warm tug. "You're sharp. I like that. You'll make an awesome journalist."

"That's the dream. Anyway, what do you have to say about Bello?"

"Mmh. It's a great hostel. It has its pros and cons, like every hostel. I don't think much of the structure as I do about the people inside. You find a lot of characters in Bello. We're not all rich and snobbish as some think..." Nonye bit her inner lip, "Some of us aren't even Pharmacy students. We're all great people though. Serving as a Hall governor has been a delightful experience because of that."

Nonye's phone beeped again. Another message from Cathy. It read, "Help, Nonye. There's this car following me. Should I give him all my medicine and run? Are you on your way too?" Nonye swiped it quickly and cut Edna off, "Sure, Edna. Besides that, have you ever noticed something odd happen in the hostel?"

"Like?"

"I don't know. Anything wrong or suspicious that should raise concern for the whole school."

"Mmhhh. Yes. There is something going on that prickles my skin." Nonye held her breath excitedly, "It's this new trend of caring less for our neighbours. Everyone's so self-centered these days we forget that 'I am because we are.' It's a huge issue because I believe these and previous deaths could have been avoided if we always looked out for each other and gave generous advices and assistance. With the way things are going in the country, people recourse to suicide because life has done them wrong, or fall into the hands of predators because they're not careful enough. The burden would be easier to carry if we looked out for each other. Forget candlelight services. We're all hypocrites if we show love to the dead but can't care for the living."

Nonye's brows met to contemplate the crosseyed beauty. She smiled at the beauty of her words and felt an urge to call Cathy who had sent her last message three more times.

"Thank you so much, Edna." Nonye stood up with her widest smile.

"You're welcome. I'm here anytime you need someone to talk to."

Nonye monitored Edna's smile. She chuckled when it proved genuine.

"That was the ultimate journalist experience!" Nonye squealed as she descended the steps of Bello hall. She looked back and smiled at the green doorpost. Then she remembered Cathy and fumbled for her phone. She sent, "Why don't you give him your shoes too?" When Cathy didn't reply, Nonye called her number. It was switched off. Nonye shrugged and went online. Cathy had sent her the same message on Whatsapp, seven times! Nonye gave a long groan and clicked on her class group chat. She skipped the pictures of gowns and lipsticks for sale and nearly missed a reposted news slide. It read, "Black Tuesday as another fresher loses life, gets knocked down by speeding vehicle."

"Omg! Another one before matric? - Is this true? - Where? - It hasn't been confirmed, guys. - It's probably misinformation."

Nonye didn't care. Nonye didn't wait. She raced to Hilltop. Her legs ached by the time she reached Brotherly and asked for directions to Victoria Lodge. Her face was panic ridden. "There's this car following me," the words echoed in her ears repeatedly. She swore she would not forgive herself if anything happened to that little thing.

"We'd all be hypocrites if we show love to the dead but can't care for the living..."

Nonye nearly spilled a tear as she banged on the door of apartment 305. She knocked again and her heart gave a frightened leap as the door clicked and opened slowly. A drained looking Cathy appeared and was about to manage a wave when Nonye attacked her with a hug. Despite her fatigue, Cathy's eyes opened twice their size and her lower lip pushed out at the alien gesture.

"Don't scare me like that again," Nonye said breaking the hug and sniffling. She ignored Cathy's weak smile as she said quickly, "Why was your phone off?"

"No light. That's the downside of being a Hilltopian."

Nonye pulled out a power bank and handed it to Cathy. "Room 210. Come whenever you need to charge. We always have light in school." Nonye growled after a pause, "You're always welcome."

Cathy smiled and bounced on her feet, while Nonye frowned and wondered how she would have lived with herself if she hadn't seen that smile.

To be continued.

Nonye's weakness has been spotted! Edna was fantastic too. Do you remember any beautiful words from a friend that brands your memory till today?

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