Chidi's POV
"Who was there Chidi?," Mama asked me as I entered back into the compound.
"I don't know mom, she didn't tell me her name," I replied her as I walked back to the balcony of our beautiful three bedroom apartment.
"What's that you are holding?," Mama asked me and I turned to stare at her.
"Oh she actually gave me this, and said she was looking for you," I told her as I looked at the magazine I was holding, knowing so well my mother loves fashion and entertainment magazine, to sew new styles of top-notch actresses for her customers.
Mama walked towards me and collected the Magazine and her expression changed, "Who did you say brought it?. Why didn't you let her in?."
"Mom is getting late, and she didn't even tell me her name," i replied trying to remember the beauty I had seen at the gate, she was shinning so bright even as the night were drawing.
"Maybe is Chineye, She's fair in complexion abi?," Mama questioned me and I nodded. "Yes Mama, I think so," I subtly replied and went to take a seat on the bench in front of our house. My younger brother came out from behind me thru the entrance door leading to our parlour.
"What do you mean, you think so?," Mama questioned again but I remained quiet. And she continued saying, "She's very fair, yellow except she's not the one, but I remember I forgot these particular magazine at her mother's place, and me and her mother are no longer talking, the woman isn't serious," Mama ranted and I kept mute, wanting to forget the beauty I had seen at the gate but Chinedu wasn't helping as he pressed on the topic asking Mama," Which woman are you talking about, your customer?," And mama continued talking,
"No oo, that my friend that use to come here that is very fair," Mama explained and I pretended I wasn't interested even though a part of me fully was.
"We don't know her mama, maybe Esther does but what happened between you and the woman?," Chinedu asked as he came to sit beside me.
"Don't mind that woman, she doesn't want to send her daughter to school. Do you know that woman can speak very good english and yet she behaves like a local champion, the first day I heard her speak, I was taken aback," Mama told us and I looked up to meet her gaze while Chinedu burst down laughing, "Maybe you heard wrong mom," he told Mama.
"What do you mean I heard wrong, if you hear that woman speak good english you will think she's really a foreigner, like all those real Oyinbo white people we use to see on TV and I doubt she's truly from these our village," Mama stated.
"How Mama, but she speaks our language?," Chinedu asked.
"Yes, she does, but who knows if she learnt it during her stay here in these our village, like she behaves local but I don't think she is. I was advising her on training her daughter thru the university, but she shouted at me and send me away, telling me not to show my face in her house again."
Chinedu and I burst out laughing, "but Mom you shouldn't have gone to her to advise her na," I told Mama as I stood up.
"What do you mean?. That her daughter is very beautiful, I just don't want her beauty to waste in these village as she's to beautiful to be selling and hawking her mother's plantain," Mama said as she shook her head in pity.
"Mama that's their family problem, let's forget about them since the woman has already sent you away, it her business if she choose to train her daughter or not. By the way am very hungry Mom I hadn't eaten since noon I left the house."
"Come and eat me," Mama told Chinedu and I and we laughed. She angrily walked passed us and went into the parlour, opening the door and closing it behind her.
"What did I say wrong to mom now?," Chinedu asked me as he turned to face me.
"I don't know bro, but that's by the way. Are you going out?, This one you are already dressed, Ain't you seeing the time?," I asked him suspiciously.
"Humn yes, I just want to buy something it's not that late yet na, this just after 7pm, it not yet dark," Chinedu replied.
"Okay do quick and lock the gates when you return, am going back inside let me see what mom is about to cook," I told him as I turned and opened the door, entering back into our parlour.
Mama had already gone into the kitchen and the whole parlour was filled with the scent of the bitterleaf soup she was cooking. I decided to bring out my phone to check with some of my friends and my girlfriend in campus, Amanda Lawrence. I decided to call her first as I was already having mixed feeling of arousal after seeing that beauty's face, I needed a woman to talk too, so I can forget about her.
"Hellooo!," I spoked as soon as the call was picked.
"Hello?," A male voice replied and I stiffened, removing my phone from my ear to look at the phone number I had dialed to make sure I hadn't made a mistake and dialed any of my guys number and it was truly Amanda's, I held the phone back to my ear and questioned, "Is this not Amanda's number?."
"Yes, who are you?," The receiver questioned me.
"I should be the one asking you this question, what are you doing with her phone, is she not there with you, or did you probably stole it?," I questioned immediately, not wanting to think Amanda was cheating on me because I wasn't around in school hostel anymore.
"Well this her number, but she's not here with me now, as she forgot her phone, once she's back, I will ask her to give you a call," The receiver told me.
"So who are you? Are brother or colleague or ... boyfriend?," I questioned him and he laughed out.
"I see she saved your name as baby, no need to panic am her brother, senior brother."
"Oh!," I hummed, but before I could ask him any further question, he already hangup the call on me and I kept down my phone away from my ear to stare at the screen.
I still needed a distraction as Mama hadn't finished cooking and my sister wasn't even around, she was still in highschool rewriting her final year senior exams known as WAEC. She failed and had a repeat of the WAEC exam as Dad was very angry about her result. She had to go back to school to rewrite the exam and to also repeat her SSS3 class. My sister was quite smart but she didn't pass an important subject like English even though.she passed the rest, she had to repeat the whole class to restudy her English language as she was more of a native person and loves speaking our native language more than English, since we based in the village with Mom, while Dad was in the city, enjoying himself and using his business as an excuse.
The last time I went visiting him at his house in the city, he was mad at me, but I ignored him and stayed there as I was no longer a kid he could scold or control about. When we had previously vacated, I decided and went to his mansion in the city. it was a very beautiful and exquisite mansion, more beautiful than our house here in the village, quite bigger and a one storey building at that. I wondered first if Dad lived there alone in the big house or had tenant, but no, he hosted lots of girls, coming in and out every weekend. I did wanted to question him, but I wasn't brave enough then. I couldn't tell Mama either, even though I told her there was nothing she could do as she has never gone to the city for once, and had only based in the village every since their marriage.
I loathed father about that, but I couldn't confront him, I was gathering myself and enough courage too, and I will definitely confront him as we wouldn't continue to stay in the village, while his there living a wayward life that isn't expected of a responsible family man in the city.
The scent of the bitterleaf soup dragged my nostrils to stand up and i went to the kitchen to see if Mama was thru. I couldn't wait as there was nothing to distract my mind, I should rather feed my stomach and think of the delicious soup Mama has made.
I went into the kitchen and Mama was already thru, "Mom I can't wait, just serve mine like that," I told Mama and she took out a little plate to dish my soup, while cutting out from the moulded garri that she has made with hot water.
"How about Chinedu, is he there in the parlour?."
"No he went out, just put only our own, when his back, he will serve himself," i replied Mama and she frowned
"Went out by these time, you brother isn't serious always making me to talk too much, I had reported him to your father and yet he isn't saying or doing anything about him," Mama ranted.
"Oh oo . Mom just leave him, his no longer a kid."
"Really, so you both are now full grown adults. Just tell him that if he gets any girl pregnant, this house wouldn't contain us all, he will have to go and build a house for her or go and meet his father wherever he is in the city."
"Okay Mom," I nodded and took away my food, I was so hungry and Chinedu isn't my problem, Mama worries to much, more reason I can't tell her about Papa promiscuous lifestyle in the city.
I went to the dinning and placed my food, eating it all and licking the plates. It was quite a delicious soup and few minutes later Chinedu was back, he smiled at Mana and went to serve himself as Mama didn't even mind him or questioned him.
After I was thru I went back to my room to continue with my research online, browsing the internet.
I couldn't concentrate as thoughts and image of that beautiful girl i had seen at the gate kept reappearing in my mind, her beautiful round face, smooth cheeks and shining eyes.
"Oh!," I grunted as I stood up back.
"Why am I even thinking about her, I don't have any business or thing whatsoever to do with a village girl," i told myself.
Most village girls I had seen where to local, outdated and out of fashion. They dressed to local to my liking and are more igbotic and speaks a lot of our native language, even their intonation are filled with lots of our dialect which was Igbo language.
I sighed as I stood up, I prayed not to see that girl again as the little I saw of her, was really affecting my brain and mind from concentrating, and I don't like it.
I went to ease myself and came back to surf the internet, probably that way I would be able to distract my mind, but no I couldn't until I finally fell asleep on my bed.