Music Blared From the loudspeakers in the small rectangular hall. The arena thronged with people dancing, chatting, drinking and laughing. Clint and Iyke sat on the bar stool before the counter of the makeshift bar, chatting and laughing. Clint fiddled with the tale of his champagne glass placed on the counter, his back to the entrance of the hall, while Iyke laced his hand on his champagne glass, partly facing Clint, laughing with ease.
A couple approached them, interrupting their chat.
"Hey Iyke! What's up Bro?"
"Boss. Xup?" Iyke shook hands and rubbed shoulders with the man and hugged the lady in a greeting gesture.
"All is good, man. No need asking how you're doing, I can see Anna's doing a fine job. You look all greasy," he complimented Iyke.
"Hey, Ken. Xup! It's been a while." The new guy exchanged handshakes with a tall, brown guy with large eyeballs who just joined their party.
"I'm great, Obi. It's been a while too."
"Guys, meet my girl, Rose. Rose, this is Iyke, Clint and Ken." Obi introduced the trio to the lady he walked in with.
Clint stretched his hands towards the lady, "You look gorgeous. It's nice meeting you."
"Thanks. Same here" She replied.
"I can see the one doing the job with you here," Clint complemented. They laughed at his humour.
The couple made their way towards a small group of ladies sitting round a table. In their midst sat a slim model with long synthetic hair. She wore a long pink gown with a slit that stopped at the upper end of her thigh; her beautiful oval face glistened in the light as a result of her makeup. She smiled here and there, as she discussed with the ladies sitting around her. A crown decorated with shiny stones rested graciously on her head.
The guys relapsed on their seats and resumed their conversation, before something called Iyke's attention. A chubby curvy lady trailed behind a taller slim and curvy lady. Dressed in body-fitting mini gowns, their curvy nature laid bare. They walked elegantly through the packed arena, shoving through the crowd.
Iyke called Clint's attention, "Hey, you need to see this."
Clint turned, following the direction of his gaze.
"Are they not those girls from the lounge the other day?"
"You are right."
They watched as they manoeuvred the crowd and walked towards Anna. They greeted, hugged, and pecked her before taking their seats.
Chidi Walked Towards the celebrant with open arms. "Happy birthday, baby gurl!" She sang with a smile on her face.
"Thank you, darling!" Anna answered with smiles, amid a hug.
Chidi took her time to hug and greet all the girls at the table. Tina hugged Anna and waved at the others.
"Hello, Tina. How are you doing? It's been a while now!" A plump girl in a red gown asked.
Tina smiled and nodded in response.
"Hey, Tina, come over here!" Chidi called half way across the table to Tina who stood watching her do her greeting round.
"Pardon my manners, Anna, meet my friend, Tina!" Chidi raised her voice over the loud music blaring from the speakers.
"Girls, Tina!" She held Tina. "Tina, meet my friends!"
She waved at them, as they chorused "hello". They took empty seats at the table with the girls.
As the party advanced, Anna attended to a couple, with a guy who Tina learnt to be her man. He was touted to be a big time drink distributor. Chidi danced with a random guy, leaving Tina at the table with two girls who busied themselves with the life of other guests, discussing anyone that caught their attention. She stood up with her properties and moved to the bar.
Tina unlocked her phone and scribbled something on it for the bartender, after occupying an empty bar stool. The bartender got a bottle of red wine and a glass; he placed it before her and poured some contents of the bottle in the glass for her.
She took a sip from the drink and turned on her phone. Just then, she felt someone approach her position and stopped by her left.
"Gorgeous is an adjective, but, I won't mind rewriting my dictionary 'cos of you."
Tina swallowed hard on hearing the husky voice.
She wanted to be on her own. She didn't need any of those flirts around her at the moment. She was just not ready for anyone. She silently wished he would leave.
He dropped his whisky glass on the counter, bent over and rested his elbows on it. Tina looked up at the direction of the voice and waved at him. He stood straight again, "I'm Clint, you?" he said, extending his hands for a shake.
Tina shook hands with him and retracted them almost immediately, given him no luxury of feeling her soft palms, like he may have intended. She wrote on her phone and showed him.
"Mind if I get high on you tonight, Tina?" Clint asked her.
"I hate addicts," She responded silently.
He took a seat beside her. "Do you like it here?"
She nodded in response, while on her phone still.
"Hey Tina, how about you put down your phone, let's talk." He paused, "fine, at least, reply to me," he persuaded her.
Tina took a sip of her drink and took a look at the guy sitting next to her again. She said no word.
"I guess my presence isn't needed here," Clint said, obviously annoyed. He stood and left with his glass.
Tina shrugged in relieve.
The music volume went low. A guy rang a makeshift bell of glass with a spoon. Iyke mounted a raised platform at one end of the hall with Anna behind a cake. A lady who Tina identified from the group earlier started a speech.
The Doorbell Rang consistently, interrupting Clint's nap. Pissed, he grumbled and swore at the unmannered lunatic ringing his doorbell. He pulled the pillow over his ears, but it had little effect on the sharp annoying sound of the doorbell.
Convinced his constant tossing and cursing would neither stop nor silence the doorbell, it wouldn't even make the ringer disappear, he dragged himself lazily out of bed. Thankfully, it looked like the blacksmith in his head and his sister tenant in his heart were tired. The bangs and the pounding he witnessed earlier had reduced drastically.
With his white shorts sagged, and the white singlet he wore hanging just on his waist; he exposed a good part of his boxer shorts. He wobbled through the room, hallway, sitting room and finally the veranda yawning and rubbing his eyes.
"Who is there?" He yawned. His voice croaked; his mouth bitter, courtesy of last night.
"Oga, open door joor!"
He let out a long sigh and unlocked the bolts. The person at the other end tried to open it, but it was still locked. He let off a deep breath out of frustration and re-entered the sitting room. "I'm coming," he croaked.
He scanned the room hesitantly beginning from the rectangular glass table at the centre of the room. His eyes fell over a bunch of metals on one of the settee that decorated the room. He went for it and walked back to the veranda.
Click, click, pieces of metals clanged against each other. He turned the handle of the metal barrier half way down and pulled it towards himself before stepping out of its way.
"Did you die?" A feminine voice said. He didn't need to look at her; he already knew who it was.
"Yo, Nigga! You look cute," his visitor said in a half-baked American accent, as he exchanged a handshake with him.
Anna looked like she would puke.
"You owe your bathroom a visit," she remarked with a sour face and made her way into the sitting room after Iyke.
"Hey, yo!" Ken jammed hands with him, "Xup, Nigga!" Ken sounded more real than Iyke.
"Cool, man," he croaked again, brushing shoulders with Ken in a bro hug.
"You don't look like cool people," Sharon remarked, giving him a peck.
He bolted the door and followed them into the plush sitting room, crashing beside Iyke.
"Is Lucy still around?" Anna asked.
"She left already," Clint replied, his voice still croaking.
"You know you could pass as a demon slayer right now," Sharon said.
"A demon rather," Anna chirped in.
They went on a round of laughter, except for Clint who didn't find it funny.
"Haha! Very funny," He deadpanned with his deep croaky voice.
"Ain't you going with us?" Sharon asked.
"To where?" he asked.
"Well, my birthday hasn't ended. I'm sticking to every detail of the plan," Anna chipped in conclusively.
"Can you go without me?" He said, looking at them for an answer.
"No dear." Anna replied.
"Fine, I will gather some strength before then."
"Before when?" Iyke, Anna, and Sharon sang in unison.
Ken laughed at the chorus. "Easy, guys!"
"What's the time?" Clint asked.
"It's some freaking minutes to five!" Anna rolled her eyes.
"Go get ready, Bro," Iyke intervened.
Clint left the living room for his bedroom and emerged minutes later in a blue jean and white hoodie. He left with Iyke in his Toyota Highlander, while Ken drove with Sharon.
Anna Sat Beside Iyke at the front, while he sat lazily at the back. The sound of C'kays album filled the car. He tried to remember the album's title but it eluded him. He gave up. Left for him, he wanted to ride in total silence. He was not in for music this evening.
"Ahswear. That your Lucy friend was high on something last night," Clint started a conversation.
"She likes it rough," Anna replied, uninterested.
"Little wonder you looked like a demon. She took you to hell," Iyke smirked. He watched Clint from the centre mirror.
"Mehn!" Clint said, his face lit up on recounting his sexcapade with Anna's friend, Lucy.
"She's coming tonight; who knows? You could be lucky with another round. You are meant for each other," Anna lowered the car seat.
"No way! Not today," Clint chipped in quickly. The couple laughed at his expense.
Clint stretched out himself, still fatigued.
"Yo, man! What's with that curvy babe?" Iyke asked. He gave Anna a funny look, a smirk on his face. Anna rolled her eyes in disapproval.
"Rude. Wouldn't talk," Clint replied.
"'Rude' would have been great. Unfortunately, that's not the case." Anna chipped in.
"Because she's dumb or what?" Clint replied sarcastically.
"I'm being serious, Clint," she turned to face him; "maybe you were the rude one."
Guilt tripped, Clint went silent for a moment.
"Are you okay?" Iyke asked. "What happened?"
"I am," Clint replied, "I never knew. Besides, I was tipsy at the moment. She actually tried to communicate, you know."
"Being a dickhead as usual," Anna chided.
"What's that adjective you use on him again?" Iyke asked with a smirk.
"Arrogant!" Anna said carelessly.
Iyke's chin blew as a result of caged laughter.
"I will soon leave this car for you two," Clint deadpanned.
They arrived at the Cinema. Iyke found an unoccupied rectangular mark on the tarred surface of the Cinema's car park. Few seconds later, they were all out and ready.