Kehinde could not rejoice about her own excellent performance. She was in a sympathetic mood with Taye. Taye wept for the better part of Wednesday night and ate only supper on Thursday. He remained indoors all through that week, shutting himself up in the room he shared with his younger brothers.
By Sunday, the tension in the house began to ease out but Taye still avoided his father. Since Wednesday evening when Taye came back with his result, his mother had been busy behind closed doors, pleading all night with her husband to give the lad another chance. Chief Oluwole told his wife that Taye would have to go back to his former school to repeat. When his mother communicated this to Taye, and later by his father, Taye found it a bitter pill to swallow, but he kept his thoughts to himself.
Taye resolved never to go back to Acada heights.
"Never, never, never, in this world. Upon my dead body", he said to himself when nobody was around to hear him. He knew his father very well that once the man had taken a decision, he never looked back. After pondering over his predicament for a whole week, Taye decided he was going to run away from home! Yes, he resolved emphatically. He was running away from home to start to live by all by himself. But the only problem he had now was where to go.
The night he arrived at the decision to bolt away from home, Taye wrote a lengthy letter to Bose who had returned to Kano according to information from Kehinde. In the letter Taye confided in Bose that he was going away from home to start his own life.
"After all, I am now above eighteen and as such, I am an adult", he declared. Taye continued in the letter that he had not told anybody in his family not even Kehinde, his twin sister, that he was running away from home. Taye ended his letter on the note that he would contact her again when he settled down wherever he finally landed. He however implored her never to let his sister or anybody whatsoever to know his address.
"I love you still; please, keep my secret. You will agree with me I can
never go back to repeat with my juniors. People will think I failed my papers; they will not know that I was only lucky not to make English and Maths", he concluded and signed off.
He went to town to post the letter and as he entered the General Post Office, he met Wollington, an old boy of Acada Heights. It was the guy who first saw Taye.
"Look you, Othello," Wollington shouted from the queue in the post office hall as Taye obtained the stamp from the official behind the counter and turned round to go.
"Hey you! Taye retorted. They hugged each other and exchanged
pleasantries. Taye waited outside while Wollington finished his own business at
the GPO. When he joined him, he invited Taye to see his car.
"Your car or you're kidding?" Taye said "It's mine and brand new", Wollington boasted. They soon got to a shinning red Honda prelude, Wollington went to the driver's side, opened the door and invited Taye to go round to the passenger seat. They got in and Wollington expertly reversed out of the parking
lot and drove in the direction of the Television House. As they hit the Independence Way, he turned right and they continued their conversation.
"How's your result?" Taye asked his friend.
"Result, better forget it. You know I'm not a book man, don't you? I know you made all the A's abi?" Wollington replied. "For where? WAEC finished my life, you won't believe. In Maths and English the bastards game me F9", Taye said with sadness.
"FO!" Wollington exclaimed, "No, not you Othello, you are pulling my legs. Maybe because you already heard I got F9 parallel or is that not what they call 9 in all the subjects. Is it true that wizard of a boy made A1 in all his subjects?"
"Anyway WASCE or no WASCE it matters less to me now", Wollington said hitting the steering wheel with a clenched fist. They were now nearing Ahmadu Bello stadium.
"What do you mean Wollington? "Taye asked, showing much interest.
"You won't understand", Wollington replied and immediately tried to change the topic by asking Taye where he was heading for and what next he was planning to do now after his first go at the West African Certification Examination. But Tave was very inquisitive and the conversation continued.
"What won't I understand? Do you take me for a dullard? Look, dear friend. I myself am through with reading. You know what my old man said? He made it compulsory for me to go back to Acada Heights to repeat..."
Wollington teased him and asked, "And when are you going back to Ekiti?"
"Look that's upon my dead body. Can you imagine I will ever subject myself to such humiliation and become a vivid example of a 'lazy boy' as the V.P used to say. Never! I°ll rather die than go back to Acada Heights to repeat", Taye lamented bitterly.
"If that is the case and you mean it, welcome into my world!" Wollington said, giving Taye a wink. He continued, "Let me take you straight away to see Doctor, and who knows your luck may shine".
The next Chief Oluwole and his family heard about Taye was on the network news on National Television. It was reported that one Taye Oluwole was caught at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos attempting to smuggle out of the country a substance suspected to be cocaine.