FROM TRO-TRO WITH LOVE (PART 2)

 

.........The mate jumped in, or rather squeezed in and somehow managed to roll the door shut. He gestured and shouted ‘Massa away’. Finally, we had set off on our morning trip. As l sat squished up between Ekuba and another passenger I could not help but day dream. I had known Ekuba for almost six months counting back to the first day we met at the station. We had immediately struck an acquaintance. I knew she worked as a sales personnel for an insurance company and lived with her parents, beyond that I knew little about her. I wonder why I never noticed how nice she smelled or how curvy she was. Being squeezed by a beautiful girl has its perks especially if it’s beside a beautiful girl. Come to think of it, I actually knew more than I realized. She had big beautiful brown eyes set in an oval face, she was tall and slender. She was quiet and polite but I suspected she had a sharp tongue because of a fracas she had with mate once.

I was jolted out of my reverie as the bus sputtered to a halt. What now! As much as I enjoyed my rides on the bus I just couldn’t get used to the constant breakdowns that seemed to be part and parcel of the package. Apparently, we had run low on fuel and to add insult to injury we had taken a short cut off the main road to avoid traffic, which meant all the buses plying that route were full. We all stumbled out of the bus amidst murmuring and sucking of teeth.
‘Driver ad3n’
‘One gallon! One gallon! Mo p3 saa’.
‘Enti anapa nso mu shortee’
The snide remarks continued till we realized the problem wasn’t getting solved by our rants. The driver apologized heavily and chastised the mate for not filling the tank the night before. This accusation did not sit too well with the mate who grumbled as he was handed the gallon to go get diesel from the nearest station. A few passengers who couldn’t stand waiting angrily trudged in the direction of the main road.

With this new development, I looked round to see if Ekuba had also decided not to wait. I saw her waiting patiently by the bus. I knew I had to get to work early but I just couldn’t let this opportunity pass by. I walked towards her and asked whether she wasn’t in a hurry to get to work. Apparently she wasn’t, ‘A fa’!
We started talking and i realized we had attended the same primary school and had at one point in time lived in the same area. What a small world. We shared a mutual love for soccer even though we were on opposing sides. While she supported Chelsea I was a diehard United fan. She was also a proud book worm who loved reading and hoped to publish her own book some day. I felt so at ease talking to her that I didn’t even realize when the mate returned with the fuel. He filled the tank and the driver started the engine.

As we boarded the bus I tried to assume my old position but the mate rudely shouted, ‘coat coat, empty seat dey for back; meaning I should move to the row at the back. I was in such a good mood so i wasn’t perturbed. It appeared that, he had seen me talking to Ekuba and had decided to thwart my plans; he managed to seat us apart but that was all he could do. Ekuba and I had exchanged numbers and had planned to watch the next FA cup fixture together. It looked like finally the fates had smiled on me. It was true that I was going to spend the valentine’s day alone but the future looked very bright.

By E.B.
qtalkgh@gmail.com