I met Ryan in Nigeria while he was still in the university. He was a tall and slim guy, but I loved him because of his jovial and inviting nature. In fact, everyone people loved to come around him because of it.
When I met him, I had just finished my secondary school and was seeking for admission in one of the universities here in Nigeria.
Ryan had this playful personality and I was really grateful to God for having him. At times when I was pissed, tensed or frustrated with him, he would still find a way to make me laugh. I loved this guy.
Ryan was multiracial; his dad was from Pennsylvania in the United States, while his mum was an Igbo woman; from Abia, one of the states in the south eastern part of my country. Whenever he explained to me how his parents met, I would smile and ponder over it for a while; though it sounded a bit hilarious, but I learnt a lot from hospitality, and how doors could open for someone through it.
Several years ago, Mr. Thomas, his dad had come to Nigeria for a contract; he was an engineer and his company had been awarded a contract by the federal government here in Nigeria. It was for a multimillion road construction project, somewhere in Lagos.
This was when he (Mr. Thomas) met his soul mate.
According to Ryan; One evening, Mr. Thomas had decided to take a walk around the guest house where he they were being hosted. The open compound was only surrounded by trees which were trimmed occasionally to beautify the environment. No perimeter walls or barricades to define the compound. So, one could literally stroll out of the compound and into areas with denser vegetations.
He came across a mango tree and noticed someone on it. It was a young lady who seemed so engrossed in the fruits which she was trying so hard to pluck with a stout heavy stick.
He stood and watched in amazement as she craft-fully manoeuvred her way around the tree. For a lady to do such; it was a thing of wonder to him. In amazement, he kept moving closer and closer to see. He didn’t know when she threw down some fruits and one of them landed directly on his bald head. Yes, since the day I knew him, he always loved to walk around with his bald head. Mr. Thomas never kept the hair on his head.
“Argh!” He exclaimed and tried to maintain composure; he slid his hands into his pockets and acted like nothing happened. The woman stopped for a moment and turned to see who it was. When she saw how close the white man stood to the tree, she understood what she had done, and she came down immediately.
“I’m sorry sir, I didn’t mean to….”
“No it’s fine, I’m okay”
“You’re not okay sir, your head is swollen” she said pointing to the spot where the mango had landed on. Indeed, it was swollen, and the skin color around that area had changed to red since he was a white.
He rubbed it without knowing what to say.
He tried to force a smile but it wasn’t forth coming. Suddenly, tears started dripping from his both eyes; his bright face turned pale and almost red. She rushed into her little house which was a bit concealed behind some trees; somewhere close to the dense forest.
That wasn’t what marvelled him or made him attracted to her.
It was the fact that she came out with hot water and a rag and offered to help me massage the area; which he accepted. And then she gave him the whole basket of mangoes before he left.
When the contract was finished, he left the country with her.
After they had Ryan and he was grown, it was her choice for Ryan to study in Nigeria, because it was so much safe as at then, and she wanted him to learn a bit, on the way of life here. That’s why he came, and we coincidentally met.
So, throughout my first month of knowing Ryan, he would always tell and re-tell the story to me. I would only smile and listen attentively like I’d never heard it before. I always wanted to hear him speak about it. To me, it was a sweet one to listen to.
——————————————————————-
My phone beeped. It was a reminder about the next day.
“Dear Linda, are you read? It’s Val’s Day tomorrow”
I smiled; I always looked forward to celebrating it with Ryan. Though he had left Nigeria early last year to be with his parents in the U.S, we still had this connection and bond between us.
We usually video called, texted, Voice called, and did all things which a couple would do. I turned to look at the wall clock. It was 8pm.
Ryan hadn’t messaged me yet. I concluded that he must have been busy with work. He had fully ventured into freelancing and rarely had my time these days.
Soon a message came to me from his end; “Linda my honey pie…..na tomorrow ooo”
On seeing this I blushed and then laughed out…he was still who he was…and I loved it that way.
———————————————————————
(Valentine’s Day)
That morning I woke up with a smile on my face. Every yearly val came with different surprises from Ryan and I couldn’t wait to see what this one had in store for me.
My phone was charged fully to 100% Incase he would opt for a video call, or voice call or any other thing relating to them.
I left my internet connection on and knelt to say my prayers.
After prayers, I went to get myself something to eat from the kitchen, then I brushed my teeth and had my bath.
It was 9 am when I finished everything I was doing and waited for Ryan to text me. I scrolled endlessly through my chats and viewed people’s ‘Status Uploads’. Many girls had started posting the Valentine gifts they had received from their boyfriends. Others posted themselves, hanging out with their boyfriends, maybe at a beach or in a club.
I viewed one of my friends WhatsApp status; her name was Jessica. She had already sent a link to her live video at a pool party where she was, with her lover. I clicked on it, and it redirected me to the instagram app. I watched her as she danced happily.
“Bby girl it’s just Valentine’s o, don’t use joy and kill yourself o…we only live once”
“Durrrrr she replied and added a laughing emoji”
“Girls will always be girls” I muttered to myself and then laughed because I was one of them too.
“Big fish” a WhatsApp message popped up on my phone. The contact wasn’t registered in my phone; it was a new one. It started with the usual Nigerian code of +234, and so I died every thought that it could be my lover, since he was already using a foreign number.
Though confused, I quickly replied to the message because I was feeling bored.
“Who the heck are you?”
To me, it didn’t matter who the person was. Greeting and first introducing oneself in a first-time chat was a more civilised way of meeting someone online, than just barging in with “big fish”
“A bigger Fish” the person replied me. I smiled. I was still trying to understand why someone would all of a sudden want to frustrate me on such a special day. I went through the chat again and laughed.
“Big fish”
“Who the heck are you?”
“A bigger Fish”
The worst part was that I didn’t even know if it was a boy or a girl.
“Please are you ok? And who are you please?” I asked..in a polite way though feeling irritated.
“Many Fishes in the sea, but na only you wey I want.” The stranger replied
“I will block you o!” I threatened
“What nonsense” I shouted to myself.
“I don’t even know you, we have never met, you don’t even know me, and all of a sudden I’m the fish in the sea that you want” I texted.
I tried to recall if I had any friend who just purposely planned to annoy me on such a special day. I couldn’t think of any. All my female friends had their boyfriends and wouldn’t even have time for such. All my male friends, were probably busy, having the time of their lives with their girlfriends. I tried to recall if I’d given any stranger my phone number unconsciously, but I couldn’t think of any.
I looked at the wall clock; it was noon already and he hadn’t messaged me yet. I ignored the stranger who was trying to frustrate me some minutes ago and tried ringing Ryan. The call went through, but he didn’t pick.
Anyways, I would still wait for him till whenever he would come online.
I found myself going back to the strange chat with the bigger fish.
“Please I won’t respond to you again if you don’t tell me who you are and how you got my contact” I texted.
The person dropped a smiling emoji and then replied…
“I am Mr Champion.”
“Ok, Mr Champion how did you get my contact??”
“I got your contact from that lady that sells bread and akara close to your house, are you not her younger sister, Adaku?
“Ha!” I exclaimed in surprise. I dropped the phone on the couch and started laughing.
First of…Adaku wasn’t my name.
Second of all…There wasn’t any Bread and Akara seller who sold such, close to my house nor was I related to any of them.
“You’re wrong Mr Champion, sorry this is a wrong number” I said confidently; feeling relieved that the stranger was mistaken after all.
“Well, my dear I believe that everything happens for the best, and that every disappointment is a blessing. Whether it’s a wrong number or not, who knows, if I might have met my soulmate and that we might be destined to be together”
“Excuse me, Mr. Champion or whatever you call yourself, please stop it.”
I stopped typing; I didn’t know what else to add to it. I was becoming frustrated and uneasy.
Mr. Champion wouldn’t relent either; he continued with whatever means he was using to gain my attention.
“Is your name Google because you have everything I’m searching for” he continued, few minutes later
“Ha! Wonders shall never end oh, what is wrong with this man o bikonu!!!” I shouted in surprise.
Did he just try to use a pick-up line on me?
“Wait o! Does this man think that I’m as cheap as other girls out there??!”
I picked up my phone and replied him.
“Google kill you there!”
I began to wonder why Nigerian men underrated girls so much.
He replied with a smiling emoji and yet dropped another banger.
“When I look into your eyes all I see is your waist”
Only then did I know that he had a problem upstairs.
But I was frustrated already, I flung my phone angrily on the sofa where I was sitting; I could do things even funnier than that whenever I was getting pissed.
I was frustrated that Ryan hadn’t called up till that moment. I picked up my phone to block Mr. Champion. It had been a total waste of time; chatting with him.
Then my phone rang. It was a video call. Finally, Ryan had called, or I thought he did.
But no, it was Mr. Champion calling, he was opting for a video call. I declined the call
“It can’t be me” I said.
I looked at the wall clock, it was already 3pm and Ryan was yet to message me. I left my phone on the sofa and stood up; feeling uneasy. I started pacing round the room. I didn’t just want anything to spoil my day just like Mr. Champion had already started doing.
I kept hissing and hissing; my anger started building up. I didn’t know what precisely I was feeling uneasy about. Maybe Ryan, or Mr. Champion, or thé extrême hot weather or that I was unnecessarily being frustrated.
Soon, the Stranger called again…I regretted why I hadn’t blocked him since after declining the first call. I don’t know how it happened, but I decided to pick up the call and see who this person was.
With a straight face I pointed the camera to my face; and then tapped on the green icon. The call seemed to be connecting for few seconds and then soon, I could see the so called Mr. Champion. It was Ryan my lover.
———————————————————————-
“Ryan if I catch you ehnnn! I will hang you to death” I shouted in excitement and big relief.
“Big fish” he said, in an amusing manner
“Bigger Fish” I replied, and we both laughed.
“How did you get the Nigerian number?” I asked.
“Well I bought it and took it along with me while travelling last year”
“Really?”
“Yes, I’ve been keeping it for this special day, baby girl” he said
“Don’t baby me anything” you’re just so annoying”
I said feeling a bit pained.
“My love…na just prank o abeg” he pleaded.
“You must sing for me before I forgive you” I said.
I knew he had a rough crooked voice; Ryan was very bad at singing, and so whenever he tried singing for me, I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Alright I’ll sing ‘Make you feel my love’ by Adele” he said. I only nodded and prepared myself for another round of laughter.
And then he sang, with the same crooked voice which he had, ever since I knew him.