Something Unusual

SEVEN

JARED AKINBADE

Mr. Luke was in Herald High's parking lot by 3pm sharp that afternoon, as promised.

The man's promptness didn't surprise Jared; he knew Mr. Luke would always be on time. He was Mr. Akinbade's driver, after all.

Frankly, Jared was okay with it. His classes had ended long before the short break. He had five classes in total and was ready to get going.

"Good afternoon, young sir" Mr. Luke said, greeting Jared as he approached.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Luke" Jared greeted back on getting to the car. He opened the car door and hopped into the back seat.

"How was your day today?" Mr. Luke asked just as Jared brought out his headphones.

Jared didn't need to think much about it to answer the question.

After the whole Becky incident, Jared had stayed in the garden, sitting on the bench where she had left him. Since he had left his trusty companion -his headphones- in his backpack in class, Jared had decided to listen to nature instead. Birds had been whistling like it was the best day ever.

'Touch grass', wasn't that what the adults kept saying?

Well, Becky might as well have slammed Jared's face 2ft deep into the earth with the breakfast she served him earlier this afternoon.

"Today was Monday", Jared joked, deciding not to trauma-dump on the man. "What about you, Mr. Luke? How is your day going? And how is Tosin?".

Mr. Luke carefully reversed the Lexus out of the busy parking lot and drove out of Herald High's impressive campus. "It's Monday," he said finally.

Both men laughed before Mr. Luke continued, "Tosin is fine. That girl- today was supposed to be her first day of SS1. But she's a big girl now, so she cannot resume on the first day."

Jared did not miss the knowing smile on the driver's face before the man shook his head.

Wasn't late resumption Jared's legacy before this day? If not for Mr. Akinbade, Jared wouldn't have thought of school until attendance counted. And judging from today's events, he concluded that resuming on the first day wasn't worth it.

Masquerade trees forming a kind of second fence in front of actual fences whizzed past them as Mr. Akinbade drove down Herald street- yes, Herald High had the street named after it. In a matter of minutes, the car was on the main road, and Jared's view switched from tall trees to highways and vehicles.

Jared hadn't been sitting in the garden for long that afternoon when Eze, his closest friend, found him.

"So this is where you are?" Jared's light-skinned friend asked, approaching him. Jared didn't responded and Eze made himself comfortable on the bench across from him. "Did you find her?"

"Yeah" He answered in a rather stoic tone. For some reason, Eze had broken out a smile.

"Why do you look like you've been punched in the face?. The darker toned boy eyed him warily.

"Did she break up with you?" Eze continued to ask.

"No" Jared said begrudgingly, but it all seemed like comedy gold to his friend, who burst out laughing.

"Sounds like denial to me"

"Man, shut up!" And that was all it took to get Eze folding backward with laughter. "Haha" Jared said sardonically.

Eze had a good laugh, attracting curious glances from the junior girls that had been walking past, much to Jared's annoyance.

"Ha ahn..." Eze said, recovering from his laughing fit "But why?"