Sing Of A Tree In The Wild

The Birthday Party

12:09

The party is almost underway. The guests are beginning to arrive in their droves. And by 'guests', you should know I'm referring to my schoolmates. I'm currently donning a red hoodie, a snapback and a pair of jeans. It's not exactly the best look, yes. However, as long as I don't look like a doofus, I'm okay with what I wear. Fashion is too much stress for me.

I sink to my bed, plug in my headset as I listen to J.Cole's 2014 Forest Hills Drive. Having listened to the first four songs, I unplug it and head down the stairs.
It's already filled with my schoolmates and other guests.

Time to dig into the vibe.

After dancing to hip-hop hits for about thirty minutes, I begin to feel thirsty. I move towards the fridge, where I grab a Sprite. Along the way, I greet some of my friends. Heading to the couch to take a breather, I bump into Kofo. I know some of you are already wondering who Kofo is. I'll tell you. Kofo is my evil ex-girlfriend who keeps on tormenting me with her new guy, Tooni. I'm over her and all, but seeing her happy with someone else irks me, I don't know why.

"Dennis! What's up!" She begins, her arm wrapped around Tooni's.

"Hi Kofo. I'm glad you could make it. And hey, Tooni." I say, quickly extending my hands towards Tooni for a handshake. He buys in, all good. Now she's smiling. Urghh.

"I wouldn't miss Amarachi's birthday for anything in the world. I'll catch you later, though."

"Alright then, sure." I say as the 'power couple' walk past me. But the barrage hasn't ended. I see Isaac walking towards me, wearing a black shirt over a pair of jeans. My first challenge of the day is about to commence.

"Dennis! It's me, Isaac. Let's hit the consoles; I'm here to kill you."

Really, Isaac. Really. Your hubris is going to lead to your hamartia today.

"Kill me?" I ask. "I thought you were coming here to die." He sneers at me and heads up the stairs: his burial ground. Things are about to get bloody.

In team selection, I choose FC Barcelona, the club I support, while he chooses Bayern Munich. All is set for the 'big game'.

****
It's halftime, and he's leading me by three goals to one. The painful thing is that I scored first; a Neymar goal. To fuel my annoyance, he takes a photo of the half-time screen and uploads it to the set boys' group chat. Why are some people so impatient?

"What did I tell you, Dennis? Huh?"

That is the hubris I predicted.

Ultimately, the game ends in a 3-all draw. This is really annoying because I had two CLEAR penalties denied, plus, my possession was overwhelming. Trust me, this isn't the end. After turning off my PlayStation 4, I and Isaac head outside to help ourselves to some of the grilling barbecue. Even from where I stand, I can sight 'her'. Not Kofo. 'Her'.

She's sitting alone on her balcony across the street, doing what she always does: writing. Apparently, what she knows how to do best. You see, 'she' has no real friends and 'she' practically talks to no one. No social life whatsoever. It turns out her only friends are her pen and her notebook.

This is the girl Ehis wants me to make a pass at.

And I have no choice.

I already dared him to kick it with Hadiza. To my utmost surprise, he succeeded. The bet was that, if he succeeded, I'd have to go through with mine; if any of us failed, we'd have to part with Two Thousand Naira. And if we both failed......well, clearly, he has succeeded. Trying to temporarily forget about my Herculean task, I munch on my barbecue.