The first time he saw her was on a very cold morning in December about 4 years ago in 2014 that was when he was 23 years old and in his final Bachelors' degree year.
He could vividly remember how she was visibly shaking due to the cold that her skimpy hijab failed to protect her from.
He could remember how he parked his mother's car just beside her lithe shivering form.
"How much do you sell this?" He asked, pertaining to the groundnut in her tray after winding his window down.
"It's 20naira per tin but I can sell it for you at 3 tins for 50 naira," she replied with a little smile. The girl seemed to be of just 12 years of age or so.
He smiled at her and asked of the whole tray. "Ahh it's very expensive fah and you can't even finish it all by yourself," she replied arranging the groundnuts on her tray properly.
"Tell me," he demanded in a very composed manner. "And what's your name? You look familiar." That was a blatant lie.
"For the whole tray, it'll cost you 640 naira. My name is Fatimah. I don't think you know me." She curtly replied casting her eyes down.
He handed her a One thousand Naira note and said "You can keep the change."
She packed the nuts in separate nylons and shook her head saying she would be right back with his change and he should just wait for her.
"Okay before you go. I want you to give this out to anyone you want to, sadaqa ne." He stopped her, handing her half the share he bought.
"May Allah reward you." She muttered before jogging off in search for change.
He stared at her retreating form through the mirror and sped-off wondering what exactly he was supposed to do with the remaining nuts, he just bought it all to put an end to the harsh weather whose brunt she was subjected to.
Ah Khadijah might love it. No, Ya Ayshah will, she loves it, she was pregnant. Both were his sisters, one his younger sister and the other his older sister. She was the oldest of four siblings.
Fatimah ran back to the place she kept her tray and found nothing like the blue car she saw earlier. Terrified, she went in search for the owner of the car.
"Na rasu!" She muttered to herself. "I can't believe this, I don't want to believe this." She repeated, frantically searching for the stranger.
She stayed behind for over 30minutes for the owner of the car to reappear before picking up her tray and walking off to the group of girls who were sitting by the corner.
She knew that if by chance she goes home with an empty tray already Uwale will not let her rest and will add twice the amount of groundnuts that she sold already. And her excuse would be "Yau kin fita da sa'a ne (You went out with luck on your side) so gwara mu dirje sa'ar (so it's better we take advantage of the luck)"
Fatimah shook her head at the thought and sat beside a girl with running nose who was selling pure water with a younger boy that seemed to be around 5years old and probably her brother.
Fatimah watched fascinated at the exchange of brotherly and sisterly lover between the two siblings.
She had always wished for a caring sibling but she had none.
Ummi waited until Dhuhr before she got up and walked home with Afiya, her only friend trailing behind.
"Uban me yasa kinka dade? (What the hell made you come late?)" A woman in clothes that could be compared to rags asked her as she put a hand on her waist while the other hand was drawn forward for Fatimah to keep the money she made today in her palms.
After doing so, the woman- Uwale counted everything and tsked. "Allah ne e so ki (Na God wey save you)"
What she means is that- two days ago Fatimah lost NGN200 from the money she got and was given the beat of her life, she couldn't stand straight for a day.
Fatimah clutched the NGN360 change that belongs to the man from earlier from within her wrapper and proceeded to take off her tattered slippers.
"What do you think you are doing? Just wait a minute until I refill your tray. You're taking Basira's errand from now onwards, you would be selling the mangoes for her. She's growing too thin for my liking. Zo ki tai (Come and leave)"
Basira is Uwale's only daughter and is older than Fatimah by a year.
Fatimah scoffed inwardly 'I have always been the one selling the mangoes afterall, the everyday excuse is Basira is 'thin sick or tired'
Fatimah nodded and collected the tray then sneakily jogged to Afiyah's house. It is the only place where she is allowed to pray in, take a bath, eat well, play and behave normally.
After half an hour she and Afiya took off to a place called Dandali where street hawkers situate themselves at and buyers come to get various fruits like sugarcane, mangoes, agbolumo, oranges, cashews, some girls fry awara (soya beans cake), kosai (Beans cake), sweet potato, yam etc, others groundnuts, pure water, maize and so on.
They sat at their usual area, greeting people here and there. Although Fatimah is a very shy girl Afiya is the opposite, she coaxes the former to interact with people so as to not be regarded as an outcast in the dandali.
Fatimah sat there thinking of how to get and pay the man from earlier his change.
***
Bashir sat with Ya Ayshah, Mama and Khadijah with the groundnuts between them, all three were eating while his mind was on the little girl.
How could her parents let her out in such a cold morning to sell groundnuts at such a tender age.
Don't they fear Allah? Don't they know that parents account for what they do to their children negatively/positively on the day of judgement.
What kind of people are they? He wondered.
________
The book isn't coming up until Irrevocable is done with Insha Allah.
I just had to share this with you guys.
NanaAmiinah💕.
