How I turned from the ‘Dirty Diana’ in the real word to a very popular student in less than three weeks was a huge surprise to me, the more my popularity grew, the more the thick wall of enemity between Amanda and I grew.
It was on a sunday morning, as we all prepared to go to church, dress in our plain white gown and white shawl tied round our heads and our bed dressed in white bedsheets, the usual early morning rush as we all struggle to get a spot in the wide bathroom, the bell that signifies we had only five minutes was rang and we all hurriedly wore our clothes, those who either not prepared or are not willing to go church would sneak under their bunks to hide from the boarding house mistress who normally walks round to make sure nobody was left behind in the hostel, and anybody caught would not only be disgraced, denied the sunday rice and stew with our nut sized meat but would was toilet for one week or would wash plates in the school kitchen for one week, I had just dashed out of the hostel as we all heard the voice of our hostel mistress screaming
“Time up! Time up! Leave the hostel before the count of ten”
All the student in the hostel began to run helter skelter out of the hostel, struggling to pass through the door at the same time, I had just passed the door when I remembered my locker was left open in a hurry and my bible was also on my bed, if I leave the locker open and go to church, those naughty student who are left behind in the hostel might steal my beverages, if I go to church without my bible, I would be made to stand up all through the service for that was the punishment melted out to defaulters, I had no other option than to struggle my way through back into the hostel to get my locker locked and quickly carry my bible along with me to the church.
By the time I struggled my way through the crowd and got into the hostel, I ran quickly to my locker and discovered that my beverages were missing, someone had banked on my carelessness and stole my beverages, I was left dumbfounded, I looked round to see if I could notice any funny movement from any of the students but the hostel was empty by the time I looked round, only person standing in my front was our boarding house mistress, I turned immediately and locked my locker, carried my bible and tried to hide the tears that was cascading down my chin, she flashed a straight face at me and said
“Why are you crying?”
I tried so hard to fight crying out loud but the moment I opened my mouth to talk I burst into a loud cry
“Ma someone stole my provision…”
She shook her head in pity and said
“It must be out of your own nonchalant attitude, when your mates are back from church I’ll ask to see if there was any good samaritan that saw the thief”
I walked slowly thinking what would be of me till the next visiting day when my parents would visit me, I was at the door about to leave when the boarding house mistress call me back
“Diana! Oya go round and look under these bunks to see if you would catch those people who have decided to be defaulters for this new week” she said
I turned back, starting from the door I began to look under each bunks one after the other while she stood akimbo at the middle of the large hostel, I walked down the hostel without seeing any defaulter until I got to the last bunk at the end of the hostel, I bent down only for my eyes to meet that of Amanda, she stared at me in total submission, as she was scared to her bones as she la!d there helpless with her faith lying solely in my own hands, I raised my head up and said
“Ma nobody is here”
She was surprised as she looked up and said
“Thank God these students are now changing oh!”
I walked out of the hostel with my bible clinged to my hand, all through the church service my mind was troubled, I could not concentrate I was worried, my mind was trying to think of a way out of the eminent doom that would befall me for one month before my parents visit me again, when the church service was over and we went back to the hostel, I climbed my bunk and la!d my head on my pillow, crying for that was all I could do as I dozed off, I felt a hand on my shoulder as the person shook me until I wokeup, I raised my head up and opened my eyes as the blur vision became clear and it was Amanda that stood in all her might before me
“What can I do for you” I asked
She looked at me with a very saddened face and asked
“You had every opportunity to tell our boarding house mistress that I was under the bunk why didn’t you do it?
TO BE CONTINUED
