Scarred For Life

Chapter 33

*

The nightmare was finally over.

Afrah had done it.

Through all the pain and anguish, she had emerged victorious. It had taken years, and had nearly cost her her sanity, but it was finally over.

That day, as she parked in front of the gates of Bayero University Kano with the knowledge that she was done with it all and her final year project was turned in successfully, her joy knew no bounds.

The years had gone by in a blur, and yet she could still remember the first day she had come here, giddy with excitement and itching for a chance to prove herself to the world. Now, it was all in the past.

For some strange reason, that same giddiness she had felt was coursing through her veins even now, the prospect of a beautiful future lying just within her grasp. She might not have the best story to tell about her past, but the future was without a smudge of dirt, untainted like the fresh pages of a new book.

For the fun of it, she decided to take one last drive through the school. She would miss this place, with all the good and bad memories. She circled through the ring road, pausing in front of the female hostel to stare at the buzz of activity all around. No one paid any attention to her, except for a few men walking past who paused to ogle at her car. She drove on, silent except for the low humming of the car.

She paused again in front of her department, in her mind's eye seeing the younger Afrah walking up to the building for the first time. She was afraid, as anyone could have seen clearly. This was the first time that she would be away from home. It was on that same day that Maryam had spoken to her. It was nothing more than a simple question.

'Are you new here?'

As if that wasn't so obvious.

Their friendship hadn't taken off immediately that day. Truth be told, Maryam had thought her a bit stuck-up, while Afrah thought she was too loud and raucous. In an ideal setting, neither of them would be able to stand the other, on either end of the social spectrum. And yet somehow, against all odds, they had grown to become as close as sisters. Perhaps even closer, since Maryam knew Afrah probably better than Amina ever could.

Afrah smiled at the fond memories. She wished Maryam was here now, so they could reminisce about the good old days.

She drove on however, pausing briefly in front of the Biochemistry department to watch people going about their activities. She felt like an outsider, stealing a peek into other people's lives without them ever noticing. But she didn't try to stop.

The same way tourists would visit an attraction whenever they came to town, Afrah would always seek out the busiest part of the town and simply admire the concentrated flow of unique human activities, each one different from the last.

The world knew of bird watchers, but no one had ever heard of a 'people watcher'.

There was a sense of finality when she finally drove out of the gates, allowing the message to sink in. She was done with this part of her life. Now, it was onto the next.

Her phone rang then, and she briefly glanced at it to see it was Adnan. For the past week, he had made it a habit to call her everyday, knowing if fully well that she would ignore it. It was almost like a little game to her, wondering when he would call everyday.

The memory of their last meeting was still fresh in her mind, and she most likely wouldn't forget it in a hurry. What she had seen that day reminded her that no matter how different he was from his father, there would always be some semblance between the two. It wasn't fair on him, but unless he could change the man who gave birth to him, there was nothing either of them could do.