HELLO JORDAN

BOSTON

An interrogation light flickers above a boy sitting in the middle a dark room and wearing a uniform. His head is bowed and his arms lay on the table before him. Opposite him, is an older, nerdy looking man. He's dark with a crew cut and a neatly trimmed beard.

"Hello Jordan" the man says softly.

"Who the hell are you?" Jordan responds, slowly lifting his head.

"I'm Brad. I'm a doctor. I'm here to examine you."

"I'm not sick" Jordan whispers as his head falls back down.

"Soon enough, you would change your mind" Brad replies pulling out a journal from the satchel hung on his chair.

There's an awkward silence, Jordan's head still bowed and Brad staring at him. Suddenly Brad breaks the silence.

"Look, I'm the only friend you got here. Everyone else thinks you should be dead. But I don't. At least, not yet."

Brad waits for a response that he doesn't get then speaks again as he rests his chin on his hands clenched in a raised position.

"So, you're going to tell me all about the murders you committed."

"I'd rather stick my tongue on cactus" Jordan scoffs.

"Jordan!" Brad yells aggressively. "I was sent here to talk to you and find out if you're crazy! And if I can prove that, you'd remain here in this asylum, alive. But if I can't, you will be prosecuted! Firing squad! And the only way I can save you is if you talk to me!"

Jordan slowly raises his head to meet Brad's eyes but still doesn't say anything. Brad, seeing he has Jordan's attention, calms down and talks softly.

"Trust me, I'm here to help you. You're too young to die."

They both stay silent, staring at each other. Jordan opens his mouth to speak but closes it back. His eyes shut as he takes a deep breath and as they open, his mouth does too.

"I killed Boston. I had no choice. I did it to stop my grief."

"What grief?"

[ JULY 10th 2016 - 3:00PM ]

Students squeezed their way through a tight door, out of the lecture hall as Jordan sat back, watching them act like wild animals. He was also on a stakeout for Pelumi, his only friend from that class. He had not seen her throughout the lecture which made him worried cause they had unfinished business. He had asked her for a thirty thousand Naira loan the previous day and she was supposed to deliver cash to him.

The class was almost empty when he saw her standing by a corner, obviously waiting for him. He quickly rushed up to her and as she saw him, she pulled out a plastic bag from her hand bag.

"Here. Thirty K." She said, handing the bag to Jordan who quickly pulled out the money to count it.

"Yup. Thirty. Thank you Pelumi"

"No wahala. As long as you return it when due. Cause I already budgeted it for something."

"Sure. My dad should be back by next week"

*****
Jordan walked into his Lodge, he pulled out two thousand Naira from the bundle of money and dropped the rest in his bedside drawer. As he took off his clothes, he thought about his father and how he watched him die. His mind wandered off to his stay at the orphanage and the day he got adopted into his new family.
"Why adopt a child you don't love?" He mumbled as he fell on his bed.
Gradually, his eyes closed only to flip open to a banging sound on the door. He pulled his phone from underneath his pillow to check the time.
"Who bangs on someone's door by nine in the night?" He groaned as he walked up to the door but before he could open up, the door flipped open.