WOUNDED Episode 18 By RUTHIE LEE
“Wait, I thought you said you’re both just going to stay friends.” Kingsley stated dropping his spoon.
“We were… But changed our minds.” Samuel replied.
“Stop replying him” I rolled my eyes at Samuel.
“I’m just asking questions here cause I’m confused, one minute Sammy said you’re both staying friends, the next minute I’m hearing Cynthia friends talk about you two dating.” Kingsley scoffed.
“You’re being an annoying interrogator without knowing it.” I stated.
My phone starts to ring and I shunned Kingsley who was about to speak.
It was Mabel.
“Hi” I placed the phone on my ear.
“Hello… Don’t give me the hello, what’s with the text message, I want to quit, I hope its not what I’m thinking” Mabel’s voice was seriously loud.
“Can we talk about this later?” I sighed.
“No we cannot Bridget, I hope its not wh–
I cut the call and slammed my phone on the plastic table.
The canteen was now getting hot, despite the fast ceiling fan that laid right about us.
“Is everything okay?” Samuel asked.
I smiled at him. “Everything is fine”.
~ ~
The three of us walked out of the canteen and Samuel and I head to our last class for the day, it’s weird how we kept bumping into Kingsley today and we all finally decided to have lunch together.
“I’ll be heading back to the hostel, and I’ll see you two later” I gave a small smile and left the two boys.
I got to my hostel and then to my room, Tochi was probably in class so the room was all for me at that moment.
I called Mabel.
“Yes and you were saying?” Mabel’s voice was sharp.
“I’m saying… I want to quit!” I sighed.
“Why would you want to quit? Are you recieving a threat or something?” Mabel yelled.
“A threat? What? No! I just don’t want to do that… Dirty job anymore” my voice was low.
“Dirty job, you’ve never called it… Dirty job before and I thought you didn’t care what anyone thinks!” Mabel stated.
“I didn’t, but now I do!” I sighed.
“What’s going on over there Bridget talk to me!” Mabel sighed.
“Nothing… Nothing is going on, I just want to quit!” I finally raised my voice.
“But this is the best job ever. Just a night you make what other people makes in a year, you should be happy and you’ll just let your beauty go to waste?”
Her words made me angry.
“My beauty going to waste. Those dirty men don’t care about the face, they just care about what’s down there so don’t give me crap and if working a year would give me what I would earn in just one night but would make me feel less guilty and less embarrassed, then I’m ready to take it, I don’t care, just sign me out of your dirty business” I said out of spite.
“Maybe you don’t know, but that dirty business is actually worth it, we will more than financially stable, but no, you want to quit, but that dirty business is the only reason why I took you in, I never liked you from the start, you were rude and way ahead of yourself. So maybe you should put this into your head, that once you quit, my roof will never cover those pompous head of yours, so when the semester is over, find a place to start living and don’t ever come back here again.!” Mabel yelled.
What?
How can she be so evil.
I thought I was finally seeing her as a guardian
“Fine, I hope you regret saying this, and maybe you should try sleeping with the men instead, I just said beauty didn’t matter, but I think they’ll reconsider sharing a bed with you after seeing your ugly face.” I huffed.
“Get lost” Mabel stated angrily and cut the call.
I tightened the phone in my hand and curse Mabel silently.
How can she be like this.
I sat on my bed and buried my face in my palms.
I have enough.
I don’t need her.
I also need to get a better job, I need to be better for Samuel to be deserving.
I wanted to cry, but I didn’t. I’ve lived with Mabel for years and I didn’t know it’ll be easy for her to just throw me out like this. Wow. But I don’t need her, I’m trying to be a better me.
I got ready for my last class that day and seeing Samuel, I suddenly forgot about everything.
The lecture was short and class was over before we even knew it. Samuel seemed like he wanted to hang out with me more but I wasn’t feeling too good. I felt uneasy about the whole Mabel and I thing.
“It’s okay, if you’re not feeling too well you need to rest!” Samuel said after telling him that I wasn’t feeling well.
“Thank you” I gave a weak smile and comfortably entered his body giving him a hug. He seemed hesitant at first but his hand circled around my body.
I let go of him and walked back to my hostel.
And the next day, I actually fell sick.
I laid on my bed, my teeth chattering and my body extremely hot.
I groaned. I hate being sick.
I got ready for class, my stamina was not too active but I kept going as I hurried to class, I was late and I knew it.
I got to class and stayed at the back of class, still feeling cold beside the window with my fur jacket on, I felt sleepy and fell asleep immediately.
:
I woke up to the sound of a familiar voice I would kill for, I opened my eyes and saw Samuel sitting beside me. And then I heard Kingsley’s voice too.
I opened my eyes even more to take the two boys in. The cool breeze passed by and I scoot closer to Samuel taking in his warmth.
“You slept during class and your body is extremely hot”. Samuel said to me.
“I know, I think it’s just a minor fever.” I sighed.
“No fever is minor, my cousin’s girlfriend died because of a minor fever.” Kingsley said and I gave him a look.
“I’m just saying” Kingsley shrugged.
“Anyways there’s a student clinic three blocks away from campus, we can go there and get you checked up and have you take some medicine too” Samuel said, a lot of worry in his voice.
“It’s just a fever, I can’t walk properly though, and beside just get some fever medicine or what ever medicine kills fever and I’ll be fine.” I stated my eyes shut.
“Okay, I’ll go to a chemist and get you–
“You’re not going anywhere” I opened my eyes interrupting Samuel.
“But… How are we going to get the medicine.?” he asked..
“Kingsley’s going to get it” I replied.
“What? why me?” Kingsley brows went down immediately.
“Because I can’t stay here with you, so just get it instead.” I replied shuddering because of the cold.
“Fine I’ll be your little erand boy” Kingsley scoffed and stood up.
“Thank you” I smiled.
*
Kingsley came back with the pills and I drank it all with a bottled water he bought along.
The boys escorted me back to my hostel and I thanked both of them.
“Just skip all classes today, I’ll take notes for you and sign your attendance, just rest please.” Samuel instructed and I nodded with a smile.
I walked back into my room and drifted off to sleep immediately my body and bed came into contact.
.
I woke up by 9pm feeling a bit better and tochi told me she heard I was sick from Samuel and surprised me by saying she prepared something small when it was actually a feast and I ate till I got full and drifted off to another sleep.
I woke up the next morning feeling as energetic as ever, well Mabel can go to hell for all I care, she gave me that short term fever.
As I stepped out of the building that morning, the weather didn’t look very friendly, the sky grumbled and the sky turned grey.
Tochi who said would be missing her class today told me to use her umbrella and I thanked her and grabbed it.
I went to class that afternoon as it started to pour a little and the umbrella really did come in handy.
I sat beside Samuel in class and he smiled and said he was happy seeing how I looked different from yesterday.
As the lecture went on, the lecturer’s voice starts to go lower because the rain was starting to become heavy and before we knew it, the rain looked more like a storm watching from the window outside.
The teacher sighed and called it a day for us.
The rain was becoming disastrous and heavy. The heavy wind that followed it made it look more stormy.
People starts to leave the class and to their respective hostel to feel safe, because the rain was getting into the class through the glass less windows.
“I think we should leave too” I said to Samuel standing up.
“But I don’t an umbrella” he replied.
“We can share mine”. We were both yelling at the top of our voices because the rain was super strong.
“I don’t think we would both fit” Samuel hollered.
“As long as our heads are covered, we’re good to go” I said grabbing his bag and pulling him to the class exit.
“We need to leave” I said.
Samuel and I both walked out of the classroom and outside the school building to get attacked my the wind immediately and just as I opened the umbrella entering the rain with Samuel, the wind took it from me letting me scream.
“Tochi is so going to murder me.” I laughed getting beaten up by the rain.
My hairrrr….
“It’s not your fault, it’s the wind’s fault, it just liked the umbrella too much” Samuel smiled.
“Nice solace… She might smile at me but she’ll totally get back at me for losing her umbrella. And we should have stayed in class” I sighed.
“It’s okay, we’re already beaten by the rain, it doesn’t change anything, let’s stop at my place, the rain is super strong and my hostel is way closer to campus” Samuel said and I agreed wiping my face with my hand.
My books….
I sighed.
Immediately we went into Samuel’s room, our wet bodies suddenly got the tiled floors wet, but I brought out my notes from my bag and opened them immediately letting them dry, I asked Samuel if he wasn’t going to do his books the same but he said his bags was waterproofed.
Good for him. He apologized for my books but I told him not to. I mean it’s clearly my fault.
I dropped my bag beside the door and sighed also letting out a small shudder and Samuel quickly walked up to me.
“You just survived a fever yesterday, you’re going to catch a cold if you remain in these clothes.”
“Is that an indirect way of telling me to strip naked in front of you?” I tried to make an inside joke but Samuel didn’t get my tease.
“No… That’s not what I meant, I mean–
“I know what you mean. I was just joking” I laughed and felt my feet turn to ice.
“You’ll need to take a warm bath and I’ll give you some warm clothes you’ll need to change in” Samuel said and I nodded feeling frozen already.
Samuel showed me the bathroom and gave me some of his thick and huge clothes to change into, and I thanked him before locking the door.
I took off my cloth and turned on the shower switching it to hot water. My body felt alive again that I wanted to stay under the water for hours but I decided to come out.
I changed into Samuel’s clothes and felt warm immediately, well except for my braided hair, which didn’t look like it’d be drying any years from now.
I shoved my wet clothes into my wet bag and asked Samuel for a towel I’d wrap my hair in.
He handed me one and I wrapped my hair up in the towel.
I stayed in Samuel’s room, quiet and just listened to the relaxing sound of the rain. I was cold.
Wrapping myself up in his blanket still wasn’t enough. Every once in a while, I shivered.
I watched the door till the door knob turned and the door opened.
Samuel walked in, with his wet clothes changed, into some dry ones.
He saw me and let’s out a smile.
“I mopped the living room and I’ve placed your books in front of the standing fan so it will dry faster. Hope you’re feeling better” Samuel smiled.
“I’m fine!” I shrugged.
“You look cold” Samuel stated and walked up to his desk, sitting down on his chair.
“I am cold” I gave a sigh smile.
“Your personality, your looks, you look super tough, but when it comes to illness I think your body is the most fragile” Samuel stated.
And I couldn’t agree more.
“Come sit on the bed” I said and Samuel hesitantly did so.
I scoot closer to his body and placed my head on his shoulder.
“You’re warm” I smiled.
