Justina: “Erm, erm, my name is Justina. I just came in from the States”
Amaka: “Hi, which states? Oh, you mean United States? You are welcome, how was your flight?”
Justina: “Yesss… No ooo .. I mean Ekiti State. She stammered”.
Justina: “I am looking for…”
Amaka: “Ekiti state? You are looking for who now? Abeg jor, if you don’t know where you are going, commot from my doorpost”. She turned and made to lock the door but Justina grabbed her hand and stopped her.
Amaka: “Shoo, sontin dey worry you for head? Why you hold my hand like that? Who gave you the guts to touch me? I mean, how dare you? Where did you get the temerity, the effrontery to touch me? Do you know how much my cream costs?”
Justina: “I am very sorry, please. I want to see Vicky, Vicky Linus, she was my friend in secondary school”.
Amaka: “Really? Stay here and wait, I will be back”.
She entered the room and walked to the bathroom where Vicky is bathing.
Amaka: “Babe, you never baff finish? Person dey outside dey look for you o”.
Vicky: “Who be that? Abeg, I dey baff. Make the person go come another time”
Amaka: “Na one village champion like that o. She said she was your secondary school mate”.
Vicky: “My classmate? Na where she from come na?”
Amaka: “She say she just dey enter from the States o”.
Vicky: “Wow! You mean I have a friend who now lives in the United States? Abeg tell her to come in”.
Amaka: “You hear me add united join the state? Na Ekiti state she commot from o”
Vicky: “Ah, Ekiti ke. Anyway, allow her in”.
Amaka went out and opened the door for Justina who dragged her bag along.
Amaka: “Don’t tell me you are taking this dirty bag into our room madam “States”. Biko keep it there. Can’t you perceive the odor coming from it?”
“Okay, ma”. Justina replied sheepishly.
Vicky came out of the bathroom and hugged her. “I didn’t know that you are in Abuja. How far na”.
Justina: “I just came in from the States …. I mean village this night”.
Vicky: “Really? You and this states sha. Is that the new slang that is reigning in the village? How was your trip? What did you come to do in the city?”
Justina: “I had to run away from the house. My parents wanted to force me into marrying someone that I don’t love”.
Vicky: “Eyah, that’s bad o. All these parents, self. It is well sha o. So, where will you now stay in Abuja? You know the costs of houses are very expensive here”.
Justina: “I want to stay with you until I find a job to do”.
Vicky: “What! You can’t be serious. How can you just come in from the village and say that you want to stay with me? Where is it done like that? Listen, I don’t live alone and we contribute to pay the rent here. You can’t live with us”.
Justina: “Please, Vicky. You are the only one that I know in this city. As soon as I get a job, I will start contributing for the rent too”.
Vicky: “Did I hear you say job? Where are the jobs? Which job are you talking about? Do you know what I do to survive in this town? Please, let me make noodles for you to eat, looks like hunger is making you talk anyhow”.
After Justina ate, she began to doze off on the rug carpet where she had eaten until Amaka’s voice jerked her up.
Amaka: “Vicky, what kind of compulsory guest is this now? It’s almost 10pm and she doesn’t want to leave yet. I am going out, I don’t want to meet her when I return. You know how much I hate people intruding into my privacy”. She hissed and left the house.
Vicky: “Justina, come and go now. Do you want to put me into trouble with my roommate?”
Justina: “Where do you want me to go? It is late already and I have no other place here”.
Vicky: “How is that my business now? You should have thought of all these things before leaving the village. Please, come and go”. She began to drag Justina who is already on her knees pleading.
Justina: “Please just let me spend the night here, I will think of what to do tomorrow. I beg you in the name of God”.
Vicky: “Ooooo, what kind wahala is this now? Okay. Just tonight, after which you will leave here and never return”.
====
Justina succeeded in convincing Vicky and Amaka to allow her live with them for a while and they in turn promised to introduce her to the jobs they do. She was looking forward to working as she was already tired of staying at home. She had been in the city for one month and her friends have kept her indoors, feeding and pampering her with different lotions and cosmetics so that she will look good before she follows them out. She was enjoying every bit of their attention but her growing stomach was a source of worry too her. For one month she had succeeded in hiding her pregnancy from her friends but she knew that she couldn’t hold on any longer. She thought of how her friends will react when they find out that she is pregnant and she decided to damn the consequences and tell them herself.
Justina: “Babes, something has been bothering me o, I need to open up to you girls since we are friends now”.
Vicky: “Is it about the job? Don’t worry, by the time you finish using that toning cream ehn, you will follow us out. Can’t you see that your skin is now radiating?”
Justina: “That is not what I am talking about”.
Amaka: “Oya now, talk. Na wetin dey your mind? Abi you want make we beg you before you talk?”
Justina: “I am pregnant!”
Amaka: “Chineke meh!”
Vicky: “Holy Vicky mother of God! How did it happen? Ee never pass one month wey you come Abuja naim you don carry belle so?”
Justina: “It didn’t happen in Abuja. It happened in the states … sorry I mean village and that is why I ran away”.
Vicky: “Mehn, this is bad. You can’t work in this condition now”.
Justina: “Why can’t I? I am strong even with the pregnancy. What kind of jobs do you do that I can’t do?”
Vicky: “You want to know the kind of jobs that we do? We are ABUJA Ambassadors!
Justina: Ambassadors? I don’t understand. Where’s your consulate office?
Vicky: Okay, we are prostitutes; we sleep with men for money”.
Justina: “Blood of Jesus. Vicky!”
Amaka: “Listen, we don’t have any choice than to flush that bastard in your womb out. No customer will want to sleep with a pregnant woman. It’s either you flush it or you go back to the village. You cannot come and spoil our business for us”.
Justina: “I even want to get rid of it. I didn’t plan for it. But I am afraid of having a D & C abortion”.
Amaka: “Who is talking about D & C? Mr dear, na strong agbo we go use flush that thing trowey. No worry, I go contact my Yoruba woman friend, she go mix agbo for you, after seven days like this, everything go waka commot.
====
Justina emptied the content of the bottle into her mouth as the woman had instructed. She felt a strong bitter taste in her throat and she had to cover her nose from the stench that oozed out of the bottle. She clutched her stomach and began to wait for the concoction to start working.
Justina: “You little thing, let me see how you will survive this Yoruba woman’s medicine. Shebi you refused to die when I had that accident, I will see how you will survive this one. This will flush you out and I will be free to live my life the way I want it. Next time, make sure you go to families that need children”, she soliloquized after she drank the local medicine.
Question: What will be the effects of the concoction that her friends gave her to drink? Do her friends mean well for her or are they trying to get rid of her?
