OMOLARA

"What are you doing here? Some people just like causing issues sha. Everyone knows that as a girl, you aren't meant to be clearing but sweeping the classes right now. You dey try form feminist shey?".

That was the last thing I heard come out of Tayo's upturned mouth, before I saw red. The guys around him were already warning him via body language, but the stupid boy seemed to have a death wish.

My name is Omolara—Lara for short (though no one but Sola and my brothers actually called me that, cos I didn't believe anyone else was close enough to). And right now, I was ten seconds away from showing this gangly, loudmouthed boy that looked like he would fall over if the breeze blew too hard at any minute, just what I thought of his remark about my gender.

Seriously sha, the guy had just opened his obviously unfiltered mouth to voice his unwanted and very crude mental perception to me. And nobody had even asked him! Talk about the definition of busybody!

I know you might be wondering as well, why I was clearing with the boys instead of sweeping, like my fellow SS3 girls were doing. Well, my teachers and classmates had also wondered back then. Till they realised I'd only keep giving them headaches and stubbornly accepting punishments for insolence and never ending questions that were all centered around gender perceptions.

It's not like I was trying to prove a point—okay, maybe I was. But I just felt like your gender shouldn't limit you to a particular chore so long as you were being useful somewhere, and I think having five brothers cemented that mindset from a very young age, for me.

Our parents had always shared our work with equity, and if I was ever treated differently, it was because of my age and not because I was female. So when I entered senior secondary school after moving from our previous place to settle "somewhere closer to home", as my dad always put it, my heart furiously rebelled against the distinct wall that had been raised between the boys and girls here.

I mean, so what if I liked playing football instead of reading novels like other girls my age? What if I preferred clearing because I felt the dust was easier to handle than when I swept those dirt-ridden classrooms? Wasn't I allowed to do so just because I was female? Not to talk about the guys that were constantly picked on for not being 'manly' enough.

I'd entered school disgusted with things, and three years in, my disgust had only grown in slivers, though people were now smart enough to keep their gender-biased thoughts to themselves around me—I wasn't afraid to show them just what I thought of their opinions. And I usually did so brutally—there was even a rumour going round that I'd made more girls cry and more guys cower than the resident school bully (who by the way, also happened to be my best friend). I know right, I had such great company.

Now, over time I'd gotten my fair share of backlashes of course. I've been called things that ranged from stubborn troublemaker to gay attention-seeker. But I didn't care—I still don't. My parents had always said I was like a dog with a bone when I wanted to be—once I saw something that really meant enough for me to bite into, I wouldn't let go till I had my way.

And this was something my teachers and classmates learnt the hard way; after one of the former called my parents to report me, and my father just sighed and told them to please humour me—and of course gave the school a very generous "donation"—and one of the latter (a big guy who was always picking on me when I resumed) was ambushed by me on his way from school, got sand thrown into his eyes, and received a serious, you-so-had-it-coming beating that fateful Friday evening (well, to be honest, it was more like I hit him really hard where the sun didn't shine, and ran away as fast as my little legs could carry me—I was stubborn, not stupid).

Oh yes. I still remembered it like it was yesterday—though it's been almost two years since then.

Of course, he never breathed a word about it to a soul, and made me swear to do the same (with my own part of the bargain being that he would never disturb me again, and would keep others from doing so—we both knew I had gotten lucky that day, but his pride never let him say it).

Nevertheless, that was how Sola and I became friends. And as we got closer, my other classmates learnt to mind their business, and stay far away…

Well, until now that was. Because right now, there was a totally inept young man standing before me, who was practically screaming, "Put me in my place, cos I seem to lack common sense!". And I was ready to do so, gladly.

Just as I was about to open my mouth and pour out an acridly witty reply to put the oblivious know-it-all where he belonged, I felt something stop me. "Don't say what you want to right now", the thought seemed to say. And it was funny, because I knew all I wanted to do at that point, was grind his self-esteem to dust with my heavy words.

"Let it go, Lara. Ignore him today." it repeated.

I chuckled softly, though it was more pronounced in my head. Ignore ke—like that was going to happen! I'd never backed down from a battle, especially not one of words, and I wasn't going to start now. Shaking my head and steeling my heart, I was really about to let out the words I'd swiftly pieced together—years of experience under my belt, making it a very easy task—when something caught my eye. it was Sola with a grim expression on his face, telling me to back down.

Now that amazed me. Everyone knew Sola—he was the poster-boy for big, bad bully. The guy practically itched for a fight all the time, and was never one to pass up an opportunity to shake people up a bit. The fact that he was the one telling me to stop, held me in my tracks more than anything else could have.

"I'll tell you later.", his usually hard eyes seemed to say. This time though, they looked almost mournful, and full of latent knowledge.

I looked at Tayo for what I'm sure must have been a whole ten seconds—his small, smug face just asking for a beating—before grudgingly acquiescing to Sola's demand—we had respect for each other like that. But I'd be damned if I didn't find out why he had practically saved Tayo from a well-deserved tongue-lash. I'd be damned.

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Author's note:

Hello everyone! I hope we're looking forward to part two already. Any guess to what Sola's reason for "saving" Tayo could be?

Well, it's been a while since I wrote fiction—a series at that, and I'm really excited with where Daddy will be taking us through this series (have I mentioned the fact that right now, I only have a vague idea of where the story is leading us to? Oh well, I guess some journeys will require us walking with him, even when we're not fully sure of all the details yet).

It is my prayer though, that every part of Omolara ministers to someone—even the ones I'd never have imagined would.

Let's anticipate part two!

P. S. Your comments, questions and reviews are always deeply appreciated.

—Ofure Angela Ogbidi.