OMOLARA—PART TWO

"So, why'd you do it?" I asked, the second we got out after school.

I'd been fidgeting in class the whole time. Part of it had been anxiety—I'd really wanted to know what got Sola so emotionally affected like that (because believe me, for a guy like him, his eyes were practically screaming pity). And the other part had been—dare I say it—remorse. And funnily enough, I didn't know what I was feeling remorseful for. For all I knew, Tayo had really deserved what was coming to him in spades. But the voice that had told me to stop back then, came back again full force and was saying things like:

"Maybe you should try to find out the reasons behind what people say first, before lashing out in defensiveness all the time."

"Ever heard of 'look beyond what you see', Lara?"

Or even, to my greatest disbelief:

"Ever thought of going to talk to him and ask him what got into him? Calmly?"

I shuddered deeply at that one. It was official. Whoever owned the voice in my head right now, one thing was certain—it definitely wasn't me.

Ignoring the very paradoxical voice that seemed to be plaguing me more and more these days, I turned my attention back to Sola.

He stared into space for what felt like minutes, before he sighed and began to speak. I figured it was one of the things he's learnt as a 'street boy'—tattletales were regarded as the worst kinds in the area, so I was sure that was what made spilling someone else's secret a big deal to him. I understood sha, but at that point, I didn't really care.

"Well, Tayo and his family used to live in the same neighbourhood as mine before. Back then, in our small area, everyone knew something about everyone. It was because of this we knew that his mother and father always used to have issues when they were younger. I remember sometimes that when they fought, Tayo and his younger sister would have to come sleep over at my place. Then, my mum would cook for all of us, bathe them and make sure we asked no prying questions."

"Were you guys aware of why they quarrelled usually?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Yes. It was a well-known fact that in their family, his mom was the real 'man' of the house—at least that's what the rumours used to say. They said she was industrious and was the breadwinner who held the family together in several ways, after their father lost his job. However, as the months passed, and tongues kept wagging, the man became insecure and that was when the quarrels started. By the time their youngest brother was born, it had turned to full-out brawls. His father got more and more insecure and had no idea how to handle it, so he poured it on his wife. And she being a wilful woman, she refused to take his bullshit lying down."

I nodded fervently at that. I wouldn't have either. I'd already told myself no man would ever use me to shine.

"Well, long story short, one day he got tired, packed his things and left. Tayo came to my house that day and told me that his father had spoken to him the day he left—'it was your mother's fault. She couldn't learn to be submissive.', he had said. And for some reason, it seems the words stuck to him for all those years."

I looked at him, head tilted, confused as to how that had anything to do with his actions today. He sighed and looked heavenward, in his usual long-suffering way—something he did anytime he wanted to jokingly tell me that I was stressing him—before replying me.

"He grew up always seeing his mum as the cause of the separation and now takes out his anger on women with similar traits as her", he clarified.

My mouth opened in an 'O' showing realisation, before the words struck and I backpedalled.

"But that's stupid naw!" I shouted. My pity for Tayo swiftly changing to righteous anger.

"How could he have really listened to his father and blamed the poor woman for what happened naw? Was it her fault he wasn't man enough to handle his insecurities?" I asked, fuming.

Sola shrugged noncommittally, a clear sign he wanted the topic changed.

"I just wanted you to have a bigger picture before you demolished the guy, Jhoor. We both know how you beat yourself up after being harsh to people only to find out that there was something else you hadn't taken into account", he said smiling crookedly.

"Shut up Jare, you big old softy."

At that, Sola froze for about a second, his face morphing into what to others, would have been a freezing glare. He'd had to repeat classes twice because of a parent with high expectations, and so his age was quite a sore-spot for him. Returning his glare with the cheekiest smile in my arsenal, I grinned brightly (my eyes softly apologising). He sighed heavily once more, before nudging my shoulders with his in a fond manner.

"Let's go Jhoor. The sun is already setting. Let's not give your people more to talk about."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever... ", I grumbled.

"I'll try to be nicer to Tayo tho'. And while I still believe he should be straightened on his myopic perspective, I blame his dad more now for ruining him at such a tender age."

At my words, Sola smiled softly, while I teased him by dramatically mouthing the word "Softie", once more.

"But if he gets too annoying sha, I'll show him pepper."

At that we both chuckled, as we briskly walked to our homes to avoid issues.

The End.

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Author's Note:

Hello everyone! So, like I thought it would be, writing Omolara really was a lesson. And while I got more obvious lessons whispered to my soul, such as:

• the knowledge that everyone has a 'why' behind their actions, good or bad, and it takes someone wanting to learn about them to actually understand why they act the way they do, and reach out in love if need be;

• the solid reminder, that the Lord speaks to us through our conscience, even when we try to deny it;

• the understanding that even the toughest human has his or her moments of inexplicable emotional vulnerability;

• the fact that I should learn to not to always get too defensive, no matter how sore the spot,

I also learnt not so overt lessons like following God's lead while writing, and putting what I know he wants out there, even when I don't feel like it.

Like I'll always say and remind myself, HisPortion is a blog dedicated first to God's heart before anything else. In writing Omolara, I felt my pride and personal feelings come into play—for one thing, I felt like I'd written far better storylines before and really was hesitant to even put a continuation up.

But Daddy in his mercy showed me once more, that everything has its ''why", and though I may not get it now, there will never be a command better in situations like this, than to trust.

So, I'm sure the story blessed you as well.

Till next time!

—Ofure Angela Ogbidi