Night Runs – chapter 18 – Simp

Chapter 18

Simp

It had been raining the whole day, non-stop, again, annoyingly so. The rains had quenched the soil from sandy hues to rich, strong browns, soaking not just the ground, but the worn-out asphalt top road around the city.

Over the pothole ridden roads that could take in no more rain, temporary streams of flowing water emerged as if it were suddenly dreamed into reality.

Adio was beginning to get irritated by the incessant downpour. It was bad for business. His patience in the slow moving traffic had been drawn thin and it wasn’t helped by the ringing in his ears.

Its been two days since he pulled the trigger in blind attempt to rescue Ibinabo from the clutches of the ruffian that held her hostage. He wasn’t even sure what to call the situation, but he turned out to be the hero. Ibinabo’s hero!

“Undeserving.” He admitted.

“You were lucky that shot didn’t hit her. What were you even thinking?”

Adio could only shake his head in acceptance. Yes, indeed he was lucky.

“What if it hit her?”

“Are you kidding me? How would you even explain what you went over there to do? Are you a police officer? What were you doing with a weapon? Where did you get the weapon from? Murder! Murder!! Murder!!!”

Adio shook his head again and again, as though to kill the voice inside his head.

“Do you even realize how much trouble you would be in if someone had died that day?”

Silence enveloped the car as the traffic eased only momentarily.

“You would surely be behind bars, spending what is left of your life getting bullied in a kirikiri! And where do you want me to go without you?” Don’s voice dissolved into a whimper. “Because I am not going with you.”

“Cut it off. It didn’t happen okay. That is what mattered.”  Adio admonished him. “I have got work to do.”

As smile creased his lips when he thought about Ibinabo lying naked in his bed as he dressed up in the morning before stepping out. Since the incident, they had spent every night in his bed making love like newlyweds. She found in him her knight in shining armor or, was it her knight with the shining pistol.

He had staked everything for her, fought for her pride, put his life at risk and yet conquered. How could she not pitch her tent with him? She nursed his broken nose and cared for him till he was strong enough to return to work. It took all of three days!

Three days was enough time to cook him meals every day, care for him, shower and bathed with him, explore the contours of his masculinity without shame damning the consequences even as the neighbors gossiped.

“Tufiakpa! Two neighbors!” the middle-aged woman who owned the weather-beaten kiosk that sold petty provisions outside the tenement building sneered.

“Dem no get shame.” Followed a disdainful clap of hands.

“See as the girl dey shout every night. Children dey this house o.” another complained.

Ibinabo listened from the only window in Adio’s room. It wasn’t as if the gossiping women made any effort to prevent her from listening to their tirade.

She didn’t care. She had found her man and he deserved to be with her. It was absolutely none of their business. Nothing pleased her more.

As Adio drove his sedan towards his next passenger that evening, he wondered if working late into the night would deny him the pleasure of his newfound love. Now that someone was waiting for his return, it didn’t quite make a lot of sense to leave her all by herself. He wanted to spend more time with her. She was now his priority, to protect and to love.

“Mr. lover lover!”

Adio ignored Don’s taunting remark.

It had taken him so very long to get out of his self-contained life, to climb far enough down into his brain to untangle the mess it conditioned inside him. It took some love to liberate him.

“Love, or sex?”

“Whatever.” Adio could hear his own voice.

His phone rang out just that moment.

“Hello.” It was Ibinabo.

“Hello dear, how is work going today?”

“Not bad. The rain was a spoiler, but all is fair.”

“I missed you and so wanted to hear your voice.”

Adio smiled in return.

“Hello, did you hear me?”

“Oh yes Ibi. I miss you too.”

“What would you like me to cook for you by the time you return?”

“Rice is just fine.”

“Rice, it is then. Please don’t stay out long. I am cold.”

“ I will be home in no time darling.”

“I love you!”

“I love you too.” It sounded awkward hearing those words from his own mouth, after all, just a week ago he was just a regular guy with no girlfriend. If he sounded out of sync, in contrast Ibinabo’s voice did wonders to his eardrums. It felt like a soft massage that tingled some nerves connected directly to his loins.

“Mr. Loverman!”

He found his next passengers just by the popular night club in Victoria Island. Two stunning ladies who looked like they were in their early thirties. They wore moderate make-up, molded and poured their sumptuous breasts into low neck corset tops like they were on exhibition.

The ladies eased into the backseat, chatting excitedly as they settled in.

“I am glad we could get away before he was back. The idiot thinks he is smart.”

The ladies looked through the rear windshield surveying the entrance porch into the club building.

Adio joined in the stare, looking through his rearview mirror inquisitively, but he had absolutely no idea what to look out for. He looked on all the same.

“Drive! Drive!!! Drive!!!” They hurried him on.

Confused, Adio continued to look through the rearview mirror.

“What is that?” he shouted back.

“Just drive this godforsaken car.” The one with the long, big braids screamed back at him.

Adio’s engine rattled to life before he maneuvered his sedan into the busy Adeola Odeku road.

“Move quickly.” The ladies urged him on, staring at both the rear and front windshield intermittently.

“And I prayed this morning for peace, how is this sort of drama going to end in peace now?” Adio muttered regretfully to himself as his car picked up torque and speed.

“Is anyone chasing after you ladies.” Adio asked calmly.

The ladies didn’t respond. Perhaps they didn’t hear him, Adio thought.

“Is anyone chasing you?”

“No, No, we are cool now.” The other lady with the afro replied calmly.

Adio looked into his rearview mirror again, there was nothing suspicious about the cars following his “So, what was the drama about?” he wondered.

He listened out for Don’s remarks, but there was no voice in his head.

“The bastard!” the braided one sighed.

“That was close, Udeme!”

“I swear to God Brenda, that was really close.”

“Do you think he knew we were the ones leaving?” Brenda looked out again through the rear windshield.

“I don’t think so.”

“Thank God you arrived on time sir.”

Adio wasn’t exactly listening to their conversation. Even if he did, he wasn’t going to offer a response for the inconvenience they caused him barely five minutes into their journey. He was having trouble containing the sweat that broke off all over his body following the false urgency the screaming ladies created.

His air condition unit was spewing ice cold air into the cabin with so much ferocity that the ladies asked him to turn it down.

Calmness returned, or so it seemed.

“What happened back there?” Adio felt the need to ask. He deserved to know.

Brenda spoke first.

“Okay, we went to the club by ourselves to have fun. And these two men asked us to join them at the VIP lounge.”

“They looked like some crazy guys with a lot of money.” Udeme interjected.

“Yes! They sure did. They had this travelling bag full of a lot of cash, some in foreign currencies and they were throwing cash about the dancefloor.”

Adio nodded her on.

“And….”

“Well, things started to get a bit hot when they got tipsy.” Udeme continued. “And they started getting very gropy and annoying.”

But you riled the gang up Udeme when you started to twerk your bum. They go so excited that they started throwing wad of cash at you.”

“I swear, they couldn’t keep their hands to themselves.”

Adio nodded. “And so, what happened next?”

“I slapped the man who touched me.” Udeme’s emotionless voice snapped. “I slapped him twice in the face. The bastard!”

Brenda giggled.

Confused Adio asked “And…?”

“He fell straight into a glass table and passed out. The pussy!”

“What?” Adio exclaimed, eyes wide open.

“And so, we ran off immediately, while they were trying to revive him.” Brenda chipped in.

“Okay….and?”

“Oh well, I carried the bag with the cash, and we ran out of the club.” She continued.

“We ordered for a ride while we hid in the parking area behind some cars till you arrived.” Udeme ended the conversation with the closure.

“Oh my God!” Adio shouted. “You both are in a lot of trouble.”

He turned to look at both ladies before noticing the bag nestled gingerly on Brenda’s laps.

“What if they saw my car and noted the plate number?”

“Very unlikely. They didn’t see us get into your car.” Brenda assured him.

“They have a bag full of cash, Adio. A bag full of cash.” That lone voice in his head sounded sinister. “What are you going to do about it?”

Adio thought deep and long.

“A bag full of a lot of money. Enough money to solve his short- and medium-term problems. He could run away with Ibinabo to Ibadan to settle down and start a small family, away from the hustle and bustle of Lagos.”

“Good thoughts Adio. Good thoughts. What are you going to do about it.”

Thoughts flooded Adio’s brain so much that his driving was getting lax and careless.

“The gun. Where is the gun?”

Continue here.