Previously on TSB: Ovo was left to wander through James’ mansion alone.
‘I wonder what he’s going to say to her. One minute she’s angry with him and the next, she’s sulking up to him’ Ovo thought as he watched James and Anita walk up the stairs with linked arms.
Ovo decided to carry on through the hallway and towards where he could hear loud music and people chatting. He was really nervous and hoped to see Simi or anyone else he knew. When he got to the end of the hallway which opened out into an expansive living room, he still hadn’t seen anyone that looked familiar and started to feel out of place. He suddenly regretted agreeing to attend the party and cursed silently for allowing Simi’s pleas to sway his earlier decision. ‘Well you’re here now so deal with it’ he said to himself.
He walked towards a guy he saw leaning against the wall closest to him. The boy was on his phone and smiling to whomever it was that he was chatting with even though he was at a party and was supposed to be having fun.
“Guy what’s up?” He greeted, but the other boy just looked at him disapprovingly and walked away.
Ovo sighed in disbelief and felt like he had just been chastised although he didn’t know for what exactly. He decided it was no use trying; he saw a lounge chair at the far end of the room and moved towards it. At this point he didn’t know what else to do. He could see some people paring up and dancing closely together, but he wasn’t up for dancing with anyone, not that he thought any of the girls will agree to dance with him anyway. From the looks of it, their dresses alone could probably feed him for a week. So, he respected the class boundaries and stayed put. Minutes later, two girls walked over to where he sat and joined him on the chair. He smiled as his eyes met one of the girls.
“I’ve never seen you before. Are you James’ friend?” She asked.
“Yeah something like that” He replied.
“I’m Ndidi, so what do you think of this party?” She continued.
Ovo a bit shy and surprised to actually be having a conversation with the girl he assumed to be above his range, stuttered and then managed to reply: “It’s good”
“Ha, just good? This party is the bomb, just wait till you see the pool and the dj starts proper!” She screamed over the booming sound of Patoranking’s Girlie O playing on the background.
Ovo nodded in agreement and looked at his shoes. He didn’t know what else to say to the girl or if he should be saying anything either, but the girl seemed to be a talkative and rambled on.
“So what school did you go to?” Ndidi asked.
“Erm, before, I went to a school in Mushin but I just did my school cert again in the same school as James” Ovo divulged with embarrassment.
“Mushin? I’ve never heard of it. What, like close to that bush area called Ajegunle?” She asked in astonishment.
Ovo shifted in his seat uncomfortably and wished he hadn’t attended the party after all. He was about to say something when he caught a form moving quickly through the sea of couples dancing and realised that it was Simi.
“Simi, Simi!” He shouted and made a quick exit from the girl and her air of arrogance without excusing himself. He was glad when she finally heard him and glanced towards his direction.
“Oh you’re here. I thought you weren’t going to come anymore” Simi said and beckoned him to follow her.
“This house is big o” He said to her and grinned.
“Yes it is” She said without a beat. Like she was so used to a life with such grandeur that it made no difference anymore. ‘It’s highly likely she did’ he thought and followed on her heels.
“I need to go and add this Smirnoff to the punch the waiters are serving. You know we can’t be drinking ordinary Fanta and coke” She said and showed him the spirit she hid underneath her wrap dress.
Ovo nodded in acquiescence. He didn’t really care about what they drank as far as there was something to drink and eat. He had skipped buying a discounted meal from the restaurant he worked at in the hopes of getting something to eat at the party. If the Badmus crew were as wealthy as they posed to be, then he was sure that there would be enough food to feed an army, and he was right. As Simi led the way and made several turns, they ended up in the room set up for the food and beverages. Ovo was pleased to find himself in front of an array of delicacies.
‘If I knew about all this food, I wouldn’t have been dulling with that girl asking me foolish questions’ he thought and smacked his lips, his mouth already salivating.
Simi saw the hungry look in his face and told him to take whatever he wanted because they had to go and meet the others for an important meeting. Ovo hardly heard her at that point, all he was concerned about was feeling his tummy with the glorious food that seemed to tease him, and his stomach rumbled in appreciation.
Ten minutes later, his plate was almost overflowing with the mound of jollof rice and fried rice that he had heaped on his plate. Not to mention the egg roll and sausages he had piled on as well. He seemed to have forgotten where he was and was reminded by the bewildered look on Simi’s face. He smiled sheepishly and told her he was ready to leave.
“Well, come on then and be careful not to let the food pour on the floor” She said in a huff and lead him towards where the others waited.
They made their way back to the living room and through another set of doors at the other end. That was when Ovo saw it. He was so carried away that he hadn’t noticed his plate had tipped to one side as he stood and gawked through the glass sliding door at the lit up swimming pool in the backyard.
“Ovo nau, be careful” Simi shouted and pulled him to carry on moving.
He was still staring behind him at the pool which was filled with teenagers younger than him in swimsuits and bikinis. The girls inside where squealing at whatever it was the guys in their company was saying. He couldn’t believe there were houses like James’ in the same Lagos he lived in. He was still stunned even as Simi pulled him into the room and shut the door.
When he finally looked around him, 3 pairs of eyes stared back at him tauntingly.
Coming Soon: Who were the people in the room with Ovo and what scores did they have to settle?
Photo Credit: Teemages
