CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER THREE

I continued walking until I arrived at the entrance of the Old Girls Hostel. They were several huts adjacent to the entrance of the Old Girls Hostel. They were called huts even though were made of concrete, corrugated iron sheets and wood. They were circular in design, and had two passages. Each hut could comfortably sit up to twenty adults and contain twenty-five more standing.

I sat in an empty hut and waited for Bussy to arrive. I was wearing a blue casual cotton long-sleeved shirt and a pair of black trousers. I didn’t fancy wearing wristwatches for any particular reason, even though my mum had purchased several Rado, Rolex and Omega wristwatches for me. The weather was cool, and the tree branches danced in the evening breeze. My feet felt free in the pair of black leather slippers I was wearing. It felt better than wearing black leather boots and cover shoes from Monday to Friday.

.I remember fumbling with my GSM Mobile phone for a couple of minutes before Bussy appeared in the distance. She wore a plain navy blue gown on a pair of white high-heeled flip-flops. Bussy’s hair was tied behind her, and the faint mark of an old scar above her left eyebrow was visible.

Bussy had a unique style of walking. I had never seen another lady walk the way Bussy did. Her choice of perfumes and deodorants were simply out of this world.

“How are you, Bussy?” I rose to welcome her with a hug.

“I’m okay. Sorry, to have kept you waiting, Pierre”.

We both sat down and I took my eyes off her breasts.

“No problem, it’s okay. I was enjoying the evening breeze anyway”.

She giggled and placed her small white bag beside her. Bussy looked into my eyes while she spoke. I was certain she did the same thing while we were in the open theatre, when I requested for her phone number.

“How’re you enjoying the weekend?”

“Weekend is great. My roommates are relaxing, but one of them just went to RCF some minutes ago.

“What is RCF?”

“It stands for the Redeemed Christian Church of God, in the Igbinedion University Okada”.

“That’s great. Do you attend RCF too?”

“Well, I’m hoping to… but I won’t be a worker. I don’t think I will have time for that”.

“Okay. I’m Pierre Paul Abutu. I’m a 200 Level law student and from Igala land in Kogi State”.

Bussy giggled before talking.

“My name’s Bussy… I’m I’m a 100Level medicine and surgery student. I’m from the South-western part of Nigeria and the first child of my parents… and….”

“And what?”

“Never mind”.

“No, please tell me”.

“Well, I’ve never had a boyfriend before”.

“Come on, that shouldn’t make you feel bad”.

Bussy smiled and looked at a couple of vehicles that drove through the tarred road, which separated the huts from Bussy’s hostel.

“I’m not feeling bad Pierre, it’s just some personal things.

Did I forget to mention Bussy’s perfect dentition? It blended perfectly with her chocolate skin. I noticed the slight air of sadness in Bussy’s last statement, and wondered what the ‘personal things’ could be.

“I’m sorry, don’t mind my mood change”, Bussy said all of a sudden.

“Please tell me more about yourself. Your accent… there’s something different about it. Is your mum a foreigner or a half caste?”

“No, both parents are Nigerians, but I spent the better part of my life in Switzerland”.

“Oh, that’s interesting”.

We talked about several things and I soon discovered that Bussy was a year older than me. As a South westerner, I knew it would definitely bother her, but I said nothing more about it. She told me that her mother was a trader and fashion designer, while her father was a businessman. She had two younger brothers and a younger sister, and wasn’t the eatery / restaurant-going type.

“So, do you have a girlfriend since you arrived in Nigeria, or since you gained admission into this University?”

“Girlfriend?”

“No, not at all”.

“That’s strange… a tall, dark, handsome guy like yourself does not have a girlfriend?”

“No, I don’t, but do you have a boyfriend?”

Bussy giggled and adjusted her gown. She seemed a little coy at the last question I asked her.

“I don’t have”, she whispered. Thereafter, we joked and laughed, while I tried to look away from her chesty endowments.

“Do they sell refreshments around here?” I suddenly asked while looking around. It was getting dark, but I could still see her facial outline, with the aid of the hanging bulbs inside the hut.

“No, I don’t think so”.

“In that case, let’s take a stroll towards the shop near the open theatre”. I rose to my feet and picked up Bussy’s small white bag. I watched her as she dusted her behind and adjusted her hair. I waited for her to walk out of the hut before following her behind. The scent of her perfume was taking over my senses, and it made me remember the fancy perfume stores and shops in Zurich.

I and Bussy noticed several male and female students who dotted the huts, volleyball and lawn tennis pitches. They were several more at the extreme end of the field, and I soon remembered what Eka had told me about ‘October Rush’.

“Do you take alcohol?” Bussy whispered as she tried to keep up with my walking pace.

“No, I don’t… I don’t like the taste of beer, whiskey and spirits”.

We both giggled as Bussy balanced the sling of her small white bag on her left shoulder. My eyes were on her lips intermittently. And I felt an urge to kiss her at that moment. We arrived at the shop close to the open theatre where I bought her a can of Sprite soda. There were white lights around the shop and Bussy’s lips seemed shinier, more appealing and tempting than they were when viewed with the natural evening light.

“Okay, wait… please give him a can of Mountain Dew”, Bussy instructed the shop attendant. I was shocked at that moment, because it was only my mum who knew I loved Mountain Dew.

“How did you know that I loved Mountain Dew?”

“I didn’t. Since you detest alcohol, and did not ask for two cans of Sprite, I guessed Mountain Dew would be your choice”.

A gentle breeze blew around us. The next second, I silently appreciated God’s creativity on Bussy’s body, as her natural frame and physique became more visible. The breeze moved swiftly all around us and I could clearly see the curves on Bussy’s body. She looked so cute and portable at that moment.

“It’s getting late, Pierre”. Bussy’s voice snapped me out of my reverie, as we walked towards the hut.

“You want to return to your hostel?” I asked Bussy while taking a small amount of the canned Mountain Dew I was holding.

“No, I want to go to your own hostel”, she responded with a mischievous wink. I finished my drink and flung the empty can into a steel waste disposal container. I held Bussy’s left hand with my right hand and looked into her eyes.

“I want to be more than a friend to you Bussy, because I know and feel you are special…”

“You want me to be your girlfriend?” Bussy whispered before finishing her can of Sprite.

“Yes, if you see it that way”.

“I’m not perfect for you, Pierre, in fact I feel you should have someone better as a girlfriend or lover”.

Is this connected in any way to the ‘personal things’ you earlier mentioned?” I could feel the sadness returning to Bussy’s voice, as she clutched her small white bag.

“Please come this way”. Bussy whispered and led me to to the trunk of a large tree, away from earshot. They were more male and female students all over the whole place. Some of them sat and talked, some cuddled in the dark places, while some strolled in slow, lazy steps.

“Pierre… I was molested when I was much younger. A man whose name and face I’ve been unable to forget, forced himself on me when I was barely thirteen”.

Bussy’s face became wet while I heard her voice crack. I pulled her close and embraced her while several vehicles sped on the tarred road which separated us from the Old Girls Hostel. The scent from the oil Bussy applied to her hair, coupled with her perfume, sent me to another planet. I released myself from her grip and wiped her tears with my handkerchief.

“It’s okay Bussy. That won’t change the way I feel about you, okay?”

“Okay Pierre”. Bussy sniffled and adjusted her plain navy blue gown. We crossed the tarred road and walked towards the gate of Bussy’s hostel. We were about twenty metres to the hostel gate when Bussy abruptly stopped.

“Thank you so much, Pierre. Those words you spoke really meant a lot to me”.

“It does alright… see you in fellowship tomorrow”.

“You’re the first person I’ve ever told about it”.

“RCF right… I’ll be there by 8am tomorrow, because of you”.

“That’d be nice Pierre”.

“I’ll see you at the exit after closure”.

Suddenly, Bussy kissed my left cheek, squeezed my right hand before turning around.

“Bye”, she whispered and continued briskly towards her hostel.

Her scent hovered around me for a minute while I felt the spot where she’d kissed me on my left cheek. Five minutes later, I was walking back to my hostel and thinking of Bussy’s physique and lips.

“Bussy”, I whispered her name an hour later in my room, before falling asleep.

                                                *                                  *                                  *

A few weeks later, I surprised Bussy just as she was coming out of her lecture hall. She and her course mates had just finished their last lecture for the day and I  guessed she was tired, exhausted and hungry. I stared at her in the distance while dialling my GSM mobile phone. I saw a flicker of excitement on her face as she stared at the screen of her mobile phone. She held her bag and started walking towards the end of the block which housed her lecture hall.

“How are you dear?”

“I’m cool baby”, I embraced her and inhaled the sweetness of her skin.

“I got something for you, B”.

“What is it, Pierre?”

“Do me a favour… open it when you get to your room”.

“Aww, Pierre, please give me a clue”, she pleaded.

“One hundred…” I said with a smile.

Bussy came closer and flung her arms around me. She looked into my eyes and inhaled deeply while pouting.

“I love you”, we said at the same time. We broke into a bout of laughter before she buried her face on my chest. She kissed my lips tenderly and whispered, ‘I love you’.

“Will I see you again this evening?”

“Pierre, shouldn’t we go slow and steady?”

“Is that what you want B?” I handed over the wrapped cellophane to her while staring at her lips.

“I wanna kiss you under the moonlight, Pierre”.

“Hmm, are you serious?”

Bussy nodded slowly with a smile on her face. For a moment, imagined my um’s reaction if she were to be present.

“Hope you’re hearing from your mum?” Bussy asked while returning her mobile phone into her handbag.

“Yeah, I do. But since  the time zones are different, we both agree on when would be convenient for us to chat”.

“She must be very fond of you then… ”

“Fond of? She’s one hell of a mama”.

“Come closer”, Bussy whispered.

“What is it?” I asked, feeling a little alarmed.

“n the lecture hall, in the café, on the road, inside the bus and while returning to the hostel… you gotta look cute and sharp”.

“Well, that’s true…” I mumbled.

Bussy fumbled with my necktie, adjusted the knot, before smoothening the lapels of my suit.

“The makers of James Bond should really consider a sx foot, chocolate skinned cutie with athletic physique like yours for the next James Bond”. Bussy said with a wink.