One

~Kunmi~

I watched my mom in sheer horror, willing my ears to unhear whatever it was she just said. Mom repeated herself and I blinked hard. 

"Kunmi, I've gotten your transfer papers ready.'

Transfer papers? 

'What transfer? What papers Ma?" 

"Your transfer to Crescent High. Must I always repeat everything?" 

I dropped my spoon and stared straight ahead. There was no way that was happening. Transfer schools? That was the last thing I would ever do. What would I do in a new school anyway? How would I survive? It took me a whole year to fully settle in my current school. A whole year to make friends. A single friend. Omotara! And now mom was telling me to change schools. Just like that. 

Without any prior warning. 

That was equivalent to telling me to die. 

"Mom," I called out calmly but mom barely spared a glance my way. 

I swallowed an imaginary lump. 

"I don't want to transfer schools. I can't transfer schools." 

I could feel the tears starting in my eyes. I blinked. Once. Twice. Thrice. 

The waterworks was going to start again.

"Kunmi. This is not an argument. This is not a debate. You are going to Cresent High and that's final!" Mom said, narrowing her eyes at me. Dad was yet to say anything. If there was someone who could alter this situation, it was him. 

"Dad, please I don't want to change schools. I can't..." 

"Kunmi, must you always query me everytime I talk? Must you always try to talk yourself out of everything?" Mom finally snapped, dropping her fork on the table and I felt tears roll down my face. 

"Mom, don't get yourself unnecessarily worked up because of Kunmi. You should have known by now that she's going to try to talk herself out of this." 

My elder sister, Mayowa said and I scowled. Don't get yourself unnecessarily worked up because of Kunmi? Just say Kunmi is not worth your attention. 

I heaved a sigh, a thousand thoughts swirling in my head. A new school! A new school!! A new school!!! 

There was no way I'd survive. 

"Kunmi, don't give your mom hypertension. Just go to the new school. She wants the best for you."

The best for me? How come they all knew the best for me and I did not know? Wasn't this my life? 

"Crescent High is one of the best secondary school in the country. The children of all the ministers and all the influential people go there. Shouldn't you be grateful for this kind of opportunity? Do you know the number of kids that would kill to be in your place? But no, no matter what we do for you, you don't appreciate it. You're not the only child we have. Look at your younger brother, look at your elder sister, they're the perfect kids but not you, you always have a problem with everything."

And like always, mom was turning the table around, she was placing all the blame on me. The tears that were threatening to spill were now running freely down my cheeks. I wiped them with the back of my palms. 

All these stupid tears ehn. 

"Just transfer Schools, Kunmi. You will meet new people, socialize more and..." Mayowa shrugged and looked at me from head to toe.

"Change and come out of your shell." 

I said nothing afterwards, only eating her food. That's the only thing I loved doing anyway. Eat, Eat and think about eating. I obsessed over eating. 

No wonder I was fat. 

I retreated to the safe corners of my room after dinner. I knew there was nothing I could do to talk myself out of changing schools. 

Look on the brighter side. 

You don't have any friend in your current school. Your only friend, Tara changed schools when you guys got to senior class so you don't have anybody to talk to in school. Maybe Mayowa was right. You could use this opportunity to change, make friends, socialize more and come out of your shell. Nobody knows you in this new school you are about to attend. You could put the old Kunmi behind you and become a whole new person. 

A whole new person? 

Who are you fooling? 

At least, it would be safe to be with familiar strangers like my classmates in my current school. We'd spent four good years together but to start a new school, one of the most prestigious school in the country, with total strangers? 

Even though to continue to attend that school was sucking me all the way in. 

No way, there was no way I could cope. No way I could survive it. I closed my eyes and laid on my king size bed, as big as I was, I could get lost in the bed. My thoughts were disoriented. I never saw this coming. Never envisaged it. 

I opened her eyes, feeling the sharp impact of the halogen bulb. I reached for the switch and turned it off just as someone knocked on the door. I turned it on again. 

"Come in."

Mayowa entered, putting on a flowered pattern night gown. Her face was freshly scrubbed. She lingered by the door, arms crossed over her chest. 

"You should listen to mom more," She said finally, walked to the corner of the room and sat on the ball chair. I chuckled and closed my eyes again, saying nothing. 

"I'm serious Kunmi, you should listen to mom. She wants the best for you. I would have killed to attend Crescent High and now, it's been offered to you on a platter of gold. And you want out? Oh, come on." 

I said nothing as I opened my eyes, feeling the sharp impact of the halogen bulb again. 

I just want you to leave my room so I'd turn off this way too bright bulb. 

"Kunmi, I'm talking to you." 

I sighed again, for the umpteenth time that evening. 

"What about consulting me before making decisions for me? It's my life we're talking about." 

"They know the best thing for you and they want to do that for you. You should allow them." 

My eyes automatically rolled by themselves. 

"You know that I'd be traveling soon. You'll be mom's only companion in the house. For her health's sake, just do whatever it is she wants. It's not that hard." 

It's not that hard? Of course, it's not that hard. Because things has always worked out the way you want them to, it's not that hard for you but for me? Nah, I know way better than that. 

She stood up and started to walk towards the door. She paused and stared at the corner where my piano was. 

Where my piano is. 

She walked towards the piano and she carresed it with her fingers. She looked up and saw me looking at her. 

"It's already gathering dust." 

She said and I closed my eyes again. 

Just get out please. Please! 

I heard her footsteps as she walked closer to the door. She opened the door and I started to heave a sigh of relieve. She paused. 

For crying loud sake! 

"Mom worries about you a lot." 

And she was gone. I flipped the switch, turning the room into a pitch of darkness. Of course, mom worries about me a lot. 

Why? 

Because I'm the fat daughter. 

Because I'm the extreme introverted daughter who stutters in front of stranger. 

Because I'm the daughter who doesn't fit into the glamorous lifestyle as the second daughter of one of the richest families in the state. 

Because... Because...

I could list a thousand reasons but for now, let me just enjoy the utter bliss. I reached for my headphone on my side table. 

This blissful darkness plus music equals best feeling. 

*******

I wasn't able to talk myself out of transferring schools. Once mom set her mind on something, nothing would make change her mind, nothing, absolutely nothing. She arrived home one day with my school uniform and I would be lying if I say I did not fall in love with it at first sight. 

Probably because it was a Korean styled uniform.

A cream shirt and a flowered patterned light brown pleated skirt. A brown tie and a jacket with the same material with the skirt. 

For starters, I loved the skirt because it was pleated, not the straight skirt we wore in my former school. 

At least, this wouldn't show the outline of my enormous thighs and ass. Something I extremely hated and would do anything to hide. 

Change. 

Heavens were finally smiling on me by this uniform. 

I tried the uniform on in the safe corners of my room countless times before resumption. I loathed the fact that I was changing school but I loved my school uniform. 

Right now, I was putting on the uniform again. I wasn't trying it on. I was putting it on because it was finally resumption day and I was going to Cresent High. I was doing the button on the jacket when I noticed the tiny butterfly below the school's name on the badge. I carressed it unknowingly when I heard a loud knock on my door. 

The people in this house ehn. 

"Who is it?"

"It's me." came the reply. It's me? I hated responses like that. It's you? Who are you? Jesus? But I knew who it was anyway. It was one of the maids. Aunty Lara, a lady in her mid twenties. 

"What do you want?"

"Madam says you should hurry up or you'd be late."

I glanced at the wall clock in my room. It was almost 7am. Wow. The last thing I needed was to get to school late and risk being the center of attraction. I stared at myself in the mirror and I used gel to lay the edges of my hair. It wasn't plaited; I just had it packed into a bun. 

The whole family was eating when I got downstairs. I took a minute to take in our enormous dinning room for the upteenth time since we moved into this way too big house for a family of five. Way too big. 

"Good Morning."

I greeted and curtseyed a little. Dad nodded at me because his mouth was full of shrimps. Mayowa glanced at me from head to toe. I waited for her appraisal. 

"Your school uniform looks good but then, what do I expect? It's Cresent High. They're unique." 

Of course, what do I expect? That my sister would tell me that I looked good? No way. That was like waiting for snow in summer. 

I sat down and stared at the sumptuous meal in front of me. White rice and stew, with everything you could find in that stew, shrimps, fish, cow skin, meats, snails and everything with dodo. Of course, there would always be dodo. We never eat rice without fried plaintain. It just makes no sense. My mouth watered just at the sight of the food and it's dangerous aroma. I knew once I started eating, I wouldn't be able to stop.

And that would be danger no 1.

Why?

Because my stomach would definitely looked plumped if I should finish it. 

Not like it doesn't look plumped already. 

"You should eat up or else you want to be late to school."

Mom said and I nodded slowly. I picked up my fork and I lifted a shrimp into my mouth. No sooner had my tongue met the food than I knew I was a goner. 

I ate it up. Every single thing. 

*********

I felt ten times heavier than usual as I entered the back seat of the car. The car designated to take me to school. The driver, a middle aged man smiled at me as he started the ignition. I attempted a smile back but I failed miserably. 

Why did I eat the whole food up? Why? Just why? Now I look like a bloated object. 

And I was going to a new school. 

My palms started to become sweaty as the driver drove further and further away from home. 

How would today turn out to be? 

Would I survive it? 

Would the students like me? 

Scratch that. Nobody likes me. 

My heart started to beat loudly in my chest that I was sure the driver would hear it. I lowered the window so I could feel fresh air. 

It did not help. 

Should I just tell the driver to turn back and drive back home? 

I could fake a migraine. 

I opened my mouth to do just that just as the driver drove into a school? I wasn't sure it was a school because it looked too exquisite to be a school. 

I wasn't sure of what it was as I stared awestruck at whatever it was. I lifted my eyes and I saw Cresent High written on a distant wall, with the picture of a butterfly beside it. 

Oh wow. 

I stepped out of the car and barely heard the goodbye the driver muttered. 

What is this place? I thought to myself. 

Was this still Nigeria? A school like this existed in my country. 

I instinctively turned back to check if I was in the right place. I surely felt like Alice in wonderland. 

Except this wasn't any wonderland. 

Wow. Just wow.

This must be how Cha Eun Sang felt when she stepped into Empire High. 

Except that Empire High did not even hold a candle to the heaven I was staring at. 

I don't know how long I stood there gawking at my soon to be school. 

"Chooooooooo." Someone said loudly to my ears. I jumped and nearly doubled over. 

God save me. Imagine falling and rolling down this field. That would make a spectacular and grand entrance. Someone of my size rolling on the floor. If I were someone else. I would definitely laugh at whoever fell. 

"You're mesmerized, right? That's Cresent High for you. One of the most beautiful secondary schools in West Africa." 

The person said and I turned to look at him. I met the eyes of the most strange looking boy I've ever seen. Strange because he looked pretty, just like a girl. Boys weren't supposed to look like this. 

The boy smiled at me. 

Someone actually talked to me and the person was now smiling at me. 

What? 

Was this school spreading its magical wings to me? 

I cleared my throat and attempted to say something. My mouth failed to form words. 

The boy started to walk away while I stood there, still not believing what just happened. 

"Hey."

That was the boy's voice again. He had stopped walking and was looking at me. 

'Welcome to Cresent High, wish you a fun filled stay at our too beautiful school.' 

And he walked away. 

But not before winking. 

He actually winked. 

At me? 

Wow. Now, I surely felt like Alice in Wonderland. 

I closed my eyes, heaved a sigh and started walking towards the main building.