I think I’m supposed to write about
this so that I can share my experiences and the things I’ve been through so
someone else can learn from it. I see love as a spirit that has existed since
the olden days of ancestors and apostles. It comes to you, it does what it
wants and then it leaves.
I like the life I live especially when it
comes to what I do on weekends after finishing my chores. I might go to the
university library (if we have a paper on Sunday) or I might go to the regional
library to read magazines and news papers. Or I might decide to go to Simba gym
or to other sites and get a drink or two.
On a Saturday evening of my fifth semester I decided to go the university
library to do what had brought me to Moro Municipal. I saw Madame Grace; my
fellow tenant, leaving with her IST and decided to ask her to give me a lift to
the Library. She dropped me off and went to her office.
I went to the top floor; I had my
laptop, one book and an exercise book. There were barely any people there. I
looked for a place with a socket. I sat in the back, there was a girl in jeans
and a pull over sweater. I didn’t pay her any attention. I greeted her and wore
my ear phones. I sat there for over half an hour when I started scratching my
leg, I was wearing a short; I don’t recall if I was itchy because a mosquito or
not.
It was when I was bent over
scratching myself that I noticed the girl had been staring at me for a while. When
I got up, she touched my shoulder so I removed my ear phones so I could listen
to her.
She said “Bro, you’ve been
watching movies since you got here wouldn’t it of have been better if you’d
just stayed at home?”
I was in a very good mood so I
didn’t mind and just laughed it off; I turned towards her and said “No, I’m not
watching a movie. This is a documentary on the Ebola Outbreak in Guinea. I have
a test concerning the matter tomorrow.”
She laughed for a bit and then
said “Aha,”
I said “Yeah.”
Although the conversation was
over I found myself staring at the sweater she wore. It had the initials J.D
written on it. She saw me staring and said “Why are you lost in space?
Shouldn’t you go back to your documentary?”
“The J.D on your sweater reminded
me of something; I’ll tell you about it one day.” I tore off a paper, wrote my
number on it then placed it on the table she was using. I didn’t care if she
would take it or not, I just left it there and went back to my studying.
After an hour had passed she
started to get up from her seat as though she were about to leave. I turned
around and asked her for her name.
She said “Tayana,”
I said “Tanasha?”
“TAYANA!" she reiterated.
Still I said “Tanaya?”
“Big head, my name is Tayana!”
“I’m playing with you! My name is
Noel.”
The day ended just like that. A
few days passed, by then I’d already forgotten what had happened or that I’d
given my number to someone. You know, cause legends shoot a lot of shots.
The following Friday I received a
text that said ‘Hey Noel Library’.
I wrote back ‘Yeah, what’s
up?’
The next text said ‘Cool, it’s
Tayana from that day'.
I connected the dots; I recalled
just who she was so we chatted.
As we were talking she told me
that she found the paper in the bag as she was about to wash it; it was then
that she remembered to text me. I don’t know if it was God that reminded her or
the devil that decided to leave me with a life long scar.
As we kept on talking she
reminded me of the J.D story I’d promised to tell her about. I laughed and said
to her “The moment I saw you wearing the sweater with the J.D initials my mind
started thinking of Jack Daniel’s the alcoholic beverage because my dad had
left it in the fridge once and I’d drunk it. It was already another day when I
came to.”
She laughed her ass off in the WhatsApp
voice note she sent me. She told me “Noe, you are so funny but the J.D is a souvenir
of my ex boyfriend. His name was Jackson Dauson. He hurt me tremendously but I
don’t need to talk about that.”
I told her she didn’t need to
talk about him but that she need to find someone to take his place; someone who
can get rid of all the scars he left behind.
She sent a smiley emoji. We said
our farewells and slept. Days went by and got even more familiar with each
other. Tayana made me go to the Library even when I was in no mood to study.
I’d go just so I could see her. It was the same for her; she would text me
until I came and sat next to her. And only then could she sit and study.
I slowly felt like I was about to
fall. I remember I even posted a status saying I’m about to fall for
someone’s daughter.
This was the day when a fella I
knew called Liam commented and said “You idiot, you’ll break up eventually.”
I told him off and threatened not
to pay for anymore of his suits because he was well versed in the area. The
idiot blue ticked me.
Time doesn’t stand still. One day
at the Library and Tayana was no where to be seen. I called to check on her and
she said she wasn’t feeling well so she couldn’t come to the Library. I wondered
what was left for me to do at the Library when the one I loved was unwell.
Honestly, this Vet Doctor was
caught up because argh!
She gave me the directions for
her place and I got there safely. It was the first time I was there. Her room
was nice and it was self contained. You know how women are, she had gotten
herself a lovely place to live in.
She was inside just watching a
movie. We talked for a while. I looked in her fridge and found it full with
literally everything. I told her I should prepare everything because she was
sick. I played chef and wore an apron. I prepared a beautiful meal and we ate.
Afterwards she leaned down and
drew a guitar from under her bed. I asked her if she knew how to play it and
she said that she could play really well. So she played a few tunes and I
enjoyed the sound.
I decided to tell her the story
“Rose and Thorns" as she was playing the guitar. She was really happy with
it; getting her to smile made me feel like a winner.
She said “Noel, I love you so
much.”
Aye! Those words filled me up
with so much happiness, I felt like I was superhuman, I felt loved.
After that we did what lovers
did; mind you we didn’t get to all the bases.
When I got home I studied as I
listened to music, I had already paid my rent, I had already covered my
electricity bill, water was available; what else could I possibly need? When
the night ended I wished her goodnight and she responded with a lot of heart
emoji. I’d missed receiving such things as it had been a while.
When I got online I found that
she had posted a status with the words ‘The lost has found ❤’
Aye! I hyped myself up and told
me it was a done deal.
Days went by. The end of the
semester came and she went back to her home in Mbeya. We talked all the time
but all of a sudden we started talking less. Whenever I asked her what was
wrong, she wouldn’t say. Until finally one night as we were talking through normal
texts but then she suddenly stopped texting back. I figured she had fallen
asleep so I slept too.
But then a whole day went by
without any form of communication. The second day passed and she didn’t pick up
her phone when I called nor did she reply to my texts. On the third day I saw a
text come through that said ‘Noel you are a good person and you deserve
someone better. I never meant to hurt that’s why I did all that I could to make
you happy. I have had leukemia for a long time now and I am getting worse. I
don’t know what else I can do for you. I kept this for you for the longest
time.’
I was surprised. I called her
number but the voice that spoke was completely different. It was Tayana's
sister and she said “We’re at her
funeral, she has gone to a better place. I saw that she saved you as Nono. She
had tried to send a text to you but it didn’t go through. I thought I should
send it as you might be her important person.”
I cried so much. I prepared
myself for the journey and asked my friend Liam to lend me some money for the
trip.
I arrived in Mbeya where the
funeral was done. Her sister gave me Tanaya's guitar to keep as a memorabilia.
I still have her pictures with
me, I still remember her whenever I enter the library.
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