I see things others don't (1) episode 15,16,17
continues
Hello young man,” the psychiatrist said, looking kindly at me.
I gave him one of my most winning smiles. I needed to be as
friendly as possible if I was going to pull this one off. I took
one look at him at it was awesome. I thought I could see into
other people before, but now it was like looking with super
vision. I saw everything, every little detail about the doctor
was made known to me. Is this how I used to see when I was
little? No wonder I had run into so much trouble then. I knew
his name, the day he was born, his worst fear, his greatest
accomplishments. Every little hidden secret was an open book
to me. And I read him. And I marvelled at this gift.
“So,” he said. “My name is-”
“Dr Paul O-, yes I know” I replied.
The psychiatrist looked a little startled at first, then he looked
at his name tag on his desk and smiled.
“Very observant of you” he said,
“I didn’t read your name tag” I replied.
“Of course you didn’t” the doctor responded condescendingly.
“A voice must have told you, right?”
I noted his sarcasm and resisted the urge to get angry. He was
still viewing me as a patient. I needed to be calm to convince
him otherwise.
He noticed my silence and opened up my case note and
started writing. I tried not to look curious as he scribbled down
whatever he thought was wrong with me. Finally he spoke:
“How long have you been smoking Indian hemp?”
“I have never smoked Indian hemp in my life.”
“Oh come now,” he said, “I can’t help you unless you tell me
the truth.”
I turned back and saw the two nurses at alert behind me.
“Well, a little privacy would be nice,” I said pointedly.
He hesitated for a moment then asked both nurses out of the
office. The female nurse objected, looking very concerned but
he allayed her fears.
“I don’t think our friend is going to be violent, nurse. He just
wants a little privacy so he can tell me what I need to know
without feeling shy, abi my friend?” He said smiling at me.
I nodded and she reluctantly left with the male nurse. They
shut the door but I could still feel thier presence. They hadn’t
gone far.
The doctor was looking at me, observing my every move. I
was sure there was some kind of alarm button below his desk,
if I misbehaved, those two would be back in the office in
seconds.
“Now then,” he said genially. “We are alone. So tell me when
you started using Indian hemp.
“I have never smoked Indian hemp in my life.” I repeated.
He gave me a look like a headmaster who had caught one of
his students doing something naughty, calmly took up my
case note and read where they had found Indian hemp in my
apartment.
“And did you see the hemp sir? I asked innocently. The doctor
admited that no, he hadn’t. I asked if anyone else had seen the
said wraps of hemp for which he answered on the negative but
said it was probably with the police who had accompanied the
good Samaritan to my room.
“I am sorry, doctor, but I am aware that when the police bring
a case like this to your hospital, they usually leave thier
number so they can be contacted in case of any eventuality.” I
said. “Do you have any such information?”
I saw a puzzled look come across the doctor’s face as he
searched through my case note. Obviously he hadn’t bothered
to look for any of these things and had simply begun seeing
me based on the word of the “good samaritan” that had
brought me in. And if he had met me in my “psychotic” state he
would never had taken a second look at the supposed
information given, as my case would have been typical in
presentation to the tens of cases he saw like this everyday.
Even if my parents who had travelled all the way from my
hometown had vouched for me, my irrational talk and violent
behaviour would have still convinced the doctor that I had been
involved in some form of substance use. It was clear that my
logical thinking was causing the doctor some concern and
doubt.
“Listen, Mr chuks,” the doctor said. “I don’t know why I can’t
get any information regarding the whereabouts of your
cannabis, but its probably an oversight from our staff.
however, it also says here that you were having auditory and
visual hallucinations which is typical of this condition. Now tell
me, do you hear voices or see things that other people in the
room do not see?”
Here was my cue. Now was the moment of truth. I could
either try and feign ignorance and hope he would discharge me
based on my miraculous recovery, or I could let him in on
what really happened and hope he wasn’t somehow on Mr
A-‘s payroll. I didn’t have to think so much though, the next
thing he said made up my mind for me”.
“You might as well tell me the truth because either way I’m still
going to keep you here even if its for observation.” And he
started scribbling something else on my case note.
“How is Bisi doing?” I said. “Are you planning on calling her
later?”
The room became deathly silent. It was as if i had shot him
with a stun gun, as if a massive amount of electricity had gone
through his body. He just sat there, his mouth open, his
fingers still moving the pen but writing nothing. I didn’t wait for
him to respond.
“She’s definitely not the girl for you, if you don’t mind my
saying so. Someone who would argue with you and keep
malice for four days just because you came a few minutes late
for a lunch appointment isn’t going to be anymore
understanding if and when you do get married.”
The doctor was finally able to find his voice though his fingers
were still twitching spasmodically. “How…how did
you…but…”
“Okay sir, here’s the thing.” I said. “Yes I do see things
sometimes that other people don’t see but that doesn’t make
me crazy, just different. And I don’t talk about it unless I feel it
will be of help to the person, just as I feel I have helped you
out of making the biggest mistake of your life. I don’t smoke
Indian hemp, never have and hopefully nevrr will. I was framed
and its a very long story, one that maybe one day I’ll write into
a book and publish, but not one I have the time to tell right
now. Right now I have to leave this hospital as soon as
possible. I’ll do any test you want me to do to prove my sanity
but I don’t have the time because I strongly feel the girl of my
dreams is about to make a very grave mistake and I have to
be there to stop her. And oh yes, the woman whose fender you
hit today only let you off because she saw your car had
sustained more damage than hers.”
The look on the doctor’s face was priceless. He seemed like he
wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. For a man who
believed strongly in logic I had just blown his beliefs out of the
water. He looked at me for a while and I wondered what he
was going to say, what he was going to do.
“So…Bisi is not my soulmate?” He asked.
“I’m sorry, no.” I said. “Marry her and you’ll be struggling the
rest of your life. All that glitters isn’t gold, my friend.”
He smiled sadly at that last statement and I saw tears come to
his eyes. Suddenly he scribbled some more into my case note
and signed off then turned it towards me so I could read. The
last line went:
CASE OF DELIRIUM. NO USAGE OF CANNABIS. PATIENT
DISCHARGED HOME.
I heaved a sigh of relief and thanked him.
‘No, thank you,” he said. “I haven’t felt so good in four days.
You are free to go. I would like to have your number though, if
you don’t mind.”
I gave it to him and started to leave the office. I opened the
door and saw the two nurses sitting on a bench outside. The
female nurse jumped up on seeing me and I smiled at her. I
turned back and said to the doctor who was still sitting dazed
in his chair.
“You two make a good team. Imagine drinking that well
brewed coffee for the rest of your life. Open your eyes, man!”
Then I smiled again and gave way for the female nurse who
promptly came into the office and asked if the doctor was
alright. The doctor looked at her and I saw that he had made
the connection.
“I’m fine Nurse Betty,” He said. “The patient has been
discharged. Let him go home.”
to be continued
continues
*******************
It’s been a day since I was discharged from the psychiatrist
hospital at Yaba. And Nina has not called. My parents were
ecstatic when I came out of the doctor’s office and told them
that I had been discharged. They wasted no time in clearing
whatever outstanding bills were left, thanked the doctor
profusely and bundled me home like a long lost child. I didn’t
blame them though. I hadn’t seen them in a year and the next
thing they were hearing is I was crazy. And having the kind of
gift that I do, I can imagine they were terribly worried. My
mum keeps on hugging me from time to time, getting quite
irritating. My dad is faring much better. I can tell he is happy
by the way he nods at any suggestion my mum makes. Apart
from that his expression has remained the same. He is more
observant and has noticed that I am anxious about something
and soon he figures out what it is.
I’m lying down in my room trying to read a novel, ‘A mile in my
shoes’. My mum is in the kitchen, having gone to the market
previously. From the deliciously titillating aroma that emanates
from there, I deduce she is making Egusi soup. I can hear her
humming happily to herself and I sigh quietly. I can’t wait for
them to leave. I have to find out about Nina. I have to know
why she didn’t call, why she didn’t visit, if she is alright. I have
thought of calling her many times but I don’t know what
situation she is in and I don’t want to alert Mr A**** to the fact
that I am back and very sane. Not yet. What if I call and he is
with her at the time? Would he feel threatened and harm her in
some way? What if that fiancée of hers has convinced her to
take the pact? What if she has simply forgotten about me and
decided I wasn’t worth being around anymore? Maybe she
believed it that I was a hemp smoker, that everything I had said
I was capable of was just because of the effects of the weed I
was purported to have been smoking? My head was a
spaghetti plate of confused thoughts and it was giving me a
headache. I planned on secretly going to visit her yesterday,
as soon as I was discharged but my mother wouldn’t hear of
it. She didn’t care where I was going, she said. I needed rest,
she said. My house was devoid of soup and stew, how had I
been feeding, etcetera, etcetera. And my dad had nodded in
agreement, not saying a word in my defense. Parents!
The night before had been difficult, I kept tossing and turning,
and when I finally went to sleep I was accosted by Chukwudi
the stronger who wanted to know why I was so restless. It
seemed like a dream but somehow I knew it wasn’t. I found
myself explaining about Nina and my feelings for her. He
laughed, or rather, giggled and asked if we had kissed yet. I
told him yes and he said I should make sure to kiss her again
now that he was awake to experience it. Pervert. Wait, he’s
me, so…
Anyway here I am this afternoon, the morning having been one
long boring lecture by my mother on how to keep my
immaculately clean house cleaner, how my fridge is devoid of
soup, how to keep my wardrobe neat else I wouldn’t attract
the right kind of girl, (a statement that had so many things
wrong with it but I didn’t want to argue with her) and so on. I
kept quiet and endured until she finally went off to the market.
My father had stayed in the parlour all through, reading the
newspaper when there was no light, watching CNN when there
was, and didn’t say anything at all to me which left me to my
tormenting thoughts until I decided to come to the room and
have a quiet read.
I heard a quiet knock on the door and I looked up from my
novel. My dad was at the door, still holding his newspaper.
“Can I come in? He asked, and then came in regardless. I
shifted over to one edge of the bed while he sat down at the
other end. We sat still in awkward silence for a few minutes
and then:
“Does she mean that much to you?”
“Yes,” I said, “Yes she does.”
He sighed. “We are not leaving until we are sure you are
alright.”
“I’m an adult. I can take care of myself” I replied a little rudely.
“Sure you can,” countered my dad, “That’s why they called us
to come and visit you in the psychiatric hospital.”
I opened my mouth, and then shut it again. Some more
minutes of silence.
“You said the man was responsible for this? And you want to
confront him again?”
“Yes sir.”I replied.
“What about the police?” he asked.
“What about them? I said. “Do you want me to go to the
station and tell them, ‘Come and arrest this man, he made me
mad, he has evil spiritual guardians and wants to steal his only
son’s wife destiny after paralyzing him in an accident’? No
way sir.”
“Don’t call me sir!” my dad said getting angry. “Are you crazy?
Or you enjoyed the madness he dashed you so much that you
want to experience
it again?! And over a girl you have barely known for a year?
“He insulted me, dad…” I said, getting angry myself.
“That’s not you talking. That’s Chuks the stronger…”
“I am Chuks the stronger!” I said, raising my voice.
“You men should shout very loud o, let all the neighbors know
our secret o!” came my mother’s voice from the kitchen.
We kept quiet for a while. I lay back on the bed and closed my
eyes. My dad sat still, looking at nothing in particular.
“I forbid you to go.” My dad said.
“Oh no you can’t sir!” I shouted getting up from the bed at
once. My father looked up at me in surprise. I heard my
mother sigh in exasperation and come out of the kitchen. A
while later my sound speaker was on and blaring Anna
Nalick’s “Breathe”, and then she was back into the kitchen. I
tried to speak calmly.
“Look dad, you don’t understand, I think maybe the reason I
have this gift, this sight is because I’m supposed to help
people, right? Well what if it’s because of her? What if the
reason I have the sight is so I could meet this girl in this world
and help her out? I don’t know why I feel so strongly but I
really need to see her again. I need to know she is alright, that
I didn’t let her down somehow. You should have seen her the
day I told her I could see things! She believed me outright! The
first person I have told outside of my family and she didn’t look
at me like I was some sort of loon! She trusted e to come to
her place and check out her fiancée and now that I know they
have something sinister planned out for her you want me to
just abandon her at her point of need? That’s not the son you
raised. My conscience wouldn’t let me! She’s in trouble and
even if I don’t get anything out of it, even if she doesn’t love
me, I need to know I did everything in my power to help her!”
“Chuks,” my father said
“No wait! And as for that Mr A****, I honestly feel I can do
better this time. Chuks the stronger taught me some things
when we met. I feel he unleashed a lot of hidden potential in
me. And I can feel his anger, his annoyance at being treated
so lightly. I feel it myself. Nobody makes a fool out of chuks.
Nobody makes an out of me! If it takes me using my bare
hands I will make sure I strip him of whatever powers he
posseses!
“Chuks!” my father said standing
“You can’t forbid me from doing anything for goodness sake! I
am full grown adult-“
“ Your book is on fire! ” he shouted pointing.
I looked down at my hand. It was true; the novel I had been
reading was smoking and smoldering. I gasped and dropped it
and we both stamped on it until the flames died out. I looked
at my hands. It was not burned. My father looked at my hands
as well and then met my bewildered eyes.
“Not a word to your mother. Not yet.”
I nodded in agreement.
“You really feel so strongly about this girl?” he asked.
“Yes Dad, yes I do” I replied emphatically.
My father shook his head sadly. “ I knew times like these
would come. That’s why I tried to send you to a monastery
when you were small, so you won’t have opportunity for such
things eh?”
I raised my eyebrows but said nothing.
“Well, we can’t stay here to monitor you forever. If you are
going to do anything it should be when we are around so we
can get you out of trouble if necessary. Please don’t confront
the man alone, go tomorrow in broad daylight and be back
before sundown. If there is any problem call me or send me
text or something, I’ll find a reason to come with the police.
But if they are no longer around you’ll leave the matter to die
naturally. You are not here to save the world.”
“What about mum?” I asked
“I’ll find something to tell her. That woman does like she
doesn’t know what is going on but I tell you, nothing escapes
her! My battle with her tomorrow is going to be as tough as
yours so please save my life as well as your own and come
back before sundown tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay dad,” I said and suddenly hugged him. It was a bit
awkward because we didn’t do that sort of thing. He grunted
and backed out after a few seconds. It would have been more
awkward if my mum hadn’t come in at that precise moment.
“Akpu and Egusi with goat meat for lunch. Are you
interested?”
“Yes,” I said, quickly kicking the partially burnt novel under the
bed. “Yes I am.”
*****************
continues
By eight o’ clock the next morning I had taken my bath, eaten
breakfast and was out of the house. Dad kept mum in the
bedroom, said he wanted to discuss something with her. As
soon as they were in I sneaked out and boarded a taxi.
I still hadn’t heard a word from Nina and frankly I was worried
about her. At least she should have sent a text message to
find out how I was doing…then again if she thought I was still
insane she would have thought there was no point calling as I
wouldn’t be coherent enough to answer. I urged the taxi-man
to go faster and he replied that I should come down if I was in
a hurry. I hissed and that was the cue for him to enter a
sermon on safe driving. I turned away towards the window
and mentally blocked out his voice as I watched other vehicles
passing by. We eventually arrived at her estate 45minutes
later. I jumped out of the car and paid the driver, who zoomed
off immediately. I entered the estate, greeting the security
guards in their dark blue uniforms sitting in their cubicle and
listening to the radio. They answered politely and I walked
inside. I checked from afar to see if there was any car outside
but Nina’s frontage was completely empty. I approached
cautiously and peeked in through the window. There didn’t
appear to be anybody at home. I went round the house and
saw that all the windows were locked and the surroundings
quiet. It was only then it occurred to me that she would be at
work. I had forgotten that today was a working day. She would
probably have left early, locking up her place. This also meant
that her fiancée’s visit had been over since Monday. I made up
my mind and brought out my phone to call her. An
emotionless electronic voice answered me:
The number you have dialed is switched off. Please try again later.
Maybe she was in a meeting, I thought. It occurred to me for
the first time that I ought to be at work as well. It seemed a bit
odd that nobody had called me to ask how I was doing or even
come to visit me during my stay in the hospital. I had my share
of friends there besides Nina and started to feel a bit hurt that
none of them had deemed it fit to check on me. Maybe they
were embarrassed but they would have at least come to see if
I was being well taken care of. The fact that my strict boss
hadn’t called even once, whether I was reported to be sane or
not, was baffling. I decided I would go straight to the firm and
find out what was going on.
I left the estate and boarded another taxi to my place of work.
On getting there I was greeting jovially by the gate-man. I
acknowledged his greeting and was happy to note that the
spirit of alcoholism which usually perched on his shoulder was
nowhere to be seen. I walked inside the building and took the
elevator to the second floor. On coming out of the elevator I
was greeted by familiar faces in a very friendly manner, which
I found to be quite relieving as I didn’t want anybody treating
me awkwardly after my “incident”
“Guy how far na, how village? Hope your parents are all right?”
the head cleaner asked as he passed by. I was momentarily
stunned but recovered quickly and answered in the affirmative.
He gave me a thumbs up signal and continued down the
corridor. I heard similar comments as I made my way to my
boss’s office.
“Chuks, well done o, you jus miss comot abi?”
“happy to know things are going well, did you get my
messages”
“Well come back sir!”
“Thank god say you no kill ya papa.”
I stopped in my tracks and yanked the last speaker back by his
shoulder. His name was Jackson. Jackson was an assistant
manager like me and was a bit of a social misfit. He was a
head shorter than I was; light complexioned with a round face
that bordered on mongolism. He had the irritating habit of
pressing his phone while talking to you that made him look like
he was not paying attention. However I gave him a little
respect because anytime I looked at him I literally saw him
standing in a pool of mud. His feet always appeared made of
iron and seemed to push him through the muddy pool but try
as he might the pool followed him everywhere. Pachios had
explained then that he had low self esteem issues and it was
this low esteem that was his main driving force in life. He
would excel in his field but would never feel happy with his
accomplishments. It was a sad thing for me to behold so I
always cut him some slack when dealing with him. Today
however, I wasn’t feeling so generous.
“What do you mean by that?” I asked, still holding on to his
shoulder. He brushed my hand off rudely and stood as erect as
possible.
“Don’t get sore on me,” he said trying very hard to maintain
eye contact, “I heard about your dad that’s all. For a moment
there, the way you sounded, we didn’t think he was going to
make it. I am glad to know he is doing all right.”
“What? What are you talking about?” I demanded.
“Is that chukwudi?” I heard my boss yell from his office. “Get
in here!”
I reluctantly let Jackson go. He scampered away from me,
leaving mud trails in his wake that only my eyes could see. I
took a deep breath then walked into my boss’s office.
“Hey, Hey!” he shouted from behind his enormous leather
desk. “Is this how we dress to work now?”
I looked down at my checkered grey and black short sleeved t-
shirt and black chinos. It was true, I hadn’t planned on coming
to work today so I had dressed casually.
“I’m sorry sir.” I said, “I just came to report that I was…”
“Yes I know,” he replied, standing up. “I’m not a dunce. We
are all happy to hear your father is doing well, although I still
have half a mind to
write a query for you. Next time, you’ll let us know you want to
travel before going to a remote place where there is no
network. I don’t care how urgent the situation is, I want to be
given proper prior notice, understood?!”
“Yes sir!” I said, not understanding at all.
“Good!” he said. He took a pile of paperwork from his desk
and tossed them towards me. “I want these completed on y
desk tomorrow morning. No excuses!”
I nodded and was about walking out of his office then turned
back. “Sorry sir, who told you my father was sick?”
He stared at me for a while as if I had gone mad and said “Are
you alright at all? Wasn’t it you that called this office three
days ago to say that your father was seriously ill and that you
were already on your way to the village?”
“I, er…” I stammered.
“You said network would be poor there that we shouldn’t
bother calling because it would be difficult to reach you, and
really I tried your line severally but it kept saying not
reachable, then you sent me a text yesterday saying your
father was better and you were on your way back. I tried
calling last night and again this morning but it was still saying
not reachable! And the client has been disturbing me since
Monday! If not that you are the only one that has information
on our major clients deals I would have sacked you by now!
Now get out of my office!”
I walked out and shut the door behind me. I still couldn’t
understand what was going on and matters were made worse
when I got to my desk. Nina’s table was empty, completely
cleared. I dropped the files and went back to my bosses’
office.
“What are you doing back here?!” he shouted.
“Where’s Nina?”
“Who gives a d--n where she is? She can be dead for all I
care! I told you to finis-“
“Mr Folake, I’m going to ask you again,” I said in a deadpan
voice, “if you do not answer me correctly I will go back to my
desk and tear up every file I see there, after which I will resign.
I’m sure you’ll be very pleased to collect my resignation letter,
seeing that I have cost you three days of work after working
here without a single day missed for five years! Where is she? ”
He opened his mouth angrily but nothing came out. I could
see the greed demon on his head becoming agitated. He was
considering what I had said and was thinking if it would
actually be more beneficial for him to take e up on my threat.
Finally he made a decision.
“She resigned herself yesterday. Just came to the office and
packed her things, saying she wouldn’t be working here
anymore. I told her it was too sudden, that if she left now in
the middle of the month there was no way I was going to pay
her salary. She said that was okay, I could keep the salary. So
I kept quiet and she left.”
What was going on? Why would Nina leave without even trying
to contact me, crazy or not? I turned to go.
“Eh…chukwudi,” my boss called and I turned back.
“Maybe you should take some time off? After doing the files
eh? You still look a little stressed.” He sighed and relaxed back
in his chair. “People around here think I’m an a*hole but I
need to appear harsh to keep this firm on its feet. It doesn’t
mean I am a bad person.”
“Oh I know sir,” I said. “If you were a bad person, you would
have more things than a greed demon attached to you.”
I walked out before he could ask me what I meant.
I went back to my desk and sat down, trying to make sense of
it all. How did Mr A*** get access to my phone to call or send
text? I mean, he could have done anything when I was in the
hospital since he had access to me, but yesterday? I was at
home throughout and my phone had been in my pocket. And
why hadn’t any of my boss’s calls reached me? Or anybody’s
texts for that matter? I brought out the phone again and looked
at it. It didn’t see tampered with. On impulse I called home and
my dad picked the call. I could hear my mum shouting in the
background.
“Hello, who is this?” my dad said in a weary voice.
“Dad, it’s me chuks”
“Chuks?” he replied in a puzzled tone. “Why are you calling
with a strange number?”
“Tell him to come back home!” my mum said in the
background.
“Tell mum I’m fine dad, I’m at the office.” I replied.
“Something weird is going on, everybody thinks I travelled to
see you in the village, they said
they have been trying to contact me but that my number was
not reachable.”
“Really it’s not o, your mum even tried calling you after you
were gone for like an hour. She couldn’t get across to you. I’ve
been having it hot here since.”
“But how?” I said, “my phone has been on since and I’m
calling you guys now…”
And then it hit me.
“Sorry dad, let me call you back” I said and dropped the phone.
I looked around the corridor and saw Jackson wading by.
“Jackson my man,” I called out. He approached me warily.
“Can you call my number please? I want to check something.”
He looked at me for a while then brought out his phone and
dialed.
“Not reachable,” he said.
“Okay, one moment.” I said and scrolled through my contacts
list until I saw his name. I called and his phone rang almost
immediately. He quickly
picked it and said “Hello?”
“It’s me, Chuks,” I replied, then cut the call.
“Oh, you changed your number?”
“No I didn’t. Thanks anyway.” I left him standing outside
looking confused and went back to sit at my desk. I opened
my phone, it was an android, and brought out the SIM card.
I had bought my SIM card five years ago, and over time with
change of phone and one or two accidents, it had acquired the
smudges and scratches of old age.
The SIM card I brought out of my phone however couldn’t have
been mine. It was brand new
Hello young man,” the psychiatrist said, looking kindly at me.
I gave him one of my most winning smiles. I needed to be as
friendly as possible if I was going to pull this one off. I took
one look at him at it was awesome. I thought I could see into
other people before, but now it was like looking with super
vision. I saw everything, every little detail about the doctor
was made known to me. Is this how I used to see when I was
little? No wonder I had run into so much trouble then. I knew
his name, the day he was born, his worst fear, his greatest
accomplishments. Every little hidden secret was an open book
to me. And I read him. And I marvelled at this gift.
“So,” he said. “My name is-”
“Dr Paul O-, yes I know” I replied.
The psychiatrist looked a little startled at first, then he looked
at his name tag on his desk and smiled.
“Very observant of you” he said,
“I didn’t read your name tag” I replied.
“Of course you didn’t” the doctor responded condescendingly.
“A voice must have told you, right?”
I noted his sarcasm and resisted the urge to get angry. He was
still viewing me as a patient. I needed to be calm to convince
him otherwise.
He noticed my silence and opened up my case note and
started writing. I tried not to look curious as he scribbled down
whatever he thought was wrong with me. Finally he spoke:
“How long have you been smoking Indian hemp?”
“I have never smoked Indian hemp in my life.”
“Oh come now,” he said, “I can’t help you unless you tell me
the truth.”
I turned back and saw the two nurses at alert behind me.
“Well, a little privacy would be nice,” I said pointedly.
He hesitated for a moment then asked both nurses out of the
office. The female nurse objected, looking very concerned but
he allayed her fears.
“I don’t think our friend is going to be violent, nurse. He just
wants a little privacy so he can tell me what I need to know
without feeling shy, abi my friend?” He said smiling at me.
I nodded and she reluctantly left with the male nurse. They
shut the door but I could still feel thier presence. They hadn’t
gone far.
The doctor was looking at me, observing my every move. I
was sure there was some kind of alarm button below his desk,
if I misbehaved, those two would be back in the office in
seconds.
“Now then,” he said genially. “We are alone. So tell me when
you started using Indian hemp.
“I have never smoked Indian hemp in my life.” I repeated.
He gave me a look like a headmaster who had caught one of
his students doing something naughty, calmly took up my
case note and read where they had found Indian hemp in my
apartment.
“And did you see the hemp sir? I asked innocently. The doctor
admited that no, he hadn’t. I asked if anyone else had seen the
said wraps of hemp for which he answered on the negative but
said it was probably with the police who had accompanied the
good Samaritan to my room.
“I am sorry, doctor, but I am aware that when the police bring
a case like this to your hospital, they usually leave thier
number so they can be contacted in case of any eventuality.” I
said. “Do you have any such information?”
I saw a puzzled look come across the doctor’s face as he
searched through my case note. Obviously he hadn’t bothered
to look for any of these things and had simply begun seeing
me based on the word of the “good samaritan” that had
brought me in. And if he had met me in my “psychotic” state he
would never had taken a second look at the supposed
information given, as my case would have been typical in
presentation to the tens of cases he saw like this everyday.
Even if my parents who had travelled all the way from my
hometown had vouched for me, my irrational talk and violent
behaviour would have still convinced the doctor that I had been
involved in some form of substance use. It was clear that my
logical thinking was causing the doctor some concern and
doubt.
“Listen, Mr chuks,” the doctor said. “I don’t know why I can’t
get any information regarding the whereabouts of your
cannabis, but its probably an oversight from our staff.
however, it also says here that you were having auditory and
visual hallucinations which is typical of this condition. Now tell
me, do you hear voices or see things that other people in the
room do not see?”
Here was my cue. Now was the moment of truth. I could
either try and feign ignorance and hope he would discharge me
based on my miraculous recovery, or I could let him in on
what really happened and hope he wasn’t somehow on Mr
A-‘s payroll. I didn’t have to think so much though, the next
thing he said made up my mind for me”.
“You might as well tell me the truth because either way I’m still
going to keep you here even if its for observation.” And he
started scribbling something else on my case note.
“How is Bisi doing?” I said. “Are you planning on calling her
later?”
The room became deathly silent. It was as if i had shot him
with a stun gun, as if a massive amount of electricity had gone
through his body. He just sat there, his mouth open, his
fingers still moving the pen but writing nothing. I didn’t wait for
him to respond.
“She’s definitely not the girl for you, if you don’t mind my
saying so. Someone who would argue with you and keep
malice for four days just because you came a few minutes late
for a lunch appointment isn’t going to be anymore
understanding if and when you do get married.”
The doctor was finally able to find his voice though his fingers
were still twitching spasmodically. “How…how did
you…but…”
“Okay sir, here’s the thing.” I said. “Yes I do see things
sometimes that other people don’t see but that doesn’t make
me crazy, just different. And I don’t talk about it unless I feel it
will be of help to the person, just as I feel I have helped you
out of making the biggest mistake of your life. I don’t smoke
Indian hemp, never have and hopefully nevrr will. I was framed
and its a very long story, one that maybe one day I’ll write into
a book and publish, but not one I have the time to tell right
now. Right now I have to leave this hospital as soon as
possible. I’ll do any test you want me to do to prove my sanity
but I don’t have the time because I strongly feel the girl of my
dreams is about to make a very grave mistake and I have to
be there to stop her. And oh yes, the woman whose fender you
hit today only let you off because she saw your car had
sustained more damage than hers.”
The look on the doctor’s face was priceless. He seemed like he
wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. For a man who
believed strongly in logic I had just blown his beliefs out of the
water. He looked at me for a while and I wondered what he
was going to say, what he was going to do.
“So…Bisi is not my soulmate?” He asked.
“I’m sorry, no.” I said. “Marry her and you’ll be struggling the
rest of your life. All that glitters isn’t gold, my friend.”
He smiled sadly at that last statement and I saw tears come to
his eyes. Suddenly he scribbled some more into my case note
and signed off then turned it towards me so I could read. The
last line went:
CASE OF DELIRIUM. NO USAGE OF CANNABIS. PATIENT
DISCHARGED HOME.
I heaved a sigh of relief and thanked him.
‘No, thank you,” he said. “I haven’t felt so good in four days.
You are free to go. I would like to have your number though, if
you don’t mind.”
I gave it to him and started to leave the office. I opened the
door and saw the two nurses sitting on a bench outside. The
female nurse jumped up on seeing me and I smiled at her. I
turned back and said to the doctor who was still sitting dazed
in his chair.
“You two make a good team. Imagine drinking that well
brewed coffee for the rest of your life. Open your eyes, man!”
Then I smiled again and gave way for the female nurse who
promptly came into the office and asked if the doctor was
alright. The doctor looked at her and I saw that he had made
the connection.
“I’m fine Nurse Betty,” He said. “The patient has been
discharged. Let him go home.”
to be continued
continues
*******************
It’s been a day since I was discharged from the psychiatrist
hospital at Yaba. And Nina has not called. My parents were
ecstatic when I came out of the doctor’s office and told them
that I had been discharged. They wasted no time in clearing
whatever outstanding bills were left, thanked the doctor
profusely and bundled me home like a long lost child. I didn’t
blame them though. I hadn’t seen them in a year and the next
thing they were hearing is I was crazy. And having the kind of
gift that I do, I can imagine they were terribly worried. My
mum keeps on hugging me from time to time, getting quite
irritating. My dad is faring much better. I can tell he is happy
by the way he nods at any suggestion my mum makes. Apart
from that his expression has remained the same. He is more
observant and has noticed that I am anxious about something
and soon he figures out what it is.
I’m lying down in my room trying to read a novel, ‘A mile in my
shoes’. My mum is in the kitchen, having gone to the market
previously. From the deliciously titillating aroma that emanates
from there, I deduce she is making Egusi soup. I can hear her
humming happily to herself and I sigh quietly. I can’t wait for
them to leave. I have to find out about Nina. I have to know
why she didn’t call, why she didn’t visit, if she is alright. I have
thought of calling her many times but I don’t know what
situation she is in and I don’t want to alert Mr A**** to the fact
that I am back and very sane. Not yet. What if I call and he is
with her at the time? Would he feel threatened and harm her in
some way? What if that fiancée of hers has convinced her to
take the pact? What if she has simply forgotten about me and
decided I wasn’t worth being around anymore? Maybe she
believed it that I was a hemp smoker, that everything I had said
I was capable of was just because of the effects of the weed I
was purported to have been smoking? My head was a
spaghetti plate of confused thoughts and it was giving me a
headache. I planned on secretly going to visit her yesterday,
as soon as I was discharged but my mother wouldn’t hear of
it. She didn’t care where I was going, she said. I needed rest,
she said. My house was devoid of soup and stew, how had I
been feeding, etcetera, etcetera. And my dad had nodded in
agreement, not saying a word in my defense. Parents!
The night before had been difficult, I kept tossing and turning,
and when I finally went to sleep I was accosted by Chukwudi
the stronger who wanted to know why I was so restless. It
seemed like a dream but somehow I knew it wasn’t. I found
myself explaining about Nina and my feelings for her. He
laughed, or rather, giggled and asked if we had kissed yet. I
told him yes and he said I should make sure to kiss her again
now that he was awake to experience it. Pervert. Wait, he’s
me, so…
Anyway here I am this afternoon, the morning having been one
long boring lecture by my mother on how to keep my
immaculately clean house cleaner, how my fridge is devoid of
soup, how to keep my wardrobe neat else I wouldn’t attract
the right kind of girl, (a statement that had so many things
wrong with it but I didn’t want to argue with her) and so on. I
kept quiet and endured until she finally went off to the market.
My father had stayed in the parlour all through, reading the
newspaper when there was no light, watching CNN when there
was, and didn’t say anything at all to me which left me to my
tormenting thoughts until I decided to come to the room and
have a quiet read.
I heard a quiet knock on the door and I looked up from my
novel. My dad was at the door, still holding his newspaper.
“Can I come in? He asked, and then came in regardless. I
shifted over to one edge of the bed while he sat down at the
other end. We sat still in awkward silence for a few minutes
and then:
“Does she mean that much to you?”
“Yes,” I said, “Yes she does.”
He sighed. “We are not leaving until we are sure you are
alright.”
“I’m an adult. I can take care of myself” I replied a little rudely.
“Sure you can,” countered my dad, “That’s why they called us
to come and visit you in the psychiatric hospital.”
I opened my mouth, and then shut it again. Some more
minutes of silence.
“You said the man was responsible for this? And you want to
confront him again?”
“Yes sir.”I replied.
“What about the police?” he asked.
“What about them? I said. “Do you want me to go to the
station and tell them, ‘Come and arrest this man, he made me
mad, he has evil spiritual guardians and wants to steal his only
son’s wife destiny after paralyzing him in an accident’? No
way sir.”
“Don’t call me sir!” my dad said getting angry. “Are you crazy?
Or you enjoyed the madness he dashed you so much that you
want to experience
it again?! And over a girl you have barely known for a year?
“He insulted me, dad…” I said, getting angry myself.
“That’s not you talking. That’s Chuks the stronger…”
“I am Chuks the stronger!” I said, raising my voice.
“You men should shout very loud o, let all the neighbors know
our secret o!” came my mother’s voice from the kitchen.
We kept quiet for a while. I lay back on the bed and closed my
eyes. My dad sat still, looking at nothing in particular.
“I forbid you to go.” My dad said.
“Oh no you can’t sir!” I shouted getting up from the bed at
once. My father looked up at me in surprise. I heard my
mother sigh in exasperation and come out of the kitchen. A
while later my sound speaker was on and blaring Anna
Nalick’s “Breathe”, and then she was back into the kitchen. I
tried to speak calmly.
“Look dad, you don’t understand, I think maybe the reason I
have this gift, this sight is because I’m supposed to help
people, right? Well what if it’s because of her? What if the
reason I have the sight is so I could meet this girl in this world
and help her out? I don’t know why I feel so strongly but I
really need to see her again. I need to know she is alright, that
I didn’t let her down somehow. You should have seen her the
day I told her I could see things! She believed me outright! The
first person I have told outside of my family and she didn’t look
at me like I was some sort of loon! She trusted e to come to
her place and check out her fiancée and now that I know they
have something sinister planned out for her you want me to
just abandon her at her point of need? That’s not the son you
raised. My conscience wouldn’t let me! She’s in trouble and
even if I don’t get anything out of it, even if she doesn’t love
me, I need to know I did everything in my power to help her!”
“Chuks,” my father said
“No wait! And as for that Mr A****, I honestly feel I can do
better this time. Chuks the stronger taught me some things
when we met. I feel he unleashed a lot of hidden potential in
me. And I can feel his anger, his annoyance at being treated
so lightly. I feel it myself. Nobody makes a fool out of chuks.
Nobody makes an out of me! If it takes me using my bare
hands I will make sure I strip him of whatever powers he
posseses!
“Chuks!” my father said standing
“You can’t forbid me from doing anything for goodness sake! I
am full grown adult-“
“ Your book is on fire! ” he shouted pointing.
I looked down at my hand. It was true; the novel I had been
reading was smoking and smoldering. I gasped and dropped it
and we both stamped on it until the flames died out. I looked
at my hands. It was not burned. My father looked at my hands
as well and then met my bewildered eyes.
“Not a word to your mother. Not yet.”
I nodded in agreement.
“You really feel so strongly about this girl?” he asked.
“Yes Dad, yes I do” I replied emphatically.
My father shook his head sadly. “ I knew times like these
would come. That’s why I tried to send you to a monastery
when you were small, so you won’t have opportunity for such
things eh?”
I raised my eyebrows but said nothing.
“Well, we can’t stay here to monitor you forever. If you are
going to do anything it should be when we are around so we
can get you out of trouble if necessary. Please don’t confront
the man alone, go tomorrow in broad daylight and be back
before sundown. If there is any problem call me or send me
text or something, I’ll find a reason to come with the police.
But if they are no longer around you’ll leave the matter to die
naturally. You are not here to save the world.”
“What about mum?” I asked
“I’ll find something to tell her. That woman does like she
doesn’t know what is going on but I tell you, nothing escapes
her! My battle with her tomorrow is going to be as tough as
yours so please save my life as well as your own and come
back before sundown tomorrow, okay?”
“Okay dad,” I said and suddenly hugged him. It was a bit
awkward because we didn’t do that sort of thing. He grunted
and backed out after a few seconds. It would have been more
awkward if my mum hadn’t come in at that precise moment.
“Akpu and Egusi with goat meat for lunch. Are you
interested?”
“Yes,” I said, quickly kicking the partially burnt novel under the
bed. “Yes I am.”
*****************
continues
By eight o’ clock the next morning I had taken my bath, eaten
breakfast and was out of the house. Dad kept mum in the
bedroom, said he wanted to discuss something with her. As
soon as they were in I sneaked out and boarded a taxi.
I still hadn’t heard a word from Nina and frankly I was worried
about her. At least she should have sent a text message to
find out how I was doing…then again if she thought I was still
insane she would have thought there was no point calling as I
wouldn’t be coherent enough to answer. I urged the taxi-man
to go faster and he replied that I should come down if I was in
a hurry. I hissed and that was the cue for him to enter a
sermon on safe driving. I turned away towards the window
and mentally blocked out his voice as I watched other vehicles
passing by. We eventually arrived at her estate 45minutes
later. I jumped out of the car and paid the driver, who zoomed
off immediately. I entered the estate, greeting the security
guards in their dark blue uniforms sitting in their cubicle and
listening to the radio. They answered politely and I walked
inside. I checked from afar to see if there was any car outside
but Nina’s frontage was completely empty. I approached
cautiously and peeked in through the window. There didn’t
appear to be anybody at home. I went round the house and
saw that all the windows were locked and the surroundings
quiet. It was only then it occurred to me that she would be at
work. I had forgotten that today was a working day. She would
probably have left early, locking up her place. This also meant
that her fiancée’s visit had been over since Monday. I made up
my mind and brought out my phone to call her. An
emotionless electronic voice answered me:
The number you have dialed is switched off. Please try again later.
Maybe she was in a meeting, I thought. It occurred to me for
the first time that I ought to be at work as well. It seemed a bit
odd that nobody had called me to ask how I was doing or even
come to visit me during my stay in the hospital. I had my share
of friends there besides Nina and started to feel a bit hurt that
none of them had deemed it fit to check on me. Maybe they
were embarrassed but they would have at least come to see if
I was being well taken care of. The fact that my strict boss
hadn’t called even once, whether I was reported to be sane or
not, was baffling. I decided I would go straight to the firm and
find out what was going on.
I left the estate and boarded another taxi to my place of work.
On getting there I was greeting jovially by the gate-man. I
acknowledged his greeting and was happy to note that the
spirit of alcoholism which usually perched on his shoulder was
nowhere to be seen. I walked inside the building and took the
elevator to the second floor. On coming out of the elevator I
was greeted by familiar faces in a very friendly manner, which
I found to be quite relieving as I didn’t want anybody treating
me awkwardly after my “incident”
“Guy how far na, how village? Hope your parents are all right?”
the head cleaner asked as he passed by. I was momentarily
stunned but recovered quickly and answered in the affirmative.
He gave me a thumbs up signal and continued down the
corridor. I heard similar comments as I made my way to my
boss’s office.
“Chuks, well done o, you jus miss comot abi?”
“happy to know things are going well, did you get my
messages”
“Well come back sir!”
“Thank god say you no kill ya papa.”
I stopped in my tracks and yanked the last speaker back by his
shoulder. His name was Jackson. Jackson was an assistant
manager like me and was a bit of a social misfit. He was a
head shorter than I was; light complexioned with a round face
that bordered on mongolism. He had the irritating habit of
pressing his phone while talking to you that made him look like
he was not paying attention. However I gave him a little
respect because anytime I looked at him I literally saw him
standing in a pool of mud. His feet always appeared made of
iron and seemed to push him through the muddy pool but try
as he might the pool followed him everywhere. Pachios had
explained then that he had low self esteem issues and it was
this low esteem that was his main driving force in life. He
would excel in his field but would never feel happy with his
accomplishments. It was a sad thing for me to behold so I
always cut him some slack when dealing with him. Today
however, I wasn’t feeling so generous.
“What do you mean by that?” I asked, still holding on to his
shoulder. He brushed my hand off rudely and stood as erect as
possible.
“Don’t get sore on me,” he said trying very hard to maintain
eye contact, “I heard about your dad that’s all. For a moment
there, the way you sounded, we didn’t think he was going to
make it. I am glad to know he is doing all right.”
“What? What are you talking about?” I demanded.
“Is that chukwudi?” I heard my boss yell from his office. “Get
in here!”
I reluctantly let Jackson go. He scampered away from me,
leaving mud trails in his wake that only my eyes could see. I
took a deep breath then walked into my boss’s office.
“Hey, Hey!” he shouted from behind his enormous leather
desk. “Is this how we dress to work now?”
I looked down at my checkered grey and black short sleeved t-
shirt and black chinos. It was true, I hadn’t planned on coming
to work today so I had dressed casually.
“I’m sorry sir.” I said, “I just came to report that I was…”
“Yes I know,” he replied, standing up. “I’m not a dunce. We
are all happy to hear your father is doing well, although I still
have half a mind to
write a query for you. Next time, you’ll let us know you want to
travel before going to a remote place where there is no
network. I don’t care how urgent the situation is, I want to be
given proper prior notice, understood?!”
“Yes sir!” I said, not understanding at all.
“Good!” he said. He took a pile of paperwork from his desk
and tossed them towards me. “I want these completed on y
desk tomorrow morning. No excuses!”
I nodded and was about walking out of his office then turned
back. “Sorry sir, who told you my father was sick?”
He stared at me for a while as if I had gone mad and said “Are
you alright at all? Wasn’t it you that called this office three
days ago to say that your father was seriously ill and that you
were already on your way to the village?”
“I, er…” I stammered.
“You said network would be poor there that we shouldn’t
bother calling because it would be difficult to reach you, and
really I tried your line severally but it kept saying not
reachable, then you sent me a text yesterday saying your
father was better and you were on your way back. I tried
calling last night and again this morning but it was still saying
not reachable! And the client has been disturbing me since
Monday! If not that you are the only one that has information
on our major clients deals I would have sacked you by now!
Now get out of my office!”
I walked out and shut the door behind me. I still couldn’t
understand what was going on and matters were made worse
when I got to my desk. Nina’s table was empty, completely
cleared. I dropped the files and went back to my bosses’
office.
“What are you doing back here?!” he shouted.
“Where’s Nina?”
“Who gives a d--n where she is? She can be dead for all I
care! I told you to finis-“
“Mr Folake, I’m going to ask you again,” I said in a deadpan
voice, “if you do not answer me correctly I will go back to my
desk and tear up every file I see there, after which I will resign.
I’m sure you’ll be very pleased to collect my resignation letter,
seeing that I have cost you three days of work after working
here without a single day missed for five years! Where is she? ”
He opened his mouth angrily but nothing came out. I could
see the greed demon on his head becoming agitated. He was
considering what I had said and was thinking if it would
actually be more beneficial for him to take e up on my threat.
Finally he made a decision.
“She resigned herself yesterday. Just came to the office and
packed her things, saying she wouldn’t be working here
anymore. I told her it was too sudden, that if she left now in
the middle of the month there was no way I was going to pay
her salary. She said that was okay, I could keep the salary. So
I kept quiet and she left.”
What was going on? Why would Nina leave without even trying
to contact me, crazy or not? I turned to go.
“Eh…chukwudi,” my boss called and I turned back.
“Maybe you should take some time off? After doing the files
eh? You still look a little stressed.” He sighed and relaxed back
in his chair. “People around here think I’m an a*hole but I
need to appear harsh to keep this firm on its feet. It doesn’t
mean I am a bad person.”
“Oh I know sir,” I said. “If you were a bad person, you would
have more things than a greed demon attached to you.”
I walked out before he could ask me what I meant.
I went back to my desk and sat down, trying to make sense of
it all. How did Mr A*** get access to my phone to call or send
text? I mean, he could have done anything when I was in the
hospital since he had access to me, but yesterday? I was at
home throughout and my phone had been in my pocket. And
why hadn’t any of my boss’s calls reached me? Or anybody’s
texts for that matter? I brought out the phone again and looked
at it. It didn’t see tampered with. On impulse I called home and
my dad picked the call. I could hear my mum shouting in the
background.
“Hello, who is this?” my dad said in a weary voice.
“Dad, it’s me chuks”
“Chuks?” he replied in a puzzled tone. “Why are you calling
with a strange number?”
“Tell him to come back home!” my mum said in the
background.
“Tell mum I’m fine dad, I’m at the office.” I replied.
“Something weird is going on, everybody thinks I travelled to
see you in the village, they said
they have been trying to contact me but that my number was
not reachable.”
“Really it’s not o, your mum even tried calling you after you
were gone for like an hour. She couldn’t get across to you. I’ve
been having it hot here since.”
“But how?” I said, “my phone has been on since and I’m
calling you guys now…”
And then it hit me.
“Sorry dad, let me call you back” I said and dropped the phone.
I looked around the corridor and saw Jackson wading by.
“Jackson my man,” I called out. He approached me warily.
“Can you call my number please? I want to check something.”
He looked at me for a while then brought out his phone and
dialed.
“Not reachable,” he said.
“Okay, one moment.” I said and scrolled through my contacts
list until I saw his name. I called and his phone rang almost
immediately. He quickly
picked it and said “Hello?”
“It’s me, Chuks,” I replied, then cut the call.
“Oh, you changed your number?”
“No I didn’t. Thanks anyway.” I left him standing outside
looking confused and went back to sit at my desk. I opened
my phone, it was an android, and brought out the SIM card.
I had bought my SIM card five years ago, and over time with
change of phone and one or two accidents, it had acquired the
smudges and scratches of old age.
The SIM card I brought out of my phone however couldn’t have
been mine. It was brand new
Comments
Post a Comment