DIARY OF AN OKADA RIDER.

Wednesday 9th Oct'2013.
 The walk back home was tiring. His Okada had developed an ignition problem which left him no other choice than walk back home after dropping it at the Mechanic's. He'd been promised that it would be fixed and ready the next morning. The sun was fast disappearing into the clouds;nightfall a few hours away. Jaji increased his pace. He felt all sweaty and sticky. Right now the thoughts of cold water cascading over his body seemed like pure bliss.
 He heard the siren from a distance. It's blaring sound almost deafened him that he had to cover both ears with his hands. He thought in a few minutes the noise would go simply go away but he was wrong. If anything it was even closer,noisier,more intimidating now. Just then,he felt a heavy bang across his chest! A heavy sack it was. It was thrown by one of the three young boys skittering like the whole world was after them. Well,the whole world right now was possibly the police who were hot on their trail,closing in on them by each passing second.
 Jaji held his chest in severe pain. Oh goodness,it hurt. He made to rain some abusive words at them but..they were nowhere in sight. The siren was coupled with the sound of screeching tyres  now. Jaji's heart began to beat erratically. What if he was mistaken for one of the culprits? What was their crime? Fortunately for him he heard the siren move towards the adjacent street. He sighed. Life didn't have to end this way. No,not now and not like this. He was still a young man of thirty,yet to achieve a lot. Suddenly his eyes shifted to the sack that had been flung at him. It was lying on the ground. Curiousity led him to take some hesitant steps towards the gray sack,heart still beating haphazardly. He stared at it for a while before he quickly stooped to access its content. The sight that greeted his eyes were bundles of dollar notes. His heart must have momentarily missed a beat.
 Jaji gasped and dropped the sack abruptly. This was raw cash,he thought inwardly,gnawing at his lower lip. If he took this sack now he would become so rich..and if he left it behind he just might never forgive himself,and opportunities like this didn't come often. Right there and then he decided to take it. He looked at his sides,front and back and saw just a few persons. They didn't seem to be interested in him.. or were they? He was certain they weren't.
He took the nearest pathway that led to his house. Adrenaline pumped in his veins. Anxiety,fear,and an iota of guilt made him double his footsteps home. "Jaji! Jaji! You are rich!!!" he exclaimed under his breathe. He would first of all move out of Mama Kotun's face-me-i-face-you compound..faraway as possible from Kotun. He would open a bank account. Get himself some new clothes. He would continue his studies. Set up his dream business -importation of Motorcycles. He would find a pretty girl to marry. Establish a trade business for his mum back in the village and send Calvary his only surviving sibling, back to school.
 He got home and again fortune smiled on him. No co-tenant was found outside. No one at all. He hurriedly got into his room and locked the door. And then Jaji exhaled. His head was still reeling over his new wealth status. It had happened so fast. His shaky legs gave way as he collapsed on the mattress.
 There was a loud knock on the door. Jaji's eyed widened in fear. The knock sounded again. Louder and more persistent. Jaji kept mute. Who the hell.....?
" Jaji abeg open door! Day don break!! Na you dey sweep compound!"
Jaji's eyes instantly flew open. W-w-what?! He-had -been-dreaming!!!
Mama Kotun's voice was like thunder as she demanded he opened. Jaji still held on to a tiny flicker of hope that it actually hadn't been a dream. He scanned through the room. No sack was visible.
In his mind's eye he still saw the gray sack as he opened the door to meet the world's most troublesome Landlady!