Improvised Plan #ProjectNigeria

12- Pleasantries

Song: 'Dancing With A Stranger' by Sam Smith ft. Normani
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Ola:

"How nice to meet you again, Saheed," Maduka says.

Again? So they know each other? And why is the atmosphere suddenly cooler?

"Maduka." Saheed nods curtly. "It's been a while."

Saheed's voice is clipped, not his usual, smooth baritone. I notice that neither of them extends a hand for even the briefest of handshakes.

"You two know each other?" I finally chip in, not ready to watch them have a stare down of sorts. My stomach grumbles; a sign that the sweet aroma of mouthwatering food is teasing me, but I am very much interested in this encounter between Maduka and Saheed.

Maduka turns to face me. When he speaks, I can hear the amusement in his voice. "Yes. It's a small world, isn't it?"

Maduka stands taller than Saheed by at least three inches. He carries more muscle weight, sports a clean-shaven face, and a straight side parting in his cropped dark hair. He looks like a dream, tall, dark, handsome... And very much married.

His wedding ring, a simple, gold band, is on the fourth finger of his left hand. And he had mentioned his wife, who sadly couldn't make it to the party.

"We have a baby. The most beautiful baby girl in the universe," he had said a few minutes earlier. "Her name is Zikorammachukwu. Kora, for short. She has her mother's eyes, huge and dark."

I had observed how excited he was to talk about his family. He even opened his phone gallery to show me photos of his wife and child. His wife is a curvy woman in her twenties, dark skinned with doll-like features and thick hair. Their baby is a small bundle of joy, her tiny fingers curled, eyes closed as she slept peacefully in the photo.

"Ola, I was beginning to get worried," Saheed tells me.

I step into the light to stand beside Maduka, inadvertently placing myself between them. Suddenly, I feel dwarfed by their height. Or maybe it's because the tension is so thick, you can cut through it with a knife. Or maybe I'm imagining it all.

"I see you've met Ola, my girlfriend." Saheed stretches out an arm to me.

"Your girlfriend," Maduka replies. He gives me another look, a rather quizzical one, like he is seeing me in a different way for the first time. "She is quite the charmer. She's got a lot of brain power, this one. She knows a bit about agriculture. I'm impressed."

I find myself feeling suddenly shy. But my curiosity gets the best of me and I ask, "So, were you both school mates at any point? Colleagues? Neighbours?"

Maduka glances at Saheed, then back at me, his brow raised. "We are mutual friends. His childhood friend happens to be a friend of mine."

Why does it feel incomplete?

"It's really a small world." I take Saheed's arm, still looking up at Maduka. "We should have dinner together sometime. Your wife is so lovely and I would like to meet her-- and your daughter. Isn't that a good idea, Baby?"

Saheed and Maduka regard each other for a few moments before Saheed looks at me with a tight smile. Beneath my hand, his arm muscles are like iron.

"I'd very much like that. Maduka will tell us when he and his wife are free," he finally says.

Maduka nods, his smile equally tight. "Nwanyieze will be pleased. Thank you, Ola. It was nice to meet you both."

He walks away, leaving me with a very silent Saheed who stands beside me with as much grace as a totem pole.