Thanks.
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I met this very young and cute girl sometimes in 2011 when I was a 400 level(fourth year) undergad student in my university. I met her late one night when I went to study in one of the large halls on campus. I had taken a break to grab a sachet of water and stretch my legs for a bit, and by the time I got back about thirty minutes later, there was this young, big-eyed girl in my spot. Back then getting a spot for night reading was like searching for treasure — you had to be fast, accurate, and very precise, particularly during the examination period. I asked her why she had pushed my books aside and she told me she thought the owner(me) would not be around for a while. You see, people were fond of saving spots for themselves ahead of time, and as such many seats could contain books with no one reading there for hours on end. I told her I had just stepped out for about thirty minutes and was back. With a babyish whimper and frown, she began packing her books. I told her that if it wasn’t going to be too late for her, I was going to finish what I was reading in about an hour as I had an early lecture the following morning, and as it was already going to around midnight then, I could keep the seat for her if she wished. She smiled and gave me one of her books to place there when I left.
I ran into her(literally) again two weeks later at an eatery. I had entirely forgotten about the encounter we had, so you can imagine my surprise when, upon paying for the food I had purchased, I turned around and almost bulldozed into the person walking by behind me. She almost spilled the contents of the tray she was carrying and I quickly grabbed the drink and glass cup she had balanced along with the plate of food before the tray came tumbling out of her arms. I began to apologize for my clumsiness, but I was pleasantly surprised to see the girl from the other night. She at first didn’t remember who I was, but after reminding her of the events of the night in class, her frown melted away. I picked up my tray of food and led her to an empty table at the far corner of the cafeteria.
Over our meal I got to know she was a 100-level (first year) student. She told me her name was Yewande. We talked about several things, and when we were about to leave, I asked if she wouldn’t mind giving me her number, that I would love to talk to her again. She hesitated at first, but eventually shrugged. I asked if I could come visit her sometime (her hostel was not that far from mine) and she replied with a maybe. At least I had her number.
Through the rest of the school year, I got to know her better. I learned she lived in the same town I was from. I once playfully told her I would visit her at home whenever school was closed, but she refused. She did eventually invite me to her room which she shared with two other fresh 100-level students like her. All of them were youthful kids. I was sure the oldest among them was not more than nineteen. Yewande in particular was a very playful girl, and coupled with her babyish looking face and playful demeanour, one would assume she was much younger than her eighteen years. As she became more comfortable with me, she really showed me that side of her playfulness. She also had a very sharp tongue.
I didn’t want to, but as a 23-year-old guy with raging hormones back then, it was only a matter of time before I began to notice other things than her youthful face. She was a bit on the busty side, and her slim waist complemented her curvy hips and lovely figure. She filled anything she wore nicely. I began having thoughts of asking her out, but considering she was that young, I wasn’t sure it was a good idea.
Her roommates and friends soon began to tease her that she now had a boyfriend, which she always vehemently denied, but she did not really help matters as she was always “gumming body” to me all the time. She had no qualms parking her pert bum in my laps even when her roomies were around. They all told me I was all she kept talking about every day. I remember one particular night I was in her room. I had chatted her up during the evening (BlackBerry Messenger was still a thing) and along the line, had told her that I wanted to find something to eat but all the eateries in school had closed. I told her I was going to head to town. She told me that I should come over and eat at her place instead. I told her no wahala(no problem) and I really appreciated it. She said she would start preparing right away and should come by seven.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to make it until much later. I didn’t get to her place until around eight-thirty. By then, she had almost thought I was not coming anymore. Her friends told me that they were just making fun of her as she shook and pranced all over the place, angrily wondering why I hadn’t arrived or why I was not responding to her messages and calls. She almost bit my head off when I got in, but I could see the relief on her face. I apologized, stating that a last-minute issue had come up and I had to stay back on campus for a while. She eventually calmed down and reluctantly dished me my meal, only after her friends had begged on my behalf.
Another thing that attracted me to this young girl was her cooking. Even my roommate attested to that. The semolina and efo riro(vegetables) she made for us all that evening was so delicious, I ended up eating more than I should have. I decided to rest and let my food digest a bit before leaving, so I reclined on her bed. She came to join me after clearing the dishes, and to my pleasant surprise she coiled herself around me like a snake. I was half-reclined, half lying down and she just cuddled up to me, her head resting against my chest. In that position, she was literally lying on top of me with her body pressed tightly into mine. Her friends began to tease her again. The loudest among them (I think her name was Simi — I heard she passed away a few years ago, may God rest her soul) said I must have done something to their roommate; she had heard her murmuring my name in her sleep on several occasions. Yewande kept denying all this, saying it was all a lie. Aijay then quipped that if she kept denying, then she should have no qualms if she showed her interest to me.
Na so Yewande vex oh(she exploded in anger). She said she should not even think about it. Everyone was mildly surprised at her reaction. Susan asked her why she was acting out; shebi she said nothing dey(did she not deny there was something going on between us). She shouldn’t be worried if Aijay or anyone else showed interest. Infact she was also throwing her hat into the ring. Yewande wrapped her arms and held onto me fiercely, saying no one was coming near me without seeing her red eyes(anger). I was mildly amused at I was witnessing. She then did something that caught me off-guard — she grabbed my head in her hands and planted a long kiss on my lips. The other girls started hooting and shouting even before she broke off. I was more surprised, not believing what she had just done. I can still taste that kiss today — the softness of her lips, the strawberry taste of her lip-gloss, the heat of her breath as she exhaled on my face. The rest of my time there was just a daze.
When she saw me off to the junction, I could feel the tenseness emanating from her. I wanted to ask her why she kissed me like that, but I just couldn’t form the words. She turned to face me to say goodnight, and I wrapped my arm around her waist and pulled her into me. She gasped, and like she had done earlier, I returned the favor. I savoured the taste of her mouth, taking my time to run my tongue over her lower lip, and giving equal attention to her upper one. She literally melted into my arms, and I felt all the tenseness seep out of her. I kissed her for about two minutes before disengaging. She wobbled on her feet a bit, her eyes glazed and unfocused. She finally shook her head to clear the cobwebs that had crept in.
She began to talk — or would I say, blab. Most of what she said didn’t really make much sense. I attributed it to the effect the French kiss I gave her. She started saying she did not mean to kiss me in the room in front of her friends, but when they were threatening to steal me away from her, she didn’t know what else to do. She only did the first thing that came to her mind. She was sorry that she led me on, and that she didn’t mean for our friendship to become weird. I tried shutting her up by placing another kiss on her lips, but this time she pushed me back. She said she was sorry, but she couldn’t do that again. I told her it was okay and bade her good night.
Later, after I got to my room, she sent a long message apologizing for the events of the evening. She then said something in the message that I can still remember —
“It is not that I don’t like you Dimeji. I am just afraid I will fall for you and then lose you later. I think I already am, and it scares me. I am still eighteen.”
This girl will definitely need working on, I told myself that night.
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The school year dragged on, and Yewande and I continued with our “relationship”, if what we had could even count as a relationship. Since that night we kissed, things had at first been kind of weird between us, but we got past that. She would sometimes stay in my room overnight, and most of these nights I would be tempted to touch her. What mostly stopped me was the presence of my roommate, but the thought of not knowing how she would react often crept in my mind.
And then I introduced her to my brother, and things were not the same after then.
The charming younger brother every single damsel fell for in movies and love novels.
The brother who swoops in to capture the heart of the fair damsel after all the hard work of the “hero”.