Young and Soulful

As a lover of art, nature, and lifestyle, writing has always been my forte. I discovered this passion when I showed my classmates a story I scribbled out of my imagination, they didn't believe it until I continued the piece in their presence.

Now, my friends and family know that any blank piece of paper is in trouble if there is a pen.

I carried along with me this talent to secondary school. Though I fell among the average scorers in academic activities, I was never left behind in outings related to my passion. For reasons I'd forgotten, I saw the need to get better in my academics, so I began to buckle down.

However, when I began to perform better in my academics, I met someone. 

 A scholarship foundation had reached out to my school regarding the best students in senior class three, I don't know how but I was picked. The organizers collected our mobile numbers and added us to a Whatsapp group consisting of other applicants.

They explained the criteria for applying and told us to help one another. It was during the week of application that I met him.

His name was Zion and he lived in Abuja while I stayed in Lagos. I reached out to him for assistance and he did help in every way he could until the day of submission.

However, after our submission we became inseparable. We began to chat as though we had known each other forever. We spoke about anything and even shared secrets. The vibe was so high that not getting in touch with him for a day made me feel incomplete.

This went on for weeks, and as the weeks rolled into months I became his girlfriend. My mom complained about my excessive screen time, but I convinced her not to worry. I was in love.

When my second term results got released, I realized my grades had dropped drastically, going below average. Consequently, my parents seized my phone and punished me in several ways.

At first, I kicked myself for losing control but on second thought, I felt that I could do both, love Zion and still have good grades. After one week, I successfully convinced my parents to return my phone, and with lots of begging and promises they gave in.

 I went back online but never told Zion about my failure. Instead, I created a timetable for reading and chatting, and pasted it on the wall. Once, my mom entered my room and saw the timetable decorated with love stickers, tiny love quotes, and his name boldly written in the times I had set aside for him. She reported it to my dad and I always had to lie to them about it.

Again, I didn't tell Zion about the scandal. Many awkward things happened, but he never knew. I was ashamed and scared of losing him.

Later, news reached us that no student was selected from my school for the scholarship.

I was very disappointed and sad; I decided I couldn’t take any more failures. I had lost a lot because of Zion, I just never saw myself losing the scholarship, I thought I was handling it well.

I broke up with him; he begged and cried profusely. At that moment, I wish I could take back my words, but it was my future over our love, and I chose my future.  

 People say that true love never dies; I doubted that until I dialed Zion's number one month later. My heart almost ripped at the sound of his voice. He didn't sound so good. When I inquired, he began to cry.

I was shocked. He asked me why I left him that way. He said that I’d turned him into a monster, I didn’t understand, How could I have done that?

He said I pushed him beyond his limit, I was frightened. What's all this? I asked myself fearfully. Did Zion kill someone? He said he loved me, though we had not met, and since we broke up, he began to masturbate. I was dumbfounded.

 After much thinking, I decided to get back with him but only on the condition that he stopped his new habit. He agreed and I fulfilled my promise too. We went back to our love craze and I made sure I paid close attention to my studies.

However, it was in these happy moments that I received painful news. My birthday came around the time and he said his parents had approved of his coming to Lagos. I was so excited. Finally, I thought, I’d meet him and we would do all the fun things we spoke about. 

 A day before my birthday, Zion told me that he had received a call from the scholarship foundation. I was surprised but happy for him. We spoke about how much fun he was gonna have abroad, with the people, environment, and lifestyle. While he was very excited about his win, I wallowed in shame of having lost the same opportunity. However, that did not hurt as much as what happened next. 

He claimed that he had started packing things and couldn't come for my birthday the following day. I was shattered.

Suddenly, he rarely came online and I couldn't predict the time he’d be available. So, we began to drop messages to each other. One time I caught him online, he claimed he was busy transferring his contact list to his new phone and didn't want to disturb me. I was worried about this unusual behavior, but I knew I had to be happy for him. So, I never complained, meanwhile, Zion was planning a big surprise for me. 

I woke up one morning to a long and terrifying message from Zion. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I read it repeatedly in disbelief. He began by thanking me for going through thick and thin with him. He’d be flown that very morning to the United Kingdom by the scholarship foundation.

He continued by saying, he might not be able to stay in touch with me because he wanted to concentrate on his studies abroad, he apologized for whatever mood the message might put me.

I screamed in terror as I began to shake like a wet puppy. This cannot be true, I cried as I dialed his number, I needed to hear it from his lips. I had sacrificed a lot since I met him, he can't do this to me. Particularly, I’d failed a whole term because of him and now he was making his academics his priority.

No, unbelievable. 

I didn't know I had dialed for the tenth time ‘cause I was engrossed in my thoughts. His phone was dead.

My heart raced as it seemed as though it was true. I quickly checked the time he sent the message, and I realized that I’d seen it four hours later. I cried harder and went back to dialing his phone, but it didn't go through. Sweat and tears soaked my nightwear, causing me a headache.

Then I remembered that I had not asked for his new phone number. I slumped into my bed, screaming and wishing to die. 

 I wasn't myself for months. I kept on dialing his number but to no avail. My parents noticed my new behavior and reported to my pastor when I wouldn't open up to them.

 The man of God spoke to me and I agreed to tell my parents everything. He called them in and I narrated everything that had happened between Zion and me to them. My mother screamed in shock while my father shook his head in disappointment.

 They spoke to me for hours, and the pastor prayed for me. Immediately after we walked out of his office, I felt different. I couldn't feel the hurt I carried in my heart. It was as though I had left it in the pastor's office. Afterward, I deleted everything that reminded me of Zion and I moved on. I had learned my lesson the bitter way.

About the writer

Deborah Faranti

I am a girl who has loved writing stories and drawing from a little age. When I was little, my mom would buy me a book and instruct me to narrate the story and the lessons I learned from it. I found this exciting, but I never knew she was teaching me the art of reading and writing. Now, I'm a fiction writer and an essayist. Presently, I'm working on my fourth book, and acquiring the skills of copywriting.

I consider myself adventurous. I love traveling, especially to new places, because apart from the inspiration I get in the process, I meet new people, make friends and learn new things. 

I am a keen fan of cricket. I've been playing the game since my first year in secondary school. I am a Batman and mid-field player. 

My exemplars are Wole Soyinka, Femi Osofisan, and Chimamanda N. Adichie. I pick them because their books inspire me and I hope to use my books to impact lives positively as well. 

Currently, I attend the University of Lagos. I'm in my first year and my cohort is Education and English. If I'm not writing, I'm eating. 

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