Godwin resumed the third day with his school fees for the two terms. He was happy to be back again. He paid and collected his last term result. He was eager to see it. His friends persuaded him to open it so they could see. He did, they saw it, it was something not anticipated. Really unspeakable. Though not so bad but being certain that it wasn’t exactly what he did he sees, he was devastated.
“I am going to show him this” Godwin said angrily.
“Don’t even try it. You think he closes his eyes when he was doing it? That is a deliberate, purposeful, intentional act” Peter said.
“He will be happy if you go, so that he will know that he have pierced you deeply and you are depressed”
“I don’t expect anything better” Lovett said. She stood up and left.
“Where is she going?” Godwin asked. No one answered him. It wasn’t necessary. She was only angry, nothing more.
Peter and David helped him check the scores and records to see how Mr. stones arrived at what he concluded on the paper. Some of the scores were recorded less than his actual scores while some space were blank but they got enough of what they needed to work on because he still have some scripts for last term assessment. They checked for close to thirty minutes before they discovered that if the result was well checked and recorded Godwin would have come second for his average was better than David’s. Godwin felt bad. His eyes clouded and was about to stream.
“Nobody cares about anything other than your position. My efforts are waste. Nobody will listen or believe whatever I have to say about this result” Godwin fretted.
“You know what? Keep it. We will need this result as an evidence someday” Peter advised. David supported.
Hours later Godwin was strolling outside, a boy held him to pay him his money. That was the person he borrowed money to buy drugs for Lovett when she was sick. The boy was very determined to collect his money for the duration they agreed on was exceeded. Godwin explained things sincerely to him and the involvement of two other boys from their class helped too. The boy freed him on the condition that Godwin would pay him the following day.
“Did you say he gave you the money from his school fees?” Junior who was one of his intercessors asked.
“Hmm yeah. I needed to buy drugs for my catarrh. I was feeling a severe headache so I begged him to help me with one thousand, five hundred naira. He told me it was his school fees money but I promised to pay back as soon as possible. I would have brought it today just that I’m yet to complete it”
“It’s all right. So, how much have you saved so far?”
“I have eight hundred”
“Try make it one thousand and I will help you with five hundred”
Later Lovett went to meet Peter to seek his advice on how to resolve the issue concerning Jude. They reasoned It that It won’t be wise discussing such a thing with Godwin now that his is still upset about his result. They agreed to wait, maybe not that day.
Junior came to the class with stack of not books from the staff room. He shared them to the owners. When he got to where Lovett is he told her that Mr. Stones demands to see her. She refused to go. Her excuse was that she was having stomach upset and which she could not rise. That was a perceptible lie. Everyone knows but nobody would support her to go. Godwin saw them from his seat, he called junior to ask him what they were discussing that made Lovett’s mood dull. Junior explained. Godwin too was not happy about it.
“She is taking risk” Godwin said to David who sat closer. They were studying before junior came to the class. Recently David has become very devoted to studies. And having friends of his kind they sometimes study in groups.
“That’s love. That’s the limit to which she loves you. Love can cause one to do anything”
“David the bad guy!” Peter hailed coming from the junior class. He was raining praises on David like one who’s something great.
“I don’t get you. How have I become a bad guy. Me that is a man after God’s heart” David said making those sitting close laugh. David has a habit of saying something to amuse people and he himself maintains as though it is not funny.
“Forget that. Anything called David is a womanizer” As Peter said it he discovered that Solomon was there listening to them. “Especially King Solomon his” He added. “At least David killed only Uriah to take his wife, who knows how many people Solomon killed to gather those thousand ladies?”
“See, be careful with me” Solomon knew that peter was deliberately picking on him.
“I am not talking to you. Are you a king? I said king Solomon. You here is just a common assistant prefect Solomon. Note the difference”
“Am I not better than you? Have you become anything since you came to this school? Not even a class monitor”
“Even with or without being a prefect I am better than five of your type combined”
“You are talking to me because you are in the midst of friends. If you are not scared just follow me to the front of the class”
“Don’t go. He is a bait” David whispered. Peter was ready to go if not that they stopped him.
“Solomon,..” Godwin interfered, just to advise him not to take things higher.
“Don’t even call my name you gopher!” Solomon really startled them with that word.
“Enough of that nonsense!” David yelled. “It is high time you stopped this malicious attitude of yours. What’s wrong with you?”
“David I am not talking to you. I haven’t even mentioned your name”
“You don’t have to, for you know what will be” David said confidently walking towards him. First time David act with such vigor.
“You have absolutely nothing to do to me. Not any of you, so get that deceitful notion out of your minds”
“You are just looking for whom to lure into trouble. But have it in mind that this school is what I’m regarding not you. And one advice, don’t ever start anything like this with me outside the school because you may become cripple, through me” David said standing very close. Peter stood close while Godwin remained frozen on his seat.
“You are joking. But, anyway I don’t have time to waste on hoodlums like you” Solomon said spacing. He was sure they won’t fight him as it was in the class.
“Is that the new word you grab? I’m sure you don’t even know the meaning, hoodoo”
“You shouldn’t waste your precious time on hooeys when there’re a lot important things to do” Peter said. Solomon did him WAKA as he was leaving. He was going out of the class.
“Report to whoever you want!” Peter blasted. As they could no longer see Solomon they resumed to what they were doing, but could not concentrate. They discussed about him all through.
“David, there’s something I am finding difficult to understand about this class. Do you believe that the dean of studies called me to his office today, he bewailed over disclosing our plans of reporting Mr. Stone’s mischief to others” This was Peter.
“How did he know?” David asked. Godwin sat dumb because he did not know what was happening.
“He said that Mr. Stones came explaining it to him that we have formed a group to fight against him”
“But why is he so concerned so much?”
“He is working on it. He was to run a secret investigation on him, your form master”
“He is your form master too”
“Tufiakea! I have disowned him a very long time. I have no form master”
“None of us does, so tell us what happened”
“The dean said it’s somebody from this class that’s licking our secrets but Mr. Stones did not mention the person’s name and the dean did not want to show much concern by asking him the person’s name so that he doesn’t suspect his intentions”
It was at the end of their discussion Godwin found the chance to ask them the starting of what they were discussing. Which was detailed.
A little girl from the junior class came to call Lovett. She told her that somebody wanted to see her and she should follow her to see the person. Lovett did not know the person so she had to follow.
“Is it a teacher or a student?” Lovett inquired.
“The person said I shouldn’t tell you anything apart from what I already said”
“Let it be a reasonable person, if not I will twist your ears” Lovett frightened. She followed the girl out.
It was not up to five minutes a girl from the class came to call Godwin, saying that the dean of studies wanted to see him. He went out to answer the call.
“There’s something I need you to do for me. I chose you for this because I heard about your diligence during when you were a prefect so I believe you can do it well. See, only me and the principal knows about this. Don’t tell anyone about it, not even your closest friend, for that might be the villain we seek. You will secretly monitor your class mates, I want to know that particular student that’s working with Mr. Stones. You can set your informants to watch him, I heard you had two boys that did that for you. You can retain them too. Find that person that’s betraying your class.
Secondly, now they don’t see you as a prefect. They won’t regard you that much so use that means to mark the bad students and bad happenings especially the SS 2. Don’t do mistakes. I repeat, tell no one, no matter who it is. I’m always available whenever you find something, it’s that all right?”
Godwin was dismissed and as he was going he didn’t head straight to the class. He needed to ease himself first. As he was heading to the abandoned block he sighted Lovett and the SS 2 boy talking at the junior block near where food were sold. He couldn’t tell why he was so jealous and anxious about this view. Maybe because Lovett once talked about an SS 2 boy stalking her and he felt that was the guy and they were beginning to get along. His heart grew heavy, he hid somewhere and watched them but the more he watches the more irritated he gets especially when Lovett smiled. He left the spot sadly.