Jemaima looked at the boy who stood in front of her. He was far older than her from the look of his face. The guy had been kind enough to help her because of her, he was out of his clique.
That night, she had been looking for a place to spend the night, she strolled into a den which already was an uncompleted building.
"Well, well, well. Look who we have here?" The leader tutted.
The boys were older in their early twenties except for one. He was the youngest.
"What do you want in our den?" The leader asked. He had a long scar down his left cheek.
"I'm sorry. I'm looking for a place to pass the night." She said, trying not to sound scared to her bones. They had menacing glaring eyes.
"I suppose you have a home for that." Another added.
"I do... I mean I'm an ....orphan." she lied.
"And there's an orphanage not far from here." Another said.
"I'm quite old to take good care of myself." Jemaima answered.
"Then why come here?"
"Cause I didn't know that you guys would be here."
"Gosh! The nerve! She even got a nerve to say that!" Someone protested.
The leader shot a hand up to quiet him then turned back to Jemaima. "Are you sure about that?" He asked her.
"Yes, I am." Jemaima responded.
"What they call you?" He looked down at the way she was dressed but he didn't know that she was a girl since she looked like a boy.
"Jerry."
"Jerry the mouse?" He questioned while the rest of the boys laughed.
"Someone here is going to follow you to keep an eye on you." The leader said, he was the eldest of them all. Probably in his middle twenties.
"Why is that?"
"Cause we don't trust you, dude."
Jemaima nodded at that. She waited as he picked someone for her.
"I got a sister and I searching for her." Jermaima said to them.
"Steve is going to follow you. He's the youngest of us all and he knows how to deal with you little mouse than I do."
Steve looked up from where he sat in surprise.
"If he reports us to the police. You know what to do."
From his tone, hairs shot up from her skin, she was definitely scared.
*******
"Steve, what do you guys do that you think I would report you to the police. Are you some sort of bad guys?" Jemaima asked him when finally they were alone.
Steve ignored her. He knew he had been placed to watch her like a watch dog. He would have to make sure that she didn't go anywhere near the police station.
"Steve, how old are you?" She asked him but got no reply.
"I guess you are a strange one that is why they handed you over to watch me." She chuckled. "I'm looking for my sister, you don't have to worry yourself. You can return to your brothers." She faked some manly voice.
The day dragged on and Steve refused to talk to her. The next day, Jemaima was fed up with Steve's disturbing silence.
"There's a river down this path. I will go down to take my bathe, you wait here." She said to him.
He shot her a snarl and side grinned. Jemaima grew goosebumps and began to walk briskly down the path.
"Listen, I believe you must be thinking that I might run away. But, I only want to bathe." She said to him as he followed her closely.
When she got to the shore, she took off her clothes. Slowly, she dipped her left leg to check the temperature of the water. It was icy. Gradually, she walked into it until her head was only mere inches into the water.
Steve walked down the shore and studied her. She didn't see him.
"Isn't he a boy? While is he bathing like a girl?" Steve muttered to himself as he looked away.
That was when Jemaima saw him. She gasped. "My God! Did he see my body as I took off my clothes? He doesn't know I'm a girl, right? Surely, he didn't see me." Jemaima panicked.
She made sure that he wasn't in sight when she got out of the water. She quickly wore her clothes and walked up to him.
"You took hours in bathing ...like a girl." His eyes met hers for the first time.
Jemaima swallowed and looked away, suddenly feeling embarrassed. "Why? I'm surprised you can talk." She told him.
"I hate when a boy acts like a girl." He told her.
"Oh, you are mistaken. I'm not a girl." She tried to defend what was last of her.
"To be frank, I don't like girls." He said to her as he walked past her.
Jerry gulped down another saliva as she stared at his back. Here was a guy who doesn't like girls. Why was that? She wanted to ask him, there must be a reason for that.
"Why is that?" She asked him.
He ignored her, turned around as he started taking off his clothes in her presence. There a slash cut close to his abdomen. When she looked downwards, she brought her eyes up to stare at his face.
"I can catch you if you dare to run." He said to her without meeting her gaze.
Jemaima's heart began to pound, she thought he might even hear her heart beat. Why did he pull off his clothes in front of me? Is he crazy? She asked herself.
She sat down on the shore as she continued to steal glances at the way he bathe.He came out when he was done, stood before her and started to wear his clothes.
"Is this how you dress with your friends around?" She tried not give herself away.
He smirked at that.
"I wonder if you can do this publicly where people are around to watch you." She mocked.
He reached for her hand and pulled her up. Startled, she pushed him away. "What is wrong with you?" She asked him.
He ignored her question again. "I'm sure you know the whereabouts of your sister." He said.
"Dunno. All I know is she wasn't around me when I woke up." Jemaima answered him.