Lilato nakulata - Chapter 11

Chapter 5 : not you ?

Oh my days. To think the story of my life would be dictated by a single incident I wasn’t even remotely prepared for. One accidental moment, one fall - and suddenly, I’m a walking contradiction. My life keeps on getting better

I sigh, staring blankly at the classroom ceiling, questioning all my life choices.

“Demmit, should’ve gone for her boobies,” I mumble under my breath.

“What’s up, creep?”

Jude. Of course. His timing is impeccable, like a demon summoned every time my mind steps into sin.

“None much…” I mumble back, then add, “Hey, have you heard anything from Ruth?”

His reaction is instant—a wicked smirk spreads across his face like wildfire. And I know. I know I’ve messed up.

“Awww, ba boyfriend misses his baby girl,” he says in a tone soaked with amusement.

“No! No, that’s not it!” I defend, a bit too fast. “I was just… worried about her, since she didn’t show up yesterday.”

Demn you, Jude. But honestly? I should be more pissed at myself for letting that slip.

His teasing drags on longer than a Zambian power cut. Just when I’m about to throw a desk at him, he finally says something useful.

“I heard she got sick—that’s why she didn’t come.”

Immediately, I shoot up from the table like I just heard Beyoncé was at the school gates. “And you didn’t tell me?!”

He just sits there grinning wider than ever, enjoying my panic like it’s an episode of Tom and Jerry.

Then I see it—the smirk turning sinister.

And it hits me.

I sit down, utterly embarrassed.

He bursts into laughter, nearly falling out of his chair. “Calm down, bro. I only found out recently too!”

He pats my shoulder. “You should go check on her. Visit her place.”

The thought freezes me. Visit Ruth? Like… physically go to her house?

My brain does a hard reboot. I don’t hate the idea, but the implications… the risks… the awkwardness.

Before I can finish overthinking it, the school bell rings, slicing through my anxiety like a machete through sugarcane.

“Nooooooooo!”

My inner monologue screams.

I. Forgot. To. Eat.

I’ve spent the entire lunch break being tormented and thinking about That Girl™. Now I have to starve through the rest of the day. That’s four more hours.

And just to add salt to the wound—we don’t even have afternoon class today. I could’ve eaten. I could’ve napped. But noooo, I chose suffering.

Well… nap it is.

---

Study time begins.

It’s supposed to be “serious quiet time.” At least, that’s what the school’s advertising said. Lies. All of it. If anything, the study room is just chaos with fluorescent lighting.

Some guys are chatting, others are playing games, and a few lucky ones are flexing the fact they smuggled in their phones. It’s like watching a zoo where all the monkeys got bored and learned how to use TikTok.

My stomach growls.

Grrrrr… Grrrh.

That’s it. I’m sleeping this off.

---

I doze off like a baby who just lost his bottle.

Until—

Tap tap tap.

A frantic shake jolts me awake. Jude again. His eyes scream panic. Which can only mean…

Crick.

The door opens.

Silence swallows the room.

It’s the deputy head.

WE. ARE. SCREWED.

---

And that’s how I ended up cleaning the school campus.

Apparently, we “made too much noise.”

Honestly, it feels like we got arrested by vibes.

So now the whole class is here—brooms in hand, sweat dripping, backs aching.

You’d think the punishment would humble them.

Wrong.

It’s turned into a comedy show. The moment girls start passing by, the boys go into full-on zoo mode—hooting, rating, catcalling. It’s like National Geographic, but worse.

“Let’s work faster so we can go home,” the class rep urges.

Bless him. But the rest of them? Nope. They’d rather stay late if it means staring at girls.

I sigh and shake my head.

I am so, so hungry.

Then another group of girls approaches.

Suddenly, it’s the Olympic finals of Male Posturing™.

Push-ups. Laughter. Flexing. Voice-deepening. All of it.

I can hear the girls giggling and whispering among themselves.

Probably saying stuff like, “Boys are so childish.”

And today… I don’t even disagree. Painfully, I agree.

Then—

“Yah, I’m going by the tuition centre,”

—a v

oice says from among the girls.

My stomach forgets it's hungry.

That voice.

Familiar.

Too familiar.

Wait—

Fall Girl??