Tade was a calm, collected, and responsible young man who was highly respected among his friends. He was not an extremist, as drinking, smoking, womanizing, and cursing were considered extremes. Wherever his friends misbehaved, he was always the first to correct them.
“ Too much of everything is bad,” he would say, smiling and displaying his noticeable gapped teeth.
“What is this all about, Mr Preacher?” Gandoki, one of his closest friends, would tease him with a tickle.
“ Bra, I am just a man who knows what he wants and what he doesn't want,” Tade would reply calmly as usual.
However, his friends were about to experience a rude awakening.
It was Johnson's birthday, a friend of theirs, and the entire group had a get-together at a popular lounge to celebrate.
“ I don't have to drink alcohol,” Tade said, and Kunle replied, “You novice”
“ What did you mean by that?” Tade replied.
“ Just put a little bit of salt under the sole of your foot, and you are good to go,” Kunle replied.
“ You mean if I drink, I wouldn't feel it,” Tade uttered.
“ Yes na, it worked for me all the time,” Kunle replied and continued.
“ Let's lose bra; we are celebrating.
Tade agreed to celebrate for once, with drinks galore, and unfortunately, one drink led to another, and before long, Tade was completely drunk.
Suddenly, he began cursing at everyone around him.
“ Who the hell took my phone?” He yelled loudly.
“ Tade, your phone is alright beside you” Johnson said pointing to the direction where the phone was placed.
“ Shut up, you bloody fool,” Tade said, and his friends stared at one another in disbelief.
“ Is this really Tade?” Gandoki whispered, and before they could recover from the shock, Tade stood up abruptly and approached a group of ladies walking by.
“ Hello, beautiful angels! Can I take all of you out tonight?” He asked confidently.
The ladies burst into laughter, and one of them asked, All of us, you mean”
“ Of course! Why should I settle for one when I can have all of you?” He replied.
Hearing this, Tade’s friends couldn't believe their eyes and ears either. The man who had always preached self- control was now asking every lady he encountered for a date.
Things got worse when Tade discovered some men gambling at the lounge and joined them, hoping to make quick money, but unfortunately he kept losing.
“ Guy, stop! You are losing too much money,” Kunle warned.
“ Shut up! It's my money, and I will do whatever I want with it !” Tade retorted and continued until he lost almost all the money he had brought to the party.
Meanwhile, a strange lady named Teresa noticed him staggering near the entrance and approached him, offering him assistance.
“ Are you okay?” She asked.
“ Beautiful angel! What is your name?” Tade replied, stammering.
“ Teresa, but I think you need some water,” she replied.
“ I need your number more than water,” Tade whispered in her ear.
Teresa laughed and helped him sit down, but when he suddenly leaned forward, he kissed her, and she was startled; but before she could react, he vomited on her dress.
“ Oh, God! What is wrong with you?” She exclaimed, and Tade’s friends rushed over, apologizing profusely, but despite the unpleasant incident, Teresa helped them ensure Tade got home safely, and before he left, she exchanged phone numbers with him.
The next day, Tade woke up, and he hissed, saying, “ I have fumbled and constituted the nuisances of life”
He knew; why wouldn't he?
The ceiling he was looking at looked like the sky and not his bedroom’s, so that tells the story.
His body stinks of vomit as if he had swum in an ocean of it.
Looking around him, he noticed he had rolled up and down on the ground.
“ Ouch!” He exclaimed as a headache gave him a knock, which he felt intensely.
“ What happened yesterday?” He asked himself, not knowing how he got home, locked his main gate, and slept in the compound till dawn.
“ Grin grin!” His phone rang.
“ Who is this?” He asked.
“ Teresa,” a voice answered from the other side.
“ Teresa, I don't know who this is!” He explained.
“ Ha ha ha, you don't know the lady you kissed and vomited on at the party,” she replied, and Tade froze.
“ I did what?
Please tell me you are joking,” he replied.
“ I am afraid I am not. How are you feeling this morning?” She asked, and Tade just had to play along, although he was devastated, knowing that he didn't remember a thing.
“ I am good,” he replied in a cracking voice, looking at how messed up he was.
“ Take care and have a great day. I will be calling you later,” she replied, and the call dropped.
Later that day, Tade and his friends gathered to review the footage from the lounge as Tade wanted. They watched his disgraceful behavior and wondered whether alcohol had caused it or whether he had been hiding those traits all along.
“ Perhaps those tendencies have always been inside you,” Gandoki suggested.
“ Or maybe alcohol simply made you lose control,” Kunle argued, and Johnson added, “ perhaps that is the demon you have been taming all these years”
Tade lowered his head in shame. “ Guys, I am sorry. I can't believe I did all those things. I don't even trust myself anymore,” he said in a low tone.
His friends also apologized for failing to intervene when they realized that he was too drunk.
However, his phone rang, and it was Teresa.
“ Hello, Teresa,” he said.
“ Hi, Tade. I see drinking is clearly not your thing.” She stopped for a few seconds and continued.
“ Learn from this experience. I believe you can become better,” she concluded.
Tade took her words seriously and stopped drinking totally, accepted responsibility for his actions, and worked towards rebuilding his reputation.
Gradually, his relationship with Teresa blossomed into love, and one evening, he held her hand and said, “ I never imagined I would find love in such a terrible mess”
Teresa smiled and replied, Sometimes, life teaches its greatest lessons in the most embarrassing ways”
Tade laughed, knowing that his friends would never allow him to forget that unforgettable night, but he learned an important lesson: a good reputation does not make anyone immune to mistakes, but true character is revealed by how one responds to them.
Indeed, it was a rude awakening for Tade and everyone around him. Though from the ashes of embarrassment emerged a better man and an unexpected love story.