I watched her read to the end and answered the questions thrown at her by the teachers and students. A few minutes later, it was my turn to read my manifesto. I walked to the podium and took the microphone. I was still wondering what to say when my eyes met Stella's; she made a praying sign with her hand, and I sighed.
Source
"Good morning, everyone!" I shouted into the microphone, and the hall responded with claps and cheers. I was quite popular; everyone knew me, from the proprietor down to the three-year-olds in kindergarten. Their cheers and smiles encouraged me to speak, to tell them what I would do if elected as the head girl.
As I held the already-read manifesto in my hands, I glanced at Tina, who stood among the crowd, smiling as if she wanted me to win. I recalled when she visited my dormitory two days ago to ask if I had written my manifesto.
"I just want to see so I can write mine," she said.
I showed her the draft I had and handed it to her. She took it and returned it that evening during the school's compulsory prep class. It never crossed my mind that someone could photocopy my manifesto and present it as their own.
I remembered where I first met her. It was in the church. She had hushed me during the announcement after mass.
"Stop talking, or else I'll beat you," she said.
I looked at her and realised she couldn't be much older than me.
"But others are talking; can't you see?" I retorted.
She pinched my cheeks so hard that tears welled up in my eyes. I didn't want to cry, so I blinked countless times. After that incident, I made sure not to sit close to her whenever I went to the CGO meeting.
The second time I met her again was in school. Same classroom, same dormitory, but different rooms. I was too focused on my friends to notice her in JSS1. So in our second year, she wrote me a letter.
I guessed it must have been for the big bottle of Nutri Milk I drank during break. She was staring at me and salivating at the same time. Still, I pretended like I didn't know.
In the letter, she asked me why I was sidelining her. She explained that we are church members, our parents knew each other, and so we were supposed to be close friends in school.
It surprised me how a bossy girl in church would become a quiet girl in school. My friends didn't like her, and I didn't notice I hadn't been talking to her.
But she's a strong person; her hands weren't as soft as mine, and only a slap from her could send me to hell. I wasn't the only one who complained about it; others also drew away from her when she playfully hit them.
I didn't respond to her letter, but I took it home during the holiday to show my mum. She advised me to talk to her frequently and play with her too.
"Tina is a nice girl; I know her mother very well," said Mum.
I adhered to Mom's advice and began talking to her in school. My friends didn't like it, but they had to cope with it when I told them it's Mom's order.
She was nice, though she kept wanting the things I had. Not only material things, but my friends too.
I remember her tagging along whenever I went to see the guy I liked. She'd take his basketball cap and keep it with her until I asked her to return it. She would borrow his pen and textbooks whenever she found the chance, and that didn't sit well with me.
I couldn't confront her because I feared she might tell her mom, who would then tell my mom during the women's meeting. But my friends did; they confronted her, and I saw her cry throughout the school hours. I was worried I had hurt her and scared that a teacher might want to know why her eyes were red.
A few days later, we settled without either of us apologising, and that was good.
We competed for various positions together, from vice presidents in the Home Economics Club to Scripture Union President, then Volleyball Club President, among others. The funny thing is she never won any; I always had the crowd's support.
I wasn't surprised in our final year when her name was announced among the students who applied for the position of head girl. I noticed the students murmured amongst themselves; they didn't want her. The only reason is that she's harsh and domineering.
We were opponents, but that didn't stop us from being friends. I didn't know she had plans until this manifesto day.
I gave my manifesto without reading from a paper, though it wasn't as articulate as my opponents, but I noticed my teachers were nodding, and that made me spread my wings and speak with confidence.
I knew my juniors loved me, so I spoke to them mostly, pointing out their major problems, which were the watery beans the cooks served, bad-flavoured Indomie, and broken ceiling fans in the rooms.
I told them I'm ready to stand in the gap and fix all that, and they were happy. I also addressed the boys because I heard their hostel needs some toilet repairs. Their eyes glistened, and I promised myself to keep these promises.
I couldn't miss the disappointment on Tina's face. I was too excited to be angry at her because I noticed she was only reading to the students and teachers while I was engaging with them.
In the end, everyone cast their votes, and as expected, Stella and I emerged as the winners.
I chose not to report Tina to the school authority. Don't get me wrong, I'm not that good; I only refrained from reporting her because she didn't win.
When it came time to elect prefects for the other posts, I helped her campaign for a sanitary prefect. She was a neat freak and authoritative, very suitable for the position.
As usual, we settled, but this time there was an apology from Tina. She wrote it in a letter, explaining how I always got everything while she couldn't get any. I understood her, but I reported her to my mom, who was very angry and disappointed in her.
