[Ruslan Khmelevsky]
There was a loud noise when the table split in halves.
"My cake." The birthday girl had screamed at the sight of her Barbie cake splashed all over the floor. Her mom quickly held her, whispering and cooing her. "Don't worry babym we've got two other cakes."
The girl's pouting had widened into a big wide smile and she hugged her mom tightly. "I love you soooo much." Her face was already reddened in happiness as everyone clapped.
From my seat, I smiled weakly while clapping too. It made me remember my birthday months ago.
I woke up feeling so energetic and happy because it was my birthday. The thought that people might get meds gifts and the good will messages left me to smile like an idiot. I woke up so early around four a.m. My mum was also awake preparing to go to church but she forgot it was my birthday. I knew this because it was a tradition for her to wish me a happy birthday first thing in the morning and also pray for me but she didn't do any of this. I was on the verge of tears because she forgot and I had to remind her. After reminding her, she apologized over and over and wished me a happy birthday and also prayed for me.
I was to go to the hospital that day for my eye check. On my way to the hospital, they were thugs on the way requesting for money. I had to give them the last change I had on me. If not, I would not be allowed passage. My day had started so bad, and it grew worse. On getting outside the hospital gates, a young man obviously the age of my father's younger brother approached me.
"Sister…" He said a couple of times before approaching me. "I'm Kenneth, what's your name?"
Although he looked 'normal' , he wasn't better off than the agbero boys in the park.
"I'm Precious." I lied honestly and immediately walked away from him. He started following me from behind. I knew he was trying to waste my precious time by asking for my phone number and other irrelevant things. I had barely reached the road when he started shouting at the top of his voice:
"Foolish idiot! Na me you one do iyanga for abi. You dey craze. You wey be Kobo kobo prostitute. Because say I dey use low key talk to you."
I felt so embarrassed as I boarded the okada.
After my eye check, the doctor told me that I was losing my side vision and I felt so devastated. I went to the church to meet my mum and told her about the sad news. I later went back home and I realized I took my mum's car keys with me. I had to go back to church to give it to her even though I didn't want to. On getting to the junction where I would board a tricycle, I realized the road was so scanty that I couldn’t even find okadah.
“Bike!, bike!,” I shouted severally but it was as if noting was just going well for me in this day.
I was annoyed and after waiting for half an hour, I finally found a tricycle to take me. On coming down from the tricycle, I met a mad woman who started beating me. The mad woman started shouting,
“leave me alone! Leave me alone” she said. Which was so ironic since she was the one beating me with a plastic bottle
People around saved me as I was too shocked to even move. I was very angry and when I saw my mum, I had no choice other than to let out my frustration and run into her arms crying.
We went home together and my mum gave me some money to go out to a fun park to get what I wanted. Staying at the fun park, I decided to go through my messages. I saw some birthday messages and some people even posted me but it didn’t help my mood at all. I had spent only two hours at the center when mum drove in with her car. I wondered what she came to do and then she approached me, telling me my friends came to visit me. I didn't believe her at first because I expected nothing to go right after everything that had happened. I went home with her and couldn't find any sign of my friends being in the house.
“where are my friends? I thought you said they came to visit?” I questioned my mum but she only smiled.
I later found out my mum tricked me and that it was my dad who came home. I was a excited and felt very special since he took the risk to come home due to the nature of his job.
My dad smiled at me and said “ Happy birthday my princess. I hope you have a year filled with so much joy. I got you snacks”.
I went to the sitting room and enjoyed the snacks he got only for me to notice my dad came to the sitting room with a gift wrap and was holding it out to me.
I took it and tore the gift wrap to check the content only for me to realize it was a phone. I was so excited reasons being my dad wasn’t one to get us phone as he believes we don’t need it. All my friends had phones but I didn’t and I was so happy that I finally had a smile after all the drama that went on during the day.