The Externals - Chapter Eighteen

 

"Great finalists of Johnson College, as you journey through the last week of Jamb registration, I want you to think deeply if the next coming year will pass by without making any meaningful impact in your career unless you register for JAMB, you still have the opportunity to retrace your steps. Don't let anything stop you from achieving your goals", The words of the proprietor echoed in Lily's ears the following week. He had said that while specifically addressing them in the assembly hall a few hours ago yet she couldn't stop his words from replaying in her head.

"Lily, Lily, Lily!!!!!" The teacher in her classroom at that time noticed her faraway look.

"Yes....sir", Lily stuttered as she stood up to answer his question.

"What is the concept of inflation?" He asked her a question based on what he had been teaching them and had just repeated.

"Hmmm..", Lily avoided eye contact with him and diverted her attention to the faces of her classmates, strangely hoping the answer would pop out of them but it never did.

"Are you okay? The answer is right in front of you on the board and you still don't know", Unserious John was worried about her.

"What's the problem? Your oyinbo is still right beside you. What about when he now leaves" he still mocked her.

The whole class made fun of Lily after John's statement.

"No, it's not that. It's just JAMB...", No one gave her the chance to fully explain herself.

"Cut the crap, Lily. Everyone in this room knows you'll pass that exam without a hiccup. Your lie is not lie enough", Omma added.

They laughed again.

Before the Economics class ended, Mary had already done something more silly, which made everyone forget about Lily's issue but it still lingered in her mind. Quinn saw that and of course, wouldn't ignore that. He seemed to be the only person who understood her more than every other person in class. She was the only person who could make him give up listening to his favorite jams during recess to listen to her grumblings. Neither of them could imagine what being in Johnson College would be like without having the other.

"The floor is now all yours, Queen Kiko", Quinn gave her that name because he felt the hairstyle looked more beautiful on her than other girls he had seen on it since it had his touch.

"Quinn, I'm scared", Lily said with a slightly wrinkled forehead and heavy eyelids. "Dad's still in the hospital so I don't think I should register for jamb considering my family's financial status. Besides, I don't think I can deal with the pressure of two exams...I'm so scared of failing".

"It's okay to be scared but don't get freaked out because of some overly rated objective questions. It's even better to do it now because you don't have to prepare separately for both exams", Quinn made her see her plight in a new light.

"Yeah, you're right but what about the financial aspect", An iota of worry was still evident in her voice.

"You can always win a scholarship and you have the coolest Mrs. Daramola as your sister", Hearing him talk about her being qualified for a scholarship made her feel like a genius.

"Thanks. I feel way better now", Lily heaved a sigh and asked about his after-school plans even though she feared a suitable answer may not come out of his mouth.

"What will be will be!" Quinn mimicked the Nigerian accent and made Lily let out an ingenue laughter. Discussions that had even the slightest thing to do with his departure never made her happy.

On their way home, JAMB remained the subject of discussion among the SS3 students. People like Omma, Khadijat, and Halima lamented about how it would have to pass them by that year because their parents weren't capable of sponsoring their education just yet and age wasn't on their side. Khadijat seemed to be the most hopeful one of them all when she began to tell them she had already started writing job applications so she'd have something to fall back on after secondary school, since her parents were not too reliable especially with a baby boy on the way. Soon, the rest started tapping into her knowledge. They didn't want anything to stop them from achieving their goals.

As Quinn watched them talk, he felt great sympathy for them. He wished there was something he could do to help them out of their predicament but his hands were tied. He didn't have all the money that could solve their problem and couldn't think of anything reasonable thing that could resolve it either. He could only offer them academic and moral support. He even knelt to pray for them at night before going to bed.

"Good morning, greatest finalists!" It was the English teacher trying to shake off the bad JAMB vibes from the students the following morning.

"Good morning, sir", Most of them answered dully. Only a few JC students who had registered for JAMB sounded excited.

"This morning, I have something that'll blow your mind", He grinned from ear to ear.

"Are you going to pay for everyone's JAMB form?" Lanre guessed.

"Come on. Even if I pay for everyone's jamb form, what's the guarantee that you all will pass or enter school? Some may not even make it to the exam hall", He was trying to make them see reality but they didn't take it well.

"God forbid", Many said and did the hand gesture against bad luck.

"It's alright! Silence!" The students kept quiet at once knowing they were going to be in big trouble if he changed his disposition towards them. "The good news is I won't be giving you any test next week".

"Woohooo", They jubilated.

"However.." They kept quiet so he wouldn't change his mind. "You have to write about the course you would love to study when you have the opportunity to write jamb and present it in class!"

"What!", Their feelings of excitement ran away.

Yeah, they all sounded upset about the topic at first but soon, they started to see the beauty in it. They formed various discussion groups among those they were most familiar with to talk about professions like lawyers, doctors, professors, and others which are greatly acknowledged in society. They also did not fail to mention the impact of fashion designing, barbing, shoe making, and others that people used to look down on but have been able to change people's views about them. This made Halima wonder greatly if she should pursue the medicine line her mom wanted for her or look into shoe making which gives her so much joy.

"What profession interests you, Lily?" Quinn started their version of the discussion in the laboratory as they were conducting an experiment on acid-base titration.

"A Pilot!" Lily swayed around happily. She had so gotten used to Quin that she could do anything around him.

"Can you seriously deal with all that calculation?" Quinn squawked, which didn't make Lily too happy. She wanted him to be so proud of her to the extent of telling his American friends his Nigerian female bestie was going to be a pilot".

"Yeah. My mom wanted that for me and I've also come to fall in love with it. She was so happy about it, thinking I would be the one to fly her across the world since she couldn't afford a plane ticket", Lily started crying.

"Hey, it's okay", Quinn said with a shooting voice as he hugged her. "I didn't mean to make you cry. I didn't just think it was appropriate for you to go through that stress and the expenses but since that's really what you want, it's cool".

At dusk, the Kunbis outside their apartment for fresh air. Soon, Mary told their mom about the assignment their English teacher gave her and asked her if she had any profession in mind for them since she was the center of their world. Mrs. Kunbi was so touched by this that she didn't realize when she told them "hair-dressing ". The kids who couldn't control their emotions showed their displeasure in the rudest form and made their mom sad. Later, they retraced their steps and told her even if they weren't fully interested in the salon business, they would make sure their mom's legacy never dies. That was all thanks to Quinn who talked some senses into them.

As the Kunbis were having their drama, Khadijat told her siblings about the profession she had in mind as they ate eba with egusi soup and tiny bits of dry fish in their poorly illuminated room until their mom returned. Mrs. Mohammed who had intentions of marrying her off after secondary school said that wasn't going to happen. However, Khadijat stood her ground saying she was going to fulfill her dream even if it required being disowned.

Omma didn't bother asking her mom what choice of profession to go for because it didn't seem like she was familiar with modern and sophisticated professions. Alas, she was shocked when her mom suddenly commented about how cool it would be if she ended up being a biochemist. She made it known to her that as a secondary school student, she loved chemistry experiments. Omma pretended not to have been affected by what her mom said but deep inside, she was inspired.

Wednesday ended before any of them could even notice. They were so engrossed in preparing for their presentation that they didn't even bother participating in sports. Each one had a partner with whom they practiced how they were going to give their speech except Quinn. He disappointed anyone who expected Lily to be his partner. He didn't even act like he was interested in the presentation. He seemed like someone who didn't have a plan for his life.

However, what Quinn appeared to be like wasn't completely true. He already had a profession in mind but wasn't completely sure about it. Touched by what Lily said concerning her mom and the scenario that happened between the twins and their mom, he called his mom to ask her if she had any plan in mind for him. Despite the feud between them, Miss Claire she'd go with whatever profession that made him happy even if he didn't end up the richest man in the world.

"Oh my God! This is the funniest thing have ever seen", Martha laughed at Dare who wore a corporate outfit for the presentation the following day.

"What's so funny? I'm not even putting up a comedy show here", Dare who expected compliments for his look frowned.

"You are my dear but you still look very hot", Martha flirted with him.

"Oh, really? So, do you care for dinner at my place?" He flirted back.

"Can you even afford to buy dinner, talk less of owning a God damn apartment?" Martha replied and every other person in the classroom mocked him.

"Alright, guys. I need you all to settle down so we can start our business for today", Mr Adeoye said as he entered the classroom and everyone followed his order.

"Who's going first?" Halima asked and they started pointing towards each other.

"That's enough, guys. Stop behaving like primary school kids!" Mr Adeoye yelled at them.

"We're sorry, sir", They chorused.

"Okay. I'll go first", Dare moved to the front of the classroom, exuding confidence in every step.

As Dare was about to starthis speech, the proprietor walked past their classroom then walked back because he caught a glimpse of his attire and was curious to know why he wore it. After the English teacher told him what was going on, he got interested in the presentation and ordered that it should be held in the school hall where everyone, especially the junior students could see and learn from it. The finalists were not so cool about it but even their teacher didn't have the power to ignore the proprietor's order.