DRAW THE LINE (CHAPTER TWO)

CHAPTER TWO- A SEAT FOR TROUBLE St. Ivory College had just resumed for the term, and even though I had begged Mother to let me transfer to Idlis University Preparatory School because Joan and I had already decided we would, she still insisted I stay at St. Ivory. She didn't understand why I'd want to change schools in SS2. And once my mother said no, that was it. Joan wasn't going either. One parent refusing meant the other would follow suit. That was how our mothers worked. If one said no, the other would simply say, "If Michelle is not going, Joan is not going." So we were stuck. Together. At St. Ivory. Joan and I had carefully picked out our seats, excited that we would finally get to sit together after being separated in SS1. Unfortunately, our little arrangement didn't last long. The teacher walked in, followed by a tall, lanky boy. He was fair, with clear skin and sharp features. His dark hair was perfectly cut, not a strand out of place. His eyes were dark and calm, the kind that made you feel as though he already knew what you were thinking. He didn't look down or seem particularly bothered by the number of eyes on him. Instead, he looked around the classroom slowly, almost as though he was waiting to be told where to sit. His uniform was different. It was the same as ours, but his looked newer. Sharper. His shirt was tucked in perfectly, his shoes were spotless, and even his bag looked expensive. He didn't smile. Instead, he wore a small, lazy smirk, the kind boys put on when they know every girl in the class is looking at them. Because he knew. He knew he was handsome. "This is Kellan, your new classmate," Mr. Akinbade announced, tapping his cane lightly against the board. "He's new, so make him feel welcome." Kellan simply stood there, his bag hanging from one shoulder, that little smirk still plastered across his face. Then Mr. Akinbade turned towards us. "Joan, stand up. You and Michelle can never sit together," he said, striking our table with his cane. "Oh, oh!" Joan exclaimed, stamping her feet against the floor as the entire class burst into laughter. I held her hand and squeezed it tightly. "But, sir, it's the first day of school, and we got here first," I protested, still holding on to her hand. Mr. Akinbade pushed his glasses down his nose and stared at us, his displeasure written all over his face. He folded his arms. "When you're done with this solidarity display, let it be known that Joan cannot sit here—" "But why, sir?" I interrupted, my voice sharper than I intended. "Because you girls are always whispering and laughing at God knows what. So, no, it's not happening." He glanced around the classroom, swinging his cane slowly before pointing towards a seat in the middle row. "Joan, move it. To that seat, now! New boy, sit here," he ordered, pointing to my seat. Joan frowned, picked up her bag and dragged her feet as she made her way to the other seat. As she passed Kellan, she deliberately stepped on his shoe and mouthed, "Doh, my bad," before rolling her eyes. I dropped into my seat, annoyed. "Hi. I'm sorry about the split with your friend," he said, his voice surprisingly calm. "Hopefully, we can get along?" His accent was something else. Almost flawless, like he had spent his entire life with the Brits. For a moment, I was almost mesmerised. His voice was so calm and soft that it didn't quite match the smirk he'd walked in with. But then my eyes wandered towards Joan. Her head was buried in her arms on the desk. I couldn't tell if she was crying or simply sulking, but either way, my anger returned. I turned back to him, let out the longest hiss I could manage and faced the window. I could feel him looking at me, but I wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of turning around. "So, are you always this welcoming?" he asked. I turned slightly, giving him a look. "Are you always this talkative?" He chuckled. Actually chuckled. I rolled my eyes and returned my attention to the window. "What's your name, by the way?" I stared at him for a moment, wondering if he was being serious. "Michelle," I answered reluctantly. "Nice name." I said nothing. Thankfully, Mr. Akinbade's voice interrupted whatever else he was about to say. "Since some of you have decided that the first day of school is an opportunity to catch up on everything that happened during the holidays, perhaps I should give you something to occupy your time." A few people groaned. "Bring out your notebooks. We're having a short revision exercise." I sighed and reached into my bag. At least that would keep him quiet. During break, Joan went on and on about how the new boy had ruined the plan we had set in motion. But I was barely listening. My mind was occupied with something else entirely: the way Kellan had pronounced my name. I was still lost in thought when Ugo and her little colony descended on our table. "Michelle, I want you to trade seats with me." "Why?" I asked, bewildered. "Because I said so." "And who exactly are you?" Joan asked. "Excuse me—" "You're excused," I said nonchalantly. Joan and I stood up to leave, but Ugo grabbed my arm and pulled me back. "It's like you want to see craze now, abi?" Joan barked. Ugo quickly released my arm. "Listen, I noticed you guys didn't want to sit apart from each other. I've already spoken to Joyce..." She turned and pointed at a girl who seemed to be one of her loyal followers. Joyce was Joan's new seatmate. "She'll move to my seat, I'll move to yours, and you'll take hers, beside Joan. Isn't that a good arrangement?" "Why? What's in it for you?" I asked, eyeing her suspiciously. If there was one thing I knew about Ugo, it was that she never did anything out of goodwill. There was always something in it for her. Proud of her parents' wealth, she seized every opportunity to remind everyone just how rich they were. She had her own little gang of vain girls who followed her around, probably because of the attention they got from associating with her. But when it came to academics, they were as empty-headed as mannequins. "Nothing," she said, looking slightly embarrassed. "It's the new boy, isn't it?" Joan asked, narrowing her eyes at Ugo. "Look, it's nothing of that sort. Are you in or out?" I glanced at Joan. She gave me a nod. "I'm in." When I got home that day, I couldn't help feeling excited about the new arrangement. Joan and I would finally get to sit together again. However, a part of me felt guilty about giving up my seat beside Kellan. I mean, of all people, it had to be Ugo? But then again, it was either Joan or Kellan, and I couldn't possibly choose Kellan over my best friend. At least, that's what I told myself. The following morning, I arrived in class just in time to meet Joan arranging her books on our new desk. "Good morning, sleeping beauty," she greeted. "Please, don't start." She laughed. "And why is that?" "Omorr, I binged on the new K-drama last night." Her eyes widened. "No way! You mean The Love Detective?" "Yes! I'm just grateful Mom didn't walk in on me last night." I smiled. "Well, you should be grateful. At least you're not the one with a twisted ankle." I turned to look at her. "Wait, what twisted ankle?" She stretched out her leg, revealing a neatly wrapped bandage around her ankle. "Jo! What happened?" I gasped. "Don't even get me started. I almost embarrassed myself this morning." She went on to explain how she had been trying to board a bus when she slipped and twisted her ankle. Apparently, she had been struggling to get up when someone came to her rescue. "And guess who it was?" she asked, pausing dramatically. "Who?" "Kellan!" I stared at her. "Kellan? Kellan? As in Kellan? Our Kellan?" "How many Kellans do you know in this school?" she retorted. I rolled my eyes. "Calm down joor. Your blood too dey hot." I turned around to check if any teacher had heard the Pidgin I had just spoken. "Mitch, that boy is actually so nice. He helped me up, assisted me in boarding a bus and even helped me to the school nurse. He didn't just leave me there. I mean, even after I deliberately stepped on him yesterday!" She glanced at her ankle again, smiling. "Honestly, he's such a good person." I stared at her for a moment before letting out a small laugh. Was this the same person who had it out for Kellan just yesterday? Just then, Kellan walked into the classroom. I noticed him making small talk with Ugo. A part of me felt strangely uncomfortable seeing how easily they seemed to get along. To make matters worse, even after their handshake, Ugo refused to let go of his hand. I rolled my eyes. I decided to go over and thank him for helping Joan out. After all, I was only being a good friend. "Hi, Kellan. Good morning. Joan told me everything that happened, and I just wanted to say thank you for helping her out," I said. Kellan kept a straight face. He didn't even look at me or acknowledge my presence. "Uhm, hello? I'm talking to you," I said, slightly raising my voice. He got up and walked out of the classroom, leaving me completely confused. By now, Ugo and her minions are already bursting into laughter. I stood there for a moment, embarrassed, before turning around and making my way back to my seat. Joan was happily gisting away with another classmate, probably about how wonderful Kellan was. Just then, Mr. Akinbade walked back into the classroom with Kellan. "Good morning, class." "Good morning, sir," we all chorused. "So, it has come to my notice that some of you are bigger than your teachers, abi?" He widened his eyes. The class murmured, everyone trying to understand what was happening. "Silence, all of you!" he barked, hitting his cane against the table. The class went quiet. "So, Michelle, you're bigger than me, right? You've grown wings, abi?" The entire class turned towards me. "Sir?" I asked, completely confused. "I told Kellan to sit here after removing Joan from this seat, but instead, you and Ugo decided to switch seats? Where is Ugo?" He scanned the classroom while some students pointed in her direction. "My friend, stand up!" Ugo slowly rose to her feet. "You and Michelle decided to exchange seats, right? No problem. Since you all are bigger than me now, Ugo, you see that nursery toilet? You'll assist the cleaners in washing it!" The classroom erupted in laughter. Ugo looked as though she was on the verge of tears. "Kellan, I'll punish you too. You should have reported this to me immediately, but you waited. If not for the JSS3 student who witnessed your little shenanigans in the cafeteria yesterday, I wouldn't have known about it. So, you and Michelle will wash all the plates in the cafeteria after school today." He paused and turned towards Joan. "And Joan, if not for the fact that you've sprained your ankle, you'd be cleaning toilets too. But don't count yourself lucky just yet." With that, he turned and walked out of the classroom. Even though I was furious, I couldn't help feeling a little satisfied that Kellan had received his own share of the punishment. At least I wasn't suffering alone. By the time the final bell rang, I was already regretting every decision that had led me to that moment. While everyone else hurried out of the classroom, I dragged my feet, hoping that perhaps Mr. Akinbade, being a pastor in his local church, would have a change of heart. Maybe the Lord would touch him, and he would decide to let us go. Unfortunately, that wasn't happening. I found Kellan waiting outside the cafeteria when I got there. "You're late," he said, glancing at his wristwatch. I looked at him, rolled my eyes and said, "As per what? The supervisor?" He chuckled. "Just saying." I ignored him and walked into the cafeteria, where a mountain of dirty plates awaited us. I froze. "Jesus Christ!" I exclaimed. "This is too much na. It's too much na!" I frowned, folding my arms. He laughed. "What's funny?" "Nothing. I just didn't know you were like this." I turned to him. "And I didn't know I'd get into trouble because of you." "Well, looks like we're both learning new things about each other." I rolled my eyes and picked up a sponge. For the first few minutes, we worked in silence. I concentrated on washing the plates while Kellan rinsed them and arranged them on the rack. "So, you and Joan are pretty close?" he asked. I glanced at him. "Why do you ask?" "Nothing. Just noticed you two are always together." "Well, she's my best friend." "That explains a lot." I frowned. "What does that mean?" He smiled. "Nothing." I narrowed my eyes at him but decided not to bother asking again. "So, how's her ankle?" he asked. "She's fine. Probably enjoying all the attention she's getting." He laughed. "She's pretty dramatic." "And I love her that way," I said. We continued working in silence. A few minutes later, I noticed him struggling with a particularly greasy pot. "You're doing it wrong," I said. He looked at me. "Oh, really?" "Yes. Here, give me that." I collected the pot from him, added some detergent and scrubbed it thoroughly before handing it back. "See? It's not hard. I'm guessing you don't do chores at home." "Thank you, Michelle the professional plate washer." "You're welcome, Mr. Ten-Yards Husband Material." He burst into laughter, and before I knew it, I was laughing too. For someone I had practically declared my enemy on his first day, he wasn't entirely unbearable. By the time we finished, my fingers were wrinkled, my uniform sleeves were wet, and I was desperately wishing I'd brought an extra pair of clothes. "Well, that wasn't so bad," he said, drying his hands with a towel. I gave him a look. "Speak for yourself. I think I've washed enough plates to last me a lifetime." He laughed again. "Come on, I'll walk you out." "I can find my way, thank you." "I know. Just let me." I shook my head, picked up my bag and followed him out. For the first time since he arrived at St. Ivory, I found myself having an actual conversation with Kellan. I learnt that he had recently moved to Lagos from Benin City after losing his grandmother. He had to return to live with his parents in Lagos, and that was how he ended up at St. Ivory. There was something about the way he spoke about his grandmother that made me pause. His usual confidence seemed to soften whenever he mentioned her, although he quickly moved on to another subject. I didn't press him for details. We had only just started getting along, and I wasn't about to start asking personal questions. As we talked, I spotted Ugo standing nearby. She gave me a menacing look from where she stood, wearing yellow rubber gloves and holding a mop. Something about the sight gave me an unreasonable amount of satisfaction. "Here we are," Kellan said. "Thanks, Kellan. Fo—" "Kel. Call me Kel." I raised an eyebrow. "I hope you don't think we're friends now because we washed plates together." He raised both hands in surrender. "I know, I know, Mitch." I couldn't believe he was slowly breaking the line I had drawn, but I had to admit that, aside from Joan and my siblings, who called me Mitch, it felt pretty good hearing it from him. "Hm. Well, thanks, Kel, for the walk." "It was nothing. And I'm sorry you got into trouble because of me. Helping Joan was truly nothing." I paused. "So, you heard me back then?" He smiled. And then he walked away. I stood there watching him, slightly amused, as he turned to wave goodbye. As I made my way home, I found myself thinking about the day's events. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all.