It honestly feels like a dream! I have had mixed feelings about ending the Capital High series. It has become a part of my weekly routine- thinking about what to write in the next episode, doing my ‘mixed school’ due diligence, replying messages and comments, listening to and reading your reactions to the events that have unfolded in the last 15 episodes! I have grown attached to the characters just like you have and I hate to see them go, but this is not ‘Days of our lives’ and it must surely come to an end. I must say that it has been humbling to see how far this series has gone. It has pushed me in every way imaginable- you have no idea the kind of struggles I have had to overcome to post some of these episodes, but like I always say, you always make it worthwhile. Thank you for reading and sharing every week. Thank you for the hype- every blogger needs readers like you. Thank you for pushing me to be more consistent and creative with my posting. Thank you for falling in love with Capital High! ❤

First order of business! As a parting gift, Kwame Pocho of Team 1000 words took  time over the weekend to do a Capital High shoot! (I keep telling you I have the most awesome readers in the world!) Those of you who follow the Facebook page may have seen a teaser or two earlier today. It was so humbling to see the story and the characters come to life- and I can’t thank Pocho enough for doing this. Special thanks go to Gerard Nartey (for assisting Pocho) and to Obuobi Emmanuel Bekoe, Naa Ahiney Laryea and Yasmin Lartey for graciously playing K Beck, Akpene and Gagert. You guys were awesome. I am happy to share a few of them with you..

 

 

 

K Beck shook his head a third time, his eyes following the motorcycle rider.

These are the days when he missed Christoff the most. He would have broken into some psychological analysis of the lawlessness that motorcycle riders in Ghana are associated with. There were days when he came to the conclusion that God had probably sent Christoff to Capital High just for him. They had gone past friendship to brotherhood and K Beck knew that he could always count on him if he needed someone to be there for him.

When dust had settled on the whole Akpene episode, he had tried to hook Awula up with Christoff, but he won’t hear of it.

‘Do I look like a rebound to you? I like unchartered waters’, Christoff said with a twinkle in his eye.

Instead, he had ended up with Denise.

‘Denise, as in I brought thongs to school on my first day Denise?’

‘Yes, one and the same.’

‘How is that unchartered waters?’

‘I may have forgotten to mention that I like a challenge. Denise is a challenge.’

That guy was a wise man. It didn’t surprise him when Christoff won the school prefect elections hands down. The pride bursting out of his chest as he watched his friend ascend the dais for his sash was unforgettable. There was another reason why he could never forget that day- it was the day that he discovered that Gagert had acute kidney injury. It explained a lot of things- her sudden openness, the show of emotion from time to time and even the way she had let Lawrencia off the hook so easily.

Lying in a bed, with all sorts of machines surrounding her, Gagert looked frail. When she opened her eyes, she smiled.

‘I knew your father would eventually tell you. Don’t look so sad. I am not dying or anything.’

She was a strong one- that woman- insisting on having the dialysis done in her house so that she would not miss the Capital High routine. She had also been secretly building an orphanage and a creative arts centre for the people in the Capital High town. Her reason was: ‘It is kind of vain, isn’t it, when a headteacher builds a hall or a house in the school and names it after herself? I am building this as a legacy. Many many years after I am gone, every orphan who goes through this institution will be touched by my hand.’

He still went back to see her from time to time. She had retired now but still lived close to the school.

‘I am proud of you, you know. I remember when your dad came to see me about your suspension.’

‘I knew he had a hand in it!’

‘Yes he did, and now look at you, almost an architect. No luck with Akpene?’

‘I still haven’t found her, but I won’t stop looking.’

‘I know. The Welbeck men are persistent!’

They both smiled. He reached for her wrinkled hand and rubbed it against his cheek.

---

 

This is going to take forever.

He was due for an internship this vacation with Design Consult, one of the major architectural firms in the country. The HR woman, an old menopausal woman whose glasses looked like they were about to fall off, had asked him to come along with a doctor’s report.

‘We need to be sure you have a clean bill of health.’

And that was why he was sitting in this long queue, between an overweight woman and a mechanic with foul body odour. He sighed for the hundredth time and began to fidget. One of the nurses walked past him. From behind, she looked like Akpene.

K Beck, get it together. Stop imagining things. We have been through this too many times.

When she turned and sat at her desk, his throat went dry. It was her. It was really her. He patiently waited for her to see him. It didn’t take too long. She looked at the folder she was holding and immediately felt her stomach turning.

When she called out his name, her voice was hesitant.

‘Kwamena Welbeck.’

She could not believe it.

 

Yes it was him.

Kwamena Welbeck in the flesh.

Same cocky, heartstopping smile.

Same glint of mischief in his eyes.

Same haircut.

Akpene was grateful that she was seated behind her desk or else her wobbly knees would have given her away. He sat in front of her, not saying a word- just smiling.

Her hands quivered as she wrapped the pressure cuff around his arm. He noticed and asked, ‘Shouldn’t we be checking your blood pressure instead?’

She unconsciously checked for a wedding ring and silently chided herself.

He is only 23 years old. And even if he was, it is really none of your business.

He watched her in silence, ten billion questions running through his head. When she was done, he knew he wanted answers- and he wanted them today.

‘We are done.’

‘I know.’

‘You need to get up so that I can attend to my next patient.’

‘Goodness! I see you are still as stubborn as ever. But that’s a good thing- it would have been torture to talk to you again after all these years, if you had changed. Walk with me.’

‘You are going to make a scene. I have to work.’

‘Then walk with me.’

She sighed, shook her head and got up. Mumbling something to the nurse seated beside her, she dusted off imaginary dust from her uniform. K Beck knew that she was only trying to regain composure. He bit his lips to keep the smile from escaping, flattered however that he still had this effect on her. He drank in the sight of her. She wore perfume now. Her eyes looked tired, probably because she had done a double shift or something. She looked less guarded than she used to be, and his heart ached about missing out on part of her ‘healing process’. Her calves had gotten slightly bigger but firmer, making her legendary figure even more profound. He turned his attention back to her face.

‘Do you have a boyfriend?’

Akpene laughed out, startling a woman who was nursing her baby boy in the corner. She grabbed him by the hand and pulled him outside.

‘Is that why you pulled me from my work? I have patients waiting.’

‘Of all the questions, it is the most important. So yes or no?’

‘No.’

Never had one word meant so much to him. The hope in his heart soared.

‘Couldn’t find anyone like me huh?’

Akpene rolled her eyes.

‘I see you are still full of yourself!’

‘And I see you are still obstinate and sharp-tongued. But you know it’s true, don’t you?’

‘I won’t give you the dignity of a response.’

‘Did you find your brother?’

‘Yes, I did. It took a while but he is back here with me. He is almost done with primary school.’

‘You should enroll him in Capital High. It would be good for him.’

‘With Gagert gone? No,thank you!’

‘Polar Bear is not so bad, I must admit. He is doing well.’

‘You seem up to date with Capital High affairs. How is Gagert?’

‘She is fine. Responding well to the dialysis. My dad has been keeping her company, that’s how come I am so updated. Apparently they were lovers when they were in school.’

‘Gagert, in love? Never saw that one coming. How is Awula?’

‘She is fine, I guess. Her dad flew her to Switzerland. She is attending the Geneva School of Diplomacy and International Relations. She might become your next Foreign Minister.’

‘That’s nice. I see how you put in the ‘I guess’ to subtly tell me that you don’t talk often.’

‘I like how you can still read me.’

She smiled.

‘I missed you Akpene. I don’t get how you could ignore all the letters I sent you.’

‘Letters? I only got one- and I gave it back to the letter girl without opening it.’

‘Yes, letters. I wrote you a letter every week and posted a copy to every school I knew that had the Nursing Training School option. I never got a reply.’

‘I am sorry, K. I didn’t know about any of the letters.’

‘It is fine. What matters is that you are here now. I never stopped looking for you.’

‘I don’t doubt that.’

‘I am serious. It was almost like a movie. When we left school, every short girl with curves looked like you. I can’t count the number of women I have startled with a bear hug.’

She laughed out loud again.

‘It is good to hear you laughing.’

‘You are such a clown. How could I not?’

‘My auntie used to say that you insult the guy you like. My auntie was a wise woman.’

Akpene shook her head. The March sun was showing off its splendour so she squinted. K Beck lifted his hand and shielded her from the rays.

‘Feels like a deja vu, doesn’t it? I remember doing this in Capital High.’

‘Oh you mean, the day you gave Curtis blackmail material by giving me a peck in front of the Liberty downs?’

‘Yes, exactly that. But I choose to focus on the peck, not the Curtis bit.’

They both smiled.

‘I have to go inside now.’

‘Call me. My number is still the same old one.’

‘I will.’

‘Don’t vanish like that on me again, I am serious.’

‘I won’t.’

‘And you better call me!’

‘I will.’

A smile played at her lips without her permission.

‘Tonight?’

‘Yes, tonight.’

Subconsciously, he did a victory dance in his head as he watched her go off to attend to her patients.As he walked towards his car, he couldn’t help but remember what Akpene used to say anytime something good happened.

God must be smiling down at me.

THE END

 

 

I know you are probably thinking ‘How can Akpene leave Capital High?!’ I know it changes the way you imagined that the series would end. I must admit that I am totally enjoying listening to your varied  reactions and suggestions on how to end the series. Shoutouts to the two ladies who offered me chocolate to make sure that I don’t end the series 😉 This week’s episode is dedicated to my latest nephew. Welcome to the world, little one. May you grow to be as sweet as K Beck! 😘

Christoff yanked the blanket off K Beck’s face.

‘You need to get it together. It sucks but she is not coming back and she doesn’t want you to find her. The earlier you come to terms with that, the better for all of us.’

K Beck’s eyes were bloodshot and he looked like he had not had a bath in ages. He had barely slept that night. It wasn’t a dream- she was really gone. And here he was, shedding tears into his pillow when he thought nobody was watching.It had been a painful night and he had thought long and hard about everything. It still didn’t make sense.

‘How do you know she doesn’t want me to find her?’

‘Forget about it.’

‘No, tell me.’

‘You look like crap. Telling you will just make you feel worse.’

‘Just tell me!’

‘Ok, she knew you would try to find her so she told me to tell you not to. She said it would be easier for both of you that way.’

‘Wait, what? She had time to speak to everyone else about this except me? Why didn’t she tell me? Why didn’t you stop her?’

‘She knew you would try to stop her. I tried to get her to stay but her mind was made up. You know how strong and obstinate she can be.’

‘Trust me, I know. Her stubbornness is the reason why we are here. I was looking forward to our first Valentine’s Day together. I mean I was going to flood her bed with balloons, send her chocolates, fresh bread and a giant teddy bear called K Beck- the whole princess treatment thing. You know, make up for the sadness she has endured. She just had to mess that up. I should be angry with her, but all I am thinking about is whether or not she is ok.’

‘Love does that to people mehn!

‘Why do you always have to sound so wise? Is that all she said?’

‘No, she told me to take care of you too.’

---

Gagert was waiting for him. She knew that if he was anything like his father, he would try to reach Akpene. Her heart was aching for him especially because it all felt like a déjà vu. This reminded her painfully of when she had broken up with his father. He had spent several weeks trying to get her to change her mind. She still regretted saying no to him and that’s why she tried to speak to Akpene.

‘You don’t have to leave, Akpene.’

‘I want to. It will make me feel better.’

‘Sure about that? It looks like it would break your heart to leave him behind.’

‘It is not about him.’

‘Then why are you spending so much time in making sure that he doesn’t contact you?’

‘Because he will make it harder. I need to think about the future. That future might have anything to do with him. I need to be ready for that. Having him in my life has made me so vulnerable. Being vulnerable for a girl like me who comes from nothing is not a good thing. I need this.’

‘Ok, I respect your decision. The Welbeck men sure know how to mess with your emotions.’

‘You were in a situation like this?’

‘Yes I was. A long long time ago…’

Just as she predicted, K Beck walked into her office as soon as it was time for first break.

‘I know you won’t tell me where she is or how I can reach her. But please promise me that you will tell me if she is ok.’

‘She is ok.’

‘How do you know for sure? She can put up a brave face if she has to.’

‘Trust me. She is being taken care of.’

‘Thank you for doing this.’

She smiled at him, being all mature and caring about the girl he loved. She knew better than to rubbish his feelings. She knew all too well what it meant to be loved by a Welbeck.

---

Lawrencia stared at the pink leather bound Bible beside her pillow and smirked.

The great Reverend himself is coming today.

It had been two weeks since the whole fiasco. She had been in and out of the hospital twice. The most interesting discovery was that she had not lost the baby. When the doctor told her, she didn’t know whether to be happy or be sad.

‘Could you please say that again?’

‘I said, you did not lose the baby. I am looking at it now in the scan. You almost did, but you didn’t.’

‘God must really have a sense of humour. He makes the whole world hear about my deeds, makes me this sick and then keeps the baby alive.’

‘Sounds to me like you did that all by yourself.’

‘Now you sound like my parents.’

When she finally met with Gagert, she was surprised that she was as receptive as she was.

‘This doesn’t add up.’

‘My being gentle with you? Make no mistake, you will be punished for your wrongs. I just want to speak to your family first to ensure that they don’t punish you even further.’

‘Then you don’t know my parents. They will bundle me off to some prayer camp in the mountains where some prayer papas will attempt to uproot the spirit of Jezebel from within me. They will probably pray the baby out of my womb if they can- probably because they believe it is satanic or something. And for the rest of my life, my illegitimate child will have to pay for my sins. So trust me when I say I have been acquainted with punishments like that all my life.’

When Lawrencia’s father stepped into her office, Gagert immediately understood what she meant. He had a protruding pot belly, with the locket on his gold cross chain resting on his stomach . He had three elders following him, each  of them with a gold cross and a pot belly. They looked at Lawrencia as though she was the devil himself .
‘We are taking her away for a while.’
Gagert caught Lawrencia’s I told you so look. She spoke up.
‘We are not dismissing her. She will be allowed to attend classes and live a normal life until she is ready to deliver.’

‘Did you say deliver ? That baby is going back to wherever it came from. I will not be ridiculed for bad parenting.’
‘Respectfully Sir, if you had been a good parent in the beginning, we would not have been having this conversation.’

---

Awula knew K Beck was hurting and she knew it was because of Akpene. She felt helpless because she knew there was nothing that she could do to make him feel better.

Yes, she still liked him but she had come to the realization that his heart belonged to Akpene. As fate would have it, she wanted someone she could not have, who in turn wanted someone else. The first time she had seen K Beck and Akpene together, she thought they were just good friends until she had caught a glimpse of the tender look in K Beck’s eyes whenever he was talking to Akpene. As her mother used to say, ‘You can’t fight true love.’

But now that Akpene was gone and didn’t want to be found, she found herself looking for the silver lining in this cloud.

---

Afrakuma could not believe that she was actually leaving Capital High. She had always thrived on the illusion that she was untouchable and could get away with anything. Until yesterday… It felt as though her cup was full. She had expected mercy because of her history with Gagert, but she had learnt the hard way.

She stuffed her duvet into the jute bag and ignored the questions that her dorm mates were asking her.

‘Ah but why are you leaving?’

‘Gagert said I should.’

‘Gagert?’

‘Why, what did you do?’

‘I can’t say.’

‘I am really surprised. I did not expect that at all!’
‘With Gagert, always expect the unexpected.’
See you next week for our final episode! 💃🏽

I have news!! The link for voting is out!

Please vote for Kenikodjo as best blog and Maukeni Padiki Kodjo for best Facebook Profile (Individual) in the Ghana Blogging and Social Media Awards 2016 by clicking on the link below:

http://www.addpoll.com/BloggingGhana/survey/ghana-blogging-and-social-media-awards-16

P.S: Your vote will only count if you go back into your email inbox to verify your vote! Let’s win this for K Beck! 😉

 

You people succeeded in making me feel like a very bad person last week. My heart was also broken that Akpene had to suffer all over again. Worry not, the story hasn’t ended yet, but for now, we have a funeral to plan. Akpene won’t suffer forever, that much I can assure you. (Hehehe, spoiler alert things! 😉 ) Anyways, I have exciting news!!!!

Thanks to amazing people like you, the Kenikodjo blog has been nominated for Best Blog in the Blogging Awards 2016 Competition. On top of that, my Facebook profile has been nominated for Best Facebook Profile (Individual). Voting starts on 16th March. Watch this space and the Facebook page as well for updates. Thank you so much for nominating me. It is such an honour! You guys are all kinds of amazing! Who knew that typing rants about trotros and kelewele would get us here one day? Anyways, I am sure you are more interested in the story; so for now, let’s dig in!

 

‘She is having nightmares again.’

‘Poor child. Can you blame her?’

Gagert stood watching Akpene squirm in her sleep. When she could not bear it any longer, she walked past her nephew, bent over and began to rub her back. She wasn’t used to exhibiting such tenderness, especially when others were watching, but Akpene needed someone to be there for her.

Ever since she broke the news to Akpene, her mind kept wondering back to the way the light in her eyes went dim. She didn’t know what she could possibly say to her to make up for the loss and that was why she called K Beck. She knew he liked her- after all, his father used to look at her the same way that he looked at Akpene when he thought nobody was watching. It was almost like a trip down memory lane for Gagert, anytime she chanced upon them.

Gagert had had Akpene moved to her house that night. She thought it would be good to have someone watching over her. It was a good thing, given that she had a nightmare anytime she slept. She watched K Beck walk up to the house. He came over every night after prep. Techically, it was not allowed, but she didn’t have the heart to send him away.

The first night, he had refused to go back to the school. Not even the threat of deboardinization dimmed the determination in his eyes. She sat with him in her living room, very well aware of how weird it was to be sitting this close to a Welbeck.

K Beck broke the silence.

‘What happened?’

‘Apparently, her mother had been sick for a while but she had been downplaying it. She had a fibroid that could have been removed if she had been attended to early enough.’

‘What’s going to happen to her brother?’

‘I understand someone has offered to adopt him.’

‘Just him? What’s going to happen to Akpene?’

‘I don’t know, Mr Welbeck.’

‘She doesn’t deserve to suffer like this. She doesn’t.’

‘I agree with you. You are a good man, Mr Welbeck. Just like your dad.’

Silence ensued. She could tell that he had many questions about what she had just said.

‘Ask your questions.’

‘Why didn’t you marry my father?’

Gagert smiled. He was bold and forthcoming as well.

‘At the time, that seemed like the smart thing to do. Your father wasn’t ‘ambitious’ enough. I was afraid that I would feel like I had settled.’

‘I see. Did you know my mother?’

Gagert looked visibly shaken.

‘You don’t have to answer. I just remember very little about her so I try to glean from other people’s memories.’

‘Yes, I met her once. She was beautiful. Soft-spoken too. A lady..’

K Beck smiled.

‘Thanks. I imagine you didn’t like her much.’

‘You are right. I didn’t. I spent that afternoon compiling a list of things that I was better at doing.’

They both laughed.

---

Christoff scowled at the bucket and bent over.

It doesn’t make sense. How can you punish me for calling you a thief when you are indeed a thief?

It had all started when he saw his Champion sneakers on Senior Ralph’s feet. He chose not to react, assuming that he had borrowed them. The next week, he saw his box of Coco Pops on top of his locker, empty. The boy who slept beside him said that Senior Ralph was the one who ate it. The last straw had been when he saw his bottle of perfume in Senior Ralph’s locker. It was a parting gift from his mother- there was no way that he was going to just let it slide.

‘Why do you keep taking my things?’

‘Herh, you don’t respect eh? Are you calling me a thief?’

‘No, I am not. You brought that up by yourself. I was just saying that you should keep your hands off my things.’

‘I am giving you one last chance to apologize and lessen your punishment.’

‘You should be the one apologizing for taking things that don’t belong to you.’

And that was how he ended up, scrubbing the upper courtyard. The painful thing about this was the fact that no amount of scrubbing seemed to make the terrazzo look any cleaner.He lightened up when he saw K Beck heading in his direction.

‘Thank goodness. I could use a break.’

‘Who said I was coming to help out?’

‘Oh come on!’

‘You would just make your situation worse if you get someone to help you out.’

‘How is Akpene doing?’

‘It is tough on her. She keeps having nightmares. She refuses to eat and she barely says anything. It is killing me mehn- the fact that I can’t fix this.’

‘You can’t fix everything, you know. How is it going with your dilemma? I can tell Awula is also worried about her.’

‘I have barely spoken to her this week. I am sure she will start complaining soon.’

‘I hope Akpene’s loss is not making you mistake pity for affection.’

‘No. If there is anything I am sure of, since this tragedy began, it is the fact that it will always be Akpene.’

‘All I am saying is, it could be pity or even guilt. You know she has nobody and you feel obliged to be there for her.’

‘I hate it when you go philosophical on me.’

‘You know it is true.’

‘But all jokes aside, it is Akpene and nobody else.’

‘Where does that leave Awula?’

‘It leaves her as my friend. I never promised her anything else.’

---

Gagert waited patiently for Afrakuma to enter the office.

‘Close the door behind you and have a seat.’

She clicked print on a document and asked Afrakuma to pick it up from the printer.

‘It is your dismissal letter.’

If Afrakuma was white, the blood would have drained from her face.

‘My what?’

‘You heard right. I have always tolerated your ‘above the law’ ways, heck even benefited from them from time to time. But I will not allow you to taint the reputation of this school with rumours of exam malpractice. You can’t always win, Afrakuma. I honestly thought that you would be smarter than that, but I guess I was mistaken. I will allow you to write with your mates because you are registered with them, but you will write it from home. You will bring those papers to me and I will shred them in your presence. You will never speak about those papers again and I will pretend not to know about them. I have known you had them for a while but I was hoping you would do the right thing. You didn’t. It is a pity. Things could have been different. Goodbye, Afrakuma.’

---

K Beck raced to the gate and banged on it.

Akpene came out, bewildered.

‘Why are you banging on the door? This isn’t your hall.’

‘You weren’t going to tell me, were you?’

‘Tell you what?’

‘Akpene, stop playing games with me. You are leaving Capital High!’

‘I would have left you a note.’

‘Are you kidding me? A note?’

‘Who told you?’

‘That’s not what the issue is. The issue is why you are leaving.’

‘It is time to move on.’

‘What’s wrong with moving on here?’

‘This is a good thing. Gagert helped me transfer my scholarship package to another school. They have offered to connect me to a nursing training school right after school. I can work, get money and go and get my brother.’

‘You don’t have to go.’

‘I want to.’

‘Why in heaven’s name do you need to?’

‘Just let sleeping dogs lie, K Beck.’

‘These dogs are not asleep!’

‘It is already done. There is nothing we can do now.’

‘That’s not true. I can speak to my dad about taking care of you, so that you don’t have to leave. We will find another nursing training school. A better one.’

‘I don’t need your pity, K Beck.’

‘I am not offering pity, Akpene. I want to help.’

‘Well, I don’t want you to. And after today, you don’t have to feel obligated to do anything for me. You don’t have to save me or protect me. You can go and live in your middle class world with Awula.’

‘That’s unfair, and you know it. Right now, I am not even sure what exactly we are quarreling about, or why we are quarreling on your last night here.’

‘Unfair? You don’t even know what unfair feels like. Come back when everything you could possibly have has been taken from you. Come back then and talk about unfair! Get off your high horse for a moment.’

‘Akpene, you have me. You will always have me.’

‘I am afraid not. Curtis was right. You and I are from different worlds. I am too embarrassed to let you into mine and you are too ashamed to suggest that I learn how to live in yours. If you don’t believe me, take a look at how you talk to Awula. If I really had you, there would be no space for her. And yet, here we are.’

‘Akpene, please-‘

‘Please don’t make this any more difficult for me than it already is. It is better for me to get used to the loss now. You have your whole life ahead of you. Don’t stand here and make promises that you can’t guarantee to keep. It will just hurt me more then than it would now.’

‘Damn it, Akpene! Why are you so stubborn? Why are you so bent on ending a good thing?’

‘Because ending it now lessens the pain.’

‘I am not going anywhere, I promise!’

‘That’s the same thing my mother said the last time I saw her.’

He could not take it any more- the hardheadedness, the guarded way in which she was talking to him, the sorrow in her eyes, the tears rolling down her cheeks. Closing the gap between them, he used his handkerchief to wipe her face and then rubbed her back gently. She widened the gap between them and said, ‘Let me go, K Beck. It is selfish, I know. But it is easier, in the long run.’

‘Why do you have to go? And you don’t plan to keep in touch. If I didn’t know better, I would think that you were punishing me for your mother’s death.’

Breath caught in her throat, she swallowed hard.

K Beck had no idea how close he had come to the truth. She blamed herself for her mother’s death. Last vacation, all the signs had been there, but she had been too worried about why she was not hearing from K Beck to notice that her mother was tired more often. Somehow she felt that distancing herself from K Beck was enough punishment to kill the haunting feeling of being blind to her mother’s needs. She needed to distance herself from him so that she could feel better. That was why she jumped at the idea of transferring schools.

‘I will leave in the morning. Goodbye K Beck.’

In that moment, words failed him. He watched her go, her hips swaying in that now familiar rhythm.

So this is what heartbreak feels like…

 

See you next week!

#CapitalHighWednesdays are back! I deliberately didn’t say anything about Gagert, K Beck, Akpene and Awula in Episode 12 because I knew that was exactly what you wanted to read about. Instead, I introduced two new characters- Lawrencia and Christoff. I have a feeling they will also take us on quite a ride before we wind up our series. I hate to break it to you but Capital High will end with Episode 16. No, I haven’t figured out what will happen in the finale yet, so your ideas are more than welcome. I know it is hard to say goodbye to the old, but it also gives us room to embrace the new, whatever that may be. Last week, I had the pleasure of ‘discovering’ another of my silent readers. It is always humbling to discover how far these stories go and how diverse the following is. People like you make it worth it to stay up three extra hours to finish yet another episode. Ms Nkor, this week’s episode is dedicated to you! 🙂 

‘Obroni, wake up!’

Christoff grabbed his Timex wrist watch from the top of the locker and looked at the time, all the while keeping his eyes as closed as possible.

‘5:30 am? Are you freaking kidding me?’

He realized too late that he had unconsciously raised his voice. Every one in Dorm 4 was looking at him. He tried again in a softer voice, ‘I just don’t get why  you people wake up so early.I am not a morning person.’

The boy waking him up tried to unsuccessfully stifle his laughter.

‘Morning person? You will learn to become one by the time you leave this school.’

Christoff mumbled under his breath, ‘Thanks a lot, Dad!’

He had been saying that a lot lately. Anytime he got a good dose of the ‘Ghanaian culture’, he cursed his stars for landing himself in this situation. . After three weeks, he had already learnt that ‘seniority’ was taken very seriously, that ‘physical abuse’ was normal, that hot water was a luxury- you had to have a chit from the sick bay explaining why you could not bath with cold water like everyone else, that hygiene was taken seriously- you had to bath at least once a  day and that the people you chose to befriend had an impact on you.

Capital High wasn’t so bad. He liked the people and the food. K Beck had been really helpful. He was a cool chap. They could talk about anything under the sun, from basketball to sci-fi movies to anime to girls to reasons why marriages fail. It was easy to talk to him, easy to trust him. It was also easy to tell that he was torn between Akpene and Awula.

‘Wait, so you like both of them?’

‘Yes and no.’

‘You know you have to explain that, right?’

K Beck laughed and absentmindedly threw a pebble at nothing in particular.

‘I am drawn to Akpene in ways I can’t explain. She is like a puzzle that I need to unravel. I feel like I need to protect her and take care of her. No, scratch that, I want to!’

‘Mmmh, the lure of the unknown?’

‘Exactly! You get it!’

‘Yeah, I used to be a psychologist in my former life.’

They both laughed.

‘With Awula, it is familiarity. She gets things Akpene can’t relate to. She is funny and genuine.’

‘Looks like we have a problem on our hands. Sounds to me like you want an Akpene you can relate to, because you were fine before Awula got here. Have you thought about teaching her those things?’

‘Some of them come naturally to you. You are not taught. Besides I don’t want her to feel like I am looking down on her background and her past. It is the last thing I want to do. She doesn’t deserve that.’

‘So what are you going to do?’

‘I have no idea mehn. How do you say that in German?’

‘Ich habe keine idee’

‘Ah yes! That one. I will just take it one day at a time.’

‘Just make sure that you don’t hurt either of them in this dilemma you are in. Neither of them deserves to be toyed around with.’

‘Ain’t that the truth? Chale, thanks.’

‘Any time’

---

 

‘It is campaign season already, isn’t it?’, Afrakuma asked her sitting mate, Janette.

‘Yes, it is starting’

It was easy to spot them- the prefect wannabes. They were being extra polite- greeting everything that had legs, helping people to carry their buckets of water, wearing white socks that had received more than their fair portion of ‘blue’, offering to help teachers with their books and assessment sheets. They were basically kissing ass to make sure they got the votes of the students.

And the voters milked it- this momentary sense of power- because they knew it would all be over once the elections had been won. A girl walked into the 3 Science 2 class to canvas votes.

‘My name is Sherifa Issah. Please vote for me as School Prefect.’

‘Is it by force?’

‘No please’

‘Oh, so I should not vote for you eh?’

‘Please vote for me.’

‘Ah, didn’t you just say it was not by force? How can an indecisive girl be School Prefect? You think we are here to play eh? Get out of my class!’

Sherifa was halfway to the door when another person spoke up.

‘Ah, but you have not convinced us as to why you deserve the position. Stand there!’

Afrakuma raised her voice, ‘I said, get out.’

‘I said, stand there!’

The poor girl looked like she was about to cry.

‘Ah, your lip is already quivering. Then what are you going to do when Gagert yells at you for not keeping the school in order?’

After having fun at Sherifa’s peril, Afrakuma turned back to her books.

Jason, one of the boys who rarely made it for any of the classes, sat on the desk beside her and whispered, ‘I hear say you get apor for the WASSCE.’

‘And where did you hear that from?

‘Oh abi you know? Around.’

‘Well, the person lied. So we have nothing to talk about.’

‘Oh, I am serious oo’

‘And I look like I am cracking jokes, don’t I?’

‘You sef?! It is ok wai!’

She shook her head, silently chiding her inner self to be more careful.

She did have some leaked papers for the Chemistry and Physics papers- benefits of having Nana Afari wrapped around her little finger. Nana Afari was the new Physics Tutor-he had come from St. Peter’s. One of the perks of the failed coup was that it had brought teachers who had a lot to prove and very little time to do so. It was easy for Afrakuma to woo him. All she had to do was ignore him. All the other girls were throwing themselves at him- who could blame them- he was very cute and intelligent. Ignoring him made her stand out. After that, it was all as easy as ABC.

She knew it was selfish to not share the papers with Jason, but it had to be done. How else was she going to explain how a boy like him who never came for class had managed to get all As.

The decisions I have to make!

---

 

Lawrencia squirmed in the bed.

If I have to eat rice and soup one more time, I will run away from this school.

Auntie Thelma came to her bed to check her temperature. She always had a stern look on her face, like someone had cursed her to never smile as long as she lived. The bleeding had finally stopped. Everyone now knew that she had had an abortion and she knew that Gagert was just bidding her time before she finally dismissed her. Her mother had come to see her- and just as expected, she had acted out the drama that she had played out in her mind. She had not heard from Uche- not that she expected to. She was sure that he had heard about her predicament already.

The white boy had come to the sick bay with a tummy upset. The beans had not gone down well with him. Poor boy, she thought to herself. And yet when their eyes met, she saw pity in his eyes for her.

Is that how everyone is going to look at me now? With pity?

She shut her eyes and tried to drown out all the sounds around her.

‘Lawrencia’

‘Lawrencia’

She opened her eyes again. The person didn’t seem to get the ‘I want to be left alone’ memo.

It was Ruth, one of the Scripture Union (SU) girls.

‘How are you feeling?’

‘Fine, thanks.’

‘I wanted to come and pray with you’

‘Why?’

‘You don’t want to pray?’

‘Why do you sound surprised? Not every preacher’s kid loves Jesus.’

‘Yes, true. But Jesus loves every preacher’s kid regardless. It is not over for you.’

‘Listen, I have been bombarded with this Jesus thing since I came out of my mother’s womb. Morning devotions, evening prayers, mid week services, all nights, prayer chains- the whole shebang! There is nothing you can say that will change my mind.’

‘Ok, can I just pray with you anyway?’

‘Suit yourself’

As much as she hated to admit it, the prayer made her feel better. She even teared- one lone tear- but it was something.

---

Why does Gagert want to see me?

Akpene’s mind raced through the possibilities.

School fees? The scholarship had been cancelled? K Beck?

Gagert had a sombre look on her face.

‘Have a seat, Akpene. I have some bad news. Your mother passed away this morning.’

For what seemed like eternity, Akpene could not find her voice.

‘Is there someone you want me to call?’

She shook her head.

‘I don’t have anyone else.’

‘No friends?’

Akpene hesitated.

‘The Welbeck boy? I will send someone to get him.’

She was too dazed by the pain flooding her heart to register the fact that Gagert knew about K Beck. Her mind wandered through the memories of her mother- teaching her how to count with tomatoes, sitting in the kiosk in the rain, seeing the sadness in her mother’s eyes when she was molested. She didn’t hear K Beck come in. All she felt was him pulling her to his chest in an embrace. She could tell from the way his heart was racing that he had run all the way to the office.

He whispered against her ear, ‘I am so sorry.’

A pain-filled wail escaped from her lips.

See you next week!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I must admit that I have missed you guys! Judging from the number of messages I got in my inbox, I guess you missed me too (or at least you missed Capital High). Been a long break but it is good to be back. I have done a few changes on the blog- take a look and let me know what you think. I have also started a vow-writing service (you can check it out in the menu above-Vows by Kenikodjo) which allows you to infuse your love story into your wedding vows or a poem. Yes, we are growing! Like I said, it is good to be back! Let’s dig in, shall we? 
‘I saw it too’

‘The blood?’

‘Yes, the blood’

Lawrencia’s stomach tightened. Nobody was supposed to see the blood. She had tried to wash all of it away but at 1am, there was only so much you could do with a torchlight. She looked away and pretended to be looking for her bucket in the bucket cage. Sometimes it felt like the house prefects had OCD- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. The buckets had to be arranged according to colour and size. Most girls had buckets in the blue, green and purple bracket so it sort of looked uniform to the untrained eye. She was reaching for her bucket when she blacked out.

---

Christoff’s eyes darted around the courtyard, very well aware that the other students were also watching him curiously, as they filed past him to go for dinner. He instantly regretted wearing the neon green and orange Nike sneakers as his eyes fell on their uniform brown sandals. His plan was to fit in, not to stand out. It was hard enough to do that with his Caucasian skin, rebellious hair and German accent. Clearly his shoe choices needed to be more subtle, going forward.

Coming here was a bad idea…

‘Don’t worry, everything would be just fine.’, Auntie Akua reassured him. It was almost as though she could read his mind. She meant well but he just didn’t understand why she was bent on enrolling him in a ‘Ghanaian’ school so that he could ‘imbibe the culture’. It wasn’t his fault that his father had not taught him anything about Ghana before shipping him off to Auntie Akua. As usual, he was getting the shorter end of the stick in this divorce. His mother could not stay two hours without drowning herself in vodka so the legal custody battle was not even a battle to begin with. Dad won fair and square and that is how he was now standing on the stairway to the upper courtyard, being sized up by the curious Ghanaians who were going to be his new family for the next two or more years.

One guy nodded and smiled at him. He smiled back and the guy left the line to stay hello to him. ‘K Beck, get back in line. You are not above the law!’, somebody at the end of the line who obviously had a lot of authority yelled at the boy. The boy got back in line quietly and moved on. Christoff mentioned the name under his breath and made a mental note to look out for him. He needed a friend as soon as possible.

---

The girls could not stop talking about the pool of blood they found in the bathhouse. Nobody was interested in siesta and even the prefects were joining in the conversation.

‘Ah, so whose blood is that? It is not hygienic to just expose us to blood like that. Plus it is disgusting. Not everyone wants to be a doctor. Some of us feel sick when we see blood. Didn’t the Health prefect talk to us about how to take care of ourselves during menstruation?’

‘Who said it had anything with menstruation?  Maybe it is an abortion gone wrong.’

‘Ei madam! How do you know how abortions are done? You koraa, I have always suspected you. I am not fooled by your Bible-holding, tongue-speaking, ‘holier than thou’ antics. I have been seeing you during entertainment- you and that Greg boy. And oh, save me the Christian brother speech.’

‘Ah, don’t you watch movies?’

‘I do. I certainly don’t watch movies with abortions in them.’

‘So who could it be?’, Abigail cut in, clearly tired of the banter.

‘I don’t know. Maybe it is one of the Form 3 girls.’

‘It could be Lawrencia. I hear she fainted this morning.’

‘Really? She doesn’t seem like the type silly enough to leave evidence behind.’

‘Silence! It is siesta time!’, the girls prefect yelled out as she glided past that dorm to her prefects’ room.

‘This Jessica girl koraa, I am tired of her. I can’t wait for her reign to end. She walks as if the ground is contaminated. And she is not above reproach sef. We all know she has a phone in that room of hers.’

‘Ei chic! Don’t make allegations you can’t prove oo!’

‘SILENCE! If I have to come out again, all of you will go and weed behind Liberty House.’

This time, nobody dared to quip a rebuttal.

---

When Lawrencia finally regained consciousness, she felt nauseous. From the smell in the room, she knew that she was in the sick bay. She tried to recollect what had happened before she got here.

It was all Uche’s fault. He had promised that she would be fine and she had believed him. Just like she believed him the day he convinced her to try it without a condom, during the mid term break. It was reckless and stupid but she had nothing to lose at the time- or so she thought. When she missed her period, she panicked. Her father would probably be too busy to notice but her mother would throw a fit. She could already envision it.

‘My enemies! They have succeeded oo! My enemies are throwing a party as we speak. Shame is knocking at my door. Jesus Christ!’

Then she would probably exclaim and sit on the floor, with tears streaming down her face. After she had wallowed in self-pity for a while, she would turn to Lawrencia to insult her.

‘Shameful girl! Who sent you to open your legs for any dog with a weapon between his legs? How is your father supposed to stand and preach on fornication in church when his first daughter is pregnant without a wedding band on her finger? Where did I go wrong with you? Where? I have brought you up in the fear of the Lord, prayed over your head and done what a good mother is supposed to do. And yet, you allowed the Jezebel spirit to descend on you! Whore! Harlot! I am sure you seduced the boy. You must be the type of woman that Proverbs 7 was referring to.’

Yes, that was her mother. The most judgmental person on earth. It was fear of what her mother could do or say that pushed her to call Uche and ask him to find her a pill for the abortion. One thing  she liked about Uche was that he was resourceful, so she was not in the least surprised when she received a package from him the next day, complete with instructions. It was a set of three pills. She was supposed to take two of them first and the last one 24 hours after she had taken the first dosage- and she had done just that. And yet, at 1am, she woke up with excruciating pain in her abdomen. Her bed sheet was soaked in blood and it looked like there was more where that came from, so she staggered to the bathhouse with her torchlight, afraid of waking anybody up.

The bleeding was not stopping. She was getting weaker and weaker. She dragged herself under one of the showers and stood there, watching the clots on the floor. She tried to pour water over it but she was too weak to do a good job. She managed to drag herself back to the dorm and wore a sanitary pad. Her head was throbbing with pain and she was sweating profusely. She grabbed the package that Uche had sent her and scanned it for side effects of the drug. She wore a maxi pad and tried to close her eyes.

And now here she was- under the watchful eyes of Auntie Thelma. Auntie Thelma was the school nurse. Gagert was a legend- but so was Auntie Thelma. She could spot the difference between malaria and an ‘I want to get out of a test’ excuse from a mile away. Right now she was sitting at her desk, quietly watching Lawrencia.

‘Good. You are awake now. You have lost a lot of blood. You should eat something.’

Lawrencia nodded, afraid that her voice would give her away. She looked around the room. There was nobody else in the sick bay. She was grateful for the privacy. The pain was still there and she could still feel the blood. She closed her eyes again. She knew that the whole school would be buzzing with rumors by tomorrow morning.

---

 

Polar Bear entered Liberty House and demanded a roll call. Someone had called the school to say that he had seen two boys in the school uniform in town. He had a hunch that it was somebody from Liberty House. He did a sweep of the dorms downstairs and came up with nothing. He moved upstairs and entered the prefects’ room to ask them to help him check the dorms upstairs. Just before he left, he heard a vibration in one of the lockers.

‘Open the locker’

Larry’s palms started to sweat. He struggled to open up the locker because he knew what was waiting for him once that door was opened- demotion and probably deboardinization. He cursed his stars for not putting off the phone when he was done last night. He had always been careful. Now a Samsung Galaxy S3 was going to mar his spotless testimonial.

Christoff was excited. He didn’t expect this much excitement in a Ghanaian school.  An abortion, prefects with phones and people breaking bounds. Capital High wasn’t half as bad as he thought it would be.

See you next week!