Lagos state: the land of the mad

Someone sold Coca-Cola for me 250. Ofcourse we are all mad

If not that wereyyy po ninu gbogbo yin, (me inclusive), why am I concerned about the price of coke when someone was touching me in bus on my way home?

sure sure I can write about it but shey it’s not shocking that until I got to sabo, I couldn’t do or say anything.

Here’s what happened

I left work as late as usual. I work somewhere in ikoyi. As I began my journey home, I took a bus to Obalende. Where I was going to take another to Sabo, before finding my way home.

i boarded the bus going to yaba. I sat at the first row but closest to the window. I rested my head on the driver’s seat and was thinking of how my life has turned to the girl everyone forgets to invite out. I dozed off while I was thinking about it.

A sharp jolt wakes me up. You’ll think it’s because the bus hit a pothole. No. We were on the road that leads Muritala Mohammed way to Herbert Macaulay, the one that O’Shey bar is on , so it couldn’t be a pot hole. It was also too mild of a jolt, for it to be a hit by another car. But here’s why I jolted.

Everyone has tickle spots. Most people have theirs on their upper body. Not me. The parts of my body that are ticklish are the back of my knees and feet. Everything else no network.

So i jolted because the brother that sat down beside me was inching up my body through the skirt I wore and touched one of the nerve endings at the back of my knee.

Upon waking up abruptly, he removes his hands and acts like it’s a mistake but it wasn’t. Because I then realized that the sensation I had been feeling was not breeze like I thought but someone touching my thighs repeatedly. I froze.

My head went blank. Like no ink no thoughts. The only thing that I could hear was “sabo, bole”, I came down. Walked while dazed to take a Maruwa to iwaya so I could drop at Onike and walk home.

I was still thinking about it when I got to a shop and tried to buy a bottle of coke and they said it was 250. That woke me up. (For context, I’m addicted to cola drinks.) As in Coca-Cola o not cocaine. Coca-Cola that we used to buy 100. I no complain when they said 150. I still dey buy am. Them increase am to 200, I grumble small but I still dey buy am.

I Lost it and instead of arguing with the owner of the store, I started crying. I didn’t know if it was the coke or because I got assaulted, but i was wailing and I wailed till I got home.

I snapped at everyone in sight and on the phone. I didn’t even tell my friends. In their defense, they were out having fun and I really didn’t think there was anything they could do to make me feel better. So I sucked it up.

Cried myself to sleep and the next morning and two mornings after, I wore pants to work.

I avoided sitting beside or in front of men. I was scared

I still am scared. I’m a three time rape and sexual assault survivor. I still see a therapist and take drugs to help me battle with depression, anxiety and insomnia. I depend heavily on alcohol and people to feel alright.

I shouldn’t be scared of every man I find on a bus. I shouldn’t be scared of wearing skirts on a bus. I shouldn’t be scared that I might get assaulted by some Jack.

I hate that this is what the society has turned into. The gag is that i am one of hundreds that have faced shit like this and I won’t be the last.

when will it end?

I leave you with these words as usual

Love, Light and Amala