For the Dream of 5 Years_Chapter Seventeen: School and Rona

Dan enrolled in a school in the city, a private school that belonged to a friend of his uncle. He was well prepared for new faces and to exclusively focus, although schools in the city were nothing like those in the rural areas. He had a culture shock; the way students talked, the way their lips twitched when they coined words, the tune of the words in their sentences; he could hardly understand the city slang. The way he dressed was considered backward, and even though they all wore uniforms, and his were new, there was a way they looked borrowed. Those of the other students looked customized to their bodies and walking styles and surprisingly matched their personalities. He wondered what they had done to theirs to look so unique for everyone yet similar in a uniform. He also had no money for snacks and had never heard of 'snack money.’ Back at his old school, all you needed were your books, a pair of ragged uniforms that could go for years without being replaced, a plastic bowl for the free lunch offered in the school, and a spoon. The food provided in school was a mixture of maize and beans, inside a ridiculous amount of soup, paid for by the government. In his new school, the students had a choice of taking school meals, which included other varieties of well-cooked chapatis, mandazis, ugali, pilau, beef, eggs, and a lot of green vegetables, among others. A parent had to pay for the food and school fees, but the students still preferred eating out of the school. The students mainly bought burgers, pizzas, and French fries. He did not have that kind of money and was not accustomed to such foods, so he followed the school menu. "Are you taken, big man?" A female student, Rona, asked Dan when he was coming from taking his lunch. He rarely talked to other students; after all, he would be here for only two months, go back to the village, sit for his exams, and wait to hear his parents' plan regarding college. "I'm Rona. I have seen you look at me several times; what is it you want to say to me," she continued. Dan was taken aback, and if he had looked at her unconsciously, that would be to study and wonder why she folded her sweater at the hands and waist even though it seemed to fit her perfectly. It could also be that she chewed gum every day, stuck it under her desk when lessons were about to start, and chewed another when they ended. She had done this several times. Dan had taken note and had begun to wait for her to stick the gum subconsciously. He would look at her fingers headed towards her lips, see her lips pout in preparation to push the gum out, and observe how her painted fingers would grab the gum, carefully and skillfully, not to touch the lips and not to have the gum fall. "Hey handsome, we could talk about it tomorrow over lunch, at Pizza Inn, on me," she said, seductively touching his lengthy hand and getting into the class. This was nothing like the girl he knew; Michelle would never touch him, leave alone ask him out. This girl was younger than Michelle, so what scared Michelle yet she was from the city too? Dan followed her into the class, trying not to notice her suddenly exaggerated walking style to make her behind jiggle; the history lesson was about to start. Inside the class, he looked at someone intentionally for the first time in almost a week. He looked at Rona and waited for her to remove her gum, but this time he had looked too early; it wasn't yet time to remove the gum. Other times, Rona spit her gum after spotting the teacher from the reflection of the windows, and Dan would turn to her when he spotted the teacher too. However, on this Day, the teacher hadn't approached the class, but Dan had looked. He had enough time to notice Rona's long, braided, black hair that fell to her back, her baby hairs running to her forehead as though to find an open space with fresh air, away from the greasy, congested bush over her head. Her jaws rhythmically danced to her chews, her earphones carefully hidden inside her sweater. "She has a phone too in class? The main exams are in a few weeks; after that, she will have all the time in the world to listen to music. When does she study?" He wondered. Rona did not look at Dan; she behaved normally, as though nothing had happened, as though she hadn't made a pass at a man. Back in the village, a girl would never approach a boy; she would be considered ill-mannered, uncultured, and desperate. She would also be seen as 'cheap' and promiscuous, and no boy would want to be associated with her unless she was popular and beautiful. However, this was rare; girls in the village wore wide and long uniforms touching their ankles, so they would still fit as the years progressed. They could not have their hair in extension braids, like Rona's; they could not have their nails polished or lips in lipstick. There was a big difference between girls in the city and those in the village. However, this did not entirely fascinate Dan; he was here to study. "I need one thousand shillings, please; I have an emergency," he said to his uncle over dinner, chewing on his ugali, beef, and spinach. At home, Ugali and green vegetables were a complete meal, provided one was full, but here at his uncle's, the rule of a balanced diet was strictly followed. "Are you sick? We have a family doctor," his uncle said, concerned. "No, it's a girl. She wants to buy me food, and I can't let a girl buy me lunch. She asked me out, and I will go like a man," he said. "Well, you haven't finished a week in school, and they have already spotted you? City girls!" His uncle said, laughing so hard he almost choked on his food. City girls? Why did Uncle Jeff laugh and talk like I was prey and had been captured? Are they dangerous? He wondered. "What is that supposed to mean, uncle? What is it about city girls?" He asked his uncle. "There is nothing wrong. I will give you the one thousand, but the next time you'll have to work for it," he said. His uncle, whose wife, a nurse, and two kids were living in the US, owned a motor vehicle service garage and had several employees. "Thank you, I appreciate it," Dan said. Dan concentrated more on Rona than his studies the following day at school. It wasn't that he liked her, but the mere fact that she had asked him out intrigued him. He wondered where she got her courage, why she picked him out of all the other boys with more admirable looks and fabulous bodies. That afternoon, Rona came to him and told him it was time to go. The Pizza Inn was directly opposite the school gate. They had a quiet time eating, but Dan keenly studied her face. Rona had applied lipstick just before they headed out, bright coloured lipsticks were forbidden in the school, but she applied an orange one anyway because she would be out of the school gate. "Tell me something about you, Dan. Where were you schooling before coming here?" She inquired. "I'm from the village, a small village near a mountain. It's not worth mentioning. I am here now," he said, reaching over for another slice of Pizza. He had never eaten pizza before; he had seen it but had never tasted it. It tasted just like Chapati, with a weird topping, cheese, spices, and other foods like beef. "Ooh, I like that; I like mystery," she said, carefully sipping on her mango juice not to smudge her lipstick on the glass. They chatted about school and what they wanted to do after the exams. After eating, Rona rose to go foot the bill at the cashier, but Dan held her by the arm to stop her. This would be the third time he held a girl by the wrist to beg her not to go. He had held Michelle's hand the first two times, once under a tree and the other inside their kitchen. He remembered how soft Michelle's hand felt, how her eyes sparkled when she looked at him. He released a sigh; he didn't want to think about Michelle. He was angry. "I'll take care of it, Rona," he said as he took the receipts from her and proceeded to the cashier. He handed her the money and the receipts. "Where is the rest?" The cashier asked. "What rest?" He asked. "It says here you had one medium pizza, 1,300 shillings, and two glasses of mango juice, 100 shillings each," she explained, showing him the receipt. "You mean one large Chapati costs 1,300 shillings?" He asked, bewildered. "Yes, that one large Chapati is called pizza. Pay up! People are queuing behind you." Dan had no other money, and Rona had left the table. She was outside waiting for Dan. "I can get the rest from my girlfriend; she's outside," he said, pointing outside. Girlfriend? He was shocked at his own words. "Pay up, we are used to such tricks, and it can't work with me," said the cashier, signalling the security guard. "He won't pay; he wants to run," she told the security guard. Dan had taken longer, and Rona was growing impatient. She entered inside and saw some commotion, Dan pushing the security guard away when he tried to touch him. She ran, "What is wrong?" She asked. "He won't pay," the cashier said. "How much do you need," she asked, reaching inside her pocket. "500 shillings," the security guy said. She handed the cashier the money and left. "What was that all about?" Asked Rona once they were outside. "Why would you embarrass me like that when I had categorically stated I would settle the bill?" She asked. "I didn't know a pizza Chapati cost the same as a bag of wheat flour that could feed a village." He said, walking past her angrily, mainly because all his money was exhausted in a day, and there was nothing to show for it. "I could have bought a watch," He thought. They walked back to school without much to discuss. They got in on time just before the lesson began. "I need money. I need to work because I need a lot of money. I could work after classes and on the weekends in the garage," he told his uncle that evening. "What do you need a lot of money for?" His uncle asked. "I need a watch and a few clothes," he said. "That is not a lot of money, Dan; I will give you some money so you can start working after your main exam. "I need my money, uncle. I don't want to borrow money from you. I can't be telling you every time I need to take a girl out or when I handed the cashier less money because I believe that a large chapati should not be costly. I need to have money to budget effectively," he said. "You have just two months before the main exam. There is no time for working, let alone for entertaining girls," he said. "Uncle, my study strategy is okay. I will put an extra two hours every day to study so that I can be at par," he begged. "Okay, but your parents should never hear about this," his uncle told him, reaching for his wallet and handing him some notes. "Use this; come to work when it is exhausted," he said, handing it to Dan. "I want to work, uncle. I will start tomorrow after school. Thank you," he said, declining to take the money. He gave his uncle a light pat on his shoulders and went to his bedroom. The following days, they had minimal encounters with Rona; no one mentioned their lunch or the situation at the Pizza Inn. Dan had worked at the garage for a week, and he was to be paid that Saturday. He asked Rona if she could go out with him that coming Sunday. He knew he would have money, and there would not be an embarrassing situation. He needed to redeem his image. "I'm sorry, Dan, my boyfriend and I are back together," she said, chewing on her gum. "What do you mean, your boyfriend?" He asked angrily. "Yes, I wanted to make him jealous; sorry, I should have told you beforehand," she said. Dan was so furious that he left her talking. He also remembered hanging up on Michelle when she started that lame explanation. He was mad at Michelle. She didn't love Rona, but she could have been a perfect distraction for him over the Michelle issue. He loved Michelle. He had managed to put Michelle's feelings under control, but Rona had ignited all of them, making him think about Michelle all the time, in and out of the class. He hated Rona for igniting Michelle's feelings in him.