DIARY OF A CORPER — EPISODE 11: HE'S ALIVE

I looked at Femi lying on the hospital bed.

I had never been that scared in my entire life.

It had been almost a week since the accident.

I still remembered the ride from the local government secretariat to the hospital. I was the one in the ambulance with him. I'd lost people before, but I'd never witnessed the moment someone almost slipped away. Seeing Femi that day shook me in a way I never expected.

Even my own reaction surprised me. The moment one of the medical personnel asked who was going with him, I found myself jumping into the ambulance before I even had time to think. I'm sure it shocked Bassey and Taiwo too. Femi and I weren't exactly close. Even now, I couldn't explain why I reacted the way I did.

The first night was the hardest. None of us knew if he would wake up or not. Every time the doctors came out of the emergency room, my heart stopped for a second. I remember sitting in the hospital corridor, staring at the emergency room door and praying harder than I had prayed in a long time.

Thankfully, the doctors ruled out any life-threatening injuries. Femi escaped with multiple bruises, a mild concussion, and severe shock, while the bike rider wasn't as fortunate. He needed surgery, but thankfully, the doctors acted quickly, and both of them responded well to treatment. Three days later, Femi was already looking much better, although they still wanted to keep him under observation.

Funny enough, in those few days at the hospital, Femi and I talked more than we had since we met. Sometimes about random things. Sometimes about life. Sometimes we just sat in silence while he complained about the hospital smell.

My supervisor had graciously given me a few days off to look after Femi. Bassey had stayed with us for the first two days before returning to work. Taiwo wasn't as lucky. Since her PPA was a school, she could only stop by whenever she wasn't at work. That morning, the two of them came by as usual to drop off breakfast and a few other necessities before heading to their respective PPAs.

Femi was scrolling through his phone when Taiwo and Bassey walked into the ward. I looked up, surprised by Bassey's choice of outfit.

"Native? On a Monday?" I asked, looking him over. "Who wears native on the first day of the week?"

He shrugged as he settled into the chair closest to the door.

"Is there a law against it?"

"Maybe on Fridays," I said. "You know... TGIF. But Monday? You're making life harder than it already is."

Femi burst into laughter.

I turned to look at him. He'd been laughing a lot these days. Come to think of it, I couldn't remember him laughing this much before the accident.

Is this what a second chance at life does to a person?

I stood up to make space for Taiwo and sat on the bed beside Femi.

"Leave my guy alone," Femi said between laughs. "At least he's wearing native. What if he's going to work in his usual shirt and jeans?"

Bassey adjusted his navy-blue senator attire proudly.

"Thank you o. Please tell her."

We all laughed.

Well... almost all of us.

Taiwo smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. That surprised me. The usual Taiwo would have backed me up in situations like this.

"How are you feeling?" Taiwo asked.

"I'm fine, thank you," Femi replied.

"If you guys had come earlier, you would have met my parents."

"Oh, they're around?" Taiwo asked.

Femi nodded.

"They went back to the hotel to freshen up. They should be back soon. They asked me to thank you all for taking care of me."

"You met them?" Taiwo asked me, narrowing her eyes.

"Yeah."

Just then, Femi's phone slipped from his hand.

Both Bassey and I reached for it at the same time, but I got to it first.

"Ah ah, Nurse Dewa."

"What?" I replied, laughing.

"The way you've been taking care of Femi, this boy owes you plenty."

"But you did too."

He shrugged.

"Person wey almost die? I no get choice."

Femi smiled again.

Bassey shook his head.

"You really scared us that day."

"Me?"

"You jumped into that ambulance like someone possessed."

I laughed awkwardly.

"I wasn't thinking."

"We noticed," he said with a grin.

The nurse walked into the ward with Femi's medication.

"It's time for your injection," she said.

Bassey immediately stood up and said, "Ladies, you need to step outside for a moment."

Taiwo frowned.

"Why are you staying?"

He grinned.

"Because I'm a guy."

We all laughed, including the nurse.

Then she smiled and looked at me.

"Well... his girlfriend can stay."

I blinked.

"I'm not his girlfriend."

Femi glanced at me.

So did Bassey.

No one said another word.

The room suddenly felt awkward.

"Oh, I'm sorry," the nurse said. "I just assumed."

She smiled apologetically before preparing Femi's injection.

Taiwo and I stepped outside.

The silence between us was deafening.

That was when I noticed it.

She wasn't as talkative as she used to be. The warmth that had always been there was gone.

Something was definitely bothering her.

But I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

End of Episode 11

To be continued…

 

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Next: ➡️Episode 12: Do You Like Femi?