SHEEPISH-WOLVES

Written and Published by Timi Adigun

1st publishing © 2009
2nd publishing © 2012
3rd publishing © 2015
This ebook is free; please don’t pay to get it. Do feel free to share it with
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Facebook: Timi Adigun
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Blog: www.timiadigun.wordpress.com

Your comments and suggestions would be very welcome. I love you! God
bless you!
Signed!
Timi Adigun.
 CHAPTER 1

The Good Shepherd church was known all over the state for
its dynamic and vibrant youth church. They organized crusades,
outreaches, concerts, bible expositions and lots more. Majority of the
active members were teenagers and a few were above the teen age.
It was a church every teenager in Ondo State, Nigeria wanted to visit
again after a first experience.
There were counseling sessions with peer counselors. Fellow
teenagers, who were more mature in faith and more exposed,
counseled other teenagers and young adults. There were also
tutorial classes organized for those with academic challenges and a
welfare arm for those in need. Indeed, it was a church that catered
for the spirit, soul and body of each member.
Many had good reports about the church but not all. Some
became victims of opportunism, even in the same church.
---------------------------------------
“You’re just as shallow as your mother. I should have sent you
packing with her.” After a moment of silence, he added, “Can’t you
say anything, silly? You just keep looking like a dummy, wetting your
face with those crocodile tears. That prostitute you call your mother
used those tears to weaken me once; don’t think you can fool me like
she did.”
 Walking closer to his daughter who was cowering at the far
corner of the living room, he took note of her adolescent body
changes for the first time in a long while. He bent down and lifted up
her chin. Looking into her eyes, all he could see was fear and
innocence and his heart tugged at him. But when he remembered
what her mother, his ex-wife, did to him, his fury burned again.
Staring intently at her, though she had dropped her gaze, he
asked condescendingly, “Or have you started sleeping around too?”
At that, she jerked her face away, stood up and ran to her
room where she cried her eyes out. He did not follow her. Whenever
he felt he should apologize to her, he remembered that she was a
product of his first marriage and that fact alone was enough to
silence any feeling of remorse.
When she was left with no more strength to weep, Febi sat on
the rocking chair in her room and sobbed. She remembered the days
when her dad used to love her and virtually spoil her. Many
occasions when he carried her on his back for his morning strolls;
they were pleasant but painful memories at the same time. Things
changed drastically for them five years prior.
Her father discovered that his wife, Febi’s mother, had been
cheating on him. He had trusted her so much that the knowledge left
him shattered. Three months later, they had a divorce. The marriage
had been eleven years before the incidence. The court ruled that her
father should keep her. Then, she was only ten years old. Now
fifteen, she wondered why her dad had agreed to keep her in the first
place.
Her father, popularly known as Barrister Popoola, was a well
known lawyer in Ondo State. To avoid the scandals that come with
celebrity divorces, he had urged the court to allow him keep his
daughter. What made matters worse was that he re-married barely
one year after and it had been misery for Febi ever since. Her step-
mother was never fair to her. She never laid hands on her though,
but always accused her falsely to her father.
Her step-mother was presently pregnant after waiting for over
three years. She had just accused Febi of leaving her alone in the
kitchen to do all the cooking which made her father slap and hit her.
Whereas, in actual fact, Febi had done all the work and the step-
mother had sent her on errands all through the day, being a
Saturday. She was out to buy a recharge card for her step-mother
when her father returned. So, it was easy for her step to accuse her;
she concluded by saying Febi had gone to play with her friends,
leaving her alone in the house.
Febi knew however that her father would not listen to her if
she told him the truth, so she didn’t bother saying anything. He never
believed her if what she said contradicted what his new wife said.
Febi always looked forward to school because then she would be far
away from home. Monday was always her happiest day.
Unfortunately however, she didn’t have friends in school either. She
was brilliant, and due to her poor self-image, she was also very quiet
and hardly talked to anyone. She was regarded as a snob because
of that, and many students resented her.
The only friend she had was a computer nerd, who was also
not in regular social circles. They kept each other company a couple
of times. But comparing both, school was still much better for her
than her house.
As she was rocking in her room, a fresh wave of tears rose
within her as she remembered a day when she eavesdropped on her
father in his room. He was fond of thinking out loud when alone. In
his room, he had said one night, ‘Febi is so beautiful and intelligent.
I’m proud of her and wish I could tell her so. But she reminds me of
what her mother looked like when I met her for the first time. Febi,
forgive me. It’s not you I hate but your mother.’
She had heard her father say those words. She could tell from
his voice that he had been crying and that he meant every word he
had spoken. That was the only thing that had kept her from running
away from the house; she knew her father still loved her.
Wiping away her tears, she resorted to visiting her best friend,
the TV. She put on the TV and flipped through channels till one
station caught her attention. She saw a bunch of teenagers having
so much fun and seeming like there were no problems in the world to
be worried about. At the end of the commercial, she saw it was a
church, named “The Good Shepherd church”, with the address
written beneath. She made a mental note of the name and address;
that had never been a problem for her. She memorized things easily.
‘I sure want to have what those guys have. I would visit the
church this Sunday’, she thought to herself. As she lay down to
sleep, the last images on her mind were the happy teenagers she
saw and she imagined herself being one of them some day. She
really hoped she would be happy again.
 CHAPTER 2

“Mum, I’m trying. I mean it.”

“With 5Cs and 4Ds, you say you’re trying?”
“But remember it was worse last term”
“So, are you asking me to congratulate you for this pathetic result?
Your father is spending close to a million naira on you every year
and all you can bring back is this”
“Mum, I promise to do better”
“You had better”. Thinking fast, she added, “You know your dad is
going for a one-year sabbatical lecturing at University of Oxford in
August?”
“Yes mum. I had almost forgotten.”
“I don’t blame you. You have a really dense head. I wonder if you
ever remember anything. Your father is a professor of Botany, I’m a
SAN, and your elder sister is almost through with medical school, but
you sit here and celebrate 5Cs. At times, I wonder if there was a
chemical imbalance in my womb during and after your conception.”
“Mum!”
“Will you shut up! Don’t I have every reason to think so?”
“But…”
“Don’t you but me. Like I was saying before you unintelligently
interrupted me, your father will be away throughout your next session
in school. And I hope you have not forgotten as well that you’re going
to your final class, SS3, come September.”
“Mum! How can I forget that? You’re insulting me.”
“Oh! Now you know how it feels to be insulted. Do you know how
insulted and ashamed your father and I feel when we come for your
Visiting day, only to see grades written with red biro?”
“I’m so sorry mum. You won’t see red anymore.”
“That’s what you’ve always said, son”
“This time is different; for real.”
“Please don’t give me that. Now I don’t want you to interrupt me until
I finish what I want to say, okay?”
“Okay mum” he sighed.
Moving to sit directly opposite him on the stool in his room,
she said “If you don’t step up your grades this third term, when your
dad is away, I’ll withdraw you from your school and put you in Ondo
grammar school.” She stopped and allowed the message to be well
understood.
A smile spread reflexively across his face. “You cannot be
serious, mum”
“Wait and see” she said. “You have this third term to prove yourself.”
Looking at his mum’s face, Dayo knew that she was serious,
and the mere thought of the humiliation that will ensue sent shivers
down his spine. “Mum, I promise I’ll work so hard, you wouldn’t have
to do that” he said hoping against hope that what his mum
threatened would never happen.
“How do you hope to improve on your grades?” his mother asked.
“I don’t know yet, but I’ll do something.”
“I hope you will”, she said, stood up and walked out of his room.
Increasing the cool of the air conditioner, Dayo sat back on his
bed but kept sweating. He could imagine his friends laughing at him.
He was still wondering what to do when he remembered he had an
assignment to do online.
Sitting at his reading table, he opened the Yahoo search
engine. But before typing in his assignment topic, an advert at the
top right corner of the page caught his attention. It had different
captions flashing on and off. One of them was, ‘Do you need a quick
miracle in your academics, click here’. He didn’t blink before clicking.
The site that opened up was a tutorial class site hosted by the
Good Shepherd church. Dayo read through the online brochure and
decided it was what he needed. He scrolled down the page to see
how much it would cost. He knew he could afford to pay the fee from
his pocket money. His classmate had told him about an expensive
tutorial class that cost #40,000. He knew this could not be that
expensive, and even if it was, he had enough money in his savings
account to cover the cost.
Scrolling down, he was perplexed when he didn’t see any
place indicating the fee. He went back to the home page and clicked
on ‘Registration’. All he saw there was an invitation to the church’s
Sunday service. ‘We’ll give you more information after the service’
was the only information there.
‘That’s fair enough’, he thought. He hadn’t been to church in a while
but going to church wasn’t a repulsive idea. “Sunday it will be then”,
he said out to himself. Dayo then proceeded to research his
assignment topic.
-------------------------------------
The youth church of the Good Shepherd church was filled to
capacity as usual. The 2,000 capacity auditorium was full of
teenagers and young adults. Some had to sit outside and watch via a
screen.
Pastor Francis, the 25 year old youth pastor preached a
sermon on, ‘The God of All Possibilities’. He made them know that
God could and would settle any challenges they were faced with but
that they needed to repent of their sins first and surrender their lives
to Him. The message cut across different categories of teenagers.
The atmosphere was charged and there was dead silence except for
some muffled sobs and cries scattered throughout the auditorium.
Pastor Francis always made it a duty while preaching to look into the
eyes of as many of the people seated in the congregation, as
possible.
The guys who had been whistling initially were now quiet.
Girls no longer passed notes. There was some saving anointing in
the auditorium that day and every teenager, male and female alike
felt it. The other youth ministers were visibly praying under their
breaths, asking God to perfect what he had started.
In that congregation were two different teenagers who didn’t
even know the other existed. They were there because of the same
reason; they needed help. One was Febi, and the other was Dayo.
‘Will I find the help and transformation I have been seeking here?’
was the silent question on their minds in the different seats they sat
in the auditorium.
 CHAPTER 3

Febi was listening so intently that nothing else mattered at

that moment to her. It was like the pastor had been in her house and
had seen how she was treated. She would have taken him for a mind
reader if not that he had said something about ‘preaching under the
auction of the Holy Spirit’.
She didn’t know when the tears began rolling down her
cheeks but she didn’t hold them back. When he asked those who
wanted to accept Jesus to come forward, she immediately stood and
began walking toward the altar. There were many who came out.
Standing beside her was a tall teenage boy wearing an expensive
lace outfit, but she barely noticed.
------------------------------------
Standing at the altar, Dayo knew that he had made the right
decision. Pastor Francis had quoted Deuteronomy 28:13 to let him
know that success was God’s will for everyone but the condition was
obedience to God’s word. He had long postponed giving his life to
Christ but now was the day and there was turning back this time.
The pastor asked them to confess their sins to God. Silently,
he apologized for all his misdeeds. He confessed his pride,
apologized for times he had put others down because they weren’t
wealthy, repented of cheating in exams, sleeping with girls and
dumping them after, and so many more. The more he confessed his
sins to God, the more relieved he felt.
--------------------------------------
They were ushered to a room where counselors spoke with
them, and gave them materials to help them grow in the Christian
faith. Soon after, they all returned to the auditorium to join in the rest
of the service.
At the end of the service, announcements were made as to
people who came because they needed counseling, welfare or
tutorials. They were told the respective places to sit after the service.
When the service was over, some teenagers left the auditorium
immediately, while some gathered in different circles to have
meetings. Others, who came for help, sat at the designated places,
waiting to be addressed.
---------------------------------------
Sitting on the first seat on the first row among those waiting
for counseling, Febi kept thanking God in her heart that He had
made her see the advert and had made her come. She felt new. She
knew she would still be going home to face the real world, but she
was still content that her life had taken a new turn.
Looking behind her, she saw about twenty teenagers. ‘I’m not
the only one in pain and some sort of confusion’, she thought to
herself. She was pleased when she saw a group of young folks
coming in their direction.
“Good morning friends”
“Good morning”, some chorused while others just stared.
“My name is Segun and I’m the head of the counseling team. With
me are other counselors…”
While he was talking, Febi did a mental count; they were
twenty of them. She assumed then that it would be a one-to-one
counseling. She hoped it would be a girl that would counsel her.
Opening up to anyone was going to be one high hurdle to jump; now
opening up to a guy was going to be a lot more difficult.
Soon after his introductory talk, Segun asked them to take
numbers. Febi was number one, and coincidentally, they were
twenty, so no counselor needed to have more than one person.
Before he assigned them to their counselors, he said a few more
things.
“Your counselors would be responsible to you and you to them. You
are to totally open up to your counselor. We are here for you and
your secrets are safe with us. You might have to meet with your
counselors often. You should call whenever you want to see or talk
with him or her. Your counselor is also free to call you whenever he
or she feels a need to be updated on your state of development.
Please trust your counselors; it will help you a great deal.”
He then told the counselors to go to their assigned teenagers,
while he excused himself. The way they moved showed they had
already taken numbers before they came over; Febi wondered which
counselor was number one. For a few minutes, she waited and
nobody came. She began to feel that familiar feeling of rejection
again. She was about to ask if she had been ignored when she
noticed Segun running back and looking in her direction.
“I’m so sorry. I had to see a friend behind.” He paused, catching his
breath. “Like you know, I’m Segun – Segun Kolade. What is your
name?”
“I’m Febi Popoola.”
“Febi, it’s my pleasure meeting you.”
“Same here”
Rising up, he motioned to her. “Would you mind if we moved
to that other row, so that you could feel free to talk?”
“No, I don’t” Febi was pleased to have a break as she walked
behind him. Her palms were all sweaty. She did not trust herself not
to cry. She did not know if she’ll sound reasonable. She wondered if
he wouldn’t laugh at her when she confided in him. While she was
still contemplating her choices, he asked her to sit down.
Looking up at him, she saw a guy who was ready to listen to
her. Before she knew it, she began talking. Slowly at first, then the
words began tumbling out. She had bottled those feelings in her
heart for so long that she felt she would burst at the speed that she
was letting them out. Taking brief glances at her counselor, she
noticed that he was listening intently and he didn’t seem in hurry.
She was encouraged to go on. At some point, she began to cry, and
he offered her a handkerchief. It was the first time in years that she
had felt loved and listened to.
When she was done, she covered her face with the
handkerchief and wept some more. He didn’t say anything at all; she
actually thought he had left her. But when she looked up again, he
was still sitting there, looking at her with so much understanding. In
her heart she was grateful to God one more time that she came to
the Good Shepherd church.
She had talked about her parents’ divorce and how the family
had been before that. She talked about her father’s second marriage
and how he had been physically and verbally abusing her. She told
him how terrible she felt about herself. The list was so long and
heart-rending. She ended up saying “I don’t think anybody likes me
and I feel I’m ugly too. If not, why wouldn’t anybody talk to me in
school?”
 CHAPTER 4

When Febi had calmed down, Segun talked with her and in a
few minutes she was smiling. She even laughed once. He told her
about how God felt about her and how she should feel about herself.
When he was rounding up, he looked her in the eye. She lowered
her eyes because his look made her uncomfortable.
“You are very beautiful”, he said. She heard him and was flushed but
she wanted to be sure he wasn’t mocking her, so she looked up at
him, and she knew he meant it. There was genuine admiration in his
eyes for her.
“Don’t ever let anyone make you feel like dirt. No matter what they
say about you, remember what God says about you and hold on to
that, okay?”
“Okay” she muttered.
“It was my pleasure talking with you, Febi”
“Same here”
“Can I have your telephone number, house address and e-mail
address?”
“Sure you can”. They both exchanged contacts then.
“I’ll stay in touch. Remember to call me immediately you need
someone to talk to”
“I will. Thank you so much, Segun. You can’t tell how relieved and
happy I am right now.”
“I can imagine” he said with a smile. They said a prayer together,
and he offered her a handshake, which she received gladly. She
picked her belongings and started towards the door unaware that
Segun’s eyes were still on her.
---------------------------------------
Dayo had been introduced to the person who would be taking
him his tutorials. Her name was Precious. He was told that she was
in her second year in the university with a CGPA of 4.85. She was
going to take him up personally.
Dayo, used to sizing up females, noticed that she wasn’t
exceptionally beautiful; just okay. But when she talked, he could hear
in her voice that she was highly intelligent.
“How much would I be paying?” he had asked earlier during the
introduction by Makun, the head of the tutorial team. He had been
told it was free and he was really impressed. He didn’t know what to
make of it but decided to give them a try, with a determination to put
in his best.
When he was assigned to a female, he was initially
disappointed. He changed his mind however when Makun had
mentioned Precious’ CGPA. One thing he immediately took note of
was that she seemed to pay attention to her dressing. She wore
expensive shoes, jewelries, and a designer skirt suit. Her cologne
was also strong. Dayo couldn’t really decipher which it was but he
knew it was no cheap perfume. He could easily tell if an item was
expensive or designer-made from years of obsession with clothes
and body accessories. He just assumed she was from a wealthy
family.
“When are we starting our lessons?” she asked.
“I should be the one asking you when you would be free. You are my
tutor, as it were.”
“Oh! I didn’t mention that earlier. I’m on my sessional break now. It’s
for three months and I have just spent one week at home so far. I
have a lot of time to spear.”
“That’s splendid!” Dayo said. “That means you’ll still be available
when I write my exams?”
“Sure will”
Dayo was glad and practically exhilarated at the great start he
was having. He only hoped things would work out fine eventually.
“How about Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays?” he asked.
“That would be fine. Time?”
“Hmm, between 4 and 6pm on Tuesdays and Fridays. Then, from
10am to 1pm on Saturdays. Is that okay?”
“Yeah! It’s okay except on Fridays. Let us make it between 3 and
5pm on Fridays, so I don’t get late for prayer meeting.”
“That seems fair”
“Fair?” she asked.
“Seems great, I mean” he said apologetically. “Can I have you cell
number, please?”
“Yes you can. I was just about to ask you for yours.”
They exchanged contacts, and were about to pray when Dayo
interrupted. “Sorry, but we didn’t talk about the venue”
“Oh thanks” she said. After thinking a short while, she said, “The
classes in the children department at the right side on the church
should do. We could use one of them.”
“Thanks. But hope the church is not too far from your house?” he
asked Precious.
“No, it’s just a stone throw from here” she replied.
“Cool. My driver will bring me on our lesson days. I hope never to be
late”
“You have a driver?” she asked, curious.
“Yes. Does that surprise you?”
“Not really”
Dayo thought of closing the chapter but decided to satisfy her
curiosity. “I’m the only child at home; my sister is away in the
university. My dad had employed a driver for both of us to take us to
school and other places we wanted to go. So, now in her absence,
he is my driver.”
“That’s cool” she said. “Let us pray so we can call it a day”. Precious
looked round and noticed the youth church was almost empty. While
talking with Dayo, she had noticed Segun, her ex-boyfriend,
counseling a beautiful girl. She was getting jealous but reminded
herself that what was there between Segun and her was over. Now,
as she was about to pray, she saw the girl walk away but it seemed
Segun couldn’t get his eyes off her. She smiled knowing what Segun
was capable of doing and what he was likely to do.
Remembering her initial days with Segun, she remembered
how he had promised to love her to death. She had demanded so
much from him in terms of money for her wardrobe and he had
obliged. He also asked her for her body and she obliged. The only
thing she hadn’t allowed him to have was sex itself. Every other
preamble was done. When they got tired of each other, they broke
up, and that was just a month ago, so she was sure Segun was
looking for another distraction.
Concentrating back on her tutorial student, she apologized for
the distraction. They prayed together and agreed to meet on
Tuesday. When he shook her hand, she noticed his Rolex
wristwatch, and immediately knew what she was going to do with her
student.
 CHAPTER 5

After one month, things had changed for Febi. She walked
with more confidence in school, began making new friends, grew
closer to God and didn’t allow her father and step-mother’s
comments deflate her anymore. Her father noticed the changes and
could only wonder what had come over his daughter. Somewhere
within him, he was happy that she was growing into a strong young
woman but he never told her.
She had been in touch with Segun almost every day of the
month. She had done most of the calling because she had limitless
access to the phone. That was one of the few things her father never
deprived her of. She kept updating him on her improvements on
phone and whenever she saw him in church.
On a particular day, she had a conversation with Segun that
was quite different. She had called him to tell him how she had
surprised her step-mother by buying her flowers because she was
down with a cold.
“Guess what?” she had screamed on the phone.
“What?”
“I bought my step the flowers you told me to buy and she was so
shocked and touched that her eyes filled but she quickly blinked
back the tears.
“Did she thank you?”
“Yes, she did. I’m so happy, Segun. Thank you.”
“Thank God. I’m happy for you too sweetie”
“I’m happy for myself too” she said. ‘But did he just call me sweetie?’
she asked herself. She pushed the thought aside and kept ranting
about how many friends she had made. She told him about what she
learnt on sexual purity from the bible that morning. She noticed
however that he was silent for a while.
“Are you there?” she asked.
“Yes”
“Did I say something wrong?”
“Oh no, you didn’t.” After a short pause, he asked, “what did you gain
from that scripture?”
“I learnt that it is not good to have sex”
“What about kissing and those other things before sex?” he asked.
“I don’t know o! I didn’t see anything written about those there.”
“Okay then”
“But what do you think about those other intimate activities?”
“I’ll let you know some other time.”
“Why?”
“Not now, trust me, okay?”
“Pleaseeee!”
“Febi, I’ll tell you later.”
“Okay” she conceded.
 They talked on for a few minutes before Segun said what had
been on his mind for about a month. “I would want us to celebrate
your impressive improvement.” Febi was happy and started
imagining eating out with Segun, it had been a while she ate in an
eatery. The last time was the day before her father found out the
truth about her mother. That was five years back.
“Where are we going?” she asked excitedly
“My house”
“What? Are you joking?”
“I’m dead serious. It’s okay if you don’t want to come”, Segun said.
“No, it’s not that”, she said “but I don’t even know your house.
Besides, I’m wondering why you would want me to come over.
Thought we would go to an eatery”
“Because I want you to eat a Segun-prepared food. It’ll be all set
before you come. Moreover, eating outside is a waste of money.”
“Okay then. Describe your house to me.”
“Let me make it easier for you. Come over to church at 4pm and I’ll
pick you up.”
“Oh that’s so sweet of you” she said beaming.
“Anything for you, Febi.”
“But that’s just in about two hours from now?”
“Yes, I know. It’s Friday and I’ll have to be back early for prayer
meeting.”
“Okay then. See you soon.”
 That was the conversation they had and Febi prepared to go
to church early. She had learnt from her dad, an efficient lawyer,
never to keep anyone waiting if there was a prior appointment. He
had said over and again that it was a sign of irresponsibility.
Remembering how he used to hurry her for school years ago, she
couldn’t help smiling. Then, he would chase her round the sitting
room, urging her to hurrying up. At breakfast table, they used to do
the ‘toe-fight’ under the table. Those days were fun and she wished
for them again. Her father had started changing towards her. She
only hoped the change would be faster. But somewhere within, she
knew it would take longer, probably a year.
By 3:30pm she was in church but Segun hadn’t come. She
decided to take a leisure stroll through the church compound. She
walked through the corridor in front of the children’s classes and
noticed two people in a class. A girl was teaching some guy
Mathematics. Looking at their faces, she knew they were faces she
saw in church. She said hi and walked on but noticed that the girl
had a questioning look on her face.
Soon after, while still around the classrooms, she saw Segun
coming in her direction. He looked dashing. She couldn’t help staring
at him for while. ‘How did I escape noticing how handsome this guy
is? The girl he’ll date would be a very lucky girl’ she thought to
herself. He had told her he had been in a relationship which hit the
rocks but he didn’t tell her who it had been he dated. She
remembered telling herself then that the girl who had broken up with
Segun must have been very stupid, blind or callous, in the least.
“I checked you in the youth church then decided to come here” he
said walking towards her.
“I decided to take a stroll while waiting for you”. She felt privileged to
be the object of his attention even if it was only for the few weeks he
would be her counselor.
He moved close to her and gave her a bear hug. That was her first
time hugging a guy that way. He pulled back after the brief hug, as a
gentleman should, and held her hand as they exited the church
premises. Unknown to Segun, Precious was watching from the
classroom, smiling, because she knew what his game plan was.
 CHAPTER 6

“I’m through”. Noticing that she was distracted, Dayo followed her
gaze to see that she was staring at the duo walking out of the
church. He tapped her. “I’m through”
“Oh sorry” she said.
“What’s so amusing?”
“What did you say?”
“I said, what’s so amusing. You were smiling just now.”
“Oh that. Just admiring the lovely couple.” She straightened up and
looked at his book. “How many minutes did this take you?” she
asked.
“About 5 minutes”
“You did it right but you still need to work on your speed. You’re
really catching up on your Math, and I’m proud of you. Your other
subjects are quiet impressive too.”
“Thanks. And, I forgot to tell you something”
“What’s that?” Precious asked.
“I came 5th in my class in the mid-term tests. I moved up twenty
places. I was the 25th last term.”
“That’s great, congrats!”
“Thanks. My mum was so happy with me that she bought me
another game and gave me N10,000.”
 That got Precious’ attention, and she knew it was time to carry
on with her plans. “Do you know what?”
“No, I don’t” he said.
“I have wanted to ask you for money for a while. I’m broke and I
need to buy some textbooks, so I can read ahead of school.”
“Like how much do you need?” Dayo asked.
“N15,000”
“Fifteen thousand naira for books?”
“Yes, my books are quite expensive. In my department, Electrical-
Electronics Engineering, books cost quite a lot.”
“Okay. How soon do you need it?”
“This weekend”
“So soon?” Dayo was perplexed.
“Yes, but don’t bother. I shouldn’t have asked you in the first place. I
guess I was just so overwhelmed with my need”, she said, trying to
look serious.
Doubting that she really needed the money for books, Dayo
thought it over for a while. He concluded that he would have been
destined for a public school come September if not for this girl.
Moreover, if he were to pay for the lessons, it would have cost him
more. Whether her reasons were genuine or not, he decided to give
her.
“I’ll give you on Sunday.”
“Thank you so much. That would be great” she said with a pleasant
smile.
------------------------------------
In his house, Segun invited Febi to the living room and told her to
make herself comfortable on the settee. His house wasn’t as ornate
as hers but was okay for an average family. He went to the kitchen
and brought back chicken laps, fresh fish and a pack of Five-Alive on
a tray.
“You sure you made these yourself?” she said when she saw the
contents of the tray.
“Yes! Wait till you taste them”
Febi took a bite and had to finish that bite before talking. “This
is really sumptuous. You must spend a lot of time with your mother
for your cooking to be this good”
“I used to before she died”
“I’m really sorry about that”, she said.
Segun then told her how close they had been and how she
had died. “She left my father with five of us. I’m the first born, so I’ve
had many responsibilities since then.” Febi could feel herself getting
all emotional as she empathized with him.
“But something happened lately that comforted me over my mother’s
death.”
“What was that?” she asked, curious.
“You!”
 Febi was flushed but still managed to ask, “What do you
mean?”
“The first day I counseled you, you were so simple, sweet and
beautiful that I couldn’t help falling in love with you immediately” Febi
was dumbfounded and could only stare at her skirt. Her palms were
growing wet again; he was making her shy. She noticed that he
moved closer and put his hand on her shoulder. Her heart was hitting
hard against her chest. It was so sudden and unexpected that she
didn’t know what to think or do.
The next thing she knew was that he lifted her face, and
kissed her. She jerked away but not fast enough to have escaped
the feeling it aroused in her.
“What was that for? I thought you didn’t believe in kissing?”
“I never told you that” he said, “I told you I would tell you later. Now is
the time. I believe you can kiss and do every other thing except have
sex with the person you love” he said. He said this knowing very well
that because of her naivety, if she gave in to being physically
intimate with him, it wouldn’t be a problem to take it to the sex level
later.
“Are you sure about this, Segun?”
“Have I lied to you before?”
“No”
“Or don’t you love me too?”
“I think I do, but I just don’t want to hurt God. Remember all the
things you’ve taught me?”
“Yes, I know. This is okay” he said and kissed her again. This time,
he went further to explore her body. After the whole episode, he took
her back home and whispered in her ears, “I love you”.
She had been so starved of love that those words meant the
world to her. Getting to her room, she could think of nothing else but
what had just happened between Segun and herself. She liked the
way he made her feel loved and she felt she could give up anything
just to keep his love. ‘He’s the first person who has ever loved me
and accepted me for who I am’, she thought to herself. That was the
beginning of series of different rendezvous with Segun.
 CHAPTER 7

“Dayo, I need a favor” Precious asked on their last week of lessons. I

need you to give me a ride to a party tomorrow night.”
“What? To be your driver?”
“Pleaseeee. This will be the last thing I’ll ask of you.”
Dayo smiled, knowing he had heard that phrase over and
again in the last two months. He had given Precious money at
several times, bought her many clothes, and paid so many cinemas
tickets. She no longer bothered lying and Dayo kept indulging her. ‘If
that’s what she wants as payment for her services, I’ll give her’, he
had told himself. His savings account was running low but he knew
his mother would reimburse him if he only but asked. She had been
very happy with him since the day his teachers reported that he was
now leading the class. She had never even asked how he was doing
it; she just wanted good grades from her son.
Deciding to do her this last favor, he agreed. On the night of
the party, Dayo asked his mum for the keys to the Lincoln Navigator.
She questioned him but like an only son usually would, he got what
he wanted and drove Precious to the party. It was his first time
knowing that she partied. He parked outside the club house at a dark
corner to avoid any embarrassments and waited for her. She had
told him she would be out in two hours.
 Thirty minutes after, he saw a couple strolling by. They looked
vaguely familiar in the moonlight. Strolling at 10pm? As they got
closer, he recognized the faces and was about to greet them as they
walked past his car until it occurred to him what direction they were
headed.
-------------------------------------
Segun had asked for sex a couple of times and Febi had
refused but when he asked on this night and she saw the look in his
eyes, she knew it was either she gave in now or she’ll lose him. ‘I’ve
allowed him to do with me absolutely everything else apart from sex.
Why am I still holding back?’ she had asked herself.
She had agreed to his request. Walking with his arms around
her, she was headed to the place he had suggested. His father was
around, so he had suggested an uncompleted building a couple of
blocks away from his house. With her heart in her throat, she went in
with Segun assuring her that it would be okay.
------------------------------------
Dayo saw them walk into that building and knew what was
going to happen because he had been in that same building a few
times before he accepted Christ three months ago. ‘Is that what
Segun does with the girls he counsels?’ he asked himself.
After half an hour, they walked back and it was obvious that
the girl walking with Segun was not too comfortable with what had
just happened. As they passed by his car, Dayo prayed that God will
have mercy on both of them. A few minutes after, he looked up
towards the club house and saw Precious waving at him. He drove
over and picked her up. It’s was obvious she didn’t drink or flirt
because she was still in one piece.
Dayo concluded that his tutor was just a wanna-be. She was a
girl who would do anything and compromise her standards just to
flow with the rich, high and lofty. All she did, she did in the hope to
gain their respect and admiration. But being in those circles once,
Dayo knew it was a big waste of time.
------------------------------------
Alone in her room, when the reality of what had happened
dawned on her, Febi cried. She only hoped that it was worth it giving
Segun what he had asked for. She expected him to call to wish her
sweet dreams as he had in the last few days when he had been so
persistent but he didn’t.
The following Sunday, she waited for Segun after service. He
had only sent her one text after that episode telling her he loved her
but was busy. He always came to see her briefly before counseling
anyone in the past weeks. But this Sunday, when he did not come to
meet her outside as usual, she went in and saw him talking with a
very beautiful young girl. She immediately saw herself in that girl.
The girl seemed shy, naïve and as scared as she was the first day
Segun counseled her. Segun said something to the girl and she
smiled babyishly.
 Febi groped for a chair and sank into it. It was like someone
had just sucked out all the breath in her. She literarily gasped for air.
While sitting there, a girl came over to meet her and introduced
herself as Rashidat. ‘Why don’t people ever know when you need to
be alone’, she thought to herself.
Rashidat explained that she was a Muslim turned Christian.
Febi barely listened to her but Rashidat caught her attention when
she said she came for counseling on the 5 th of May.
“That’s the same day I came”, Febi said.
“Yes, I know. I remember your face. I’ve always wanted to talk with
you. Anyway, I enjoyed my counseling sessions with Paul.”
“Was that your counselor?”
“Yes. Segun was yours, right?”
“Yes”
“Lucky you, he’s such a good Christian.” Rashidat said.
“You could say that again.” she said hoping her voice didn’t betray
her. She glanced at him as he playfully hit the girl he was counseling
on the shoulder”
“My counselor, Paul, always called me and prayed with me; he was a
darling.”
“Did he ever touch you?” Febi had said the words before she knew it.
She now sought a way not to give herself in.
“What do you mean? Rashidat asked.
“I mean, did he hug you, hold your hands to comfort you. You know
now?”
“Oh that. No, he never did that. He said he had learnt not to get
physical, even to holding hands, though quite harmless, with any
female he counseled.”
“What was his reason?” Febi asked overly interested.
“He said it would most likely evolve from one level to another.”
“Why did he think so?”
“He said that he knew I would feel emotionally attached to him
because he was the first person I was opening up to. So, he decided
not to exploit my vulnerability. He said he loves and respects me as
a Christian sister and would not want to take advantage of me”
“That was so sweet of him” Febi said sincerely as she remembered
how Segun exploited her emotions. She was about to cry but
cautioned herself. ‘You can’t cry now, Febi. Hold on till you get
home’, she chided herself.
 CHAPTER 8

Rashidat couldn’t agree more. Paul had been a great

counselor. “I agree” she said. “I was initially offended, wondering if
he took me for one emotionally unstable person who would fall for
anybody. But the longer he counseled me, the more I started liking
him, and if not that he was a Christian who wanted to live for God,
and who also chose to honor my body, he would have had his fill of
me. He had only but ask and I would have obliged.”
“Wow” was all Febi could say.
“He even said someday when we were talking on the phone”
Rashidat continued “that if not for the scarcity of female counselors,
he would never have counseled a female.
Febi was jealous of Rashidat and wished it was Paul who had
been her own counselor. What Rashidat had narrated was what Febi
understood to be true love; unconditional love. Now, she had lost
everything she once held dear and the person she gave them up for
had just jumped unto another available train. Bringing herself back to
the present, she thanked Rashidat for taking the pain and time to talk
with her. When Rashidat left, she decided to wait a few more
minutes for Segun before leaving.
-------------------------------------
“She bought me all the materials I needed for my drawings”
“You can’t be serious!”
 Ade, Dayo’s new friend, told him about his own female tutor
who had never demanded a kobo from him but instead had bought
so many things for him. “She treated me like a younger brother”. He
smiled and then added. “She even scolded me at times like my
mother would. She really wanted the best for me and asked nothing
in return.”
“But you had enough money to buy those materials. Chief Malomo’s
son couldn’t have been broke!”
“I had enough money to buy all I needed but she insisted on buying
them for me. She said she was investing into my life because she
knew I would become a great architect someday. She said she
would want to be happy in that day that she was faithful to God and
to me in teaching me to the best of her ability.”
“This is really hard to believe” Dayo said. “But she must be rich to
have been able to afford those expensive instruments you guys use.”
“No, she’s just managing herself. But she’s in charge of the youth
church’s welfare and ensures that all teachers have all the money
and resources needed to teach their students properly. It was from
the welfare purse she bought those things for me.”
That information sent Dayo’s head spinning. “You mean the
church would have also given Precious money to cater for my
tutorials?”
“Yes. Transportation fee and lots more covered.”
“Wow. Like how much do you think they give these tutors?” Dayo
asked, imagining how much Precious would have pocketed.
“#3,000 per week”
“That’s fairly large. We are about sixty students attending these
private tutorials all together and it’s free. How does the church get
the money?”
“I was surprised; I had to ask my tutor. She told me that some
wealthy Christians who believe in the vision had taken it upon
themselves to finance this project. Also, teenagers who have been
blessed through the scheme send in their contributions, no matter
how small. The sponsors increase yearly. I’m already thinking of
what I will give.”
“I’m impressed. That’s a challenge to me too. I guess I’ll note that
against the next time I want to make a donation to charity.”
“You had better. This is some great work. I actually climbed up the
ladder from 10th to 3rd position in my class. My class is very
competitive, so that was some great achievement for me.”
“Congrats, brother”
“Congrats to you too, Dayo. I heard you’re making waves in your
school now.”
“You could say that. It’s all good.”
“Yeah, it’s all good”
“Thanks for the company again today” Dayo said. “I want to talk with
someone”, he said, pointing at the girl sitting at the far corner.
“Go ahead, brother.”
They shook hands and Dayo walked over to talk with the girl
whose name he was about to find out.
-------------------------------------
From the corner of her eyes, Febi saw that a guy was
approaching. ‘Can’t I just be left alone?’ she asked herself.
“May I?” he asked, pointing at the chair next to her.
‘Do I have a choice?’ she thought, but nodded all the same.
“Thanks”, he said as he sat. “I’m Dayo Aluko.”
“Hmmm, Prof. Aluko’s son?” she asked slightly impressed.
“The same. And you?”
“Febi Popoola” she said, still uninterested in any conversation.
“Barrister…”
“Yes”, she said before he finished.
“Are you okay?”
“What kind of question is that? Don’t I look okay to you?” she asked
rudely.
Dayo cleared his throat seeing this might be harder than he
had thought. But he wasn’t going to allow this girl ruin herself. She
was hurting and needed to find healing. In this case, healing could
not come if she bottled up her mistake. “I’m sorry if I disturbed you
but I’ve wanted to talk with you for a while now”
“Go ahead, but don’t be long, okay?”
“Okay. But before I say anything, I want you to know that I walked all
the way here because I care about you and don’t want you to hurt
yourself.”
“Same old lines”, she muttered under her breath.
Dayo heard that but allowed it to pass. “I saw you three nights
ago, on Thursday night.”
Febi froze. It was like she had just been hit on the head. She was
dazed. She hadn’t told anyone and she knew Segun, for his
reputation’s sake wouldn’t dare tell a soul. ‘Maybe he’s talking about
something else’, she tried to convince herself. Forcing a smile, she
said, “I don’t seem to understand you”
“You understand me very well. Thursday night. A stroll, arm in arm,
beside Popzy club, an uncompleted building…”
“Who told you this trash?” she asked feigning disgust, but Dayo
could see her hands shaking. He didn’t answer her but looked
straight at her. He needed to be wise with this. The look in his face
was enough to tell Febi that there was no denying this. She had
been caught.
 CHAPTER 9

When she lowered her eyes, they filled up and soon, she
began to shake with sobs.
“I did not come here to hurt you, hmm... Febi, right?”
She nodded.
“Can we take a walk and talk about this?” Dayo asked.
“On one condition” she said.
“What would that be?” he asked confused.
“Give me a hanky so I can clean my face and look like a dignified
lady”
Dayo smiled and gave her his hanky. “Who taught you how to
still find humor in pain?” he asked amused.
“The one who is making me cry taught me. He taught me a lot but
also stole so much from me.”
“My tutor did the same to me” Dayo said.
Walking now, Febi said, “I have learnt from Rashidat, a new
friend that there are guys who’ll love you as a female without asking
anything in return. I was a fool”
“So was I” Dayo said. “I learnt, rather late, that I don’t have to keep
giving a girl gifts or money to keep her friendship or to get help from
her.”
 They walked in silence a while and Dayo continued. “I guess
that’s what Pastor Francis was talking about when he said we should
love each other as Christ loves us”
“Yes. He gave Himself to us without asking anything in return. I have
hurt God”
“So have I”, said Dayo. What we need do now is repent and He’ll
forgive us.”
They found a spot under a tree and knelt there. They
confessed their sins to God, asked His forgiveness for misusing their
body and money respectively and received His grace and the help of
the Holy Spirit to live above sin. When they were through, they rose
and started back towards the church.
Wiping her tears, Febi said, “It’s so good to be forgiven. I feel
such peace and relief. Just like that!’
“The next thing now is to forgive Segun and Precious” Dayo said.
“That’s hard. But if God just forgave me, who am I not to forgive him.
Segun, I forgive you from my heart”, she said, knowing the hurt
would still take some time to heal.
“Precious, I forgive you.” Dayo said.
“There’s still something we need to do”, Febi said. “We need to
report both of them to the pastorate. We’ll be doing it because we
love them and want them to repent, but more importantly, so that
other teenagers would not fall prey of their schemes. They have
proven to be wolves in sheep clothing. I hope they repent and
become sheep again, but if not, the earlier they left the fold, the
better for the growing herd.
Dayo smiled at her. “I’m impressed. I couldn’t have suggested
anything better.”
“Don’t you flatter me! I’m not in for another emotional thingy”, she
said.
“My bad” Dayo said smiling at his own forwardness. “How do you
hope to handle the emotional attachment you’ve developed with
Segun?”
Febi took her time to digest the question as they approached
the church. She stopped and Dayo took the cue and stopped too.
She looked at him and said, “It will be hard I confess but with God, all
things are possible.”
“I know that but what do you hope to do to break away?”
“I would severe myself from him. No calls, visits or the likes. The less
I see him, the faster my feelings for him will die.”
“Sounds reasonable” Dayo affirmed.
“I should spend more time with God, fellow Christians and my family.
We seem to be getting along well at home now; my father, my step
and I. Moreover, I now have many friends, so I hope to have fun in
groups and not with an individual, so that no guy gets wrong ideas
into his head.” At that, Dayo frowned.
“Why the frown?”
“Does that mean I won’t be able to have a stroll like this with you
again? And if you want to know, I really enjoyed it; it was fun talking
with you.”
“Thank you Dayo. I enjoyed it too but I cannot afford to get close to
anyone now.”
Dayo smiled. “I understand and wish you all the best. Bye”
Dayo turned and was about to go when she hollered. “Where
are you going? We’re reporting them together.”
“Oh no! Count me out. You’re on your own” Dayo said and was
turning back when Febi grabbed his arm, smiled and said, “You’re
going nowhere mister.”
“Okay, do you promise me a stroll?”
“You’re just impossible”, Febi said “I will try”
“Not good enough”
“Hold on a minute” she said and turned slightly to face the church.
“Pastor Francis! We want to talk with you!” she hollered. “Too late”,
she said and made a face at Dayo.
She literarily dragged him to Pastor Francis and when they
got to him, they narrated their different experiences. He promised to
see to the issues raised. While they talked, he had sent someone to
call Segun and Precious. He was told Precious had left for her house
but that Segun would be there soon.
Pastor Francis apologized to Dayo and Febi and promised to
punish both Segun and Precious as was fit. He also urged them to
forgive their offenders. They said they had done that. He thanked
them for being true Christians and asked them to keep praying for
the purity of the entire church.
As they approached the door, Segun came through and
looked from Febi to Dayo and back to Febi. She could see in his
eyes that he had never loved her. What she saw in those eyes were
lust, pride, anger and selfishness. Her eyes filled and she was about
to break down in tears but Dayo noticed and squeezed her hand,
and that alone reassured her of God’s comfort in her pain.
She looked up at the tall boy beside her through wet eyes and
said, “Thank you, Dayo. I guess I owe you a stroll”. They both smiled
and walked out of the church premises.

THE END