My first day in High school (fiction)... A short story

Attending boarding High school in Nigeria requires courage from both the parents and the student. For me, my fear of being abandoned in a far-away school where the call for help would hit the bricks was soon to cascade into a premier night terror that would linger long in my memory.

"This is your room, and that’s your bunk." The House captain, a senior student said, pointing to a lower bonk with an old and tattered student-sized mattress on it. At this moment, I wished I could turn back to the Administrative block where my parents left me and tell them I was not interested in schooling at Mayfield; however, no choice was allotted to me. The House captain looked about 17 years old, and he wore this frown on his face as though frustration was his daily companion. Inside the room were four bunks, which had an upper and lower bed space; apparently, there would be eight students in the room.

The room was barely wide enough to contain the supposed eight occupants, but I kept my skepticism intact, refraining from divulging my inquisitiveness. The ceiling of the room had more open spaces in it, exposing its roof, making me wonder if there was activity going on in there.

"Thank you, sir." I replied courteously and dragged my metallic box of clothes and provisions into the room. A student stood against one of the bunks in the inner part of the room, ignoring my presence. I made my way to one of the lockers but discovered it was locked. "Perhaps it was occupied already", I thought to myself.

"Put your load under the bunk out there; there’s no locker for junior students." The student spoke out without looking in my direction. I noticed he focused on a book he read, though I wondered why he chose to stand rather than sit engrossed in what he read. I was only 11 years old, young and inexperienced with a life without my parents; my mood was a vacuum of uncertainties, oblivious to what lay ahead in my new college sojourn.

"Alright, thank you, sir." I said, expecting him to at least look at me, only to be met with the same attitude. Compared to the outfit of a green check shirt on a brown trouser the student in the inner room wore, my outfit was a mufti, giving me an odd feeling right from the point of registration. "I am a newbie, and with time, I will adjust to their customs," I thought to myself, making myself comfortable on the mattress allotted to me. The mattress looked old, unkempt, and sullied, yet I had no option but to make myself comfortable. It was weird not having a locker to put my possessions in, but this was a clarification I would seek once I had the courage to ask the House captain whenever I came across him. Dusk gradually crept upon me, affirming the reality of my new environment and reminding me that I had 3 months to stay for the first term to start at the school.

Barely two hours after I entered my room, some minutes before the hour of 7, the school bell was rung, and I noticed students in checks of green like the boy in my room making a rush out of the hostel with plates and cutlery.

"It’s time for dinner; you should come along." The boy walked up to one of the four lockers and brought out his plate and spoon. Unlike other students that ran hastily, he took his time to retrieve his plate and cutlery, which made me assume he was either in the final year like the House captain or in the penultimate year. I was not hungry and not in the mood to step out of the hostel, coupled with the fact that I was shy as to what the dining hall would be like; thus, I stayed back in the room after changing into pajamas. I pushed my box under my bunk and wandered off into dreamland after having a series of unuttered conversations with my only companion, the ceiling.

Some minutes after midnight, I felt a pour of cold water drench my body, causing a reactionary startle and shivering. I was terrified, trying hard to remember where I was, what I was doing there, and why I had cold water poured on me in my sleep. I sprang to my feet after my senses returned and ran to the inner room amidst flashes of light, numberous eyeballs, and eerie laughter from voices. I could not identify the owners, but I guessed they were students. My heart beat was erratic as my head became calculative of the best escape routes, readying myself to do whatever it would take if anyone charged at me.

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"It’s okay, Franklin; this is our way of welcoming new students to the college hostel." A voice that sounded familiar spoke out from the numerous laughs at the entrance of the room. The House captain walked up to me, patting me on the shoulder with a smirk after the room was lit. The fear that once overwhelmed me gradually dissipated into a longing for my parents.

A few days after that incident, the senior student in my room on the first day of my arrival eventually introduced himself as Michael. He was quite helpful in making me adjust to my new environment and ensuring I was protected from other students in the hostel whose aims were to frustrate junior students, especially the fresh ones like me.