The fight for love

I came from a tribe that has a way of telling one to fight and not to fight. There are enough proverbs to tell you to fight when you are supposed to and others to tell you not to fight. Well, this is the beauty of my tribe that cannot be underestimated. This prompt made me remember a scenario that happened a few years ago. It was a funny one, but I believe everyone deserves to be loved and given a chance to prove himself or herself.

Image Source

When I gained admission to a higher institution, my classes were a bit crowded, making it difficult for lecturers to teach. But both the students and lecturers had to endure anyway. Most of the lecturers always complained, and this made some of them skip their lecture time, but there was this young lady named Ms. Tiwa (real name withheld), who never missed her class whenever we had her.

Ms. Tiwa always made herself available, even though the atmosphere was not conducive to her. She speaks quite good English, unlike some other lecturers, for whom you have to go check Google when they speak to know if you are the one spelling wrong or they are the ones speaking wrong.

We've always heard among ourselves that a guy named Tayo (real name withheld) in the class is crushing on this beautiful young lecturer, but no one believes it since we haven't seen the evidence. His friends tease him about it, but we take it as a joke.

As I said earlier, the class is not always conducive; sometimes I do go out of the class to have fresh air because the class is always congested. After the first semester, when we resumed for the second semester, Tayo, who happens to be my coursemate, got a mini-fan for this lecturer, which she can hold whenever she is teaching.

We all thought it was just a kind heart of humanity; the lecturer in question appreciated it, and that was it. Whenever Ms. Tiwa's lecture ended, my coursemate Tayo would help her with her bag and walk her to the office. This continued for the whole of the second semester, and they became so close that whenever this lady lecturer came into the class and didn't see Tayo, she always asked him.

Some other lecturers noticed the closeness between the lecturer and my coursemate, and it didn't go well with one of the male lecturers, probably because he also had a crush on Ms. Tiwa too.

Tayo and Ms. Tiwa's friendship grew so well that he surprised her on her birthday. It was then that everyone in the class believed my coursemate Tayo had a crush on the lady lecturer, and that was the beginning of a problem for Tayo.

The male lecturer, who also had a crush on the lady lecturer, confronted my coursemate Tayo, and as a man, Tayo decided to make it a man-to-man experience. It was a funny experience.

"Young boy, I noticed you've been so attached to Ms. Tiwa lately; she sure knows how to teach, right?" The male lecturer, who we later found out to be Mr.Hassan (real name withheld), asked Tayo one day when he escorted Ms. Tiwa back to her office and was on his way back to the class.

"Yes, sir, she is," Tayo replied.

"Shouldn't you be more focused on your academics at this young age rather than surprising your lecturer on her birthday, which is not expected of a young boy like you?" Mr. Hassan said to Tayo.

"Sir, I saw nothing wrong in what I did; after all, it's my money, and I think I can use it for whatever pleases me. I have a class now, sir," Tayo said and left.

We got to know all this from Tayo's friends as the news was flying around. Everyone was expecting to see a big show, as we all knew Tayo was one stubborn guy who would not back down easily.

Mr. Hassan wasn't pleased with Tayo's reply; the response sure got him annoyed, and he wanted to get back at Tayo. This was the bone of contention when the semester ended and we had to go on vacation. During the holiday, Ms.Tiwa and Tayo do reach out to each other as we get to know each other through Tayo's friends.

We resumed for the second year, and I can say Tayo came back fully prepared. He resumed riding in a car that he claimed to be his, which everyone believed. He always gives Ms. Tiwa a ride whenever we close at the same time. Tayo became a pin in the neck of Mr. Hassan.

Mr. Hassan is not taking my class; he is not one of our lecturers, though he wishes he was so that he could get through to Tayo. That was a saving grace for Tayo; if not, it would have been a bit serious.

After closing on Wednesday afternoon, Tayo and his friends were waiting for Ms. Tiwa to drop her off when Mr. Hassan walked up to him and stood by his car.

"Haha, young boy, I see you are now riding a car, Omo Yahoo (yahoo boy). You want to use your car to impress a lecturer; you sure have guts," Mr. Hassan said to Tayo, who was getting pissed already.

"But oga kilosele gan (sir, what happened?) I'm a student; you are a lecturer; we don't have anything in common; why are you always bothering me?" Tayo replied.

"Well, this one you want to be doing won't pay you; just face your studies; okay, don't waste your parents' money," Mr.Hassan said, not out of concern but jealousy.

"Stay off my tail, oga (boss); it's my parent's money, not yours; why are you so concerned?" Tayo replied angrily and hissed.

Immediately, Mr. Hassan slapped Tayo, and that didn't go well with Tayo. He responded by slapping back Mr. Hassan and pushing him away while Tayo's friends were trying to hold him and cautioning him not to fight.

"We live to fight another day, bro," one of his friends said.

"A bull that ran away from a fight went to gather more power; you should have left him for today," another one said.

"It's only a coward that will say I can't fight because the space isn't big enough; I love the way you gave him that slap," another one said.

While dragging this out, other lecturers came out, and Mr. Hassan was not telling them the truth. Ms.Tiwa ran out when she heard Tayo's voice and requested what happened. She was briefed by one of the people passing by, as Tayo and his friends had been taken into the disciplinary room for investigation.

"Mr. Hassan got what he deserves; I don't know his problem; why must he confront Tayo? What's his business with me?" Ms. Tiwa said.

After questioning, Tayo was punished for slapping a lecturer; he was suspended for two weeks. We didn't know if Mr. Hassan was punished or chastised too, but he should, but that was not open to the students.

"Tayo, you shouldn't have slapped him back," Ms. Tiwa said immediately after she saw Tayo and his friends coming from the disciplinary room.

"He slapped me first, and if I get the chance, I'll do that again to put him in his place. I couldn't let it go for another day; fighting back was the right thing to do. I'm suspended for two weeks and will be back soon. Be safe for me," Tayo winked and said.

He got into his car with his friends and headed home. We got to know all that happened in the disciplinary room through his friends, who told us. Tayo didn't flee; he fought and stood his ground.

Thanks for your time, and your comments will be appreciated.