Tiger was not a corruption of Tega as Amanda had assumed. It had arisen out of certain attributes: his appetite for life; the gusto with which he faced every day; the spring in his walk, seeming like he was preparing to pounce on a prey at any moment, the classical stalking walk of a born hunter; his generosity and openhanded friendship. Above all, he was a tiger in that he never slunk from a fight. He had always held his own, especially at Tolu, where fights were a common pastime.

 

Then of course, Tega would become Tiger, if pronounced with a certain mischief. When he heard his name, he stopped and recognizing Abigail, he waited for her to catch up with him. Abigail, a petite, fair complexioned girl with the beauty and fragility of a butterfly, ran up to him. It took her a while, and by the time she got to him, a few friends had gathered round.

 

She had to fight for his attention. When she got it, she dragged him off, in the direction of the sports ground. There was urgency in the air; Students in mufti and sports clothes were everywhere. It was a celebration of colors.

 

“What about what I told you yesterday?”

 

There was something about girls when they walked. They seemed to embrace the atmosphere, part it, and then walk into it. Abigail took it to another level, he thought.

 

“You mean the party?” Tega was looking at her as she walked; her aura suffused his mind.

 

“Yeah,” she replied, eyeing him.

 

“… Well, I told you yesterday, I don tire for all dis parti, you know say WAEC don reach ground, but, for you sha, I go rock today. Shei you dey happi now?” he teased her.

 

“Great! Come on, let’s go to the field. Biola and his friends will pick us up at 12 noon.” She was completely elated and her excitement transformed her.

 

Abigail was like all girls. If she wanted something, she became moody until she got it, and when she got it, she brightened up like sunshine. 

 

“Who else is going?” Tega asked as they approached the field. The sports ground was a sprawling, dusty field on the western end of Tolu. The school complex included fourteen secondary schools and eight primary schools separated from the Tin-can Island port by a foul-smelling canal.

 

“Helen, Nike, Funmi, and the rest of the girls, seven of us; eight including you!”

 

“Are boys not invited to this party?” Tega asked.

 

They had just passed Reservation Secondary School, and the sports ground spread out before them. The punishing rays of the sun hit them with renewed vengeance and a wave of dust wafted off the field covering them in a fine layer. Colours were ablaze on the field, the sporting activities already in full swing.

 

“Need you ask, Tega? You of all people should know that our school boys are boring, except you of course - you’re an untamed animal.” She laughed pleasantly, enjoying herself.

 

“Well, that’s your opinion. What about Nosike, is he also boring?”

 

“True, he’s different. I wanted to invite him but, I no see am yesterday.”

 

“He’s somewhere on the field. If you don’t mind, I’d like him to come too.”

 

 “What’s the problem? You afraid us girls might eat you? Anyhow, I like Nosike, let him tag along.”

 

The crowd of spectators swallowed them up. Inter-house sports in Lagos generally and in Tolu in particular were exciting. However, this did not remove the macabre aspect to it. Oftentimes, sports at Tolu could turn bloody as the flow of blood was only a cut away. Inter-house sports in Tolu were a hot spot for angry emotions and bloodletting. And tears.

 

Tega and Abigail lost each other for a brief moment when the surging crowd swallowed, chewed and then spewed them out on the other side, where the officials of the games were seated. They found themselves again and stood watching the events. There was a lot of dust and the sun was merciless. Someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned. It was Nosike.

 

“Man, Nosike! Where you dey since?” He asked his friend.

 

Nosike extricated himself from the surging masses of humanity to position himself close to Tega and Abigail. Cheering erupted from the crowd as legs of steel won the one hundred metres race for Blue house.

 

“Oh boy, tori dey,” Nosike said to Tega beaming with smiles. “You know dat maata for Olodi Apapa, she don gba my own. I go gist you after.”

 

The crowd started cheering again as the women’s one-hundred-metres athletes were called to the starting blocks.

 

“So na who dey win?” Nosike inquired.

 

“Bo man, me I no know. See we have a party later on. Funmi’s boyfriend has something to celebrate and Abigail has asked that we - you & I - come along. You interested?”

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