Two months earlier
An invigilator went around the classroom to make sure nobody was copying. All the students were silent. Some were busily writing, and some were desperately hissing for help from their colleagues. A few read through their finished answers, but non got up to submit their paper.
“Three minutes more,” the invigilator announced. The room became a little bit noisy. “Silent!” the invigilator warned. Some students clicked their tongues in annoyance.
They dreaded it when the noticeboard showed that Professor Linda Buhari would be their invigilator for their first exam paper, which was Calculus. This Professor was unnecessarily strict, a no-nonsense forty-one-year-old virgin who did not know how to loosen up a little. Several students from the university had been suspended thanks to her, and a few had been dismissed.
“Jean, Jean…OBJ question 3,” a lady who sat diagonally behind Jean whispered. The guy seated in front of the lady listened attentively.
Jean looked around her and spotted Prof Buhari. The Prof was not looking in her direction, so she quickly whispered back, “I’m not sure, but I think it’s D,”
“One minute more. Get ready to stop work,”
“Devil,” the lady muttered and hurriedly started writing. The guy in front of the lady quickly began writing on his paper.
“Jean questions 13 to17,”
What? Jean thought. Professor No-Nonsense is watching like an eagle. Does she want my paper cancelled? Jean did not mind her and concentrated on her paper. She pretended she did not hear her call out to her.
“Stop work, pens down. If I see you writing, I will cancel your paper. If I see your lips move, I will cancel your paper. Remain seated until I come for your exam paper.”
“This is wickedness. How could she do that? Giving us one hour to finish a two-hour paper. I’ve never seen an invigilator invigilate her on paper.”
“She definitely ‘mafiaed’ us,” Jean agreed. “Were you able to finish?”
“You see that cute guy who was sitting in front of me?”
“Who?”
“The glasses guy in the engineering department.”
“Faith, many guys wear glasses in the engineering department.”
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Faith sighed, “The guy with big teeth that seem to be more than thirty-two in his mouth.”
“Oh, Freed! How could you forget his name? if I remember correctly, he usually sits in front or behind you anytime we have a combined exam.”
“Yes, that’s him. You know I don’t usually remember the names of people; that’s why I call them all ‘sweethearts’ and ‘boos’,” she shrugged her shoulders as if it was normal. “Anyway, he literally let me copy his work,”
“What?” Jean was amazed.
Faith nodded excitedly, liking her friend’s reaction, “yes, he did.”
“How? Prof. No-Nonsense was watch like a hawk.”
Faith licked her lips, excited to tell her everything. “He raised—”
“Hey, guys! How was the exam?” they were interrupted. “Jean was writing like her life depended on it. Not even bothering to help a sister out,” It was the lady who was sitting diagonally behind Jean during the exam.
“I didn’t help you out?”
“I called out to you, and you did not mind me.”
Jean snorted, “you wanted me to leave my unfinished work and attend to yours when it was less than a minute to stop work?” she turned to Faith and asked, “does that sound reasonable to you?”
“Nope.”
They both turned and stared at her as if she was being stupid.
“Okay, okay, I know. I was being unreasonable.”
“Uh-huh,” they both agreed.
“So, how was the paper?” Faith asked
“Don’t ask,” the lady sighed
“Why aren’t you wearing your hajib?” Jean noticed. “You were wearing it this morning.”
“That sexually frustrated demon took my hajib,” she snarled.
“I can’t believe your name is Adara,” Faith shook her head. “Do your parents still think you’re a virgin?”
“They think I have not seen a man’s naked chest before,” Adara chuckled, “in this ethnically diverse country where religion is bullshit. I am so glad I left home. They were suffocating me.”
“At least, I’m not a forty-year-old virgin,” Adara added. They hooted with laughter.
“Maybe someone tipped her off?” Jean asked.
An hour before the exam began, Adara wrote down formulas and some solutions to questions that were rumoured would appear in the exam on a piece of paper and hid it in her hajib. The next time she saw her was in the exam hall without her hajib.
“I don’t know, but who knows the ways of a witch?” she answered venomously.
“C’mon, that was too much. Why do you hate Professor Buari so?” Jean asked.
Adara looked at her in shock, as if she had asked a stupid question. Faith began to laugh.
Jean cleared her throat and continued, “I know she has a shitty personality, but It’s not that bad.”
" Do you remember in our second year, the first semester? That bitch taught us algebra.”
“Yeah, I remember.”
“And you don’t remember what she did? I thought you were smart,”
“Hey! Don’t tell me if you don’t want to, okay?”
“Hey, hey, chill,” Faith tried to calm them down, “this is not a fighting matter. I’ll tell the story since I remember a little bit. During her lecture, when we were in level 200, she made Adara stand in front of the class and embarrass her in front of everyone. It was the day she was sharing the mid-semester exam papers.”
“Oh yeah. That day, I was not in class when it happened. I was called to the office by Mr. Diallo to receive a package, but I heard a gist of it.”
“So you missed the whole show. She called Adara a ho and a good for nothing dummy… in front of everyone. That’s the shortest version of the story.”
“Oh…” Jean wished she had not asked when she saw the hate on Adara’s face. “I shouldn’t have asked. Sorry. Can you try to let it go? It’s been more than a year already.”
“I will never let it go. I pay back dirt with dirt. I’ll make that bitch curse the day she met me.”