CHAPTER 4: BIRTHDAY PRESENTS FROM FRIENDS.

CHAPTER 4: BIRTHDAY PRESENTS FROM FRIENDS.

Ayo was halfway to class when she heard the bell ring.

“Ugh”, ‘There goes one period’.

The hallway was filled with students.

She tiredly dragged her feet to the class mumbling to herself in annoyance and still thinking back about the headmistress wishing her happy birthday and smiling at her.

“Ayo! happy birthday!!”, she was brought back from her imagination and raised her head to see her friends, Chisom and Joy calling out to her from across the hall, they sighted her and ran towards her in total excitement.

“Ehhem!, No running in the hallway!”, Edward, the hallway prefect, stopped Chisom and Joy halfway.

“Oh boy, come on Eddy, stop taking this too serious”, said Joy

“Yea, stop sucking up to the headmistress and stop being an asshole!”, Chisom the ever grumpy one of their squad, added.

“C'mon ladies, I'm only doing my job here”, Edward defended himself.

Edward is in Ayo's class, he is a chubby kid and he is the biggest in their grade that's why he was made the hallway prefect because he looks intimidating and a bit scary.

‘I'll be a soldier one day’, so he had always say. He is the only one in the entire school who likes the headmistress.

But not for Chisom, she isn't easily intimidated by anyone or anything.

“Move out the way punk!” Chisom commanded.

Edward flinched a bit but he quickly maintained his stiff posture.

“Yell at me one more time and I'll tell the headmistress that you were disobeying her orders” Edward responded.

“Yell at me one more time and I'll tell the headmistress that you were disobeying her orders” Joy mimicked Edward.

“Oh, we're so scared, what do we do, blah blah blah”, Chisom pretended to be scared and she and Joy bursted out laughing out loud.

“Sto- stop it, right now!”, Edward might be big in nature but he's a big softie and that's something Joy and Chisom know really well.

Ayo arrived just in time to stop her friends from bullying the pitiful boy.

“That's enough guys, cut it out”

“But he started it, didn't you Eddie?”

Chisom replied.

Edward has a crush on Ayo and they all knew that.

“It's okay, she's right, it's all my fault” said Edward.

Joy and Chisom looked at each other with one thought, ‘Oh he's a goner!’

“But still, sorry about them” Ayo tried not to make him feel bad”

“You look pretty today” Edward said scratching his head shyly.

“Are you saying I was ugly yesterday and other days and I got lucky today!?”

“No n- I didn- I didn't mean it that wa-” Edward replied in shock, her never found her ugly, never ever!

“I'm just joking!” Ayo cut in laughing and playfully punched his shoulder. “Oh my gosh, you should have seen your face!”, Ayo laughed hard and clean the stray tear in her eyes. Edward just stared at her and smiled to himself.

“Thanks for the birthday wishes anyways” Ayo smiled at him.

“Uhmm, hello!” “We're still here, yunno” Chisom and Joy said in unison.

“Ah, I better get go- going, bye Ayo”

“Bye, Edward”

Edward started speed walking away from Ayo and her friends ‘phew’.

“Okay, what was that about” Chisom said.

“I could sense a vibe there!”, Joy replied

“I know, right?!” and Chisom concurred.

“Oh, come off it, you guys are being delusional” Ayo defended herself.

The bell for the second period rang and they all headed for the class.

“We're not being delusional, okay, it's straight fact, right Joy?” Chisom said.

“You're not wrong” Joy agreed.

“It is called 'being friendly', you guys should try it sometimes”.

“Yea yea, let's hurry to class”

“You know you missed biology class”, Joy added.

“Of course Joy, I know that, something crazy happened today” Ayo said.

They arrived just in time for the next class which was English Language. They moved to their regular sits next to each other, Chisom and Joy brought out something from their desk and...

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!”, they both chorused in excitement.

“Oh my God, you guys remembered”

“Of course, why would we forget?”

“Well, I think my mom and dad did”, Ayo responded feeling sad. How can her friends remember her birthday, even Edward remembered but her parents didn't, she really didn't want to think about it but she couldn't stop either.

Chisom and Joy stared at each other feeling sorry for their friend, they know how Ayo's relationship with her parents are and how abandoned she must be feeling now.

“Hey hey, stop thinking about that now and open your present!” Joy said trying to distract her from her sad thoughts.

Ayo smiled and collected Joy's present first, it was a box, not too big or small either with flowery birthday wrap, she opened it and saw a portable polaroid camera and a note which read ‘To my very good friend, happy birthday Ayo’ and a smiley face.

“Oh my...”, Ayo was short of words, she couldn't believe her friend got her a camera.

“See, I even got it in your favorite color, lavender” Joy said feeling proud.

“I love it! thank you” Ayo replied

“Hehe, it's nothing really” Joy said.

“Oh wait till you see mine!” Chisom said handing out her own present to Ayo.

“Hurry up and open it!”

“Haha, fine!” Ayo said while analyzing the present her friend gave to her, it was a bigger box with red gift wrap.

“What is in it?” Ayo asked

“Well, you won't know until you open it, right?” Chisom said.

Ayo smiled and ripped the beautiful wrap off the box, so opened it to find a head phone and a mixed tape and a note saying, ‘Happy birthday to the bestest friend in the world, love, Chi’.

“Wow Chi! I love it, thanks guys” Ayo said.

“It's nothing” “You're welcome”, Joy and Chisom both replied in unison.

They took their seats while other students came in, then Carl entered.

“Oh my God! Carl is here!” Joy said in all happiness

‘Ugh!’ Chisom thought because her friend, Joy can sometimes be a girlie girl.

Carl is the most handsome boy in their school, he's 17 years old, he's tall, caramel in complexion and has a beautiful dimples when he smiles, he has those dreamy eyes and he plays basketball, he's every teenage girl fantasy.

Accept for Chisom who just finds him ugly and sometimes annoying because he's her second cousin.

Ayo thinks he's cute and alright, but she doesn't have a burning crush for him like every other girl in school.

Joy was still fanning over Carl when Miss Jenny, their English teacher walked in almost immediately.

“Good morning class and take your seats, we're running behind”

“Good morning Miss Jenny”, they all chorused.

“Ayo, please stand up and come to the front of the class” Miss Jenny said

‘Oh Lord, what have I done this time?!’ Ayo said to herself.