It was destined to happen.

I was very sad when my father announced that he has been posted to a new service location and we would be moving soon to enable him to start work as soon as possible. It felt like he did not consider us. What about our life here? What about our friends? Now moving will require us to start life all over; we will have to start making new friends and new acquaintances, which is not going to be easy. Getting friends as good as the ones we are about to lose is something to be sad about.

"But Dad, must we move with you? Can't you just move alone while we stay back?" I asked, trying to make sure I don't have to start all over again.

"My boy, I know it is not easy for you guys to just leave the life and friends down here and have to start all over again in a new town, but I think it is best that the entire family stick together." My dad responded, rubbing my head.

"So I will have to quit my job too?" My mom asked too.

"Unless you guys want to break the family, which I don't want, wherever I go, I would like us all to move and live there as one big family." My dad responded with his two hands in front, pleading with everyone to understand that it was not his wish.

Since the reason all of us had to move with him was valid, we all accepted our fate and started bracing for impact for when it will finally happen. We had to start feeling sad even before the day we moved; we hoped that would help reduce how sad we'd feel when the deal day finally came. In no distant time the day we all feared and dreaded the most arrived; my dad showed up with a big truck, and we had neighbors coming to help us move our stuff, and in a twinkle of an eye all our stuff was loaded in the truck, and it was time to leave.

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"We will miss you, bro." All my friends said as we hugged each other goodbye, trying to hold back the tears.

I rushed to the front seat of the truck and bent my head down so no one would see that I was actually tearing up already, and when the truck finally moved, I raised my head to wave goodbye to everyone that came to see us off. That day was one of the saddest days of my life. After spending four days on the road, we arrived at my dad's new service location, and like expected, we were all alone, knew no one, and no one knew us. We didn't even know anywhere and were forced to ask questions about everything that we needed.

Not being known around the neighborhood was not even a problem for me; my problem was having to start a new school and how new students are always being looked at and how they are always sitting alone since they don't know anybody yet and are new to the school. I kept picturing the isolation in my head, and it scared me even more, and inno distant time, it was time to start school.

I did not have a uniform yet, so I was in mufti, standing in the line meant for my class as we screamed the national anthem at the top of our voices, but I noticed I was not the only one in mufti; there were two of us, and that can only mean he is also a new student, and that sight alone brought me some relief, and I was just waiting for the morning assembly to end so I could approach him and be sure.

"Hi, bro, are you also a new student?" I rushed to ask the other guy in mufti.

"I am, bro. My dad got posted here recently, so we just moved." The guy responded.

"My dad got posted here recently too, and we just moved too. Nice to meet you; I am Kachi." I said as I stretched out my hands for a handshake.

"I am Emmanuel, and it is nice to meet you too." Emmanuel said as he shook my hands, "Where were you guys living before moving here?" Emmanuel asked as we were walking to our class.

"From the northeastern part of the country, bro, Yobe State to be precise." I responded.

Immediately he paused and turned to look at me. "Don't tell me you speak and understand the Hausa language too?" Emmanuel asked with a big smile on his face.

"I was born and brought up there, so yes, I understand and speak the Hausa language fluently." I responded.

He rushed to hug me and said, "Na sami dan uwa."Meaning "I have gotten a brother."

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It was our first time ever meeting each other, but how we bonded felt like we had known each other for ages, and it was from that day that I knew our friendship was written in the stars and we both just had to move to make that happen. We have been friends since high school and are still friends today; even after he joined the army, we still check up on each other whenever we get the chance to.