THE VOICE WITHIN

SOURCE : The image is my property

The morning began as usual. The melodious voices from my neighbours who are singing and dancing to the praises of our God woke me up. I glanced at the clock and realised it was already 5:00 am. With a weary sigh and weak groan, "Oh God!" I forced myself up. "Why does it feel like we are having longer days and shorter nights? Did I even sleep for up to four hours? My neighbours won't just miss their routine." I thought to myself.

"Will you shut up, man? Have you not read about a little sleep and a little slumber? You have students to teach. Get up!" My spirit man said to me.

Don't mind me. I ask questions, and I still answer them myself. I oppose my thoughts and propose to them at the same time. I got up and went straight to the restroom. I closed my eyes a bit to catch some sleep even as I was doing my stuff.

"Hey! Stop that! You don't have time!" The voice in my head scolded me.

I answered it with a heavy sigh. I got up, cleaned up, and went into the living room to pick up my phone. I checked the daily push-up challenge, and I joined. I did a few push-ups and got tired. I glanced at the clock again. It was still 5:30 a.m., and I felt I still had enough time. The voice was silent, probably trying to figure out what my next move was going to be. I sat down on my bed with my phone to check some emails and posts on social media. There was this particular beautiful lady who I saw her post the other night, and I messaged her. Don't laugh, please. Haha. She was just so beautiful that I could not scroll up when I saw her post. Anyway, she was the first person I checked if she replied to me. I used the same time to reply to messages and respond to comments people made on my last post. I got so carried away at some point that I forgot that time waits for no man.

"Lazy boy! What is your problem? Don't you have work to do? Look at the clock, you lazy fool!" You should know, the voice said this.

I quickly looked at the clock, "Oh my goodness! 6:25 am!"

I threw my phone into my bed and rushed to the bathroom.

"You are a kind of a man, you know. Spending your time on social media when you have work to do." The voice would always want to start a dialogue when I did something wrong.

"Are you with me or against me?" I answered, and this time, I was ready for a dialogue, "Why did you not call my attention when you saw the time?"

"Shut up! Are I supposed to tell you everything? Did I remind you to do some push-ups?"

I sighed, "I'm used to that."

I ignored the other thing the voice was saying and took my towel. I rushed back to the room, put my brush in my mouth, and went to the kitchen. I turned on my gas to boil water for coffee. I went back, kept my toothbrush, and brought out my black trousers and a pink shirt.

"Is this what you intend to wear today?"

I kept mute for a couple of seconds. "What is that supposed to mean? What is wrong with it?"

The voice didn't respond immediately. I went on with the dress. I went back to the kitchen and made my coffee. Immediately I dropped the cup, the voice came back again.

"Today is Friday, boy! Sky blue and black!"

And then it hit me, "Oh God!"

I didn't go to work the previous day. It was a public holiday. I had ironed the clothes I was supposed to wear, and I forgot to iron my sky-blue shirt. I rushed immediately and ironed the shirt. I picked up my bag to leave.

"What are you trying to do? Did you pray this morning? Do you want to leave without praying? Mr. Man, go and pray!"

I sighed heavily. I didn't want to look at the clock. I knew I had wasted a lot of time. I knelt, "Father, please, I'm sorry I forgot to pray..."

The voice interrupted immediately, "Is this how to pray?"

At this point, I got pissed, "Could you please let me talk for a few minutes without you interrupting me?"

The voice laughed, "Just pray the right way."

I sighed and continued my prayer, "Okay, up and grateful, oh Lord. Please take me to work safely. Amen."

"Up and grateful, oh Lord. Hahaha."

I quickly picked up my bag to leave. Whatever took my eyes to the clock, I had no idea. "7:45 a.m? Ah!"

I rushed down to the main road and took a taxi. I got to around 8:15 a.m. The students had already finished their morning devotion.

"You know what the day is, right? Staff meeting. You should go tell them why you came late. Haha!"

I frowned my face. "Just shut up!"

I gradually bent down my head to sneak through and get to my class before cooking up a lie that I would tell the principal. But I guess that was a bad idea. The principal was still in his office when I came to school. He was yet to join the meeting. He had seen me already. I heard his voice from his office.

"Prince! Go to the meeting. I will see you there."

I was shocked. I dragged myself to the meeting and waited for my execution. He didn't shout at the meeting, though. But he asked why I was late.

"I was in serious traffic, sir. I left my house very early. I'm sorry, sir."

He smiled. "The next time you come late, get ready to lose half of your wages."

We left the meeting shortly and retired back to our classes. I went through the longer route to see my beautiful colleague, whom I had a crush on. She was the teacher of basic one before she moved to the nursery two class.

"You still want to be late to class?" The voice came back.

"Where were you when I needed to defend myself?"

"You are a professional liar. I needed to get a new line of lies, and save it in my long-term memory, bitch!"

I got close to her class and waved. A boy was seriously crying in her class.

"Ask her the boy's problem." The voice said.

"Let me be, don't tell me what to do. Who are you to command me?"

The voice laughed ,"You are me, and I am you, pig! Ask her!"

I obliged seeing how the boy is seriously crying. "What's wrong with him?"

"I don't have any idea. He has been crying since the mother brought him to school." She replied.

"Does he cry this way all the time?"

"Not really."

The voice came back, "Pay close attention to that boy. He has a reason for crying."

I quitely went close to him. You know, we have an adage here in Nigeria, Where are child points while crying? If his mother is not there, his father or guidian must be there. I traced the boys eye level and discovered he was looking at his shoe. I quitely removed the shoe from him and discovered that a pin had fallen into it when his mother was dressing him for school. It had been there for almost two hours without the teacher or even his mother noticing that something usual was happening. I stood up,

"You are his teacher. You know the kind of pupil you have in your class. This boy probably had cried for long. You could have tried further to know why he has been crying profusely." I threw the pin away. "Please take him to the clinic and have them dress the wound."

She was shocked at what she saw and was happy that I was of help. "Thank you very much, Prince. I'm very grateful. Could I buy you lunch?

The voice came back, "Ask her out on a date."

"Shut up!" I interrupted.

She thought I was talking to her, "What?"

"No, not you. Free tonight? Dinner?"

She smiled, "Dinner it is."

I left her class smiling.

So this is how my instincts stay with me every single day.
Fiction by @mrprinxcee

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