Just a Friend 4!

*****Four Days Later*****

Shewa: They did what? You were a part of it? (shocked)

Isi: Someone had to deal with him.

Shewa: To be honest with you, I will be glad to hurt him really bad but desmond told me not to do anything. I was even begging him not to harm C in anyway. He told me he knows C will be dealt with but it won't involve him in anyway.

Isi: Exactly!

Shewa: And it had to be you?

Isi: You are very lucky shewa. You don't know how lucky you are. Are you mad at me for dealing with Chinedu on your behalf?

Shewa: (quiet)

Isi: Great! you'd better be quiet. You think it's every guy that can be like desmond? Girlfriend, Nigerian guys don't know how to deal with rape. When their girlfriend gets raped, they either dump her, ignore her or condemn her. They'd ask questions like what were you wearing? what kind of crowd have you been mingling with? what were you doing there in the first place? rather than condemn the immoral act being carried out. You are lucky, you know. Desmond is doing what every man out there should do. You might think you're okay but you are hurting deep inside but you are lucky because you have desmond to help you get through this.

(a little girl rushes inside to give the girls some news , shewa and isi hurried after her)

**30 Minutes later (Shewa's house)**

Shewa: You are heartless! How many people did you take with you?

Isi: Emeka, dede, jayjay, jude, and bayo.

Shewa: Bayo? Bayo No wonder! You know bayo is a beast now and you had to bring him along. I know you were fighting for me but look at the way they messed him up. I think it'll take 6 months for him to recover. You arranged for him to get beat up by 5 area boys ahhh

Isi: save me the story. What's your stress? He got what he asked for. Do you think you were the only one he raped? We've heard stories of girls he abused before and after you.

Shewa: So you told the boys what happened to me?

Isi: No. I lied to them and you know Emeka is very protective of me. If I had told them what happened to you, they would have killed him. Don't you think?

Shewa: What about the condition he is in? The boy is really messed up right now. Didn't you see his face?

Isi: If I didn't know you so well, I would accuse you of something else. Shewa, we live in a country where no one cares. This is 9ja for goodness sake. Bad stuffs happen everyday but justice is not carried out. You think rape is right? Do you know what it does to your mind? soul? body? You feel used. You feel worthless. You have problems in the future...you become scared every time a male comes around you. At times, you become violent. At times you get angry and you take it out on the wrong ones. What chinedu did was immoral and he needed to be punish to learn his lesson but no one would do it. If we throw him in jail, he'd get bailed and walk the streets like a saint. He got what he deserved

Shewa: and...

Isi: You are lucky you're not pregnant. We went to the doctor and they told you everything was fine with you. No STDs nothing. What if you'd gotten pregnant? We went to the doctors day before yesterday to get the other test results right? What if they said you had gonorrhea or God forbid HIV +? Would you be here feeling sorry for him? If we were outside Nigeria, I would let the law handle it but the law can't handle anything here. You are lucky to have desmond and I will keep saying it.

Shewa: Enough of that...

Isi: Enough of what? Shewa, you are lucky. (in tears) Why do you think I'm like this? Angry! Mean! Unforgiving! Everyone views me as a trouble maker and I can be violent...No one stood by me when I got raped.

Shewa: Oh My God (in tears)

Isi: It was a long time ago. It happened before we became friends. I was raped at the age of 15. I went to fetch water around 7 pm and I was on my way home when some guys jumped out of nowhere and carried me into the bush. I thank God they didn't kill me. I didn't have a choice in picking whom I wanted to lose my virginity to. They deprived me of my pride... I cried for many nights. I couldn't tell anyone... you know how it is with Nigerian parents and the issue of sex. When my dad knew about my pregnancy, he kicked me out. All my pleas, explanations fell on deaf ears. I slept under an abandoned house for many months.. I suffered a lot . I lost the baby though... i had a miscarriage. Later on, I knew who the rapists were but I could not do anything.. I've been angry since then.. I Just hate...

Shewa: (hugs isi) It's okay. Say no more. We'll get through this together. I'll be here for you and I'll help you get past your pain and mine. Let's just put all these behind us.

{Both weeps silently}


Chinedu didn't know who hurt him and they couldn't do anything about it. He couldn't say it was revenge because he had too many victims. If they were to revenge, he'd be gone. You see this RAPE thing.. it happens to other people; you say "poor her" "how sad." When it happens to you, it's everything. If you know of a rapist, tell on him/her. Let's stop the violence against females. April was SAAM - Sexual Assault Awareness Month. That's why I started this story. Although it is 100% fiction coming from me, it's real. Your best friend could be going through what we're talking about here. Get the word out there. LET's FIGHT THE BATTLE TOGETHER. Women's assault has got to stop.

Hope you all enjoyed the story. Let's hear your thought. What do you think of the characters?