Out Of The Box

TITLE: OUT OF THE BOX by Mercy Thompson...

...............................................................................................................................................................

   

My name is Didee for short but tall in appearance. I am a 21 year old, dark skinned, aesthetic and very pleasing in looks. Never mind, I don't pride in my allures, though  they say beauty is in the curves and edges but my beauty shines from my soul, one that is fully able to love and respect Alpha, others and myself. 

When I was a girl, at the age of Sophia my younger sister, I loved pretty ribbons and dancing. I loved science and poetry too. I loved having long hair and wearing party dresses but as I grew I learnt that dressing my soul was much more important . I remember, I ran cross-country, competing hard, often being asked to run with the boys because I was tall like my father with long legs that can run miles. I beat the girls so easily but today I work in FUTURE TECH Inc in Victoria Island. 

I work as a senior marketing personal there. It was a dream job anyone could pray for. It brought out the adventurous spirit in me cause I travel the world to sell the latest ground breaking tech to companies abroad.

I was considered the smartest in our team and the last to be sacked by any company. Cause I get things done very fast and accurate.

A car horned behind me, it jolted me from my nostalgic thoughts.  I was in my car, a Picasso 340 stuck in traffic at third mainland bridge. It was raining heavily and I had just closed from work. My boss had informed me earlier that I had to take a trip to Qatar the next morning. A new product had just been launched and I was to introduce it to some companies in Qatar. I worked for them, so I couldn’t just say, “Oh! I intended visiting my grandma. Or I want to spend some time with my Sophia my sister” That might send them a wrong signal that I don’t like my job anymore, so I smiled instead and said, “Yes sir, I will be at the airport by 8a.m.” Of course after I left the office, my phone beeped; my account had been credited with half my pay. I smiled and went back to my office.

Now I am stuck on this road, desperately craving the comfort of my bed. After that thought crossed my mind, it looked like the traffic heard me and it began to fizzle away, little by little as the cars in front of me began to move. I heaved a sigh of relief and pressed a button on my car. It came on and started moving.

Surprising right? Yeah!  Technology is really doing me good; I just had to control the steering. No need for fuel; it used a kind of battery that used stored solar energy; very small but super effective. In no time, I was home. I pressed the black button at the side of my seat to connect to the system of our gate which automatically opened it. Only the occupants of this thirteen storey building had access to this system. I drove in and the gate automatically closed behind me. I drove into my station in the garage and turned off the car, carrying my hand bag and shopping bags which were a lot, however, I carried them into the elevator and pressed the button for the fifth floor.

Oh I forgot to say, my vibrantly beautiful fifteen year old sister lives with me. Well she is still in secondary school and Mama Tinu helps me pick her up from school, so I had to pick her up from Mama Tinu’s apartment which was at the fifth floor. The elevator stopped some minutes later practically seconds because the speed in elevators is a whole lot better now thanks to the Rising Techs. I walked to Mama Tinu’s apartment and pressed the doorbell and I heard Sophia’s voice asking, “Who’s there?”

 I decided to play a trick. “Open this door now! Before I melt it!” I thundered in a thick male voice. I was very good at mimicking voices so I did not expect her to know it was me. My grandma sometimes wondered why I did not go into acting. I heard my sister telling Mama Tinu that there was a stranger at the door. 

Then the next thing I heard was Mama Tinu screaming “Who’s there?!!” I knew my joke had gone too far so I decided to let the cat out of the bag.

      “Mama, I was just joking. It is Chidera, Didee!” I answered.

      “Didee?” she asked, her determination to confirm the truth unmistaken.

      “Yes ma,” I answered, leaning heavily against the wall.

The doorbell beeped, which meant that the door was being opened. Sophia stared at me with wide eyes and her mouth slightly open. Mama Tinu had a frown on her face as she crossed her arms and stared at me.

     “What?!!!” Sophia screamed. I had to cover my ears with my palms. I grinned, knowing fully what was on her mind, but stopped suddenly when Mama Tinu cleared her throat and arched her left brow. I knew that look and what I had to do, so I raised my hands in mock surrender.

     “Okay, okay.....  I am sorry. It was me, not a burglar,” I said as I rolled my eyes in pleading motion.

     “Better,” said Mama Tinu who then looked back at Sophia who had assumed the same position as Mama Tinu when she was still upset. I knew she was finding it hard to believe me, so I had to do the mimic again. 

“Open the door now, before I melt it!” I said, using the same male voice. 

Sophia ran to me, throwing soft punches at my stomach. I began to make painful grunts to make her think she was hurting me. I heard Mama Tinu chuckling in the background as she watched our little girly play. Then she suddenly stopped and looked at my face so that I won’t give away my amusement.

      “That trick...don’t ever do that again or else you will receive more punches!” she retorted, tapping my nose; I was in a crouched position, so she was able to reach it.

       “Yes ma,” I said in a serious manner as I went to sit on the dining chair close to Mama Tinu while Sophia took the other side; it was then that we all burst out, laughing. After all the excitement, I looked at my wristwatch and found out that it was some minutes to 10 p.m. 

CHAPTER TWO 

Before I left Mama Tinu's house with my sister, I broke the news of my trip to Qatar the following morning. 

     “Didee...you just got back from South Korea three days ago and you are travelling again?” Sophia asked, as she looked at me with a sullen face. Mama Tinu looked at her and then back at me.

     “Sophie, I couldn't reject the job,” I tried to make her understand.

     "Of course! Always making empty promises! Your temporarily solution strategy.” Sophia retorted as she turned her back at me, obviously annoyed.

     “Dee, can I talk to you for a minute?” Mama Tinu asked for my attention. I looked at her and gave her a slight nod as we both stood up to go to the sitting room. She was one of the few people who called me ‘Dee’. Sophia didn’t even move an inch.

     “Dee, this is not fair,” Mama Tinu stated quietly when we were alone.

     “I know, but I can’t lose my job. I love it and it is the only thing that keeps me and Sophie going and of course grandma,” I answered as I sat on the comforter where Mama Tinu joined me.

     “Dee, I know, but you are the nearest person in the family that Sophia has got and this is not a good foundation for her,” she said as she took my palm in hers.

     “I know ma, it is just I don’t know how to work it out. When I return from Qatar, I'll find a way around this, but please can you help me look after her while I'm gone?” I asked her pleadingly.

     “You promised you'll work on it the last time, Dee, remember?” Mama Tinu said giving me an I-don’t-believe-you look.

     “Fine! I'll do something about it for real this time, but please help me look after Sophia, I don’t want her to feel lonely while I'm gone,” I pleaded still, pouting my lips for effect.

     “I will look after her, Dee, definitely. You take care of yourself, okay? And of course, get her goodies from Qatar,” Mama Tinu ended, giving me one of her best smiles. I hugged her in return. 

I had successfully convinced Mama Tinu, now it was how to talk to Sophie. I stood up and walked to the dining room; Sophie’s eyes were red, which meant she had cried. I hated to see Sophie crying; I never liked it, even when she was a baby.

     “Oh! Sophie!” I walked to her and wrapped my arms around her.

     “Leave me!" she burst out heatedly, disentangling herself from my embrace. She looked at me accusingly as she spat furiously, "You said you would find a way to work this out the last time and now you are here, giving me another information of your never-ending trips!” 

    “Sophia, I'm so sorry. But you know that this job is what keeps us going and I can’t afford to lose it. I would really work this out, this time for real,” I said, trying to give her a reassuring smile. She didn’t give in.

    “What is the difference between your promise now and your former promises?” Sophia asked, looking at me intently this time.

 Mama Tinu smiled sadly. I knew she had had not-too-good experiences with my past promises, but I didn't have the luxury to think about that now. I thought about Sophie’s question for a while.

    “This is for real this time,” I insisted, giving her arm a little squeeze. She gave a slight smile and looked at me for a while and then released my arms from her body.

    “Okay... let’s go back to our apartment,” she said and stood up to hug Mama Tinu, then walked to the door and picked the shopping bags she could carry, pressed the 'open' button on the door and then left without waiting for me. I knew Sophia wanted to say more, but I guess  she restricted herself because of Mama Tinu. 

I gave Mama Tinu a good night hug and a kiss on her cheeks; I just hope she knew how grateful I was to her for acting as a mother figure since we moved into this building. She gave me her best smiles and I turned to leave, picked up my handbag and the only shopping bag Sophie hadn't carried. Mama Tinu pressed the door button and it opened automatically. I went out and heard the door shut behind me as I walked into the elevator which took me to the eleventh floor.

     “Eunice? What is Sophie doing?” I asked our homie-droid. I could access her through my wristwatch. She was one of the sci-tech inventions that still fascinated me. She was the latest invention of ‘Future Tech Industries’. She was in a box form and generated her power from heat: As long as one got her updated, one enjoyed every service she had to offer; one could call her attention and she would respond like a human would. She was everything amazing,

    “She is in her room lying down, but not sleeping,” Eunice answered.

  “Okay, thank you,” I said as the elevator beeped to notify me that I was already on the eleventh floor. I stepped out and the sight I met was disgusting: Mr. Daniels was offloading his bins at the corridor. I really hoped he would not notice me going to my apartment, but it looked like nature wanted it otherwise, for he immediately noticed me.

    “Oh, Didee! Welcome back.” He said as he held the remaining dirt-bag in his hands. He always returns late from work so he never get to meet the waste truck to throw his refuse away and he is not in talking terms with Mama Tinu to do it for him. So he piles up his refuse in his house until it's odour began to choke him then he throws some of it in the corridor until I would have to beg Sophie on his behalf. 

Since he had talked to me first, I decided to give Mr. Daniels a little piece of advice.

   “Hi! Mr. Daniels!" I hailed, then added ever so sweetly, "Why don’t you negotiate with the dirt truck guys to come upstairs to pick the dirt"

   “I have told them countless times yet they remain adamant.” Mr. Daniels said.

"Gong up to this 11th floor can be tiring most times. Why not give them a stipend, when they remember the it, they will be encouraged to come up." I advised.

"That's a good one Didee, but they won't be around tomorrow when they will come." He said with a solemn face.

"Don't worry, I will ask Sophie to give it to them." I said.

"Wow, thanks alot." he  said as he hastily entered into his apartment to bring out all the dirt. 

I marched on in to my own apartment, I stood in the entrance and asked Eunice to open the door for me. I heard a beeping sound and then the door opened. I was really exhausted. The bulbs were turned off because it was already past bedtime.

   “Eunice, put on the lights,” I instructed as I pulled off my heels. The lights came on and automatically turned on the stereo and ‘Dream it possible’ started playing which was just what was needed for this time. 

I went ahead to arrange all the shopped items in the kitchen and the store room. When I finished, I decided to retire for the night. I was about to open my door when I remembered Sophie. I walked to her door and pressed the button to open the door. The only light illuminating the room was the bedside lamp, which was enough for me to see Sophie’s face and know that she wasn’t asleep. 

   “Sophie...” I called out; she didn’t even move an inch or behave as if I was in the room. “Sophie you ought to be sleeping, you’ve got school tomorrow,” I said, now standing close to the bed.

    “Why are you here?” she asked, not even sparing me a glance.

    “I just wanted to know if you were asleep,” I answered, trying to make space so that I could sit at the edge of her bed.

    “You could have asked Eunice; no need of you coming into my room,” she said curtly as she turned her back on me.

   “Sophie, we need to talk,” I said softly, wanting to pat her on the shoulder, but I constrained myself.

  “I'm tired; I want to sleep,” my sister said tersely as she tried to stiffle a huge yawn.

  “Now that I'm here? You want to sleep? Sophie, come on. I can’t do this on my own. You have to understand that I'm doing this for the good of both of us and grandma,” I tried a conciliatory approach. Of a truth, I was getting frustrated. It had not been easy for me too since our parents died.

She sat up and looked at me with a not-too-good expression on her face.

  “For the good of us?! Or for the good of you?!" It was painful to hear the scorn in her voice. I winced but my sister couldn't be bothered. She fired on. "Didee, when was the last time we went for an outing, just the two of us?! Did you know I had a spelling competition and I failed because you were not at the final round?! Did you know that...?” 

I hugged her before she could ask me any other question. I never knew all these things were happening to her. We didn’t really have much time for each other because by the time I closed from work, I would have been too tired to even engage in any chit-chat. ‘Oh Lord please help me,’ I prayed silently. I had been selfish. I looked at Sophie; her body was vibrating, which meant she was on the verge of crying.

  “Sophie, I'm so sorry...I never knew you were going through all these. Please don’t cry,” but it looked like my plea was in vain because I felt my shirt getting wet with her tears. Seeing her like that weakened me and my own tears trickled down my cheeks and I decided to let it all out. 

We both cried so hard as we let out all our bottled-up pains. I recollected all the years of trying to look strong for my sister and telling the people who cared to ask about our welfare that we weren’t weak people.

After some minutes the sound of our cries began to reduce and Sophie’s body stopped vibrating, which meant she was getting calm. I too began to get calm and we stayed in each other's arms for a while. I raised her head to look at me and smiled sweetly at her.

   “Sophie, I love you," I whispered as I caressed her cheek. "You know that, right?” I asked as I peered intently at her face, searching for any emotion. Her eyes softened after a short while.

   “I know, Didee, and I love you too," she answered softly, then she looked at her fingers as she asked, "but what is love if it is not being practiced? We just have to make this work, we should create time for each other and work on our communication skills,” these made both of us smile.

I drew her into my embrace again as I said, “Okay, when I get back we'll work this out, I promise. But right now, I really need to sleep.”

  Sophie nodded and smiled. “Yeah now I'm fine and I feel sleepy too,” she said, going back to lie down. 

 I smiled and gave her a peck on her forehead.

"Lord please help me keep my promises this time, I don't want to fail." I made a short prayer.

 I stood up, carried my bag and left for my room. I was too tired to even take off my clothes, not to talk of taking a shower. I had not even packed for my trip.

   “Eunice, engage security caution and turn off the lights," I ordered as I made myself more comfortable before I slept off.