Chapter 4 From the heart

"Hey, slow down, will you?" Aminat gasped for breath and ran with Chizzy through the rwang pam stadium track course near their work.

Chizzy jogged to the first station. "I have to stretch before the track curve."

Aminat slowed to a walk and held her side. "I have a stitch. You hop and I'll watch."

"No way. You have to get in shape, especially if you want to date Ismail Abubakar. Has he called?"

The two of them had analyzed every minute of Aminat's hiking and glassmaking date with Ismail to the last detail, including his snotty remarks equating Aminat to a drunk when she wanted to do a little wine tasting.

Aminat leaned against a grate while Chizzy jumped back and forth over an exercise log. "No. Do you think I scared him away?"

"Why would you think that?" Chizzy dragged Aminat up. "Come on, next station."

"We were making out in the car, and he stopped suddenly and drove me home."

They'd discussed this a million times, too, but Aminat was always thinking up new reasons for his sudden withdrawal. Anything but the possibility he wasn't attracted to her would do.

They jogged to a multilevel chin-up bar.

"That's crazy. What did you do?" Chizzy swung from a high bar, and Aminat settled for the medium one where she could keep her heels on the ground.

"Nothing. I just sat there. I couldn't figure him out." Aminat pulled herself up halfway ten times. "He kisses were so hot, not rude like most guys shoving their tongues down your throat."

"Nothing to worry about. Guys can't keep their pants on."

"Unless he thought I'm sucky at kissing." Aminat was grasping at straws. "What if I had bad breath?"

"Eh, no kissing required between the sheets." Chizzy jumped down without doing a chin-up. "What do you think he'll be like in bed?"

It was just like Chizzy to dismiss her doubts. Aminat wished she could be as confident as her friend. Nevertheless, a shiver sparked fireworks over Aminat's shoulders at the thought of Ismail in bed. "I imagine he'd take his time. He's so considerate. Anyway, I should be glad he's not making a move. Maybe I'll win the bet."

"No, you won't." Chizzy wagged her shoulders. "I'm dating a church guy. He's on the church football team."

"Church football team? How old are they?"

"Mid to late twenties." Chizzy walked across a low balance beam. "All professionals, tall, ripped and buff, handsome too. Some of them are executives at Tech companies. Nice cars too."

Aminat followed Chizzy and missed a step. "How come I never heard of this?"

"You need to hang with me more. Come to the match Saturday night. I'll set you up with someone."

Chizzy headed to the sit-up bench, and Aminat lay down with her feet elevated and her hair hanging. Ismail had his hang-ups, but he was sincere. Taking it slow was probably the best, given her history of disastrous relationships.

A low whistle emanated from behind the bushes, and speak of the devil; Ismail pulled off his wraparounds. "Working off the chocolate?"

Chizzy cupped her hand and whispered in Aminat's ear, "I'll call you later. Remember, Saturday night. Football players. Play hard to get. Bye."

"Whatever." Aminat glanced sideways at Ismail. He looked mighty fine in his muscle shirt and shorts. Her fingers tingled, and a collection of dazed butterflies quivered in her stomach. How could she still be crushing on him when he'd ignored her for over a week?

Ismail waved. "Keep going. Don't stop because I'm bothering you. I want to see how many sit-ups you can do."

"I'm actually finished." She looked after Chizzy, but she'd already jogged across the parking lot.

"Great, let's have dinner." Ismail stood at her side. "I'm going beach camping this weekend. We can hike, have a picnic, and camp in a tent."

Aminat hugged her arms, wondering about the camping in the tent part. "I might be busy. How about another time?"

"I checked the tides, and it's fine this weekend." Ismail took her hand and kissed it. "I found a private place, tucked under a cove. It'll be fun, I promise."

Hating the warm flutters he elicited without even trying, she withdrew her hand. "Wait. You don't call or say 'hi' and you expect me to go on a trip with you?"

"You never gave me your number, and I can't call your work."

"You could have dropped by." Did she just whine? Ugh. Better stop acting so needy. He's dropping by right now.

"I was busy preparing my paralympic swimming students. They competed in the Special Olympics last night. I wish you could have been there. Japheth took the gold in freestyle and Awashima the silver in breaststroke." His face brightened with a proud smile.

She climbed off the sit-up bench. "It's okay, you don't have to explain."

"Are we still friends?" He clapped a hand around her shoulders in a brotherly fashion.

That explained it. He was only interested in her companionship. Safe and slightly disappointing, but having a male friend might not be a bad idea.

She shaded her eyes from the setting sun. "Sure, friends, sounds good."

"Great, so you'll go camping with me?"

"Yes. I'll cancel my plans." And definitely rein in the hormones. Not every hunky, attractive guy had to be a boyfriend. Besides, she could brag to Chizzy about spending the weekend with a guy without worrying about losing the bet.

Aminat walked into the clinic Friday morning, and voila, there was a box of chocolates at her work table. Smiling, she opened the notecard.

I feel so happy when you're around. I'm glad we can be friends, Ismail.

A smiley face followed his signature. She caressed his signature and sighed.

"Are you nuts?" Chizzy slapped her purse on Aminat's desk. "I volunteer to set you up with the hottest guy in the angwan and you're camping with funny man?"

Pretending not to care, Aminat opened the box. "Here, have one."

"No, thank you. Listen to me. Levi Pam likes you. He's a crypto investment banker and a senator's son. Black haired, brown-eyed, six-foot-three. We met him at a charity walkabout a few months ago. Remember the Amazon waka walk that happened in January?"

Of course, she did. He was drop-dead gorgeous. Aminat popped a white chocolate truffle in her mouth. "I thought he had a girlfriend."

"Had is the operative word. She broke it off, and he's finally open to dating again. I told him you're going out with him after the football match."

Aminat smoothed the foil into a crinkly square. "I already promised Ismail."

"Oh, come on! Levi wins hands down." Chizzy picked out a chocolate cherry. "Call Ismail and cancel."

"I don't want to hurt his feelings." Aminat didn't want to be anyone's rebound, least of all a banker's arm candy. He probably joined the church to find a lolita wife, someone who'd look nice at the social events he had to preside over or had been invited to. Aminat looked out the window and logged on to her computer. "Dr. Charles's walking up the path. Talk to you later."

"You just want to win the bet." Chizzy threw a wad of wrapping paper at her. "You'll never get laid with Ismail. He's probably a repressed virgin."

"Then it's stalemate with you and your church boys." Aminat opened a patient's chart as Dr. Charles stepped into the clinic.

Saturday morning, Aminat packed her bikini, and pulled it out again. Should she wear it under her clothes? Or would there be privacy to change? Maybe not. She pushed extra underwear, a towel, a pair of jeans, and two shirts into the bag, and put on the bikini and a handkerchief top to cover. Workout pants or shorts? Her legs were still pretty pale. She wore the workout pants and threw sunscreen into the bag. This time she'd wear her jogging shoes, but she packed her slippers and scrubs to be safe. She twisted her hair with a rubber band, checked her makeup, and spritzed body spray on her pulse points. Nobody said anything about bees at the beach!

Aminat made Ismail' picture the background image on her phone. She hadn't had a male friend since high school when holding hands was enough, and guys were satisfied to spend hours on the phone talking. Sex complicated everything.

Ismail tapped on the door at exactly nine o'clock. Wow, he was punctual, too.

"Ready?" He took the bag from her. "What did you pack, rocks?"

Now that they were just friends, she didn't mind his silliness. She locked her apartment and followed him down the stairs. "Do you always forget to say 'hello, how are you?'"

"Oh, sorry. How are you?" He unlocked his car and opened the passenger door.

"I'm fine, but you haven't even kissed me."

"I don't think friends should kiss."

She placed her hands on his waist. "But I like kisses and hugs."

"Chocolates aren't enough?" He touched the side of her face, his gaze lingering on her lips.

"They're a substitute." She could stare into those eyes forever. The opposite of Medusa the cursed Greek maiden, he turned her insides to jelly. She licked her lips and swallowed.

He bent his head and met the side of her mouth, but she turned her face and caught his lower lip. Luscious and hungry, she sucked gently and opened her mouth and licked. A moan rolled from his throat as he pressed her closer. She wrapped her arms tighter and held on, as if never wanting to let go. His lips, so full and sensual, caressed her, cherished her, then pulled away, abandoning her.

She panted to catch her breath. "What's wrong?"

"Oh ... nothing. We better get going."

She got into the passenger seat while he went around to the driver's side. Nothing wrong, ko nothing wrong ni! Maybe he is a repressed virgin.

He started the car and turned on the radio. It played Twe Twe by Davido. "Do you get carsick?"

"Huh? Oh, no." She twirled her hair. "I'm good."

"Great, we can take the scenic route. It winds around a lot, but it's beautiful."

"You seem to know your way around better than I do. How long have you lived here?"

"Arrived in October. I had some money saved and didn't have a job the first month, so I traveled around and joined a triathlon club. Lots of lungus for training."

"Hmm ... I'll bet."

They headed out towards Maraba Jamal, and passed through Barkin Ladi. The day was bright and sunny, but once they climbed up a steep hill full of hairpin turns, the sun was entirely blocked by towering , slender trees, their ash trunks and dark-green foliage casting shadows over the roadway.

Aminat gripped the passenger armrest and swallowed the edge of nausea. The dizzying turns alternated with marvelous views of the valley below. The road curved past the rustic town of Heipang and hooked a sharp right towards Bokkos road. Thankfully, the GPS navigator showed the upcoming loops, but it didn't alleviate the churning in her stomach each time the SUV swayed.

"Can we open the windows?" Aminat asked in a small voice.

Ismail slowed into a turnoff, and several cars passed. "You okay?"

"How can they go so fast?" She pointed at the flash of colors and departing taillights.

"Oh, they're either local or daredevil. I don't want you to get sick."

"I'm good." She squeezed his hand. It was just like him to be concerned. Other men would have taken the turns even faster to impress or scare her. She shook off the image of her last ex's wicked grin. He had dumped her when she threw up in his Porsche.

The dense ash wood groves gradually gave way to sparse shrubbery interspersed with amazing natural rock formations thrown in, and the road descended toward the farming community of Bokkos. Ismail stopped at the solo gas station to fill his ice cooler. He bought her a soda. "If you get tired of camping, we can either head back or find a motel in town."

A motel? But knowing Ismail, he meant it innocently. She twisted the cap off the soda. "I'd rather camp, unless there are bugs."

"We won't camp near lake shore where the black flies and millipedes are. I know a dune further up, sheltered under a rocky ledge."

"Black flies?" She scratched her arms. "Did you bring insect repellant?"

"Don't worry, I have everything we need." He started the car and made a right turn. The terrain was relatively flat with thick reeds on the right and a hillside full of shrubbery and rock formations on the left. Interesting how different the vegetation was, separated by a mere road. He turned into a small parking lot. It was unattended with a single outhouse in the center.

"This is it?" Aminat stepped out. "It looks deserted."

"That's the fun of it. Getting away from the crowd." He hefted a backpack over his shoulders and locked his SUV.

Even though there was no one else around, Aminat felt safe with Ismail. Was she foolish to be so trusting? After all, she didn't have a good track record when it came to men. But then again, the men she'd dated before were all flashy types who drove sportscars and had high-powered jobs. Movers and shakers who dealt with money and power, unlike the peaceful coach who cared about his special needs kids.

She hiked with him down the rambling dirt path. They crossed the bridge over the estuary and descended rickety steps to a sandy lakeside littered with rocks. Several rumble-tumble shelters made with driftwood were piled like beaver homes on the bank. Aminat and Ismail followed the trail inland.

A half hour later, they turned into a sheltered arch made of a jumble of thick branches that grew horizontally and curved around each other before making curved shaped turns upward.

"What a strange tree," Aminat said. She felt like he'd brought her to an enchanted shrine and half expected priests or priestesses to appear from amongst the twisty-turny shelters.

Ismail hung his backpack on a branch. "This is Kuka the weeping tree."

"Why is it weeping?"

"Because the branches are drooping to the ground like they're too sad to stand up. Come on." He helped her climb onto a low branch and put his arm around her.

She felt sheltered by the branches and his arms around her. She listened to her heart beat and savored the scent of eucalyptus whispering from the shivering leaves.

Ismail' lips hovered near her ear. "Listen carefully, you'll hear the voices of two lost lovers, an Lengenen and a Chinplang from opposing tribes, who chose death rather than a life apart. Let's see if we can hear them."

Aminat closed her eyes and nestled against Ismail' chest. The branches of the tree creaked in the wind, and she wasn't sure if she imagined it, but a faint, low whistle, like someone blowing over a bottle opening, moved within the branches.

"You hear it?" he whispered.

"Yes." She held him tighter. "I hope our story will be happier. You know I have Chinplang in me?"

"Seriously?"

"Yes, and everything else, Hausa, Fulani, Berom, Tarok, Kanke."

"Tarok?" He chuckled and rubbed his chin. "Bet you can't guess what I am."

"Isn't it obvious?"

"Not really." His body tensed. "My birth father is Fulani, mostly nomadic."

"Wow, that's pretty cool. Did you use to live in Sokoto?"

"No, I actually never met him. He died last year and left me money, but never came to see me."

"I'm sorry." She squeezed his hand.

"Don't be. I bet you're wondering how I came about."

"Well ... okay, sure. I want to know everything about you."

"I was born nine months after the Olympics in Atlanta. My mother was an alternate for the Nigerian track and field team, and my father was a substitute for the Nigerian football team. Since neither of them competed, they had a love affair."

"Sounds romantic."

"If I hadn't come along, it would have been a nice memory. But of course, I was a complication."

"Awww, so not true." No wonder he overcompensated by appearing confident. Poor guy.

"You don't know my mom. She never competed again. Being an alternate in the Olympics was her crowning achievement."

"How about your father?"

"He, of course, kept playing, won medals, titles and even played for foreign clubs. But he wasn't about to change his lifestyle because of some kid he fathered."

Aminat swallowed a growing lump in her throat. "You sound bitter."

"You'd be too if your stepfather kept joking about you being a banza."

"They probably don't mean anything by it," Aminat said. "My dad sometimes calls my mom his little lolita girl. It's affectionate."

"I don't know about that," Luca said. "banza is like the 'Bastard' word here. I wish I knew why I was born. Seemed nobody was happy about it."

"Well, I'm glad, because if you hadn't been born, I wouldn't be sitting here with you right now."

"But why do you like me? Is it my body? That's what most girls want from me. They can close their eyes and pretend I'm any fantasy they want."

Aminat's face heated, and she pushed away. "Are you saying I only want your body?"

"No, sorry," he stammered. "You did agree to be friends."

"That's right. I also don't care what ethnicity you are, and you're definitely not some type of fantasy."

"That came out wrong. I never seem to fit in with anyone." He sounded dejected.

It must have been hard for him growing up different, wondering why his father had rejected him. Maybe that's why he joked around so much.

Aminat tugged his shirt sleeve. "Ismail, I like you the way you are. Honestly. You're a wonderful man, caring and considerate, like this morning when we were driving. You didn't take the turns too fast because of me. I wish you could see yourself the way I see you."

"What do you see?"

"A man I want to get to know because he has a kind heart." She kissed his cheek. "I care a lot about you even though you pull silly pranks and say the wrong things."

"I care about you, too." He put his arms around her. "I want you to be happy."

"I am when I'm with you." Aminat melted into his embrace. Ghostly voices blew through the mass of branches, whispering secrets to her heart, as if she were already in love.