‘When we are down in the belly of the beast, we fight till we are spewed from its mouth’. These were pertinent words that flanked the lips of Sade and Tunde, two liberal lovebirds with contrasting personalities. Sade was a beautiful, privileged, exposed and thought the world at her feet. Tunde was a shy medium height, vagrant student who had to work several menial jobs to feed. Even as a final year medical student in one of the country’s most prestigious universities, his outlook on the world and society before him still gave him cold feet. The monotony of the fast life of a 21

Sade was a beautiful, privileged, exposed and thought the world at her feet. Tunde was a shy medium height, vagrant student who had to work several menial jobs to feed. Even as a final year medical student in one of the country’s most prestigious universities, his outlook on the world and society before him still gave him cold feet. The monotony of the fast life of a 21

The monotony of the fast life of a 21^st century rich kid had begun to weigh on Sade. The private flights, blue sky sights and exquisite dinner nights always seemed to be the same. The plethora of guards at public places drew much attention.

To her, life had no challenges and goals were yours to achieve. Tunde sought the world, the beautiful cities in magazines, white collar jobs, penthouses and career fulfilment. Sade always craved a quiet life with a house by the sea. She wanted privacy even though she had affluent parents. But the life she lived was infective and she got caught again and again.

Recently, Tunde earned some money and bought a smartphone. He was a pretty smart kid so he learnt how to use his new gadget easily. He got Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp applications and sought to connect to the world. With youths there’s an addiction to smartphones and Tunde was the new victim. He reconnected to old friends and classmates every day while nodding his head in pity at his own naivety. He sought the meaning of social media acronyms like ‘lol’, ‘lmao’ and giggled at the ridiculousness of their meanings. It was cloud nine for him as he was filled with intrigue. One night, after studying, Tunde opened the explore page of the Instagram application after rigorous encouragement from his roommates. He kept scrolling with an eye for any person he could hold a conversation with. He had almost given up when he stumbled on the picture of Sade. She had been featured by a page and tagged with the #WomanCrushWednesday feature. For someone who never believed in love at first sight, Tunde was quite sceptical about what to do. At this time, all his roommates had already slept. So he was divided on whether to ‘slide into her DM’ or just like the picture and go to bed. As a young lad trying to improve conversational skills with the opposite sex and even get to meet new friends, he sent Sade a direct message and quickly closed the application with the thought that she won’t catch him online. Almost immediately, his phone beeped and it was Sade with a ‘thank you’ note after his complimentary message to her.

Days and nights wore on. Weeks and months came by. Sade and Tunde seemed to get a hang of each other. Sade called, texted and used the WhatsApp calling feature to communicate with Tunde every day. Tunde was filled with the euphoria that comes with dating a celebrity. Tabloids carried pictures of Tunde and Sade at several resorts. Tuned revelled in the privileges of private rides and noisy convoys. Tunde attained a ‘Big Boy’ status at school because almost everyone got wind of his love affair. She sent Tunde gift cards and special packages via DHL to his hostel address. She hadn’t come to love him but she could tell he was already in love. He ditched classes, study group meetings, clinic rounds and church services so he could spend more time with Sade. They went to the movies, spent time on the beach, boat cruises and night seaside dinners and guided skydives.

For Tunde, the exposure to the life of the rich and affluent was all he ever hoped for. Sade, on the other hand, needed someone who didn’t care about the money or privileges and still keep her sanity and values. She craved something more but Tunde was caught in the endless cesspool of the fast life. She was attracted to his innocence. She was enough for him but he only scratched the surface for her. So the boredom returned and the happiness fleeting as it came faded with the wind. Tunde was on a nosedive. His faith, education and innocence had been fed to the wolves. He was supposed to be Sade’s saviour from the chains of alcohol, weed and sexual addiction but now he was in the centre of it. His final year results came out and he failed woefully. He wept all night while Sade kept his head in her bosom. The terrible news broke his poor father’s heart. Sade started to keep away and brick walls came between them. A frustrated Tunde turned to weed and drug abuse, the worst way out of a love-induced depression. Public embarrassments and rejection of Tunde by Sade’s escorts did not deter him. He had given up everything, even his highflying student record. He gave up his values, his shy nature. He tossed aside a vow to be celibate until marriage to satisfy Sade’s wanton debauchery. He even exhausted all his savings on the ‘promise ring’ he bought for Sade- a peerless diamond delight. Tunde was checked into a rehabilitation centre. The university tabled the bills because of his previous academic record.

They were in the belly of the beast now and Sade left him for dead. Words were easy to say but promises are difficult to keep. She exhausted him while feeding on his secret desires. She has left him broken and with pieces of him blown away with the wind leaving little to be salvaged. It seems the exposure to good things only birthed the evil within. And the limits of self-control have been breached. Tunde didn’t deserve these things but the neglect of the faith, morals and values kept him confined to the belly of the beast, never to be spewed. But the Faith made amends through forgiveness of himself and the restructure of moral bridges. Tunde recovered in time for his resit exams which he

Tunde recovered in time for his resit exams which he aced. Tunde had to deal with the stigma of social rejection and the tingling episodes of the side effects of substance abuse withdrawal. He was ridiculed by lecturers and colleagues alike. He was on the brink of suicide, but the Faith and will to go on kept him alive. Sometimes he would lay on the cold concrete floor with his smartphone in hand, thinking whether he should call Sade or not. He never seemed to blame her though. For him, love had no flaws. He now saw love as the beast itself and he found himself in its belly. You make what you want of your position and the lessons learned tend to lead you on. Tunde was a fighter and slowly he clawed himself out of the beast into the arms of forgiveness.

My names are Olanrewaju Abiola Boluwatife. I’m a 22-year-old medical student and writer. I am a student of the University of Ilorin, Ilorin. Kwara state. Nigeria. I am currently in 400 level. I take out time to do strategic thinking and I also do some coaching of football teams in school. I live in Lagos- the land of every southwest youth’s dream. I am an avid supporter of progress and unity. I am the fourth child in a family of five children.  I love rap music and a bit of house. I do freelance writing in my free time. I love art and graffiti. I would rather go bungee jumping than dabble into politics.

Connect With Olanrewaju

Instagram: @byolarbreezy

Twitter:  @byolarbreezy