Murder On Block B

I could tell from the moment I woke up that this Saturday was unusual. For some reasons, my alarm didn't ring off at 8 am. When I got to the gym, I realised that I hadn't locked the door to my flat. I rushed back home.  The day was not for me.

Instead of locking the door and leaving, I decided to take a nap. I tossed and turned in bed, trying to silence the voices in my head and the loud noises coming from next door. Just when I managed to get some much-needed sleep, a rapid tapping on my door jolted me awake. I made my way to the door. A frail lady with a dishevelled brown wig and sad red eyes was at the door. "Who are you?" I inquired. "I am Jide's …" she started to say. I didn't pay attention to the rest; her breath stank. I moved back a little. "I didn't hear you. What did you say?". "I was saying that I am Jide's sister, and I came to inform you that Jide is dead."

She must have noticed that I was trying to process who Jide was because she instantly added, "Jide, your neighbour."

"Oh my God!" I exclaimed. " How? Was he sick?".

"I just wanted to tell you that he is dead." She said with a sigh as she turned to leave. I dashed after her.

If she had not told me that he was dead, I could have sworn that Jide was sleeping. He looked peaceful and handsome even in death. I sat on the chair close to the door, avoiding the one right next to it. It had always given me backaches, but Jide refused to do something about it even after I complained several times. Another red-eyed woman was standing over Jide's body. tears streamed down her face as she laid curses on the killer of her son. "May God punish whoever did this to my only son. May they never find peace!" "Amen," I muttered under my breath.

Two men walked in a few minutes later to evacuate Jide's body. it was then that I noticed the knife sticking out of his side. Tears welled up in my eyes and ran down my cheeks. Jide was murdered! One of the men, lanky with bushy unconnected beards, pulled out the knife gently from Jide's side, as though he could still feel the sting of the blade. The men took the body away, leaving me with the two weeping women.

"When was the last time you saw Jide, my dear?" Jide's sister asked, facing me. I wanted to explain to her that I work from 9 am to 5 pm every day. coupled with the crazy Lagos traffic, I usually got home late at night. "I can't remember ma" was all I could manage to say. She nodded and continued to cry.

Jide's mother found and held my gaze. I looked away. When I looked back seconds later, her eyes were waiting for me. My fingers began twitching in my lap.  I should leave.

I got up and walked towards the door. Jide's sister got up too. As I stepped out of the room, she whispered to me,

"Naomi, you should have walked out of the relationship if you were unhappy. You didn't have to kill him."

She slammed the door. My legs failed me. How did she know?

‍