SPAWN

SPAWN- Episode one
 
Bode hoisted himself and settled comfortably on the bar stool. He looked around, taking in the spinning, colourful lights, rising fumes, dancing and grinding bodies, the barely clad ones that deftly worked voluptuous masses on poles and every other thing that was on in the club like it was his first time. Like he hadn’t been sneaking to similar places since he turned seven.
 
At different points in Olabode Williams’ life the club or anything related represented various things to him. As a seven-year-old primary school child driven by curiosity and impish mischief, the local pub a few streets away from his Ekiti home was an adventure land, like what he saw on his favourite cartoon series Looney tunes; a place to feed his hungry eyes.
 
The first time he ever stepped foot in the pub was the day he was home alone with his Uncle, Dawn and was unwilling to stay alone while Dawn went out. He was bent on tagging along with Dawn who was just as insistent on going out without him. When Bode saw that he was not getting anywhere with the argument, he found a way to stow away in the car trunk. And few minutes after Dawn walked into the local pub, Bode slipped in. Odaro housed men, young, old and women alike. It was an outdoor bar under the shade of a thatched cottage. On the stage, a Yoruba music band served out mellow local music to people who were inebriated by drink or passion or both. Chairs were arranged round red plastic tables which had “33” EXPORT written on them in white. The tables were obviously gifts from makers of  “33” EXPORT lager beer. Towards the entry point of the bar, a buxom dark woman sold out ladies and pepper soup and she was the first to accost Bode when he entered.
 
‘Wetin pikin like you dey find for here?’ She asked, her arms akimbo ‘you miss your way?’
 
The woman’s shrill voice and Bode’s marked smallness attracted more attention than was safe for him. When Dawn looked past his circle of friends to the growing crowd around the entrance of Odaro bar, he went closer only to find Bode answering ‘How did you get here’ ‘Who are your parents?’ kind of questions. Dawn had beaten the living daylights out of Bode that day, but the seed had already been sown in his heart. The seed of desire. The desire to see and explore all the fun the world proffered. From thereon, he always found a way to sneak into that pub. It was during one of those his escapades that he met two boys about his age who were also in the business of lurking in a hideout to espy the activities of the bar. Sanya and Boma became his friends and partners in crime.
 
As a secondary school boy, the club was the place to escape from the boring border’s regimented life, a means to prove that he was a big boy. The place to hook up with girls from other schools. Where to get exhilarating sexual experiences without being afraid of a teacher or Prefect catching him.
As an undergraduate, Spot-9, the closest lounge to the University he attended was to him, a place to unwind, a place to bond with the boys over gambles and screened football matches and to catch flings with the girls. A place to share hearty laughs over bottles and a place to trudge out of, wasted.
 
While he served in Nnewi, Anambra state, Egwuregwu was his fun spot. Pretty much the same thing Spot-9 lounge was to him, except that it was run down.
 
But now, the club was home to Bode, an integral part of his life. He had thought that after getting married to Ene, he’d have no reason to spend nights at the club, at least not as often as he used to. He had planned gradual withdrawal, to cut back on his visits to the club till he altogether stopped going. It worked in the first year. He was able to go as far as visiting the club only fortnightly, even though he spent almost every waking hour looking forward to his time at the Shady, his favorite club. But when the Ene had Opeyeoluwa, their only son, his mom came around and the constant friction between Ene and his Mum drove him crazy. Crazy wasn’t the only place their feud drove him to, it drove him out to search for solace and solace was found in Shady.
 
Now six years into his marriage, he’s back where he started, or worse. No day passed without him coming to the club. It was the escape from his sad life; his boring monotonous job -which he’d just lost -and his wife, whose accusing silence made him uncomfortable. There was only one other than that kept Bode sane, his lovely, little son, Y’olu. One of the main reasons why Bode was so fond of Opey’olu was the fact that he was a spitting image of him. His son was physically his spawn and for some weird reason, this filled him with hope. The hope that all he wasn’t, this replica of him would be.
 
Bode always listened to his son tell him Bible stories and all that happened whenever he wasn’t around, Ene was the one who took him to church and all his stories roused deep nostalgic feelings in Bode. Every time Y’olu sat on his laps to talk excitedly about David or Jacob or Paul, his mind travelled back to the days when he used to enjoy the same stories from his parents during family devotion, or from his Bible club teacher, Aunty Augusta. The days when the things of God excited him, before he found excitement elsewhere.
 
Bode always hoped that nothing would as much as leave a smear on the pristine plainness of his son’s heart. Not even him.
 
He fiddled with his car key and let depression envelop him. How was he going to tell his wife that he was fired for incompetence? How was he going to keep Y’olu in his school that demanded so much per annum? How was he going to make himself useful for something other than drinking at Shady?
 
‘Sir, you want something?’ The raised voice of the bartender sliced through his thoughts.
He nodded. ‘One shot of tequila’
Bode looked over his shoulder. On the dance floor people where frenetically dancing and groping. In another situation, he’d be in the number but today he wasn’t here for fun, he just needed the coolness of drink to blow off steam. Somewhere in the far left, a place that was dimly-lit, Bode could make out a potbellied man getting kinky services from two escorts. They were probably not escorts, they could be students whose school thinks they’re with their parents for the weekend and whose parents think they’re in school.
The bartender slid the shot glass across the counter to Bode, who emptied it with one flick of wrist and without a flicker across his face. It was then an olive-skinned lady joined him at the counter to invite him to dance while her fingers were already dancing on his thighs. He said he wasn’t interested.
Bode pushed the shot glass back to the bartender and signaled for him to refill it. ‘Plop some ice in it’
 
‘Do you always reject them like that?’
 
The voice Bode heard behind him was familiar in the strangest way. He whipped his head around and his intuit was right. It was Ene standing behind him, flipping her weave and holding Y’olu close.
What the blazes?!
 
What was more unnerving than the unbelievable sight of his wife and son in a club, was the look in Y’olu’s eyes. The glint of desire he saw set his heart racing and brain running back to several years back when he stood at the entrance of Odaro bar with the same emotion he was now seeing in darting eyes of his son, surging in him. Bode’s throat went dry. Alarm bells going off in his head.
 
TO BE CONTINUED

 
I am oh so glad to be blogging a story again. I would have loved this to be a long series. You know, a thing like #LTC. It’s almost a year since we had a series on here. But then… It’s what it is. The sequel -the conclusion- comes up on Wednesday. But then, make sure to drop your thoughts on Bode and his story in the comment box.
Have a great week #CFCfam