Chapter 2

• NINE YEARS LATER......
• Now that I was a senior in high school, I could honestly say that this was the worst educational environment I had ever encountered.
• A total of 87 of us were crammed into the classroom, which was already at capacity. The director was just concerned with making a profit and never gave a damn about our well-being.
• Because it was a boarding school for females, there was always something uninteresting to hear about. Having gone from a class of ten students in elementary school to a class of eighty-seven students in high school has made me very apprehensive and uncomfortable.
• I always dreaded being called on in front of the class to answer a question, and I really loathed having to figure out a math problem aloud and in front of everyone.
• My knees would quiver as though they were about to collapse under the weight of my body. The thought of working out that figure on the board, just to get it incorrect and have the females yell out in amusement made me feel dreadful on the inside, and I would feel like tears were going to spill down my cheeks.
• I've hated school for much of my life, but at this point there's nothing else I can do except attempt to make the most of it.
• The unpleasantness of school life was compounded by the presence of stringent regulations with harsh consequences for violators, such as being assigned to clean the school's uncomfortable bathrooms or verandas. The majority of young women would rather be flogged than subjected to the humiliating and humiliating cleaning penalties.
• After today's courses ended, I headed straight for the dorms to catch some Z's.
• Today, I just wanted to sleep and feel refreshed for some reason. I felt like myself again only when I was lying in my own bed. I felt a lot better on my bed, and only in the dormitories did I feel safe, even though there were four of us females in a single cubicle.
• I removed my shoes inside our cubicle and promptly lay down on my bed.
• Here came Jackline.
• She was tall and not that beautiful if not for the tons and tons of makeup she wore everyday before class, and I didn't like her that much because she liked bragging a lot about her wealthy background any time you wanted to have a serious conversation with her, despite the fact that I'm a little lighter in skin tone than her.
• She sat down on my closest friend Hawo's bed (a Muslim girl) across from me and gave me a glance.
• She gave me the look that told me she was after something. That glare was the worst.
• I glanced back at her and pondered the mystery of her unusually subdued demeanor today. She seemed like a shy, modest girl, yet I remembered her as loud, haughty, and caustic. Maybe this was her good side; after all, everyone has one. I finally decided to speak out after what seemed like an eternity of stillness.
• "Jackie? What gives? I don't know why you're staring at me like that." I made an inquiry.
• When I asked her that, she drew a deep breath, as if she had been holding it in anticipation of my inquiry. Her mouth slightly opened, and she looked away to say, "I'm fine Chris... nothing to worry about."
• I went by the name Chris. A condensed version of my given name, Christine.
• They were all well aware of my preference for Chris over Christine.
• I frowned thoughtfully. The real her had left the building. Knowing that Jackline was probably anxious about something, I sat up in bed. It was obviously a major problem, whatever it was.
• Was her family broke? In my mind,. I was relieved to hear that since it meant she would stop boasting. As I turned to face her, a sigh escaped my lips.
• It's not like I was coveting her or anything. Truth be told, I came from a more affluent background than she did, and it may be annoying to listen to her talk about her family's accomplishments.
• "What gives you cause to smile?" The question was posed by her. I was caught off guard by the question and had no ready response. Even though I had no idea whether it was true, I couldn't help but smile at the possibility that her family had run out of money.
• "Because you're adorable when you don't say much." I lied.
• "Really?" she smiled back.
• I gave a quick nod of agreement.
• Even though I knew it would be risky to strike up a conversation with her because she would inevitably bring up her family, I couldn't help but wonder what was bothering her, and I decided to do so anyway in the hopes that she would reveal the source of her apparent vulnerability.
• "How was funkie yesterday?" I asked, trying to get her to talk and open up. (a funkie was a small social gathering when schools from the same county got together to socialize; there were no rules, but a modest charge was required to cover the cost of food and transportation).
• "Ahaa!". Jackline yelled out in delight. "It was fantastic," she said.
• "Never before have I felt so stunning as I did yesterday... I met maybe 10 dudes from different schools, and it was great.... I have their contact info, and when school is out for the year, I will give them a ring." She answered with a bright grin on her face and a trace of yesterday's enthusiasm in her voice and eyes.
• There! she had shattered the illusion at last.
• This elicited an enthusiastic "Oh, that's good!" I did add that I found it repulsive, or maybe I should have stated gross. I don't understand how she managed to date 10 men at once. But I was determined to find out more, in the hopes that one day she might reveal to me the source of her distress.
• What Jackline enjoyed most, though, was the attention she received from males. She was a bit of a sexpot.
• Please elaborate. It was my firm urging.
• "Of course, my stomach is upset because I ate a lot." And she did really respond.
• Is that the reason you seemed so troubled?" I was curious and proud of the results of my work, so I inquired.
• She shook her head, then was silent for a while as though considering what to say. "Chris? One of the people I spoke with yesterday told me that before this week ends, there will be a strike and that they will involve our school." She went into detail, and although you could still detect some nervousness in her demeanor, the tinge of excitement was gone.
• If I claimed I wasn't frightened by what she was saying, I'd be lying to you.
• The outcomes of student strikes at Kenyan boarding schools were devastating.
• To begin, bombings never occurred during the day. Second, many students would be hurt or killed in the flames that would imprison them in the dormitories, and some would even have mental stress that would create physiological difficulties from being beaten up by the students who were raiding.
• My biggest concern was that I would be included in the "victims" group. The potential consequences scared me. I was always aware of the strikes via the media but never imagined I would have to take part in one.
• "Jackie? "Are you certain about what you're saying?" I made an inquiry. She gave a quick nod and shifted to sit on my bed. I moved my legs to make space for her as I sat crosslegged and looked at her.
• "Keep this to yourself. Okay? There's nothing to do except be ready; we can't predict when that night will come. Make sure you have enough money for transportation." Although I tried to resist, I nodded.
• "Good... if you don't have cash, use the school's phones to contact your parents and ask them to wire you the money ASAP... I'll keep you posted on the status of the rumored strike." She whispered in a low voice even though we were the only ones in the dorm, and I nodded once more in accordance.
• I believed that my parents would send me cash if I asked them to, but the question was, 'Was I going to tell them the truth about why I was asking for money?' Doing that would give the teachers eads up on what was going to happen and I would be labelled a snitch. The best thing here was to ask for the money as a normal allowance and shut up about what was going to happen, it was better if I kept peace with my fellow schoolmates than be labelled a snitch by the whole lot.
• "Alright Jackie, I appreciate the heads-up.... I will get ready." I said. As she got off my bed, all she did was give me an expression of concern.
• "Remember, keep this to yourself. Ignorance is dangerous." she said. I nodded again as she walked away, maybe to tell her closest friend Trizah about the strike and go to another cubicle...... It was unclear to me.
• Although. Trixah would be the first one person to know about this information from Jackie due to their closeness.
• In retrospect, I regret I hadn't pushed her to open up, but I'm glad I did because it prepared me for what was to come.