GONE ASTRAY

CHAPTER 1

GONE FOREVER

ASABEA LEAVES NIMAKO

Asabea with Delphina her mom and Spencer her dad stood on their porch and waved good-bye to Nimako and her family as they drove away.

Tears sprang from Asabea’s eyes as she watched her best friend, who had been her neighbor all her life, leave. Asabea and Nimako had known each other since infancy. They went to school together and ate together at school. You would never see one without the other. They were known as “Two Musketeers”

In fact, their friendship was something to emulate. Suddenly, they had to separate. For Asabea, it was an agony she had to go through. ‘When your best friend moves to Nigeria on the last day of school, it’s a sure bet that you are about to experience the worst vacation ever,’ she thought. Asabea’s mom watched her daughter’s face carefully, seeing her look of dejection and misery; she hugged her and said, ‘You know Nigeria isn’t that far away. Perhaps if you save some money, you could afford to visit Nimako this vacation.’ At this time, Asabea couldn’t know what to do. Tears dropped from her eyes like ice cubes falling on a roofing sheet. The more she tried to control her tears, the more they came out.

After hours of crying, when no more tears were coming, Asabea asked her mom half jokingly, ‘Am I about to get a substantial increase in my allowance?’ She had been asking her parents for more money for a couple of months now. Asabea whisked her hand behind her back and crossed her fingers hoping today might be the day.

‘Well, I’ll talk to your dad about finding ways to earn some extra money these holidays,’ said her mom. At this thought, Asabea was optimistic because she knew who her dad was. Though Spencer her dad was a bit difficult, anytime she asked for anything from him through her mom, she always got it. ‘Come inside, in a few minutes diner will be ready,’ said Delphina her mom and then she vanished into the house.

Asabea sat on the front steps alone. The familiar neighborhood was suddenly different without Nimako. The air was fresh. The wind was whispering. The sky was blue and the atmosphere should have influenced Asabea’s mood, but she was not moved. There was no panacea which could heal her wounded soul once and for all. The more she tried to forget Nimako, the more her picture appeared on her mind. Asabea overturned a rock with her foot and inspected several worms as they wiggled to escape the afternoon sunlight. She picked up a few of them and moved them into the flowerbed next to the daisies. ‘Do worms have best friends?’ She asked the worms.

‘Now am l ever going to see Nimako again?’ she asked herself. Then a brilliant idea flashed through her head. She went to ask Spencer. ‘Dad, how much does a sachet of water cost?’ He raised his eyebrows and looked at Asabea with curiosity. ‘Do you want to go selling pure water?’ ‘Well…, yes.’ She had finally thought to raise some money on her own so that she could buy an air ticket to go and see her best friend Nimako in Nigeria.