Read Version 1.2 here
Consciousness:
that annoying time between naps.
~Author Unknown
It
took me an extra thirty minutes to find a spot to park after getting to Ahmadu
Bello way. When I finally got to the Galleria, I called Ayoade and he told me
he was at the ticket stands. I didn’t get the chance to tell him I was in no
mood for a movie, there was too much noise and I could hardly hear him. Thank
God I was at least able to ascertain that I still had the real Ayoade and not
the – what?! - Alter ego?! Have I mentioned that this is all crazy?! Well, now
I’m saying it: crazy does not even begin to describe it!
The
ground floor of the Galleria was a bee hive of activity and it looked like a
party of sorts was going on. At first, I thought it was the monthly Salsa
open-floor thingy but then I remembered that was held on Sunday evenings. There
was music, as in loud music and the
floor space was packed! The effect of the crowd was multiplied by the mirrors
that had been placed around the usually open space forming a continuous wall.
As soon as I stepped in, I lost all sense of direction and the entrance was
lost in the crazy maze of reflecting walls. I wondered how they had managed to
pull it off, I couldn’t even see the stairways that led up to the galleries!
The crowd didn’t seem to mind one bit and the party raged on around me.
Frantic, I called Ayoade again.
“Where are you?! It’s crazy down
here!”
“Don’t worry, I can see you. Will be
with you in a sec!”
I
sincerely hoped he was seeing the real me and not one of the thousand
reflections of me! After a few more minutes of being shoved around by the
dancing bodies around me, I finally saw him waving to me across the room. I
heaved a huge sigh of relief and inched my way towards him, not daring to lose
sight of him for one second!
“Sorry, ‘scuse me.” I said as I
eased around a couple. Then I walked smack into a mirror! I have never been the
graceful type and the force of the collision sent me sprawling into the couple
behind me.
“Sorry!” I gasped.
“No worries. Are you alright?” the
guy helped me up.
“Yeah, thanks!”
I
looked at the mirror in confusion. Ayoade was walking towards me, worry written
all over his face. He was saying something but I couldn’t hear him above the
noise. I spun away from the mirror and there he was coming towards me from
across the room! Bloody reflections I
muttered, heading off towards him. Then I caught a glimpse of him from my left
and I swivelled instinctively. He wove as if to catch my attention and a dozen
arms wove at me around the room. I stopped dead in my tracks and took a slow
look around. Sure enough, there he was, still walking towards me from every
possible corner of my mirrored hell.
“Hey, pretty girl!”
I
spun around. Where had his voice come from?! I pushed through the crowd
frantically and stopped dead at another mirror. I headed in another direction.
Dead end. Was I the only crazy one?! Didn’t anyone else feel weird about this
place?!
“I’m over here!”
I
spun towards the voice and collided with another dancing couple.
“Sorry! Excuse me.”
I
finally came within touching distance of him but dunno, something made me hesitate.
He smiled then and reached out a hand to me.
“Come on, I’ve got something I want
you to see!”
He
sounded excited and it was infectious. I smiled back and for a split moment
forgot all about the weirdness and madness. I reached for him and in that instant,
I saw him. He stepped out of nowhere,
as whack as that sounds. He wasn’t there, then he was, like he stepped through
air and appeared. He smiled. He was excited as well, but obviously not in a
good way. I saw them both, Ayoade and Ayoade,
standing side by side, with the dazzling smile I had fallen in love with on
both their faces, arms stretched towards me, then I crashed through the mirror.
* * * * * *
It
felt like a million needles pierced my skin and I screamed. No. That would be
an understatement. I have no words to describe the sound that came from me.
Every cell in my body screamed with me because the needles pierced every single
one and the unearthly sound filled my ears, filled my head, my mind until I
thought I would explode. At some point, my fingers brushed something and I
grabbed on. Ayoade, I thought. His
fingers entwined with mine and pulled me forward. Just when I thought I
couldn’t possibly bear it anymore, it all ended abruptly and I crumpled to the
ground. After the screaming, the quiet was soothing.
I
heard voices and I pried my eyes open slowly. I was lying on the floor of a
long, dark corridor. I didn’t take the time to process that information or
wonder how on earth I had managed to get there because I saw Ayoade, one of him
anyways, and a man I had never seen before disappear around the corner and I
jumped to my feet and hurried after them. They seemed to be arguing about
something and didn’t seem to notice my presence. I called out to Ayoade but he
didn’t seem to hear me. After a while, they finally came to a door and stopped.
I stopped as well and from what I could gather, the man wanted Ayoade to open
the door but Ayoade was having none of that.
“I’ll be done in no time.” The man
said.
“I already said no!” Ayoade replied.
“You’ll have to sort through the
mess at some point you know, clean it out!” the man persisted.
“I said NO!”I flinched. I’d never
heard Ayoade raise his voice at anyone that way before. Maybe this was the bad
guy, the alter-ego, the evil twin!
“Just let me…”
“It’s none of your business!” Ayoade
said turning away from the door. He started to walk back the way we had come
and I called out to him, wondering what all that was about but he walked right
through me! Yes. Right through me as in right
through me, like I was a mist or ghost or whatever else you might call me!
I gasped in shock but he didn’t even seem to have noticed a thing. Now, if that
wasn’t enough to give me a heart attack, I don’t know what else will! I stared
at my hand, half expecting it to disappear, telling myself for the umpteenth
time that I was indeed crazy.
“Really shocking, right?!”
And
I would have had the second heart attack right then! I had totally forgotten
about the man and even if I hadn’t, I didn’t expect him to see me too.
“You’re wondering if this is real or
if you’re crazy, huh?”
Oh God, if I ever wake
up from this…
“You bet this is all real.” He
continued. “It is no dream, neither is it your imagination. It is your
reality.” He finished calmly.
I
just stared at him, knowing right there and then that I had gone stark raving
mad.
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