Must Read: Adventures of Yejide - Season 1 - Episode 12

7 years ago

Must Read: Adventures of Yejide - Season 1 - Episode 12

The following day, Kelechi dropped by to see
Yejide again but this time, he came with a
check that he indicated to Yejide was for her
upkeep. He mentioned things like using it for
house rent, clothes and food even though he
tried not to make it known that he already
knew about their rent issues. It was a large
sum of money enough to pay their house rent
for three months. When Kelechi handed Yejide
the check, she exclaimed and revealed the
sum to Dupe who was also seated with them.

Dupe who saw this immediately went on her
knees to thank him on their behalf but to
everyone’s surprise, Yejide handed the check
back to Kelechi and told him that she could
not accept it. This was because she felt that
he had done enough for them. Dupe who was
beside Yejide gestured for her to take back
her words and action but she ignored and
insisted that he take back his check. Kelechi
only sighed and begged Yejide to accept it.
“But why do you keep doing this? Where you
dey work sef? How do you get all this
money?”
“Don’t worry Yejide, I didn’t steal the money.

God provided them for me so that I can give
you…..” Kelechi talked some more and after
some persuasion from him and Dupe, she
accepted it.

Kelechi kept dropping by to look after Yejide
and soon enough they got pretty close. One
Tuesday afternoon, they had gotten into some
deep conversation and revealed some of their
past experiences. Their conversation went
from Yejide trying to explain to Kelechi how
she could speak English so well to how she
ended up on the streets and becoming a
prostitute. Yejide had just turned seventeen
when she was sent packing by her aunt who
she lived with since she was born. Her mother
had died at childbirth living her fatherless
because her father was unknown. Yejide had
suffered maltreatment while growing up from
both her aunt and aunt’s husband who were
supposed to cater for her. She was sometimes
called names and even labeled an
abomination because her mother had given
birth to her out of wedlock and her father was
unknown or sometimes called a witch
because her mother died during delivery. Even
with all of these, Yejide was still very brilliant
in school. She would always come out top of
her class and represent her school for so
many competitions and expeditions. She was
also like a big sister to her younger cousins
who were both two and fours years younger
than her. She would take responsibility for
everything and would try to do everything that
was right according to her aunt and uncle but
that did not keep her from being maltreated.

She would be beaten up for little things and
deprived of food for no reason. She was
eventually stopped from attending school
after her senior secondary school two (SS2)
even though from the beginning she worked
her way into funding for her tuition by selling
on the streets. Yejide was that type of girl
who was maltreated out of envy and for being
a good child. It wasn’t until she was almost
raped by her aunt’s husband when she was
sent packing. She had gone to report the
incident to her aunt but her aunt who didn’t
take her side thought she was trying to break
her marriage so she sent her out of her home
and told her never to return. That was the day
Yejide left her aunt’s house and never
thought to go back.
Yejide had nowhere to go so she lived on the
streets as a panhandler for about six months
before she met Dupe. Dupe had been working
in a small food joint when she came in
contact with Yejide. Yejide’s purpose which
was to beg that very day changed when Dupe
offered to help her. Dupe helped Yejide to get
a mini job in the same food joint and not
long after they met, they became really close.

Yejide managed to work at the food joint for
three months until she was kicked out with
Dupe after Dupe was accused of stealing. The
duo went back to living on the streets after
they couldn’t find jobs and soon turned to
prostitution to earn a living.