Mr Saeed's mind was blackened when he heard that his 24-year-old daughter, Freda was hanging out with a gypsy guy. At first, when he heard about the rumour, he didn't want to take action because his daughter only came for a holiday and he believed Freda was smart enough not to fall into such a situation but when the report kept hitting him via his friend, he decided to call Freda to order.
That particular evening, he just finished having his breakfast, he told his wife, Freda's mother to go and call her. In a jiffy, the wife walked into the parlour with Freda walking behind her.
"I'm here Daddy," she said as she sat close to her mom on the couch opposite her dad.
Mr Saeed removed the toothpick in his mouth, cleared his throat and began, "What are you always doing in the Gypsies quarter?"
The question landed strange on Freda's ear and she felt confused and assumed the question was not for her so she remained silent looking at the dad's face.
"I'm asking you!" The father raised his voice when he couldn't accept the silence and this made Freda startle.
"Gypsies quarter? Where's that?" She responded quickly.
"Okay, I mean the Fulani quarter. What have you been going there to do and who is that boy you're always seen with?" This time, Mr Saeed dropped his leg which was resting on the stool, to the ground.
"Ohh! You mean Fulani's quarter. You should have said that earlier. Well, those are Fulani and they sell all manner of medicines and I've been going there to have medicine that will help me grow my hair without falling" Freda said in boldness and rested her back on the sofa.
The mom who was silent, watching them like a TV finally chipped in, "So it's true. Freda, you don't have common sense? You don't know what those people are capable of?"
"Mummy how? They're Fulani and when do we start segregating ourselves from people?" Freda's boldness wasn't hidden, she said that by looking into their eyes.
"Come on shut up there! Who told you they're just Fulani? Are you not seeing the ones with light complexion there especially the guy you're hanging out with? Don't you know about the Gypsies? Don't you know how dangerous they are in terms of charms? Ohhh! You've been charmed already, I can see that. From today henceforth, I don't want to see you there. You can leave now!"
That evening ended with Freda in her worst mood, she had been smart enough with her secret relationship with Zoran, the handsome gipsy guy who stole her heart the first day she went there in search of hair maintenance cream. She never knew that there was a difference between the group of people living in the quarter, she took all of them as Fulani because they dress in the same pattern with rappers folded at every corner and with necklaces and rings dawning their necks, noses and ears like that of Indias. Although she knew that the Fulani can be very hostile in some stances, her eyes were blinded by the little affection Zoran displayed towards her.
"Is that the love charm my dad is talking about?" She thought and shook off that with the idea that someone who's charmed can never think of being charmed.
All through the night, her mind was filled with mixed feelings; the threats her dad gave to her and also with the sparkling memories of the last scene between her and Zoran.
The next morning, her mom entered her room around 8:30 am to see her still sleeping. She tapped her on her back, "Wake up, your dad is calling you"
"Again? Ooohhhhh!" She angrily hit her legs on the foam knowing that she was about to be queried again.
"You better get up and walk behind me. You know what your dad is capable of" The mom turned and walked away from the room.
She knows that if she doesn't go out within the next 3 minutes, her dad's wrath will meet her, so she gets up, fastens her pyjamas bet and walks to the parlour only to meet the parlour empty.
"Where's daddy?"
"He's outside, go to the lobby" The mom who was in the kitchen answered from there.
She walked to the lobby, met her dad, greeted him and the next thing she heard was "Go and get ready, you're leaving for Abuja to spend the remaining days of the holiday with your elder sister"
"Dad, what's that? Why are you treating me like a baby" she said amid tears but her dad wasn't ready to let the tears get into him.
"You said you're not a baby and you don't know when you're being charmed. What an elder sees while sitting, there's no way you can see it while climbing the top of a roof. I can't take chances at all. Go inside and prepare"
Suddenly, the little tears in her eyes dried off, she walked off angrily inside her room and began to arrange her clothes. She saw the travelling as a means to be freed from her daddy's checking her life, after all, she has Zoran's number and can be in touch and invite him over to her place when she resumes school.
All her thoughts and imaginations were good until she began the journey and immediately the bus she was in drove passed the city, she saw herself deleting Zoran's number on her phone. She couldn't believe what held her to like someone like that. "Was that truly a spell?" She kept asking herself and she never believed that she was enchanted.
Thanks for reading.