What on heaven’s earth is the meaning of this?
I left my office and called an Uber to take me to the mechanic’s workshop where I would pick up the car. I tried calling Daniel several times while on my way but did not reach him. I sent several texts asking him to get back to me as soon as he saw the texts. Nothing still.
I had just left the Mechanic’s place with my car when Yemi called,
“Hello Dami, how are you doing? Have you picked up the car yet?”
“Yes, I just did. About heading home.”
“Oh. How about your appointment; are you not going for it again?”
“Something came up. so, it’s not holding again.”
“Hope it’s nothing serious and that you are okay?”
“Yeah, I am fine. I will sort myself out. Thanks for your concern.”
“Okay. Let me know when you get home.”
“Alright. Thank you”
Mr. Oshoafa is the last person on my mind right now. I really needed to find out what was going on with Daniel.
I waited all through the night for a call or text from Daniel but nothing. His number was not going through either. I became very worried but there was nothing else I could do. I had not known him enough to know anyone that is related to him to at least call them and ask if they have heard from him.
I checked his Facebook page to see if he tagged anyone as family but didn’t see any. I had to resign to fate. I prayed to God that he was okay and that I would hear from him by morning because there was this uneasiness that I felt and I could not explain it.
After rolling up and down on the bed, I eventually fell into a troubled sleep.
My phone rang and I picked it up,
“Is this Damilola?”
“Yes, please”
“My name is Nurse Titi, I’m calling from Holy Cross Hospital. Do you know the owner of this phone?”
“Yes. His name is Daniel. He is my… he is my friend. Is there any problem?”
“Yes, madam. He was involved in a ghastly accident along the Ibadan Expressway and was rushed to this hospital. We have been able to stabilise him. I went through his phone and your number was the last number he called; that is why I am calling you”.
“Oh my God. I knew something was wrong…. How is he now?… is he conscious? … where is your hospital located?”
“He is fine, madam. There is just a little issue. He is in a very critical condition now and in need of a blood transfusion. Can you reach any of his family members?”
“Do you need a donor?”
“Not really. Actually, our blood bank has his blood type which is very fortunate but then the blood bank will not release any blood except we make a deposit. We need to reach his family so that someone can come and make the deposit for us to continue treatment. He might not last the next 2 hours if nothing is done”
“Jesus! God forbid. He will make it. How much are we talking about here?”
“We need about 900,000 Naira to complete treatment, but if we do not get a deposit of 600,000 Naira, we cannot start anything.”
“Can you send me the hospital’s account number?”
“I will do that but the problem is that before they confirm payment, I don’t know if Daniel will still be here”.
That was a red alert for me already. That means the nurse wants me to pay the money to her.
“So, what are you suggesting?”
“I think you should pay it into the doctor’s account because I doubt you will be comfortable paying into mine so that it does not look fraudulent. Let me give the phone to the Doctor”.
………………..
“Hello Madam, are you a member of his family?”
“No, I am not but I am a very close friend and I want to pay the bills.”
“Oh okay. You heard he is in a very critical condition which means that we need the deposit as soon as possible?”
“Yes, the nurse actually said I can make the payment directly into your account, that was why she gave you the phone so I can get the details from you”.
“Okay. She will send it as sms to you as soon as we end the call. I will be waiting for the alert. As soon as I get it, I will commence treatment.”
“Thank you, Doctor. Please can you send me the directions to the hospital too, I would like to come and see him as soon as I can”.
“No problems”.
I dropped the call and heaved a sigh of relief. I checked my sms and saw the doctor’s account number and transferred the full sum. I did not want stories that touch. I already had the premonition that something must have happened. I do not ever take my hunches lightly. I remember the day I had a dream that my mum was critically ill, that was the day she slumped in the market and there have been other instances too that have made me wary of my own premonitions. I checked my phone and saw that there were two missed calls from Yemi. I hissed and thought to myself, “What kind of a bother is this guy? For now, I am very worried about Daniel and I don’t think I am in the mood to be disturbed by this guy”, but for the sake of courtesy, I called him back.
“I am so sorry for bothering you. You were on a call when I called. How are you?”
“I am fine, Mr. Yemi. How are you too?”
“Please, can you stop with the Mr. My name is Yemi and I would want you to call me that.”
“Alright, Yemi.”
I was doing all I could to make sure that he read from my tone that I was not interested in the call and he was either too dumb to notice or just plainly ignoring it.
“I have not been at peace since the incident and I doubt if I will be at peace till I make it up to you. Can I take you out for lunch or dinner, whichever is convenient for you?”
“Sorry, Yemi, a close friend of mine was involved in a ghastly accident yesterday. HE (I had to stress that) is in a critical condition and needs my attention. I am not really thinking dinner or lunch now.”
“Oh. I am sorry. I guess this is the wrong time. I am sorry about your friend. Would you need any form of help that I can offer?”
Something in me clicked. I do not know what it was but I suddenly appreciated him. I told myself he was a nice person that I did not have to push away. I could keep him as a friend and that’s all. I needed to stop being cold to him. I gave him all the details from the Doctor and Nurse and even told him I had made the transfer. He paused and after a while asked if I had gotten the hospital’s address. I asked him to give me a minute to check my sms. No message. I told him that. he paused a little again.
“Can you send me the doctor’s contact?”
“It was Daniel’s phone they called with not the doctor’s or nurse’s”
“Can I get Daniel’s number?”
“Err…. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“Oh. Okay. Not a problem. Try reaching Daniel again and let me know if you can reach him. I will call later in the day or if you get the address before I call, let me know. I would not mind taking you to the place, at least for security reasons.”
“Thank you. I really appreciate it.”
When the call ended, I dialled Daniel’s number, but it was switched off. I tried it all evening but without success. By then, I was triple-worried.