SHOT

Her dive into the pool was swift and precise as usual, she swam two laps ending back at the start then she began pulling herself out of the pool. Someone was standing there holding out her towel for her and grinning widely, it was weird. She climbed out and looked around like she was looking for someone before she took the towel from the strange guy. Pulling off her goggles she began to towel her face muttering under her breath.

“And you are please?” she asked as nicely as she could. She had a lot of admirers here in this club house, she was very pretty and quiet so it was unavoidable; she seemed mysterious. She wouldn’t be surprised if he was one of them. I’ll just have to send him off subtly she thought.

“Ah, yes sorry. I am Matthew” he looked at her like she was supposed to catch on, she just raised an eyebrow.

“I am your brother’s friend, don’t know if we’ve seen before”

“Oh, oh okay. So?”

“He told me to take you home, he is busy or so he said” she just kept staring at him like he didn’t make sense, he felt stupid.

“Why don’t you go change, I am kind of in a hurry” he said quickly before he added “Thank you” Turning, she headed in the direction of the changing room shaking her head.

She came out of the changing room, she expected Matthew to be there waiting for her around the pool side but he wasn’t. Was he that impatient that he left, what kind of guy is he? She was getting furious, her spirit was already not warming up to him and this made it worse. She went to the parking lot, there he was leaning against a car and puffing on a cigarette, in her head she crossed an X’s against him twice. When she approached him, he stubbed the cigarette on the car’s hood smiling at her and just gasped in shock.

“Don’t be irresponsible, you shouldn’t do that to someone’s car” she scolded

Whipping out a key from his pocket, he pressed a button on it and the car beeped twice then he said “Dear Ima you don’t have to worry” She almost stood with her mouth open - the ride was to cool to be his, in her head - but her composed nature wouldn’t let her. Ima dragged herself to the passenger’s door before looking at a small blue Honda at the end of the rows of cars in the lot. Matthew followed her line of sight

“You think that is my car” he scoffed. Ima didn’t answer, she gripped the door handle firmly and pulled it open quickly sitting then dragged her bag across her laps.

Instead of replying she said curtly, “You shouldn’t know my name” Matthew just replied                “I am your brother’s best friend, expect no less” Shrugging his shoulders he sat beside her in the  driver’s seat. When he started the car he snapped his fingers and turned to her “You should take up photography, seriously” But Ima didn’t respond, he drove to the gate. The security guard requested an id pass, Matthew took his out faster before Ima could get hers; they were let trough.

“So you have a card?” Ima asked

“Like I said you should really take up photography” he paused “Then again Ima, you think so little of me, why?”

Ima looked away toying with her fingers, she stopped looking up boldly she asked “Why do you think I should?”

“Question with question, nice” Matthew murmured. “It’s my hobby”

“So you compel people to take up your hobby? Wow, good one”

Matthew just laughed - it was deep – “No, I always encourage people to take up my hobbies especially this and they are always wowed and give in, so why not you?”

“I won’t, it’s quite weak and disorderly to me. I like calm and classic things, swimming is better thank you” she sounded snobby and she hated it.

“Weak, disorderly, photography?. No, no, no, that’s where you are very wrong and who told you photography can be calm and classic or classy?” he asked.

“See, I actually want you to do it because you I believe you have a good eye and it will bring you out more. I feel like I'll be crazy about what you could do” he added still looking ahead driving.

“Look, I don’t need to come out of my comfort zone, and I can express myself just fine with swimming”

Matthew smiled more “Ignorance, they say it’s a disease. You do not know the deep parts of photography, you really need to experience the intricacies of the art” He stepped on the brakes there was a hold up on the road, then facing her direction he continued “Pictures can express the photographer flawlessly and ardently. It lets you see what the photographer sees and feel what they feel you know, so” A horn blared furiously behind him, the traffic had moved on.

“Your que photography boy” Ima said inaudibly. Facing forward he put his hands on the wheel and continued to drive. Ima was thinking about the last thing he said, he said it with passion and deep feelings, it sounded deep that didn’t mean she was going to take it up still. They drove on in silence, the radio slipped out quiet tunes and they just sat face forward on with the short drive. Ima then spoke “Why do you think I have a good eye? This is the first time we are meeting” he heaved a sigh before he said

“Ima, this is not the first I am seeing you. There was a swimming competition of yours that I attended with your brother and he even asked me to take shots of you when you won” he answered.

“And when I looked at the photos there was just a way your eyes were, something of a photographer’s you know”

“I am sorry Matthew, I don’t think I remember you anymore now than I did before and all this doesn’t mean I am going to accept your invitation or what you call it” she said waving her hands in the air. As she was talking he pulled the car over into a small parking lot and stopped the car. Ima looked around confused

“I am quite sure you know this is not my house?” She wasn’t sure if what she said was a question or not

“No its not, this is my studio”

“Did you bring me here to enforce your theories?”

“I am not that kind of person, I know soon you will come around” he replied calmly “I have little task to finish up, promise it won’t take long. Come in”

She came out of the car and closed the door then she followed him behind. She didn’t know what to expect, she couldn’t do less because he had shocked her over the past minutes. When she stepped into the studio, she was met by a calm wave of cool breeze that was good though because Lagos was really hot these days. The interior was not over cluttered it was subtly designed and arranged. There were shelves with different sizes of cameras of many brands, it was like an obsessed collection.

She looked up and saw him sitting crossed legged on his desk looking into a camera, that was when she actually noticed him for the first time. She was in his space so she had to, he was dressed casually but with a formal touch, he was really composed and he wore glasses, they were on a large side but they fit him perfectly. Ima was wowed, she thought him to scattered and not comported. Shaking her head she turn to look at the pictures on the wall, they were nice and there was something tell about them. There was one of a market place, the rustling and bustling caught in the photo seemed alive and there was another of the ghetto; there was just something to tell about them.

He came down dropping the camera on the desk “I was right. You should be a photographer” Matthew was now leaning against his desk while going through some papers. He was smiling, he looked nice.

“What do you mean?” she asked smiling too, she didn’t know why she just felt like returning the gesture.

“Other people would see these pictures and fawn or gush about how good they are, they talk a lot. But a photographer would like it and also analyze, so that is what you are”

“So just by that alone. You are a funny person”

“Hey, Ima I am sure you see what I see in this pictures, any photographer would”

She just looked at him with a knowing look “You are rubbing off on me too much, that’s why”

“No ma’am it’s just you as yourself” they both laughed together before he said “See Ima you belong here, you have opened up and you’re warming up to me. I know I am right” “By the way, I like the name Imaobong, God’s love; Ima meaning love. You should be filled with love, right” he said thoughtfully. She just continued to smile not saying a thing.

She reached her room. Dropping her bag on the floor next to her bed, she threw herself on the bed. What a day, she thought. Closing her eyes she began to recollect the evets of the morning then immediately she sat up, “or wait, is it afternoon?”  She checked her watch, 3 o’clock it read, and she didn’t even notice that she had spent that much time with Matthew. Ima sighed, heaving her shoulders she went to sit at her table by the window.

It was a sunny day, birds chirped around the trees at her window one coming to even catch a glimpse of her face, before flying off. She smiled at it while the sun warmed her face, the breeze that came in kissed her cheeks and the next thing Matthew’s face came to her head. She forced her eyes open, pushing her table in the process. Her pen stand clattered to the floor, book piles scattered, notes opened and the birds flew away scared of the noise from the frenzy. Ima groaned, “What is happening to me? I just met him today, and his interrupting my thoughts” she said in her head. She busied herself to clean the mess she made. Finishing she just sighed again and stood up, she was feeling restless why she didn’t know. Ima walked to board of pictures, so many memories together. She looked through all of them smiling as she reminisced her pasts through the pictures, one caught her eye.

It was one taken of her at a swimming competition, she had won first place and that was her first time. She took the picture down from the board and analyzed it closely. The angle from which the photo had been taken was perfect, it caught everything that needed to be told. She could read exactly all her emotions from the picture, it was almost plain to see. It was as if she could feel her bright warm smile from that day, the laughter in her eyes were caught. Ima could almost hear the cheering of the crowd behind her, she felt like she could smell the air through the picture. The photo was bursting of life and she felt it as she ran her fingers across it. The picture held more words and told more stories than any book she had read. “A picture really holds a thousand words and the photographer should be commended” she said in her head, turning the picture to the back she checked the studio name, it had the name of the one she had just left; MATHEO’S SHOT.

“So the fool wasn’t lying after all” She said out loud smiling. She looked at the picture again, there was a phone number at the left bottom corner. Carrying the picture, she picked up her swimming bag and placed it on the bed; she searched the side compartment for her phone. She took it out and dialed the number, she thought for a while before she called it.

It rang twice before he answered, “Hello, this is MATHEO’S SHOT”

“I gassed you’d still be there”

“Ima, hey. How did you get this number? Wait you felt embarrassed to ask so you stole it under my nose”

“Don’t be full of yourself. You weren’t lying you did take the of me picture, I think I recall you know”

“Ha ha, very funny, what do you want?”

She paused reconsidering “I think I’ve been taken in by your words, I’ll take it up but with a condition” she said slyly

“Okay” Matthew said like he was unsure “What’s that?”

“You quit smoking, I don’t want that around me, you know bad for health”

“Yeah, yeah I will” he accepted, smiling widely at his side then he added “Anything for you baby”

Immediately they both held their breaths then they switched off the phone at the same time.