In life today, some people will move close to you not because they want friendship, but for their own self-interest. They smile and laugh with you, but they are worms that devour your precious peace of mind. They are demons in human bodies that destroy people's destinies.
I have met a certain set of people in my life who need your happiness and will always help you maintain it, and I also have some who use your happiness against you the more you open up to them. They want everything for themselves and nothing good for you.
When I began to walk with Joana some years back as a teenager, I looked after her as my own sister and friend. We used to read together when we were preparing to sit for the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB).
Since we were both in art class, I would go to her house so we could read together, play together, and chat about how university would look.
In fact, I helped her with fast reading and assimilation, especially in literature, which she found too complex to understand.
I visited her almost every day after I finished chores at home. We don't attend the same secondary school, so we always meet at home; after all, we live in the same neighborhood.
One day, as I was going to see her, my mum restricted me. "Why can't your friend come to our place too to read? Must you go to her place all the time?" she stated. "No, Mum," I replied, "we were just reading together as friends, and I don't mind going to her place all day," I answered.
"You should stay at home for a few days. If she cares about you, she will check on you," said my mum. I found a good point in what she said, so I complied with her.
I stayed at home for a whole week. Joana did not ask after me, not even her mother. I was very disappointed. I stopped going to her place until we started and finished the exams.
Although my mother later asked me to check up on her to know whether she's in good condition, I was sure that nothing was wrong with her because I always see her running errands for her mother.
There is a provision store opposite my house where she frequents daily to buy something, but she would hide her face, avoiding me most times.
We had no agreement nor misunderstanding, yet she chose to be carefree. I gave her my jottings, my notes to copy and read through. My textbook and writing materials are also in her place, but I did not ask for them since I have other means of studying for the exam.
I have JAMB series, Exam Focus textbooks, and a dictionary. All I needed was revision as the exam date drew nearer. So, I ignored her, studied harder, and sat for my exam.
When the scores came out, I scored over 200 in my JAMB; I don't know what my so-called friend scored. However, I decided to go and get my books from Joana. I wanted to keep them for future purposes.
So, some days after our JAMB result was released, I went to her place. Her mother surprised me with her words. "Your friend told me you don't want her to score beyond you in your exam; that's why you decided to continue studying alone," she said, insulting me further.
I was speechless; I went into the house immediately and lashed out in annoyance at Joana. "I didn't say that; I only said 'maybe'; I was only guessing," Joana responded.
"Oh, I see. I was tagged the wrong person after all I've done for you. I'm now the bad friend, right?" I shouted.
"If it's not true, you wouldn't hide your score from her when the results came out," her mother retorted. With due respect, I left their house that day and never spoke with Joana again.
I told my mum all that happened with tears of disappointment. "Mum, all I thought was that she is in my world. She loved what I loved, but I never realized in time that she has a wicked soul, painting me as a bad person," I wept sadly.
"You're not painted a bad one, my dear," said my mum. "You just make people realize that you're a good and lovely girl, but what you don't know is that some friends are wolves in sheep's clothing.
Until you uncover the cloth, you won't know who they truly are. Don't cry; be happy that she didn't blackmail you more than that," said my mum as I listened to her sweet wise words of encouragement.
Since that day, I vowed never to trust any friend until I’m sure of who they truly are. Thanks for stopping by!
We have wolves everywhere. Making you look bad in the eyes of others. Joanna was never your friend. She was only with you for what she was gaining from you.
Yes she is. Thanks boss
It's hard to know who to trust these days, you know. People like Joanna are only the ones who stay around for what they can benefit. Good thing you realized it later on
Hmmm. Exactly. Thanks
It's hard to trust these days. Omo, people can be so mean.
I swear. Thanks for stop
This type of situation saddens me. What I see here is perhaps a misunderstanding between two friends who failed to communicate effectively. You share your hurts and disappointments in this piece but did you stop to consider how she might have felt? I think a consideration of this would have provided greater balance to this piece.
You had an established routine of studying together at her home and you changed the 'rules' without engaging with your friend. You made assumptions about why she never suggested coming to your home and why she didn't reach out. Perhaps she felt rejected when you didn't show up to your regular study session, day after day. Perhaps she felt hurt when you saw each other on the street or at the shops and you ignored her. Perhaps she didn't want to be rejected again. Perhaps she had other commitments that prevented her from being allowed to study outside of her home, or she simply thought that was what you preferred to do. OR perhaps she simply didn't care and was using you only as a study buddy. On her part, she failed to contact you to ask if everything was ok when you stopped showing up at her home, and she made assumptions as to why that might be. You make no suggestion of there being any other sign of disagreement between the two of you, so I can only go on what you have presented. I mean no disrespect here, but I think it would have shown an additional more powerful arc in this Creative non-fiction had you tried to consider both of your actions from the fresh perspective of an adult. Dig into the layers next time and explore the possibilities beneath the surface
It is good to see that you spent some time editing your work and developing this piece. You are now using royalty-free images and have engaged with other writers. Please do continue in this vein if you wish for your submissions to be eligible for curation :-)
I agreed that both of us were at fault too but I decided to withdraw because my mum asked me to do so and it's obvious that my friend did not felt my absence too.
Thanks for reading 🙏🏼