The sun was scorching and all my joints ached from the constant walking I did all day. All I wanted to do was take a cold shower and sleep for as long as my body deemed fit.
Sluggishly, I inserted the key into the lock and twisted it. The soft thud signified that the door was unlocked and for some weird reason, I felt a sense of hope.
Source
I stayed at my sister's place for a few days while working on a school project. Since her house was closer to the project location, I opted to stay there until it was finished.
The bedroom was scattered courtesy of the numerous clothes I flung on the bed that morning while searching for the right outfit for the day. Languidly, I gathered all the clothes from the mattress and placed them on the chair by the bed. The bathroom was screaming out my name and that was one call I was willing to respond to. I took off all the clothes I had on which were fully drenched with sweat and immediately headed for the bathroom. A few minutes later I was done and decided to take a brief nap before finding something to eat.
I was lost in the dreamland when I felt something close to my leg. For one, I had taken out all the obstructive items from the bed before laying on it, so what was possibly by my leg? I opened my eyes slightly, and what I saw instantly filled me with panic. My eyeballs widened as adrenaline kicked in. I was supposed to make a decision in split seconds and I guess I picked the most sane one–flee!
I sprang up from the bed and dashed outside, screaming at the top of my lungs ‘snake!’ ‘snake!’
Peter, the only neighbour who was around, came running to my aid.
“What snake are you yelling about Wongi?” Peter asked.
I was still trying to recuperate from the terror but I managed to respond
“There is a slim green snake in the room.”
“So what are we going to do now?” Peter asked heedlessly.
I threw a sharp glance in his direction.
“I thought we are supposed to kill it or at least get rid of it.”
“Now, that is the problem. I have never killed a snake in my life. Have you?”
I chuckled, something I wasn't supposed to be doing at the moment as the situation at hand was far from funny, but I just couldn't help it.
“I cannot kill a snake either.” I responded.
Peter immediately dashed to his house and returned with two slim sticks
“Wait, we are going to kill the snake with those?”
“These sticks are currently the best option.” He said. I could sense the terror in his tone.
“Fine. The sooner, the better”. The whole scenario was still a funny one to me as two people who had never gotten rid of a snake were walking into a room that harbored one.
Source
Hesitantly, I slid open the door and just by the corner of the room was the lovely afternoon visitor.
“There it is,” I squealed.
Peter got to work, trying his best to lead the serpent out of the room through the window which it entered from, while I cheered him on from a distance. After about an hour of so much hissing and dancing around, the unwanted visitor exited the room through the open window that Peter kept directing it to.
Out the window, below the general estate gate and into the bush did the snake go. Only then was I able to heave a sigh of relief. Even after that, I still didn't want to set foot in the house. I sat outside the house and waited for my sister’s return.
In the meantime, Peter tried consoling my frightened soul
“You know that the weather is very hot and these reptiles are cold blooded animals?”
I nodded in assertion.
“And you know that they seek refuge in cold places whenever it gets this hot?” Once again, I nodded.
“Great. What I need you to do now is seal all the holes in the windows. Cover the spaces tightly with clothes. Also, try and rearrange the bedroom to ensure that the room isn't harbouring any more guests.”
“I will. And thank you so much for helping me out. I'm truly grateful.” I said to Peter.
Shortly after, he went back to his house and I was left to face my fears. I walked into the room and began arranging. All the while, the scenario from when I got back to when the reptile was directed out kept playing in my head. It was then that I realised that the fight or flight analogy when in the face of danger was actually very accurate.
Taking afternoon naps in that compound became a problem as I was unsure about what disruptions or surprises I might encounter while trying to rest. Shortly after the encounter, my sister moved out of the compound because her instinct kept telling her that with the current heat wave, she was bound to get another visit and she totally disliked such surprises.
Love and Light 🤍
Goodness! I'm terrified of even a spider in my room and always keep the hoover handy. Though whether or not you could hoover up a snake, I'm not certain.
Hoovers work perfectly with spiders but I doubt they would with reptiles.
Your story is funny and readable, @wongi. Good thing you had such a helpful neighbor.
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Thank you @theinkwell.