WHILE WE WERE YET KIDS (Part 4)
FOREWORD: In the beginning of Kito Diaries, I started a non-fictional series about the memories of my childhood gay trysts. The series was titled ‘While We Were Yet Kids’. (Read former episodes HERE, HERE and HERE). I stopped writing when it seemed to me like I couldn’t remember anything else to write about. But I recently stumbled on the series while seeking something in the archives, and suddenly fresh memories came surging through my mind. And so, here I am again with all new episodes.
Read and Enjoy.
*
The first time I knew love – or something like it – I was fourteen years old. And the boy I gave my heart to was the same age. Let’s say his name is Vince Okwoche. I was in SS1B and he was in SS1F. He was one of the most popular boys in my set – tall, good looking, charming and a Lagosian. The Lagosians in my school then (a mix of a few Yorubas and plentiful Igbos who’d been born and bred in Lagos) were either smooth operators or uncouth characters. The smooth operators who could speak Yoruba used the language like it was French, the language of love. Vince was a smooth operator.
I’d always nursed a teensy weensy crush on Vince, right from our JSS3 days, but it was a crush I didn’t let flourish, majorly because I thought he was out of my league. Back then, in JSS3, I was this chubby, soft-spoken, bright-skinned boy whose only comfort was when hidden away behind his storybooks and text books, or when striving to be one of the brilliant students in class. Oh, and I was a darling of the girls, simply the girls’ best friend (Yes, I know, that stereotype fit me like a glove). Plus I was the class captain, and I was in some sort of ‘budding relationship’ with a classmate, Joshua (you know, that kind of relationship where you two like to go everywhere together, even though you’re not in the same hostel, and sit together during prep and laboratory classes, even though you’re not seat partners, and you hold hands when you think no one is watching, but you haven’t kissed because you’re not sure about each other, and you have no courage to have ‘the talk’ even though the signs of affection are there).
So you see? I was way too caught up with my teenage life to let my thing for Vince amount to anything other than a slight yearning from a distance.
And then, we went home earlier than the rest of the school for the JSS3 holidays. And returned to SS1 with our brand new personalities and brand new uniforms…
And brand new attention for me. I don’t know, perhaps it was because I lost most of my baby fat during the holidays or my uniforms were sown to fit me better this time… Perhaps it was because I’d learned how to pout to delicious perfection, or my skin colour was a more supple shade of fairness. Whatever it was, Vince finally began to notice me!
My happiness started when I saw him do a double take the first time he saw me that term. And I felt fresh bursts of this happiness every time I spied him giving me the lingering side-eye. One of the hottest boys in school was noticing me! It gave me such a rush!
But I still had a ‘boyfriend’ (who, by the way, I was yet to share a kiss with), so I had to play it cool.
Then came that night that changed everything!
It was during night prep. Night prep was not often that serious as day prep was. Girls weren’t even permitted to attend the night prep. We only ever took it serious and really studied (or played at studying) whenever prefects were on duty. Otherwise, the night prep was just another extension of the boys’ hostels, with boys milling about, playing, chatting, doing laundry, and just generally being boys.
That night, I was at my seat, which is right next to the window overlooking the thoroughfare that separated the SS1 block from the JSS3 block. I was seated and talking with Joshua, who sat next to me. We were talking about mundane stuff. And then, excitement walked into the classroom in the form of Vince and his clique (The Lagosians loved to move around in groups).
Vince and his gang sauntered over to our corner. Joshua was also Lagosian, and before long, they were all carrying on with a conversation in rapid-fire Yoruba. Their banter was often punctuated with ribald laughter from the other boys and suggestive looks thrown my way by Vince, a phenomenon that made me suspect they were talking about me. Occasionally, Vince would say something to Joshua, who would give an abashed chuckle and deliberately not look my way, while Vince would give me an appraising stare.
Eventually, the caravan left the classroom, and Joshua had to eventually turn to face me.
My next words shot out of my mouth without delay. “You people were talking about me, weren’t you?”
He grimaced, before giving a reluctant “Yes.”
“And what were you saying about me?” With a frown, I added, “And don’t lie to me o.”
He sighed before answering, “Vince started by saying that this one me and you are always together, is anything going on between us. I asked him what he meant by anything. He said I should know what he’s talking about. So I said that me and you are just friends. He acted like he didn’t believe me. But I insisted that we are just friends.”
I should have felt stung by Joshua’s classification of our ‘relationship’ as ‘just friends’. I should have felt irritation, disappointment, something negative over the fact that the boy I was so close to had denied the opportunity to formally brand me his. But I didn’t. Instead I was too keen on what else Vince had to say, too consumed with contemplations over why he was asking questions pertaining to me.
“Yes?” I urged. “What then did he say?”
Joshua ducked his head, the way he did whenever he was about to say something he thought was uncomfortable. Then he replied, “He said that so I mean I haven’t tasted your lips before…”
Sweet God Hallelujah! I thought. Vince said that?
Joshua was still talking. “I said no, that we haven’t kissed because we’re friends. Then he said that I’m dulling. And that’s when they left.”
My face was flushed and my entire body felt hot, in spite of the cool draft wafting in through the window next to me. A gamut of thoughts raced through my mind – about Vince, about his possible interest, about my lips, about his lips, about what all these could mean.
“Are you angry?” Joshua said softly, eyeing me like he couldn’t interpret my flustered expression.
“No, no, no,” I replied. “I’m not. Why would I be angry?” I laughed shortly. “No, I’m not angry.”
Reassured, Joshua nodded, and we carried on talking about other things.
Eventually, the bell for prep over was rung. And Joshua had to go fetch water, so we could return to the hostel. Naturally, we were supposed to go together. But I needed some time to ruminate over my thoughts of Vince and his questions. So I declined going to the borehole with Joshua, giving the excuse that I wasn’t feeling too strong for the trip. I told him I’d be waiting in the classroom for him to return, so we could go back to the hostel together. He nodded his acquiescence and left. And I was left alone to my thoughts amid the loud caper of my classmates.
A few minutes passed before the rustle of footfalls on grass and dried leaves intruded on my solitude. I looked up and at the window, and my heart leaped up into position and took off in a 100metre race before the ‘On your marks, get set, go’ instruction was finished.
On the other side of the window, standing under the argent wash of the moon, was Vince.
He called my name. But my mind was too intent on bringing my heart back to its original position to give me an appropriate response. And even if it had, my mouth was simply too dry to let the words through. So I simply stared back at him.
“Aren’t you going to say something?” he said with his signature crooked grin, which was really just a slight curve of his sensual lips.
“Hi,” I finally managed to say.
“I want to tell you something,” he said.
“Yes?”
He gestured me to lean closer to the window. Evidently he wanted to whisper the something to me. I leaned sideways. He whispered the words. I didn’t hear him, and shook my head at him. He said them again. I still couldn’t hear over the din in the class.
“Okay, give me paper and pen,” he said.
I handed the materials over, passing them through the burglary proofing of the window. He bent over so he could write with the paper placed on his lap. Then he straightened and handed the paper back to me.
I read the words on it, and my heart that had just been recaptured broke free and sprinted off again. My mouth turned dry, as though Harmattan had winnowed off all the saliva.
The words I’d just read were seven letters: I want to kiss you right now.
TO BE CONTINUED.
Written by Pink Panther
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50 Comments
ken
December 12, 05:51Wow! As I was reading all I kept praying for is let this not be one of those silly fantasy story that in the end it will be a dream! Lol
So PP, e don tey since ur market de sell ba? That una school sef na wa o. They way the guys just be discussing kissing each other without any shame or “homo” accusation tied to it. Infact I think I can gueSs which school this is. Cos back in the day we used to hear stories of that particular notorious boarding school in lag. And I remembering wishing I was enrolled there. Lol
Pink Panther
December 12, 05:55Hahahahahahahaaa!!! Tbh, the notoriety of my school really went a long way. But for y’all to have heard about it all the way in Lagos? Otiooo!
Mandy
December 12, 05:58ken, you for kuku tell your papa say you wan change school nah. How could u hear the stories and not want to get into the action?
Pink Panther
December 12, 05:59And I’m the hoe-ly one.
Ok. lol
Mandy
December 12, 05:56Oh this series is BACK! Awesome! So, Pinky, you were a hoe at 14 eh? Ah, mogbe o! Pastor Maximus, there’s no saving this one. His hoe-ly ways go way back.
Ruby
December 12, 06:01This isnorray small matket selling somting…
Hmmmmmmm… Pinky Pinky!!!
Pink Panther
December 12, 06:02Na wetin? 😀
JBoy
December 12, 06:27Okay.
The descriptive…I know Vincent and I think I know ‘Car Wash’ Joshua.
*trembling feet* Why are you taking me this back?
*doing sign of the cross*
Fix this, Ebenezer.
Brian Collins
December 12, 06:41If Jboy too was there then it had to be teenage gay sluts.
Pink Panther
December 12, 06:46Hahahahahahahahahaa! The thunder that’ll fire you is on its way back from the market, Brian.
Brian Collins
December 12, 06:39Wait o, was pinky one of those beautiful boys boys wanna test their sexuality with or was that school just full of teenage gay sluts?
Dennis Macaulay
December 12, 06:46Is it Holy ghost college Owerri? Because half of the gay men I know from the east went there
Pink Panther
December 12, 06:54Na. I went to a federal boarding school.
ambivalentone
December 12, 07:09Eziokwu??? How come WE never heard of ur fagging activities? It was KC that was the hotbed of all such activities. The things we heard about that place *shudders* I still av wet dreams imagining what cud av happened if I had gone there
ArabianPrincess
December 12, 10:24KC kwa? Wharraf happun to St. Gregorys or Igbobi College. Moving on
ambivalentone
December 12, 12:06Ehen??? Goes to show that all those who wear white and/or blue hide the dirtiest secrets.
JBoy
December 12, 12:25We wore White et Blue too.
Choi!
The secrets were outta this world.
Sinnex
December 12, 15:03Igbobi College was something else. If guys were dry humping themselves in class during the day, I wonder what happens at night. A school where guys would be touching each other’s dick as a form of greeting. A school where you’d see used condoms everywhere. Mehn, that school was something else. I don’t know if it has changed sha.
This is a school where guys would be begging you to kiss them or to seat on their laps.
The funny thing is that most of the guys who involved themselves in such claim that they don’t remember anything.
Pink Panther
December 13, 06:24Jisox! Are you serious? :O and I thought we had it bad
charly
December 13, 13:00hian. what yr was dat cus dis na d first time I hear of two boys showing public display of affection. sure things happened. what do you expect of horny teenage boys but it wasn’t like that I attended the school for six yrs so I know what am saying. am sure u are one of those people who hear stories from outside and form your own theory.
Maximus
December 12, 07:46No wonder… Cant say I’m surprised.
Actually you should learn from this story;(no matter the amount of people you sleep with, you’ll always want more, forgetting that all of them are all the same).
So lets see, over 16 years worth of dicks at 3 boys per month, thats 576 boys. And thats assuming the frequency remains constant(we all know its not). I think its safe to say that you’ve met most gay people in Nigeria.
ambivalentone
December 12, 07:53and ‘converted’ a few straight ones too. Lol
Pink Panther
December 12, 08:07This is a very poor attempt at shaming me, honey. After all this time being friends, I still don’t know why you keep bothering to try making me see the light — uh, your light.
I love when I love. And I sex when I sex. Accept that or move over biko.
Maximus
December 12, 09:34???? honey, we’ve passed the stage of shaming. You can only shame someone who still feels at least an ounce of it. It’s not about shaming anymore.
Just like we’ll keep trying to bring the homophobes into the light (even though most of them feel dignified doing what they do), we’ll still keep trying to bring hoes into the light, even though most of them have gone too far too be saved. ??
Pink Panther
December 13, 06:25Eh Max, jisie ike, inu? 🙂
Bryce
December 12, 12:42Nnukwu ile ifele n’afia,golu emechi
#TeamKizito
December 12, 07:46Hehehe. Oh, pinkness.
McGray
December 12, 08:02And Pinky m writing to u too: I want to kiss you today
Pink Panther
December 12, 08:09LMAO!!! Yea right.
Chizzie
December 12, 08:17I thought this was going to be one of this those child sex things which is actually gross, but this was nice. And isn’t this is what every 14yr old gay boy fantasizes about? I was such a despicable skinny and pimple ridden teen growing up so I never got to experience stuff like this, so, good for you PP. And see why it always pays to be light skinned?
Pink Panther
December 12, 08:27LOL!
Kai, Chizzie. You never resist an opportunity to push your Whitenicious agenda, do you?
McGray
December 12, 10:09So y’all those wanting to skin Chizzie alive should know. If Chizzie could say something like this about himself do u expect him to serve u Champagne with bootilicious goodies? This dude is my favorite on dis blog, well after Pinky and St. Max.
ambivalentone
December 12, 14:10so because he has (or had) a low self esteem, we should roll out drums when his caustic words very well destroy other less confident ppl? How very…’nice’ of u.
Khaleesi
December 12, 08:22Chaiii … I also went to a boarding high school, i had romp-buddies but we were never this open about our business, we liked to act like it never happened, we were all hush hush about it all … But this … Is a whole new level!
To all those who went to day schools, i feel terribly sorry on your behalf – you missed out on a fun and carefree phase of life that’s gone for good – that will never ever come back, a phase i constantly miss, I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat, the best years of my life in so many regards …
***grabs old photo albums and sheds nostalgic tears****
McGray
December 12, 10:14Take heart baby, u can still go back if u want as a teacher or as a student, no? **dries ur tears with d back of my palm**
Pink Panther
December 12, 10:20LMAO! McGray, this early Saturday morning?
kacee
December 12, 08:36Wow this is one hot story. Omg i just remembered my days in Command.
Teflondon
December 12, 10:07Wow! This was a tad romantic.. Not really a fan of PPs write ups but I think have finally found a new addiction if this series continues. partly because I could relate with it on so many levels and also because it isn’t make-believe (God knows I hate those make-believes)
This felt like a throw back really. Sometimes I wish I could go back to those boarding school days. That was the only time I felt anything close to true love. Not the fake love we see here and there nowadays.
Let me go engrave myself in the previous series.
McGray
December 12, 10:17Teffy, howdy? Where have u been all this while? Have missed u like Sinnex.
Delle
December 12, 11:41It’s funny how Pink would write something like this with the protagonist being all prim and proper and not ‘hoe-ly’. Lol.
I really do not know how these things happen, like in my secondary school, it was quite difficult identifying those that had homosexual tendencies let alone having a ‘boyfriend’ like this and a crush that eventually wants 2 kiss u.
It was a fun read, but I wish you’d give physical descriptions of the characters (Joshua, Vince and him).
Next episode pleeaassseee!
Santa Diaba
December 12, 14:37Oh this is so yummy. Young hostel love. Brings back so many memories.
I myself lost my virginity at 13 to the hostel bully, so this is relatable
??????
Dickson Clement
December 12, 14:52F.G.C Okigwe!!! I have to be too drunk to be wrong!! But as a guy who attended a different unity school, things were different!! The only gay thing that existed was a senior athlete called Agbo *Unity house* the name even reigned thru out med sch cos 3/4 th of my classmates came from my secondary sch. Agbo became the new word for homosexuality
Stranger
December 12, 23:56Ermm…. Unity house? Was your secondary school somewhere in the north central?
Dickson Clement
December 12, 14:57All those years in secondary school when I wished someone would notice me. I died a thousand death in my lust and spent a million years in wonderland but even the ugliest XY claimed to be straight as a ruler
michael
December 12, 15:12And there I was thinking that CIC is the most gaylicous high school
Am quite lucky to have attended both day and boarding and I must say, in comparism that the boarding part holds more fun memory.
Ģuy
December 15, 06:19Where CIC stands for?
Cho
December 12, 23:30I guess the homo phase in teenage boys is part of puberty bcos many many boys actually have some pseudo-sex expecially in boarding school. Most of all these are outgrown by mid- late teenage years.
Mr PP, you betrayed friendship!
Pink Panther
December 13, 06:20Huh? #confused
Tee
December 13, 00:04Well I can totally relate with the story I went to a boarding school I was a cute and handsome boy well am still anyway adjust halo! some of them seniors tried there possible best to kiss and do stuffs and my mate were terrible had to keep slapping and pushing bodies away from my bed every night till I left secondary school that is!i was that hot….and my school was a mixed school o!lol
WHILE WE WERE YET KIDS (Part 5) | KitoDiaries
January 05, 05:03[…] on While We Were Yet Kids: It was a ghen-ghen moment when one of the hottest boys in my set, Vince, walked up to my window […]