BRAND NEW

BRAND NEW

I wore my PRIDE-emblazoned T-shirt out that day, and the conversation that ensued was simple.

We were standing in the elevator, me on one side, and the two of them, seemingly a couple, on the other side.

The elevator doors had barely shut, when the boyfriend glanced at my T-shirt and blurted out, while pointing, “That’s the colour for those LGBT people, isn’t it?”

“It is,” I said, my expression genial.

“They are very rare, aren’t they?” he asked.

“Who?”

“LGBT people.”

I chuckled. His girlfriend’s sharp gaze was shooting from me to him, back to me, then to him, looking like she could not make sense of why a conversation is suddenly happening between her man and this stranger on this topic.

“They are everywhere,” I responded.

“You support them?” he asked, looking surprised.

I was amused by his surprise. “I am wearing their colour, am I not?”

A beat passed, and then he asked the next question I was waiting for him to ask.

“Are you one of them?”

“Yes,” I said simply.

His eyes widened with heightened surprise – whether at my admission or the fact that he was standing before a real, life alien–sorry, LGBT person, I don’t know.

“Which one are you?” he asked, looking very fascinated.

I nearly burst out into laughter. I was starting to feel like an object that a scientist is on the verge of discovering.

“The G,” I said. “I’m gay.”

“Wow,” he said. “Wow,” he said again. “That’s so cool.”

His girlfriend’s gaze was swiveling even faster now. She looked like she wanted to investigate why her man found this stranger being gay “so cool”. She inched close to him, snuggling into his side with an insistence that caused him to lift his hand and place it on her shoulder, drawing her closer.

The elevator pinged and the doors glided open onto their floor.

“Congratulations,” he said to me as they stepped out.

I chuckled again. Congratulations? That’s a new one.

“Thank you,” I called after him.

He turned his head to flash me a brief smile, just as the elevator doors slid shut.

Written by Pink Panther

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10 Comments

  1. Kings
    July 09, 21:54 Reply

    It seems like uncle would have loved to be friends with you except for the presence of his gf

  2. Loki
    July 09, 22:56 Reply

    Pinky please tell me dat u later searched for dat guy and collected his number?😯.
    I await d rest of dis intriguing tale sha. No disappoint me at all

  3. Francis
    July 09, 23:20 Reply

    🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Gosh I would have loved to watch her expressions

    • Pink Panther
      July 10, 05:47 Reply

      Aunty looked like she was going to sit her man down and ask him some serious questions. 🤣🤣🤣

  4. Danté
    July 10, 17:58 Reply

    “which one are you?”

    This!!!😂🤣… This was very funny.

  5. Koko
    July 11, 16:54 Reply

    I guess he was congratulating you for being able to live your life. He wished either himself or less probably someone he knows would live the same life without bothering.

  6. Tiger fang
    July 15, 10:38 Reply

    this incident reminded me of something that happened to me years ago. I was attending the funeral of a friend’s brother in his home town and there were so many people ( mostly young) in attendance. My friends family ran a hotel in their home town and that was where we all had lodged. It so happened that we had gathered to chit-chat at the bar downstairs when my friends younger sister (who had already exhibited her nosy sharp tongued character all through our journey) turned to me out of the blues and asked – “do you have a girlfriend?” before I could answer, she added – “the reason why I am asking is because these days all the fine guys are gay”. Sitting beside her was a guy who evidently was her guest( or boyfriend). He was clearly embarrassed at her behaviour and was trying to apologise but I cut him short into his apology. I looked the girl straight in the eye and asked her if she has a problem with gay people. Wanting to play defensive, she asked why I was being defensive and angry if I wasn’t gay. “I am gay and I find your behaviour rude”. To my surprise, the guy extended his hand for a hand shake as he said “bros, you too much. Own it mhen… nothing dey happen”. Madam kept shrugging her shoulders and muttering “hmm” to herself.

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