NOVELS.

That word was the most used word in my vocabulary. I hear that word and my body literally vibrates. You mention the word and you've gotten my full attention. My life completely revolved around that word novel. There was no place I went to that you wouldn't see me with a novel; is it at school, at church, in the yard, in the toilet... Where? You just name it. Don't even mention my room because that was literally a library stacked with tons of novels. I particularly preferred the romance genres. You might have guessed already, I was a hopeless romantic. I mean, I was the girl invisible to every male homosapien and I was yet to understand why. What was it about other girls that I didn't have?

First off, I was a normal female, which means I possessed every feature that normal females ought to possess, needless to mention what those are.

Secondly, I was beautiful if I dare to say so myself. Mum always told me so and I never even doubted her because whenever I looked in the mirror, I liked what I always saw. So the question is, why didn't any guy notice me?

Well, it really didn't matter much to me anymore because I had an imagination that was as wide as the sky. So even if in reality I was the girl no guy ever noticed, in my head I was the girl every guy wanted as a girlfriend, which was the reason I loved to read those cliché romance novels where all the guys flocks to the female main character — who in my head was always me — but then she chooses to be with the male character that every other girl swoons over. In the end, the main characters both end up with each other, to the chagrin of the other characters. But what do we care? That is how we always want it to be, even in our real lives — fair and rosy. However, real life itself is never fair and definitely not rosy. We never always get what we want. But maybe what we want isn't what we need and what we should have at the time we want it.

Just maybe.

Anyway, back to me and my addiction for novels.

"Can't you watch your way?" My face was buried in a Nora Robert novel while I walked along the hallway to my class that I didn't notice a teacher was in front of me already. If she hadn't spoken, I would have most definitely bumped into her. It wasn't a new thing. I often bumped into people whenever I was with a novel. And I was always with a novel. But unlike the other times, this was the first time I was bumping into a teacher. And not just any teacher, but a teacher that was aware of my obsession for novels.

"I'm so sorry ma." I apologized, holding the novel behind me.

"You and novels! You'd read novels in the classroom while classes are going on and you'd still be walking and reading novels. What is your problem with novels? Are you cursed with it?"

"I'm sorry ma," was all I could say. I didn't want her to confiscate the novel like she did my other one in class.

"Sorry for yourself. If I hadn't spoken, that's how you'd have hit me. Hand me the novel." She extended her hand towards me.

"Please ma." I begged.

"Now!"

But my pleas fell on deaf ears. I handed her the novel hesitantly and she walked away with it, while I watched her with tears welled up in my eyes. I just wanted to know how the novel ended.

The day dragged on slowly with a series of what I call dry classes. Could the classes just end already so I could read the other novel I had in my bag? Yes, I always had an extra novel in my bag just in case I finished one, I could read the other. Or in some other cases like today, when one is seized, I would have another to engross myself in. Just in case you're wondering when my penchant for novels started, well when other kids in primary school were stealing pencils, sharpener and erasers, I was stealing children story books and novelette. That is as far as I can remember.

"Natasha! Tasha!"

"Huh?" I jerked as Bose, my seat partner and my best friend, tapped my arm as she called my name. She gestured for me to look to the front of the class. Oh no! I zoned out again in the class. The biology teacher and all students seated in front of me were facing me. I was actually a class backbencher, but I wasn't dumb. Neither was I a straight A student. I was just average.

"What were you thinking about Natasha that you didn't hear me calling you till Bose had to tap you?" Mr Adeniji asked. He was a handsome young male teacher that many girls liked to flock to.

I was at a loss for words. This was a very embarrassing moment for me.

"She was thinking of her boyfriend?" Wole, the class most notorious student, replied. There was an uproar of laughter amongst some students that found it funny.

He wasn't completely wrong though. I was actually daydreaming about my crush David, who was my boyfriend in my head. David was in my class, as a matter of fact, he was one of those that laughed to what Wole said. He was my crush because he was caramel skinned, had pink bottom lip, was handsome as hades- I mean, who crushes on ugly guys? He was the overall smartest kid in the whole of ss3- for crying out loud, he was the head boy! He had a good physique and to cap it all, he had an American accent! According to what I heard, his mum is American while his dad is Nigerian, but he spent his toddler days in America.

David was the perfect one for me, but technically, he was in a relationship with my best friend Bose. How sweet! Note the sarcasm. He and Bose liked to be in each other's space all the time. Bose thought I didn't have any other friend asides her and so she always tagged me along to wherever she and David were going- even on dates- so I don't feel left out. But what she didn't know was that I never felt left out. I had so many novels to occupy myself with. In fact, I preferred that to seeing Bose and my boyfriend- I'm sure you know what I mean- having fun together and making out. That made me feel more tortured and left out.

"That's if she even has a boyfriend." Someone in the class said, but I don't know who.

I was offended. One of my deal breakers: Don't rub my single relationship status on my face! I can kill you- well in my head.

"Okay enough already guys." Mr Adeniji quieted the class. "Natasha get up and explain all that I've taught you today."

I stood up and said, "I can't."

"You can't? And you even have the gut to say it." Mr Adeniji sounded irritated, but so was I. Another thing you must know about me is that I could be very cheeky and nonchalant when offended.

Hushed whispers ensued in the classroom.

"Remain standing till the end of the class." Mr Adeniji said. He didn't flog me only because I was a girl. If it were a boy that was rude to him, he wouldn't have even hesitated to use his cane on him. He was biased towards the female gender.

***

"Why were you that blunt towards Mr Adeniji?" Bose asked during break period. We were standing in front of our class.

"You know how much I hate it when someone rubs my single status on my face."

"Oh! But why don't you have a boyfriend though?"

"How many times will you ask me that question Bose? I don't want to have one. Is it that difficult to comprehend?"

"But why does it offend you so much when people rub it on your face that you don't."

"Because they make it seem like I'm not fit to have a boyfriend- like no guy ever notices me. It's freaking annoying!"

"But really, do- never mind."

"But really what?" I probed, my eyes squinting.

"Never mind. That reminds me, there's this new novel I read recently and boy, it's very interesting! I'm sure you're gonna love it."

I'm sure she said that to take away my attention from our previous conversation and she won because like I mentioned before, there's nothing that drew my attention like novels.

"What's the title and where's it?" I asked with excitement.

"It's in my bag and the title is Impeccable Love. It talks about-"

Before she said anymore, I ran into the classroom and dived into her bag to get the novel. When I found it, I hugged it on my chest and then flipped through the pages, inhaling the smell. It smelled of old books and that was the type I loved. As I started reading the blurb, Bose snatched the book from my hand.

"What is wrong with you and novels? I had not even finished talking and you just ran here to take the book from my bag. What insolence!"

"Okay, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Please can you give me the book now?"

"No, not yet. You got to do something for me first."

Just then, David came behind Bose, signaled for me to keep quiet and then he covered her eyes. That was a cue for me to snatch back the novel from Bose and then I excused the "couples" to play with each other. Last thing I wanted was to get jealous seeing them together.

I read the blurb outside the class and it was so intriguing. I couldn't wait to start reading.

When I got back home, I quickly went into my room and took off my bag and tossed it on the bed. I pulled my school uniform and slipped into a pink top and a jean mini skirt. As I was going to take out the recent novel I just collected from my bag, mum called me from downstairs.

"Tasha, come down and have dinner!" Mum hollered.

"Oh dinner." I drawled and shuffled my way downstairs.

Let me talk about my family a little. So I had a single parent which was my mum and an annoying little brother named Joshua. That made three of us in the house. My dad died of a terrible fever a year after Joshua was born. I was very little then- like five- and I didn't even cry about his death. Not like I didn't like my dad or anything, maybe it was because I didn't understand that I had lost him forever and I was never going to see him again. It was while growing up and I heard others talk about their dad that I started to miss mine and it made me cry whenever I thought about him. And I was mad at God for taking my father away from me, even when I was a good girl.

Anyways, ever since dad died, mum had been an hardworking single parent who made sure Joshua and I lacked nothing. She was a teacher who taught in Joshua's primary school so it was easy for her to make out time for him and me.

Mum relationship status had been single since dad's death, but recently I had been seeing her with another man and I guessed he was her boyfriend. But I didn't care. She could be in a relationship with another man, it didn't matter. As long as she was happy. It isn't easy to be single for that long. I was in her shoe so I knew what it felt like.

"Why are you rushing your food Tasha?" Mum asked. We were having spaghetti for dinner.

"I have test tomorrow, so I have to read." I lied.

"It doesn't mean you're going to rush your food. I mean, it's just a test. And how many times are you going to write test this session?"

"I'm in ss3 mum, so this session is quite different."

"You're in ss3 is the reason you're not supposed to have test. You're supposed to be preparing for your WAEC exam."

"The test is in preparation for the exam mum. Besides, you don't know how things work in my school."

"Okay, okay. Just don't rush your food."

I ate a little more slowly to avoid any further questions. I just couldn't wait to lock myself in my room and read the new novel.

"I know Tasha doesn't want to read for a test. She wants to read a novel." Joshua said. Mum and I turned to look at him and then we looked at each other.

"Shut up Joshua! Mum don't mind him. He doesn't know what he's saying." I shot Joshua a glare and he smirked mischievously. Did I not mention he was annoying?

After lunch, I washed my plate and quickly went to my room and locked myself in. I took out the new novel from my bag and opened the first page as I sat on my bed to read.

___________________________________________

How was the first chapter?
I'm sure many girls here can relate to Natasha obsession for novels.
I have a female friend that loves novels like Natasha but isn't as extreme.

Question of the day: movies or novels?