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One fifty five (1:55)

Ever since I moved to Lagos, I had looked for a place to be perfectly comfortable for me. All the previous places I had lived in always had one fault or the other that made them not just my 'perfect place'. Lately, my agent informed me about a new self-contained apartment, the building had good security, constant water supply and the electricity was not too bad for a Nigerian to manage as they say 'E go better'.

As fast as the Wi-fi in University of Nigeria Nsukka, I had paid the rent and moved in. So now each morning as I knot my tie and carry my brief case, I hold my head high. A cool residential area and house has a way of lifting your spirit and I now had this feeling of one living in El-dorado.

The week had been tedious, so I came back today from work with so much to be done and the deadline hanging loosely like an hangman's noose and waiting to strangle me. My fingers pranced like an antelope on the run on my Apple laptop keyboard while my middle finger pressed the 'Enter key' intermittently. My sleep-deprived eyes stared into the screen lazily, the supply of electricity had been steady that night, it made the work easier.
Soon my mouth expanded in a yawn, I decided to sleep for at least two hours and continue later. I cleared my table and observed a paper that I had picked at my doorstep, it had 1:55 boldly written on it, I have a smirk on my face, it must have been from the babe living upstairs, probably she was hoping to have checked on me by that time but I was at work, I was not even ready for a 'neighbourly' fling or romance.

I stretched my tired arms and yawned once again then dawdled to the toilet. I stared at my tired face in the mirror then close my eyes to splash water over it from the tap, I open my eyes and see blood flowing out of the tap.
I shake my head in disbelief, close the tap and open it again, Yea! It's blood.

Frightened to the marrow, I rush to the room to wear my trousers and the light goes off, it comes on again.
The wind blows an eerie whisper, the hinges voluntarily swings the windows back and forth, the thunder rumbles, the gateman's roof makes squeaky noises and the dog in the next compound barks maliciously. My heart beat increases and my heart intends to jump out of my chest.

I grab the car keys and a flash light, I rush down the stairs nearly tumbling over the rails. I get to the last stairs and bump into a lady, I flash the light at her, she adorned a flowered frock, red lipstick, a pointed nose and two holes instead of eyes.

"1:55" , she said in an eerie whisper, my torchlight dropped and there was a black out.

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