Tangled With A Priest

 "If you don't mind, Father, I'll get back to what I'm doing," Sister Gabriel said. 

 "No, wait! Ummm…. Can I have a word with you?" Ivie stared at Father Chibuike before adding, "In private."

 "Very well then, I shall be the one to leave first," Father Chibuike stepped aside. "Don't forget, Ivie."

 Don't forget what? She screamed in her head. He was making it look like they had a top secret. 

 "What was that about?" Sister Gabriel asked, looking suspicious. 

 "Nothing, Father Chibuike just likes to joke." She shrugged. 

 "Why did you stop me?" She had gone back to her aloof self, putting on her armour of strictness. 

 "I had something to ask you." She knew she was taking a risk that would make Sister Gabriel place her under surveillance, but it was worth the risk. "Do you know of any letter, small letter, squared shape that has sorry written on it?"

 Sister Gabriel was silent for a while, looking at her, contemplating. "What letter are you talking about?"

 Internally, Ivie heart raced. "I felt like I have seen it somewhere."

 "And what does that have to do with me?"

 "I was just wondering if you knew such."

 "I don't," she replied with a straight face. "Did you misplace the letter you were supposed to give your boyfriend, you spoilt thing?"

 She was lying, Ivie knew it. She had been holding the letter, she would definitely know about it. And that she was hiding that fact meant it wasn't an ordinary letter, its content was not something she wanted to be let out. Or maybe she was hiding, content or not, that she had been with the letter. Ivie considered touching her to know what she would be shown, but refrained from it. Instead she asked, "What were you doing by that time at night?"

 Sister Gabriel eyed her. "You're one to talk, and I thought you were sleepwalking, how can you remember everything when you were sleepwalking?"

 Her second cover flew into the air. "God blessed me with good memory." How impressive, when only minutes earlier Father Chibuike had told her how lacking her memory was. 

 "And I hope that memory serves you right." She walked away from her and Ivie exhaled. What an uptight woman. Father Chibuike should have heard her, she wasn't the only one who told lies. 

 She sighed. She should shut the queasiness in her gut and forget about her encounter with Sister Gabriel, but— "Just where did I see this?" She asked aloud and brought out a pack of gum. Then she left the class and joined her friends as they waited for the next class. 

 "Did you and Father Chibuike confess how much you despise each other when he caught you yesterday in the woods?" Itohan asked her. 

 "Tell me about it," she sighed and blew a bubble. "I mean, how can a priest behave like that?"

 "I like him though," Gaga said. "He's free spirited."

 "That's because he's not rubbing your spit on his fingers."

 "What erotic images you are putting in my head," she smiled slyly. 

 "Jesus Christ Gaga, he's a priest!"

 The others laughed. "Gaga does not care for things like that," JohnMary said. 

 "Don't you think these people get horny at times. I think they should be allowed to have sex once in a while."

 "You're saying utter nonsense, Gaga. If you've decided to give yourself to God, you should be faithful to him."

 "But don't you think God gets horny too," she joked, laughing. "I mean, we're created in his image, every natural thing we do is suppose to be reflective of Him, right?"

 "Somebody should tell Gaga to shut up." She rolled her eyes. 

 "Hey, Ivie." JohnMary called, throwing a packet of cigar at her. 

 She caught it mid air and smiled. "Ooo, that's why I like you."

 "If you're free, let's meet up later in the woods." 

 "Sounds perfect." She secured the cigarette pack in her bag. "I wanted to ask, do you guys remember anything about a small white envelope, it looks like a letter and the word 'Sorry' was written on the front."

 "You don't remember? We talked about it a lot," Gaga said. 

 "You know?" She felt bile rise to her throat. 

 "It was the suicide note found on Precious's corpse."

———

 Father Chibuike walked, with his hands to his back, to his office, a pleasant smile plastered on his face which he offered to the students who stopped to greet him. Such love. It seemed the whole school welcomed him with open arms, one even pronounced her love for him on a placard. Wasn't he blessed?

 He entered his office and shut the door behind him. It was a small office with one window. He had placed the shelf by the edge of the wall and filled it with books. His table was pushed to the middle of the room. And the small space that was left he suited a two sitter and one sitter couch, facing each other. He had managed the space well, and it wasn't stuffed at all. He felt smug about it. 

 From behind the shelf, something jumped out from hiding and raced to meet him. He crouched to meet the two coloured eye cat and scratched its head

 "Amaka, pooshi-pooshi." The cat purred and rubbed its head against him. Father Chibuike laughed. "I heard you walked around last night troubling those who slept?" 

 The cat laid at his feet. 

 "Is it out of pure coincidence that you troubled Ivie or you can now read my mind?" 

 The cat rested its head to the ground, but rose up as immediately when it heard footsteps. It dashed back to hide behind the shelf when the steps became more audible. 

 "Hola," the priest who entered greeted, his accent anything but Spanish. 

 "To what do I owe this visit, Ekene?"

 Father Ekene slumped into the sofa. "Agatha is mad at me."

 "She's always mad at you, you shouldn't be surprised."

 "It's different this time, I can feel it," he complained. 

 "You always say that when you two are having a fight." He sat on the chair behind desk, watching the other priest. 

 "She gets angry at everything I do."

 "Which is a good thing for you, it shows she likes you. I don't think Agatha would notice it if I died, but she can hear the sound of you coughing from miles away. You should cut her some slack, it's not any easy for her."

 He sighed. "Where did that daughter of Jezebel you have as a cat go to?"

 He tsked. "You all keep using bad words on her, told you Amaka doesn't like it."

 "You all?" He asked. "Has anyone found out this soon? You know you can risk this getting out."

 He shrugged. "The girl who came to the detention yesterday, confirm if she's the same girl who would come today, or the real Ivie would come." After he saw her to her class the previous day, he had gone to Father Ekene who was in charge of detention and told him to expect a visitor, and after the detention he had asked him if Ivie came. She had, but with a different face.