“Stupid, Rubbish NYSC.” 

Kikelomo cursed under her breath as she struggled to carry the large pile of books into the staff’s office. It was after work, all the teachers had left in the staff bus, leaving her to do all the work. NYSC was just another name for being a housegirl. 

Her foot hit the door and she let out a long cuss. 

“God abeg!” She threw the books to the floor, and inspected her foot,” Out of all places to go? In Osun state? For God’s sake!”

She knew that her father was trying to punish her for not getting the result he desired in university. He had made sure that she would serve in Abeokuta, worse in her uncle’s mainstream school. No matter how much she tried to run away, her parents had made up their minds. Boujee Kikelomo needed to serve in another town, understand what it meant to be responsible, and care for others other than herself and her boujee friends. 

“What if I die in this state?!” Kikelomo continued to complain about her fate,” Maybe I should try to commit suicide and manipulate them?” 

She was so deep in her complaint that she didn’t know who was in the staff room. Derek Williams, the English teacher at St. Jonah High School was seated by the side, watching her complain and whine. 

He had heard that the new staff was boujee but had no idea how much she was. She had come in two days ago and complained about almost everything. She was not like the other NYSC corpers they brought in here. 

“Stupid school, stupid workers.”

“Ah.” That’s when Derek had to talk. Kikelomo turned on her heels immediately, facing Derek. Realizing that he had witnessed all she said, She pouted,” Mr. Derek.”

“How is it going?” He asked with a smirk. Normally, Kikelomo would have scoffed at him and said,” Why are you laughing? What’s making you laugh?” 

Instead, she gave a warm smile,” Sir.” 

“Something tells me you’re not happy here.”

You must be so smart. Kikelomo only chuckled in response. She grabbed her books, ready to leave. 

“There is a reason you are here.” He stopped her from leaving. 

“Yes, the 33k that the Government thinks I so desperately need and my parents’ banishing me here.” Kikelomo plastered a fake smile on her face. Derek spoke up before she could leave,” No, something much more, Kikelomo.”

She narrowed her brows at his overly serious demeanor. She shrugged,” we will see.”

Stepping into the hallway, she saw a tall dark boy pacing back and forth. Once they locked eye contact, he moved away. Kikelomo continued to watch him pace back and forth frantically. Some boys stepped out of the classroom, laughing and jeering about PlayStation. One of them noticed the tall boy and shoved him aside,” Stupid Chinedu!”

The defenseless boy only covered his ears in reception to the taunting. He tried to move away, but the little bully stood in his way. Soon, they all ganged up on him. The warrior in Kikelomo arose and was ready to fight, until….

“Kikelomo, please can I see you concerning that dressing?”

Kikelomo turned to the assistant head teacher, Mrs. Gladys in a long overflowing skirt and terrible makeup, and scoffed,” What dressing?”

The woman named Agnes frowned,” Now, please.” 

Kikelomo resisted the urge to roll her eyes and walked towards the office,” Yes, ma.” 

As she walked forward, she turned back to see the boy’s pitiful face as he was dragged by his classmates. One of the many things wrong with Nigeria. 

&&

“Bullies deserve a place in Hell.” Kikelomo cursed under her breath. 

Kikelomo couldn’t get the image of the boys bullying Chinedu out of her mind; It was a sight that hit close to home. Chinedu reminded her of a classmate who was deafmute and always walked around in circles. He didn’t understand what was said to him and didn’t socialize with his mates. 

Chinedu reminded her of Ramsey. Ramsey was later taken out of school by his parents and judging by how uneducated they were, the boy probably never went back to school. It annoyed her that no one thought about Ramsey and how much potential he had. 

Something told her that Chiendu was going to have the same fate. He was going through bullying and worse, none of the teachers did anything about it. 

“That boy?” Sneered Mr. Dauda,” Chinedu is just not meant for this school… In fact, any school.”

“Then why not advise the parents to take him out?” Kikelomo had suggested. The other teachers laughed and chuckled at her suggestion. The chuckling translated to “We need their money”

Typical Nigerians. They didn’t understand or care about anyone. People who had disabilities were always at a disadvantage. It wasn’t fair. 

But Kikelomo wasn’t here to play Wonder Woman and fight for the rights of a boy she didn’t know. She just wanted to live through NYSC without killing herself or someone else.  

But something happened that changed her mind. 

She was walking through the hallway when she heard shouting. She traced the screaming to the classroom. All she had to do was to check through the window. One of the teachers, Mr. Badmus, was thrashing Chinedu with a thin cane. The boy wriggled in pain, trying to avoid his hits. Mr. Badmus repeated at each lash,” Learn how to do your Maths! Learn how to do your maths!”

Kikelomo just had to do something. 

&&&

“We don’t hit children like goats!” Kikelomo cried out to the headmaster and uncle, Deolu. 

Deolu groaned and removed his fragile glasses; He thought that Kiklomo’s stay was going to be okay and problem-free. He had heard from his brother that she was hardworking and very confident, but all he had was complaints about the dress code, her subtle shades to other teachers, and her smart comments. Now, she was fighting for a student who had no potential. 

“Kikelomo, I understand-”

“No, you don’t.” She fumed and then smiled, changing to a honeyed tone,” With all due respect sir, you don’t.”

She sat back down, opposite him,” This is not fair. That boy has been bullied, by classmates, by the teachers here and I’m wondering…. don’t you people care? Is that how your school treats people that are different?”

Deolu leaned back on his chair,” Kikelomo, this boy doesn’t read and write. He doesn’t know what to do, what to say, he hits himself, he causes distractions-”

“He has Autism.” Kikelomo cut in by setting the record straight. Deolu shrugged,” I don’t understand?”

“It’s a neurodevelopmental disorder.” She said but Deolu still looked confused. She frowned,” It is a disorder that affects his brain. His brain is wired differently.”

Deolu scoffed,” Many think he has no brain.”

“He learns differently,” Kikelomo softly explained,” He can learn, but he just needs patience, care… love, and a lot of determination.”

Deolu sighed,” Just like Heaven helps those who help themselves, we help the students who want to learn. We cannot force people to do what they ought to. We are teachers, not superheroes,”

Deolu returned to looking at graded papers. Kikelomo scoffed,” What does that mean?”

“I want you focused on your work.” Deolu said,” Not on anything else, Kikelomo. He is not worth it.”

Kikelomo never really liked her extended family members, because she thought they were pretentious, but never knew they lacked sense. 

Kikelomo slowly stood up and muttered under her breath,” No, you’re not worth it.”

With that, she turned around and left. But she knew that the conversation wasn’t over yet. Her uncle, the head teacher of a school that was meant to tailor every need, would hear her out. 

The next morning, Kiklomo woke up with determination ready to fight for justice- in her sense. Luckily for her, Chinedu was in the midst of the same boys who were making fun of him yesterday. This time around, he was in distress. His hands were over his ears, he was crying and fussing, and pacing around in circles. 

John, the bullying gang leader, said to him,” You this stupid boy!”

“Hmm, he smells.” One of the girls said and smacked him on the back. John and the rest laughed. Everyone began to give him slaps. Kikelomo’s hand shuddered, with the urge to rip apart all of those children. But she was a staff member now and she had to handle things well.

She walked in their midst. Once one of them noticed her, they all kept serious. They tried to act as though nothing was going on, but she knew. CHinedu was still pacing back and forth, crying. 

“Let’s go back to class guys.” John tried to make a run for it, but Kikelomo was smarter. She eyed them and said,” In what world?”

&&&

Kikelomo observed from the class window the status of the punishment. John and his bullying crew were kneeling, with hands up. She glanced up at the scorching sun and smiled,” Thank You, God.”

That was a good enough punishment for them. She turned away to face Chinedu who was seated on a chair. She tried to hold him, but his hands swayed away. 

She smiled, looking at him swaying the piece of paper from the right to the left. 

Autism. 

While everyone thought that Chinedu was a moron, and a waste of time, the boy was different but not less. Mr. Derek barged into the room with a frown,” Kikelomo, did you punish those children out there?”

“Yes.” Kikelomo stood up with a smirk on her face and put her hands on her hips. Derek tried not to get intimidated by her pose,” Why?”

“They were bullying Chinedu.” She responded. 

“That’s why?”

“I’m sorry. Is it every one of you that approves of bullying in this school?” She knew Uncle Deolu was old and gray and lacked proper sense, but Derek still seemed young. Or was he a stupid old man in a young person’s body?

“No, but…” Derek sighed,” Chinedu is special, they are all friends, they just play with him.”

“Oh, and I thought you were smart, Mr. Derek.” Kikelomo shook her head.

“What does that mean?” Derek frowned. Kikelomo shrugged and delivered a jab,” It sounds like you have no emotional intelligence.”

“If you attempt to fight for him, you will be fighting with everyone.” He let her know,” Chinedu is….”

“Autistic.”

“I know.”

“Do you?” Kikelomo pursed her lips,” Because It seems as though this school doesn’t. He is special. He sees the world differently. He needs care, love, and patience and you people treat him like he doesn’t matter!” 

Derek understood that an upset Kikelomo would be worse than normal. He shook his head,” I don’t mean to upset you.”

Too late. Kikelomo was already upset. She scoffed and turned away. A teacher came in,” Chinedu.”

The boy shivered. “Your mother is here.” 

Chinedu stood up, grabbed his bag, and walked away. Kikelomo thought of something. She rushed out of the door, without thinking it through properly. Chinedu’s face erupted in smiles as soon as he saw his mother. His mother, Diana had a tired expression but once she saw him, she smiled.

Kikelomo stretched out her hand to the woman and smiled,” Good day ma, I’m Chinedu’s teacher. Do you mind if we can talk?”

&&&

“I don’t think he is worth it.” 

Kikelomo’s heart broke at the opinion Chinedu’s mother had of him. The woman named Diana broke down in tears,” I love my son, I love him so much.”

“But…” She sniffled. Kikelomo wasn’t always the affectionate type, but she held the woman’s hands.

“This is the third school this year. I don’t know how to handle it. He doesn't read, write, or barely listens to me. I don’t know what to do anymore.” She cried out. 

“But children like him learn, I’ve seen it. It’s on television, I’ve seen it happen myself…”

Diana shook her head while cleaning her tears” Not my son.” 

Diana further explained that her husband had given up on Chinedu and didn’t pay for his school fees anymore. He barely stayed at home, because he didn’t want to see how much of a failure Chinedu was. 

That’s when Kikelomo knew that something had to be done. She came from a place that believed anything was possible, and it was wrong for a mother to not believe her child could do anything.

So Kikelomo gave herself the mission “Mission Chinedu”. She was going to make everyone eat their words. So, she decided to take him each day to read and write. At first, it was tough. Chinedu didn’t want to read or write, he would throw meltdowns, he would hit himself… He was unwilling. But like Ramsey, he deserved a chance.  

Kikelomo sat opposite him after giving him a bottle of water. She watched him drown everything in a matter of seconds. He gave her the bottle,” Here.”

Kikelomo sighed, feeling extremely tired. Mission Chinedu was not an easy one. Chinedu barely understood a word she said and often lashed out. 

She opened her mouth ready to tell him that they should take the day off but Derek stepped in. 

She turned to him and replaced her exhausted facial expression with that of sass. She looked at him from top to bottom, psyching him out. She had been hearing all the teachers making fun of her because she was trying to help Chinedu. 

She didn’t care what they thought, she knew her goal.

“I’m not here to fight.” Derek raised his hands in peace. Kikelomo pursed her lips,” Then, what is it?”

“You’re a corper, you know that there are things to attend to,” He reminded her. Kikelomo scoffed,” Like what? Going to buy Amala for you and your bunch of old teachers or fetching coffee, or in this case, poor quality cocoa drinks.”

Derek narrowed his brows at her sass. He took a deep breath,” Okay.” 

He dropped a book on the table,” Do you know what Chinedu draws?”

Kikelomo opened the book and began to flip through. She saw drawings of flowers, dogs, and plants. She glanced at Chinedu who was doodling on a piece of paper. That was it! Chinedu didn’t learn the normal way like other students do, he was a visual learner. 

Kikelomo, who didn’t give anyone her iPad, was sharing it with an Autistic boy she barely knew. She would teach him things, and make him listen to recorded learning sessions. 

Slowly, her enthusiasm and dedication got people to be on her side. It started with Derek, helping out when Chinedu had meltdowns and then, the physical education teacher, Jonah who was a musical genius saw that Chinedu’s hummings were songs in disguise. He then started helping Chinedu to learn how to play the piano. 

When Chinedu answered a question in health class, everyone knew something. Chinedu could learn. He could write. All that had to be created was time and patience and someone ready to say. “I’m not giving up on you.”

Kikelomo knew there would be more Chinedus so she was out to get them one by one, make them feel better, and love them the way they needed to be loved. 

At NYSC, which she greatly despised, she found her purpose, which was to help in special education. 

“I thought he was an idiot,” Deolu whispered to Mrs. Gladys, as he watched Chinedu paint on the easel. Today, all the children were painting and Deolu had to see for himself what Kikelomo had done with Chinedu. How she was able to make him sit in class and participate. 

“Same.” Mrs. Gladys shrugged. 

Kikelomo chuckled loudly and they both turned back to her. She smiled,” I mean, I think the idiots in this story are the people who never believed in him.”

Gladys was still confused by her response, but Deolu knew his niece and indirectly, she meant,” He’s not the idiot, you are.”