My name is SANGO Juliana and I have a little brother. I live with my dad and mum but they are always fighting because of their busy schedules. They don’t have enough time for each other anymore. Dad runs a local business and mum is a wholesaler. She is always in Dubai and this has created a gap in our family. Lucky for me, I know about it and understand their situation. I pray for them all the time but it is my little brother I am worried about.I am in a private school that has both day and boarding sectors and I am in the boarding section. My family visits me every occasionally. My friend Brenda is in the day sector. Brenda and I become closer and closer by the day. She tells me almost anything.Another friend of mine walked into the room during break-time at school and found me talking to Brenda. She made a slow u-turn with an inquisitive facial expression but never said a word. She probably didn’t want to interrupt I guess. Brenda was telling about how she went for voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) with her boyfriend because they wanted to know their status. She thought it was rare for guys who are dating to do that. Nevertheless, they did it because they were sexually active and condoms are not 100% effective. The tests came out negative for both of them. She was more than happy to share the little secret with me! It made me laugh because in my mind I knew Brenda was quite unstable due to her materialistic ways and was weak when it came to guys with money. Still listening to her escapades, she then tells me about something else that happened about three months prior to our conversation.“Juliana,” she said, “you won’t believe it!! I met this man in Remera. It was raining like a problem when he passed by me at the stage. I was wearing one of my killer outfits. He offered me a ride in his Chevrolet, gave me a face wipe and asked me where I was going. I told him I was going to town to run some errands. [She laughs] He’s eyes were fixed on my chest and legs that he almost ran a red light! On reaching town, he gave me his coat to warm myself as it was chilly and even though I refused, he insisted. I put it on and asked for his number so that I could return it. He said it was fine if I didn’t return it but gave me his number anyway. And by that time, I didn’t even know his name. Two weeks later, he called me. I thought it was his coat wanted but no!! He instead asked me how I was doing like we’d been friends for years. When I spoke about the coat, he said he needed it but I suspect he just wanted to see me. We met in some fancy restaurant in town. He was smart and actually looked much younger. We ate, drank and like a perfect gentleman, offered me transport back home. At first, I was worried he was a sugar daddy but no! He had elegancy, diplomacy and a take-it or leave-it attitude. He did not force anything. Somehow, my feelings for him grew. We scheduled another meeting but for some reason I was scared. Maybe it was because he is way older than me.He has this scar on top of his right eye. It might sound funny but I find it gorgeous. He wears eyeglasses. He is very conservative and doesn’t talk much. He has started helping me out with my financial problems. He texted me last night saying he would like us to go out on Friday night at the new motel in Kimihurura. His name is Martin as I found out later.After Brenda’s narrated story, she realized I was in shock!! She asked me what the problem was and I immediately asked her to show me the text Martin sent her. I checked the number that sent the text and imagine my horror when it turns out to be MY DAD’S NUMBER!! I couldn’t control my tears as I ran out of the room!! She was puzzled but for me, the scar on the right eye and the phone number were enough to know it was him.Why would he do such a thing? What if mum knows or finds out about it? What if mum does or is doing the same thing? What if dad got or gets HIV and he is out infecting young girls? Why would he do such a thing when he also has a daughter of the same age in school? What if Brenda gets pregnant and infects her poor boyfriend Lewis who was gracious enough to go for an HIV test with her? All these questions gnawed at my brain as tears wetted my clothes. Sad it is…CHARACTERS: Brenda (best friend), Juliana (me), Lewis (Brenda’s boyfriend), Martin (my dad/ Brenda’s new boyfriend)
