The Boy at Locker 214
The morning sun hadn't fully burned off the mist that clung to the courtyard of Lagos Preparatory Academy, and already the air buzzed with something electric, something that had nothing to do with the weather. Oba Adewale stood in her usual spot in the assembly line, third row from the front, right beside Chidinma, who was fanning herself with a folded sheet of paper despite the coolness of the hour.
"Did you hear?" Chidinma whispered, leaning close enough that her braids brushed against Oba's shoulder. "The new boy. Everybody's saying his father owns, like, half of Victoria Island."
Oba rolled her eyes, though a small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Half of Victoria Island. Right. Last week it was half of Lekki, and the week before that, somebody swore his uncle was a senator."
"I'm just saying what I heard." Chidinma shrugged, unbothered by the skepticism. "Ngozi said her cousin knows the family driver. Apparently they moved here from Abuja last month. Big house on Admiralty Way, three cars, the whole works."
"The whole works," Oba repeated flatly, adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder. Her mind was elsewhere—on the stack of past questions waiting for her…
