Sometimes when you look back at the people you crushed on years back, you wonder if you were okay at all.
There was this guy I met years back when I was still a teenager. I just graduated from secondary school and was waiting for admission into the university. Dude was a barber and owned a shop along our street.
I can’t remember what even got me attracted to him. Maybe I thought he was cute.
Or was it the way he was always walking up and down the street with earphones plugged into his ears?
Maybe it was because he had a Blackberry phone. Those days, having a blackberry automatically elevates you to the “Big Boy” or “Big Girl” status.
Each day when everyone had gone out leaving me home alone, I would powder my face, apply my #100 lipgloss, put on one skimpy dress to ensure I looked sexy, pick one of my Harlequin novels and find my way to the guy’s shop.
Dude knew I was crushing on him badly. Sometimes, I would pack some of the foodstuffs we had at home and gave him not minding how frequent mum complained about how expensive the foodstuffs were. I was so blinded by love that I didn’t give a damn.
What about the love letters I wrote? I would intentionally keep it where I’m sure he would see it. I didn’t have phone then so I resigned to writing letters instead.
One Valentine’s Day, I remember stealing my dad’s perfume and new wristwatch. I packaged them and gave it to my crush as a gift. Dude didn’t even say “Thank you” or proclaim his love for me. He just ruffled my hair and said, “This my friend eeh”.
Funny thing is, dude always told his friends I was like a sister to him. It was painful though. Like, how can I be in love with this boy and the only thing he could do was to dump me in his sister zone? I patiently waited for the day he will ask me out and proclaim his love for me. It never happened.
The day he invited me to his house, I was really tempted to go but I had to decline the invitation. The fear of a strict father is the beginning of wisdom.
Finally, dude packed out. It was as if my world fell apart. Because I had no mobile phone, there was no way I could contact him.
Fast forward to 2019.
Dude and I ran into each other one day. He was looking like one tout. I cringed at his touch when he tried to hug me. He was pretty excited, shinning his brown teeth.
He opened to mouth to speak and for the first time I noticed he had this thick Igbo accent which was definitely a huge turnoff.
“Babe, you have really changed. See how fine you are now”.
I was just looking at him; laughing at myself; wondering if I was okay at all when I had to steal my mum’s foodstuffs, my dad’s perfume and wristwatch just so to please him.
Life has phases though. The stupid things we do today will in future be something to laugh about. We will all look back one day and laugh at our stupidity.
What are the stupid and crazy stuffs you have done for love? You can share your experience in the comment section
