NYSC: National Year Of Sex And Comfort Episode 8 By MaziOmenuko

I was alarmed!

Not because I couldn't answer the exam questions, the answers were still fresh in my mind.

Odili was with the papers, no doubt about this. But who else he might show it to was what was bordering me. If those papers land in the wrong hands, I don't know what will become of me.

I called samuel's number, it wasn't going through. He must be in the exam hall. I waited for sometime, called again, not available.

I didn't have Odili's number! What's was I going to do?

-Nothing but to wait-

I waited patiently until samuel returned.

"Where is your cousin?", I asked him desperately.

"Is anything the matter?", he asked me. He must have seen the looks on my face.

"No, but where is he?"

"He traveled back home. He said he would come to the exam from the house".

Damn!

I collected his number from samuel and tried it; not reachable!

How could he do this? What was his plan? Is he planning on selling it to other students? Does he have friends who failed the course and he wants to help them? If he was selling it, I should have heard about it from my friends at the department. I was well connected and in the circle of elites in my department. Nothing goes past us at the department.
So where is he and what are his plans?

I was restless. Samuel noticed and asked if I was looking for my money. I told him no, but that his cousin took some lecture material for the Robotics course, and I needed to revise with them.

"Is there any other way I can reach him? Any of his friends still in this school?".

"I don't know". Samuel was very sympathetic to me. I was so disturbed. I kept trying the number at intervals, it was still not reachable.

_________________________

I went early for the Robotics examination. It was an 11:30 paper, but I left for school by 9 am. I was hoping to see Odili, or at least, get any latest info if anything goes wrong.

Everything was ok.

The examination started, odili was no where to be found. I delayed entering the hall, just to wait and see if I could find him. He was not within the vicinity. I entered the hall.

I was still nervous as I kept staring around as the answer sheet was shared. He wasn't around.
The question paper was shared and I started the exam.

The questions were the exact ones I stole. No single changes were made. So I started off in earnest.

Ten minutes later, I was over-hearing a conversation between a lecturer at the hall entrance and a student.

"Its ten minutes since the paper started and you are coming now, I guess you must be a carry-over student".

"Sir, I'm coming from home, traffic delayed me".

It was Odili's voice!

"Search him before he enters", the lecturer was ordering the school security operative to search odili. I was all ears, eyes and mouth. I watched with mouth wide open as they searched him before letting him in.

I watched him as he was ushered into a sit, the papers were giving to him.

Dear lord, I hope he studied the answers as I did and not enter the hall with it!

He was busy writing, so I figured everything was ok. I ignored him and continued my writing.

We must have written for another 30 minutes when I heard a lecturer cautioning some people. I looked up, and he was directing his statement to some students seated beside Odili. The lecturer moved on, and I took time to observe what was going on. Odili had the sheet of paper I used in solving the questions!

Damn!

Those around him had noticed it and was calling his attention for help. All eyes were fixed on him. I knew it was only a matter of time before the lecturers notice what was going on.

The hush sounds started growing louder. Sounds of psss, bros, heeeyysss, guy. . . and all sorts of attention calling sounds were directed at him.

I closed my eyes and said a simple prayer!

"God don't let these lecturers catch him".

It was either god was playing ludo with his angels, or he decided to pay me back for having s'e'x in his house.

Right from behind him, when he was busy coping down answers on his sheet, a lecturer moved from behind and collected his answer sheet. Sandwiched inside the pages of those answer sheets, where the paper I used in solving the problems. ___________________________ They were not ordinary expo as one would think. I solved those problems illustratively. I copied down each question, its number and its solution. An ordinary expo wouldn't contain those details. If the lecturer studies that external material he found inside a students answer sheet very well, he will discover that it was not an ordinary expo, it contained leaked questions. _____________________________ Odili was busy pacing around the hall with the lecturer. He was almost in tears. He begged and pleaded and knelt on the ground, but the lecturer vehemently refused. "Get out of here before I give you malpractice form to fill". Filling a malpractice form would mean a two years suspension for Odili. I was hoping he would at least leave the hall and let this case end up in him retaking the course next year. The lecturer was yet to go through the paper in his hands. Odili kept begging, it was then that other lecturers came closer to inquire what was going on. Dear lord, let them not see what is contained in those sheet of paper! God must be really pissed at me, seems my prayers were distracting the ludo game as worst things started happening. In a bid to explain the magnitude of offense the guy committed, the lecturer brought out the two sheets for the first time and gave to the second lecturer who went through it with looks of amazement on his face. He beckoned on the first lecturer to come closer, they both stepped aside, much closer to my spot at the exam hall and started talking in hush tones. The second lecturer informed the first one that the paper must have leaked. He showed him valid evidences from the sheet of paper he had. One reminded the other that it was the HOD's course, and their was a look of satisfaction on their faces. You can almost see a smile therein. The lecturers called on a security operative to seize Odili. They took him into their office. The hall started getting rowdy. Rumors. Started flying around, originating from those siting beside him. I was devastated. Odili in his quest to entangle himself from this mess was definitely going to mention my name. Of course I will have to deny him. Its his word against mine: so I thought. But the events that followed suit was to prove me wrong. . . __________________________ The second lecturer returned to the hall with an alarmed look. I was writing so fast to finish up, submit and leave the hall before things got messier. I was almost through. The lecturer looked around, moved up and down the hall like he was searching for a lost wallet. He got to my spot, and kept walking. The hall was quite then. He moved back to the office. I stood up, submitted my paper to the only remaining lecturer in the hall and walked away. I remained within the department premises to monitor what was happening. The HOD drove in almost immediately and headed to the general office where the other lecturers where gathered. He must have dispersed them as they returned to the hall to round off the exam. I stayed close and monitored, odili was still inside, with the first lecturer that caught him. I closed my eyes to say another prayer, but couldn't. There was no need, the first two weren't answered, this one wasn't going to be answered. The one week gap for my last paper was the longest one week I've had. I heard all sorts of rumor about odili and the leaked exam. I kept my ears close to the ground to get any hint of my involvement, there was none. I kept going to school daily just to keep up with events around the department. I was restless. I called cassey twice, but she didn't pick my call. That was when I started suspecting something was wrong somewhere. I wrote the last paper without any hitches; just an incidence where a young lecturer (lab attendant) walked up to me and, claiming to search my scripts for expo, I saw him trying to memorize my matric number. He recited it to himself and left. That was all. Later after the exam, I saw him at the general office, he was speaking with madam silat. My woes were about to compound. . .

Within the period of project defense, I noticed there was a change in HOD. Cassey's dad was no longer the head; the lecturer that caught odili was the new head in acting capacity. I called cassey to inquire what was going on. She didn't pick. I sent a text, pleading with her to pick and let's talk. She sent a simple reply: "Go to hell" I did my project defense with no qualms. Then few months later, a compiled list of students that should proceed with their clearance was pasted on the department: my name was missing. It was only those that cleared all their courses that their names do appear on that list. Since the second semester results weren't published, the only option was to write to the HOD, requesting for your list of outstanding. I did this and filed it with the secretary; madam silat. She read through the letter as was her normal custom before registering it in her book. Then she looked up at me and shook her head. I used the opportunity to ask her what could be wrong. "Of course you have an outstanding, what else could be wrong? Or you think god is trying to punish you?". I didn't border answering. She filed the letter and I left. Few days later, I came for a reply of the letter. Madam silat wasn't around, but the second secretary, the HOD's secretary was there. She searched for my reply and gave it to my. Inside the same paper I used for my letter, was a clearly and boldly written reply by the exams officer - outstanding in MEC 522 and MEC 543 - Those were the two courses cassey's dad handled: Control Process and Robotics. I nearly fainted, tears formed in my eyes. I slumped on the sit opposite the secretary. She must have had pity on me. It was she that opened up and told me what had transpired: _________________________ She informed me that the new HOD promised odili that nothing will happen to him if he confessed how he got the paper. Odili opened up and told him it was I. The lecturer wanted a direct evidence linking odili to cassey's dad. It was a case of blackmail. He wanted to bring down someone he felt was an ally to the vc's opponent, so as to get vc's favor. But cassey's dad twisted it all when he insisted that he dropped the question paper with madam silat, the departmental secretary for photocopying. He insisted madam silat gave it to odili. It was a full blown war with everyone trying to pass the blame on another. She informed me that the case was supposed to be forwarded to the school senate, a case of leaked question paper would automatically warant a dismissal for the old HOD. But he was so sure he would win the case, using madam silat as scape goat. But madam silat had an ace up her sleeves. She threw it open that the guy odili claimed he got the papers from; me; was dating the HOD's daughter. That she had seen them once having sex in the HOD's office. That was the last and most important factor that was going to move the case against the HOD. He did the wise thing; he reached a bargain with his lecturers not to move the case to the senate. They agreed to settle it in-house. Part of the deal was that he would resign. That was exactly what happened. He resigned, and decided to deal with me himself: a crude execution of judgment, he was the judge, the jury and the executioner. He failed me in the two courses he handled, even the control process that wasn't part of the dispute.