Some of the wildest memories I have are with my friends. We’ve been to places we shouldn’t, taken risks that’ll have our parents on their knees and spent lots of time reminiscing about these memories that strengthened our bonds.
I was curious to know if there are others who tie the strength of their friendship to wild shared experiences, and I found these six people.
From sneaking a bestie in for a month-long staycation to borrowing and almost crashing a parent’s car to show off , these Nigerians have stories for days.
Toke*
My last birthday was on a Friday and my friend offered to take me out after work. We went to a cool spot in Ikeja to eat. I thought that was all, but she said there was one more surprise.
The surprise turned out to be a strip club, which freaked me out a little. It was the club’s “lesbian night”, and they had all sorts of naked women doing stuff on stage. Some of them even came to grind on us.
I couldn’t enjoy the moment because I kept thinking “Is this legal? What if the government chooses to raid this place tonight? Is that not 14 years?”
We stayed for about one hour before we left — my worry and anxiety didn’t let me have any fun. It was one of the craziest nights of my adult life in Lagos.
Nike*
My friend came to Lagos for NYSC and needed a place to stay. Naturally, she asked if she could stay at mine. She had visited before and knew we had a big house with lots of empty rooms. The only problem was, my parents didn’t like that we were friends. They were always cold to my friends whose parents they hadn’t met. There was no point in asking them if she could stay because they’d have outrightly refused.
So, I devised a plan. I asked her to visit for a weekend, and I made sure my parents saw her. What they didn’t know was that she stayed in our house for a whole month. She’d come in really late at night, and leave very early in the morning. On days she didn’t go to work, she’d stay in the room all day. She ate, cleaned up and did everything in my room.
It helped that my parents hardly came upstairs to my room because of their leg problems, so it was really easy to pull it off. I wonder how they’d have reacted if they found out, but I’m glad they never did.
Binta*
Back when I was a Jambite, my best friend had a pregnancy scare. We’d gotten pregnancy test strips, but the test came back negative, which was strange because her period never came. One weekend she told me of her plan to go for a hospital test. She didn’t ask me to follow her, and I was relieved because deep down, that was a line I wasn’t willing to cross as a hijab-wearing Muslim with strict parents.
On the day she planned to go, she came to my house early in the morning in tears. I felt bad watching her break down so I offered to go with her. On our way to the hospital, I pulled off my hijab and scarf to look older and it worked. The hospital staff had smirks on their faces, but I could tell it wasn’t because they thought we were young jambites — they just thought we were some wayward girls. Thankfully, the result was negative.
When I got home, I started thinking of all the things that could have gone wrong. A hijab wearing girl at the hospital for a pregnancy test? My parents would have disowned me if they found out.
Get a free ticket to Strings Attached and enjoy a feel-good evening of music, dancing and games at Muri Okunola Park, Lagos on May 11, 2024.
Shile*
My friend and I had nothing to do while waiting for NYSC. On a random day, he came to me and said he’d gotten the contact of a “baba” that could help us get rich. I wasn’t desperate for wealth, but my friend was. But I decided to follow him to the man’s place for support. To be honest, I was just curious to see what the ritual process looks like.
We spent almost six hours on the road before we got to the place in a deserted village in Abeokuta. I could tell something was off the moment we arrived — the people there stared at us as though they were asking us, “What are you people looking for here?”
The baba had a decent house and received us warmly. After we sat for a while, he invited us to follow him to his shrine. I didn’t follow them since it was my friend who wanted it. After they left, I fell into a deep sleep that I’m convinced wasn’t natural. I don’t know how many hours I was out for, but I was still dizzy AF when we left. The journey home was a blur, and I didn’t feel like myself till I woke up the next morning.
I spent the next few days thinking about what happened. Was a sleep spell cast on me? Was my friend in on it? What if they’d unalived me? It also didn’t help that my friend didn’t want to talk about it. He relocated shortly after that incident and we’re still in touch, but I still think about that journey.
James*
My SS 3 class organised a graduation party after we finished our final exams. It was the first big party we’d attend outside the school premises and everyone wanted to show up in their best. My friend came up with a wild idea of driving his dad’s car because his parents weren’t home. He’d been talking about learning how to drive during holidays so I assumed he knew how to drive. On the day of the party, he showed up with the car at my house and again I thought “If he made it to my house, he knows how to drive”.
Everything was smooth until we got to the Third Mainland Bridge. I don’t know if it was the water or the length of the bridge, but something wasn’t right. Also, my friend suddenly suffered a panic attack and we got hit from the back before he could park. It didn’t take long for a crowd of adults to gather asking why young boys like us were driving. My friend’s parents were out of town so we had to call my parents. My dad was furious, but he arranged for a towing vehicle to get us and the car off the bridge. Interestingly, I didn’t get any lashing at home because everyone was just grateful we were alive.
In the mood for one more memorable adventure with your bestie? Then Strings Attached is where you should be.
We’re collaborating with One Bank to bring all the super cool people to our yard on Saturday, May 11, 2024, at Muri Okunola Park.
Want to be a part of “Strings Attached”, the hottest community festival ever? All you have to do is download the OneBank by Sterling app, create a new account using ZIKOKO as the referral code, and your ticket will be reserved. The free tickets will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis, so hit the app store ASAP.
