YES WE CAN
Fred Njagi slammed his white tumbler hard on the brown, smooth, wooden dressing table. He exhaled with relief when he felt the fiery gulp of Sky Vodka burn his stomach lining. A conspicuous high pitched tone drew his attention to his blinking smartphone resting on his pillow.
Jackie: Where are U?
Fred: In my room. Wanna keep me company?
Jackie: On my way
A mischievous grin crossed his face.
The golden mellow rays of the evening sun penetrated through the towering yellow thorny Acacia trees. A generation of young, middle -aged and senior Colombia monkeys chattered loudly as they constantly hopped from one branch to the next. Fred grabbed his towel, dashed to the bathroom for a quick cold shower then wore a short sleeved black Manchester United Jersey and beige khaki shorts. Anytime now, he said to himself as he glanced at his wristwatch.
A gentle knock on his door caused his heart to race with concealed excitement.
“Jackie, you look amazing in those shorts," he complemented her with a smile.
“Thanks Fred," she blushed.
“And a wonderful..." he drew an imaginary curve with his right slightly cupped palm and smiled naughtily.
“Idiot!" She slapped his shoulder and frowned at him.
Fred chuckled and Jackie followed him inside his room. She sat on the red and black Maasai coloured reading chair while Fred sat on the bed. He silently admired her brown, flawless and shapely legs. Her glossy braids were held back in a pony tail and her thin, black framed spectacles made her seem like a naughty librarian in a raunchy blue movie. Jackie had the body that was just right, and her chocolate skin tone drove Fred nuts. He reached into the closet and took out his half full bottle of vodka along with two tumblers. Jackie watched him pour up and raised her eyebrows in disbelief when he handed her a drink.
“How many times do I have to tell you? I don't drink!"
“This isn't the office, lighten up a bit," he taunted her.
Jacklyn Mogaka, the chief financial officer at Kilele Micro finance bank watched Fred sip and she frowned at him. If only he could get serious with life, she silently wished. Out of the entire male white collar staff in Kilele Micro Finance, Fred Njagi was the only man who sent electricity down her spine whenever they interacted inside the office. Fred was not as educated or as gracefully mannered as she was, but he had a natural irresistible charm that instantly made him likeable wherever whenever he was. He stood at an attractive 5ft 8 inches, chocolate complexion and had a small gap between his upper front incisors, visible whenever he had a fit of uncontrollable, hearty laughter.
“I’m so excited about the new financial amendments Mr. Kimani shared during the afternoon brief. Our customers will be excited once they hear the news," she said to Fred.
He turned to her with his eyebrows raised quizzically, “What amendments?"
“Didn’t you pay any attention when he said the board of directors is going to lower the borrowing rate by three percent and remove collateral requirements for special women and youth loans?"
Fred shook his head.
"Of course you didn't. You were too busy playing Angry birds," she rolled her eyes as a sign of frustration.
“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy," he defended himself.
Fred wished Jackie wasn't as uptight as a communist dictator. He hated it whenever his colleagues made fun of Jackie and referred to her as "the iron lady" but he never openly showed his distaste towards such juvenile behavior.
“I hope you can dance Jackie."
“Why? I can dance."
“Great. Tonight we're going to Nyeri and turn up all night."
She was about to say No but something within her restrained her from uttering that word. A mixture of anxiety and excitement bubbled within her. Finally, Fred Njagi had asked her out even though it wasn't as tense and mind racing as she often imagined.
“What time will we be going?"
“Around nine or nine thirty. Don't worry, you'll be back in your room before your regular curfew," he joked. “Let’s take a walk."
He rose from his bed and Jackie followed him. There was a concealed level of urgency inside Fred's thoughts because he had planned for this seminar cum team building for quite a while. It was the only solid chance he had of campaigning himself towards Jackie for the next three days.
I have to get lucky. I have to get Jackie, he promised himself.
A couple of young, wide eyed Colombia monkeys whizzed past them and leapt straight into the green trash cans mounted along the grey straight concrete path that led to the national park's reception, bar and restaurant. They spotted some of their colleagues paired up and leisurely strolling to the bar dressed in T-shirts , shorts and sandals. August was the best month to visit the Aberdare National Park since it was the return of summer after a three month extremely cold rainy season that religiously ran from May till July of every year.
They walked past the bar then took a left turn twenty meters ahead, near the jungle green pitched tents where tourists who preferred an authentic outdoor experience to air-conditioned, cozy hotel rooms. From a distance, they easily spotted a herd of light brown gazelles that stood indifferently save for a couple that lowered their heads to nibble on the fresh patch of grass. A herd of Zebra was slowly walking towards the horizon past an aged and often moody lone male buffalo. Fred's eyes popped with excitement at the sight of a full Johnny Walker 750 ML whiskey bottle carelessly placed at the entrance of a tent that was beside him. Without hesitation, he glanced around to confirm his safety and crouched but felt Jackie’s hand on his left shoulder.
“What do you think you're doing?" She asked.
“Me and that bottle are just going to have a friendly chat, that's all. Besides, who are we to turn down priceless whiskey?"
“Don’t you dare, Fred. We won't escape without drawing attention," she cautioned him, her eyes squinted sternly.
“Yes we can."
They followed a stony path that ascended up a small grassy mound and led them to the partially hidden, serene river bank with long sturdy trees running parallel on both sides. A black hornbill hovered above the trees as a host of bright yellow weaver birds chirped animatedly back and forth like angry politicians in a heated parliamentary debate.
“It’s so beautiful, isn't it?" Jackie gasped.
Fred smiled and nodded in agreement. Now all he had to do was settle down under a tree and whisper sweet nothings in her pretty little ears. He stretched out his hand towards her and she reached out so that they walked hand in hand to a towering indigenous tree with a large and thick canopy. Fred's nose caught a distinct scent of burning marijuana and stopped. He raised his index finger towards his lips and cautiously proceeded so he could bust the weed smoker red handed in the act. He drew closer and closer then craned his neck to have a better view.
“Uh...let's just look for another tree," he turned back and led her in the opposite direction.
“Why? What is it? Let me see."
“Let’s go Jackie."
“No, I have to see”, she pulled free from his grip and dashed towards the tree. Her eyes almost popped out of their orbital sockets.
“Martin!" She exclaimed.
Martin Okoth instantly withdrew his caressing hand from underneath as his companion frantically buttoned up her T-shirt. She had just caught him and Diana, the new Marketing intern in a compromising situation.
“I told you not to look Jackie," Fred appeared. “I’m really sorry bro, this wasn't my idea," He apologized to Martin, gesturing with an open palm as a sign of sincerity. "Let's go Jackie."
He turned to leave but Martin said, “Don’t bother. You can join us since you've already found out."
"Are you sure?" Fred asked. His eyebrows shot up in surprise.
“I just want that fine whiskey in your hand," Martin nodded.
"No problem."
Diana Kamau was still overwhelmed with embarrassment and she barely faced Fred and Jackie, as they sat on the warm smooth rock next to the crystal clear flowing river. Her cheeks flared red and her voice was reduced to a faint high pitch. Fortunately, Martin the chubby chain cigarette smoker, had some plastic tumblers and a three quarter full 2 liter bottle of Sprite. A thin white trail of pungent smoke wafted lazily from the half smoked joint tossed on a floating leaf.
Fred served the drinks while Jackie the odd one out, stuck to her non alcoholic stand. She was the only one pursuing a Masters degree, an Executive MBA to be exact. Fred seemed content with his position as Marketing Executive, Martin served as a logistics planner but he recently joined Killed Micro finance six months ago. Diana , the slim, light skinned and loud mouthed Marketing intern joined Kilele two months ago in June. She was a third year Marketing student at Mount Kenya University.
When Diana finally came out from her shell, Fred and Jackie couldn't help staring at her bulging, squinty beetroot eyes. Fred knew Martin never smoked pot because he feared losing his sanity more than anything else on this Earth.
“Young lady, I hope you learned a lot today about the real corporate environment. A lot of graduates nowadays are so green concerning basic office operations," Jackie remarked patronizingly. Diana's upper lip instantly contorted into a sneer. “I can teach you a lot Diana," Jackie turned to her.
“No thanks. Your job already seems too boring for me to even bother," The Marketing intern answered sarcastically then sipped more whiskey.
“Excuse me! Respect your superiors young lady! I am a valuable asset to this organization. Mr.Kimani knows that I am the best Chief Accountant and so should you."
Tension crept in and hung above them. The two ladies exchanged disapproving glances while the men silently sipped from their tumblers. Diana and Jackie were like oil and water, hardly compatible with each other. Diana despised Jackie for her constant boot licking and repelling superiority complex. Jackie on the other hand disliked the intern because in her superior, ever judging eyes, Diana was no more than a mediocre, slutty and loud mouthed nuisance who had no shot of success at ascending the competitive corporate ladder.
" Hey, let's take a walk. I want to see the elephants drinking at the trough," Fred suggested and slowly got up on his feet. The last thing he wanted was feral hostility watering down his pleasant warm buzz. They rose and walked further inside as they drank and poured up some more, following the river as it flowed further into the woods.
A red wooden sign that read “Bikes Ahead” prompted them to follow the sign. They stopped ten meters ahead at a row of mountain bikes chained to a horizontal steel rail. A dark pot bellied man, donning a faded black Safaricom cap, seemingly in his forties smiled at them as they approached him.
“Yes," he offered his rough palm for a handshake.
“Fine thank you sir. We want to take an evening ride, how much is it per bike?" Fred asked.
“Two hundred and fifty my brother."
"Awesome. Give each one of us a bike," Fred replied.
The average sized man smiled again, revealing a set of brown tobacco stained teeth as he unlocked the mountain bikes. Fred thanked him and placed a one thousand shillings note in his hardened palm.