Mmedara and Patrick sat at the rooftop arena of Sanzy restaurant eating and chatting.
They were meeting physically for the first time, both of them young people in their mid-20s.
The food was good: the spicy fried rice, salad, and fruit parfait were delicious.
“So I was asking about your favourite author, who do you like?” Mmedara questioned, wiping her lips with a serviette.
Patrick stared upwards for some seconds and replied with a slight frown, “I don’t have one, to be honest, I don’t read books”
Taken aback, Mmedara probed, “Oh, I thought you said you were a bibliophile when we chatted yesterday on WhatsApp”
“Well, I said that to make you happy and look forward to meeting me because I know you love reading books” Patrick said with a nervous laugh.
“I appreciate your honesty, and I like you, if not, I wouldn’t be sitting out with you here”, Mmedara stated and continued, “But you should be reading, you know, books are cool, you can learn a lot from books”
“Yeah, I used to read novels as a kid and in my secondary school, but when I went to the university, I lost interest, you know, Chemical Engineering is all about mathematics and sciences”, Patrick informed.
“That’s true”
“And you know the way the country is now, eh, everybody is looking for money, so no time for reading, but because of you, I will start reading” Patrick affirmed and continued, “Which book should I read first? I heard Chimamanda Adichie has a new novel out. Have you read it?”
Mmedara nodded, “Yes! Dream Count. It’s pretty interesting, but I prefer Americanah to it”
“Then I should start with Americanah then” Patrick said.
Mmedara’s phone suddenly beeped, and she tapped on the screen to open a WhatsApp message and turned to Patrick, “Oh, my friend Eno has just reminded me to attend Uyo Book Club meeting today”
“Is there is a book club in Uyo?” Patrick questioned.
“Yes, I have never been there, but my friend Eno is a member of the Uyo Book Club, and she has been asking me to join. I have been feeling reluctant to go alone, but thank God that you are here, so we can go together. Judging by the time now, I think they have started the meeting,” Mmedara said.
“Alright, let’s go” Patrick replied.
Patrick signalled to the waiter, who sashayed to their table with the bill and a POS machine.
Patrick brought out his Atm card and handed it to her, “Here’s my card”
Mmedara quickly held on to his hand, “Let’s split the bill, I don’t want you to pay all of it alone”
Patrick laughed, “Don’t be a feminist today dear, let me handle the full bill today, maybe tomorrow, you will be the one to foot the bill”
Mmedara rolled her eyes, “Okay”.
It was a smooth ride in Patrick’s car from Udo Udoma Avenue down to Watbridge Hotel at IBB Avenue, where the Book Club meeting was held. Patrick parked at the expansive car park in front of the water fountain at the hotel. He opened the door for Mmedara, who stepped out in a queenly fashion.
“Where do they meet?” Patrick asked.
“My friend said they meet inside a hall, let’s ask the people at the reception” Mmedara replied.
A smartly dressed female staff member smiled warmly at them at the counter, “Good evening, what can I do for you?”
“We are here to attend Uyo Book Club meeting but we don’t know where it is being held.”
“Okay, it’s over there at the Shakespeare room!” The receptionist pointed a thin finger at a glass door ahead.
“Thank you” Mmedara replied.
The visitors walked towards the door where a sign was displayed:
‘Uyo book club meeting in progress’
They pushed the door open.
A blast of cold air from the AC in the room welcomed them with icy arms, and Mmedara took a sharp breath.
They settled at two seats and glanced around the room.
It was a rectangular room with a long oval-shaped conference table surrounded by blue armless chairs with golden coloured edges, portraits of Chinua Achebe, William Shakespeare, and Nelson Mandela hung on the walls, painted with a bright hue of yellow paint, giving a serene and intellectual vibe to the room. Several members of the book club sat around the table poring over books generously distributed across the table.
Eno, a young lady with big brown eyes, beamed at the visitors as she walked up to them.
“You are welcome, it’s good to see you here” Eno welcomed effusively, hugging Mmedara.
“Thank you, dear. I decided to come today with a friend, his name is Patrick” Mmedara introduced her companion.
“You are welcome, Patrick. We are observing the DROP EVERYTHING AND READ moment, that’s why the place is quiet, just pick any book and read, then we will discuss in the next segment” Eno informed.
“Alright, thank you”
Mmedara’s eyes were already roving all over the table, jumping from one book to another in fascination.
“Oh my God! Is this not Aesop Fables? I used to read this book when I was in Junior secondary school!” Mmedara exclaimed as she picked up a colourful leather-bound book from the table and quickly opened it.
Patrick was absorbed in a Harvard Business Review issue titled, ‘How to Change Anyone’s Mind”
It was a potpourri of books in the room.There were books on diverse subject areas and fields, books by Akwa Ibom authors, Nigerian authors, and foreign authors, books from the three genres of literature, drama, poetry and prose.
Eno was reading JP Clark’s Song of A Goat and scribbling some lines on her notepad.
Patrick had switched to Success Secrets of Cristiano Ronaldo by Udeme Nana while Mmedara was hobnobbing with Those Teenage Years by Ekaette Umoh.
As the evening wore on and the night sky spread its heavy cloak around the city, the book club session broke into the general discussion and review segments.
“I like it here, I want to be a registered member” Mmedara said to Patrick.
“Me too, I will be coming here often,” Patrick stated.
Eno facilitated their registration and admittance into the WhatsApp group at the end of the session.
Mmedara and Patrick waved her goodbye and exited the room, stepping into the musical hustle and bustle of Saturday night at Watbridge’s arena.
“I’ll drop you at your place”, Patrick assured inside the car.
“I had a good time today, thank you for coming out with me, I think it’s my best date ever!” Mmedara exclaimed.
“Me too, but who would have thought that I would go on a book date in my life?” Patrick said quizzically.
They both laughed out loud, and the music in the stereo serenaded them as the car sped into the cold night.
