CHILD ABUSE (PART 2)

It was difficult adapting to life after the separation, because even though he was hardly ever home, I had managed to keep a closely-knit relationship with my father.

I tried talking to my mum to get the details about what really happened but she always had a way of getting around the subject matter and after a while I stopped asking and soon got used to life without him.

I had just turned sixteen, and with that, came more pimples, increase in height, a thick voice, and the constant urge to explore my sexuality. Some nights in my dream, I would see myself with Aunty Blessing having sexual relations, and when I woke up, my briefs would be soaked; I later understood the concept of wet dreams. Whenever I saw a lady between ages fourteen and twenty five, the only thing that would ring in my head was sex.

I was a shy person, so it wasn't easy making friends - especially girls, but I was able to strike a friendship with Femi the minute we became seat partners. We had some similarities - except he wasn't shy and he was sexually active, according to him, while I was zoned to my dreams.

One day, during the Summer break, he called and said he'd be coming over to play video games. I was pumped up by this because I hardly ever had visitors besides my cousins. Often times, my mum would chip in words like "Do you even have friends at all?" between our conversations, so I also wanted her to see I wasn't all that anti-social.

His driver dropped him off at about 3:15 that Saturday afternoon, and we immediately settled in to a heated competition with a series of FIFA games. Then my mum dashed out of her room dressed up for a party; this saddened me because we talked earlier and she had agreed to spend the day hanging out with Femi and I, but then, it was my mum - very typical. I shrugged and continued with my game. The maid brought us cookies and juice and then retired back to her room.

After gaming for two straight hours, we decided to take a break to relax, then Femi brought out a CD from his combat shorts. He claimed that it was a new movie he just got and was sure I'd like it. It was titled Chronicles of Jada Fire and since I was a Sci-Fi/Fantasy movie person, I slot the disc into the player and waited for the picture to come up. I was bemused by what came up on the screen. I had heard all sorts about pornography, but seeing it for the first time sent shock waves around my body. As I tried to control the activity going on below my belt, Femi just sat there laughing at me, making jokes about what he thought my first time would be like, but that didn't disturb me as the whole activity on the screen got my attention. When I heard the maid’s footsteps approaching the living room I quickly ejected the disc and flung it at him. We talked about sex for the remaining minutes he spent at mine, before his driver came. He mentioned that he knew a place he could take me to, where the ladies there would treat me good, but I'd have to hold some money with me. I agreed to go there with him, and we fixed the following day to make the trip.

It was a long night as I was awake most of the time, thinking and anticipating what my first official encounter with sex would be like, until I finally dozed off.

After church, I had lunch and then sat in my room patiently awaiting Femi’s call. It finally came at exactly 5pm that evening, so I left the house, telling my mum that I was heading to the cinemas, after which she gave me N5000. The driver dropped me off, and as soon as he turned around, I stopped a cab and headed straight to the beach, which wasn’t so far away. Femi asked me to wait outside for him.

I called him when I got there and he joined me minutes later. We proceeded to the entrance of the beach, paid the compulsory gate fee of N1000 each before making our way to the beach itself; walking past different bars, Indian hemp smokers, a host of street kids and then tons of semi-clad women, who I later realized were prostitutes roaming around. After walking a good distance from where the crowd was, we arrived at a wooden shack with red and green bulbs that served as lighting. There were chairs and tables outside to signify they were running a bar, but then, more semi clad women and men ranging from young to old were going in and coming out of the shack all sweaty.

We sat at one of the tables, and then a lady came to take our orders. Femi requested for a bottle of small stout while I asked for a non-alcoholic Malt drink, but after much persuasion from Femi to join him in taking alcohol, I finally settled with something with a mild percentage of alcohol. Midway into the drinks, he got up and went into the shack and came out five minutes later with two women. I call them women because they were at least double my age if not more. With the way they were talking and jesting, I concluded that they were friends. They joined us on the table and then we ordered more drinks. I was already getting tipsy when Femi ordered one of them to take me inside and make me happy. Her room was stuffy with clothes hanging everywhere, and even though it was still it was still bright outside, light rays struggled to penetrate the window, so we had to make do with a lantern.

She took off her dress and I did same. Then she pulled out a condom from under her bed, tore the wrapper off and wore the latex on my erect penis and we got down to business. After about 5minutes, I felt a sensation down there and then I started to shake - I had just ejaculated for the first time. I wore my clothes, paid her the N700 she charged me and then went outside to meet Femi.

We headed home afterwards, and by the next month before school resumed, I started frequenting various brothels on the Island. I had become a sex freak. My addiction to pornography didn't help matters, and whenever I didn't have money to patronize a prostitute, I resorted to masturbating.

I was able to graduate from Secondary School with mere credits in all subjects, and with my mum's connections, I secured an admission into the prestigious University of Lagos.

I was able to pull through, despite hard partying, and graduated with honors. After having raped five girls, leaving two seriously injured in the process - adding to my list of felonies.

I'll be 25 this year, and I'll live the rest of my life behind bars. I killed my mum, and made an attempt on my father's life before I was apprehended by the law.

Who is to blame for everything that I've been through? Having contracted several venereal diseases that have rendered me impotent, I have no family to think about.

I blame my parents for allowing Aunty Blessing ruin my life, putting me in this situation that I am. It was all work, work, work and no time for me.

I can't say that I'm a fulfilled man, but somehow, I'm sure I'll find peace someday - behind these steel bars.

My name is Kunle George, this is my story.

*A lot of people share a similar story with Kunle and even though not in the same circumstances, some can relate to this.

There are cases of parents abusing children I mean both father and mother, relatives, guardians and most recently teachers and when you trace the origin of these unusual behavior you would notice it was as a result of the inability of a maid, family friend, relative or uncle to control their sexual hormones.

What is the lesson here? Pay more attention to the affairs of your children, you really don’t know who the devil is.