A Story By Oyegbile, Olajide Samuel (JBlaze)
Dayo got really angry as Henry sat down in the chair smiling while he stood waiting for a response, to Henry the environment became audible when a reporter announced his work for the first time on CNN saying In a despised state of unrealistic jeopardy, a chronological mental jeopardy, surrounded by the impossible came about in the brain of a young man HENRY FORD contributing to the possibility of a life without death, thus the theory PHANTOM ZONE. I am Henry Ford and am not scared of death. With a smile Henry looked up and said ‘Dayo,lets go out’. Driving in the latest Benz model with dayo by his side, listening to some jazz music, the air conditioner of the car aided in the mutilation of Henry’s dead lost soul as he thought,’I’m standing striving still at my desperation, thoughts flowing fiercely free from my inspiration, I don’t know how heaven heals this life constipation, I think and wonder why we wish even in deep complication, from childhood we cried,crawled and craved without a cesarean operation, life aint smooth swinging swiftly sweet without corruption, we searching solely solemnly for our destination, After the moaning mourning morning joy comes with inexplicable constriction, all I am concerned about is my conviction and that life has more to hold than death.’ It took a while for dayo to notice as he had been talking all about the new girl at the office that had got everyone talking, ‘Henry I’m sure you are still thinking of this your death project, snap out of it, snap out of it, you are killing me.’ Henry could not resist the statement, ‘you want to die he asked? please let me use you for the experiment, and I promise you won’t die’. You must be mad Dayo said as he plugged his ear phones and tilted his chair backwards. Henry looked up and suddenly applied the breaks as he saw people gather around a young boy who had just collapsed, he parked and ran to the site, bringing out a pen and jotter he started to document the scenario, with his phone he took pictures rather than try to help. ‘Sir, what exactly are you doing’, came the voice of a stranger. Henry looked up, smiled and replied ‘Mr. Man, everyday life kills us a little, but then we can’t decide to stop living the little, a step begins the journey of several miles, yet it’s really hard to maintain it with smiles, thinking of the past makes you lose a little of the present, this man you’re seeing is gone, don’t take life too serious, just be a little curious. ‘Excuse me! Are you mad?’ came the angry voice of the stranger. Dayo stood leaning by the side of the car as henry walked back, ‘so have you woken him up from the dead?’ Henry smiled, ‘Nope he is way beyond Phantom Zone, unredeemable’, he said as they entered the car and zoomed off. At the office, Zara was an astonishing beauty to behold. She was the new girl at the office, who had recently broken up with her boyfriend. That was great news to all the male folk ogling at her smashing body,they all talked about how she was exquisite, and had the best
coca cola bottle shape that all men would kill for. Dayo stared with his mouth wide open while Henry looked with his mind wild open. Zara walked up to Henry and without any prior introduction pecked him,’I heard you are the Managing director, well I am Zara and I’ve heard so much about you, I would love to hang out with you later if that’s okay’. Henry at this point was deeply carried away by her cleavage which was all up in his face, all he could say was yes! Yes! Yes! As he gave zara his phone on demand and she her mobile number pecked him again and walked off. The most useless fellow in the building Funsho couldn’t believe what he just saw, he ran towards Dayo and Henry, ‘Good afternoon boss, you mean that young madam like you like this? You are the man o, in fact me and her still had a nice time yesterday, she took perfect care of me, you know what am saying right?’ he giggled as Dayo slapped him as fast as his hand could move. ‘Who the hell do you think you are to say such rubbish, Henry this guy is a joker and am sure you don’t believe any of the rubbish he just said’. Henry looked at them as they argued and walked off. It was a long day of work and crazy traffic but Henry finally made it home. He searched for his key impatiently in his Tom Ford suit, he inserted the key and made turn the lock when he realised the door was open ! He wonder if he had forgotten to lock the door or his house had been burgled as he reached for his pen knife, he pushed the door only to find Zara was seated rather comfortably on his couch. It was a well-crafted plan she had come up with Dayo to seduce Henry into forgetting about his crazy ideas, Dayo thought a woman would do his friend some good. Zara was in his towel, clearly she had had a bath and left the room smelling of lavender, she was sited on his so called thinking chair. As Henry walked in, she stood up.to receive him and she let her towel “accidentally ” slip down while she stood there looking like party jollof and dodo. ‘I’m sure you didn’t think our meeting would be this sudden’, Henry just continued to stare at her all naked, perfectly clean figure you may say, but instead of reaching for her he reached for his phone and took several pictures before Zara had a chance to cover up, she was terrified but it only made him giggle. Zara didn’t understand, she was so confused she knelt down begging Henry to kindly delete the pictures. ‘I wasn’t going to post them, this is just to be sure you would behave yourself’, as he picked her up and sat her down, ‘what do you want from me?’ she asked sobbing like a child . Henry strolled to his wine stash and poured himself a glass of red wine to calm his nerves and began to tell her about the Phantom Zone and his need for a subject. ‘You won’t die, but you have to trust me, I would have to drown you in a bath tub, with cold ice, get you to that point where you would think you are dead’. Zara was petrified ‘HA! Better post the pictures, you want to kill me, I should wait till I get to the point that am almost dead?! she laughed . You’re a joker, Henry brought out his phone and threatened to post her nudes on
Facebook, she knelt again begging henry to blackmail her with something else. She promised sex with him every day for two weeks but that only got him angry, she thought for a while, shook her head and said ‘post the pictures if you have to, I’m not going to sacrifice myself for an experiment, I’d rather be alive and ashamed than dead with pride’ and she walked out with nothing but the towel . Henry was down, and clouded by the thoughts of the past, ‘I think deep and seek for a way to let go, I can’t say it’s all my fault, I miss your touch mum but can’t say it’s all your fault, I liked your touch and now I feel default, exposed in vogue, am left unaccountably disposed, am I an expression of my mistakes because I can feel myself knocked to a stake, maybe I should just sacrifice myself, maybe I should just use myself’ he said, picking up a piece of paper, to jot a lot of nonsense which of course made sense to him. He took his phone and sent mails to all the reporters he could think of, about the breakthrough he believed he had struck, ‘phantom zone exist, and I am ready to prove it’. As he planned the grand finale for an isolated swimming pool, he drove down the locations and started twitting messages about how he was going to be greater than Jesus when he proved his theory and how every continent would worship him after, ‘I am henry ford and I can’t die’ he said. Dayo was strolling in the office when he noticed everyone around him talking and looking at their phones, he seemed the odd one out as he snatched a college’s phone to see what had gotten everyone’s attention, only to see a live feed of Henry setting up bombs round the swimming pool, he screamed ‘Ha! He has finally gone mad, my friend is mad!’ As he rushed outside to his car and zoomed off to the location where Henry was with a great number of people watching him but no one could cross the wires he had set all round, with the treat of an explosion if they did. The anti-bomb squad was on ground, a lot of television reporters all standing to capture the moment and report live, Henry looked to the sky ‘I have tried to explain this but seems no one is listening’. ‘Your grave is listening’ Dayo shouted, ‘you better stop this madness of yours and leave that side’. Henry smiled as he said the word he had been excited about for hours, ’I’m going drown myself, and after fifteen minutes the timer for the bombs would stop and the bombs would become inactive, then you can pick my body if I’m dead, or you can record something beyond your understanding you mortals!’ He stepped into the pool as everyone watched with rapt attention, a minute went by and someone shouted from the audience, ‘leave him, he can probably hold his breath for a minute’. Just then bubbles began to show at the surface of the water, people began to shout, ‘Henry! Henry! Henry!’ He suddenly jumped from his bed panting and sweating profusely, he heard his mum calling him to go attend to his friend Dayo who has been knocking, only then did he
realize it had all been a dream, but then he thought just what if the Phantom Zone was real, just like you are thinking now. That is the story of DR. Henry Ford
