I sped along the path that came down the hills, wanting desperately to catch my breath, but dared not stop, or that would be the last time I inhaled air. My assailant was right on my heels with a gun blazing, the only obstacle between me and a bullet were only a handful of trees scattered around the area . As I ran for my dear life, I thought back to early that morning; when I was running up this same trail, with no one chasing me but extra calories that needed to be burnt.
Running the 10km from my house to the hillside daily, was an essential part of my morning routine. I could feel the breeze on my face as I ran, my muscles rebelling from lack of oxygen, but I plowed on regardless. I finally stopped after reaching my spot, which was where I normally did some stretches and squats before turning back home. Took big gulps of water from the bottle I often carried with me on a run, lifting my face upwards to revel in the glory of the rising sun.
I set down my bottle, getting ready to do a couple of squats. Placing my hands on both sides of my waist, I bent down with my back straight, silently counting down. That was when I heard a bullet wheeze past my head, hitting the stem of a tree just ahead. If I hadn’t been in a squatting posture and was only a few inches taller, that bullet would be embedded quite snugly in my brain right now. Or it would have passed right through my brain onto the tree anyway.
Planting my hands onto the ground instead of standing straight, I crawled away for some distance then stood up and sprinted with all the energy I could summon. Chest burning from running so hard, I could hear footsteps of the killer hot on my trails, firing shots determinedly. This was how I came to be in my present predicament; a faceless killer closing up on me, for reasons I could not fathom.
Reached the end of my luck, or so I thought, when I got shot in the leg. “Nooo!!!” I cried out from the intense pain as I face planted into the sand. The killer came closer and used his boot to turn me on my back so I was looking up at his jaggedly scarred face. Voice tremulous with tears, I asked him “what do you want?! Who sent you?!! Why?!!!.”
With a sinister grin on his face, he aimed the gun at my heart and replied “tsk tsk tsk, isn’t it obvious what I want? And the one who sent me is quite known to you. As for why… You were just in the wrong place, at the wrong time, nothing personal. Adieu.” A shot rang out, hitting my chest with full force, and the last thing I saw was that ugly face, hovering on top of me.
Beep beep beep…. I wondered what that annoying sound was; surely this couldn’t be the sweet and calming voice of angels in heaven. Was this hell then? Only one way to know. Opened my eyes as far as my eyelids would allow; for some reason, it felt heavier than normal. Bright lights flooded my retina and I couldn’t see clearly for a second there. Then the room came into focus, and I saw a face hovering over me again; except in this case, it was an angelic looking person–not like the spawn of evil that shot me. This angel was wearing white with a stethoscope hanging from her neck. A doctor? I Am in a hospital?
After been shot at directly in my heart, How could I possibly be alive right now? Is this a miracle? Am I immortal?
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Can anyone take a guess at the answer to the big question, “What went wrong?” or in this case, “What went right?”

Part 2 coming soon!

Written by
Ademola Zulaikha,
University of Ilorin, Kwara State, NIGERIA