THE NIGHT I GENUINELY THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO DIE. ‎

‎It all started with one terrifying shout‎"Run o."‎On the penultimate day of the month of january 2026, exactly 10 mins to 8:00pm.‎I was approaching marlians gate, about to step out of the school premises.‎Then started trooping out the battalion of students, their voices humming afar like bees rushing out of hives.I was perplexed, totally confused‎At first, I thought It was a joke but when I saw how students were running wholeheartedly, their slippers aggressively slapped their heels, bags swayed wildly.‎I could see female students running out of hostel tying only wrappers,while Male students were wearing their shirts as they raced out of the hostel.‎The atmosphere was filled with what I could not describe.‎Though It was dark, I could see fear written on their faces , then it was set on me that their lives truly depended on it. ‎"Run! Run o!" Shouted someone ‎That single word pierced through my body like termites pierce through wood.‎Then Instantly, the co- observants picked race, flinging their bags, shoes and other belongings in the process. I was watching as their legs were almost touching their Occipital bones. ‎For a second, my feet refused to move, rooted not in confidence but in the fear of the unknown.‎To some, I was courageous for not moving an inch, but If one could use mind-croscope to examine my mind, he would discover I was afraid to the bone marrow. The fear pinned my legs to the ground not courage.‎As I looked toward the marlians gate, the gate though narrow but always looked ordinary became narrower, as It could not contain students pressing against one another.‎The gate that led to the citadel of learning eventually became an escaped route from the unknown.‎Whatever was chasing them was invisible to me, yet it wrote real fears in their eyes. ‎This time I tried to ask other runners, hurrying my strides in order to catch up‎"What is going on" I asked worriedly ‎"dem say bandit don enter kashere" He replied short of breath‎Immediately I heard the news, I joined the wagons.‎The fear in me tripled enough to uproot my legs from the ground. ‎My heart started beating rapidly the drum of danger against my chest, yet I still wanted to be sure of what I heard and at least If I would die I needed to be sure of what would kill me. I asked another person‎"What is going on" I asked curiously‎"Male hostel catch fire o" He replied immediately.‎At that moment, confusion wore me agbada, as I did not know who to believe, whether the first news or the second.‎Although both were signalling danger and peril , at least they should be specific.‎That night taught me a lesson, I had not learnt in classrooms. I realized that clarity is important in chaos, and hesitation can be more risky than the threat itself.‎As I finally stepped away from Marlian Gate, the hurried footsteps spoke in my mind that safety is fragile, fear is contagious, and the will to survive often arrives before understanding.‎@Olarewaju If you enjoy this kinda short story, kindly follow me for more. ‎

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