Chapter 3: Lights Off and the Battle With Mosquitoes
After dragging my injured pride and my new twenty-cedis slippers all the way home, I thought, "Finally, peace at last."
I opened my door, dropped my bag, and just stood there for a second breathing in the small breeze that managed to sneak through my broken louvre blades.
Then it happened.
"Kpuff!"
The fan stopped spinning.
The fridge stopped humming.
Silence everywhere.
I didn't even need anyone to tell me — ECG had struck again.
"Light off!"
I just sat on my bed and stared into space like a widower.
The room immediately transformed into a small oven.
Sweat started dripping from my forehead like I was carrying a secret.
But that was just the beginning.
As night fell, the real demons woke up — mosquitoes.
Big ones.
Small ones.
Some were singing hymns into my ears, others were biting me like they paid rent.
At some point, I covered myself with a cloth, thinking I could outsmart them.
Bad idea.
The heat under that cloth almost finished me. I felt like I was roasting myself for a funeral.
I got up and started doing mosquito kung-fu in the dark.
Clapping in the air like a madman.
Jumping, slapping my legs, twisting my neck.
At one point, I even heard my neighbor laughing through the wall.
Me too, I started laughing at myself.
Because at that point, madness had become friendship.
Finally, in total defeat, I sprayed the room with all the insecticide I had.
Nearly choked myself to death, but at least the mosquitoes respected the anointing and reduced their attacks.
I lay back down, sweating, itchy, dizzy — but victorious.
Before I finally drifted into sleep, I whispered into the darkness:
"Accra is not a city. It's a wrestling ring. If you survive, count yourself blessed."
End of Chapter 3