The Weight of Winning
Lekan
"Where are the documents, Dupe? Don't tell me you didn't print them out last night. You knew the meeting was slated for 9 a.m., for God's sake. You scheduled it. You sent out the messages. What are you trying to paint me out as, Dupe, incompetent?"
I'm panicking. I can't stop panicking. Today, we ascend a new ladder in our company. We finalize an important merger. A young tech head created a crypto trading bot that could change everything, and he is willing to sell his company. Today, we finalize the sale and merge two companies together to become a powerful one. But my personal assistant obviously had more important things to do last night than print out the documents needed for the meeting.
"I'm so sorry, Mr Lekan."
"Don't be sorry, go and print them out now!" I command, and she disappears from my sight in a second, her footsteps echoing across the big hallway.
I rush to the meeting room, adjusting my tie, putting on my best smile before stepping into the room.
"Good morning, gentlemen, ladies," I say to the members of my board, and they nod in acknowledgment.
"Thank you so much for coming on such short notice. We didn't expect Ecclesiastical Tech to accept our offer so soon. We also don't want them pulling out due to our sluggishness, so we had to finalize everything quickly."
Mr Segun, the second-largest shareholder in the company, raises his hand as though to raise a suggestion. I nod and take a seat to allow him take the floor.
"Although the rush seems dangerous, I applaud your discipline and determination towards acquiring this tech bot. We, the members of the board, have heard of how hard you work, the tight schedule you keep, and how you hardly have time for yourself. Thank you, Mr Lekan, for always making us glad we joined hands with the right company. Can you please walk us through this merger, the importance of it, how it takes our company to the next level? Shey you know some of us are not tech heads like you, eh eh, we just have the money to finance young dreams like yours," Mr Segun says with his rich man's voice, inserting his billionaire smile and chuckles where he sees fit.
"Thank you, Mr Segun. Ecclesiastical has made something that could change the game for us. Sure trades, less manpower. Crypto trading is a new addition to our company. We've employed professionals, but still, it's not all the time that we reach our profit margin. There's still a lot of losses. Turns out even the pros can't beat the digital currency. The introduction of this bot, coupled with our pros monitoring it, will ensure a higher profit margin, more confidence in soliciting for investment. Our finance could literally skyrocket before we know it."
Dupe walks in as I speak.
"Dupe, can you please distribute the documents amongst the board? Contained in the documents that will be placed before all of you is the statistics we've made, the findings, testimonies, as well as how the bot works. Please do read through and direct any questions at me," I say to the members of the board before sitting down.
I adjust my tie twice but can't seem to relieve the tightness in my throat. I down a bottle of water, but whatever it is that gripped my throat travels into my stomach, twisting it into a knot that keeps tightening every second. I don't know when I start to choke.
"Mr Lekan, Mr Lekan..." Dupe is the first to notice as I slip off my chair to the ground, clutching my throat, trying to relieve whatever is lodged there.
"Mr Lekan, Mr Lekan..." I can hear them calling, but their voices just keep growing distant and distant until they fade completely.
I wake up in an unfamiliar room, walls painted white, blue blinds drawn shut. As I become more aware, beeping sounds harass my ears. I try to lift my hands to block them out, but a sharp pain alerts me to the pin that has been driven into the back of my palm, connecting a blood bag to my blood vessel.
"You're awake," a lady with a nose mask calls my attention to the other side of my bed.
"Wande?" I ask, unsure whether it's really the voice of my little sister who I haven't seen in a month.
"Lekan," she responds, pulling down her mask, concern lining her face like a second mask.
"Why don't you ever take a break? Don't you want to enjoy all that you've worked for?"
"It's too early to take a break. Besides, you know how dangerous a break can be."
"No, Lekan, the only thing I know is how dangerous not taking a break can be. Remember Mommy?"
"The question is, do you remember Daddy? He loved his breaks, but an idle man is the devil's workshop."
"Lekan, why do you always pick the worst role models?"
"He is not my role model. He is more like my example to not make the same mistake."
"But Lekan, it is costing you. If you don't learn to take breaks, your body will take them for you."
"Sis..."
"Nah. That's enough talk. You should sleep a bit more. Let me go and get you something to eat."
"Alright, sis."
"And you better be ready to go to Obudu this weekend. I already booked your flight and a spot. They are having a little retreat, it's just for 7 days. You're going to like it."
"No, Wande, you know I still have a deal to cl..."
"Hush hush hush now. Mr Segun is the one who brought up the idea. I am merely a messenger."
"Oh, Mr Segun," I say, resigning, because the largest shareholder in the company also believes I need a break. Plus, if he really suggested this, then the entire board must be in on it.
"Okay," I say weakly, knowing there's no winning against the members of the board.
"Now, that's my bro. What should I get you, rice? Jollof, white, fried, or spag?"
"Ki leleyi n so, what are you saying? Get me pounded yam jhor!"
"You know I was just pulling your legs. Ten wraps coming up, bro. You better be ready to finish them all. And of course, Egusi."
"Egusi," we say at the same time, eliciting a smile from her face.
"Rest up, brother. I'll be back," she says and with that, she exits the hospital room.