Dem call us pikin of the devil. Even di mama wey dey sell me pelebe last week dey look me like na me tif the bulb wey dey front of her shop. I no be devil pikin, nah life turn me bad. My name na Oluwasegun Kuforiji and I am boda adugbo but some people go call me area boy.

For my area and for street, I be Segun Sniper, becos one time I drink sniper after one boy talk say I no fit drink am and still dey alaif, he bet me 2k. I drink am, I no die, I collect di money and that night me and my grama chop fish and fufu. I no know my moda or my fada but I remember my grama tell me say dem die because dem go tif petrol from tanker, tanker blow and dem die. Eniway, I finish form 2 o but I no continue because my grama say she no get money again. I sha start dey do small work for people for di adugbo. Dem dey send me message.

Wen I reach 14 years, I collect igbo from boda Sefiu hand for first time. He say na for me to be man. E enter my head, I cof and he say next time I no go cof, na because e be my first smoke. Di second time I take igbo from boda Bayo hand, I no cof. After I take dat one, my head big, I start to see different things even my dead fada and moda wey I no know before. Dem pour me wata, give me rice chop and I sleep for 3 days. I go back house but my grama curse me say “omo ale oloriburuku” and I sha go back to di bad boys. Dem bad boys kuku get food and di food always get fish, so me I go back to dem and dem accept me. I dey wash their sets, trosa, even their okada and dem dey give me food. Dem give me igbo too, so I become their boy, area boy.

My own kind, I no dey tif o even if I don tif before. Our own na to stay for adugbo and collect money from people wey dey build house or party. After I graduate to collecting money for loading and ticket and I dey okay now.

One day dem say work dey for one Baba Alaye wey dem know for our adugbo. Dem carry me go there and I sit inside Baba Alaye hotel room with dem. Dem give me peppersoup drink and apu jwis, dem drink bia and peppersoup. So dem dey talk about di elecshun wey dey come. Dem say Baba Alaye party no go win and we sha make sure Baba Alaye party win. Baba Alaye give us money inside gana must go bag. He now give us mashets, kotlas, gun and small small knife. When I see am, my head big and my body get chukuchuku like pimples but boda Sefiu say issokay and boda Bolaji say make I sha go wait outside. Me I go outside carry my peppersoup. We sha go home.

Di morning of elecshun day, dem wake me say make I sha drink one thing. I drink am, my head big, my eyes no see for 2 minis, my head dey do me waiwaiwai. Baba Alaye now say we dey go meet people wey make my fada and moda die. Baba Alaye give me cutlass, my head vex collect am but boda Sefiu collect am and give me bottle wey don break. I follow dem, we dey shout, dey chase, we carry box. Den olopa follow us, shoot shoot shoot but e no catch us. We now carry box go. We sha gif Baba Alaye. Baba Alaye people now become winner and dem buy plenty okada for us, dem give me new jesi for ManU. Dem carry me go bia palo too and tell Iya Flo to give me one botu. I drink bia, I comot am from my mouth fast fast “tuah” e no sweet rara but dem say na so dem dey know big boy. So I drink am again but me I no like am. I want that jwis wey I drink for Baba Alaye hotel room.

Di day I start see something white from my thing when I wake up from sleep, I tell boda Bayo. Dem carry me go Ngozi say she sha show me how to be man. Ha! Ngozi show me plenty plenty to be man o. E sweet gan, I go Ngozi next day again, she tell me bring money. I now tif boda Sefiu money give Ngozi, Ngozi show me again. Ha, that period all the money we collect from people wey wan build house I gif Ngozi. Even I tif one boy blackberry sell am to see money gif Ngozi but later I lif Ngozi follow plenty plenty woman.

Di day boda Sefiu become shiamon, ehn, head of garaji e sweet gan o. Dem say na because we help Baba Alaye. Ha, we enjoy gan. Dem give us 10 bus stop say we go collect money and everything. Ha, even me I see money buy my own bus give Baba Eli to drive and gif me money everyday.

But e no be enjoinmen every time. We dey fight gan and all my face don look like ebora own. I get mark everywhere becos of cotlas, mashet. My teeth no complete, na now 24 no be 32 because I fight Gbonkan Ikeduba one day, one punch comot 8 of my teeth. Dem even kill one of di bodas wey I like gan. Even one day we go fight for Baba Alaye people for one elecshun wey we meet other boys, dem cut me knife for my head, hair no grow again. Dem use knife chook boda Sefiu too one night because other boys wan collect his garaji. That time like this boda Sefiu do plenty juju, eat plenty things. We eat too, do juju. I eat tortoise and snake. Dem use blade cut my body, put black things on top. Di juju man say e go make gun no enter me and knife no enter me. Dem now say I no go touch woman for 3 months for di juju to stay inside me well well. Ha, I wan die o but becos I wan be strong man I no touch woman. Ha but e wan kill me o.

Di next time we fight for our garaji, we wound plenty of dem o but olorun darijimi, I think I kill one man. But he wan kill me too so I bash his head with pako wey I carry. He fall down, I go touch am but di blood wey rush from his head fear me, I run away. Di olopa come but dem no do anything and boda Sefiu now be head of garaji. For 14 nights I see di man for my dream, he dey tell me I kill am, I kill am. Ha! I drink bia plenty, smoke igbo and cana becos I wan forget. I even go see my grama make she pray for me but her eyes and ears don spoil so I put one small girl with her, gif di girl money every week to cook and take care of my grama.

I wan God give me mercy too, make my grama enjoy me more di small small things wey I get make she enjoy life small. Anytime I see woman with baby inside her, I quickly help her cross road or enter bus because e make my chest feel for my moda. And dat na why I buy biscuit for small small children too because e make me feel for my moda.

And I wan stop to follow boda Sefiu and everybody fight and cause trouble but I no fit because dem go say I be odaale and I no be odaale so I dey here but fight don even reduce now, na for di small small boys now. And I fear boda Sefiu juju before e go catch me if I go away. Boya next elecshun dem go say I shu come fight again but me I wan leave this place go Gana or Kutonu because I wan marry and get my own pikin. Because I know I fit die anytime if I stay here and I no wan my wife and pikin suffer and I no wan my pikin be like me.

I no know but one day God go help me be wetin my moda and fada wan make I be wey make dem give me Oluwasegun name.