“I don’t even know what to do, I don’t think I have the courage, I’m scared, what if she says no? What if she hisses and snubs me? Or even raise her hands on me? Nah I don’t think I want to do this.”

“You can Ali! You can do this!” Says one of his friends as they argue about Ali summoning courage to approach his school crush.

“I’ve never talked to a girl, I don’t know the right words to say, I don’t know how to express my self or my feelings, Valentine is in few days and I feel it’s such a perfect time to do this but I can’t even summon the courage. What if I get rejected?”

Ali continues to lament in frustration as he walks side by side in the balcony of his class room.

School had just closed for the day and Ali and his friends were hanging around waiting for their evening lesson tutor before returning to the hostel.

“Well that’s the worst that can happen! She says NO, and then you move on with your life! Like nothing happened. I don’t understand why you fear being rejected or think you’re not good enough”.

Daniel replies, as he continues to persuade Ali.

“No, you don’t get it, I don’t fear rejection but I just think I’m not good enough. I’m the least in the class and not regarded as someone bright, I’m the least in my family, and my family is the least in my community. You think about all these for a moment and tell me why any lady on earth would want to have anything to do with someone like me. In-fact, the only thing I……”

“Ali! Ali! Ali!, look!”

Obed cuts in while he was still speaking.

“She’s approaching us with her friends! It’s your perfect time to ask her on a date!”

“What!! Date?! Please noooo. I’m not doing this today.” says Ali.

“Yes Date! You’ve got to grow up bro!” Daniel says as he shakes Ali by his shoulders.

As Mariam and her friends walked by, Ali’s friends fastened their eyes on him giving him signals to make the move. But he was just smiling, sweating profusely and shaking.

Without wasting time, Obed walks up to them with so much confidence, smiling….

“Hello girls, can I please borrow your friend Mariam for a minute ?”

The girls looked at themselves and at Mariam.

“Yeah sure” Mariam says

“Okay, We’ll wait for you downstairs” they echoed.

Obed takes her by the hand to the side and started engaging her in a conversation.

“What is he doing?! What is he telling her ?!” Ali asks, as he continues to pant.

Obed walks up to the guys leaving Mariam by the side and signaled Ali to approach her now.

“I’ve just told her you’ve got something to say, I’ve made it easy for you and she’s waiting.”

“Go!!!” The rest of the guys screamed silently.

Ali walks up to her, gathering his words together, swallowing saliva and sweating.

“Hey, hmmm, so I, hmmm, I’m not sure how you’d feel about this, hmmm”

Thinking of how to articulate his words….

“Hmm I just wanted to know how you’re doing?”

“Is that all you wanted to say to me ?” Mariam asks smiling at him.

“Well, no, yes, I mean no, I, hmmm want to know what you’d be doing tomorrow evening”

“Tomorrow’s Friday and I think I’ll be free after class and hanging out with the girls”

“Oh, great! I was wondering if, hmmm you’d…”

Scratching his head, he continued trying to articulate his words

“… if you’d be free to go on a date with me”

“A date ? Yeah sure!” Mariam replies still smiling and amused by his actings.

“okay great, I’ll meet you here same time tomorrow” Ali says

“Perfect!” Mariam agrees as she walks away.

“Yes !! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! Yes!! I did it! I did it! I did it!”

Ali screams as he walks back to his friends.

“She said yes, we’ve got a date tomorrow and we’ll meet here!” He says excitedly.

“Well did you loose any part of your body after talking to her now ?” Daniel asks jokingly.

“Hahaha of course not! Thank you so much guys! Now I need to think of a perfect gift for her tomorrow “

“Gift? Hahahaha are you joking?” Obed asks him?

“Do you still even have provisions for yourself in the hostel? Where will you get the money from ? You yourself acknowledged you’re broke earlier!”

“Hmmm, I know a place called The Rose Farm where you can get rose flowers, its just a block or two away from here” Daniel says.

“Well, let’s go now!” Ali drags him by the hand.

“No, I can’t go at the moment, I’ll give you a description and it shouldn’t take you more than 5 mins to be there”

Ali sets out towards the rose farm immediately.

Getting there, it was a cool, quite environment with birds chirping in the trees.

“Wow! So many beautiful flowers here. Very beautiful and quite. Perhaps I should bring her here tomorrow”

He thought to himself as he plucks the number of rose flowers he wants

Suddenly a monkey picks up his bag from the floor and runs on the pathway with it.

“Hey! Bring that back! Please!”

He runs after it with the flowers in his hands.

“I don’t have bananas in there!”

Now sweating and tired of running, he sat on the floor and watched the monkey climb a tree with his bag and passes it among other monkeys.

“What do I do? I have my school stuffs in there!”

He says to himself as he stands up.

Suddenly he hears a soothing voice calls his name

“Ali…”

“Huh?! Who’s there!”

The voice calls him repeatedly

“Ali….”

“Obed! Daniel! is that you ?. Don’t play pranks on me please”

“Ali….”

“Thou Mighty Man of Valor”

The voice says slowly.

Ali looks up, down and couldn’t tell who was speaking. He turns backwards and saw a human figure with a red garment walking away from him.

“Hey Who are you ?”

“Can you help me get my bag from the monkeys”

Ali asks, still concerned about his bag.

“Come” the voice says to him.

scared and confused he thought of what had happened earlier in school.

“Daniel says I have to grow up and be courageous!”

He walks towards the Angel of the Lord and asks again.

“Who are you ? And how can I help you? How do you know my name ?”

“I have known you before you were born” the Angel replies.

“It is time.”

“Time for what? See, I don’t want no troubles, what do you mean know me before I was born? Who are you again I ask ?”

Not answering his questions, the Angel continues…

“Ali, thou art mighty man of valor and it’s time to fulfil destiny”

“Destiny ? What do you mean?, why do you call me mighty man of valor? I am nothing but from a poor family in a poor community and also the least in my class. What is mighty about all of that?”

Ignoring his questions again the Angel continues…

“You have been chosen before birth, to deliver your community”

“Hahahahah you’re a joke ?! Me ? Hahahaha chosen by who ? God ? Why would He chose me ?. And deliver them from what exactly ? I’m not going to to let you ruin my plans”

He picks up his flowers and turns back to walk away, laughing over the words of the Angel.

After walking for some minutes and not far away he turns back and asks….

“Can you just help me get my…..”

Surprised at the sudden disappearance of the Angel and the appearance of his bag before him on the floor he asks…

“What ? My bag ? How did it get here.”

Ali grabs the bag and runs off back to the hostel.

Lying on his bed with eyes gazed up at the ceiling, he pondered at what had happened earlier and the words of the Angel continued to echo through his mind.

“Ali”

“Thou Mighty Man of Valor”.