Segun Ozique

SCENE: As the clock ticks toward midnight. A preacher on TV is shouting, "In 2026, you shall sin no more! You shall be Christlike! You shall be a better person!" ​JIDE (Reaches over and switches the TV to another channel): ​Jesus, who actually cares? If I hear one more "wish list" for 2026, I’m going to scream. Every year it’s the same thing: “I’ll be better, I’ll pray more, I’ll stop this, I’ll start that.” Then December 31st comes back, and we realise we are the exact same people. ​ELDER EPHRAIM (Frowning): ​Jide! That is the language of a man without hope. We must aim for perfection. If we don’t try to be better in the New Year, what are we? ​JENNIFER: ​Actually, Elder, Jide has a point. It’s a Cycle of False Hope. We spend the first week of January pretending we are saints, and by February, we are back to our old habits. At the end of 2026, we will stand here again, making the same list of "No Sins" for 2027. It’s a treadmill. ​NNE: ​Exactly. And let’s...

SCENE: Evakings Bar. 8:00 PM. The music is loud. Nne is showing everyone a video of a famous influencer who just crashed an expensive car while partying. ​NNE (Shrugging): ​Honestly, I don't blame him. People are dragging him for "reckless living," but life is short! Tomorrow you could wake up with a stroke or a sickness that stops you from ever dancing again. Why not take the risk now? ​ OLA (Scoffing): ​Because "now" is the reason he’s in the hospital! You call it "living for the moment," I call it being a fool. You are actively digging the grave you are afraid of falling into. ​ ELDER EPHRAIM (Tapping his walking stick): ​In my youth, we referred to this as "madness." Now you children call it a "vibe." If you spend your strength on addiction and "risky fun" because you fear the future, you are making sure the future will be miserable. You are creating the very tragedy you say you want to avoid. ​ NNE: ​But Elder, be rea...

SCENE: Evakings Bar. The door opens. A lady walks in alone. She is dressed neatly but simply. She doesn't look around for anyone. She sits at a table, orders a drink and a plate of pepper soup, and starts scrolling through her phone with a small smile. ​ELDER EPHRAIM (Adjusting his glasses, whispering loudly): ​Ha! What is this world coming to? Look at that girl. Sitting there all by herself in a public bar. No husband, no brother, no boyfriend. In my day, a virtuous woman wouldn't even be seen near the door of a bar alone. It looks... suspicious. ​OLA (Nodding): ​I’m with you, Elder. A woman sitting alone in a place like this is usually waiting for someone. If she stays too long, people will start thinking she is one of those "umbrella traders" Jide told us about. It’s not "safe" for her reputation. ​ NNE (Rolling her eyes): ​Oh, please! Look at her. She’s not waiting for anyone. She’s vibing! She’s hungry, she wants a drink, and she’s enjoying her own comp...

SCENE: Evakings Bar. A couple at a corner table is in a "Cold War." The woman is shouting and tapping her phone, but the man is just staring at his drink, saying nothing. ​ OLA (Looking at the couple): ​Look at that guy. He’s just sitting there like a statue while she’s pouring fire on him. That’s a weakness. If someone provokes you, you speak up! Silence just makes the other person think they’ve won. ​NNE (Shaking her head): ​Actually, Ola, sometimes silence is Toxic. We call it "Stonewalling." It’s a way to punish the other person without saying a word. But sometimes, it’s the only way to keep your sanity when someone is trying to "drag you into the gutter." ​ JENNIFER (Adjusting her glasses): ​There is a strategy called the "Grey Rock Method." When someone is trying to provoke you or get a reaction out of you to feed their ego, you become like a "Grey Rock" - boring, silent, and unresponsive. You don't give them the "fuel...

SCENE:  A Bar in Ikeja. A video of a shouting match in the news is playing on the TV. ​ OLA (Pacing as he watched the TV): ​I hate this! Why is it that when you tell someone the truth about their bad behavior, they start talking about your past? If I say you stole money, tell me if you stole it or not! Don't tell me I’m "disrespectful" or "too loud." ​ JENNIFER (Nodding): ​There is a reason for that, Ola. In logic, we call it an "Ad Hominem" attack. It means "attacking the person." When someone cannot defend their actions, they try to destroy your credibility . They want to make you look like the "bad person" so tha main issue is forgotten or muddled. ​ AMARA (Pointing at the TV): ​Exactly. Look at what happened with Senator Natasha in the National Assembly. When she brought up serious facts and accused the leadership of doing wrong, they didn't answer her with facts. Instead, the Senate President and others tried t...

SCENE: Late afternoon. Everyone is relaxed. Jide leans forward, looking more thoughtful than usual. ​JIDE (Quietly): ​I tried something different on a date recently. She said something that really offended me. Usually, I would get angry or go cold. But this time, I chose curiosity instead of anger. ​OLA (Laughing): ​Curiosity? Jide, if a woman offends me, I don't need to be "curious." I need to be respected! Why should I wonder why she is being rude? Rude is rude. ​JIDE: ​That’s exactly what most people miss, Ola. There is no true love without curiosity. When you truly love someone, you have a natural urge to want to know more - even when they hurt you. Instead of condemning or judging them, you ask yourself: "What happened in their day to make them react like this?"  EOO (Nodding slowly): Jide has found the secret. Curiosity is the bridge back to that sense of miracle and wonder. When we stop being curious, love becomes a chore. But when we look at the person w...

SCENE: Christmas afternoon. The bar is decorated with red and gold. Music is playing, but the conversation is serious. ​JIDE (Looking around at the crowd): ​Merry Christmas, everyone! But look closely. Some people here are smiling, but they don't feel "welcomed." They feel judged. They feel like everyone is looking at their old shoes or their cheap phone and thinking they are inadequate. ​JENNIFER (Nodding): ​That’s because of how our minds are wired, Jide. We carry "preconceived notions." If you grew up feeling unworthy, you expect people to treat you poorly. Even when someone is kind, draws you near, critiques your actions to make you better, your brain tells you it’s a lie. This "expectation" ruins our relationships and our growth. ​NNE (Sipping a drink): ​Facts. And because you feel "less than," you start taking unnecessary risks. Do you see a guy acting "too loud" or drinking too much today? It’s usually because he feels small ...

SCENE: A Bar in Ikeja. A man in his 60s is sitting alone in the corner, looking deeply unhappy. Jide watches him for a moment before turning to the group. ​JIDE (Voice low, nodding his head slightly to the oldman, he says): ​Mr. Tunde is doing his end-of-year "spirit audit." He just told me he spent most of 2025 being insulted by a girl young enough to be his last-born. She’s street-smart and sharp-tongued, but she has no true respect for age or position. ​OLA (Snorting): ​That is what happens when a lion goes to play in the mud with pigs. If you lower your standards just to have a fling, to have some "young thing" on your arm, don't complain when she treats you like her mate. You gave her the "right" to insult you the moment you stooped low. ​NNE (Sipping her drink): ​Omo, it’s not even about age. With some such girls, it is about their mindset. If she’s argumentative and always wants to be "right," to "win" every talk, she’s just ...

SCENE: A Bar in Ikeja. Festive lights are twinkling. Jide is laughing as he looks at a message on his phone. ​JIDE (Calling everyone over): ​Listen to this Christmas dilemma. An "Old Man" is complaining about his 'informal house.' He says that he has "Adopted Sons" - the young guys' he partners, encourages and motivates in business - and has "Adopted Daughters" -  younger girlfriends. ​NNE (Smirking): ​We know what "adopted daughters" means, Jide. Go on. ​JIDE: ​He says the "Sons" are sending him Christmas gifts, money and business deals to say "Thank you." But the "Daughters" are sending him long lists of expenditure to do with hair, foods and drinks, etc. They are even fighting for more of his time during the holidays! ​OLA (Hitting the table): ​This is what I call a bad investment. One group is adding to his bank account, Peace of mind and the other is a "vulture" group, just picking at his p...

SCENE: A Bar in Ikeja. Nne is showing a post to the group. She looks confused. ​NNE (Sighing): ​I’m reading this story about a guy named Ik. Narrating his sad story. His girlfriend, Bola, always told him he was her "everything." But while he was always busy planning her future, she continued to see and sleep with old male friends and customers in secret. ​OLA (Leaning in): ​Let me guess. She stays over at hotels for "boarding" and few Naira notes? I’ve seen that story. My problem isn't just that she lies. It’s that she sold her loyalty for the price of a few meat pies! That’s cheap, an insult to the word "love." ​ JIDE (Satirically): ​Ah, Ola, maybe it’s "inflation love." But really, Ik says the worst part wasn't the money. It was the message she sent after. When she asks the men: "I hope you enjoyed it?" She acts like she was providing a service instead of being a woman in a committed relationship. ​NNE: ​That’s what’s so ...

SCENE: A Bar in Ikeja. Jide is looking out at the street where women are packing up their small umbrellas for the day. ​JIDE (Reflectively): ​I just found another "social business miracle" in our city. Have you guys noticed the ladies sitting under umbrellas at the motor parks, warehouses and markets? They sell small things - electrical materials, electronics, secondhand clothes, or socks. The whole shop isn't even worth 50,000 Naira. ​NNE (Shrugging): ​Everyone is hustling, Jide. 50k is a lot of money to some people. ​JIDE (With a satirical smile): ​Ah, but the wares are just a front. The real business is the "oldest profession." Their customers don't come for the goods displayed. They come to book a "Delivery" - that’s for a quickie. Or they book a "Lodging" - that’s for the whole night. The umbrella is just a signal. ​OLA (Angrily): ​This is a total social menace! It’s disgusting. We used to know where to find "those" women. ...

SCENE: The Bar. The music is low. Everyone looks a bit tired as the year 2025 comes to an end. ​NNE (Slumped in her chair): ​Honestly, 2025 "showed me shege." I feel like I’ve been running a race for 12 months and I’m still at the starting line. I’m tired, I’m broke, and I feel like a failure. ​OLA (Sighing): ​You’re not the only one, Nne. This year stretched everyone until we almost snapped. The economy, the stress, the disappointment... it was a lot. Most of us are entering the new year feeling "broken." ​JENNIFER: ​It’s a collective trauma. When you work hard and see no results, your mind starts to tell you that you are the problem. But we must remember that a bad year is a situation, not an identity. ​EOO (Takes a clean 1,000 Naira note, crushes it into a ball in his fist, then drops it on the table): ​Look at this note. I have squeezed it. I have stepped on it in my mind. It is "cracked" and "broken." ​JIDE (Picking it up and smoothing it ou...

SCENE:  A Bar in Ikeja. Nne is holding her phone out for everyone to see. On the screen, a girl is crying and kneeling, begging her fiancé. ​ NNE (Disgusted): ​You guys, come and look at this. This girl is begging her fiancé to take her back. He cancelled their wedding because he caught her cheating. She’s crying like her life is over. ​ OLA (Sipping his drink, nodding): ​As he should! A woman who is about to marry should be pure and focused. If she can cheat now, she will cheat forever. He did the right thing to walk away. No man wants a "used" or disloyal wife. ​ JIDE (Laughing dryly): ​It’s funny, Ola. Last month, when your cousin had his "Bachelor’s Eve" and stayed out all night with two girls, you and the other guys were hailing him. You called it his "last run" before the ring. Why was he a "king" for doing it, but this girl is a "demon" for the same thing? ​ NNE : ​Exactly, Jide! That’s the point. When a guy sleeps w...