Society of Smiles
Gloria Akinwalere
As the moon switched places with the sun, morning took its place.
The sun blossomed like an immaculate flower; as the clouds were painted tinted pink, that radiated in the sky.
The birds sang rehearsed harmonies, while the alluring scented flowers danced in the distance. People woke with smiles plastered on their faces, a mask – hiding reality…
They said tears made us weak, sadness equals danger, frowns were an abomination. I trusted them, had faith in the system, and believed them. (All I got back was a dreadful stab in the back.)
I would practice mine in the mirror day and night. Until my cheeks burned crimson red. Days I’d drown in waves of emotion, albeit I learned to hide it. I watched people get taken away daily, while I was obligated to beam.
That was until they took Jake away.
That sickeningly melancholy night: ear shattering screams, thunderous sirens, people swallowed in white clothing.
It felt like I was in a nightmare that I couldn’t wake up from. Ethereal ivory vans lay there in our faultless garden.
They grabbed him tight.
He didn’t fight, he didn’t yell, he only looked at me – really looked at me, I could see the tears glistening in his eyes as his smile faded.
It angered me how ma and pa didn’t even flinch. They just stood there, numb to it all.
That feeling was ineffable. Still I kept that vacuous grin plastered on my face.
That evening was my breaking point.
That night I couldn’t sleep. I replayed the moment over and over like a broken record player.
I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted my big brother back.
That wonder of the unknown ate me up like a predator devouring its prey. I made my decision right there and then..
That next day, when the ivory vans returned, I didn’t hide.
I ran.
Chasing wildly after the scarlet flashing lights – barefoot and breathless not daring to look back. Each stride a broken rule, introducing me to a new found independence.
The taste was thrilling and strangely addictive.
I didn’t think about getting caught, I just dashed, the happiest I’d been in a long time.
Within seconds, I found myself in a world with a variety of expressions. Drooped lips with furrowed eyebrows, glum faces, and countless more. No one hid it. No one stopped them. It was surreal.
All that colour, all that truth perplexed me.
What’s wrong with these people?
A familiar calming voice whispered behind me. I turned around and to my shock, Jake stood there smirking, although it looked different – alive.
I hurriedly embraced him. He spoke forbidding words such as ‘anger’ and I flinched in horror. He placed his hand on my shoulder.
“You’re safe now,” he whispered gently.
And that’s when I realised.
He wasn’t broken, not taken but truly alive. His smile was different now. It was real.
And for the first time, my smile was too.