A BITTER EXPERIENCE
Francis was my classmate in secondary school. During our secondary school days, we were very close and intimate. We were close friends to the extent that we used to exchange visits and my parents knew Francis very well and his parents too knew me. While in school, we shared many things together and we left the school the same year.
When we left secondary school. Francis and I still maintained our friendship for some years. While he was working in an insurance company, I worked with a government research institute and we shared the same apartment since we were both unmarried. The opportunity we had to live together further cemented our relationship and we did most things together.
Few years. after this, Francis had the opportunity to travel out of the country and we exchanged letters for the first two years of his stay overseas before I heard nothing again about him. Some years after this, I resigned my appointment to take to business of buying and selling. I got married and my wife and I joined hands to set up a business outfit. We were doing very fine as we were selling agricultural produce.
Three years after my separation with Francis, he came back to Nigeria and he was able to locate me. was very happy to see him and .l introduced him to my wife who readily accepted Francis as our family friend. Francis told me that he had gone into. business and that since I was a businessman, we could transact business together. This is how we started Joint. business outfit with the hope that Francis' connection overseas will be of immense assistance and leverage since his wife is an American.
Francis went on several business trips on behalf of our joint business venture which made my wife and Ito have a i trust in him. His assurance that nothing could go wrong and because of our long standing friendship made me not to listen to the warning of my wife. My wife had always warned me against being too trusting and her advice that I should make effort to follow Francis abroad so that I could know where Francis always buys the goods.
After two years of business transactions Francis came down to Nigeria and told me that there is a business transaction which we could do together. The business, according to him, involves importing a large number of electrical equipment which will cost two million naira. He asked me to raise one million naira and that he would add the remaining one million naira.
Despite my wife's warning against going into the business with such colossal sum of money, I decided to sell some of our properties and borrowed money without her knowledge. I gave the money to Francis and he travelled out to America.
I waited for six months expecting Francis to come back with the electrical equipment. After six months, I received a note from Francis and in the note, I read these horrible words: "I AM NOW A MILLIONAIRE, GO TO BLAZES. DON'T LOOK FOR ME, YOU ARE A SUCKER". I collapsed after reading the note. It was a bitter experience, but I learnt my lesson.