'Madam,do me 3 indomie and 2 eggs, takeaway ni o'
'Ehen,my customer'
I dropped onto a seat and watched as she cracked the eggs,dropped them into hot oil and scooped spoonfuls of noodles into a styrofoam pack.
'Madam,na 3 indomie o! Make e plenty o'
'Okay,I know you nar' her lacerised face widened into a smile. She said that in obvious reference to my large appetite which she noticed in the early days of camp. 'Customer yii ma jeun gan' she kept saying whenever I hopped in.
Food gotten&payment made,I gave the shop a once-over-just a rectangular walk-in with a stove and kitchen odds and ends at its end.
'Madam goodnight' I muttered
As I walked midway out,I repeated louder this time 'Madam goodnight'
I wasn't being polite or obsequious,this was my last night on camp and I had come to appreciate these stands and people. I would miss them.
Walking back to the room,new friends staggered and patted my back,some shoved phones into my hands to exchange contacts and we all smiled dopely with the carelessness of youth.
On the tarred stretch that led to my hostel-Panama Bay we called it-I was left alone to my thoughts and the stifling ammonia from pee encrusted walls.