The morning sun hit Block C with a brutal, unforgiving heat, but inside Room 14, the tension was even hotter.
Amina sat on the edge of her bed, the sleek titanium-gray iPhone 15 Pro Max resting on her lap. It looked completely alien against the backdrop of her faded floral bedsheets and the blue plastic basin tucked underneath her metallic trunk. Every time the screen lit up with a notification, the sharp ding echoed through the quiet room like a gunshot.
Across from her sat her other two roommates, Carol and Mercy. They hadn't gone out the night before. Now, they were staring at the phone with narrow, calculating eyes, while Sharon slept off her hangover, snoring softly under a heavy duvet.
"Kwani Amina, unataka kutuambia huyo msee alikupea tu simu hivyo? Free?" Carol asked, her voice dripping with skepticism as she aggressively combed through a tangled synthetic weave. "Hapa Juja tunajua Brayo. Huyo msee hapei mtu hata bob bila kuitisha kitu."
"Alisema tu ni welcome gift," Amina said defensively, clutching the...