My Gift
03
I’m now looking at the prince waiting for him to explain to his parents that me and him are not dating
“Muhle yena Senzakonke I’m proud ndodana.”
His father says moving closer and his wife follows him as they sit on the couch opposite me.
“Mah we not dating.”
He finally says and I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding.
“Ohhhh.”
They both say sounding disappointed and I’m not sure why they sound disappointed because they know that their son is a cheater.
“She is the girl Lwandle helped.”
He explains further and they nod their head and I’m not sure why they are calling her Lwandle.
“Mah baba”
I hear Lwandle behind me and when I look she is carrying a lot of food with her and I can tell she is struggling with carrying them. She comes around and stands next to me handing them to me.
“Thank you.”
I tell her taking them from her and it seems like there are also my favorites here that I’m not fortunate enough to eat them every time I want to eat them.
Life used to be nice back when my father was still alive and he worked for the palace as their driver. I used to get everything I wanted and when I wanted it but now it’s different because my mother is now the only one working and bringing money home.
“We should get going thina then I thought we have a makoti.”
The queen says taking her husband’s hand and they stand up going out of the living room and living me with the prince and princess.
“Well, I should also go.”
Konke says taking his phone from the coffee table and walking out.
Lwandle is sitting next to me and not saying anything and she looks like she is I’m de-ep thoughts about something known only to her and her mind.
“What’s wrong?”
I ask turning to look at her and she gives out a huge sigh.
“Lutho ngoba?”
She asks me and I look at her eyes and how they are now a different shade of grey. They look more beautiful now because of the light from the sun shining on them.
“You look like you are in de-ep thoughts.”
I tell her opening a packet of chips and start to eat.
“Cha I’m not thinking which movie do you want to watch?”
She asks me and I’m not sure which movie I would like to watch but Nandipha has been going on and on about this other movie she watched and could not stop crying.
“Call me by your name.”
I say after a while of thinking which movie I want to watch.
“Are you sure?”
She asks me looking surprised and I nod my head. She looks at me before she stands up and comes with the remote and sits next to me and starts pressing and the movie starts playing.
I’m surprised to find out the movie is about g-ays. I have never watched a movie about g-ays or seen a gah couple in our village and I have also not heard that they killed someone because they are g-ay so I think we just don’t have them. The ending was the most painful thing I have ever seen that I was crying and still crying.
“You do know it’s a movie angisho?”
Lwandle asks me and I just nod my mind still on the movie on how we don’t know what we have until it’s gone. Had these two men told each other they loved each other at the beginning one of this would have happened because they would have spent more time together and it would have not been that sad.
“It’s still sad.”
I say wiping my tears but I can’t seem to stop them from flowing down my face.
“Come here.”
She says pulling me closer to her and I’m now lying on her chest.
It’s comfortable and I snuggle closer to her as I watch the movies on the screen disappear.
“Why does your brother call you Lwandle?”
I ask her the question that has been on my mind since I learned that she is the princess.
“Uyinkosazana angisho?”-you the princess right?
I ask looking up at her and I find her looking at me.
“Yebo I am. Lwandle is the name I was given at the initiation school.”
She tells me and I nod my head because it makes sense when she tells me.
“How does it feel being the only girl?”
I ask her and I’m planning on asking her as many questions I can with all the time I will spend here as I’m healing.
“It’s fine just that like any brother they overprotective.”
She says and I laugh at how annoyed she sounds right now.
“I’m the only child and it’s boring worse since it is just me and my mom and I’m not saying there is anything wrong with my mom but it would be better if we were more.”
I explain to her feeling pain in my heart as I think of my father and how much I miss him.
“What happened to him.”
She asks me
“He pa-ssed away.”
Is all I say and she nods her head and smiles at me.
“I’m sorry.”
She says
“Its fine time heals.”
I tell her.
“But you have not healed from his death.”
She says and I know that she is telling the truth about me not healing from my father’s death. I feel like he was just taken from me and I was never given enough time to spend with him.
“Don’t worry you will get there just let him go.”
She says and brushes my hair and I close my eyes. Her brushing my hair is making my eyes feel heavy.
……………
I’m sleeping on something a little bit uncomfortable and when I open my eyes I’m still sleeping on Lwandle’s chest. She is growling and I can tell that she is having a bad dream. Now that hear her growling I now know the reason I woke up.
“Lwandle!”
I say shaking her but she does not wake up instead her growling gets worse and now she is shaking and I’m getting worried. I move from the couch and stand there looking at her as she keeps on shaking.
“Lwandle.”
I scream her name again but she is not showing any signs of waking up so I take the cold drink on the coffee table and open it. It’s the only thing near me and I don’t know where the kitchen is so that I could go and take water so I will use what I have. I move closer to her and pour her with the cold drink and she wakes up gasping for air.
She is looking at me like I just killed someone she loved more than anything.
“I’m sorry you were having a bad dream and you were not waking up il sorry.”
I say starting to feel bad now because her face is covered with the cold drink and it’s also dripping from the locks she has.
“It’s fine I need to clean up.”
She says and I don’t know if she is mad at me or she is just like this whenever she wakes up.
“I’m sorry.”
I say as she walks away taking off the t-shirt she is wearing.
“It’s fine.”
She says not looking back and disappears down the corridor and I’m left all alone not knowing what to do. Not knowing if I should clean the mess that I made or just live it like that and someone will come to clean it up. Even if I wanted to clean the mess I don’t know where they keep their cleaning supplies.
I sit on the couch and use my hands to brush my face and give out a huge sigh. I miss my mother and my friend and I’m not sure when I will go home and now it’s worse because it seems like Lwandle is mad at me.
“Where is Lwandle?”
I hear a voice behind me and when I turn to look it’s Senzakonke and he has changed from what he was wearing earlier on.
“She went to clean up.”
I say and look back to looking into thin air.
“Is everything okay?”
He asks sitting on the couch opposite me and taking a packet of chips from the table and starts eating.
“I poured Lwandle with a cold drink.”
I say in a low voice and he breaks into a loud laughter
“Why would you do that. I mean girl you have guts you make a good friend for my little sister at least she will have a friend now.”
He says while laughing but still in a serious voice.
“She was having a bad dream and she kept shaking I didn’t mean to”
I say and he nods like he understands why I did it.
“Don’t worry she will be fine.”
He tells me and takes the remote and starts scrolling throu-ghthe channels. I’m sure he is trying to find a movie to watch.
“I’m back.”
I hear Lwandle say and she is now wearing a skirt-a long one at that and a string top.
She nods her head and then sits next to his brother.
“You okay sis?”
Konke asks and she just nods her head and I can now see that she is really mad at me.
“Yebo I’m fine. Let me go and find someone to clean up this mess.”
She says and stands up without even looking at me.
“Let me go and check on her.”
Konke says and follows her. I can hear shouting from the kitchen but I’m not hearing a thing.
“It can’t be.”
Is all I hear from her brother and I stand up and go outside. The sun has set and I know if I start walking now I will make it just it time home.
I feet keep walking and the hot ground is not having any mercy on my feet but I keep on walking. I can not wait for Lwandle to tell me that I’m fine my leg does not hurt anymore so I have to live I can not stay after what I did and Lwandle is not showing signs of bot being mad at me.
The guards don’t give me much of a hustle so I’m now almost halfway home. And after some minutes I’m entering the gate and my mother is outside with her friend-Mandla’s mother.
“Sawubona mah”
I greet her as soon as I reach them. I can see the shocked look on her face when she sees me.
“I thought you will come tomorrow that’s what the princess said.”
She says standing up to hug me.
“I got better fast.”
I lie throu-ghmy teeth and she just nods her head.
“I will see your friend.”
Makhumalo-Mandla’s mother says standing up and going. I’m sure she is trying to give me and my mother space since I just got home.
“I’m tired can I go to sleep?”
I ask her and she nods her head helping me to go to our bedroom.
.
.
Tbc