Conflict of interest
“Gents, let me go to the loo, will see you in a minute.” That is JB, Simo's friend leaving them (Simo & Mlu) for the loo which isn’t close enough. The gentlemen are in a party at the beach, celebrating Mlu's birthday. The place is vibey, crowded with people parking their cars playing and dancing to music. Every group has cooler boxes out and others are braaing meat. It’s a good environment to be around. Simo and his friends are also parking their cars and playing music.Mlu waits for JB to be in a bit of a distance and then he turns to Simo, “So where’s the madam tonight? you normally bring her along?” he asks Simo who is digging in the cooler box. He pulls a cider and takes a sip and then looks at his friend, “did you bring your girlfriend?” he asks jokingly. They both laugh.
“What girlfriend?” Mlu asks as he turns away as if he doesn’t want to entertain the question but he is still smiling none the less.
“Oh?” Simo exclaims, “What girlfriend, huh? So you really won’t tell me about it?” he says as he looks at his friend from the corner of his eye. He takes a sip again, waiting for Mlu to say something. “Dude, tell you what, exactly?” Mlu seems really confused as to what his friend is on about. He digs in and pulls a cider for himself. Simo pulls his camp chair closer to Mlu’s because the place is loud with music. “Man, I’m talking about you and Julie.” He says. At that Mlu looks so shocked. He really didn’t expect to hear that. It doesn’t help that he has a lousy poker face. He puts his drink down. He doesn’t know how to answer the question. He looks at his friend Simo, who is waiting for an answer.
“Man, how did you…” Simo cuts him in, “Oh yes I know.” he says and smiles. Seeing Simo smiles seems to lighten him up as well. “But how do you even know that man? I mean, no one knows that?” he is still shocked about it. “relax man. I’m not sweating you.” Simo reassures him.
“But I don’t get why you hid that from me man. We go a very long way. You’re my best friend. I mean, what’s up with that, dude?” Simo asks curiously. Mlu looks around to see if anyone is listening. “I’m sorry man, I didn’t mean to keep that from you. I didn’t want to keep that from you,” he tries to
reassure his friend, “besides, we hooked up just once, at that party, remember? And nothing ever happened after that. We keep in touch from time to time. Just to check on each other but nothing is happening between us.”
Simo takes a sip at his cider and thinks for a second, “but you still should have told me man, seriously,” he looks away. Mlu looks embarrassed. “I know man, I’m sorry. But honestly I thought no one knew and I just didn’t want JB on my case.” He looks at Simo in the eyes, “and you know how he is with you and Lee-Ann. He really doesn’t approve of this interracial relationship thing. You can tolerate him and I don’t think I can. So had he found out about the Julie thing…” Mlu looks up and sighs, “anyways I don’t want to lose him as a friend. At that Simo gives him a pet on the back, “it’s all good man, don’t stress about
it” that comes as a relief to Mlu. He hates keeping things from his friend.
“she actually called me this morning to wish me a happy birthday.” He smiles. They both toast with the ciders and simultaneously take sips. “So, where’s Lee-Ann? I would have been happy to see her,” Mlu says. But Simo sighs heavily, “no man, today is your birthday. I just didn’t want to spoil it for you. You
know how our friend JB feels about this. I just didn’t want to create tension. They toast again as they smash their ciders and take sips.
Their moment is disrupted by JB, “am I missing a toast for something?” he says as he pulls his camp chair closer to them. “Damnit, the meat,” Mlu jumps from his camp chair to attend to the meat that almost got burnt in the fire.
“No man,” Simo responds to JB, “we ain’t toasting to anything,” he smiles. “how can we without you here?' at that they both lift up their ciders and toast and then take a sip. Mlu comes back to join them in the celebrations. “so, birthday boy,” JB says, “what’s did you gif yourself with today?” JB asks Mlu who digs in for another cider in the cooler box. “let me guess,” JB continues, “A new ride? I know how you engineers like to spoil yourselves with sport cars, hahaha” he laughs. Mlu and Simo join him in the laughter. Mlu shakes his head, “no man I’m not getting myself anything. I have all I need.” He smiles. JB looks at Simo in amazement, “You have everything? Hahaha” JB laughs.
Mlu gives Simo a look, as if to say, here we go. But he takes a sip at his cider and ignores his friend. “Simo,” JB calls out, “You know what? We should have organized a stripper for this one, hahaha,” he bursts out laughing. “I’m not talking about those white bitches Simo likes but some African queen, hahaha.” He laughs loud again.
But this joke doesn’t seem to please Simo or Mlu for that matter. If anything, it creates an awkward moment. They both take sips of their ciders. Mlu stands up to check on the meat, obviously to avoid tension. JB can see that he has hit a nerve somewhere. “oh come on guys,” he says laughing, don’t be so uptight, it’s a party” he chuckles. There’s an awkward moment of silence. No one is saying word to another. Mlu comes back to sit down. But it doesn’t look like JB is done just yet, “Hey Simo,” he says as he digs in to the cooler box. “I’m glad you didn’t bring your white *** girlfriend here man because I was going to leave, serious.”
Simo and Mlu look at each other with annoyance. JB is persistent. Simo keeps quiet and digs in to the cooler box to pick a cider. He opens and takes a huge sip. Clearly he is very irritated. But Mlu cuts in, “Hey JB man, come on, that’s uncalled for. Now, this is my birthday please let’s not do that tonight man, please.”
JB bursts out laughing, “hahaha, but I’m serious man,” he says. “The dude is a very successful software designer, earning a top dollar but what does he do? He decides to go for a white chick of all people,” he shrugs his shoulders. “Aren’t there pretty black chicks available anymore?” he asks looking at Simo.
Clearly he is pushing it. Simo can’t take it anymore, “Look man,” he shouts at JB, “l’ve had enough with you and your bullshit okay?” Simo stands as if he is inviting a fist fight, “Why must you always be a jerk? Huh? Are you going to blame everyone for what happened to you, every day?”
At that, JB stands up as well and comes so close to Simo as if he’s accepting the invitation into a fight, “Oh yes let’s go there alright?” he shouts back Simo, “have you forgotten what them white b**ches did to me? Huh?” he is now furious. “I lost my job in that accounting firm when a white b**ch falsely accused me of sexual harassment, remember?”
Mlu turns around to notice that this argument is drawing some attention from the people around them. Some are starring at them wondering what’s going on. JB and Simo notice that too. They both sit down. Simo looks the other way while JB looks the other. There’s moment of awkward silence. Mlu's car that was playing the music has gone quiet.
“Look, man,” Mlu says looking at JB. “We know what happened to you okay? We haven’t forgotten. It was unfair what happened to you okay?” Mlu says speaking softly trying to calm emotions down. “We know that incident led to you being blacklisted and that but…” but he doesn’t finish as JB cuts him in, “yes I got blacklisted?” he says with a furious face, “No accounting firm will hire me. Do you know how painful that is? Now I have to work and do something I don’t like because I can’t get a job I love and that I spent lots of money to study for? Just because a white privileged girl decided to lie and accused me of harassment.” Now he sounds more emotional than being furious.
Simo turns around to look at JB. But he doesn’t seem to have words to utter at this point. He takes a sip at his cider. He sighs. “I’m sorry my friend,” he says to Mlu. “We are not trying to down play that incident, not at all. We are also not trying to be insensitive about it either, bro,” at this point JB has calmed down a little bit. He looks down.
Simo continues, “all I’m saying is that people aren’t the same. My girlfriend can’t be treated the same way that white girl is. They are two different people bro, “Simo pleads. “She is a good person. I love her and she loves me.” At those words JB shakes his head while looking down. He is really not impressed with that last part by Simo. He lifts his head and looks at Simo, who returns the favour. In all that Mlu is keeping quiet, but just watching these two men’s exchange. He picks up his cider, and has as big sip. He sighs heavily.
There’s that awkward silence again, which JB breaks, “Look man,” he says. “All I know is that this chick, is like every white person, always feeling entitled to comfort. In her eyes you will always be 'the black boyfriend' not a partner. And…” he doesn’t as Mlu cuts him in,
“Come on guys, let’s rest this topic now, okay?” he says looking at both his friends, “It’s my birthday and I would like to keep it that way okay? Please guys,” he pleads with them. Simo and JB look at each other and then simultaneously look at Mlu and they all smile. Mlu gets up to attend to the meat in the braai stand. There is silence for a moment in Mlu’s absence.
“Thank God,” Mlu breaks the silence, “Meat is ready.” He says as he pulls it from the stand. The timing of the readiness of this meat couldn’t be more perfect. Things were really getting tense. As Mlu dishes up in the paper plates with so much excitement in his eyes, he is happy that refused a tense situation. The smell of braai meat is divine and mouth-watering, “gentlemen, one more minute and your chef, Mlu will serve you his crown dish,” he says to the laughter of JB and Simo who seem to be relieved that nothing will spoil their friend’s birthday.
But that moment is short-lived when a white metallic Lexus pulls next to JB's black Gold 5. Mlu looks at the car and then looks at both Simo and JB who hadn’t noticed because the car is behind them. He signals with his eyes to say Oh boy, there we go.
Simo and JB turn around simultaneously to check who that is. The right side door opens. Right leg out, on a beautiful red hill shoe. There’s sexiness in how the left leg follow suit. The head pops out with nicely done blond hair. It’s Lee-Ann. She gets out the car and flips her hair. Everything seems to be happening in slow motion to the gentlemen who have all now stood up, watching on in amazement or administration or shock. It’s hard to tell at the stage. Lee-Ann pulls her red, strapless, short dress down and smiles at the gentlemen.
Simo and Mlu are a little surprised if not shocked but JB on the other hand looks a little, if not more than annoyed at this. He isn’t ready for what happens next. The second door on the passenger seat opens. Left leg out on a beautiful white hilled shoes. The whole body comes out. This whole slow motion thing seems to be just in the eyes of these gentlemen. Maybe too many ciders in the system or something. It’s Julie, Lee-Ann's cousin. She is wearing a short white dress. Elegant. She also smiles at them as she flips her hair too.
Now the gentlemen are in shock and surprised at the same time. Simo goes over to his girlfriend, Lee-Ann and gives her a long warm hug. “what a nice…surprise,” he says whispering. “I didn’t expect to see you here,” he says as he gives her a kiss.
Mlu and JB are watching on. “Nice to see you too baby,” Lee-Ann smiles back at her shocked boyfriend as she wipes the red lipstick from his lips. They break the hug and turn to look at everyone who are quiet and looking at them. There is this awkward silence in this place now. No one seems to know what to say to another but Lee-Ann breaks the silence as she goes over to Mlu and gives him a kiss on the cheek and a hug, “Happy birthday, Mlu,” she says. Mlu smiles back at her, “hey, thank you so much,” they break the hug and turn to everyone.
In all this, JB is quietly annoyed. He watches on as Julie walks over to Mlu and gives him a rather intimate kiss, “Happy birthday pretty boy,” she says as she hugs him. This now turns JB from being just being annoyed into being upset. Mlu and Julie break he hug and turn to JB. Mlu knows this won’t end well. He doesn’t look at him in the eyes, maybe a little embarrassed. JB picks up his cider and takes a huge sip and shakes his head.
“Oh so this is how it is here, huh?” JB asks sarcastically. They all look at him not sure how to answer that or even understand what he means. “Hi, JB,” Lee-Ann says with a smile trying to break the stone ice. Everyone knows JB doesn’t approve of interracial relationships. He has always made it known to his friends. He doesn’t answer Lee-Ann but instead looks at his friends Simo and Mlu with some level of disgust. The tension is so sharp. JB downs whatever was left in that bottle at one go and looks at his friends again.
“So gents, you didn’t care to tell me to bring my own white bitch to the party huh?” he said as he turns to look at Lee-Ann and Julie. Everyone keeps quiet. They all know what JB is saying is out of line but they also don’t want to encourage the conversation.
“I suppose I don’t belong in this party, right?” JB says looking at Both Mlu and Simo. They are both taken aback by that question. “Oh come on man,” Mlu says as he tries to come closer to JB, “You’re my friend, of course you belong to this party. I’m just asking you to…' Mlu doesn’t finish as JB cuts him in, “Save it bro, I don’t want to hear it,” he says as he spits on the ground. He touches his pockets in search of his keys. He walks to his car and opens the door, and turns around to look at both Mlu and Simo, “Don’t say I didn’t warn you. These bitches,” he points at Lee-Ann and Julie, “These bitches will hurt you hard. They are white and you will never be like them” he says as he jumps to his car and bangs the door. They watch him in shock as he drives of.
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