Chapter 3

Chapter 3

NEXT DAY

The following afternoon was supposed to be dedicated to the principles of Macroeconomics, but the graphs and formulas looked like alien hieroglyphics. My mind was a loop of "I'll think about it" and the way his voice sounded.

Suddenly, my phone buzzed on the desk, vibrating against a wooden surface like a warning bell. I didn't even have to look at the screen to know.

"Hello?" I whispered.

"I'm outside."

My blood turned to ice and fire all at once. I scrambled off my bed, nearly tripping over my laptop charger. "Outside? Outside where? Zuko, what are you talking about?"

"Ndikwi res yakho. Main gate. "

I lunged for the curtains, pulling them back just enough to peer down at the street. My room was on the second floor, overlooking the narrow strip of pavement where students usually loitered. There, parked illegally against the curb, white Golf Citi. Leaning against the hood, was Zuko. He was wearing a stripped shirt with bucket hat.

"What are you doing here?" I asked into the phone, my voice breathless. "I told you I'd think about it. I didn't say yes."

He just stared straight up, his eyes locking onto mine. "You took twenty-four hours. In my world, that's a yes. Now, are you coming down, or am I coming up?"

"You can't come up here!" I hissed, panicked. "And I'm not ready. I'm wearing a baggy T-shirt and my hair is a mess."

"You look just alright from here, Omphile," he said, a slow, smirk spreading across his face.

I froze. "How did you even know which window was mine? There are fifty rooms on this side of the building."

"It doesn't matter," he murmured. "I just knew. A Dyan has his ways. Now, don't make me wait. I'm a lonely man out here, and this Golf is starting to attract too much attention."

"I... I have to change. I have to put on something nice for a date," I argued, already reaching for my favorite denim skirt. I can't believe this guy.

I hung up, threw on my skirt, swiped some lip gloss, and practically flew down the stairs. When I pushed through the residence doors, the afternoon heat hit me, but it was nothing compared to the heat of his stare as I walked toward him.

He took his time staring at me like I'm the most beautiful thing he's ever seen.

He stepped away from the car and walked around to the passenger side, pulling the door open with a flourish. "Look at you," he murmured, his eyes scanning me from head to toe. "Uyicherri Sani."

I blushed.

As soon as he pulled away, he drove the Golf like he was trying to outrun all the cars on the free way. The car was going way too fast.

"Is it in your veins?" I shouted over the wind, clutching the seat handle until my knuckles turned white. "To drive like you're trying to fly?"

He laughed, his hands relaxed on the wheel despite the speed. "Maybe! My father always said if you aren't moving fast, you're standing still. And standing still gets you caught."

"Caught by what?"

"Life," he said, his eyes momentarily darkening before he braked hard, pulling into a dusty lot filled with the mouth-watering scent of charred meat and spices.

We were at a local *shisanyama*. Smoke billowed from the massive drums, and music blared from every corner. Zuko was a celebrity here, people nodded, shouted his name, and gave him space. He bought a massive tray of braai meat, brisket, wors, and a side of spicy chakalaka.

We sat at a rickety wooden table in the corner, away from the main crowd. He watched me eat, a strange, soft expression on his face. "You're different," he said abruptly.

I paused, a piece of meat halfway to my mouth. "Because I like chakalaka?"

"No," he chuckled. "Because you've got this radiant beauty."

I blushed shyly.

"You're cute when you're shy, you know that?"

I blushed more, I felt the heat rush to my cheeks. "I'm not shy. I'm just... observant."

"Whatever you call it," he whispered, "keep doing it."

After we ate, he drove back slowly. He took a long route back to the res, driving through the quieter parts of the township.

"So you say you grew up here, huh? ," he said softly. "You must be from a loving family, I see that. ?"

I sighed, looking out at the passing houses. " Well actually... My mom raised me...ummh...My dad... he wasn't really there. He's alive, I think, wherever he is. He pops in when he wants to feel like a father, then vanishes for a year or so. My mom is the one who did everything. I hate how he just... doesn't care. Like we're an afterthought."

Zuko's grip on the steering wheel tightened. His jaw set into a hard line. "I'm sorry," he said. "A man who doesn't show up for his own blood... that's not a man.."

"You sound like you know the feeling," I ventured.

Zuko stayed silent for a long time. Then, he pulled the car over to the side of the road and cut the engine. "My old man raised me," he started, staring straight ahead through the windshield. "But he was strict, he taught me this shit, spinning and all, not something that I sign up for but we're here. He's in jail now. Has been for years. And my mother..." He swallowed hard. "She's in a mental hospital. She broke a long time ago, and she never really came back."

I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth. "Zuko, I'm so sorry. I had no idea."

"I don't tell people that," he said, finally looking at me. "I raised myself from fourteen. Shakes and his family... they're the only reason I'm here. They're my real blood."

I reached out, placing my hand on his arm.

He looked down at my hand, then back at my face. I looked at him, everything went quiet, he leaned in. Then my phone rang. It was my mom.

"Ma "

"What are you doing there." A pang on my chest. It's like she can see me.

"Nothing, just...chilling."

'Oh you're studying." She said.

"Yeah. Yeah mom." I lied.

"Okay, I was just checking on you. Nothing much. I'll send you a few cents. For izinto ezishotayo."

"Okay, thanks mom."

"Bye." She hung up. Shit! She's counting on me and here I am...doing shit ....

"I have to go back. To res. " I told Zuko.

"Sure case." He nodded in understanding.

He drove me back to the residence in total silence. It was the kind of silence that happens when you've shared a secret that can't be taken back.

When he stopped at the gate, he got out and opened my door. As I stepped onto the pavement, he didn't let me go. He took my hand, his rough thumb tracing the soft skin of my palm. He looked at me with a sudden, piercing sadness that broke my heart.

"I don't know what it is, Omphile," he whispered, stepping closer until our chests almost touched. "But there's something about you. I look at you and I feel like... like I've found something I wasn't even allowed to look for."

"Zuko—"

"I know," he interrupted, a small, pained smile on his lips. "You're a student. You're a good girl. And I'm just a guy who spins."

He hesitated, his face leaning in. I thought he was going to kiss me, I wanted him to kiss me, but instead, he pressed his lips gently, lingeringly, against my forehead. It felt like a promise and a goodbye all at once.

"Study hard, Omphile," he murmured against my skin.

Then he let go, got back into his car, and drove away without looking back, leaving me standing in the shadows of my own life, wondering how a single afternoon had managed to change everything.

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