Chapter 20

- make sure to read the previous chapter if you're checking if I uploaded.

Spending my nights at Zuko's place had quickly shifted from a treat to our new normal. Our routines had blended, it felt as though we had been living this way for years. Every morning, he'd drop me off right outside my lecture hall, his eyes lingering on me until I walked through the doors, and like clockwork, his sleek car would be waiting at the campus gates the moment my afternoon classes ended.

We had turned grocery shopping into our own little ritual. Walking down the supermarket aisles together, laughing as we tossed items into the trolley, felt incredibly intimate. I discovered so many of his hidden quirks like his random obsession with creamy butternut soup or how he insisted on buying specific spices because "the normal ones don't hit the spot." We were becoming like one person. Inseparable.

But today was different. Today was the lunch with his pseudo-parents, Shakes' family.

As Zuko parked the car outside the beautiful, face-brick house, with a tavern connected to it, my hands began to sweat. I smoothed down my skirt, my heart doing anxious backflips. , reaching across the console to squeeze my knee. "Relax, baby. I told you, they already love you."

The front door flew open before we even reached the stoep.

"Hey, look at the lovers!" Shakes' loud, booming voice echoed across the yard. He stood in the doorway, a dish towel slung over his shoulder, grinning from ear to ear.

"Zuko, man, I didn't think you had it in you to dress this neat. Who ironed that shirt for you? Because we all know you survive on vibes."

"Voetsek, Shakes," Zuko grumbled, but a massive, genuine smile broke across his face as the two men locked into a tight brotherly hug.

The moment I stepped inside, a sweet, mouth-watering aroma of roasted lamb, chakalaka, and baked malva pudding wrapped around me like a warm blanket. A beautiful, elegant older woman with kind eyes came rushing out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on her apron.

"Oh, yini, she is even more beautiful in person!" she gasped, pulling me into a tight, fragrant hug that smelled faintly of vanilla and cinnamon. "Molo, mntanam. I am Shakes' mom, but you call me Mama. And this is my husband."

A tall, distinguished-looking man with graying hair stepped forward, offering a warm, booming laugh as he shook my hand and then hugged Luzuko. "Welcome home, my daughter. Come, sit down."

The dining table was a feast, but the real feast was the atmosphere. From the moment we sat down, Shakes' parents peppered me with a ton of questions, their faces glowing with genuine curiosity. They wanted to know about my studies, my favorite foods, and how I managed to keep Zuko so well-behaved.

"Mama, please, don't ask her too many questions," Shakes chimed in, scooping a massive portion of potato salad onto his plate.

The father agreed. "You'll scare her away."

"Oh, shut up, Sfiso!" Mama snapped playfully, swatting his arm. "Let me talk to my daughter-in-law. You know, back in our day, when your father was courting me in the early nineties, he didn't even have a car. He used to walk five kilometers in the blazing heat just to bring me a single bottle of Fanta Orange. Young people today have it too easy with their Ubers and their modern restaurants."

"Five kilometers, Mama? You told me it was ten last week," Shakes laughed, leaning back in his chair. "Next week it's going to be a full marathon through the Drakensberg mountains."

"It *felt* like ten!" Tata barked with a proud laugh, throwing his arm around his wife's shoulders. "But look at us now. Thirty-two years of marriage later, and she still complains about the same things."

Watching them interact, a sudden, sharp lump formed in my throat. Thirty-two years. They looked at each other with so much deep-seated respect and playful affection. It was a dream goal.

As I sat there, listening to them bicker and laugh, a profound realization washed over me. *He has a complete family.* A real, healthy, functional family.

A wave of quiet sadness briefly touched my heart as I thought of my own life. I didn't really have this. My dad had been completely absent, doing God knows what, leaving a hollow space where a father's guidance should have been. It was my very first time experiencing a household like this from the inside. It was shocking, eye-opening, and deeply beautiful to realize that some people actually got to grow up with this kind of safety. It was so healthy.

"Man, you guys think Zuko is a gentleman now?" Shakes chuckled, pouring more juice into my glass. "Let me tell you about the time we were fourteen. Zuko tried to impress this girl from down the street by climbing a peach tree to steal the best fruit for her. He got stuck, the branch snapped, and he fell straight into a muddy pigpen. The girl didn't even look back; she just ran away crying while he was sitting there covered in mud and peach fuzz."

"Shakes, I am going to end you," Zuko muttered, his face turning a dark, embarrassed shade of crimson as he looked down at his plate, though a reluctant smile tugged at his lips.

I burst into a loud, unladylike laugh, leaning against Luzuko's shoulder. The warmth in the room was contagious. For the first time in my life, I felt the true, unyielding embrace of a large family.

As the afternoon wound down, Mama leaned over the table, taking my hand in hers. Her grip was warm and reassuring.

"Phile, mntanam, next Sunday, we want you to bring your mother. We must invite her for dinner. We need to meet our mother-in-law properly, yabo?"

My eyes widened, a sudden rush of emotion making my chest tight. *Mother-in-law.* They were already treating this as a permanent bond. They were uniting our lives completely.

Zuko looked across the table at me, his dark eyes incredibly soft, holding a quiet promise that echoed everything his pseudo-parents were saying. He nodded gently, encouraging me.

In that moment, listening to the soft music in the background and feeling the solid, loving presence of the people around me, I realized just how incredibly beautiful love truly was. It didn't just connect two people in a dark room; it brought entire families together, building bridges over old wounds.

I closed my eyes for a brief second, a brilliant, breathtaking image flashing behind my eyelids. I could already see myself in a flowing white gown, walking down a long aisle decorated with fresh flowers, towards the large, handsome man waiting for me at the altar. I couldn't wait for that day.

Everything was finally looking up, and for the first time in my life, the future looked absolutely dazzling.

ZUKO

It was Monday, a day later after the wonderful dinner and I was in the tavern.

The bass from the speakers inside the tavern was a low, irritating thud that vibrated straight through the floorboards of my back office. I was sitting at the desk, counting through the weekend's cash intake, when the door clicked open.

I didn't even have to look up to know who it was. The heavy perfume and the click of high heels gave her away instantly.

Amanda.

I set the stack of notes down, leaning back in my leather chair as I eyed her. She didn't look like she belonged in a township tavern, but she walked in like she owned the place anyway.

"Amanda," I said, my voice flat, completely devoid of any welcoming warmth. "Is there more business we have to handle? Because I thought we closed our books on the last run."

She stopped right in front of my desk, crossing her arms. There was a desperate, restless edge to her eyes that she was trying hard to mask with a smug smile. "I need some cash, Zuko. When are we doing the next job? The boys are getting impatient, and I have bills to pay. More heists, basically. Soon?"

"Soon," I replied shortly, tapping my fingers on the desk. "I'm still organizing the logistics for the next logistics truck. I'll call you when it's time."

"Okay," she said.

Then, she just stood there. The room went completely quiet, save for the muffled kwaito beat bleeding through the walls. She was quiet for too long, her eyes darting around the room, her fingers nervously twitching against her leather jacket.

I frowned, my patience wearing thin. "What else do you want, Amanda? I told you I'll call you."

She swallowed hard, her tough exterior cracking for a split second. "I need more stuff. Get me more cocaine. My supply is running dangerously low."

A dark, mocking chuckle escaped my throat. I stood up from the chair, towering over the desk as I looked down at her. "Oh? So now you need me? I thought you had your operations entirely locked down." I leaned forward, raising an eyebrow. "Where did your Zolani go? I thought he was your main man for the white stuff."

Amanda rolled her eyes, waving her hand dismissively, though her jaw tightened. "Zolani is good at his thing, okay? His stuff is good, but his prices are ridiculous lately and his supply is inconsistent. Just get it for me."

"Okay, okay," I said, putting my hands up, then sliding them casually into the pockets of my jeans. I stepped out from behind the desk, walking around until I was standing right in front of her. "Look at me. I am not your toy, Amanda. I don't just jump whenever you're having a craving. Is there anything else? Because I have a business to run."

"Yes," she whispered.

The air in the room suddenly felt incredibly heavy, she dropped a small, white plastic stick right onto the surface of my desk.

Two distinct, bright pink lines stared back at me.

"I'm pregnant," she stated, her voice shockingly cold, her eyes locking onto mine to catch my reaction.

The entire room seemed to spin. The muffled bass from the tavern faded into a sharp, ringing silence in my ears. I stared at the pregnancy test, my brain completely refusing to process the image.

"Pregnant?" I growled, my voice dropping into a dangerous, gravelly whisper. I looked from the plastic stick up to her face. "I'll have to do a DNA test.Don't play games with me."

"It's yours, Zuko," she snapped back, her defensive walls slamming right back up. "You don't need a test. You've been the only one with me these past few months. I haven't slept with anyone else. It's yours."

I stared at Amanda, my chest heaving as the walls of my life felt like they were crashing down around me. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't believe it.

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Thoughts ?