Chapter 4
She completes bathing and adorns herself in warm clothes, including the long jacket she reserved for the winter season. The outside air is bitterly cold, with only a few cars and pedestrians passing by the road as she walks. Street kids, commonly known as "abo nyaopes," nestled around fires at street corners, creating a threatening atmosphere. She passes a man on the street who greets her, but she's unable to respond, her attention is consumed by her thoughts. An exceedingly black cat darted across the street ahead of her, almost as if it were fleeing from her. Fascinated, she pauses to observe. In a tragic turn of events, the cat is struck by an oncoming car—a hit-and-run, as she perceives it. Unshaken, she proceeds to the taxi rank, becoming the third person to board the taxi to town. Typically, morning taxis fills up quickly due to the mass people heading to work, taking around ten to fifteen minutes. However, this time, they are facing an unusual delay. It took forty to forty-five minutes for the taxi to reach full capacity, this is an unusual occurrence for Lesedi.Having left with the shop key the previous night, she is the sole occupant upon her arrival. Turning on the urn to boil water, she prepares herself a hot chocolate. Ten minutes later, her manager, Mr. Maseko, arrives and is pleasantly surprised to find her already at work.
"Good morning, early bird!" "Good morning, Mr. Maseko." "Did you sleep here?"
"Oh no, something disturbed my sleep this morning. I couldn't go back to sleep, so I decided to prepare for work."
"Wow! I'm impressed! In fact, I think you're well-prepared to climb the ladder."
"You think so, Mr. Maseko?"
"Of course! Considering how well you're carrying yourself and the outstanding performance you're brought to my shop, I'm impressed!"
He embraces her and patted her shoulder.
"Thank you so much, Mr. Maseko."
"Pleasure is all mine, but I'm not done talking."
"Yes, Mr. Maseko."
"I think it's about time we appoint a fresh floor manager. The shop is growing, and our customer base is high. One manager cannot handle it alone. So, from today onwards, consider yourself our floor manager. Congratulations, Lesedi Malope! I'm proud of you."
"I'm..."
Overwhelmed with excitement, she struggles to find her voice. She jumps back and hugs him. Mr. Maseko, with a smile on his face, continues.
"I couldn't have chosen better. You're the future of my shop. I'll fix all the paperwork and arrange a staff meeting to alert everyone of the changes. No, stop crying. You're making me feel like a bad person."
"I don't really know how to thank you, Mr. Maseko. I really don't."
"Well... Making me a hot chocolate like yours could actually make me happy. In the meantime, you'd have thanked me. Look, you'll find me in my office. There are SLAs I need to forward to a few of my customers after several changes I've made."
"Alright, but Mr. Maseko..."
"Yes..."
"Thank you so much!"
"You deserve it, girl! Don't forget my coffee, Manager!"
He enters his office, leaving her in a state of disbelief. As she comes out with his coffee, she is stunned to see John entering the shop, dressed in formal attire with a long light-brown blazer to shield him from the cold. He selects a table and hangs his blazer over the chair. She approaches him.
"Wow, John, you look good!"
"Thank you, Lesedi. You look good yourself."
They both laughed. As she gets closer to him, the captivating scent of his cologne envelopes her.
"You smell good too."
"Thank you. What's with the big mood? Somebody is in a good mood."
"No, John, I'm just happy to see you alone, especially after your last visit with your colleague. We couldn't even hold a proper conversation."
"Yha nhe. So, you’ve envied her presence?"
He handover his cellphone.
"I was thinking I should have your contact numbers." "Thinking? Or requesting?"
"Both actually. When are your off days?"
"I usually rest on Thursdays and Fridays sometimes." "How about... Next week Friday?"
"Next week will be better because I have something to attend from Friday through to Sunday."
"Me too. I'll be caught up during the weekend. However, I've got your cell number. We'll keep in touch."
"Okay John, what's your menu this morning?"
"I've completely forgotten what I came here for. Do you see what your beauty does to me? Anyways, I prefer bacon and eggs wrapped in a fold-over. Something stronger to kick-start my day."
He recently received the news as well that his father, the teacher, has passed away. He just doesn't want her being sympathetic towards him. He’s unaware that that very same teacher, his father, is Lesedi's ex-high school teacher and her ex- lover. She also doesn't know that Mr Zondo has a handsome son.
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