We are at this house that Reahile is moving into with Rofhiwa. Apparently, it belonged to Ntate Khotso’s deceased wife, Rena’s and Moloko’s mother. One of the conditions for them moving into this house is that they also get married. Apparently, Rea cannot keep on disrespecting Rofhiwa’s father – especially by living with her after she’s run away from home. A car has already gone out to fetch Rofhiwa from Gauteng. They should be arriving any minute now. It’s almost midnight.
Khosi and I are filling up the fridge with food. We helped move in the bedding in the bedrooms and just put up some vases and flowers. The guys were moving in furniture and all.
We are done now.
Rea is so nervous. Yoh.
The car finally drives in. Rea looks like he is about to jump or faint or…
Mo has his arms around me, as if overwhelmed by the tensity of the moment. Tee-le and Khosi are holding hands, nervous for Tee-le.
There is a knock on the door. Then the door opens. Some man dressed in black walks in pulling in two travel bags. Fifi is behind him. She has one travelling bag, a carry-on bag and a handbag. Rea goes to her and takes the bags from her. He puts them down and they hug. He closes his eyes as if he doesn’t believe that this is happening. Rofhiwa is crying. I let a tear slip down my cheek. I can’t help it. Mo holds me tighter.
Rea and Rofhiwa now kiss each other. They are both shaking – as if in disbelief of what they are doing.
“You okay?” Rea asks her.
She nods her head then says, “Just tired. It’s been a long way.”
“Okay, let me get you settled upstairs”, Rea says.
Rofhiwa nods her head. She says hi to us briefly then we all grab a bag and help them head upstairs.
Ja neh.
Star crossed lovers.

It’s morning now. Mohato and I slept in one of the spare bedrooms. Tee-le and Khosi slept in another one. I’m woken up by the force of morning pee. Yoh, this specific urine is abusive! I get up and get out of bed with my eyes half shut.
I release, eyes still closed. My goal is to go back to sleep after this. I don’t have any plans for today and it’s my day off.
As I make my way to bed, I hear voices downstairs.
I get into the bedroom and change into decent clothes. I notice that Mo is not in bed. I guess people are awake.
I make my way down the staircase and I find Tee-le, Rea and Mo having breakfast and laughing aloud.
Rofhiwa is with them, sitting on Rea’s lap and involved in the conversation.
“Good morning, girl”, Fifi says.
“Hey baby”, Mo.
“Hey guys.” Me.
“You slept okay?” Rofhiwa asks me.
I smile and nod my head.
“Come sit with us, babe. Fifi made us breakfast.” Mo.
“Your plate is in the warmer”, Fifi says.
I go and get the food then come back to sit with them, sitting next to Mo.
“Where’s Khosi?” I ask. Or is she still sleeping perhaps?
“She had a facial appointment or something”, Tee-le says.
“How many facials does she have in a month?” I ask. She’s always getting a facial.
“You know, Zar, I really don’t know. I just pay for it.” Tee-le says.
We all laugh then Mo asks him, “And now you must sit here and watch us be in love with people who don’t have as many facials in a month?”
We all laugh again.
“As long as it’s not Thuli leaving me high and dry early in the morning, I’ll live. One day, I’ll have my true love too and you guys will say I didn’t tell you.”
“Isn’t Thuli with Yaya?” Fifi asks.
“For now”, all three of the guys say collectively and laugh.
“I take it Khosi is only around for now too? So, I shouldn’t really try with her?” Fifi.
“Please don’t. I want you to be super amazing to Thuli. She will be mine. Stru. Nna, my ancestors hear me.” Tee-le says and we are just… ja neh…

There is a knock on the door. Rofhiwa gets up from Rea’s lap and he approaches the door. I wonder who is here so early in the morning.
Honey!!!!!
Aowa!!!!
No!!!!
It’s so early hle!!!!
No, we can’t do this so early in the morning.
Rofhiwa sees all our faces then looks behind her. She stands up in shock as she sees her parents standing behind her. Her dad looks like he’s about to hit someone and the mother looks like she’s here to mediate.
“Hey, baby girl”, the mother says, coming in for a hug.
Fifi hugs her mother.
“You alright?” The mom asks her.
Fifi nods her head.
“Okay”, the mom says nodding her head.
“Papa”, Fifi.
The dad shakes his head. He’s really not…
“Eh, bashimane-
The dads walk in then pause when they see the Ramaru parents.
“Dumelang”, Ntate Khotso.
Their wives walk in – Mme Remo and Mme Thabi to be specific.
Ku TENSE!
“Hi” Mrs R says.
“Thabi”, mofomahadi introduces herself. Only Mrs R shakes hands and says hi. Mr R is… Hai!
“Fikile”, Mrs R says.
“Remo”, Mme Remo.
“Lovely meeting you.” Mrs R says.
“Can we maybe sit down and have a conversation?” Mofomahadi.
Mrs R nods her head.
“Guys, re kopa space”, Ntate Khotso says.
Us kids leave, then we hear morena say, “Reahile le wena Rofhiwa, you need to stay behind for this conversation.”
The rest of us head upstairs…
Into our bedrooms?
Nope.
Passage is more like it. We wanna hear EVERYTHING!
I know I said it’s too early for drama, but I’m too committed to you, dear reader, to not be a fly on this wall for you!

Ntate Khotso: “Reahile, is there something you’d like to say to Mr and Mrs Ramaru?”
Rea clears his throat then says, “Mr and Mrs R, I’m sorry to have ever disrespected you. I love Rofhiwa and everything I’ve ever done has never been intended to disrespect you. All I’ve ever wanted was to be with Rofhiwa. I love your daughter. And I know that my family is not known for good things – especially to you, Mr R. But I’m not ashamed of where I come from or of who I am. I wouldn’t change anything even if I were given the choice to. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to be a good man for Rofhiwa. I do. And I’ll try my best everyday to be that… to live up to what you, Mr R, want for Rofhiwa as a husband –
“Husband?!” That’s the first thing that Mr R says.
Ntate Khotso: “Reahile, speak for yourself.”
Rea sighs… then he says, “Mr R, I don’t ever want to disrespect you.”
“You already have. What do you call all of this?” Mr R says.
He’s not going to make this easy for Rea.
“Papa, we –
“SHUT UP! WENA, DON’T EVEN TALK TO ME!”
Eish.
“Thomas, sikhulumile nje. Yini manje?” Mrs R.
Silence.
“Please, sthandwa sami. This is our daughter. We didn’t come here to push her away further.” I like Mrs R. I really do.
Rea: “I would like to marry your daughter, sir.”
Silence!
Not the nice Silence.
“I’m sure you are a nice boy, Reahile. But right now, we are not in a position to have the conversation that you and your family want to have. You started this entire situation from its end and not its beginning. This conversation was supposed to happen before all of this… the moving in and and and… furthermore, we didn’t come here for this conversation. We came here to talk to Fifi. This ambush that you and your family want to do right now is in itself not being done correctly. You can get into a car, come to the house that Fifi grew up in and where Fifi’s father lives, and ask for Fifi’s hand in marriage the right way. But this… Hai kabi, my son… this is just disrespectful and it just feels like you are doing this for a reaction now.” Mrs R.
Mofomahadi: “Not to disrespect you or anything, Fikile. When our son came to us and explained the situation, we thought marriage would be the right thing to do… the respectful thing to do.”
Mrs R: “What is the situation that was explained to you exactly, Thabi?”
Mofomahadi: “The kids love each other, but your husband was not accepting of your daughter dating our son. His unacceptance was to the extent that he wanted to give her away in an arranged marriage. This resulted to your daughter running away from home and coming to live and be with the man that she loves. We don’t agree with the methods taken by these kids, but we understand that they were desperate. All we want is to clothe this entire thing with respect.”
Mrs R: “Then do it respectfully. We are not desperate to do away with our child to marriage. This mustn’t feel forced for Rofhiwa and we demand to be respected throughout the process.”
Mofomahadi: “REALLY?! You were about to marry her off to someone she doesn’t even know. And marrying a man she’s clearly chosen over you and your husband is what feels forced?”
Fikile: “Lalela la wena, Thabi, you – the Mohales – are the last people on this earth to judge anyone for seeking desperate measures to protect their kids from your family. So don’t come here and disrespect my husband and I, thinking you’ve got us all figured out. If you want to talk to us about marriage, you will do things the right way… otherwise, leave it.”
“Excuse –
“Thabi, let it go.” Ntate Khotso.
Silence.
Rofhiwa: “Kazi, can I speak?”
Mrs R: “Please do.”
Rofhiwa: “Running away from home isn’t Reahile’s fault. It wasn’t even his idea. It was mine and I just roped him into it. You can be mad at him for any other reason, but not this. I do, however, apologise for how everything has turned out. I know that papa is really mad at me, but I hope that one day, you’ll forgive me, papa. Even you, Kazi. I know this is not easy for you too and you are just as upset. Thank you for loving me past that and coming all the way here, with papa, to just be here. With me. I love him. And I can’t marry anyone else. And I can’t be at home sneaking around just to see him because I don’t want to upset papa.”
Mrs R: “We hear you, baby. But you don’t have to live with him. Not that there’s anything wrong with him as a person, but Fifi you need your freedom. You need to grow into yourself and build your own life before you even become his wife. Love him, but have your own things. Smell life and live it up on your own terms. You have the rest of your life to be a kept woman. You don’t have to start it now and you don’t have to do it under these conditions. You still have two parents that love you and can more than afford to make sure that you don’t rely on a man for anything. The last thing I want to see you be is completed by him. I want you to be a full and complete entity on your own… then when you marry him, you complement each other… not complete each other.”
I wish my mom could say this to me… love me like this.
Rofhiwa: “But Kazi, I can’t afford my own place right now and I just really don’t want to be depending on you and dad anymore. I need to start being a responsible adult out of my dad’s house.”
Mrs R: “Fine. You still have a job at NFR. That money can sustain you. I still have an apartment here that I never sold when I left. We can ask the tenant to move out and we will find alternative accommodation for the tenant for the duration of the contract. My apartment is nice, big and close to the NFR village. It’s also paid up, so you don’t have to worry about bond payments. You’ll just pay for levies, rates and taxes… looking after yourself. Your dad and I brought your car with us – we drove here with two different cars. You have a start and you have options. Make us proud, baby girl. Then we can start talking about whatever is going on here.”
I peep downstairs and I see Fifi jump on Mrs R. I’m so jealous! I want a mother like this. Rea is a bit difficult to read. He seems happy and sad at the same time.
“Thank you, Kazi.” Rofhiwa says, still in the hug.
“We love you, baby. It’s important that you understand that.” Mrs R says.
I see Rofhiwa get out the hug then throw herself onto her dad and hug him. He wants to be angry. He wants to tell her that she’s disappointed him. But, he hugs her… closing his eyes and holding her tightly. I see Mrs R landing her head on his shoulder.
I could just cry.
“Lalela, go shower, look nice and bring your things. Your dad and I will go to my apartment and start getting it ready for you. Mfundo, Nene, Uncle Mthunzi, Aunt Koena and all the kids are less than thirty minutes away and they will help us shop and move in. We will all sleep over with you tonight then leave when you are all settled in and have everything you will need.”
Fifi excitedly nods her head, teary too.
“I’ll send you the location when we get there. Get ready. In the meantime.” Mrs R.
“Mrs R…”
Rea doesn’t like peace yaz. I hope he doesn’t say anything stupid right now.
“Is it okay if we help to move Fifi in at her new apartment?” Rea.
Mrs R looks at Mr R.
The anticipation of his answer is characterized with all eyes focusing on him.
He stands up, stretches his hand out to Mrs R and helps her stand up from the couch. She stands up and continues to look at him.
“It’s fine”, he says, then he pulls Mrs R out of the house.
Mark me absent. I’m not going there. I’ve had enough drama for today.
“Reahile, go tell your friends to leave. We need to talk.” Morena says for the first time since he got here.
I’m already packing and making my way out!

…

I like my job. It is definitely no small-town job and managing soccer careers is actually time-consuming, but I love the challenge and I like working with my colleagues.
I have two people who report into me, namely: Thabiso and Rachel. I report into the Corporate Business Partner, Rofhiwa Ramaru. My favourite person in the team is Rofhiwa’s PA. He is gay and takes no abuse in any form from anyone.
The company is filled with many arrogant and abusive personalities. Zephenia (he insists we call him Nia for short because he does not understand why his parents did not think of his cool status on the playground when naming him Zephenia), Rofhiwa’s PA had to sit me down numerous times and remind me that I am a manager as well and instead of taking abuse, I should pull my management card from time to time. Nia has also filled me in on the gossip about the WAGs of the soccer players, but he refrained from giving me information about Rofhiwa and her man – one of the players. Apparently, her relationship is untouchable and I’ve taken the hint. She’s also a bit of an ice queen. She’s made it clear that we are not friends. I have no idea where Nia learns all of this information from because he is always working. His job is as demanding as mine is.
He told me about the WAGs out of concern that I am getting too close to Yaya Mbatha – the team’s captain.
Yaya has brought me lunch to the office twice, naturally raising eyebrows. Rofhiwa gives me judgemental eyes about this thing with Yaya and I will admit that I do care what she thinks of me. Yaya has asked me to do dinner with him tonight. I have not told anyone about it, not even Nia, simply because I do not even know what is there to tell at this point. I like the guy’s company and I am keen to get to know him better. I know he has a fiancé, a baby-mama and a son. I have a daughter and a fiancé remember. Honestly, what is the worst that could happen between us at this point?
…

“Baby, I didn’t know that you were going away this weekend. Why kuhamba wena wedwa? None of the other WAGs have said anything about their men going away on training”, I say to him. How does Yaya spontaneously decide to go on a trip without me? The WAGs world is very small, so he had better not lie to me. I would love to go away with him too.
“Love, I am taking Phendulile away. I promised him a holiday a long time ago and the season is getting to its peak. A weekend away is better than nothing”, he tells me.
“Can’t I come with?” I ask him. Why am I not invited to this holiday thing?
“No baby. It’s just Phendulile and I. Please understand. I will take you somewhere nice for the next long weekend. It will just be the two of us”, he says.
“Okay baby. Would you like me to come over and help you pack?” I ask him.
“Love, I am good. I promise. You can spoil yourself this weekend instead of worrying about Phendulile and me. I will send you some money and you can decide what you wish to do”, he says.
“That’s nice love, but I was really looking forward to spending time with you”, I tell him.
“It’s Phendulile, my love. Do you really want me to disappoint him?” he says.
“Of course not. Have fun, okay?” me. What else can I say? I wish his first child were mine.
We hang up.
“Everything okay?” Khosi asks me. I am with her and her sister and we are doing some shopping for her sister’s new house.
“He is taking Phendu away on holiday”, I tell her.
“Why aren’t you invited?” she asks me.
“Because it’s for them to bond”, I say.
“Is the baby mama invited?” Khosi. She is asking very important questions.
“Of course not. Like I would allow that to happen”, me. How can she even ask me that?
“I don’t know what it is that you don’t allow. You have been engaged for six years and his apology for conceiving that child did not come with a wedding ring. You have never met his parents and the two of you still live in separate houses. All you have ever dealt with is his brat and the unruly baby mama. Babes, uzolobola nini lomuntu wakho?” Khosi.
“Khosi, that’s none of your business”, Mandisa, Khosi’s sister, intervenes.
“Ngiyabonga Mandisa. Especially because Tee-le doesn’t seem to be wife-ing you any time soon”, I say. That statement hurt my feelings.
There is silence.
My iPhone buzzes.
It is a notification from my bank.
Yaya sent me R50 000 for the weekend.
“Keen for a weekend away? We can invite Kate”, I offer. What else am I going to do with R50 000?
“Sure. I am feeling Knysna. What do you think?” Khosi.
“Can I come too?” Mandisa.
“Of course you can. You are Dikwe’s wife. You are levelling us up, babes. I will call Kate and start making our hotel and flight bookings”, me.
“So this is what your life is like? You wake up with no plans and end up in a different country by the end of the day?” Mandisa. I hope she is not judging us because her tone is very undermining.
“You’ll end up in a different continent. All our men are on your man’s payroll, babe”, Khosi.
…

Yaya told me to pack an overnight bag. He says he cannot just have dinner anywhere because of how big he is as a soccer star. He wants something intimate. I had to lie to Phathu and tell him that I am working in a different province, therefore he and Phatsi cannot come over for the weekend. He understood. I still do not know where Yaya and I are headed though.
My phone rings. It is Uyanda.
“Uyanda”, I answer the phone.
“I’m at the gate”, he says.
“Okay, I’m walking down”, I say.
“I can come up and help you with your bags”, he says.
“It’s only one bag”, I say.
He giggles.
I hang up.

I lock my place, grab my overnight bag and handbag, then make my way to his car. It is not the golf 7 today. I recognise his car because the number plates read MBATHA 1 TK. The car – it is a Jeep Wrangler.
I walk out of the gate and he climbs out of his car. We hug. He kisses my forehead. He puts my bags in the boot then opens the door for me. I get into the car. He hops in and we leave.
“So? Siyaphi?” I ask.
He chuckles. My Zulu is not the best, but at least I am trying.
“Wena ufuna ukuyaphi?” he asks me. Is this a joke?
“So we just driving with no destination in mind?” me.
“I was thinking we could go to Royal Mohale City”, he says.
“All this drama for dinner?” me. We could just order McDonald’s and settle for an indoor dinner of burgers.
“We are getting to know each other. It’s not just dinner”, he says.
I remain silent.
“Tell me about your fiancé”, I say.
He does not even look at me.
“Okay… your son?” I try again.
He looks at me. He smiles.
“He’s a cool kid. I worry about him, though. His mother is very unstable and my fiancé doesn’t seem equipped enough to make me confident enough to take him and live with him permanently”, he says.
“What do you mean?” I am a bit confused.
“She says she loves my son. However, I don’t see it. I think she tolerates him for me. There is something about the way she complains when it comes to him that makes me feel as if I will never be able to live with her and my son. When he is around, she is great to him. They get along very well. She does things for him – more than his mother, actually. But I think it’s easy now because they both don’t live with me. Things could change when the three of us have to live together, and judging by how she complains, it will not be pleasant. The last thing I need is being on the field and stressing that my wife is probably not being a mother to my son. I know that he is a constant reminder to her of me cheating on her. My son is the outcome of that cheating and as much as I regret ever laying eyes on Ndalo, Phendulile is the best thing that I have going in my life”, he says.
“I hear you. I have often found that people who do not have children do not quite understand what it is to be a parent and how easy it is to be worked up about the smallest things with your kid. I cannot begin to imagine what it must be like to be a step-mother to a child that your fiancé made outside of your engagement when you could have made that child for him”, I say.
He is silent. I continue, “My biggest fear of leaving my current relationship is never finding a man who can love my daughter more than he loves me. Phathudi is not perfect, but Phatsima is his daughter and he loves her and I know that he will never let anything bad happen to her. I fear that if I leave him and see someone else, I will be putting my daughter’s life in danger somehow. Men these days rape their step-daughters”, I tell him.
“So, you are willing to stay in an unhappy relationship?” him.
“It’s what you do when you are a parent. Life stops being about you and your child takes first preference with everything”, I say.
He is silent.
“How old is your son?” I ask him.
“His name is Phendulile. He is four years old”, he says.
“Phatsima is ten. She is a little missy now”, I say.
He smiles.
“How come things didn’t work out between you and Phendulile’s mother?” I ask.
“She cheated on me. I know I cheated on Thuli with her, but I did not expect her to do me like she did me”, he says. He looks like he is about to cry.
“I’m sorry”, me.
“She led me to believe that Phendulile wasn’t my son. I missed out on two years of Phendulile’s life because I thought I wasn’t his father. I suppose when the man she chose over me got tired of a son that wasn’t his, I got called to court for a DNA test. The rest is history”, he says.
“Damn. I’m sorry”, I say.
He just drives.
“How are things with you nalebhari yakho?” he says.
I side-eye him.
He chuckles.
“I met Phathu when I was in high school. He was doing his final year of LLB. He was smart and good-looking and –
“Hai hai hai, ungazongitshela ngobuhle benye indoda”, he interrupts me.
I laugh aloud. He smiles at me.
“Well, when I was sixteen, he seemed like someone I’d want to spend the rest of my life with. In my second year in university, I was nineteen years old, I fell pregnant. That’s when a lot of things changed. He was at the peak of his career and he was really making it as a major lawyer in a small town. His family accused me of trying to trap their son because he was so rich. I struggled with my daughter from the day she was born. He literally ghosted me. He never spoke to me nor called to check up on the child for about six months. Then I found out that he had a paternity test done behind my back. It came out in an argument that his mother and I had. We tried to fix things. We even got engaged. But, I don’t seem to be there anymore. Since he put me through all of that, I am noticing all the things that are wrong with him. For example, I am noticing that we have nothing in common and we don’t share the same values at all. He complains about everything. He doesn’t believe that private schools actually are better for children. We like different things. He hates my job. He hates the fact that I work. And he seems to want me to be solely dependent on him and when I am not, he just takes things away. For example, we will plan a holiday. If I start buying us holiday wear and some new swimsuits and travel bags, he will take the holiday away and tell me that I am forward”, I am proper venting.
I do not stop, I continue, “I wanted to buy property coming to Tholoana Kingdom. He insisted on paying a rental instead because he does not qualify for a bond now. Now we are wasting money on rent every month instead of investing it towards property I would own. It’s as if he is trying to trap me”.
“So, what is your idea of a good and healthy relationship?” he asks me.
“I don’t want to be a liability to my partner. Sure, he can do nice things for me. However, I should be able to help him out from time to time. We are partners at the end of the day. I don’t need to make him feel less of a man with my strengths because he shouldn’t make me feel less of a woman with his male strengths. We should honour each other and appreciate the irresistible differences between us, then make it work for the benefit of the family – not the benefit of the egos.” Me.
He is silent.
“And you? What is your idea of a good relationship?” I ask him.
“Something I am hoping that I will build with you”, he says, catching me completely off guard. He sees the shock on my face.
“You are going to be my wife. And Phatsi is going to be my daughter just like Phendulile is going to be your son”, he says.
I have absolutely no words.