Broken Clocks

The First Day

I lay in bed wide awake with my eyes on the alarm waiting for it to hit 05h45 as it flashes down the numbers like a weak heartbeat .'Beep beep beep ' my alarm goes on as i stretch out my arm and switch it off.  I roll on the bed and yawn as the wind creeps in the window seals sending chills down my spine. I stretch my heavy arms and drag myself out of bed. I glide  towards my ensuite bathroom and stand infront of the cabinet mirror as i stare at my reflection for some time, why do they call it beauty sleep when one wakes up looking like a troll i whisper to myself as i run my hands across my face and make my way to the shower. After a hot shower i lotion my body and get dressed in a crisp white long sleeved shirt , a beige below the knee skirt with beige heels. I put on my silver loop earrings with a caramel watch. I have short hair so i brush the sides not that they need much brushing as i got a fresh cut yesterday. I drag my hand across the dreadlocky part in the middle  making sure that it's neat and tidy. I went for a natural look on my make up i don't wanna be too much . I made my way downstairs and made breakfast , i settle for cereal and start digging in as i grab my cellphone and go through my socials. Nothing interesting

Oh sorry let me introduce myself I'm Ndaloenhle Octavia Mahlangu 23 years of age and I'm an educational psychologist. I live alone in a two bedroom apartment with an open space kitchen and dinning area plus a bathroom in Midrand . I'm the third of four children , namely my sister Alwande (36) , a brother Ntando (30) and my little sister Lethabo (17) .   

Our parents Elsie and Andries Mahlangu have been married for 39 years and always preach the importance of family and marriage that resulted in Alwande getting married at 18 and when mom tried swaying me into that direction as well i stood my ground and told them i didn't want to get married at a young age and be dependent on a man for the rest of my life , well Alwande was offended but soon after that she saw my point and she went on to business school to further her education. She now holds a degree in business management and is managing one of the biggest companies here in South Africa. Ntando is a mechanical engineer and lives in Port Elizabeth we barely see him but then hey work is work and Lethabo is still in high school and lives with Alwande in Springs , the east of Joburg. Apparently mom and dad were 'too strict for her liking' what is that even supposed to mean , but i guess those are teenagers and their rebellion ways for you.

After breakfast i grab my laptop bag , my handbag , car keys and make my way out. I lock my apartment and make my way to the basement where my silver grey Mercedes-Benz AMG A250 is parked. I put my bags in the backseat and proceed to the driver's seat. I get in put on Jozi FM and drive off as my girl Miss Ney the Vibe comes on for the breakfasf show yesss theeee Miss Ney the Vibe is my long time best friend ! Anelisa and i have  been friends since high school and have been inseparable ever since . After high school she went on to study media and well i opted for educational psychology well initially i wanted to do script writing or copywriting but you know african parents and their ideas of a 'secure job ' so i settled for educational psychology and grew to love it.

After a 30 minutes drive i arrive at work in Centurion . I work at a private institution and well we get assigned to help at different schools . Fortunately for me it's the beginning of the year and there arent much cases so all i'll do is work on the upcoming year reports for the Department and communicate with school psychologists making sure that everything is alright. I walked into this huge building and greeted Lindi our receptionist .

Me : Hey maLindz Lindz unjan ? ( how are you)
Lindi : Hey sisi ngiyaphila wena unjan ? ( I'm good and you )
Me : I'm good compliments of the new year
Lindi : Thank you , you too.

She flashed me a wide smile and as i was about to walk away she called for me

Me :Yes
Lindi : The boss called for you in his office in say 20 minutes
Me : oh i wonder sekafuna loyo manje hai (i wonder what that one wants now)
Lindi : And everyone who has stepped into his office for the past 15 minutes has been coming out furious.
Me :oh my god oh well we'll see , thanks Lindi.

I walked into the elevator and made my way to my office.

As soon as i got in i started working on the year plans as it was the beginning of the year and further emailed them to all the schools that were assigned under us. 15 minutes passed and the intercom went on  "Miss Mahlangu please report to Mr Khoza's office immediately i repeat Miss Mahlangu please report to Mr Khoza's office immediately thank you" i rolled my eyes as i got up from my chair. I fixed myself up and went to Mr Khoza's office and knocked. "Come in" he yelled out.

Me :you called for me ?

He was standing near his cigar collection. Way too early for ciggies if you ask me but then who am i . I closed the door behind me and walked in slowly.

Mr K : please take a seat Miss Mahlangu
 
I sat done as i smiled nervously . He walked to his chair with a cigar on his hand and sat down.

Mr K :Well Miss Mahlangu i hope you've had a good rest over the holidays and compliments of the new year

Me : Oh i did sir and compliments to you too.

Mr K : Good then  , so I'm pretty sure you wondering why i called you in here

I didn't utter a word i nodded slowly

Mr K: Well Miss Mahlangu the Department has decided to change the way of working and doing things therefore they decided to place all of our educational psychologists in different schools around Gauteng. You'll be moved to Lenasia and work  side by side with the school psychologist there and you'll be moved two months later to another school

Me : What ? No they can't do that ! Can they ?

Mr K : The Department has made it's decision Miss Mahlangu and it's final you'll be leaving in a month. Every one in your department has been assigned to different schools . Here's the school file , everything you'll need to know is in that file

He handed me a black file which had bold letters on the front "SPRINGFIELD HIGH SCHOOL"

Me : But Mr K they cannot do that , a school psychologist and an educational psychologist in one place won't work ! 

Mr K : it will , you guys will be doing the same work just working closely with the schools. Thank you that will be all close the door on your way out.

Just like that he dismissed me .That man sure knows how to get on my last nerve . I got up and stormed out.  This has to be a joke honestly.  I made my way to Thabsile's office , one of my colleagues and close friend as well. I bursted in without knocking. I walked in finding her and Jeff the accounts guy kissing.