The things we lost in the rain

Life without you

Chapter 3: I have plenty of people to do things with; I just have no one to do nothing with.

12 MONTHS AGO

" Run!!!!!"'
We had just got out of the car and it was raining cats and dogs. I stopped in the middle of road and stared at him, we both burst into laughter.
" We are here"
He said, we crossed the road and went inside the tiny coffee shop. It smelt like fresh coffee and the muffins on display looked delicious. He looked at me and I smiled at him. The barista cleared her throat and we both chuckled.
"Do you guys have waffles?"
He asked, she giggled then nodded.
Micheal" That was rude of me, Good Morning, I hope you are good. Do you by any chance have waffles or pancakes, we are starving"
Me" Hey, I'd like a red cappuccino and your waffles"
Michael" Could you please tell us our options"
Barista" We have bar one, speckled egg and fudge, mint crisp and caramel waffles"
We looked at each other and he nodded.
Micheal" We will take all four with cream"
" And I'll have a latte, do we pay now or later"
Barista" It's up to you"
Me" I'll pay now, it's my turn to pay"
Michael" Okay, you better give this lady a big tip"
He went to find a place for us to sit and I paid the bill. Then went to join him.
Me" So have you decided where we are going?"
" where are we?"
Michael" No idea, I thought we were in Alexandria"
" I think we are in Port Alfred"
Me" So we are staying here?"
Micheal" We could, or we can carry on driving and discovering new coffee shops and restaurants along the way"
" it's really up to you"
Me" How about we settle here, I hate driving while it's raining like this"
"Accidents happen when the rain is this bad"
Michael" Okay"
" Let me find us some accommodation"
Our drinks came, and we laughed when the lady confirmed that we were really in Port Alfred. Mikey found a guest house for us, our waffles came and we ate. We ate so much, we couldn't get up.
Me" Lets wait it out, it's still raining anyway"
Michael" I need to get some work done anyway. So that works for me"
" How come you've never asked me what I do for a living"
Me" I don't know, it never came up"
Michael" I am an architect"
Me" I thought as much, explains why there's always dirt and mud in your car. You have pictures of Skyscrapers and house plans on your wall. So I assume"
" Build me a tree house one day"
Michael" Why a tree house? Aren't you a bit too old?"
Me" I've never been inside a tree house, actually I have only seen them in movies and I would love to experience that"
Michael" Okay"
Me" Okay"
" I think I am falling in love with you, and that's strange because I have only known you for a few weeks"
Michael" I love you, want to hear the funniest part? I am 38 years old and I have never felt this way before. I feel like I have been dead and you woke me up, at first I thought it was a midlife crisis but now I am sure I have never been in love before and you are the first woman I have ever loved"
We looked at each other, I was really in love with him. A day with him wasn't enough, I wanted to be with him at every waking moment.
Me" Love even when everyone tells you that I am your midlife crisis. I am ready to lose everyone if that means being with you"
Michael" Let's go"
We drove to the guest house, it wasn't planned nor was it said but we both knew that we will have sex for the first time today. The atmosphere was suddenly different, it's how we looked at each other while we were being walked to our room. The stolen glances, the smiles in between moments.
"I am ready"
I always thought my first time would be at some hotel on my honeymoon. Maybe I read too many Julia Quin novels, or I let the characters of every Nicholas Sparks book I've ever read set my expectations. Yet at this moment, everything I thought I knew, everything I planned suddenly didn't matter. Michael and I, that's all that mattered.
"Be gentle"
I think the best feeling in the world is knowing that you are wanted and loved by the person you love. With Michael there were no doubts, even the uncomfortable moments were bearable.
"I'll run us a bath"
We sat in the bath tub, I was sort of in pain.
Me" I feel like Anastasia"
Michael" This is the last similarities between you and Miss Steele"
I chuckled
Me" We need to get out of the water, it's getting cold"
Michael" I have to work, will you be able to occupy yourself for an hour"
Me" Yea, I have to work too. So that's cool with me"
Michael" Only an hour max"
Me" Yes sir"
We never got any work done, instead we had more sex. Then sat in bed talking until we had a silly idea, we never got around to sleeping or doing any work. Instead we left the guest house at 3 a.m. and left a note apologizing. We decided we wanted to see the sun rise while we drove to East London.
" This is so beautiful, stop the car. We need to capture this"
We sat on the hood of his car and watched the sunrise. I took a photo of him while the sun was shining on his face and uploaded it to my Facebook with the caption; "When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible. When Harry met Sally"

We spent the entire weekend in East London, I went home Sunday night with a huge smile on my face. Literally nothing could change my mood.
" Molweni"
I said to my parents and they stared at me, mumbled something. I ignored them and went to my room to tell my sister about my weekend.
Me" Promise to not say anything, just listen"
She nodded, so I told her about my weekend. She grabbed a pillow then covered her mouth and screamed. I laughed at how dramatic she is.
Me" You are annoying"
Namhla" Wait, is this coffee cart guy?"
I nodded
"I need to meet this Nigga"
Me" Not a Nigga"
Namhla" Wait, you are a lesbian? I knew it!"
Me" Hahaha knew what dumass? I've been saying "him/he" the entire time"
" I mean he is white"
Namhla" Umlungu?"
Me" How are we related?"
Namhla" Ndadlala voestek hahaha I thought you said he is too old for you"
Me" He is, but it doesn't matter"
"You'll meet him, everything has been good so just waiting for the bad to come and see if we will survive it"
Namhla" You will. You uploaded him on your Facebook, gave him your virginity and you disrespected your parents"
" You are definitely in love"
Me" And if it ends badly?"
Namhla" Then you have a story to tell your grandchildren about the time you met the love of your life before meeting their stupid grandchildren"
We both laughed, after our chat I finally got some work done. Michael called me to remind me to actually sleep, but I couldn't fall asleep. So I watched a documentary about Kanye West until I fell asleep.

*

PRESENT DAY!!!!! TODAY!!!  NOW!!

" Lisa, ndim uMama"
I wonder if my mother knows about caller id. Every time she calls me, she feels the need to tell me who she is.
Me" Hello Ma"
Mama" Unjani?"
My parents cut me off because I married Michael. I knew they would but I didn't think they would actually do it. My mother would call sometimes then hang up or just ask me if I'm happy, my father never calls me. The last time I saw him was the day he kicked me out of his house.
"Ndive ngo Namhla ukuba you had a child"
Me" I sent Namhla pictures of Harlow, ask her to show them to you"
Mama" Unjani kodwa yena? Ayalala?"
Me" She sleeps a lot but Michael and I take turns waking up xa evukile ekuseni"
Mama" Balisa"
Me" Please don't apologize"
" Not when you don't mean it, you should probably stop calling me. I can't forgive you for the things you said to Micheal's family ngam and I can't let you in my life because you are unpredictable. So stop calling me"
Mama" Wakhetha indoda over family yakho?"
Me" No Mom, you threw me out because you didn't agree with my choices. And it's okay, you made your choice. And I moved on with my life, Harlow and Michael are my family"
Mama" Ndizocela uxolo ku Michael"
Me" You want money right? Is this what the call is about? You want money?"
She kept quiet
" There's no need to drag Michael into that, I'll send you money"
Mama" Enkosi"
Me" One day, you will wake up and scream when you realize all the pain you've caused me. One day you will remember this call and realized you never asked the right questions"
"But that's one day"