Simbongile Princess Ntabeni: The Called (S2)

Chapter Twenty-One

-Siyambonga Ntabeni-

A MONTH AFTER WE MOVED TO THE NEW HOUSE...

It had been exactly a month and two weeks since I spoke to Thina.
After the conversation I had with Sim I had decided that I would not contact her, at all. I wanted to respect her wishes, she was the one who suggested I sort out my stuff with Lisa first so I did just that. Even though I didn't know what else to do with Lisa. I knew I had Sim in my corner if things escalated but I didn't feel like I should attend to Lisa like that, as yet. She didn't pose as a threat to me, yet.

Mom dropped the three of us off, then went to drop the younger two. Kamva's friends were already waiting for her, as usual. She waved "bye" to us, Sim waved back and I just walked ahead. Sim caught up, obviously. We were just talking about what we would like to do with our properties, since we were now property owners. It was a conversation we had had with mom the previous night, she wanted us to go and see the condition of the properties.

Sim: Haibo Siya...
Me: Mh?
Sim: Akakujonge omnye umntwana.

I followed her eyes, and they landed on Thina. I was so invested in the conversation I had not seen her standing there with her friends, I waved, she waved back and then I dragged Sim so we could walk away and not probe any unnecessary conversation.

Sim: And that? Why are you cold towards omnye umntwana?
Me: I am not cold, I just didn't see her.
Sim: Mmh, so ni right?
Me: Yeah si right. She asked that we stop communicating until I have sorted out lento ka Lisa.
Sim: Oh, okay. How are you planning to do that?
Me: I don't know.
Sim: Mnkq... well at least she's back in school.

I didn't respond to that, we fist-bumped as we went our separate ways at the top of the stairs. My friends were already in class so I dropped my bag on my seat and joined them. We had our usual catching up morning session talking about sports mostly, then after a while I went back to my desk. As I sat down, she, Shaniqua, called. I sighed, I thought we were not talking. I answered the call only when she called the second time.

Me: Hello?
Thina: Hey, unjani?
Me: I'm okay unjani wena?
Thina: I'm okay... I miss you.

I breathed.

Thina: Siyambonga?
Me: Yeah, I'm still here.
Thina: Oh... usuke wathula.
Me: I don't know what to say to you...

She went silent too... for a few minutes.

Thina: I know I said you should fix whatever you're doing with Lisa before commiting to me, or to us.
Me: Yeah, I think yilonto lena yenza ndingayazi ba mandithini. I do miss you too, but I am also trying to respect your wishes at the same time.
Thina: I know that, I know what I said... but Siya I miss talking to you. Like, you've become a stranger ngoku... and it doesn't feel nice. Kudala ndikujongile, you don't even notice me anymore, if you do then kuyacaca you are very good in being ignorant.
Me: I'm sorry.
Thina: Don't apologize torho...
Me: Can I come to you? I don't understand why we have to talk about this over the phone.
Thina: Okay...

I hung up and walked out of the classroom.
When I got to where she was, her friends smiled and walked away. We sat down, in silence for the first few minutes.

Me: Like I said, I figured I should uhm... stay away from you... to protect you.
Thina: Protect me from Lisa?
Me: Yes.
Thina: You can never protect me Siya. She is bigger than both of us...

I frowned.

Thina: After the doctors didn't see anything wrong with me, my dad suggested that bandise to some traditional healer e Delft. Uthe latata Lisa is the cause of my swollen ankles Siya, like, she is determined to make my life miserable. He obviously didn't give us a name, but the description and ke some other things pointed straight to her.
Me: You don't have to explain, I know... Sim said the same thing. That's why I decided to just stay away from you. I don't want you to get hurt ngenxa yam.
Thina: Babe, oo Lisa have always had a problem with me okanye with us pha ekhaya.
Me: Huh?
Thina: We are from the same village back in the Eastern Cape, abazali bakhe have always spiked some competition with us, uqala ku sister wakhe lo uhlala apha eKapa to others. They have always competed with us, oomama noticed that when my big brother started rebuilding our home, they knew that the competition was there but they didn't take it seriously. Like... into yaphaya is exhausting, I had always tried to stay in the clear kemnake because I never understood the need for competition especially kuthi thina sibancinci.

I nodded...

Thina: So, what I am trying to show you is that it is not entirely your fault.

Now that was a surprise, like, everything Shaniqua was saying was shocking to me!
First the fact that a child, u Lisa was a child, would get involved kwinto yabantu abadala kangakayana to a point of bewitching another child over a boyfriend? A boyfriend endim kengoku? Haibo!

Me: So what do we do now?
Thina: I don't know... it's not like she will stop trying to torment me ngenxa yokuba singathethi. She will try until she sees that I am miserable, which will not happen.
Me: You sound so sure.
Thina: Ndiqinisiwe mna ekhaya, uzodlala nje ngexesha lakhe u Lisa Siya.

As much as she was confident with the new information she knew, I was very skeptical, maybe it was because I was not too much into the traditional stuff. Zizinto zika Sim ezo, not mna. The bell rang while we were still conversing, I stood up and opened my arms for a hug. She blushed but didn't waste time, we hugged briefly and then went to our respective classes.