A Thousand Hills

birthdays and gunshots

"Hey big head, when did you get here" Nsizwa asks sitting down with a plate full of food.

He's always in a good mood and when I texted him that I'm at the hotel restaurant, I didn't expect him to get here so soon.
He's dressed casually in Jeans, sneakers and a t-shirt but paired with a black blazer

"Late last night" I'm surprised to find myself here as well, when I went to therapy after my exam yesterday, the last thing I expected was to wake up in Namibia.
I wrote statistics yesterday (the only thing in the way of getting my degree) so I figured it's best to go see Refiloe.
I went there feeling great but came back regretting my whole existence

"Been calling you for hours, hurry and pack a few basics, the flight leaves in an hour"

"Excuse me" I asked confused because Phakamile woke me from a self pity nap after a nice cry session. It was only after 9pm

"The whole point of 2 phones and being on call 24 hours on one, is for us to be able to reach you" he went on annoyed

"I thought you were in Namibia"

"I was, and have to be back by morning so can we not waste time, pack a small bag" he said
His eyes boring with heat and before I knew it, we were in Linseria at 22:30 boarding the jet.

To be honest I'm still confused, It's Friday today and I don't know what I'm meant to be doing here because they are meant to go back to South Africa on Sunday afternoon.
Phakamile didn't speak much on our way here mostly because he was brewing and I was too scared to say anything.
I expected my first time on a jet to be a little more exciting.
We got to the hotel some time before 2am and he left me in my room without saying much so I'm not sure what's expected of me.
That's why I'm here at 8am waiting to find out why I'm here

"Okay cool, I could use a friendly face, these people are stuck up and stingy, you know one called us xenophobic?
Man, I didn't know just how disliked South Africans are until I got here. Nsizwa goes on to say

"Weird, I thought South Africa was the Beyonce of African countries" he laughs when I say this

"More like Ray J in these people's eyes" he says laughing again

"How's this going to affect the bidding?"

"Ah you know us, this is in the bag, coming here was merely a formality with the ribbon cut and a way to get a feel of the area before construction commences. Where's Parks?" Nsizwa asks

"Haven't seen him since we got here, what do you guys need me to do here"

"Hmm have breakfast first, Parks will fill you in. How are the exams so far" he asks
I really missed Nsizwa, there's an easy going, calm and warm thing about him that I can't explain. He just radiates best friend energy, which is why people gravitate towards him

"Stats was an ass kicker but the rest, so far so good, are you adjusting to the technical side of the business?"

"Yeah I think I was worried for nothing, because even the things I don't get, there's always someone like you to explain them to me"

"Nsizwa that's not how you run a business, what if they give you false information?" He smiles shaking his head when I say this

"Doesn't matter, do you want to come to Vegas with us, next week after your exam?" He asks changing the subject suspiciously fast

"Vegas? Didn't Danso say it was a boys trip?" I've never been to America or outside Africa for that matter

I've seen so much of it on TV that it's not even on my top 20 places to visit, plus America is a dangerous place for black people. No thanks