ONYIYE THAT GIRL

ONYIYE THAT GIRL
CHAPTER 1

Onyiye -Onyiye -Onyiye! Honestly she hates this name but what can she do about it nothing! The reason of the hate for this name is that it's being abused to the core. Nyiye - Nyoyo - Nyuye. That's how they will mimic her name until she burst in anger. They say this name means gift of God, but the rhyme is hard to pronounce!
An 19-year-old who is still trying to find herself. A very dark, slim short girl who was once everyone's favourite, but now she's everybody's enemy. How did she become an enemy again? By getting what you should got when ones married.
That faithful night - the night when she was only 18 enjoying her matric dance. Her mother made all arrangements, spent the last cent on her but look where she is today…if only she was responsible that night she wouldn't be here, she wouldn't be having a fatherless new born child. Her baby is just a six months old and life is already showing her flames. 
People claim that drinking is to blame for the changes in one's personality, these myth-debunking boffins have concluded that alcohol does not, in fact, radically change your personality. Sad isn't?
She once thought to herself that maybe - having an abortion will solve her problems. Giving the baby up for adoption. Keep the baby as a single parent. She was on debrief….
She asked herself as to how many sperms do you need to get pregnant? It's takes just one sperm to fertilize a woman's egg. Just one night, one round got her get pregnant….the fact that he had to explain that she would rather and would rather forget the circumstances and do not want to talk about it.
And at home the situation is worser by the second.
Cook Onyiye, clean Onyiye - why? Because her life is on stand by. No future but she managed to make herself happy by passing all her subjects in flying colours. Was her mother happy for her? Not at all.
"Mum I passed!" She remembers the exultation in her but mother continued drinking her tea like it's no body’s business.
She remembers the disappointment - heartache she felt. Everything is playing bit by bit.
She wipes her tears and looks at her baby boy who is sleeping peacefully.
Her baby boy is just 6 months old and she cannot wait for him to finally grow and be a big boy. Depending on her child's grant for survival is something she cannot wish on someone else. The fact that she has to go house to house and offer her services to clean and wash. Getting paid peanuts - some will give her R10 after making her slave from morning to noon without food with her baby on her back.
She knows how it feels like to sleep on an empty stomach.
Sitting and mopping about her useless life will help the fact she's indeed useless. She sighs getting up from her sponge with weak tired blankets. 
She needs to clean and cook before they get back from wherever they are. Her sister works in Cambridge and a cashier and her mother is a maid in some rich man's house in town, Eshowe Loction. 
She loves her rural area, she doesn't see herself living her life outside of Eshowe.
She steps out of her rondovel closing it so that the chickens won't wake her baby up. 
She sees the women entering the gate and she knew that trouble is about to stir. She doesn't need it today….
"Hau, I've been knocking this whole time and you are there sleeping. Nxa, your mother said don't cook her daughter it's taking her out. Pick yourself Maan, look at your age mates they are going to varsities and you are here breastfeeding…."
"Okay," she turns to leave Mam' Dludli spitting fire for no reason - as usual. She saw her entering the gate and now she has been knocking for long. She shakes her head taking her baby's clothes off the line. She needs to iron them before her mother comes back. He doesn't have alot of clothes anyway….
They are back, atleast it's very clean. Her and her sister don't see eye to eye. Their mother has always favoured her sister even if she is the one wrong. 
She looks at Sisipho walking right past her without even acknowledgeding her presence. She's used to the treatment anyway. 
The whole house is clean nothing needs her attention now in this house. She walks out of the house using the kitchen door, she just needs to cuddle her son. 
"Papi Vuka." He is still sleeping. Maybe he is coming up with a flue or something. "Ndimu," she shakes him and he slowly opens her eyes. He is not burning but something is definitely wrong with him. How does she know? The colour of the skin is pink.
She picks him up and places him on her lap making sure that his heart is beating, good thing he is still breathing. Going to her mother is not an option now. 
She places her son on her back covering him with a towel and rushes out of the house.
"Gift, what happened? Why are you here this time of the night?" It's only 6'0 Clock in the evening and already people are considering it as night. 
"Mah, I need your help." Does she want to break down and cry? Yes! 
"Come in," atleast this woman is kind enough for her to let her in her home. Have a sit." Onyiye unstraps her son off he back and sits down placing him on her lap. 
"I think he is coming up with a flue." She tells her. The woman looks at her and sighs taking the baby off her hands. She inspects the baby and finally….
"He just needs to be cleaned. His stomach is bloated." 
"What do I feed him?" Onyiye ask out of panic.
"Give the child warm water with pinch of salt - or if a spoon of grape water, that's if you have one." 
"I think warm water will do." 
"Thought as much. Now if you don't mind I need I sleep. Here," she hands her the baby and remains standing. "Your baby looks like he's suffering from less vitamins - ngathi unekhwashu lomntana maan." 
"He was born like this." She looks at her child's red - maroon - orange hair. "What colour is this? Look at his white skin. Is he an albino?" 
That touched a nerve. She stands up from the couch with tears blinding her vision. "Ey Nani nokuhamba nilala, noze nilale nabathakathi inkosi impela." 
"Stay well," no further words out of her mouth.
No one gets used to the remarks being thrown around. It hurts that her child will go through this when growing up. It's a pity that she didn't see the man's face. 
They were both intoxicated, it started with a kiss, clothes flying off their bodies and one thing lead to another. There where both in a dark room and that faithful night, she got pregnant with a stranger's child. 
Ndimuphiwe is the name of her child. And she will forever cherish him. The best thing that has ever happened to her.
Arriving home she finds her mother standing outside. She walks past her and heading to her rondovel. The rondovel that she got the time she was pregnant. She was kicked out of the main main. "Since usumfazi, I want you out of my house." There was no use pleading with her at that time. She walked out in piece….

"If you still leave under my roof I will not let you whore in my house in broad daylight. If ikushisa impene, here's the gate - go out and never look back." She points out at the gate. She knows very well not to respond.
She nods her head and continues with her journey. Her mother pulls her back by her hair making her to almost drop the baby from her back but she held on tight onto the towel. 
"I'm talking to you." A slap lands on her cheek. "Don't you ever walk away while I'm still taking to you, you slut." Another slap lands on her cheek. She's been crying all her life. And she is definitely done crying.
Parents are required to provide for their children and protect them from danger.
She is struggling to recall the last time she spent quality time with her mother, it had sting up and has accept that a considerable amount of time has passed and she will never have a mother and daughter relationship. Even growing up there wasn't one. 
Many pupils in school used to describe their mother's as warm, attentive, and kind but not her mother! As a child, she has always craved unconditional love. But instead of cuddles and family outings, her lasting memories are of bitter rows. The way her mother treats her son her surprised that she was able to raise two children herself.
She may meet her every word with harsh criticism or make her feel generally unworthy. She takes out her anger and frustrations from other areas of her life out on her, without considering or caring if she hurts her.
She pats in her son's back after giving him a quarter of warm water and salt. He burps out loud and immediately he poops watery pop messing all over his napkin towel he is wearing.
Now she has has to wash his poop!
She decided to bathe him at night. No matter how broke she is but she makes sure that her baby never runs out of lotions for his sensitive skin. A very light skinned child with maroon hair and a black wart planter right below his right eye. Normal people have brownish or black hair all over their skin. But not her boy-boy.
A knock on her window, she frowns pulling her breasts out of her son's tiny mouth. She let's her breasts hang outside her t-shirt. 
"Onyi," there's only one person who calls her like that and that is her friend. 
"Sthuphethu," she whispers back. She finally opens the window and helps her in. "What are you doing her?" She asks remembering her exposed breast. She shamefully tucks it back in and half smiles. 
"Ubuncelisa?" She asks pushing her aside beaming in excitement. "My favourite boy," she kisses his cheek. "My mother told me that you came by." 
Onyiye sits down beside her crazy friend. Lindiwe is one hell of a talkative one and Onyiye on the other hand is the quietest. People always wondered how do they keep there friendship going. 
"Yeap, Ndimu was sick, well not as in sick but he was not okay to be precise. He wasn't popping so I went to you mum for help."
"Friend, never ever seek assistance from that woman. I don't know what happened to my sweet mother. Just because you made a mistake she wants me to forget about you, mxm." 
"She's your mother Sthu. And I appreciate it that you still beside me when everyone has turned there backs on me." She will forever be grateful for that. 
"Aysuka! I'm not here to talk about that evil woman. I'm here to give you this. I want you to apply and go do what you love best. Remember when we had big dreams?"
Onyiye smiles remembering. "Dreams of us being married to millionaires, driving expensive big cars, living the dream like Somizi would say." 
"I'm glad that you still remember. You may not make enough to afford the extra expenses of my baby. Additionally, childcare is expensive. You may not be able to afford the childcare needed to continue doing the side jobs you are doing. I know providing you with what I also get is not enough but I love how you go about house to house wanting to put a hand to get paid.
I won't be available for long, you know that I'm leaving, soon going to school. When I come back I want to see you better and stronger than this. I want to see my friend out there. I want to see you prosper in your farming." 
"I also want to." Onyiye replies. The positivity her friend has for her is beyond everything.
"And it all starts here." She hands her the papers. Onyiye looked at them carefully and sighed smiling.
"I promise not to disappoint you. You are the best things that has ever happened to me."
"And also think about what you will tell your child when they're older. This should form the basis for what you tell your family, cause I know you are still stuck on that same old song. I think if it were me I would say that I was out with friends and having a wonderful time. I met someone I felt a real chemistry with and thought I might have a relationship with. As a result, we moved too fast and sadly it was all over before we really knew each other. The important thing is that the moments when your baby was conceived were happy ones. Be strong. You're an adult who has decided to keep her baby. Stand by your choices. It's hard on your own, but all these fears and the fact he was a result of a one-night stand will disappear as soon as you see your baby grow into a young handsome ladies man. Other people's opinions are not important. The people who love you are there for you are the ones who matter."
Onyiye sniffs looking down on the ground. The only person who has ever cared for her. Not even her sister is this loving towards her.
"I have to go before monster mother notices that I sneaked out." She stands up pulling her dress down.
She looks at her friend as she disappeared out of site in the darkness. She smiled closing the window and looks at the diapers, Danone and Purity that she bought for Ndimu. Surely she stole her mother's money to buy these. 
Lindiwe has always been there for her even in the darkest days.
She takes the documents and neatly placed them under her sponge, she has no privacy when it comes to her belongings. 
Part of her is broken that her friend is going away to study but she is definitely happy for her at the same time. The fact that she gave her this means alot.
She needs to sleep, tomorrow is another day for her to go work in a shebeen filed with drunk me. Atleast it’s going to be R150 a day. She will save up a lot in this week.
It's morning around 5 am and already she's awake. Her son bathed and ready for the road. 
She puts the sleeping Ndimu on her back and as usual covers him with the towel. She steps outside and closes the door forgetting to lock it like when she will normally do.
It's freezing cold and it's very much dark outside. 
She will be working in the bottle store today or shebeen whatever the drunkards call it. It's month end and it will be packed. Atleast the woman was kind enough to babysit for her. 
"Knock knock-" 
She's standing outside with a smile plastered on her face. 
The door fully opens and the man of the house steps out. 
"Can I help you?" That scary voice wiped her smiled off her face and replaced it with a slightly frown on her face. 
"Sawubona baba I'm here to see MaThusi." 
"Hmmm," the old man responds. 
He leaves the door open and steps inside to go call his wife.
"Hay Nontombi, come in my child." 
That's an awkward name. From Onyiye to Nontombi? What an upgrade.
"Mah," 
The towel is being in tacked tightly around her breast area. Ndimu being pulled off her back. 
"I'll put him to bed." She's out of sight. The woman who's not afraid of her child. 
She comes back and smiles. "I didn't expect you so early. You can have a sit." 
"I'm an early bird mah." 
"I can see, akusho wena Nontombi. So how are you?" How is she?
She shrug her shoulders, "I don't know." 
MaThusi nods her head and sighs. "It's going to be busy for the rest of the week. Usually my kids help around when they are here but school is keeping them. Let me go bath so we could start." 
Here goes the cycle of her life.