RIDDLE OF THE CHAPTER: What goes up but never comes down?
"Um, who are the Rosettas?" I ask Kim.
She exhales and pushes back her short cropped hair.
"They're sort of like a clique."
"Why sort of?"
"Because, to be honest they're straight pains in the behind and everyone knows it except them."
"But Yasmin seemed so nice!"
"Oh, she is. When she's alone."
I raise an eyebrow.
"It's like this," Thandi cuts in, "you know how you get those people who treat you like you're the greatest thing since crumb chicken the one minute, then the minute they find someone more 'likeable' or more their 'type', they drop you like a hot potato?"
"Yeah.. I hate those kind of people."
"Now the Rosettas are exactly like that. Except they take the ignoring to a whole other level," Kim says with a scowl.
"See, they ALL have other friends, and they're all from totally different placemates," Thandi continues, "but the minute they get together, it's like they just know they're supposed to hang out together. And they don't give a crap who they have to ditch in order to do it."
"But the worst part is, they don't even realise they're doing it," Kim butts in, "like they'll totally ignore you, like you're completely invisible. But the minute they leave the group, they come running back to you."
"And the minute you tell them how you feel," Thandi says, exasperated, "they look at you like you're being totally judgemental, like you're the one who did something wrong, like you're the one giving them the cold shoulder."
"Trust us, we know," Kim says with more remorse than anger.
I do trust her, I just find it a bit hard to believe and kind of over exaagerated.. My face must give me away beacause Thandi says;
"She has to experience it to understand what we mean."
She takes my hand and leads me over to them.
"Call your sister-in-law," she says when we reach the group.
I don't know why I feel so nervous, I mean I just have to call Yasmin. I suck up my nerves and call, "Yasmin!"
I recieve absolutely NO response, nil. It's like she didn't even hear me. I try again. This time I tap her on the shoulder as well. Still NOTHING.
It's like she's in another world. She doesn't even turn around.
I can see her, clear as day, chatting away to the rest of the group, but she refuses to even acknowledge that I'm standing roght there.
It's driving me nuts and I can't decide if she really can't hear me or if she doesn't want to.
I try a few more times and I'm getting seriously angry when Kim pulls me to the side.
"Calm down," she says soothingly, "she won't respond, but it's not your fault."
I can see a few other ladies nodding their heads in agreement and sympathy.
"Why won't she respond?" I ask and for some annoying, unknown reason, I feel like crying.
Thandi steps up and gives me a hug. I hug her back and feel a lot better.
"One of those things," Kim says with a shrug, "don't worry about it too much though, as long as we're around you won't be left out."
I sniffle and they both laugh and give me another big hug.
I remember that Hanzala said Esha is at 9, so I quickly end the mushiness by asking what time it is. Thandi flicks her wrist and a series of lights show up, right on her skin. I can't help it, I touch it. It feels like jelly.
"It's 10:30, you're really not from around here, are you?" She asks, looking at me quzzically.
"Um, no, sorry, I didn't mean to be rude..."
"Oh! No, I don't mind, I'm just surprised you don't have one of your own," she replies, giving my hand a flick and looking dissapointed when nothing happens.
"She probably hasn't been entered into the system yet," Kim says, "she just got in yesterday, remember?"
"Oh, right."
By now the showers are almost empty, so we leave and walk back to the dorms. Did I mention that they were underground? I know we mentioned Riaaz falling through the floor, but there are actually other doors, like the one Hanzala and I came through. We go through of these and where there should have been stairs, there's a looong slide going down. I look nervously back at Kim and Thandi and they have a twinkle in their eye. I don't like it and the next thing I know, I'm whizzing at top speed down the slide. I gotta admit it's kind of fun. Right and the bottom, there's a soft target and we all fall onto it in a laughing heap. In between the threats of "I'm going to get you for this" and the defiant "No, you won't" I feel really happy, almost like I belong in this wacky place.
We're walking back to our rooms when Kim suggests we come over to her place for tea. I discover that Q243 and Q256(Kim's house) aren't that far from each other. I stop off to read my salaah(prayer) and Kim and Thandi walk on.
After I'm done, I take a stroll to Kim's. I take in all the weirdness and wackiness and realise that I'm feeling quite ok with the neon green and pink walls with pictures of God knows what hanging from forks. No kidding, FORKS.
I reach Kim's and find the door unlocked. I walk in with a cheerful, "honey,I'm home!".
My voice is met with silence. I walk into the lounge and hear the door click closed behind me, the room is dark. The only light I can see is in another room. I walk towards it and I my breath catches as a figure moves to stand in the doorway.
It's Kim.
She's got a gun in her hand.
And it's pointed at me.
ANSWER: Your age!
