Oyama: Her Story

CHAPTER 47

As the boys arrive at the family lodge Kea and Qhawe walk off and stand at the edge of the winding road that goes down to the Bunkhouse. Qhawe has his hands in his bomber jacket and his father in his jeans.
The 2 look out at the land, “Tell your mother, I’m going for a ride”
“Why?” Qhawe asks.
“So I can be reminded exactly what I am fighting for” his father says.
“OK, I’ll join you” Qhawe says, “Just need to tell the missus first”
“I’m afraid that, you have some problems you need to handle” his father says starting to walk to the stables.
“That’s the nice thing about problems, they’ll still be here when you get back” says Qhawe.
His father chuckles, “OK, I’ll wait for you” his father says.
“Nah you don’t have to wait; I’ll just catch up” Qhawe says.
His father turns around, “You think?” his father smirks.
“Just tell what direction you are heading in” Qhawe smiles back.
His father chuckles, “That way” he points at the setting sun.
Qhawe walks back to the lodge where he finds Oyama sitting on the steps.

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“Hey” Qhawe smiles at me.
“Hey” I reply.
“Wassup, why you out here?” he asks.
“Waiting on you” I say.
“Well unfortunately, you gonna have to wait a bit longer” he says.
“Why?” I ask.
“I need to talk to my dad in private” he says.
“About what?” I ask.
“I don’t know; we’ll see what the sun takes us” he says.
“Well there’s somethings we need to talk about” I say.
He looks at me worried, “OK, did I do something?”
“No man, it has to do with your family and the way they treating, Nandi” I say.
“OK, uhm, before we go to bed, I promise we’ll talk about it” he says and heads inside and comes back outside after shouting to his mother their father is going on a ride, “I need you and Phiwe to look over these” he hands me an Envelope.
“Me and Phiwe” I say confused, “What is this a Prenup?”
“Yep” he says, “I love you, bye” he runs off.
“QHAWE!!” I shout, dammit he’s fast he’s already out of sight right now.
I stare at the envelope, my heart pounding.
A prenup? He’s serious about this? Mxolisi is going to have a field day when he hears about this. He’s already been side-eyeing his family for weeks. I stuff the envelope into my pocket and look toward the horizon, where the sun’s last light spills golden hues across the land.

“Unbelievable,” I mutter, shaking my head.
Behind me, the lodge door creaks open, and Nandi steps out, her belly wrapped in a blanket.
Her eyes, wide and unsure, meet mine, “Oyama,” she whispers, “Is everything okay?” I manage a small smile for her.
“Yeah, Nandi. Everything’s fine. Just Qhawe being... Qhawe.” She frowns but doesn’t press. “Can I sit with you?”
“Of course,” I say, patting the step beside me.
She sits down quietly. For a moment, we just watch the land, the quiet hum of crickets and distant cattle filling the space between us.
“Do you think they’ll ever like me?” Nandi asks softly, her voice so quiet it almost disappears in the breeze. My chest tightens at her words. I know exactly who she’s talking about—Mazwi’s family. His mother and his brothers, in particular, distant, their judgment clear in every glance. “Hey,” I say, turning to her, “You’re not here to make them like you, Nandi. You’re here because Mazwi loves you. That’s all that matters.”
She looks down at her hands, “But family matters to him. You know it does. I don’t want to be the reason things get harder for him.” I sigh, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
“Listen, they’ll come around. It’s just going to take time. You’re strong, and you’re here for the right reasons. They’ll see that.”

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Qhawe heads down to the stable and pulls out his Brown stallion with white patches. He saddles him up and pulls his reigns all the way to the pen and get on his back and clicks his tongue.
“Lets go Aura” the stallion starts walking and then begins to pick up the pace.