Love In Colour

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: LONG LOST SIBLINGS & NOSEY CO-WORKERS

I've had a lot of "Oh shit, how did this happen?" moments in my life before. So I'd say that I've had my fair share of surprises. Life, however, doesn't seem to think that I've paid for the sins I somehow committed in a past life because these days I can't seem to catch a break from anything involving that woman and her family.

My life was going fine before this shitstorm started and threw everything around. This week has been from hell!

Apparently, Richard showing up unannounced at my house wasn't enough. Their son has also come to my workplace because he would like to speak to me.

Shocked doesn't even begin to describe how I feel. Minnie called for me over the intercom speaker, requesting that I come to the reception area because I have a visitor. My sappy mind thought it was my lovely boyfriend who came, but to my surprise, it was Richard's son, Lwandle!

Here I am now, looking at him like he's grown two heads since the last time I saw him. A small smile pulls at his lips, "Hi, uhm...Thandi, or should I say big sis?"

Internally, I cringe, outwardly I'm trying to maintain my resting bitch face. What is this kid doing here? Why can't his family–for the love of God, leave me alone? I count to three in my head before speaking, "Thandi is perfectly fine, thanks."

He nods, his gaze shifting toward the boring linoleum floor. I inhale deeply. "We can sit over there." I gesture to the comfy-looking couches placed a bit of a distance away from the reception desk, I can't have Minnie and her squad of administration gossips listen to this conversation.

I love Minnie, she's a nice lady, but she is a bit nosy and loves a juicy bit of gossip. He follows behind me and we each take a seat. That smile of his appears again, it looks a bit forced, so I just bite the bullet and wipe it off his face with my words, "What are you doing here, Lwandle?"

His eyes widen at my tone. Good, you should have stayed away from me.

"I know this is hard for you, bel-"

I scoff, "It really fucking is."

"I'm sorry, I'll just leave you al-" He begins to stand.

My arm reaches out to him, "No, I'm sorry. That was rude of me." For real, he did nothing. This young man is not the villain in my story. I repeat my initial question.

He settles back into the chair, "This is a very hard situation we are in. Zoe and I are still shocked, and there are so many questions that we have for mom, for you; it's just all very confusing."

Hell, I also have questions that demand answers for his mother, but I'm not entirely sure about opening up that door for her to speak to me. I'm not sure if I am mentally stable enough at the moment to handle that. I feel a bit too volatile.

We hold each other's gazes. "However, we would love to get to know you more, Zoe and I. She already adores you, we both do, and we don't even have all the pieces of the story yet."

My voice gets caught in my throat.

They want to know me.

They want to know me.

His words ricochet off the corners of my mind.

"If it's too much for you, we'll understand. We just need a chance. One chance."

My tongue feels heavy, but I will it to move, "Uh, I was not expecting this. I'm honestly at loss for words."

"Understandably so." his gaze finds mine again. "We just want to know our sibling. Our big sister," he smiles again, and this time it doesn't look forced. This is a genuine, warm smile.

My own lips curl up into a smile, "Siblings, wow." I shake my head and shift my gaze to my hands on my lap. "I can't believe that I have siblings." I look up from my hands at him.

Do I want to do this? To give them a chance?

Yes. Yes, I do. What harm can it do anyway?

I look back at him, "If we do this, your mom cannot be involved. Just you and Zoe."

"Noted. Anything else?"

"I'll tell you when and where to meet."

He nods, "Alright." his eyes sparkle with excitement. It radiates off of him. He reaches out and takes hold of my hand, "I know this is hard for you, trust me; I've got no idea how you're handling it, but know that I am grateful for this chance, we are grateful. Thank you."

"It's a lot to take in for all of us. It almost feels like I'm in a different reality or I'm trapped in some horrible nightmare, and I can't wake up from it."

I'm a tough girl, and I have faced a lot of horrible things, however, even strong people need to have moments of weakness. What is that quote from The Fault In Our Stars?

"Pain demands to be felt." or something along those lines. This pain is too much, and this coming from someone who has faced beatings and sexual violation. I can take the physical pain, I actually can bear it and would rather have a broken bone than have to face emotional turmoil.

He deeply exhales, his shoulders visibly relaxing, "Let me not hold you back from your work."

We both stand, and he asks for my number so that we can keep in touch and iron out the details of our meet-up. He gives me his phone and I type my phone number on the keypad, then give it back to him. He saves it and sends me a text so I can have his.

"Oh, well. Have a good day, Thandi."

A small smile tugs at the corners of my lips, "You too, Lwandle. Drive safely."

He nods, and I watch him walk away until he disappears through the entrance. Turning on my heel, I walk past Minnie's station and give her a small smile as I pass by. Curiosity is visible all over her face; if she were a dog, I bet her tail would be wagging. I'm not a gambling woman, but I'd bet my left breast that she is itching to ask me about Lwandle and what we were talking about.

I'll mentally digest what happened today when I get home – for now, I need to get back to work and deal with broken limbs like any normal day.