Dumisa

There was something about a storm on a hot day; the rain pouring from the heavens and crashing loudly against the windows making it impossible to hear yourself think, soaking the concrete of the roads and pavements outside and mingling with the dust that had settled all over the city in the recent heatwave.

Jade lay on her bed in the small room she occupied in her father's apartment and thought about the rain. How pleasant it would be to go out there, to feel the cool droplets against her skin a sharp contrast to the near stifling heat she'd experienced most days and nights since coming to live with her dad in Durban. She glanced up at the bedroom window, the curtains open to display the late evening sky and the bright lights of the city. Thunder rumbled somewhere in the distance. Jade couldn't take it anymore: she had to go outside.

She got up from the bed, grabbing a jacket off the back of her desk chair before slipping out of the dark bedroom. She pulled the jacket around her shoulders; it probably wasn't worth bothering given that it would quickly get soaked in this rain but Jade could hear her mother's voice in the back of her mind chastising her for even considering going out without a jacket in this weather.

Her father was in the kitchen when she walked past, he looked up from the book he was reading when he noticed her.

'Going out?' he asked, eyes darting to her jacket.

Jade shrugged. 'I thought I'd take a little walk, that's all.'

'In this weather? I'm not sure your mum would approve.'

Definitely not, Jade thought but her mother was nearly 9000 miles away in England so there wasn't much she could about it. Jade grinned at her father who rolled his eyes then went back to his book.

'Be safe,' she heard him call as she opened the apartment door.

Jade practically skipped down the long hall to the stairwell. There was something about a proper thunderstorm that really energised her, maybe it was the electricity in the air or the stories her father used to tell her when she was a little girl of the magic that came with thunderstorms but she just had to go out into the rain.

She took the stairs two at a time, her thin braids flying out behind her as she went, pulling on the ribbon she had tied them all together with. She could barely hear the rain from inside the stairwell, muffled as it was by the distance from any windows or doors, but it grew louder as she got closer the buildings entrance.

Heavy droplets hit her the moment she got outside. The rain against her skin was as relieving as she'd imagined in the hot summer evening. She closed her eyes for a moment, just feeling the sensation of it against her skin, hair and clothes. There was something calming about the light pressure of the cool rain on her body. She breathed in, the damp hot air not as refreshing as she had imagined it would be -it made her miss the colder English temperatures - and opened her eyes again.

She began to walk, no set direction in mind. Perhaps she'd walk in a loop round the block of buildings and back to the flats. Tonight probably wasn't the best time for exploring; despite what her mother often said she did have some sense. Lightning flashed across the sky above her and Jade paused to look up at it, bright white veins that stood out against the clouds. A few moments later thunder rumbled and she continued on her way.

Light from the windows of the buildings surrounding her and streetlamps above her head reflected in the puddles beneath her feet, water splashed around her trainers with every step. Lightning lit up the sky, illuminating a figure on the road ahead, Jade heard the thunder as she took them in. A person stood in the shadows between two streetlamps, just far enough away from Jade that she couldn't see them clearly. She continued cautiously, keeping an eye on the stranger without looking directly at them. As she approached she was able to make out more of the person's appearance in the dark street. He appeared to be a tall man, his warm brown skin with gold undertones stretched over high cheekbones and his hair was shaved close to his head. He wore nothing but a thin V-neck t-shirt and shorts, seemingly unbothered by the cold rain soaking his body and clothes.

His demeanour perplexed Jade, the few other people she had seen out in this weather were rushing to get to wherever they were going and out of the rain or at the very least looking highly uncomfortable, but not this man. He stood silently at the side of the road, gazing ahead of him and not going anywhere.

Jade was sure her mother would scold her for what she did next but she'd always been the curious sort. She walked over to him.

'You're going to catch a cold if you're not careful.' She looked up at his face, his pale eyes looked down at her and a frown creased his dark forehead. Jade glanced away, then back up at him. She couldn't meet the cold eyes staring at her, her gaze instead settling somewhere around his right ear. 'Standing out in the rain I mean. That's what my mum always said anyway,' she continued, 'not that I ever listened.'

She smiled at the man and thought she saw the corner of his mouth twitch.

Jade glanced up as lightning flashed above them, and another crash of thunder rumbled barely half a second later. As her gaze fell back down she saw the white light reflected in the stranger's pale blue eyes.

'You should go home,' his voice was rich and smooth with a strong local accent, 'It's not safe for young women to be wandering the streets alone at night, especially in the middle of a storm.' She caught a glimpse of his bright white teeth as he spoke.

'I know, but I've never been able to resist going out when it's raining like this.' Jade spun around to stand beside him instead of in front. He turned his head to one side to look at her, his frowned had deepened.

'I mean it,' his teeth looked almost pointed from this angle, 'You don't know what you might run into.'

'"What"?' Jade laughed, 'I think you mean who; the most dangerous thing you'll find this far into the city are people.'

The man shook his head and turned away.

'I'm Jade,' she stepped in front of his again and he gazed down at her, 'Who are you?'

He paused to study her for a moment before speaking. 'I am called Dumisa.'

'Dumisa? That's a nice name.'

Dumisa shook his head for the second time and turned away from her. 'Go home, Jade.'

He walked away, turning into a side street. Blinding lightning lit up the world around her and in the same moment she heard a crash of thunder much louder than before.

Jade blinked as the light faded and turned to follow Dumisa but couldn't see where he had gone. She went to continue on her way but had only gone a few steps before she heard a loud screeching from above her. She turned to look, shielding her eyes from the rain with one hand. A large black and white bird flew through the sky overhead.

She decided to head home, telling herself it wasn't because Dumisa told her too. As she approached the apartment building the rain began to subside until it was only a light drizzle. She walked back up to her father's flat in her damp clothing, her wet trainers squelching with every step. Jade pulled the ribbon of off her hair and squeezed the water out of her long braids.

When she got back up her dad was waiting for her in the same place she'd left him, book in hand. She went to her room without saying anything and looked out her window. The rain had stopped.