CHAPTER 26

Fixing Zama's car turned out to be a hectic job. I focused too much on wanting the job as soon as possible that I even forgot to rest before work. Heavy eyelids and zero concentration was the consequence of that.

I ordered food food for Mandla and I while everyone had coffee and small little snacks to satisfy their hunger. The clock had not even struck midnight by then to atleast show me that I was halve way through the job. We were still having our thirty minute tea time at halve past eight. Bayanda  came to me running like a headless chicken with my ringing phone in his which he had borrowed to play games. Kids.

"Muntu wethu is calling." He exclaimed as he passed the phone to me. As soon as I took it the phone he stared at me expectedly as if waiting for me to the phone on loud speaker.

"Sthandwa sami." I said and a series of sniffing sounds are heard. I immediately stood up and went outside of the room. "MaCele, kwenzakalani?" I panicked. I was met with silence for some time before she finally spoke.

"Uhm... Nkosana, I was almost hijacked again and I-I..." She tried to explain before wailing into the phone.

"Where are you right now" I growled in an almost animalistic sort of way. Rage rushed in every capillary of my body as I tried to pack my stuff.

I checked the time only realise that I only had fifteen minutes left. Zama's apartment was about twenty-five to thirty minutes away. I didn't care at that moment. When needed me no questions were asked, logic was lost and reason would be found later. Consequence was a thing of the past when she needed anything.

I took my phone and car keys and did not bother to change out of my greasy overalls.

"Tell me where you are." I exhaled. Without running or any physical labour, I was breathing that heavily.

"My apartment." She mumbled almost inaudibly.

I signed out of the register and sent our supervisor a message to tell her that I'd be late. Nontokazi wasn't a bad supervisor but she just let us off the hook to easily. She had a sweet tooth that we always took advantage of when we were in trouble. I ran to Mseki's car(do not ask of how I bullied him into giving it to me. Besides it was mine first) and drove to her apartment, making sure that my foot never left the accelerator. I arrived in about fifteen minutes due to the fact that there weren't many cars on the road.

I finally arrived at her apartment and saw her hugging herself as her eyes were plastered on the floor. My arms enveloped her quivering self as the waterworks came in.

"They stopped me right in the middle of the road and then he forced us out with a gun pointed at our heads and then after that he looked at me and called me 'sistera'. He apologized and told me that I was the wrong person and left me there. He didn't even take any thing from me, Nkosana. I'm so scared, it's the second time this is happening and I'm afrsin that when it happens for the third time I —" she rambled on endlessly.

"There won't be a third time. I will make sure of that." I interupted before I planted a kiss on her forehead.

"You smell really disgusting by the way." She deadpanned.

"You didn't really give me time to change out of my overalls." ,I retorted. "I also recommend that you bathe because all of this grease will not come off after a few hours" ,I said.

"Stop blaming your dirty lifestyle on your job",she jabbed.

"I'm starting to think you staged all of this just because you miss me" I said in a cocky tone.

"Get off me. You're suffocating me. You smell like oil and machines and the other nonsense things that you work with." She said as she tried to wiggle out of my hold.

I took deep breath while I tightened my hold on her."Smells absolutely amazing. Almost like heaven. Wena you reek of customer service." I said earning me a hearty laugh.

"I'm going back inside, my sister is waiting for me." She said as she, for the second time, tried to pull away from me. I let her go but she only walked for a short distance and stopped to look at me with her pouted lips. "Aren't going to stop the love of your life from leaving because you can't breathe without me." She questioned with a fake poker face.

"Chabo" I said while I went to her and pulled her into a hug as an excuse to take a whiff of her fruit scent.

I peck her lips but that does nothing to satisfy her. Zama does not say what she wants. She simply stares at me with her cute doe eyes and waits for me to read her eyes and figure out what she wants. I passionately kissed her, our tongues danced in a rythm that on we have learnt to perfect with one another. She softly moaned into my lips which awakened things that should not have been awakened.

"Ngiyakuthanda MaCele." I said with my forehead against hers. ( I love you MaCele)

"Nami" (me too)

"Nami Ini, MaCele?"( You too what)

"Nami ngiyakuthanda" (I love you too)

"Uthanda ubani?" (Who do you love)

"Ngithanda Wena" (I love you)

"Ubani uWena?" (Who is you)

"Ngiyakuthanda Msindazwe" (I love you{clan name})

"Kangakanani Sthandwa sami?"(how my my love)

"Kakhulu" (a lot)

I crashed my lips on hers again, passionate and slow is what she loved the most. It gave her time to register just how much I loved her. Everything about Zama sounded sexy, even they she spoke sounded sweet and alluring.

"Good night mabhebeza" she said and I chuckled at that.(My baby)

"Good night thambo lami lekhentakhi" I said and pecked her check before driving back to work. (My KFC bone) {this sounds better in Zulu}

I masked me anger perfectly infront of her. I knew that hijacked was not meant for her but me since she was driving me car. That man referred to her as if he knew her and that could only lead to one person planning this hijack. If it were any other enemy they would have killed Zama as a warning but they left her meaning she was off limits from the beginning.

I went to buy candy and all chips imaginable for Nontokazi. I walked into her office and I was met with a scowling woman with her meaty arms crossing on her chest.

"Mphathi" (boss)I tried to soften her up but to no avail. "Ngikutholele izinto ezincanyana, uthi ukuhlafuna nje. Angifuni nje Mina bakulambise, mphathi."(I bought you a few things to chew on. I refuse to see you hungry,boss)

"Hamba uyosebenza ungiyeke ngidle amancamce wami." She said as she grabbed the plastic from me.

I went back to work with my mind still trapped on how Zama's life was almost jeopardised by those fools.

As soon as our break came I called Zama to check up on her and the fact that I really wanted to hear her voice.

"Sthandwa sami" I said and I was met with several grunts and groans. "MaCele are you still there?" I asked and she hummed in response.

"Nkosana I'm sleeping and I'm really tired."she complained.

"Ngiyaxolisa Themba Lami ukuthi nje kade ngifuna ukubamba ngisho nokhis owodwa nje." I said and she made a kissing sound which was followed by soft snores. I chuckled at how cute she snored. "Ulale Kahle MaNdosi" I mumbled before cutting the call to let her sleep.

Zama made everything look so adorable. At some point I deeply believed that her feaces smelled like fruit punch and flowers. Call me crazy but that woman had to be the cutest and most beautiful creature on earth.

"Eat and stop blushing at your phone you idiot" he said cutting my thoughts in halve.

"So I went to check on Zama when I went out and I think someone is begging to get killed by me." I said before explaining my findings about the Cele brothers. They probably wanted to kidnap me to try and scar me off.

"Pay them a visit when you're free, then they'll stop underestimating you. You should probably tell her about your side hustle before she finds out on her own. If she truely loves you then she won't leave. Look at me, I'm a happily married man." He said while stuffing his face with creamy samp that his wife had cooked for him.

"Women are not the same." I sighed.

"They all aren't but they all want honesty in a relationship and right now your relationship is floating on lies" he said and took a bite of his T-Bone.I did not give him a reply but I just nodded at his words and carried on eating.

For the rest of break we were occupied by Mandla telling us about how much he hated his wife. He always did that but as soon as we suggested divorce he would list all the reasons why he was staying. Mandla loved his wife but they just could not stop arguing and that always led to him cheating. I deeply believe he did not know what he wanted in life. A grown ass thirty-two year old who still wanted to play around.

Work was work . Still tiring with a few jokes shared here and there to keep us going throughout the night. Ziysnda was a bit tipsy which ended up in us knowing how the manager's sex game was. Trust me the awkwardness was palpable at that point. As soon as the manager, Lizwe, came around there only one thing that lingered at the back of my mind as he spoke.  Lizwe of all things that you could do; anal Lizwe, anal?

****

Work was finally over and we all bid each other farewell before going our seperate ways. I had a little committment before going to rest. Within thirty-five minutes I was at the very rank that made me that person that I was. I'm not exactly proud of that person but atleast I was alive.

I grabbed my Glock and checked if the bullets were enough to kill atleast five people. I was not planning to kill anyone but if by any chance it led to that I had to be prepared. I got out of the car and inhaled the smell of iskopo and amagwinya that lingered in the air. People scurried to to taxi's, others stood still and csught up with their morning gossip. Children clad in their schools uniforms bought good for the road and the distant shouting of taxi drivers echoed in the background. It was the beginning of a day, a new start. People were hopeful for something good to happen, a job perhaps, anything to break the routine that painted fatigue underneath their eyes.

I spotted a few Cele brothers sitting in a semi-circle as the devoured their morning meal. Laughter and chatter radiated off of them. I took long strides to make sure this conversation is as quick and effective as possible. I pulled out my gun pointed it at him and stomped on the take aways of iskopo. That was not necessary but I just wanted to piss him off. And trust me it worked. His brothers and his friends, I assume given that they looked nothing like Fika, protested and also pulled out their guns. One of the men seated shot a bullet into the air to try and scare me off.

"Uwenzani, uzamani?" I questioned with annoyance. He quickly masked his shock when he noticed how unaffected I was at the sound of a gunshot.

The rest were still ready to kill with their fingers gently brushing the trigger. Fika waves off their blood thirst and they all visibly relax but not completely, his golden orbs still fixated on me as he studied me.

"Udlala ngezitsha ezifayo manje mfana kaCele.", I said and his eyes darken immediately.

"Ngempele?", He sarcastically asked.

"Mess with anything but Zama"

"Your brothers?", He suggested with an eyebrow raised at me. The air around me suddenly felt heavy and sharp.

"You wouldn't dare", I said with a calm voice.

"Trust me, I would", he challenged.

"You would not want to know what I am capable of Fika. Do not poke a sleeping bear, you will regret it."

"Same goes with you."

"Cute", I mused.

"I'm giving you four days before I kill your good for nothing brothers.", He said with that bloody smug look on his face. I made sure that my face remained as stoic as possible.

"You have five children, correct? Quite a handful I must imagine. Why don't I help you out and reduce it to two. Hmm Nok'thula?", I tested the waters. I really wanted to get under his skin.

"I will kill you.", He  groaned with his teeth gritted and jaw clenched.

"I told you that you don't know me as much as you think you do. If you did you would not be so happy to see me." I said and left him to ponder on my words.

I went to Mseki's workplace and barged in his office. He paid little attention to me as his focus was solely on his laptop.

"Mseki" I said to catch his attention which did the trick as soon as he heard my voice.

"Bhuti, you came to give me back my car. Right?" He asked with pleading eyes. I nodded at his dramatic self and tossed the keys towards him.

I left him to whatever he was doing and called an Uber to go back home. I sent Zama a message to Zama notifying her to come to my house immediately after work so I could go somewhere.

As soon my head touch the pillow my eyes refused to open, too fatigued by the eventful previous twenty-four hours. I woke up to eat some fruits and took a shower at 1PM and went to sleep again. My phone had switched and I did not bother to charge since it would not be in use until I was actually alive again. I was woken up again by a car hoot and by the looks of it was evening as I could barely see the sun peeping in my window. The arms of the clock showed me that it was quarter to five. I scrambled out of bed and peeped my head making sure I was not seen by the person driving my car. I took the remote and let her in although she did have it since she had my car keys.

I rushed to take a shower and I could hear her calling around the house.

She knocked a few at my bedroom door before notifying me that she would get. I could hear a bit of shuffling and humming while a wore a pair of boxers and brushed my teeth simultaneously.

I opened the door to find her wondering around my room while she hummed an unknown song to me. Her arms were folded as she bobbed her head to an unknown rhythm and darted her eyes everywhere around the room. As if she was inspecting it for the second time. She had not noticed me as I walked up to her. I mumbled a small 'sawubona' against her lips as I kissed her. Softly barely felt but  enough for the silly zoo in my stomach to cause a stampede. She had not taken a single breathe and her eyes were wide open with her arms raised in the air not daring enough to touch me.

I looked at her as she fisted her hands and slowly shifted her eyes downwards. She sighed in relief and her body visibly relaxed. Did she think I was stark naked? I chuckled at that thought and her reaction to me being naked. She raised her eyes once more so she could drool on my naked chest as I watched her intently and waited for her to notice that I was watching her. I raise my eyebrows in amusement as her fingers twitch to touch my skin. I grab her wrists and bring them to me chest until her hands touch my skin. An involuntary shiver rippled through my spine as she her delicate fingers brushed against my skin. She quickly moved her hands away as if I had somehow burnt her. She took a few steps away from me to regain her composers and she clears her throat to speak but nothing comes out. At that moment, she resembled a fish out of water.

"Get dressed", she whimpered and hastily left the room.

I shook my head at her shyness and proceeded to dress up. I had on a black Adidas Golf shirt and black jeans. At this point I doubt anything or anyone can possibly seperate a golf shirt or sweatpants and I. I put some valine to make sure my based was perfectly moisturised so it doesn't hurt when Zama decides to torture me by playing with my beard. It was, appearantly, her favourite facial feature on me. Not even my lips were good enought or eyes maybe.

I went to the kitchen, her natural habitat, where she had taken out Mseki's favourite snacks in devoured them. She was chewing on Mseki's Diddle Saddles and sour worms. For some odd reason, Zama did not like eating actual food that is needed to give her nutrients, she preferred all sorts of junk food needed to make one diebetic. As soon as she stood up came to me and shoved a sour worm in my mouth.

I made sure all doors were locked and windows were closed and followed her to the car. I started the car while she connected her phone to the car and started playing girly Rihanna songs. Maskandi would have done well in that weather but who was I to argue with a woman. The drive had a  comfortable silence, the kind that allows to communicate in a way only the both of you know how.

I frequently checked the rear view mirror to find a navy blue Mazda MX-5 Miata following us. With ever turn I took, it followed. I picked up my speed to be sure that it was following me and my suspicions were correct. I refused to believe that it was happening while Zama was there. Constantly running and hiding were one of the reasons why I hated my job. The gun shots, the shoot outs and being constantly followed—it was all not new to me but I don't think one could ever truely normalise or get used to that sort of lifestyle. I slowed down to let it overtake me because I was still in denial of the fact that I had use a gun infront of Zama. That would surely raise questions and those questions will need answers which I  was not ready to give.  I stepped on the accelerator and took a deep breath.

"Sthandwa sami, do me a favour and open the glove compartment please." I said softly with my heart drumming in my ears. She nodded and did as requested. She let out a gasp and her eyes became as wide as saucers. Her breathes became heavy and her hands shook.

"Nkosana why the hell do you have a gun with you" she questioned with her wavering voice. I fought the urge to role my eyes at her dramatics.

"I'll explain later now you please give me the gun"

"I am not touching that thing"

"Zama there is no time for your melodramatic acts"

"That is a gun Nkosana. I am not being dramatic."

"Fine" I grunted and took the gun myself. I checked if all bullets were filled and made sure that it was off of safety. Meanwhile Zama was heaving with question that I did not have time for.

I believe could not register that we were in a life or death question. The navy blue Mazda overtook me to get a better aim at me.

"Zama get down"

"I am not doing anything without an explanation." Zama's stubborn mouth spoke.I brought the car to a halt and attended my beautiful yet childish woman. I reclined her seat so she was lying down. "Don't move" I growled and looked at her right into her teary eyes.

Before I could drive once more, an arsenal of bullets were howled our way. However a little good came out of that since Zama's mouth was shut. The driver decided to be idiotic by taking his whole upper body out of the window to get a better shot which presented me with an open window as I aimed at him while he was trying to get comfortable. A bullet pierced his skull as it penetrated his temple. I shot through the two back tires to avoid being followed again. There were others in the car still shooting but they could not move because their driver was dead, they would not date get out of the car because it was the only thing saving them from peril.

I drove past the car and stole glances at the frozen silhouette next to me. I slipped my phone out of my pocket and handed it to her.

"Please Call Vuks" I said and watched as she stared at nothingness and got  lost in her own world.  I could notice how her hands quivered like a leave in wind as she failed vuks' number.

"Bafo"

"Bafo, track me, go to that location and fix that mess." I said before he grunted, mumbled incoherent words and disconnected the call.

I very certain that he was with the other gender. He never wants to listen when he's with that gender. The tension between us had become palpable. It settled in the air and left no room for words to be said.

Unfortunately I did not have it in me to carry on however I will give you guys a little more since I have ample time to write. Maybe a chapter every two days because next year we're diving right into book 2 before we get to Mseki.

Things will start unpacking and being with Nkosana will become a challenge for Zama.

Do you blame Zama for over reacting. If you were in her shoes what would you have done?

I love you. Have a great December. Braai a lot of meat and listen to tons of music. Drink alot (if you drink) or alot Oros it's up to you.

Anyone doing matric. I wish you all the best and I'll keep you in my prayers. Good night. I'm having dinner so. Till next time people.

Please vote, comment and share with your friends.❤️