Chereads / Maria-Opus of Exude / Chapter 5 - chapter five

Chapter 5 - chapter five

I sit in my office, my cell phone balance between my ear and shoulder, talking to

James Takawira over the cell phone whilst I battle with the paper work in my office.

This man is going to get me fired from this job because for the past week, I have

been behind with my work. He has been using all my spare time....

I throw my head back in laughter at the same time, taking the cell phone into my

hands.

"Be reminded once again that you are dealing with a working woman. I have some

invigilation to do" I say to Takawira as I suddenly get serious from the laughing

that I was doing. I stand up from my chair and start organising the scattered

papers on my desk.

"This working thing is really robbing me of this lovely company. But what can I do.

Have a lovely day, I already miss you though." He says sulking. His tone provokes a

laugh in me.

"Stop that! It shouldn't come from a man. I think it would have made more impact

if it was said by me. None the less, I love you lots. Have a good day." I say to him.

"I love you too. Take care of yourself for me, okay." He says over the cell phone and

we hang up. I put my phone on the table, fix my paper work and put it neatly on

the table. I put on my coat that is hanging behind my chair, lock up my off and i

go for invigilation. I will be in that hall for three hours to the dot.

...As soon as we finish the invigilation, I go straight to Vimbai's office, where we are

going to have some lunch and then we all get back to invigilation. During the

examination week, there is little time to laze around and follow the normal

schedules that we are used to. So we had to temporarily terminate the Tea

Tuesdays. We replace them with the ordinary lunch hour but we have it at the

school of hotel and catering's restaurant. The hotel is usually fully packed so we

opt to order our meals and sit at the quad area.

"So tell us, how are things with Mr Takawira?" Vimbai questions, also smiling

sheepishly.

"Things are fine." I respond as i shift my attention to my plate, wishing they could

just change the topic. I am not in the mood for an investigation.

"Come on Red! That's not an answer. Give us a detailed report at least." Chiedza

responds. Her eyes sparkling in anticipation, a lazy yet naughty grin developing

slowly on her lips. These two women should have worked for the media; they would

have been the best journalists. Busy manipulating people with grins and anticipant

faces and splashing silly gossip all over the media after gathering what they want.

Luckily these two can keep secrets.

"Things between me and Takawira and great. We are taking things one step at a

time and yes, I am the one who is slowing things up. This I do so that I can get to

know the man I am dealing with. For now, he might be all the man that I need but

it's too early to entrust my heart to him." I respond.

"So, are the two of you already actively participating in..." Vimbai asks, her eyes

wide open, her hands signing a silly gesture that's meant to describe sexual

intercourse. This causes me to laugh uneasily, knowing very well what they will ask

next if I agree.

"Yes, we are. And of course he is big." I respond smiling shyly.

"Don't say!!! How big?" Chiedza asks, her eyes wide open in eagerness.

"Girls please! I will tell you some of these details as time unwinds. For now, can we

speak about better things..... Speaking of better things, Chiedza when are you going

to get yourself a lover boy?" I ask. My mouth forming a malicious smile.

"I really don't know. Most boys think I am too classy or sassy for their league. So

most of them don't approach me." Chiedza responds, her mood dampening up.

"Then they are definitely not your type or you might be pushing them away." Vimbai

says.

"Well I agree, I am a bit choosy but what can i do? I am entitled to better than the

ordinary." She responds.

"There is a street saying that says, men don't come as ready made packages. You

choose a certain man and then mold him the best you can. But you are entitled to

a certain caliber of men." I say to her.

"And how many men will I mold for other women to before I get my apportionment?

Too many!" she responds.

"Patience pays. You might go through your share of heart ache and heart break but

at the end of the day, you will get what rightfully belongs to you." Vimbai responds.

"Preach Doctor Truth, preach!" I say dramatically and we all burst out in laughter.

We sit a little longer at the quads, enjoying our meals at the same time speaking

about certain issues that relate to our lives. After that we all go our separate ways. I

heard straight to my office. From my office i heard to another hall for yet another

invigilation.

"okay. Its fine. Have a good day then."

.....Have you ever walked out of relationship feeling like you wasted you precious

time, your heart bruised beyond repair. Tears can't even describe the pain you are

feeling inside, later alone put out the raging fires of regret and torment that burn in

your heart and mind. That's how I feel right now, as I am laying on my bed reading

a novel, which is supposed to serve as the ultimate destruction for my over heating

brain that keeps on reviewing where I went wrong. I worked vigorously during the

week trying to numb my mind, blocking it from thinking about that man whore

Takawira who is most probably gallivanting the whole world, his mistress by his

side yet I lay here crippling my already miserable life.

I think I really need to occupy my mind to help it get over my loose faster. One thing

for sure, I can't contact any of my friends to come and spend the day with me

because, they will start lecturing me about their wise warnings and my stubborn

character. I propel myself to get out of bed, strip off my night dress and get into the

shower. I run myself a long hot shower and when i get out, i am feeling much better.

I sit in front of the big oval mirror, looking at the woman staring back at me. A

woman, who is light brown in complexion, has big glossy eyes, thick full lips, an

effortlessly beautiful face and amazing long black hair that cascades from her head

in long straight strands. The small black watt that is on my face, gives a different

look to my face, it adds a certain characteristic that other women don't have. I smile

weakly and my cheeks give in to the elegant dimples that are imprinted on my skin.

My lips part, exposing a perfect ream of milky white teeth. What more could one ask

for? I know that I am not the most beautiful creation among Eve's daughters to ever

walk the earth but I am fit to be seen, loved and prioritized by one man among Adam's

calibre. I mean, I have absolutely everything except the one thing that every woman

dreams about even as she is still a small girl~ a husband. The male idiot that you

wake up to every morning. The same idiot who will make you laugh your lungs out,

make your blood boil in and anger and make crazy love to you, caressing your skin

and tracing each and every feature on your body with his fingers.....I could justify

the physique of my body the whole day and even forget the plan at hand. I fix my

hair in the normal manner, tucking it with pins and letting only two long strands

dangle onto my face. Bordering my face.

After battling with my hair for minutes, I then get dressed. Today I really feel like I

should let loose a bit and live life to the fullest. So I decide to put on a red suede

dungaree, inside I wear a white low necked, short sleeved blouse. Instead of high

heels, I opt for a pair of sneakers. Red lipsticks, a white bucket hat with red flowers

become my final touches to my dressing and I am ready to go. I don't feel like

cooking so, I just make myself a sandwich. After eating, I get into my car and heard

straight to the stadium, where I intend to spend the whole day watching some

cricket.

When I get to the stadium I park my car at the parking station, put on my sheds,

take my drinking bottle with a mixture of juice and vodka and I go and buy my

tickets. I am really hoping to have a good time as long as no idiot is going to come

and screw up my mood because I am in no mood for baloney today.

Its half way through the game and things are looking really good for the team that i

am supporting. I leave my seat, in search of the ice cream men. I really crave some

ice cream. I walk leisurely whilst sipping on my juice that's about to finish. I think i

should go for another refill in my car. One thing for sure, a lady does not carry

alcohol in its real containers. It's best to conceal it by putting it in a different

container. As I am still walking, at the same time replying some messages on my

social media pages, I bump into someone. Their drink spills on my bosom, causing

a high-pitched girly scream to escape my lips as the cold liquid comes into contact

with the soft and sensitive skin of my breasts. I look at myself in absolute shock

and the idiot who spilled liquor on me looks at me, his marble green eyes wide open

and his pink lips ajar in astonishment. It's a white sandy blonde haired male,

about thirty five to forty years old.

"I am very sorry. Here let me help you with that." He says as he takes out some

cloth and he starts to wipe my dungaree top as he continuously apologieses. I watch

every single move that his hands make as he tries to clean the mess that he just

caused. His hand moves up to my open bosom and the idiot tries to wipe my bosom

with his cloth and that earns him a hot punch on his nose which sends him

staggering backwards only to be brought to balance by his entourage of white

acquaintances that was accompanying him.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?!" one of the friends maliciously says and that

makes my blood boil even more. I mean, I am the victim here. The woman whose

breasts were touched by a mere white lunatic, all in the name of wiping juice from

her clothing.

"Listen here you nut head, that idiot tried to touch my breasts all in the name of

wiping them. So you expected me to just watch him disrespect my body and play

along? Well I am not that type." I respond to them in anger.

"It's not like he is interested in you, so don't get ideas. You're not his type." One of

them retreats, his accent rich and depicting a more European back ground.

"As much as I am not his type, it does not make me any less human or woman.

What he did is a violation of my rights and he could pay heavily for it if I choose to

take it up to the law. Lucky him, I decide to warn him myself. Now if you jerks

could excuse me, I have better things to do" I say as I push past them. They shout

curses and insults, calling me names that best describe their female relatives and

certainly not a black woman but I take no heed of them. I have better problems to

deal with than a bunch of sex crazed white male young adults hunting for some

fuck buddies in the full glare of the sun, as the eyes of the innocent observe! I

walked away from them and went to my car to fix myself another mixture, this

time; I put more vodka than juice as a way to calm down my raging emotions that

at their edge. I then get back to where I was sitting before I left and I sat and

watched as the match entwined and neared its end. I am having a really splendid

time, with my team leading. At least one thing among the outrageous preferences I

have taken in my life is working to some positivism. Just that thought puts an

expensive smile on my face, which I know comes courtesy of the vodka that's

making me show my emotion based reactions more than normal.

I get home at around about six in the evening because of the traffic in the city and

the fact that i was driving a little bit slower than normal. I might be a heavy drinker

but i am also a very responsible driver. I just don't want to lose my life because of

recklessness. I get home and i go straight to the comfort of my bed, where i get

engulfed into a peaceful sleep.

Since the University is closed down. I have nothing specific to do. So i spend a full

week at home, doing ordinary house chores that include spring cleaning, gardening

and lazing around. I then fill up the gaps by reading my crime novels that keep my

brain in continuous suspense. Some writers are just so good with creating

suspense. When the weekend comes, I decide to go to a more interesting place and

I opt for the race course. It's best I spend my whole day watching horses and

jockeys that to be confined in the four walls of my lonely house, being tortured by

regret and emotional pain, that I am trying really hard to digest but no one gets

used to pain. We all can't wait the victorious day when it will go away.

I sit in front of the mirror, after bathing and i fix my hair in the normal manner.

Pinning every single strand of hair to my skull except the two strands of hair that

frame my face. I put eye liner and then red lipstick is my signature touch. I decide

to put on a red palazzo, red high heeled wedges and a white string top. A large

straw hat and shades add a spice to my look. I always carry my drinking bottle

every where I go and these days, it carries the combination of Vodka and juice

that's meant to sedate my aching heart.

I sit at my chair at the VIP section, my eyes scanning the place to see if there are

any people that I might be familiar with and there is absolutely no one. Since the

games have not started, I decide to invest my attention to my cell phone, taking

photographs that I use to update my social media pages. I sit patiently at my seat

and I watch each and every step of the game as the game starts until at last it's

about to end. But there is some sort of break. I return my attention back to my cell

phone.

"it's a tight game today isn't it?" a male voice says and I look up, only to see, a tall

white man dressed in white shirt and black trousers, towering me. His masculine

cologne immediately fills my nose.

"It is." I respond, an icy attitude lacing the edges of my voice. I really don't want to

entertain any men, especially white fuck boys who are looking for some fuck buddy

to do a one night stand with. Men are so lame; every single move that they are

going to make is predictable. It makes them boring. Can't anyone introduce a

school for teaching men new courting techniques that apply to the women of this

era?

"My name is..." I cut him before he says anything more.

"Look, I am not in the mood to entertain. Find someone else who is willing to play

dumb with you. I am not in that mood." I respond as I return my attention back to

my cell phone.

"You are one hell of a woman, I see. Stiff principals and all." He says as he settles

for an empty seat beside me.

"Okay fine! What do you exactly want from me? If its sex, then you are barking up

the wrong tree. I am not a commercial sex worker and God forgive your dirty mind

and my Jezebel dressing!" I respond as I stand up, collecting my things and I walk

towards my car. I don't go very far, Mr whatever his name is, gets hold of my hand

and I turn back to face him.

"What the fuck do you want from me!?" I question.

"I want to talk to you..." I cut him before he says anything further.

"You are talking to me aren't you? And what do you want top say that speaks louder

than words? The fact that you love me? The fact that you are attracted to me? And

you will be saying all this just so as to get between my legs and screw the hell out of

me? Okay fine! If its sex that you want then come and get it. At least you can get off

my case." I respond venomously.

"I don't want sex, I want you! The woman who attracted my eyes from a distance."

He responds, causing me to burst out in laughter.

"Strange enough, I am a black woman and you on the other hand are a white man.

Already our skin colors don't agree to your wishes. Now if you could excuse me, I

have somewhere to go." I respond coldly as I yank my hand out of his grip and I race

to my car. And guess what? The idiot follows me! Good Lord, what is it that men find

so fascinating about me? And it must be something temporarily because most of

them don't find the zest to marry me, so what's the use of pursuing me?.. i come to

a sudden halt and i turn back to look at the idiot who says he wants to talk to me.

"Can we please talk? Please?" he says to me.

I exhale loudly before I verbally express the words that are being manufactured in

excess by my intoxicated mind. "What if I agree to whatever you want to say? Then

what? What's your next plan?" I question him, my head jerk to one side in a

questioning manner.

"For now, I haven't said anything. So please, lend me your ears and borrow me

your precious time." He says as he extends an open palm to me.

"Look Mr smart pants, I am not geared up for a relationship. Per say, I don't want a

relationship. So don't waste your precious time with me. If its sex that you want

then okay fine, I will dish it out to you but not a relationship. Not my heart. Facing

the reality at hand of the color bar and all that racist nonsense, you men,

especially white men are only good fuck boys." I respond enchantingly. The man

looks at me with hurt written all over his face but in actual essence, I just told him

the plain truth that everyone ought to know.

"Can I please change your perspective about white men?" he asks.

"You are only a drop in the ocean, what will you change about your people?

Nothing! So please stop this whole advocacy for the redemption of your people

because you won't win this one." I respond.

"Alright fine. But can we talk?" he asks.

"Okay fine." I say to him as I follow him... we spend almost an hour speaking about

a number of things. It's the basic things that any normal strangers can talk about.

This he is doing so as to warm up the mood at hand. I have dated fewer men than

other women have but whatever move that a man does, seems too predictable to me

but I play the idiot for that time frame. And I can't justify Mr. anonymous here and

say, that he is different, he is not!... finally he cuts down to the chase.

"...something about you is attractive. Something that I can't put a finger on attracts

me to you. I would like to spend some time in your company. Since you are not geared

up for a relationship, why don't we become friends? That way, I can easily busk in

your company and at the same time, you get to know me." He says to me... this man

is making another predictable move! If he penetrates my skin in the friendship zone,

it will be easier for him to get under my skin and proclaim his feelings for me;

trapping me into a relationship.... i then decide to change the topic at hand.

"So, tell me, what happened to your nose?" I inquire.

"Oh, this! Some floozy punched me in the nose." He responds.

"Why? What had you done to her?" I question.

"I accidentally spilled juice on her clothing and when I tried to wipe it off, she decided

to punch me straight in the nose." He responds.

"First things first, you should have given her that cloth to do the wiping herself and

secondly, I am that woman who punched you in the face. So do you still want to be

with me?" I ask him, a malicious smile of triumph plastered on my face.

"Yes, I still want to be with you." He responds, in the process dampening up my

mood. I mean, how desperate is he, to be fascinated by a violent woman?

"What good will a violent woman be to you?" I question him in absolute disbelief of

his desperate measures to score a woman.

"One thing for sure, you are not violent but protective of your body. And I worship a

woman who stands her ground." He responds, causing me to role my eyes

dramatically in absolute disbelief.

"You deserve better than me." I respond.

"What if we deserve each other? I rarely fall for any random woman but in your case,

I fell hard. When I saw you, chills ran down my spine." He says.

"One thing for sure, you were attracted by my dressing and not my personality. And

another question, aren't you married yourself?" I question. It's important to be

cautious, least I have an angry white woman pointing a gun at me, telling me to stay

the fuck away from her husband or else, the next time, she will blow my brains out.

"No, I am not married. I was married at some point but I am divorced now." he

responds... this is a typical scenario with the white people. Divorce is such a casual

thing for them. Maybe it's the fact that they don't pay lobola or they are people who

believe in happiness, so if it does not work with this woman, they move on to the

next woman.

"Typical of most white men." I respond.

"Can you stop using the racist view point of things and for once ignore this whole

color thing and see situations for what they are. I am sure right now, you think I

was the man at fault, well no. I was the victim in that whole union. My wife cheated

on me, more than countless times and I couldn't stomach her infidelity, so I decided

to lay low in the marriage. In the mean time, I found myself someone to pass time

with and one thing led to another. Its o happened that my wife caught us in the act

and she got solid ground to go ahead and divorce me. Taking half of what I owned."

He says.

"So, I am the woman you intend to pass time with? The black hogtie you intend to

off load your sexual desires on. After that you go. Well unfortunately, I am sorry.

Even your white skin can't advocate for you to get this woman. Try other women

maybe they might be loose enough to give in to your demands." I respond.

"Can you please stop this racist shit! Please!..." he says, his voice hardening in anger,

causing a malicious smile to creep lazily onto my lips.

"...and no, I don't want to make you a scapegoat for my feelings. I want to build a

relationship with you. Get to know you better, love you and take care of you." He

responds.

"As if I can't love and take good care of myself? The thing is, you Mr. Smart pants

are using witty words to say simple things. You want to get between my legs, all in

the name of a relationship." I respond. Maliciously sarcasm lacing my words.

"I don't want to fuck you! I just want to get to know you better, in a relationship." He

responds defensively as he comes to a sudden halt, turning to face me.

"And tell me something, don't lovers have sex? Unless if you want us to be associates,

operating under business terms with a professional line drawn between the two of

us, mutilating any sexual feelings?" I question him enchantingly.

"Okay, fine! Let's be friends then." He responds.

"It's still going to lead to one thing, you having sex with me! This is a no win situation.

You are at stale mate. You have absolutely no choice but to agree to what I put on

the table. If it was on a normal day when I am fine, I would have allowed you to con

me into a relationship but not today. I am okay with a one night stand but not a

relationship." I say to him.

"Okay, whatever works for you. In the mean time, can I get your number at least?"

He says as he hands me his cell phone. I take it and hesitantly put in my number

and I hand it back.

"So what do I save it as?" he questions, arching his thick eyebrow upwards in

question.

"Save it as Red." I respond.

"Is that your real name?" He questions, both of his eyebrows arched upwards,

furrowing his forehead in question.

"That's the name that you will use Mr fuck boy. And besides, I don't think most

people get to know the names of their fuck buddies. It's just the sex and nothing

more over laps the physical boundaries of relieving our lust." I respond.

"I am really hurt by the way you think of me." He responds, his voice heavy with

emotion.

"This is why I am saying this whole thing you are trying to put in place will never

work. So it's best you leave it at a one night stand. That I will gladly stand up for.

Thank for your time. Have a good life." I respond as I walk away from him, heading

straight to my car. Before I reach my car, my cell phone rings, I take it out to see who

the caller is and it's an unknown number. When I answer the call, the caller says to

me:

"I was just checking whether or not it's a real number." He says and I turn my head

to look back and the idiot is standing there, his phone held to the ear and a proud

smile plastered on his lips. Men are such idiots. Even if I gave him my actual number,

I can ignore his calls if I choose to and this time, he won't be able to even explain

himself to me!

Right now, I am going home. I don't have time to be meandering around like a

homeless idiot who is hoping to get someone to crash with for the night in exchange

for sex.

Before I go home, I pass by town buying some groceries. Staying at home makes you

eat more than normal and hence, I had run out of most of my supplies. Sometime

during this week, I would have to visit the farms to get fresh supplies of meat, milk,

eggs, peanut butter, legumes and mealie-meal. I am a woman who takes pride in her

cultural foods, so when other people buy rice and all those other things, I opt to buy

samp. I walk out of the shop carrying a paper bag full of my monthly supplies.

Upon getting home, I make something light to eat and I retire to bed. But before I

sleep, I read my novel. Half chapter would do the trick for me. I read for thirty minutes

and finally I stop reading and rest my head tiredly on the pillow hoping to sleep. As

I close my eyes, my cell phone vibrates, indicating an incoming message. I take my

cell phone and it's a message from the white fuck boy, texting to see if I am still

awake and I don't bother to respond to the message, because like I said to him earlier

on, I am not geared up for any affairs and I don't want to even perpetuate the idea of

ever being in a relationship anytime soon.

Like every person in the world, I live a routine life and now that, the University has

closed down, I have no choice but to spend my time at home. I have done everything

to perfection and now, all that I do is to laze around, reading my novels. They are

what occupy my mind these days. My cell phone rings and I pick it up, without

looking at the caller ID.

"Hello." I Answer.

"Red, hie. How are you?" the masculine voice with an accent asks on the other end

of the cell phone and it registers that it's only that white fuck boy.

"Well, hello. Having an erection already? Text the address so that I can come and get

it fixed for you." I respond, an icy attitude lacing the ages of my voice.

"Can you stop saying that and for once take this thing seriously....." he says after

exhaling. I cut him before he says anything further.

"Look, whatever you want to try won't work. I am still the same woman you met on

that day and my guard still stands. Don't waste your precious time trying to peruse

what you won't get. Move on and live your life. This I am saying partially for my own

benefit and also for your benefit individually. Don't walk into the fire." I say to him,

my voice stern and warning. Any normal men in their rightful senses would have

backed down but not this idiot. He kept on trying to manipulate my heart. The next

thing I did was to put the cell on my desk and I walked out of the house to my garden,

where I sat and resumed reading my novel, leaving him to speak alone since he seems

ignorant to basic cautioning.

It's been two full days and the idiot calls and texts continuously until finally I agree

to meeting him. I know it sounds a bit too weak of me, but what choice do I have but

give him a shot to it and see how he handles a situation. Besides, I am bored and I

need something to toy around with, just for the fun of it. I will make this one more

of a passive relationship..... So, on the day of the occasion, I decide to put on a white

long sleeved shirt-like blouse, its sleeves rolled up. Golden tubby bangles grace each

of my hands. A knee high red skirt with a hilariously high vent and red pointed heels

finish off my look. Red lipstick and expensive perfume then grace my body and I am

good to go. Like I wear it, my hair is always suspended on my head and today is no

different.

I arrive at the up-market restaurant, packed with people of different colors, but

especially white people and other rich natives who wear the fragrance of money on

their bodies. A quick scan of the people in the building makes me locate the idiot

who invited me here. He is dressed in a white shirt, which clings to his body tightly.

Acting almost like a second skin, in the process, exposing his muscular physique.

The shirt is semi buttoned at the top, revealing a flawless chest. His sleeves are rolled

upwards, revealing a thick mass of body hair on his arms. I walk up to his table and

I stand in front of an empty chair.

"I don't want to order anything as yet; I am still waiting for someone." He says

dismissively, his attention still invested to his cell phone.

"When you wait for a woman, you shouldn't left her suffer the burden of looking for

you in the masses of people sitting in this restaurant of yours." I say to him as I take

a sit, opposite him.

"You made it." He says as he looks at me, a triumphant smile plastered on his pink

lips.

"how could I not, yet you wanted to burst my cell phone with a thousand messages

that kept on coming despite the fact that I was ignoring them. You are really

something foreign in the game, because any ordinary man would have seen that there

are some things that he could not attain in his life and aborted the attempts that fell

on deaf ears." I respond.

"Patience pays and l can testify to that. Here I am, sitting at this table with this

beautiful woman." He says as he smiles triumphantly. We make basic conversation

and we finally order and during the course of the meal. He corners me into an

interrogative conversation, which ends up in me knowing more of him than he does

of me. The thing about men is that they are quick to dish out information about

themselves, all in the glory of entertaining a woman and wanting to show a woman

that she can be taken care of, if she agrees to start a relationship with them. But

then, this man I am sitting with right here is different, he does not speak of his

financially assets or what he does as a living. He speaks more of his social life. This

being an evident sign that he like me is a secretive person.

He says a lot of jokes though and that helps to atone for the empty conversation that

the two of us are hosting currently. After the enjoyable meal, which again raised an

argument as he wanted to pay for me but I refused, till finally gave up, we walked

out of the restaurant and he takes me to my car.

"And this is me." I say to him as I open the door of my car.

"I guess this is where we go our separate ways?" he says as he holds my hands into

his, forcing me to face him, thinking that maybe I would become shy. Well, not this

woman! I returned the favor back to him and I stared him straight in the eyes. Don't

think that, there was some chemistry here, no! I was just fascinated by his blue-grey

eyes that seem very familiar.

"Yes. And since I have given you the chance to spend time with me. I guess, this

might be a good time to also stop this nonsense of calling and texting, because like I

said before, this is not going to work." I say to him enchantingly but still maintaining

eye contact. Eye contact isn't so hard for me, because men don't have to look down

upon me like the rest of the short women. I am a tall woman and so, with the aid of

heels, I level up with most men or I become the taller one in the equation, hence

giving me the upper hand to think and act soberly.

"Wow, this is going to be harder than I thought it would be." He says again as his

smile melts away and his large masculine hands let go of mine and he shoves them

into his chino trousers pockets, in the process exhaling loudly.

"Going for some lunch with a woman is not going to change the way she feels. If

that's how you usually scored your women, then revise your courting techniques and

upgrade to something better and besides, like I said before this will never work." I

say to him, causing him to exhale in defeat.

"Can I ask, what do I have to do in order to make you know or feel that I like you?"

He asks his voice low and reasoning.

"Nothing. There is nothing that you can do or say that can change my mind. And

after all, even if you walk away from me, you have nothing to lose. It's not like you

invested a certain asset in me that you fear losing." I say to him.

"I have everything to lose! I have you to lose! And I guarantee you, there is absolutely

no replica that can make me feel the way I do right now." he says as he looks at me,

straight in the eyes, trying to make me feel guilty, through the dramatic facial

expression on his eyes.

"Are you sure that you love someone or you are obsessed. Because according to what

I see, you are obsessed and obsession is dangerous. It will cause me to get some

restraining order from the police so that you can get off my case." I respond.

"Please, give me a chance please." He pleads with me and just those words melt a

certain part in me. I detect some weakness, creeping in and i really hate it when this

feeling gets to be in control. I exhale audibly.

"Tell me something, what exactly do you see in this woman that you so much peruse?

How different is she from the other women that walk the busy streets of Harare?" I

question, moving my head to one side in a questioning manner.

"One thing for sure, you are different from the other women. I cannot exactly pinpoint

the source of uniqueness but I can feel it and I am sure that any other men in the

streets can feel it too. Your distinctiveness is blue printed beyond the physical

bonuses of beauty and physical structure. You carry an aura that very few women

in this day and age carry.... even words can't adequately describe what I see in you."

He says to me. And this comment brings from the back of my head a lot of memories.

Reminiscences of men telling me about this quality, yet they fail to stomach it. The

greatest question is, how different is he from the rest of the man that once

approached me but failed to even take me into their residences? Men who barely got

to know my name, later alone what I desire the most.

"Are you going to handle what you desire?" I question him, this time looking

searchingly in his eyes for clues of honesty.

"Of course, I will." He responds as he takes my hands into his and pulls me closer to

his body, such that I inhale his expensive cologne.

"I am not like every woman, I am different. Most men usually don't have the power

to handle me, what makes you think that you are going to deal with the imperfections

that complete the other half of my personality?" I question, my heart beating loudly

in my ears, from the fear that still lingers in my heart. The fear of falling into yet

another relationship that will leave me scarred and at the losing end.

"Trust me with your heart and above all, entrust yourself to me. I will love and cherish

you, in every step of this relationship." He says to me. His voice low and assuring. I

look in his eyes one more time and my heart melts even more. I exhale as a way to

compose myself, in the process pulling my hands out of his grip.

"If you ever break my heart after pleading like this, I really don't know what I will do

to you because, one thing for sure, you did plead with me! And you changed my mind

even though i had made it up" I respond as I feel tears burning my eyes. Tears that

describe the fear that torturers my heart, the fear of heart break and disappointment.

The man comes closer to me and he draws me into his arms and takes me into an

embrace. For some time, he holds me in his arms in assurance and I feel safe in his

arms. I live in the moment yet I know that this affair won't go very far. This one is a

casual affair that will end like all the other affairs, so in this one, I will pack my hopes

of marriage away and enjoy the feelings that come as a bonus of the companionship.

After briefly talking, I then decide to go home and... I kick off my shoes and head

straight to my bedroom and I collapse into bed. Mental exhaustion took the best of

me, regarding that I was doing some serious thinking as I was driving back home.

My eye lids slowly get heavy and I ease into sleep.