Aneni-Anesu dashed into her room, glad she hadn't been wearing her slippers, as soon as she heard Zanele Mandalay making her way down the passage. The lights were off and she could see Yonella's silhouette sneaking towards her whilst making gestures which signalled a demand for answers.
"What happened out there, your face is telling me a horrific story," she snuck around her bed and held Aneni-Anesu's hand, who still seemed uneager to respond. "Was it that bad though?"
"Dude, I think my brother is about to marry his boss," She dropped down her folded hands and looked deep into Yonella's seemingly confused eyes. "They are busy discussing it right now... And now she's coming back, let's move away." The snuck away from the door until she had completely walked past.
"Okay, seems like they are back at it, think we should eavesdrop?" Aneni-Anesu's rhetorical question left both girls' ears hanging just next to the slightly open door, Yonella too pressing her pesence against A-A's slender figure, face to face as they let their ears catch sound of the trialogue. Until their lips touched, eyes met and one of their hands shut the door closed. Aneni-Anesu kissing her once more, unwilling to let her girl hear their family matters, Yonella's lips were as sweet as her personality, and as warm as her thighs.
---------------------------------------------------------
"So have you made up your mind yet," Zanele looked at him with a slightly condescending gaze, irritation softly creeping into her tone sharp, enough for Anathii to feel the heat.
"I'll let you know, but I'm not promising anything." He could still remember the whisphers that his mother had drilled into his ears when Zanele Mandalay had gone to the bathroom..., "think of the influence you could gain at AMANDA MANDALAY"S just for doing her this little favour," his haughty mother had whishered to him with high optimism.
"Preferably, I'd like to hear your answer now Anathii,"she looked at him with lifted brows that seemed to dislike patience. Her lower lip pushed forward with an intriguing attitude, as though to remind him of the bond and chemistry which they had shared, a yesterday ago.
"You obviously can't expect me to put my plans aside and make way for yours Ms Mandalay, I'll let you know within a few hours, that's my final promise." His answer came out sharp and quick, his tone calm and controlled, much to his mother's admiration and little to his boss lady's irritation.
"How convenient and stunning of you hey, of all the days you choose to play hard to get, you choose to do so on the second last night of my wedding," She bumped her palm against her forehead, her emotions a cold coalescent of boiling anger hidden behind a beautiful, defeated smile colored in puce lipstick. "And wait, isn't this a suit from..."
Zanele Mandalay, had suddenly caught sight of the suit which was one of the couches which formed a U-shape around the television. The suit whose style of embroidery rang a thought of remembrance into any AMANDA MANDALAY"S employees. Mostly due to the design which left a wave of butterflies in the midst of her subconscious...
Since it so happened to be thee design which AMANDA MANDALAY"S founder and Zanele's biological mother, Amanda Mandalay, had persued a lawsuit over and lost against the very employee whom Zanele's mother had trusted the most. The same employee who would use that stolen design to launch and solidify the relevance of her brand - House of Gumede - over the 25 years which followed the lawsuit.
Lifting its significance amongst other dominantly polished fashion house such as MAXHOSA, Toni Moliba and AMANDA MANDALAY"S.
"But on the contrary, he will walk down that isle, I personally asure you of that Ms Mandalay," Nomsa laughed,trying to pull Zanele's glance from the suit, but she could still see that the former's eyes still held onto the sentimental fact that the stylised patterns of the designer suit were backstabbingly stolen from her mother's intellectual property.
"Anyways, I've got some business to attend to so be sure not to keep me waiting love..., better get used to that word." Her voice was sweet but the eye she gave Anathii was partially homicidal, just before her bodyguard opened the door gently and made way for her before escorting her with eyes that assessed any possibility of danger, and any potential threat to Zanele - as though the neighborhood was any dangerous - but guess being extra cautious was part of his job.
Anathii briefly walked to the door and watched her as she sparked a small conversation with her bodyguard whose black pants and golf t-shirt made him seem less of a bodyguard and more of a bouncer.
The wind outside had begun picking its strength but couldn't carry away the awkward feeling that he still felt in his lungs, as his mind fought to digest what Zanele had left him to think about. He wasn't willing to risk his relationship with Genna Gumede for Zanele. Until he saw car pulling up before his house, a very familiar middle-aged face inside.
"Holla, come get the bags," the man shouted out the passenger seat's window as soon as he saw Anathii. It was his uncle, the talkative drunkard of the family- in a good way but. The same man who always had a mouthful to say, whether it be of jokes or past experiences.
"Of course Malume," he yawned and smiled descently as he walked down the three steps and headed towards the little gate to recieve his uncle, before seeing his aunt too opening the door with a big smile directed toward him. She was the self-proclamed advisor and conflict resolver of the family, who was always laughing, since her husband - Malum' Innocent's humor seemed to mature with age. "I've missed you both very much."
"What utter lies, when last did you or your sister call," she drammatically touched her waist and looked into the cloud of night after handing him her two big bags. She was wearing a tracksuit white shoes which he couldn't quite make out, just before the taxi drove off, and left her wig dancing in the wind.
"Let's go inside Anathii, you've grown so much...," he measured his height against Anathii's, "and we need to have a serious, manly conversation." He laughed, placing his left hand on his belly, and walked aside Anathii towards the house. His mother and aunt a few metres ahead of them, whisphering some secrets into each other's ears.
"Thought you'd get here earlier, was starting to wonder about the reason for your hold up," he joked as he walked into the house and felt his muscles relax after dropping their bags in his lounge.
He wanted to drop the bags in Aneni-Anesu's room but he didn't want to see Yonella with his sister, picturing them together irritated him. She hadn't even apologized yet, on behalf of Darren and also her untrustworthy behavior.
It was then when his mother went with the beloved visistors to the backyard to showcase the garden that he finally saw Aneni-Anesu and Yonella sneaking out in giggles. He quietly sat in the dark and watched them run into the lounge, dashing into the kitchen and squeezing past the front door in an effortlessly stealthy manner. He wanted to bring an end to that, and maybe even reprimand his sister.
Calling her name, he walked towards the kitchen, and saw her standing by the front door whilst waving Yonella away, but it was then when his mother called him from the backyard and he went there and saw them with glasses of juice as they sat by the balcony, discussing the way forward; deciding his way forward. He couldn't believe that they'd been around for only a few minutes and his mother was already filling them in on his dilemma; how inconsiderate?
"Okay aunt I'll be back in then," he temporarily deflected his aunt's request for him to sit with them and headed back inside. Where he heard Aneni-Anesu talking, but by the time he got to the kitchen counter she had already turned into an angel. She was now dressed in a white track pants and a while crop top, speaking about how she wished his wedding, with Genna, had been kicking off before 6pm, so that the pictures could be taken during sunset.
A minute later, he had his eyes glued on the television screen, when the same sibling he had been waiting to reprimand somehow beat him to it... "Because by taking Zanele's offer you'll be betraying Genna in the worst way possible," Aneni-Anesu had hit her fist against the couch, pursed her lips and exhaled gently while looking at him strangely.
He was more concerned about his guilt, for not contributing financially to the wedding, or even helping with the planning and the decorations. He was also questioning the temptation to compromise his morals by helping Zanele out, even if it didn't sit well with his subconscious...
Answer me Anathii, as your sister I'm reminding you," she raked her fingers through her loose hair just above her ear, before folding her hands. She meant business.
"Nah-uh baby girl, you and I aren't the same age group and you don't get to disrespect me like that," He felt the room tilt side ways to the sound of her disrespect, but still couldn't do something about the guilt that had begun feeding on his soul.
"If mom won't think about your safety then I will..., you can't mess with both the Gumede's and the Mandalays and you know that boo." Her mother's stern look was replicated within her eyes. "Plus what will happen when either of them find out about this, think about it!"
Even though Anathii and Aneni-Anesu had been much closer while growing up, he now felt as though his hunger for money, his yearning to satisfy those around him, as well as the secrets he held had taken him down a path of bad will. Adamant he felt, that the core of their bond was shrinking seeing that she too had also failed to inform him of her relationship with Yonella. Plus he too didn't feel right about informing her about the good bad news - his coming baby.
He boastfully reminded her that his mother, their mother, had his back and would fully support him through it all - since she would never send him into war without first securing the battefield and making sure that he is geared up. His uncle was also waiting for the bottle of whiskey which he had put in the freezer, and there was also a knock on the door which he ignored as he went to deliver the the bottle to his uncle and aunt - who were now ordering him to try out the suit so they could take pictures and send them to the rest of the family; a move which his mother seemingly approved.
---------------
Opening the refridgerator, minutes later, he grabbed a bottle of strawberry flavred sparkling water, before reaching out for some milk tart, before placing both on the kitchen counter. But it was upon closing the door when his heart slammed against his breastplate as soon as he had seen Caith standing behing the door, looking at him as though he had been the one ignoring her calls. There was not a frown or a sign of a smile on her face. Her black bra's striped rising through her light green top with big, white poker dots.
"And then? Don't be surprised Anathii, came to show you that I've been doing better without you." She uttered calmly, retaining her sweet demeanor, yet when he had finally composed himself later she then threw him with a shade of deceitful sarcasm: "but that doesn't mean I didn't miss you."
"I called and called, you barely responded, and now you pull through as though nothing happened - come on Caith." He opened his arms and enclosed her in a hug that lasted for four seconds. A hug that was usually more seconds longer, and warm enough to lead to a smooch.
"Such audacity, like how could you do this to me Anathii," she asked sincerely, concentrating her anger unto his eyes, before turning around and walking towards the doorway, only to turn around with watery eyes - the pain in her eyes unressolved. "And what will become of us after your wedding with that Gumede girl? I've really been wondering about that."
"You're pregnant with my baby, I love you but you know that the world or even my mother, shouldn't find out." He tried to keep his voice down, and his tone sweet enough to menatlly seduce her into compromising for both their beloved sakes.
"Guess the three years we've shared together were all a phase hey," she bought her fingertips together in search of peace, "I thought you were different, but in the end - you've turned out worse." Caith rolled her eyes before turning around and walking away, the sound of her formal slippers intact.
"Caithie wait up, I wasn't finished," Anathii rushed after her, but little did he know that someone..., was watching them.
"Who would have thought, that behind all those years, Caith was the one," whisphered Aneni-Anesu who had been standing in the darkened passage not so far from both the kitchen and the lounge. Bitter, went the taste in her mouth upon recalling a forbidden memory of the two...
A memory which dated back to her 10th grade year when she'd walked into their little maths lesson and seen them touching each other coercively, with their lips, just before they had managed to convince her that they had just been playing a game of 'truth or dare'. Yet with his arm around her neck and her hand in between her legs - it finally made sense to A-A now.
--------------------------------------
Whereas, Kimm JM sat in her car, dialing Anathii's number but to no avail. The darkness of the night keeping her hidden outside Vulisanii Mukwevo's, uncle's compound. Until she got a call from her boss, requesting her absolute attention - but when she saw Vulisanii Mukwevo walking through the gate which slowly slid open, before gesturing her to drive inside, she began wondering if it were wise to drive inside; or to just leave her car outside and carry a gun instead, despite how risky either move seemed.