A week later.
Gabriel is back to good health. Now he knows alot of things as every village young men, here in Bulawayo. This new life in him has really made him happy with many friends.
It's fishing day which the Bulawayo people usually celebrates. On this day, families gather at the river, in their own family boats competing and the winners get a price.
This year they want to do it differently. Couples will be competing to win a prize. Brianna and Gabby, though not a couple, they are forced to take part. Fishing was Mr Kumwenda's business for many years before he shifted to mechanic.
There was no day that Brianna remained home when her father left for fishing, so she became an expert as him at 10 years. A week before this competition, training time was given to them participants, which Brianna took advantage of by teaching major fishing skills to Gabriel.
Now is the day for the competition, before they could get to go, Gabby stood quietly in a fisherman's attire. He is afraid of sailing the river, knowing very well how much he is afraid of water.
"Come on let's go, we are late." She called, while packing the fishing nets. She realized he was not saying anything , then she had to leave everything out by the veranda and followed him in.
"You are afraid, right?" She asked.
He turned his look at her then stretched a hand, feeling her cheeks as usual, Staring on her face, "you always read me like an open book and always know my feelings.
She blink her beautiful eyes lovingly. "Come on let's go, I'm with you, you don't have to be afraid." She hold him by a hand and drag him with her, but he pulled him back, so close to him with a hand on her waist. " What a beauty." He thought as he kept staring at on her face with such a smile.
"Hey, let go, we are late." She pulled from his arms and run out, "Come on, let's go."
He run after her and they walked together to the river. They found fishermen waiting for them , "What took you so long? We've been waiting for you for long." the captain asked.
They didn't know what to say, and so they looked at each other guiltly.
"We apologise, actually it's all my fault. I.....
"We where looking for nets." She interrupted and he agreed.
The captain raised a frag, giving everyone a signal to get ready, in their boat and they did. Then they waited In pair of two for another instruction before they could start the fishing.
"Are you all set? We are about to start." The captain asked.
"Yes!"
Everyone answered, then he blow the whistle and all competitors push their boat into the water. Each group spreads their net to the part of the river they preffer to fish from.
The fishing went on. The fishermen pull their nets out every after 10 minutes and then sail quickly to pour the fish they catch into the big boat they left at the shore. The many trips that each group takes, more than the other, determines their outcome.
Already, Brianna and Gabby are leading. They have gone 4 Trips so far, only two they remained with before they are declared winners. On the sixth trip, their boat turn upside-down. The all crowd gathered there screamed in fear. In seconds, Gabriel come out from the water and jumped on the boat. Everyone cheered for him.
He looked and saw Brianna nowhere. He screamed her name severally, but she didn't answer. Now he was panicking, and so did the rest of the people. Without wasting another minute, Gabby jumped into the water, in search of her.
Under the water, he looked here and there but couldn't see her. The rest where waiting curiously in the surface. Gabriel went deep under the water where he fished her unconscious body out. Everyone cheered for him when he came out from the water, with her in his hand.
They helped putting her on the boat and they sailed out to the shore. They lay her unconscious body by the shore and then Gabriel plugged his mouth against hers, drawing out water from her belly. She coughed water out, everyone felt relief.
She was able to open her eyes after some minutes, only to find Gabriel's cute eyes staring at her. She gave out a smile and blink slowly.
"I thought I have lost you. I thought I would never look into these beautiful eyes that makes me go crazy again." He said these words a passionate stare in her eyes. All the youths looked at each other when he said this amazingly.
He helped her sit up on sand. Wanting to help her stand, they end up falling back on sand. He landed on top of her, while she fell down on sand. Feeling each other's heart beat, their forehead met and their lips almost kissed. They watched them like a romantic movie.
"The truth is that I have fallen in love with you, Bri."
Brianna opened wide her eyes in disbelief. She suddenly push him off from her top and run back home crying. This really shocked everyone, "Why would she do that?"
Gabriel didn't understand her behavior, he remained back in wonder. Now they begin to push him to go after him, which he did.
He enters the house and found Brianna still crying over what he said to her. She was thrashing everything around in anger. She throw a jar which almost hit him, but he was able to move out of it direction before it reached him.
"Stop it Brianna!"He shout, but she continued then he had to stop her by force. "What are you doing? I know you will never date a beast as me!"
" What are you saying, I didn't say that to you!"
"Then why did you reject me, if not for that?"
"Gabby, you are not an ordinary man, you are royalty, for crying out loud! There's no single drop of blood in my vein which is royalty, and you know what that means."
"Ridiculous!" He yelled. "Brianna, being royalty doesn't bound us from being with the people we want to be with." He run his fingers around her face on her gently, "I love you, Brianna Kumwenda. Your vernum already filled my veins and reached through my heart, please don't turn me down because I'm a prince." Knee down for her.
At that moment, the all group blast in shock of what they heard.
"You are a prince from great Yashilan kingdom?" Joseph asked, very astonished.
Everyone's astonished eyes where on him. Neither Brianna nor Gabby had anything to say to defend themselves.
Gabriel get up from his knees, very guilty. "I'm sorry, I lied about my identity. I...am really a prince. My last name is not Mandela, but Yachi.
Every eye glows with shock. No one could believe to have hitting shoulders with a Prince of Yashilan.
Now everyone knelt in respect.
"Stop it, will you!" Yelled.
"But why did you lie to us?" Asked Joseph.
" I never wanted this kind of treatment, if I reviewed my true identity." Point out at their kneeling behavior for him. "All I want is a simple life, with simple people like you not with all these respect."
He turned to Brianna and said, "With a simple woman, like you, Brianna." He held her hand.
Mr Yosef capped as he approached Brianna and Gabby. Everyone shifted their look at him until he was standing before them.
"I'm really proud of you, my son. This is really who you are, and not the lie you had been living all your life." He then to Gabby's hand on his and turned to Brianna whom she also requested to give him her hand. In wonder of what he was doing, she put in her hand which he pressed in Gabby's palm.
"Brianna, you love him as much as he do. Please accept him."
She looked at the man with astonished eye and opened her mouth to speak, when he interrupted. " Shhhh... the road to love has never been easy. More over, the's nothing wrong in different status. Royalty or commoner, it doesn't matter."
After he was done talking, the rest of the people begin cheering for her to say, "yes."
They went on and on shouting. With tears in rolling down, she looked at him with a little hesitation, she said yes.
Days where bright for the two love birds. They spend most of their time together. Every day they run around together, exploring Bulawayo. Gabriel has even learnt how to carry water on his head for their everyday use, they go together to the stream to fetch, cleaning their huts and cook together.
It is the youth leader's wedding today. Everyone is dressed smart in their village fashioned clothes.
"You may all rise!" The priest asked the congregation to stand for the bride as she walked the aisle. Gabriel lost in imagination of him being the groom and Brianna the Bride, and so did Brianna. They turned their look at each other from the opposite sides they stood and smiled.
The vows were exchanged and the bouquet was thrown by the bride which landed on Brianna's hands. The bride's bouquet is believed to be a lucky flower. Whenever a bride throws it away to the ladies and whoever it fells on, it is said to be the next to get married.