Sandile ended up arriving a little over half an hour later that morning. He found Siyolise asleep and tucked under her jacket on one of the benches inside the waiting room. For some reason, Sandile started apologising to some old ladies, whose home language came out as both a surprise and insults to the ignorant new comer.
Here it was not like her community which was special in one language. People came from all corners of the country and some came from beyond the borders. They have known history to raise Gauteng's capital city as the city of gold because of course it was. It was!
"Sooo," Sandile cleared his throat, letting his deep voice ramble over the static of the radio as he shuffled through. "any place of interest?"
"The whole capital." She replied, in a tone so neutral he decided to cackle to bring warmth to the conversation. "Haha, I've spent a good quarter of my life up and about these streets, not gonna lie not even I know every part of this town." He says, adjusting his posture in a way that puts him in comfort for guaranteeing a safe drive to his place.
"If you ask me, that makes you way more boring than I am. I mean, you couldn't make friends the last time you visited us back ekhaya?" She says, making him pause for a bit before he says: "You know, you really should see around the place, and see to it that you put up a, how do I say this, good exchange of dialogue. Because, oh boy its tough for ya."
- Of course it was, because she did not know how to keep friends and carry a topic, that's why.
The rest of the minutes flew past rather quickly and in silence. The channel on the radio with its presenters she knew she's never heard of before was drawing her attention and as they chatted live on air, she soon found herself invested to their vibe. Her fascination was genuine, not just for the sake of polite interest or a distraction so not to keep on talking.
* * * * *
The keys rattled behind the door. As it then opens, the light from the corridors flooding into the dark room, Sandile gestures her to step inside. You could hear the the presence of the fridge first, Sandile's number one priority after he turned on the lights and headed straight for it. But the room wasn't so dark, just that the curtains weren't open and its air was a little damp.
"Here we are," He called from around the kitchen, speaking between mouthfuls. "make yourself at home."
No, no she couldn't, or no she wouldn't. The whole time she'd been standing at the door, almost in disbelief of how beautiful her cousin's apartment is when compared to any room she's seen back ekhaya.
"Come on, you aren't gonna stand there Siyo. Lemme show ya 'round." And that he did. Down the passage there were three doors. They took the first door to their right opposite another which she figured belonged to him when she glanced over. On the l
right still, was the bathroom just after the second room. He stood behind her for a moment seemingly appreciating her amazement.
The many questions in piling up in the head begging to be answered revealed the glimmer in her eyes which did not fade away as she finally entered the room, what will be her own room for as long as she'd stay. It was not so small because of course it wasn't. Unlike the damn hall back in her parents' house, this one truly suited the 'bedroom' thing. The colour palette going on was an appealing paint of buff brown for the walls, welcoming scheme of the similar colours for the bed's makeover, with a pink fleece blanket laid across the bottom, a white mat on wooden flooring. The study desk set just by the window made you want to sit on it rather than its chair. And the wardrobe was built in, nothing fency, just white.
"Get yourself comfortable, I'll go get the breakfast ready." He wanted to smile yet he kept his face straight. The keys to Siyolise's new room jiggled on the palm of his hand, then he handed them to her before walking out. "Sandi... I, I, this is too much. It means a lot to me." The words didn't leave her chest easy, they came with sniffles.
"Like I said, make yourself at home." His smile was as warm as his crib. She tried so much to be sincere with her gratitude, but the most convincing words remained at the tip of the tongue. He simply nodded, understanding what she meant thanks to a single tear glossin over her cheek. Then he left her alone.
Later that same morning
"Back when I was small, I used to call everything about this an 'upstairs.' Just any building that would double its floors and so on, I called it that. Look at me, I feel like a kid learning how to write my name right now." Siyolise inclined forward closer to the table which was outside for them both to have their fill. Her cousin washed down the bacon and eggs with a fresh bottle of beer while she had some coffee, with milk!
"Kengoku, uyayazi yintoni len'indawo?" *Well now, do you know what this part is called?* He asked.
She laughs with a smirk on her face: "Of course I do, it is an upstairs." She bursted out. Sandile roared so much that the glass table began to reverberate.
"Balcony. It's a balcony!"
"Yeah, that's the same thing I said!"
"Of course you did kid, of course you did."
{Author's note: the story will switch from perspectives of narration. As you can tell already, this chapter is in third person compared to the first. When the protagonist tells the story to you, you will know because the date pops up →
i.e : Juluary 56th
Ain't no train-smash, let's get back to the vi-}
December 28th
I think I can. I think I can tell you all about my first hours in Pretoria. Although they went so much to consider myself an actual resident here, I really think that I'm finally settling in.
After breakfast he left to run some errands - maybe that's gotta be the cattle of the city. I don't know, I really do not.
I did thank him. But knowing words alone weren't going to be enough, knowing they wouldn't come close to measuring the inner peace I'm beggining to feel inside of me, I thought of helping out around the house. However that's the least I could do.
I think I can. I think I can show you around the outside of the inside. The bigger world of the the very same, small country, I'm speaking. A step outside the apartment building felt foreign. And I had noticed how the rain pours for a couple of minutes before moving farther.
I only have my sandals to walk these streets. My toes caught the fresh air in between even though I've been told the feet wmate what makes one vulnerable to the cold. But it's a different place remember? No more superstitions can ever hope to pave my way of seeing it through. Life I'm speaking.
"Sorry bhuti, can I have two loaves of bread please." I gave the smirking bastard twenty rands before grabbing what I needed and turning to leave the garage. But as I did he called for me, "This is fourteen rands short. One bread costs -" 'a bloody seventeen rand? Dafuq!' Only four rands above the price I'm used to, which on its own was expensive too by the way.
One loaf was all I ended up leaving with from the Korean. And one luck deep inside my pockets.
'At Kilot's open for hiring.'
Reading the flyer put me in a daydream, letting a smile creep up to the tip of my lips. There was little content on the page yet my stare was glued to it like a hidden meaning awaited to be deciphered.
I didn't mind the crowd, didn't mind the turning heads, didn't mind the gym of stairs, and I didn't mind the lady standing in front of Sandile's door. I shut it in her face as I walked inside, leaving her stunned outside. After a moment gone silent she fought with the door's handle, the sweat almost getting smudged all over her face as she barked at me.
Damn it, such a mood killer and, "Who are you?"