Burn it down
S’bu drove Thandi and Amahle home. Thandi was silent all the way listening to Amahle venting about the journalists. When they got home, Amahle got off the car, leaving her parents behind.
“Is what the journalists said true about the research sponsor?”Thandi asked without emotion.
“Yes, it is. Luke, the mentee left three months after you resigned. His report back stated that there was no progress on the research since you left. The sponsor decided that it made sense to pull off the sponsor and give it to whichever company you decide to work with”he explained.
“Okay”she said,opening the car door.
“Thandi”he called, holding her hand.
“Don’t touch me, you have no right”she said coldly and got off the car.
S’bu watched her walking away until she got into the house. This was the first time since the divorce hearing that they have spoken and even sat so close to each other. He knew that he had a long way to go to get his wife back but this was a start. Thandi decided to stay at home until she decided what to do with the sponsor. Different companies and universities were sending her offers, each one promising to meet every demand she made. The sponsor she had was every CEO’s dream and they were shamelessly hunting her down. She was playing outside with Sipho when she received an anonymous call telling her that someone was messing up with her Grandmother’s tombstone in the village. She left Sipho with June and decided to go to the village and find out what was going on. At a distance she saw her Grandma’s house. She blinked many times thinking it was an illusion but the house was still there. She arrived, got out of the car and touched the walls. Her Grandma’s house was there, but how was it possible when she saw it in ashes? she wondered. She opened the door, got in and walked around. Everything was there. The old portraits, the furnisher, the linen. It was all there, this was her Grandma’s house. Thandi was starting to wonder if she was loosing her memory, maybe she had imagined the house burning down. She was interrupted by S’bu who walked in with her Mother and neighbour.
“MaDlamini”he said lovingly. “I have deeply hurt you. Please forgive me.”
“Burn it down!” Thandi shouted, her eyes blazing with anger. It was not her memory, S’bu had burned her Grandma’s house, now he was using it to lure her back into his life.
“Thandi, please” he said softly.
“Grandma did not leave in this house, I did not grow up in it. You can never fix what you destroyed. Burn it down!” she shouted.
“Thandi, my child. We all make mistakes. S’bu is trying to fix things, please calm down” her Mother said.
“Don’t call me your child, you disowned me” Thandi said angrily.
“Calm down child. Your Grandma preached peace, love and forgiveness and I know she would not like to see you like this” the neighbour granny said.
“Grandma would have understood, she would have never abandoned me” Thandi said, tears rolling down her cheeks.
“I should have been there for you, I am sorry”her Mother said.
“I don’t want any of your apologies, I just want you to leave me alone, all of you!” Thandi shouted and left. S’bu realised that Thandi was still very angry with him and decided to give her space and focus on Amahle. He made sure that he fetched her from school every chance he got and Amahle no longer objected to it.
“Mom told me that you rebuilt the house in the village”Amahle said as soon as she got into the car.
“I can’t take everything I did back but I am trying to fix things” he said.
“She told you to burn it down, did you?” she asked.
“I can’t burn it down again, I was an idiot to do it the first time” he said, ashamed.
“I think she likes the house but she is still upset that you burned it before” she said.
“Why do you think she likes it”he asked curious.
“She says it’s exactly like it was before, the portraits, the furniture, linen and everything”Amahle explained.
“I didn’t know that she noticed all of that” S’bu said feeling warm inside. He had personally supervised the construction of the house and made sure that everything was as it was before. Now he was happy to know that even though Thandi was angry, she still noticed everything in it. The following day when S’bu fetched Amahle from school she asked if they could go past their old home. S’bu was surprised by the request but decided to take Amahle to the mansion that use to be their home. Amahle walked around the garden and inside the house.
“This was your Mother’s dream home. I built it for her as our wedding gift” he told her.
“She told me that she was so shocked when she saw it the first time”Amahle said, looking at the portraits at the hallway. “We were all so happy here. We were a normal family” she added.
“I promise you that I will do everything in my power to make sure that we are a family again” he said holding her.
“I still don’t know what this is, Mom has always avoided telling me what it is” she said, pointing at the portrait in the corner.
“That’s our covenant”he said.
“What?” she asked confused.
“The first time I was with your Mom, it was her first time, she bled and that’s the sheet we used” he explained. “I broke a lot of promises I made her but the one that still stands to this day is that I will love her forever.”
“Really? That’s so romantic!” she exclaimed. To Amahle, her parents were the most romantic couple she had ever heard of and she started hoping that they make up and be together again. When S’bu dropped Amahle off she was still in deep thoughts about how in love her parents once were.
“Mom, how come you never thought me how to make the Zulu love letter with beads?” she asked.
“How do you even know about that?” Thandi asked sharply. Amahle was writing her finals soon, the last thing she needed is for her to be distracted by boys.
“I saw it in Dad’s car. He said you gave it to him when you were 17 years old” she said.
Thandi was caught off guard, she had no idea that S’bu still had the bracelet.
“You were my age and already head over heels in love with him”Amahle said with excitement.
“How do you know that I was head over heels in love with him?” Thandi asked puzzled.
“You gave him your virginity and I know about the portrait in the mansion and the covenant. Very romantic!” she exclaimed.
Thandi was speechless.
“Mmh, maybe my future husband is out there waiting for me to make him the bracelet”Amahle said teasing.
“Don’t even think about it, you are not allowed to date or even look at a boy until you are 21 years old”Thandi said.
“Yes Mom”she said, laughing. She had gotten used to her Mother’s overprotective side.
