Chapter Two

Dineo sat doing her maths homework during the last period. The Geography teacher was absent so they had a free period. She had heard Tshepo and Kabelo yapping around the school about a party that was happening at the 76 headquarters. All were invited except grade 8s and 9s and those who were very loyal to the 88s. All those under 18 were warned to only consume non-alcoholic beverages at the party. Nokuthula and Atlegang, who weren’t in Dineo’s Geography class, somehow ended up there, disturbing her.

“Please tell me you’re going to the party.” Nokuthula said. Nokuthula was a groupie. She was insanely in love with the idea of being a gang girl – the girlfriend of a gangster. But she had no interest in Kabelo who showed interest in her, she wanted the leaders. She wanted Menzi and she wanted S’fiso – whoever would reciprocate first. And if she could, she’d have them both. She’d even have Thabang, despite being on the wrong side. Just as long as she was dating someone with power in a gang. Not the school kids who were told what to do.

“I’m not going. I never go to their parties.” Dineo said, not looking up from her homework. Nokuthula and Atlegang rolled their eyes in the same way that they always did when Dineo was being a party pooper.

“Come on, Dineo, we didn’t go to the parties because we were too young. We’re 16 now, we’re invited. And I think you’re probably more invited than everyone else.” Atlegang said with a goofy smile on her face. Both Dineo and Nokuthula gave her questioning looks, like they were asking her to elaborate.

“Well,” she said. “I heard you left school in a BMW yesterday. A black 325i, and we all know who drives those around here.” Atlegang said and Dineo rolled her eyes, returning her focus to her homework.

“I just got a lift home because Thabang was harassing me.” she said nonchalantly. No, she was not going to tell her friends that S’fiso had pulled a gun on Thabang on his own territory. She was not going to tell them that he had taken her to the mall to buy school pants and that he had bought her ice-cream in the process. For all she cared, they could believe the car was being driven by any one of the 76 and that was the truth she was willing to go with.

“Thabang has harassed us all, we never got lifts.” Nokuthula said bitterly. It was true. Thabang was the king of harassment, which is why he fought so hard to own the territory on which the school was. He was a pervert. A dirty pervert. But a lot of young girls liked bad boys and he liked that. Dineo chose not to respond to that.

“That’s not important, Nokuthula. Please Dineo. Please come.” Atlegang said, taking the pen from Dineo’s hand to ensure that she had her full attention.

“Yeah, you should definitely come Dineo.” A voice said from behind the girls. They turned around to see Thulani, who was also doing maths homework. He and Dineo were in the same classes – the smart classes.

“You see, you’ve just been invited by a 76. Now you definitely have to come.” Atlegang said excitedly.

“It’s a Tuesday, for goodness sake. We have school tomorrow.” Dineo protested.

“Girl. Tuesday, shmoozday. You answer to no-one, you live alone.” Nokuthula said.

“Shhh. Not so loud. Are you trying to make me a target?” Dineo said.

“Okay sorry. But let’s go to the party. We’ll stay for 30 minutes and then you can leave if you want to.” Atlegang said, realising that the only way to win with Dineo was to bargain with her.

“Fine. Fine, I’ll go.” she finally gave in, much to her friends’ pleasure. They spent the rest of the period planning their outfits and discussing Nokuthula’s plan to hook up with either S’fiso or Menzi. Or both.

*****

When he got to the 88 headquarters after school, Tshepo pulled Thabang to the side and told him he had some intel for him. Thabang lit a cigarette, hoping to hear something useful. He needed a win, he had been disrespected just the day before. In turf wars, pulling a gun out on someone on their own turf was the greatest form of disrespect. Thabang needed to teach S’fiso a lesson, no matter what it took.

“The 76 are having a party tonight at zone 2. Thulani personally invited Dineo.” Tshepo said. He had been sitting in the corner of the class, listening but not being seen. “I also heard that she’s living alone.”

Thabang’s face lit up at that last bit of information. He tapped Tshepo on the back, as if to say ‘good boy’.

“Do you know where she lives.” Thabang asked.

“Yes. Zone 2, across the street from the 76.” Tshepo said.

“Well,” Thabang said with another puff of his cigarette. “Tonight we go to zone 2.”

*****

By 8:30pm the 76 party was in full swing. The house and yard were almost filled to capacity, the speakers were on full blast, braai meat and drinks were circulating like money bills at the Reserve Bank. Everyone was having a great time. S’fiso sat in the corner of the living room, drinking, bobbing his head to the beat of the music. He was good at carrying out conversation with anyone who started it, but he was never the initiator. He sat there looking at his phone, having a good time in his own antisocial way. His mood changed when he randomly lifted his head to scan the crowd but caught sight of something precious. Someone precious. Too precious to be at this party, dressed like that. He couldn’t help but stare at her. She was beautiful in that black jumpsuit. She was beautiful, in general. And she wasn’t safe around drunk guys. As her protector, he had the responsibility to get her out of there. He took a gulp of his beer and walked straight towards her. She was standing with Nokuthula and Atlegang, eating meat.

“Dineo.” He said sternly, in his deep voice. He caught the three girls’ attention. Nokuthula made bedroom eyes at him, hoping to get his attention. But his eyes were fixed on Dineo, who looked up at him with fear in her eyes. “Why are you here?”

“I was invited.” She said. S’fiso clenched his jaw.

“By who?” he asked.

“Thulani. He invited me personally.” She said, as if she were bragging. She didn’t even understand her own tone.

“Yeah, S’fiso, we’re old enough to come to your parties now.” Atlegang pitched in, hoping he wasn’t going to throw them out.

“You two can stay.” He said to Atlegang and Nokuthula. “Dineo, let’s go.”

“But why?” she asked in protest. He shut her up with a stern look. The same look he had given her the previous day when he yelled at her to get into his car. She put her plate of meat down and followed him out the front door. He escorted her into her yard and instructed her to lock all doors. Just as he was about to cross back to his side of the street, he noticed a car parked two houses away. When he caught sight of the driver, the car’s headlights went off and the car sped off.

“Thabang.” He said to himself. He couldn’t understand what Thabang was doing there but he had an unsettling feeling that he had been watching Dineo. He turned quickly, rushing into Dineo’s yard and then barging through the front door. It was open, heightening his frustration.

“What the hell?” Dineo screamed, sticking her head out from the bedroom door. She was wearing a bra and pyjama pants – she had been changing. S’fiso forced himself to focus on the matter at hand.

“I told you to lock the doors. Why didn’t you lock the doors?” he yelled at her again, she was frightened and he could tell. Only this time, he didn’t feel remorse because he thought that if she could understand the seriousness of the situation, she’d listen to him when he spoke.

“I was going to…” she said.

“When? After a psychopath had let himself in and found you half naked?” S’fiso said.

“Oh, much like what’s going on right now?” Dineo made an attempt at talking back, but her voice shook just a little. S’fiso, seeing the logic in what Dineo said, took a deep breath and sat on the couch.

“I’m not a psychopath. I’m trying to protect you.” He said.

“All of this extra protection. Is it because I live alone now or is it because I look like a girl now.” Dineo asked softly. S’fiso hesitated but decided to go with the truth.

“It’s both. We just want to keep you safe.” He said. Not the whole truth, of course.

“Is someone after me?” she asked and he kept quiet. “Is it Thabang?”

“No-one is after you, not that I know of. But we just want you to be safe particularly because you’re a teenage girl living alone. Now I’m gonna go, please lock the doors.” He said as he got up to leave.

“Please stay.” She said hesitantly before he was out the door. He turned to look at her. “Please spend the night.” For the first time, Dineo saw fear in S’fiso’s eyes. She just didn’t know what he was afraid of. He closed the door and locked it, his hand shaking the entire time. He, too, didn’t understand what he was feeling. All he knew was that he was too close to her.

*****

Thabang, who had parked his car a little up the road from Dineo’s house, checked the time on his phone. 10:55pm.

“Why hasn’t he left?” he asked Tshepo, who was in the car with him. “It’s been two hours, why hasn’t he returned to the party?” Tshepo shrugged.

“Maybe we missed him, it is pretty dark.” Tshepo said calmly.

“Don’t be stupid. I have night vision. Unless… do you think he’s sleeping with her?” Thabang asked and Tshepo pulled a face.

“I highly doubt that. Dineo is the type to wait for marriage.” Tshepo said, scrolling through his phone. Tshepo thought Thabang was getting carried away with his hunt for Dineo because she wasn’t worth it. Yes, she was loyal to the 76 but she didn’t really mean that much to them. Going after her would be futile. Of course, he dared not share his thoughts with Thabang, lest he got punched in the face.

“But what if he is? That’s statutory rape, isn’t it?” Thabang asked. Boredom washed over Tshepo’s face. Thabang was desperate now, he was fishing and he was fishing in the wrong pond.

“It’s not statutory rape. She’s 16.” Tshepo said.

“So what, she’s a minor.” Thabang protested.

“16 is the age of consent, Thabang. Besides, S’fiso is also a minor. He’s 17. So…” he shrugged again, hoping Thabang would let it go. And he did. He started the car and drove off.

“Maybe you’re right.” He said. “Maybe he’s just being a watchdog.”

*****

Dineo was shocked to see that it was 11pm already and that she still hadn’t put on her pyjama top. It was weird that S’fiso had been so chilled about it, sitting in her living room with her only wearing a bra and PJ pants. She had poured him a glass of juice and shared a large packet of Lays with him while they spoke. The conversation had flowed so well that they didn’t realise how much time had passed.

“Wow, it’s late. I should get to bed.” Dineo said and S’fiso just nodded his head in agreement. “You can sleep on my bed.”

He choked when she said this and his eyes widened.

“I’ll sleep on the couch.” he said.

“S’fiso there are two bedrooms, why would you sleep on the couch? I’ll sleep in my mom’s room.” She said, not knowing what the problem was. He was being weird.

“Okay. Goodnight.” She said but he took hold of her arm as she was about to leave. She returned to her sitting position on the couch.

“Are you afraid of me?” he asked her quietly, with a dark and intent look in his eyes. She hesitated, not knowing how to respond without offending him. She thought if she had said yes, he would be offended. But she also thought if she said no, he would still be offended. She decided to go with the truth.

“Yes. Very much.” She said. His grip moved from her lower arm to her hand and he squeezed it.

“You don’t have to be afraid of me. I would never hurt you.” He said, and then when he realised how tense the mood had become, he thought he might lighten it up. “Besides, I have more reason to be afraid of you.”

She laughed in disbelief.

“Why?” she asked and he shrugged.

“I’m a gangster. I was raised by a gangster. All I now is danger and violence. But you… you’re pure… and good… and beautiful…” he allowed his hand to brush the braids out of Dineo’s face before leaning in as if he was going to kiss her. But he didn’t, he stopped halfway, his lips hovering over hers. With his eyes closed and as he took a deep breath, he only allowed his thumb to caress her lips. His hands shaking the entire time. For Dineo, it seemed as though time had stopped and her breath had been taken away. She decided to take the plunge while his eyes were closed, so she leaned in further and kissed him. He kissed her back, hands shaking and all, in utter disbelief of what was happening to him. It felt surreal, almost like a dream. He had had several dreams like this. Where he kissed her, where he was free to love her, where there were no risks of the dangers of his lifestyle creeping up on her in the middle of the night and he could just kiss her and make her happy. But he knew that that could only be in his dreams. Because his reality was dangerous. She eventually pulled away from him, leaving him breathless.

“Goodnight.” She said as she got up and walked towards her mother’s bedroom. It took a while for S’fiso to regain consciousness, to stop debating with himself. He concluded that it was just a kiss and he would not pursue it any further. He was still too dangerous for Dineo and he loved her too much to complicate her life with his mess. The music from the party was blasting in the background of his thoughts as he switched off all of the lights and made himself comfortable on Dineo’s double bed. Maybe, he thought to himself, he’d feel better in the morning.

*****

Dineo woke up at 6am the following day and got ready for school, the same way she did every morning. There was no sign of S’fiso in the house and her bed was made. At least he can clean up after himself, she thought. It wasn’t until she walked out the front door, on her way to school, that she found him smoking on the front lawn. He looked like he hadn’t slept much.

“Oh good morning, I thought you left.” She said, suddenly feeling a lot more confident around him. That was often the case after one had kissed a guy, she was no longer afraid of him. Okay no, she was. She just felt sure that she was in his good books now that he had assured her that he would never hurt her. And because he had called her beautiful. He turned around, squashing the cigarette under his foot and immediately throwing some gum in his mouth. She closed the front door behind her, waiting for him to respond to her greeting. She looked up over his shoulder and saw Menzi standing on the front lawn of the 76 house with a smirk on his face. She turned her attention back to S’fiso, who still hadn’t said anything.

“I just needed a smoke, I wasn’t going to leave you alone.” He said eventually.

“Do you smoke every morning?” she asked, not sure why but she did anyway.

“No. I only smoke when I’m nervous.” He said, rubbing his hands together. It was a little chilly.

“You woke up feeling nervous?” she asked. She felt like she had a little power in this situation and she could use it to get more information out of this closed book. They had spent the previous evening talking about her and her life and her trying to crack jokes to lighten up the mood. The closest thing he had come to opening up was when he told her she was beautiful.

“I didn’t sleep…” he hesitated. “You kissed me last night.”

“You didn’t tell me to stop…” she said with a smile on her face. S’fiso realised that she was enjoying this but he was too nervous to try and get the upper hand. He clenched his jaw and rubbed his hands together again.

“Okay, Dineo…” he said, taking a deep breath. “I’ve kissed a lot of girls...”

“Oh please, don’t make it weird.” She slouched against the door, the smile disappearing from her face.

“Hear me out. Usually with other girls, I initiate the kiss because I know they’ll kiss me back. Because it’s me… but with you, I couldn’t bring myself to do it because I thought you’d reject me. And I wouldn’t have been able to face you afterwards.” He said. It was difficult for him to say all of this and Dineo could see the fear in his eyes.

“Okay, you’re making it weird. S’fiso please, it was just one kiss. I don’t expect you to fall in love with me.” she said, making her way toward the gate. He grabbed her arm and spun her around so she could face him.

“What if I already have?” he said, jaw clenched, veins popping.

“What?” she swallowed hard.

“What if I’ve always been… and I just never had the courage to tell you…” he said, letting go of her arm.

“Are you telling me now?” she asked and he hesitantly nodded. She propped herself up on her toes and gave him a quick kiss. They heard Menzi shout “Ha!” from across the street and they laughed. “I have to go to school… maybe I’ll see you later.”

“You need a ride?” he asked.

“No… I’ll see you later.” She said. She walked on in the direction of the school, ignoring Menzi’s whistles and cheers. He was such a goofball.

S’fiso walked slowly into the 76 yard, trying to ignore Menzi’s slow clapping.

“You finally grew a pair.” Menzi said and S’fiso replied with his middle finger, much to Menzi’s amusement. S’fiso didn’t know how to feel. He had just done the one thing he thought he’d never do and he didn’t know how it was going to pan out. He needed another cigarette. Fast.