ONYIYE THAT GIRL

ONYIYE THAT GIRL
CHAPTER 3

STHEMBISO JIYANE

Three days later Sthembiso woke up with a thunderous headache. He groans loudly holding the back of his head. The roof is spinning - everything piles up right up his throat. He gags and everything just comes up.
He lays on his side. There is no eye movement or muscle activity. He is not adjusting immediately and he feels groggy and disoriented.

Several minutes later he opens his eyes fully wide awake as they were opened.
He groans trying to get off the bed.
He misses a step he trips and falls off the bed landing on his awful vanilla.
"Argh," he says getting up. He tries getting back up but falls back down again.

The door cracks open and the Tazz man comes in holding a glass of water. 
He sighs placing the glass on to of the counter. "Not as strong as you were three days ago huh." He says. 
"Thre, three days ago." He stammers and finally gets the courage to stand. "What do you mean by three days ago?" He lost!
The Tazz man just laughs - "you have been sedated for three days. Go take a bath you stink. Will get a maid to clean your mess."

Bathing has always been linked to his mental health. Whenever he is in a shower that is where he gets to think of all the trauma he went through. The childhood trauma. He still has anxiety of those events.
For him, warm shower reduces depression and anxiety.
"Shit!" He finally remembers something.
He steps out of the shower and wraps himself with a towel not bothering to close the running water. 
Dripping wet, his feet leaves foot prints on the floor. He runs around this huge house and finally steps out of it. His mind freezes a bit. 
This places didn't look like this yesterday. 
He runs back inside and runs out again. Still no changes - he squints his eyes multiple times. "I believe I'm blind." He says to himself. "Mah!" He continues to run around looking for something or someone, he spots the guys.
"Aw you are awake. Tazz give him clothes to wear." His boss Khoza says handing him a drink. 
"No thanks I don't drink." His face shrinks.
"Suit yourself." 
"My mother's grocery, if I don't go home my mother will kill me to death." 
He wants to cry so bad.
"Don't worry, that has been taken care of." 
"How?" He asks.
Khoza sighs, "I see, you still have a long way to go ntwana." He takes his phone out giving it to him. Sthembiso grabs the phone and immediately punches his mother's number. 
"Mah!" The phone is still ringing. He is impatient she is not answering!
"Halo," phew finally! This woman will be the death of him. 
"Mah! Help they kidnapped me!" Khoza looks at him not believing.
Funnily it sounds, his mother laughs on the other side of the line. "Thank you for the groceries and the money that you gave me. I can't wait to flaunt to these stokvel women." 
He is confused, "mah I'm kidnapped and you are here….wait what money?" 
"Your boss gave me money and said you were assigned to be on duty." Sthembiso turns to look at Khoza. "My pot is burning." The line goes dead. 
He sighs not knowing what do so anymore. 
"You can go ahead and ask." Khoza.
"How do you know I want to ask?" Sthembiso looks at him briefly. 
"Once your lower lip twitches I know you want to know something. Now ask." 
"About," he clears his throat. He is so uncomfortable. "About Ndoni, how do you know her?" 
"The day you told me that you were invited in a matric dance I decided to follow you. Every movement - I captured. Until I noticed you taking videos and pictures of a certain thing only to find out you are taking a picture of that tiny dark beauty. Ay muhle yena. No wonder you crazy about her. Anyway I decided to keep tabs on that girl and guess what." 
"What?" His voice is barely out. 
"She has your child. You left that girl pregnant that night and never even bothered to find her. If you liked or loved her as you claim you would have had the courage to look for her since she lives around. Or yet ask Clive - but nigger won't tell you shit because she wants her to himself."

"What!" 
"That is not the point here. Are you going to help me or not?" 
"What's the catch?" Sthembiso asks.
"My offer is to help your girl out from that toxic environment, find her a better place to live in along with your child."
"Toxic place? What do you mean toxic place." He feels stupid for not even making an effort to try looking for her. He feels stupid to even think…. Clive - he considered him as his little brother but he just wanted him to eat where he dips. 
"That girl is being abused daily. My sauce told me that it's something that has been happening ever since she growing up. Right now she works in a bottle store just to make ends meet for her son Ndimuphiwe." 
"I don't even know what to say. Is that his or her name?"
“His name.”