seasons | killmonger

18 | Z O L A

The fool speaks, the wise man listens.
~ Ethiopian proverb

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Erik — N'Jadaka

"So let me guess, you must be expecting some grand ass apology, huh?" I smirked at her and shook my head. Mbali looked up at me and rolled her eye before mumbling something under her breath.

"No," Zola shrugged and raised her eyebrows. "I'm not expecting anything. I'm demanding it." She walked up to me, trying to size me up. She was a little bit taller than Mbali— but then again who wasn't. She kept her arms crossed while I looked down at her. "And I'm going to get it."

I frowned at her and raised my eyebrow. "I ain't giving you shit."

"N'Jadaka." Mbali whispered and shook her head.

"Oh? You won't?" Zola grinned at me— not a nice one, a sneaky one. "After you killed my own father for your own selfish reasons... to get back at not only him... but the rest of us because T'Chaka, your own uncle, killed him and left his body there for you to see? And because he never brought you back home?"

My breathing started to get heavy while I watched her walk around me. I feel like I know what's she's trying to do; and it's working. "Zola, stop." Mbali glared at her. "This isn't solving a damn thing and you know it."

"Let's talk about that, hmm? Since you had to grow up without a father... you expected me to, despite my age?" She kept going.

"I didn't know Zuri had kids... but if you keep pushing me you can happily join his ass where he is. How does that sound?" I cocked my head. "You feel like meeting your pops in the ancestral plane?" Walking over to her, I felt Mbali grab my wrist before I jerked away from her. "Cause I can make that happen for you."

"Maybe I could say hello to your dad while I see mine." That evil smirk came back on her face. "I mean... if he's there and still not stuck roaming around some apartment."

"Look this isn't what we came here for, you both need to relax—" Mbali started to talk again but I cut her off.

"That's cute... how you like to get under people's skin." I chuckled but could feel every ounce of anger that I had in be boiling over. "But... how does it feel knowing that Zuri's last breath was wasted on and by me? Knowing that his very last words to you on that day were probably some simple shit? That I took his life that easily? See, if you would've kept that mouth of your shut for a little bit longer, I would've apologized; but you pushed me there. See... the different between my situation and yours... is that I didn't have to watch my pop die like you did." I smirked back.

Mbali's body became visibly tense while she looked at Zola. She didn't even have to say anything to me for me to know that I got to her. She let out a animalistic growl and charged at me, grabbing a blade from the table. Before I could even retaliate, Mbali pushed me back, pulling the vibranium filled cloth that was around her waist in front of the both of us, making the blade bounce right off of the forcefield that was shooting out of it.

"Mbali move!" Zola yelled, her chest rising and falling. "You know what he did! And you keep protecting him like he's some hero in this!"

"I'm protecting him because it's my job and I need answers!" Mbali yelled back before dropping the cloth from in front of us, grabbing the same blade that Zola had pointing it at her. "I love you, Zola but this is who my loyalty has to be with. Not only to him but to his family. Exactly how Okoye protects T'Challa, I have to protect him regardless."