Muzi had went out to get himself a cup of coffee when Betso woke up. She squinted her eyes and looked around, trying to familiarize herself again with consciousness. Evelyn and the others had went home to sleep, along with Lwandile who almost collapsed from fatique. Muzi insisted on staying with his wife. The doctor had no choice but to agree. The condition was that he was supposed to be the only one and not have a crowd suffocating his patient.
He walked back in mindlessly as he took a sip on the hot beverage. He almost burnt his tongue when he realized that she was awake. He quickened his steps to her confused self and placed the coffee on top of the bedside drawers.
"Hey mommy...", he softly greeted as he brushed her forehead. She smiled innocently.
"He... hey daddy", her voice was raspy and coarse. He poured her a glass of water and helped her drink. She tried sitting up but immediately stopped when she felt the stinging pain around her abdomen. The stitches from the C-section were responsible for this. She was still a bit doped up from the meds but she remembered her child.
"Where's my baby?", panic caught her off guard.
"Relax. She's okay and healthy", Muzi said before he could place the straw in a glass next to her mouth. She drank up till she indicated with her hand that it was enough. He sat down on the chair and took her hand, rubbing it on the inside with his thumb. That moment felt like deja vu. Except it was really happening for the second time. Back to the time where she gave birth to the twins.
"Can I see her?"
"You will. How are you feeling?", he asked.
"My whole body is in pain", she reported.
"I'm sorry. You had me worried sick"
"There was a man in here", she reported.
"A man?"
"Yeah. A man. He kept chanting and sprinkling me with stuff. Right now I don't know if I was dreaming it all but it felt so real"
"That's because it was. Skhumbuzo was here"
"The sangoma?"
Muzi nodded.
"Our marriage was under attack baby but hopefully everything is fine now"
"What do you mean?"
"It's a long story. I'm just glad that you're well and awake"
"You can't drop such a bomb and tell me that it's a long story"
He sighed.
"You know Bongiwe right?"
"Yes?", a frown was shrinking her face.
"Well, okhokho bangibonise yonk'into that happened from the time I forgot my handerkerchief in her office. All this is actually my fault"(My forefathers showed everything...)
"She was bewitching you?"
"Not her. She took it and placed it in her bag. Her aunt took it to a sangoma and that's where our marital problems began"
"I don't think I understand. The aim was to break us up?"
"The aim, was to get me to fall in love with her and ultimately marry her. However, you were the one who did, who fell in love with her"
Betso still had that confused look on her face. All the memories came flooding back, including the one where she told him that she finds him repulsive. She didn't know how to feel about the whole situation.
"Do you remember what happened the night before your accident?", she asked remorsefully.
"It's in the past now", he kissed the back of her hand.
"I said some horrible things to you"
"Yeah it stung but I'd be stupid if I held you accountable for all that. You weren't yourself. Let's forget about it", he kissed the back of her hand again. She heaved a sigh. She couldn't help but feel guilty. He pressed the button to call a nurse and they sat in silence while they waited. He could see she wasn't fine.
"Hey, stop beating yourself up about this. None of it was your fault. The person responsible for all this mess will definitely pay for it"
She raised her eyes to look at him.
"I don't like the sound of that"
"I just need her to explain what she was thinking. I am certain that we have never met. I want to understand why she'd do something like this"
"What if this Bongiwe asked her to help her out"
"She doesn't know shxt"
The nurse walked in and immediately jammed when she saw Muzi sitting there.
"Hi. Can you please bring my baby?", Betso requested. The nurse's mind was still on flight mode. Muzi turned to see properly.
"Nurse?", he probed.
"Huh? I'm sorry what?"
"The baby?", the both said, at the same time.
"Sure. Sure", she couldn't wait to get out of there. She came back with a fed and sleeping Odaliwe and made up some excuse about an emergency in another ward, then left. They paid no mind to her. Muzi got up so she could place Liwe in Betso's hands. She couldn't wait.
"Aww. Look at you...", she babied and coddled her. Muzi was just standing there with his hands in the pockets of his track pants, smiling at this sight. Betso totally forgot about his presence in the room. He didn't mind. After minutes of admiring the fruit of her womb, she raised her head and was met with his consistent smile. She smiled back.
"I know you've already named her", she said with her index finger wrapped in Liwe's tiny little hand. He laughed.
"I didn't. But her name is Odaliwe. Her ancestors want her to be called that. It's the name they decided and agreed upon way before even placing her in your womb", he explained. Betso was fascinated by this.
"Did you hear that baby? Mm? Bare ke wena Odaliwe. Odaliweliwe yena. Hampona dzodzo, hampona", she continued babying her.
"You can still name her if you like", Muzi said coolly.
"Naledi. She's bright like a star. Something in this room lit up when she arrived"
"It's crazy how I felt the exact same way the first time I saw her. I just couldn't find the right words for it", he said and they locked eyes. They both didn't know when exactly she was conceived but one thing they were sure about is that she was conceived with love. That was a definite.
