If love is a sickness, patience is the remedy.
~ Cameroonian Proverb
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Erik—N'Jadaka
I woke up in Shuri's lab on one of her tables with my side wrapped and groaned. I grabbed my side and hissed when I sat up, seeing T'Challa and Okoye looking at me carefully. I saw my shirt on the floor with the blood stain on the side of it and looked down at the white bandage wrapped around my ribs.
"N'Jadaka," T'Challa said carefully and took a step towards the table slowly. "I understand you just woke up, but you need to tell me everything that happened."
I looked at the wires that I was connected to and as soon as I tried to take them off, Okoye grabbed my arm to stop me. "Shuri needs them to monitor your heart. Since the herb is in your system you've healed though it took time. She's running simple tests and asked that you stay put."
I wasn't in the mood to argue against what she was telling me right now so I just stayed put. "I was leaving the meeting and the lights down the hall cut out... more like someone just cut the damn electricity off cause it shut off down that hall fast. Next thing I know is somebody is trying to fight me and I knocked them out. I tried to get back up and leave to find you but two more people just ran up; one held me and the other got me in the fucking ribs—" I kept going but stopped when I kept hearing a loud beeping coming from the monitor that was for my heart.
T'Challa and I had a different heart beat compared to everyone else because of the herb. It made our heartbeat a little faster than anyone else's; so it showed differently on the monitor. But this was going faster than it normally did. My breathing started to quicken and I clenched my jaw.
"You have to calm down, N'Jadaka. You're going to strain yourself—" T'Challa spoke but I cut him off.
"Fuck that." I shook my head and snatched off the wires off and saw the monitors cut off. "Fuck all that shit. You think I'm about to sit up in here, let a nigga stab me, and be calm about that shit? In a place where y'all suppose to be sitting comfortable... and protected." I scoffed.
"N'Jadaka you need to be back on the table—" Okoye frowned.
"Fuck that table, I'm not getting on shit." I frowned back at her before looking back at T'Challa who was looking too calm. "What I want you to do is find out who the person was before I handle it myself, cause for them to get in here that smooth is a problem, and you better hope you don't have anyone in here working against you." My nostrils flared and Okoye came to stand next to T'Challa in a protective stance.
"Step back." Her hand clenched around her sphere and T'Challa held his hand up to stop her.
"He's fine, Okoye. Just angry and wants answers... he has the right—"
He stopped when we heard a soft groan coming from out the room, and their heads went from looking at the door to looking at me. "What?"
T'Challa took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose before looking at Okoye. "Sinike umzuzu." Give us a minute. He mumbled to her and she glared at me before sighing and walking out of the room to where the groaning was coming from. He looked at me and crossed his arms. "I need you to sit."
"I'm standing."
He groaned and made his head fall back. "You're very... very stubborn. I don't know how she's going to deal with you." He spoke the first part to me, but the second more to himself. "It's Mbali...she's fine, now."
"What happened to her? Fuck do you mean she's fine now? What happened before?" I felt low I was about to bust a blood vessel with this family.
T'Challa nodded towards the door and sighed. "She's awake now... Shuri, Ramonda, And Nakia had to keep her restrained. You can see her and we can explain there... but you may need to be cautious. They don't heal the way we do, and she's going to want answers also."
I huffed and walked out of the room that T'Challa and I were in and looked down the hall, noticing that a few rooms down Dora's were surrounding the door. Ayo specifically stood in front of all of them. I got close enough and tried to walk in just for Ayo to stand her ground and glare at me.
Okoye and I had a strong love-hate relationship, but Ayo? We couldn't stand each other. I looked her up and down, clenching my jaw. "It's either you let me in or I make my way in. I don't have time for games."
"Ayo... vumela umntu ngaphakathi." Let the man inside. Nakia sighed and put her hand on Ayo's shoulder and shook it gently. "You two have to let this go." She shook her head. Ayo eventually moved but not before bumping shoulders with me and T'Challa followed, wrapping his arm around Nakia's waist.
I couldn't see anything at first because everyone was standing around either looking at me or looking at what was in front of them. Ramonda came up to me and smiled, taking my hand and brought me to the table where Mbali was sleeping. As always, she was sleeping in the fetal position but her arms were wrapped around her sides. "She's doing better, don't be so timid." She smiled and patted my shoulder. She looked up at everyone else and cleared her throat. "Give us time to talk... you too, Shuri."
Shuri looked up from Mbali and frowned at her mom. "I helped! I feel like I should stay to see his reaction." She leaned back against the dashboard of her computer and pouted.
"Shuri..." Ramonda pursed her lips and Shuri stood straight up, sighing.
"Ewe, ndihamba, ndihamba." Okay, I'm leaving, I'm leaving. She put her hands up and walked out slowly, leaving only me, Ramonda, T'Challa, and Nakia in the room while the Dora's waited outside the door.
"Now can we talk about what happened—" I bit my lip and Ramonda help up her hand to stop me.
"Not yet." She sighed and walked over to Shuri's computer that she was once leaning against and tapped one of the keys. A large screen popped up on the glass and Ramonda shook her head. Sure enough, Shuri found a way to connect the computer in the lab to her kimoyo beads so she could hear the conversation. "Disable it now, Shuri."
"Bast!" We could hear her yell from down the hall even though the door was closed. "Fine." She mumbled before the glass went black. Ramonda turned to us again and smiled.
"Okay... now your questions..."
"Is she okay?"
"Now She is, she's perfectly fine. Probably in a little discomfort; but better." She nodded and looked at Nakia while she pushed Mbali's hair back from temple and rubbed it. "Now, I'm sure she's talked to you about our beliefs and what Bast does... and I'm sure you're aware by now that you claimed her."
I ran my hand against my face and crossed my arms. "Well aware. I still don't understand or agree with it, but I'm aware."
"Well, you're going to have no choice but to understand and agree now." Ramonda smiled at me. "Bast makes no mistakes in her acts, they may be a little different from what you know... but even though you've been away from us, you still have the blood of Wakanda in you. So, even when you were in America... Bast knew you, she knew who you'd be with, and even that this would be happening. She just had a funny way of doing it." Ramonda chuckled. "Mbali is your mate, N'Jadaka."
I looked down at her on the table and saw that Nakia was still massaging her temples. "Bast gives signs before it becomes official, and one of them took place today. When you were attacked in the halls, Okoye and I were with Mbali. Exactly where you were stabbed?" She looked at the wrap that was around my torso before pulling up Mbali's shirt and put her finger on her ribs. "She felt it."
Nakia must've saw the look on my face and smiled. "It's what keeps you both connected and aware. If one of you feel pain, the other does. The day you and T'Challa challenged each other and you hurt him, I felt it. I felt each and every single thing that happened to him. Mbali felt the same with you." She clarified. "That's one way."
"What are the others?"
"Aside from claiming her, your thoughts become her thoughts, and hers become yours. The last thing that happens is the marking. It makes things solid." T'Challa pulled down collar of his shirt and showed me the glowing mark that was on his shoulder, and Nakia did the same, letting me see hers that was on the same spot. T'Challa pulled back up his shirt and sighed. "There's a lot that goes into these things, and this is what you should know before she wakes up. She's aware of what's going on, but it's better to tell you both separately. If this is the first thing that's happened, you both have a while to go before things become set in stone, but when Bast has her mind made up, we can't change it."
Mbali began stirring around and groaned before her eyes opened and were squinting. She turned slowly and looked at me before trying to sit up. "Whoa, whoa, whoa... relax. Move slow, take your time." I quickly moved to grab her hand and gently push her back down to the table. "Just lay down for a second before you start trying to do too much."
"I want to get off the table." She looked up at me and huffed.
"And I just said lay down for a second." I shook my head. She just woke up and wanted to start challenging a nigga.
She smacked her lips and pushed my hand away, trying to sit up from the table but grabbed her head in the same breath, groaning. I rolled my eyes and pushed her back down anyway. "Lay down." I hovered over her, looking her directly in the eyes. She was crazy so she had a thing for the aggressive shit.
She looked at me and huffed again before laying back down slowly. "Mbali, do you remember what happened?" Nakia asked her and took her hand.
She nodded slowly and looked at Ramonda. "I was talking to you and Okoye then I felt a really sharp pain. It almost felt like my insides were being twisted right where I felt it." She looked at me then down to where I was bandaged and her eyes went wide as her hand went over her mouth.
"Nakia and I will give you both some time to talk to Ramonda about everything." T'Challa took Nakia's hand and nodded, walking towards the exit of the lab. Ramonda looked at both of us but mainly Mbali.
"How do you feel—"
Mbali let out a chuckled and shook her head. "This cant happen. I mean, it can't fully happen because he doesn't even believe what we believe in!"
"You of all people know what's possible, Mbali. He's one of us, so it's possible." She nodded and looked at me. "It's a beautiful thing, N'Jadaka."
"Some beautiful shit that I didn't ask to happen." I scoffed and looked down at Mbali.
"You know something? You two have a lot in common." Ramonda chuckled. "For starters, you both are so stubborn that you put yourselves in denial, you both are fighters, and you both have similar pasts." She raised her eyebrow and took my arm in her hand before going to Mbali's shirt and raising the side of it, showing her scars as well as mine.
Mbali's eyes went straight to Ramonda and for the first time I couldn't even read her face. I didn't know if she was scared, nervous, or embarrassed. She looked like a kid who's parents found out they were lying. "H-how—"
"The others might not know, but I've always known, Mbali. You've always had a temper that you tried to control, but I know you can't do it all of the time. You were a sweet but sneaky one growing up. Sneaking out of the palace at night sometimes... I figured; but never told. I've always watched over you though." She smiled and gently ran her fingers over each of Mbali's scars. "I'm sorry we could never help you in the way that you needed it."
"You both are in denial at the moment, but from what I've learned over the years is that love and patience go hand in hand."
"She's free to go right?" I asked trying to change the subject. I already had a lot going on in my head, I didn't want more shit clouding my judgement.
"She is. She may not be experiencing physical pain like you are, but her body is trying to cope from the stress that it was under. Just watch her for the time being." Ramonda kissed my cheek before whispering to me. "You'll understand and accept everything soon." She walked towards the door but stopped when she heard Mbali calling her name. "Don't worry. I've kept your secret for all of these years, it'll stay out secret. Ndiyakuthanda, kwaye ndiphumle." I love you, and get rest. She smiled at Mbali before leaving.
"Are you okay?" She looked at the wrap that was around me and sat up, touching it gently. "Who did it? Something told me before I left that I should've still went with you but I didn't listen. I should've fucking came—" She kept going; her accent coming out stronger.
"I'm good, they don't know who did it yet, and don't start blaming yourself for shit you can't control. Someone got into the palace and did it." I shook my head and sat on the table that she was on.
"Does it hurt?"
"When you do this shit to your body for a living, you don't feel it till afterward." I mumbled. "We got some shit we need to figure out."
She nodded her head and bit at her lip.
"They brought you some clothes. Get changed and we can talk about it outside of here. You know Shuri ass probably has this whole place covered with speakers."
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We sat across from each other at the same restaurant that we would always find ourselves at or ordering from that was farther from where we actually stayed, and ordered the same thing we would always get.
"You gotta relax, sweetheart." I chuckled at her posture. She was on a full defense mode while she looked around at everything, like she was ready to beat someone's ass on site for no reason. "Nobody's about to come and fuck up anything." She waved me off before going to eat her food. "How are we gonna do this, Mbali. I'm hearing all this shit about what else is meant to happen and how I'm suppose to just let it. Shit like this don't happen where I'm from. My pops didn't tell me shit about this."
"Well... I mean, he couldn't tell you much. He fell in love with a American, so he couldn't actually experience what's going on now." She said softly, trying not to step on any toes with what she was saying. "Look, it's been a long two days for the both of us. I don't really know how to give you the information both of us want."
"Well we gotta talk about how this is gonna be able to work. It's obviously no way around it according to y'all logic—"
"Beliefs." She corrected.
"Same difference." I rolled my eyes and sighed. "Look. I know only what I was told growing up and the research I was able to do in Wakanda. You obviously know that I couldn't get much because y'all really made sure no one could find this place. Help me, help you."
Mbali used her fork to play with the rice on her plate and bit her lip nervously. "I could hear you. The night we had sex, I heard you. In my head." She looked up at me. "That's why I rushed out so fast in the morning. I didn't know what to think or do. But when I was hovering over you, I was trying to see if I could hear anything else and I couldn't. I don't know if it was because you were sleeping, but I know what I heard. I didn't tell the others because I don't want them to know."
"And you heard..."
"You called me beautiful." She teased me, trying to touch my face but I swatted her hands away. "You think I'm beautiful... not like I'm surprised; but it was interesting hearing it come from your head, and I heard it so clear."
"Well. Let's test it then." I shrugged.
"How, N'Jadaka. You want me to just think some random shit and expect you to hear it?"
"I know you think a lot of ignorant shit about me from time to time, so let's see if I can hear it and if you can to." I frowned. "We don't have shit else to do anyway."
"Fine." She bit her bottom lip and looked at me for at least thirty seconds before smirking. "Well?"
"I didn't get a damn thing. What were you thinking?"
"That you're dick is little."
"I will toss all your shit off this table." I looked at her and rolled my eyes. "Don't lie on me. If you can hear me, I gotta be able to hear you."
"Well like I said, I don't know how it works completely, but I know what I heard."
"So we just gotta sit here and wait to see what happens?" My face fell.
"I guess so... and I can constantly throw in your face how you find me beautiful." Mbali stuffed food into her mouth and grinned.
"That's not a surprise, I told you that you looked good way before this even happened. Don't get cocky though. As soon as you piss me off it's over with."
She swallowed her food and rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
It got quiet between the both of us but it was a comfortable silence. We always had moments like that though, so it wasn't anything wrong.
"You know, that was one of the worst pains I've ever felt in my life?" She broke the silence that was between the both of us and looked at me. "It wasn't like a normal pain."
"What did it feel like?"
"It's like a tearing pain— like everything is ripping in that one spot, but it feels empty at the same time. And it didn't creep up on me, it was instant. Even when they sedated me... I was out cold but I could still feel the pain; like it didn't want me to feel anything else but that." She let out a chuckle but looked me dead in the eyes. "I don't want to feel that again, N'Jadaka. Not only for my sake but for yours, I don't want either of us to feel that. If we have to watch our backs twenty-four seven and do whatever else, that's just what we're gonna have to do." He voice shook.
"Nothing else is gonna happen." I leaned over the table to get closer to her but now she didn't want to make eye contact. Maybe she was embarrassed at the fact that she was actually scared for once. "Look at me." I tilted her head up. "Nothing's gonna happen. They can't kill a nigga like me." I joked, trying to get her to smile. "A few came close, but it's not happening. You got nothing to worry about."
"That's the thing." She cleared her throat. "I felt a sliver of it, so I don't want to go through it again. You on the other hand, haven't felt it yet. I don't want you to feel what I felt because it's dark and painful."
"Well, we just gonna promise to look out for each other then." I leaned back and sighed while Mbali extended her hand for me to shake. "You want me to shake on it..."
"Obviously. I have trust issues, so it's either you do it; or both of us end up in a bad situation." She crossed her arms. I sighed and shook her hand.
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Hours Later
Omniscient
"You looked uneasy earlier, but you handled it well. Talk to me, Nakia. What's wrong?" T'Challa spoke to Nakia in their room. He looked down at her while her head rested in his lap.
"I just hope they'll be okay with grasping everything." She sighed. "We were younger when it happened to us, so we've learned from it— even when we were apart. Mbali And N'Jadaka are unique cases." Nakia mumbled and tossed T'Challa's hand back and forth in her own. "Especially with leading a country and tribe? It's a lot at stake; even with all of this madness going on with trying to find who actually hurt N'Jadaka."
"I have my suspension on who it could be. I told N'Jadaka before that I've been watching everything closely. I feel like W'Kabi has people watching and waiting for something to happen. I have Shuri tightening up security around here tomorrow."
Nakia sighed and turned her face into T'Challa's stomach. "Please tell me you didn't tell Okoye. This is already a lot for her to deal with."
T'Challa shook his head, kissing Nakia's knuckles. "I don't plan on telling her until I feel like things are getting even worse. You women have sacrificed a lot for Wakanda; more than a lot of us have." He looked down at her before putting his hand on her stomach and rubbed it.
Nakia looked at the expression on his face. No matter how many times he may try to hide it, she knew that he was still hurt by what happened. "It's okay to talk about, Challa. At some point, we'll need to. I'm okay." She whispered to him and smiled. "She would've been a daddy's girl. I could tell. I would have dreams about her— dreams where she was a few months old, and the cutest ball of life I've ever held in my hands."
At one period of time during the madness of what was going on, Nakia was pregnant but miscarried. The pregnancy was strictly between herself and T'Challa because they didn't want to put more stress on the family and people of Wakanda due to already losing T'Chaka, and what was happening between T'Challa and N'Jadaka at the time.
"It's not easy to look back on everything that happened and question how different things could have been. If they would've brought N'Jadaka back, if I would have brought Klaue back, if Zuri was still here... if you were able to have the baby." He clenched his jaw.
"You would've been an amazing father. It just wasn't in our time, T'Challa. It's a loss that's hard, but one that's made me see things from a different point of view, and I thank Bast for it. Bisa would have been running the palace." Nakia chuckled.
"Bisa?"
"Bisa." She nodded. "Bisa Ramonda Udaku. Bisa means greatly loved, and that's what she would have been." Nakia smiled happily and put her hand over T'Challas that was on her stomach still. "She's with Bast. I just know she is." T'Challa leaned down and placed a kiss on Nakia's flat stomach, resting his head against it. "I swear, it's almost like when I'm dreaming, Bast let's me see her. Sitting up in a tree with her and protecting her, watching her while watching all of us. Almost like she's letting me know that Bisa is okay." She grinned, looking out the window.
"Can you imagine all of the shenanigans that Shuri would be teaching her?" Nakia laughed. "All of the technology... and Okoye and Ayo training her, your mother dressing her up like a little doll... N'Jadaka and Mbali seeing her— even the great and mighty M'Baku trying to entertain her?" Nakia chuckled. "Maybe Bast will have something planned for us in the future. Until then, we wait patiently." She brought her hand to his hair, massaging his scalp.
"And as for Mbali and N'Jadaka?" T'Challa looked up and chuckled.
"They are a interesting case, but those two have something special about them that makes them need each other. They'll see it; and when they do, there won't be a way to keep them away from each other. She's like water and he's fire. But both coexist somehow."
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CHAPTER UNEDITED
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You guys got Seasons to 102K reads 😭😭❤️
I hope the end of chapter 11 makes sense now because of the end of this lmao. Thoughts?
What do you all want to happen in the next chapter ?cause I have filler ideas, but I wanna see what's going on in y'all head first 👀😂
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