February
Tuesday
"Hey Muvenda, vhonaka vhone (you are beautiful),"
The Tsonga security guard yelled as he tries to break my beautiful home language. And the irony of that... is that I am also not fluent at Tshivenda.
I grew up in Durban, and Tshivenda was the language I rarely speak as I only speak it at home, and I was rarely at home. I am the third born to my parents, the oldest is my brother, Tshilidzi. He is 30 years old and pursuing his studies in Britain, we have kind like gave up if he's ever going to finish. The second born is my sister, Tshifhiwa. She stays around here in Joburg as well, she's 27 and living her own luxury life. I have two little brothers as well, twins, they are 14 years old.
"Tshedza!"
I heard a voice calling me as I walk in the elevator. The security guard was still breaking my language, and I was just nicely ignoring him. I held up the elevator as I realised that could be Sihle, he's the only guy who knows me by my name in this building.
"Hey," I said to him as he joins me in the elevator.
"Hey. I thought you were going to leave me," he gasped under his panting.
Sihle is a good-looking guy, more like cute and small. He is a little bit shorter than my types (obviously the ones that do not approach me), maybe 1 inch taller than me. He is light skin, a yellow bone if I could say, yellow bones were never my type.
"Come 'on am I that bad? I wouldn't," I defended myself while he reached for the floor buttons, pressing 6 which is the top floor to mine.
"No, you not bad, I was just joking," he said, trying to comfort me. "But at the campus, I really thought you were not going to talk to me,"
"Why would you think I wouldn't talk to you?" I asked him. I know I shut the world out sometimes, but I didn't think this much.
"The thing is,.. I've always wanted to talk to you since I moved here, but you just always seemed not happy to talk to anyone. Today I just took a chance," he said, chuckling.
"Ouch, that hurt. So, I really look like an angry person?" I asked him, how the hell am I supposed to get a boyfriend if I'm not approachable?
"Ha-ha no, you just seem serious sometimes, it was hard to talk to you," he said. "Or maybe is me, I'm just scared of girls so, it's a 50 50 over here," he added while I stepped out of the elevator, gesturing with his hands which I can swear they are softer than mine.
"Bye Sihle, I will try to smile to the world from now on," I said as the elevator door started closing.
"I will call you later," he yelled, and I nodded before the door shuts on his one eye.
I walked in my room, after locking the door; I threw myself in bed, thinking about the mystery guy. The room I have is just a room; it has a bed, a desk, a closet and a unit for food. At least I am not sharing it like many others in this building. My mom managed to get me a 'not sharing' room, she understood I needed a little bit of space. I shared a dorm in the past 5 years, and I just couldn't take it anymore.
After some few minutes, probably an hour of lying down, I woke up and gathered my cooking kit and headed to the kitchen, which is at the end of the passage. Every floor has its 1 big kitchen and bathrooms. This time of the day is good for cooking, unlike after 5 when everyone is back, the kitchen would be streaming with so many girls, gossips and different scent.
I sometimes climb the stairs to 6th floor to cook when is after hours because there's barely people cooking up there. Boys are not a big fan of cooking I guess. Boys and girls are arranged by a floor in this building. The first floor is for girls, second is for boys, then girls, then boys, just like that up to the top floor. The ground level is mostly the staff rooms, laundry rooms and a TV room.
I started doing my cooking's, which unlike other girls, I am not a very big fan of.
I'm always not hungry after cooking so after I was done, I went back to bed and started bonding with my mobile.
I've heard about Toyandou, where in Venda are you from? That was a text I received from a stranger's phone number. I opened my WhatsApp, and on the profile picture, it was Sihle. I saved his phone number and started responding to his text.
I am actually from Durban. I replied. He instantly replied with a surprised emotion.
I guess it was official, I have a guy friend. I ticked the 'get a guy friend' on my resolution list. I still have a long way to go though, get a boyfriend, break my virginity, get distinction in every test; really it was long and stupid.
I chatted with Sihle, and he was friendly and funny. I was glad I gave him my numbers. I watched a movie while we continued to talk. I was about to fall asleep when I realised I haven't started with the exercise I got today; I said my good night to Sihle and slowly walked to my desk. At least write an introduction Tshedza, I whispered to myself as I open my backpack to start this hell I have signed for.
Wednesday
It was lunchtime the following day; I was sitting at a random bench with Zinzi, just sitting her until her lecture start as I was done for the day. One thing I love about Tuesdays and Wednesdays, is that I don't have class after lunchtime.
"I got a guy friend," I said to Zinzi who was showing me the things she must research for her project, some crazy dead bones.
"What, when did that happened? Is he that guy you met yesterday?" she asked, already shoving her project paper on her backpack.
"No is not that one, I haven't seen that one again, is someone, he stays where I stay,"
"I do wish I were you, I hate my res, is girls only, and I have to share, I wish my mom has gotten me an outside Res too," she complained.
"You'll get it next year," I said. Zinzi stays at girls' residence. Her bursary only pays University accommodation and if you are a first-year student, sharing and not mixed with guys are the kinds of place you get.
"So, who's the guy?" she asked, so urge to know.
"His name is Sihle. He's nice, but I don't want him as a boyfriend, just a friend," I said, already clearing the boyfriend part out.
"I want a guy friend too, someone I can visit and sleepover at his place," she said, and we just laughed. "We really are crazy, instead of talking about books we are talking about boys. If Ma'am Joyce could hear us now." She continued.
"Oh, she would go crazy," I added. Ma'am Joyce was our dorm assistance at Girl's high; she didn't want us to talk to boys. If we go out as a group for movies with her watching over us, she would make sure we don't wander off.
We talked, and as I was about to leave, I saw Sihle coming toward us, with some 3 guys.
"Act normal, Sihle coming toward us," I whispered to Zinzi who was already fidgeting.
Among the guys he was with, there was one guy who was looking at me, like he was excited to see me. They arrived and Sihle just started by smiling at me.
"Hey Tshedza," He said, still our eyes locked.
"Hey. You here?" I said as we were chatting on WhatsApp earlier, I didn't think he was still in Campus.
"Yeah, I was just about to leave then I saw you and thought I should come maybe we'll leave together," he said, his friends just starring at Zindi and I.
"Zinzi, this is Sihle; Sihle, this is Zinzi, my best friend," I introduced them and Zinzi was already up hugging him.
"Hi, nice to meet you," that was Zinzi, and Sihle said the same to her.
"These are my buddies..." he stated them by their names, but I wasn't too focused on remembering their names. They sat down, and we started exchanging conversations. One of them was already flirting with Zinzi, and I could see she was happy.
No one was seriously flirting with me. The one who was looking at me when they arrived suddenly looked disappointed. He was still trying to catch my attention, but he would always look away every time Sihle looked at him. I realised I was already taken, to them, I am Sihle's, and for them, they must battle for Zinzi. I was fine on being Sihle's even if it was for fake, at least to me. I wasn't interested in any of his friends, so I played along like I chose Sihle. We chatted, getting to know them and it was exciting.
"Do you guys want to come to our party?" one of Sihle's friends asked when it was the moment of quietness. Zinzi and I looked at each other, just by that we knew the answer for that.
"Yeah" that was me, answering at the same time with Zinzi, saying yes as well. The guys were happy and so was Sihle, he looked at me and smiled, and I could see he never wanted friendship from me, the guy wants me. I smiled at him too, shyly.
It was time for Zinzi to go to the class, the other two of Sihle's friends were also going to class too, and the other one was taking the bus to go to his res.
We said our goodbyes to Zinzi and those other guys. And then Sihle and I started walking to our place.
"Your friend is cool," he said as he started to break the little awkward moment of being just the two of us.
"Yeah, she's cool, we've been friends since 8th grade," I responded.
"Wow, you really are friends. I just started knowing those guys like here, except Jabu, we from the same hood. My buddies went to UP some are at UJ, so I needed new buddies. But I like these guys too, they are awesome," he said, sounding like he has missed his high school friends. I can relate to that, Zinzi and I were like the three musketeers with Katy at high school, she moved to America with her family, we miss her too.
UP is the University of Pretoria which is like 40 miles from here and UJ is the University of Johannesburg, probably a mile from here. I've heard UJ is our number one enemy, some of their students even reside here in Braamfontein.
"You might be missing your friends," I said and he nodded. "I can relate. We had a friend to, she goes to Princeton in the US and we miss her too," I finished.
"Wow, your friend must be very rich, to go to America to study undergrads," he said.
"No, she's white, her family moved there so..."
"Oh okay, I thought maybe she was black,"
"So which movie do you want to copy?" I asked him, just to change the subject.
"You told me you have Fast 6. I want that one and I will see the others you have," he responded.
"I've got it and I would want some movies from you too."
"I will bring my laptop," he said, smiling. We talked while we walked to our building and in no time, we were there.
I went to my room and he went to his, but after an hour he came to my room to copy the movies. We chilled previewing movies on each other's laptop, and it was nice until I wished he was the mystery guy.
I liked that he didn't try anything with me, like trying to kiss me or something, he didn't do that even though I could see he does not want me as just a friend.
After he was done and left, I continued with my exercise and I did some progress on finishing the two sentences I have started on last night. Don't laugh, I will one day finish this project, I just have to do it faster before the due date.
I'm such a lazy bug, I thought to myself as I crawl under the sheets just after two hours of sitting on my desk thinking about the mystery guy and 30 minutes of actually doing the schoolwork.