Monday morning is accompanied by a cool breeze. I'm sitting in my mother's car looking at all the uniform houses in the estate. They all look the same but each house has something unique which sets it apart from the next.
I don't know how this habit started, looking into other people's windows with envy for what they have. Over the years I've gradually lost appreciation for the 'now' and everything that is around me. I'm always dreading the future and somehow I'm still stuck in the past.
"Penny for your thoughts." My mother slams the door and the car slightly moves. The motion and inertia pulls me out of somewhere and I'm suddenly more aware of where I am.
"I miss him." I carefully let the words leave me. They aren't heavy and neither are they light.
"Who? Your real dad or your fake dad?" She starts the car and it roars.
"When I was younger, I used to think that kids were kids and adults were adults. I thought things would stay the same. I never wanted to grow up but I did, rather harshly."
"Your dad wants you to set a date for your date."
Of course, evasive humour. My mother hates confrontations. When I talk about my fake dad, she throws my real dad at me and when I want to know more about my real dad it's vice versa.
"He was nice," I continue, "before everything. I don't think I'm ready for a relationship with my real dad."
"How about this weekend?" Her eyes are on the road.
"I'm getting my paint this weekend." I look outside of the window and envy overtakes me.
"Next weekend then. You can't tell me you already have plans for then."
"How's the job hunting going?" I change the subject because we're quite clearly on different wavelengths here.
"Done and dusted. Uber during the day and cooking at a fancy restaurant at night."
She sounds genuinely excited so I don't want to burts her bubble with my concerns. My mother has trouble with sleeping so she works day and night to avoid being a pill popping junkie. Her words not mine. She sleeps peacefully when she's tired.
***
At school, after receiving my schedule, a lecture on the code of conduct and many more other rules, Sindiswa and I are standing on the lawn marveling at each other. Hands on each other as if neither of us has seen a person before.
"You're really here!" The excitement is glistening in her eyes.
"I'm really here!" I squal.
"Oh my goodness, let me introduce you to the rest of the gang."
She literally drags me away and the word "gang?" get's left behind where we previously stood.
A gang? That doesn't really sit well for me. I was hoping it would just be the two of us but who am I kidding? Not everyone is a loner like me.
She leads me to a tiny group made up of a girl and two boys.
Great! She has a boyfriend on top of the gang.
"Hey guys. This who I was telling you about," she says.
"Good things I hope." I cringe as I automatically say the words.
"No. Terrible things only," One of the two boys say. He uses his eyes to accentuate the his words.
"Be nice." Sindiswa admonishes him.
"Sorry." His lips turn into a straight line before curling out to emit a word. "Mom."
"Luke I will beat you up." Sindiswa threatens him and the gang laughs.
"Okay. Settle down. Introductions." Sindiswa begins. "This is Siyabonga boyfriend to Ficelle which makes him out friend by default. Should she chose to get rid of him, the next one will be our friend."
Sindiswa points at them respectively and they both blush.
I reach out for a handshake, starting with Ficelle then with Siyabonga. His firm grip catches me off guard.
"Heaven forbid," he chuckles. "I play rugby."
Explains the muscles, my thoughts are already settling on an idea for a painting.
"And this..." Sindiswa continues. "Golden boy, top of the class, I don't want to be in the RCL, pretty boy, heartthrob, playboy, heartbreaker is..."
"Don't do it." Luke warns her. There's a cold stare in his eyes as if he knows that the whatever Sindiswa is going to say will make him mad.
"Luke." Sindiswa says. "I don't even know why you're bitching. Atleast I'm probably the only one who says your surname right. You can't even say my name."
"Cindy," he says.
"That's as white as you are when you're standing next to Siya." She complains.
"See-ndee-swah." His failed attempt make me laugh.
"And you wonder why I prefer your brother over you." Sindiswa rolls her eyes.
"What?" I chuckle ironically. "Is your surname Skywalker or something?"
"He wishes. My mother named us after movie characters and I'm glad I'm not the princess." Ficelle says.
"You're twins?" I'm shocked because they look nothing like each other.
"Fraternal." Luke informs me. "Tells us about yourself."
Luke's eyes inspect me all over but I don't feel overwhelmed by his inquisitive stare.
"Michaela." I don't know what else to say.
"What's your story, Michaela?"
"Nothing much. I just want to know your average score."
"What for?" He raises an eyebrow.
"So that I know what I'm working with " I shrug.
"What's yours?" He returns the question.
"That's for me to know and make sure no one finds out."
"Well then I guess the feeling is mutual."
"Trust me I will find out, one way or the other." My threat is real.
"Is that a threat?"
"Take it how you will."
The gang is silent during our exchange but Sindiswa throws in some humour.
"Oooh looks like we're about to have a standoff."
The gang laughs but me and Luke don't. The bell dismisses us and we all disperse to our assigned classes for the morning.
My mind is unsettled. How lucky can I be to stumble upon the main objective of my grand scheme. I can't relax right now just because the first step was easy. Things definitely won't be this easy in the long run.
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High school: A cheesy love story
रोमांसMichaela will go through anyone and to the world's end to find out who's the top student in her class at her new school so that she can beat them. Luke just wants his life to be normal for once. When he meets Michaela, he finds her to be amusingly...
