CHAPTER 27: THE DOUBLE DATE

 

Narrated by Mapaseka Mokoena

The call came that evening, and my heart did a little dance when I saw his name on my screen.

"Hello, nkosazana," his voice was warm and excited. "I want you to meet someone. My cousin, Mzo. He is like a brother to me."

I smiled. He wanted to introduce me to his family. That meant something. In our culture, meeting family was not just a casual thing—it was a sign of seriousness.

"I would love to meet him," I said.

"Good. Then let us make it a double date. Bring your friend, Relato. Mzo will bring his friend. We will have fun."

I laughed. "You are already planning everything."

"I told you, nkosazana. I do things properly."

The next evening, I stood in front of my wardrobe, completely lost.

Relato was coming over to get ready with me. She walked into my house with a bag of clothes and a determined look on her face.

"Yoh, Mapaseka! You are not ready yet?"

"I cannot decide what to wear."

She walked to my wardrobe and pulled out a beautiful red dress.

"This one. Wear this. Qondanisa will not be able to keep his eyes off you."

I laughed. "Relato, you are impossible."

"I am honest," she said, smiling. "Now get dressed. We are going to have fun tonight."

I put on the dress. It hugged my curves perfectly. Relato did my makeup, and I looked in the mirror. I looked beautiful.

"Look at you," she said. "Qondanisa is going to lose his mind."

"Relato!"

"What? It is the truth! Now come, let us go. I am finally going to meet this mysterious Zulu mechanic who has stolen my best friend's heart."

I laughed and grabbed my bag. "Just be yourself. And please do not embarrass me."

"Me? Embarrass you? Never."

We drove through the Johannesburg traffic, the city lights glittering around us. Relato was talking non-stop.

We arrived at the club in town. It was a lively place—music playing, people laughing, the smell of grilled meat filling the air. The parking lot was full of cars, and I could hear the sound of laughter spilling out onto the street.

Qondanisa was waiting for us at the entrance. He looked incredibly handsome in a dark t-shirt that hugged his broad shoulders. His arms were strong, his smile was warm, and his face lit up when he saw me.

"Nkosazana!"

He pulled me into a warm embrace and kissed my forehead.

"You look beautiful."

I blushed. "Thank you. This is Relato, my best friend."

He greeted her warmly, shaking her hand. "Welcome, Relato. I have heard so much about you."

"All good things, I hope?"

"All wonderful things," he said, his smile genuine.

Relato beamed. "I like him already."

He led us inside to a table where two men were already seated. One of them stood up immediately. He was tall, with a friendly face and a warm smile. He looked like he could be Qondanisa's brother—same eyes, same confident posture.

"Mapaseka, this is Mzo," Qondanisa said. "My cousin. My brother in every way that matters."

Mzo extended his hand. "It is an honour to finally meet you, Mapaseka. My cousin has not stopped talking about you. It is actually getting annoying."

I laughed. "He talks about me?"

"Non-stop," Mzo said, smiling. "Morning, noon, and night. Mapaseka this, Mapaseka that. Yoh, I cannot take it anymore."

Qondanisa nudged him. "Behave, Bafo."

Mzo laughed. "I am just being honest!"

The other man introduced himself as Sizwe, Mzo's friend. He was quiet but friendly, with a shy smile.

We all sat down. The table was covered in food—grilled meat, pap, salads and vegetables. The smell was incredible. My mouth started watering.

"Yoh," Relato said, looking at the food. "This is amazing."

Mzo smiled. "Eat as much as you want. We have plenty."

Relato nodded politely. "Thank you. I am sure I will."

We ate, drank, and laughed. Mzo and Sizwe were drinking beer, but Qondanisa ordered a cool drink instead.

"Aren't you drinking tonight?" I asked.

"No," he said simply. "I want to keep a clear head. And I want to remember every moment with you."

I felt my heart swell. "You are something else, Qondanisa."

"I know," he said, smiling.

Mzo heard him and started laughing. "Yoh, Bafo! You are so soft! I have never seen you like this!"

"Shut up, Mzo," Qondanisa said, but he was smiling.

"Awu! He is in love," Mzo teased. "The mighty Qondanisa has fallen."

"I have always been in love," Qondanisa said, looking at me. "I just did not know it until I met her."

Everyone at the table went quiet. Then Mzo and Sizwe started cheering.

"Yoh!" Mzo shouted. "That is smooth, Bafo! Very smooth!"

Relato looked at me, her eyes wide. "Did he just say that?"

I blushed. "Yes. He did."

Relato whispered. "You have found a good one, Mapaseka."

We continued eating, and I noticed Qondanisa picking up a piece of grilled meat with his fingers.

“Please taste this my love," he said softly, holding it to my lips.

I opened my mouth, and he fed me. The meat was delicious, but what made it even better was the way he was looking at me—like I was the only woman in the world.

"Mmm," I said. "That is good."

"Here, have some more," he said, feeding me again.

"Haibo, Bafo!" Mzo said, laughing. "You are feeding her now? Yoh! We are right here!"

Qondanisa ignored him and wiped a bit of sauce from the corner of my mouth with his thumb.

"You have something here," he said softly.

"Qondanisa, everyone is watching," I whispered.

"Let them watch," he said. "I do not care."

He leaned in and kissed me. It was a soft kiss, gentle and sweet.

"Eish!" Mzo shouted. "You two need a room! Yoh!"

Sizwe laughed. "I agree. This is too much."

Relato was laughing too. "Mapaseka, you are so embarrassing!"

I pulled away from Qondanisa, my cheeks burning. "Qondanisa! You are making me look bad!"

He just smiled. "I am just showing you that I love you, nkosazana. Is that a crime now?"

"Yoh, Bafo," Mzo said, shaking his head. "You are gone. Completely gone."

"I am not gone," Qondanisa said. "I am exactly where I want to be."

The conversation flowed easily. Sizwe started telling a funny story about Mzo's childhood.

"Let me tell you something about Mzo," Sizwe said, smiling. "When we were teenagers, he fell for this girl from the next street. She was beautiful, and he was crazy about her. So one day, he decided to buy her a gift—a gold necklace. But the problem was, he had no money."

Mzo groaned. "Sizwe, please. Not this story."

"Yes, this story!" Sizwe said, laughing. "So Mzo convinced his older sister to lend him money. He told her he needed it for school fees. She believed him because he was the favourite child."

"Eish, Bafo!" Qondanisa said, laughing. "You lied to your sister?"

"I was young! I was desperate!" Mzo protested.

"Anyway," Sizwe continued, "Mzo bought the necklace, wrapped it beautifully, and went to give it to this girl. But when he got to her house, she was sitting on the porch with another guy. They were holding hands and sharing a drink."

The table erupted in laughter.

"No!" Relato said, her eyes wide.

"Yes!" Sizwe said. "Mzo was so heartbroken that he went home, ate the entire bowl of pap his mother had made for supper, and cried himself to sleep."

Mzo shook his head. "I was young! I was in love!"

"And you ate the whole bowl of pap," Sizwe said, laughing.

"What was I supposed to do? The pap was good! I was not going to let it go to waste!"

Everyone burst out laughing.

"Yoh, Mzo!" Relato said, wiping tears from her eyes. "You are lucky you survived that heartbreak."

"I survived to tell the story," Mzo said, smiling. "And now I know: never buy a girl a gift before checking if she is single."

Qondanisa laughed. "And how did you pay your sister back?"

Mzo shook his head. "I did her chores for three months. Washing dishes, sweeping, cleaning the yard. She made sure I worked for every cent."

"Yoh!" Relato said, laughing. "So you suffered twice!"

"Three times," Mzo said. "The heartbreak, the chores, and the shame when my sister found out I lied to her."

Everyone laughed even harder.

Qondanisa reached for my hand under the table. His fingers intertwined with mine, and I felt a shiver run through me.

"You are enjoying yourself?" he asked softly.

"Very much," I said. "This is the most fun I have had in a long time."

"Good," he said. "I want to make you happy, Mapaseka. Always."

I squeezed his hand. "You already do."

He lifted my hand and kissed it gently.

Mzo saw this and shook his head. "Yoh, Bafo! You are too much! You were not like this before. You were always serious. Now look at you! You are like a different man."

Qondanisa shook his head. "That is because of her she changed me."

"Changed you?" Mzo asked. "How?"

"She made me believe in love," Qondanisa said simply.

Later, I looked at Qondanisa and started a sentence. "You know what I am thinking?"

He smiled and finished it for me. "We should do this again?"

I laughed. "Yes! How did you know?"

"Because I was thinking the same thing," he said.

"Eish, Bafo!" Mzo shouted. "You two are finishing each other's sentences now? Yoh! You are acting like an old married couple!"

"We are not married yet," Qondanisa said, looking at me. "But soon."

I felt my heart skip a beat. "Soon?"

"Soon," he said, squeezing my hand.

The atmosphere was warm and lively. Relato and Mzo were deep in conversation—friendly.

"Have you ever been to Durban?" Mzo asked.

"Actually, yes," Relato said, her face lighting up. "I went with my girlfriends a while ago. We planned a girls' trip, and it was amazing. We had so much fun."

Mzo smiled. "Where did you go?"

"We went to Umlazi," Relato said. "We visited Maxi's Place. Yoh, that place has vibes! The music, the people, the food—it was incredible."

Mzo laughed. "Ah, you know Maxi's Place! That is where the real action is. You did not just go to the tourist spots—you went to where the locals go. That is how you know you had a real Durban experience."

Relato nodded eagerly. "Exactly! We danced all night, ate the best kota, and just enjoyed ourselves. It was unforgettable."

Mzo smiled. "Well, you are lucky now. Your best friend will be marrying a guy from Durban—so you will have many reasons to visit again."

Relato laughed. "Yoh! You are right! I will be coming to Durban all the time!"

Mzo nodded. "And when you come, you must go to the beach. The warm water, the beautiful beaches—there is nothing like it."

Relato smiled. "I cannot wait."

The evening passed quickly, filled with laughter and joy.

At one point, Qondanisa leaned in and whispered in my ear: "Ngiyakuthanda, nkosazana. You are my everything."

I smiled and whispered back: "I love you too."

Then he kissed me again—a longer kiss, deeper, more passionate. I melted into him.

"Yoh, yoh, yoh!" Mzo shouted. "You two! We are trying to eat here!"

Sizwe was laughing. "They do not see anyone else, Bafo. It is just them."

Relato shook her head. "Mapaseka, you are hopeless. Completely hopeless."

I pulled away, laughing. "I cannot help it. He is too much."

"I am not too much," Qondanisa said. "I am just right."

But then something happened.

A man stumbled toward our table. He was clearly drunk—his eyes were glassy, his movements unsteady. He was holding a bottle in his hand, and he was swaying.

He stopped right next to me.

"Yoh!" he whispered, looking me up and down. "You are beautiful. Very beautiful. Where have you been hiding?"

I felt my body go stiff. The man reached out and grabbed my arm.

"Come, let me buy you a drink. I want to talk to you."

Before I could react, Qondanisa was on his feet.

"Take your hand off her."

His voice was low and dangerous. I had never heard him sound like that before. The drunk man laughed.

"Relax, my friend. I am just being friendly."

Qondanisa's eyes were blazing. "I said take your hand off her. Now."

The man's hand tightened on my arm. "Or what?"

That was when Qondanisa moved. He grabbed the man's arm, twisted it, and shoved him away. The man stumbled and fell, hitting the floor hard.

"Don't ever touch her again," Qondanisa said, his voice cold as steel.

The man scrambled to his feet, his face red with rage. "Who do you think you are?"

Qondanisa stepped forward, his fists clenched. "I am the man who will break your face if you come near my woman again."

Mzo was on his feet in an instant, grabbing Qondanisa's arm.

"Bafo, stop! The man is drunk. He is not worth it."

Qondanisa was breathing hard, his body tense with anger. He looked at the man, then at me. The man backed away, whispering curses, and disappeared into the crowd.

Qondanisa turned to me, his expression softening. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

"No," I said, still stunned. "I am fine."

"Good."

He sat down, shaking his head. "I am sorry, nkosazana. I should not have lost my temper."

I stared at him. My heart was racing. But I was not scared. I was... impressed.

He had defended me, stood by me, and kept me safe.

"Qondanisa," I said softly. "You did not have to apologise."

"I lost my temper," he said. "I should have handled it better."

"Qondanisa, I am fine. And I appreciate what you did."

He looked at me, searching my eyes. "You are not scared of me? After seeing that side of me?"

"Scared?" I said, shaking my head. "No. I feel safe. You protected me."

He smiled. "Nkosazana, you are too good to me."

"No," I said. "You are too good to me."

The rest of the evening passed quickly. We said our goodbyes to Mzo and Sizwe.

Mzo shook Qondanisa's hand. "Bafo, take care of her. She is a good woman."

"I know," Qondanisa said. "I will."

Mzo and Sizwe walked away, and Relato looked at me.

"Yoh, Mapaseka," she said. "That was a night I will never forget."

"I know," I said, laughing.

Qondanisa put his arm around me and kissed my forehead. "Come, nkosazana. Let me walk you to your car."

We walked to the parking lot, the cool night air wrapping around us. Relato was right behind us since she had come in my car.

Qondanisa pulled me into his arms. "I will see you at your place," he said softly.

"Yes," I said. "I will meet you there."

He kissed me—a slow, deep kiss that made my knees weak. When we pulled apart, he was smiling.

"Drive safely, nkosazana."

"I will."

He kissed me one more time, then walked away to his own car.

Relato was leaning against my car, watching us with a smile.

"Yoh!" she said when I walked over. "You two are something else! It is only a 30-minute drive, and you will be together again!"

"Relato, stop it!"

"I am serious! You are acting like he is going to war!"

I laughed and unlocked the car. We both got in, and I started driving.

The drive to Relato's apartment was short. We talked the whole way.

"Finally, my friend," Relato said. "You have found your man. You are glowing, Mapaseka. I am really happy for you."

"Thank you, Relato."

"You did well, you know. You gave this guy—who is not your type—a chance. And look at you now. You are happier than I have ever seen you."

I smiled. "I am happy, Relato. Really happy."

"But friend," Relato said, her voice teasing, "you did not tell me how sexy and cute your man is! Yoh! How did you miss that the first time you met him?"

I laughed. "Relato, stop it! This is my man you are complimenting!"

"I am just saying! Look at him—those arms, that smile, the way he looks at you! You are a lucky woman!"

"I know," I said, still laughing. "But the first time I met him, he was wearing dirty overalls. And I was frustrated that day. My car had broken down, I was late for a meeting, and I was not in the mood to notice anything."

"Eish, friend," Relato said, shaking her head. "You judged him by his overalls."

"I know," I admitted. "I was wrong. But I see him now. The real him."

Relato was quiet for a moment. Then she asked the question I had been dreading.

"When are you going to tell your family, Mapaseka? You know how they are. They will not be happy about you dating a Zulu guy."

I sighed. "I know. But I will have to go and tell them, friend. In person. You know how traditional they are."

Relato shook her head. "Yoh, I do not want to be in your shoes, friend. You have met the love of your life, and now you have to deal with family drama."

"I will handle it," I said. "I have to."

We arrived at Relato's apartment. She got out of the car and leaned through the window.

"Thank you for tonight, Relato. I really appreciate you coming."

"No, I am the one who should thank you," she said, smiling. "I had a great time. The food, the vibes, watching you and Qondanisa—it was perfect."

"Goodnight, friend."

"Goodnight, Mapaseka. Drive safely."

I watched her walk to her door and go inside. Then I drove away.