ONENCEBA: GRACIOUS ONE

Outside the hut, she could see him waiting for her at the corner of her mother's garden. But how was she going to escape? Her mother had just gotten back from work, so she knew she would need her to do chores and would watch her closely. It took her a few seconds to decide that she wasn't going out to meet him. Again.

The first few times he wanted to meet her, she was hesitant. For she didn't know what she would say to him. All this had been new to her. Courtship and dating stuff. She had just decided the last night that she was now ready to hear what he had to say to her. Going back inside in defeat, she guessed she would try again if he came again.

His name was Lwandile. One of the most respected boys in the village of Cwecwe. He cleaned up well, and he looked the part. Tall, dark, and... intelligent. According to the way of life in Cwecwe, Lwandile was due to leave for the mines in a few months because he was just about to finish his matric.

Onenceba had seen Lwandile a few times growing up and heard about him way much more. Her father admired Lwandile, and Onenceba guessed that he was the son he would never have. Because of this, she grew fond of the idea of Lwandile because he was the perfect guy which meant perfect husband.

Lwandile was so brilliant that most of the community members were conspiring that he was maybe one of the chosen few who would go to university after high school. But nobody knew for sure because he kept his life secret, and so did his grandmother. The only family he had.

So when Lwandile approached Onenceba on her way back from the river a few days back, she was overwhelmed. She couldn't believe it because they had never spoken together before. He was herding his grandmother's flock when he called her,

"One!! Onenceba!"

She turned to look at him. Her mind told her to say hi or say his name, but her tongue muscles refused. The metal bucket on her head was heavy so she decided to keep on walking and ignore him since she didn't know what to say. It also happened to be blazing hot on the green grazing land near the community river. Summer had fully dominated.

Lwandile was shocked. He had been told Onenceba was a nice girl, raised well by one of the most respected families in the community. He did not at all expect her reaction. So instead of running after her, he also decided to go back to tending to his grandma's flock.

It took a while for One to process what happened that day. She struggled to find sleep, running back and forth to the urine bucket inside her hut. Her cousin, Live, was concerned and asked if she was okay. She lied and said yes, but her mind was buzzing. Between blaming herself for not responding and thinking of possible things he wanted to say, her mind found it hard to shut down and let her rest.

A big question she had was why Lwandile took his flock to that veld, she had never seen him there because he usually herded the flock in another veld, far away from that veld. She didn't know what to expect the next time she went to fetch water from the river.

When she returned to the river a few days later, she saw him again. Again, she didn't talk for she was in awe of him. And the fact that he was speaking to her. Lwandile on the other hand, introduced himself and asked to converse with her sometime in the following days depending on her availability. She reluctantly replied, "Okay."

She didn't tell him where and when. And she thought she wouldn't see him again until her next turn to fetch the water until he showed up the next day. At the corner of the garden where only she could see him for she was looking for him. Today was the third time that she wasn't able to go and meet him, and she was starting to lose hope. She knew he wouldn't wait forever.

Similar to the majority of the girls in Cwecwe, Onenceba didn't go to school. His father thought school to be an institution not meant for women. He was a bold and stubborn man who wanted his family to depend on him. And they did until he lost his job a few months ago. Nobody could believe that he was fired from the White Farm after so many years.

He was known to be one of the most loyal employees by his colleagues and the farm owner. But then a new owner came and things changed. He made one mistake and he was dismissed without a chance to defend or even explain his actions. Things changed that day. He went from not speaking for hours to snapping, and he wanted to be alone all the time. He no longer wanted to read poetry to Onenceba and her cousins anymore. Then one day he left to look for a job in the mines, and he hadn't returned since.

That was why One's mother was now working. She had also grown quiet over the months. She didn't have any answers to the questions they asked her, and she never wanted to talk about any of it. It was as though when she realized he wasn't coming back, she shut down.

Thinking about Lwandile had taken One's mind off her family affairs. For she didn't spend as much time thinking about his father and the possibility of his death, but about Lwandile and the possibility of their relationship.

"Onenceba, say grace so we can eat."

They were now seated on traditional mats on the floor with their metal yellow plates on their hands. The candle was almost out, so they all knew that meant they should eat fast and get to bed before the day candle ended. They dug in after grace. Pap and Spinach were their meal for the evening, and it was Onenceba's favorite. It reminded him of Mr. Fixi. Everything did.

She noticed her mother was holding on to her spoon a little too hard which meant she was angry. She knew better than to ask her the reason behind her anger, so she ate her food in uncomfortable silence with her two older female cousins. After they were done eating, they chased the cats out of the Main hut where One's mother slept and went to their hut. Before One closed the door of the Main hut, her mother called her back in.

"What's happening between you and Lwandile?" Asking this, she was busy preparing her blankets for sleep, intentionally avoiding eye contact with One whose heart almost jumped out in shock. She cleared her throat before saying, "Nothing" to her mother.

"Little girl you better think twice about your answer because there will be consequences for your lies." She was almost done making her bed, so One knew she had a few seconds to come up with a comprehensible answer. But she couldn't think; her mother made her anxious which blocked her thinking.

"5 months Onenceba! Your father has been gone for five months and you are already running around with the guys of this community. You don't respect me, do you?" Onenceba fiddled with her hands, tears threatening to leave her eyes. She wasn't used to being shouted at, especially by her mother because she did almost everything the way she wanted it done.

"Well, I will tell you this, cut ties with him. He is going away and you will be left here to deal with the heartbreak and the pain and the que..." She started losing her breath. One went closer to her and held her hand out of concern.

"I'm fine. Just, stay away from guys Onenceba. Goodnight." Onenceba was hesitant to leave her in her state, she blamed herself for her sudden shortness of breath, but this had something to do with the leaving of her father, and this broke her heart.