Entwined (17 page)

Lebz is waiting for me by the gate, and Thuli is standing a short distance away with his friends. When I walk past, he reaches for my hand and winks. Rakwena is so wrong.
I’m
the mind-reader. I sense Thuli’s interest in me, his desire to know me better. Right now, as our fingers touch briefly, I can feel his interest grow. I look into his eyes and smile. He’s radiating a field so strong there’s no way I could miss it.

Lebz grabs my arm and pulls me away. “God!” she whispers when we’re out of earshot. “Have you noticed the way he looks at you? It’s like he wants to eat you up and lick his fingers!”

Yep, I’ve noticed. Rakwena might be the most intriguing kid in school, but the person Thuli is after is
me
.

“Er, a party?” Dad looks up from the papers he was reading. It takes him a moment to switch gears from infectious disease treatment policies to the social calendar of his teenage daughter. “What kind of party?”

“Someone from school is having a party at his house, and most of the kids will be there. Lebz and Wiki are going,” I add, to reassure him.

“OK.” He frowns. “But why are
you
going?”

“For fun, Dad.”

He’s confused. He can’t understand why I’ve suddenly become interested in what other kids define as fun. “But you don’t like parties.”

“True,” I say with a sigh, “but I think it’s time for me to loosen up a little. I’m young and I should be more sociable, get to know more people.”

“Yes, but…” He pushes his glasses up on his nose. “Where is this party?”

“Phakalane. Lebz and Wiki and I will go with Lebz’s brother, and then he’ll pick us up afterwards. I’ll stay over at Lebz’s house and come home in the morning.”

“Hmm.” He drums his fingers against the table. “I see. Well, Elijah wouldn’t go unless it was perfectly respectable.”

For a split-second I can’t remember who Elijah is. It’s been so long since I called Wiki by his real name. “Of course not.”

He nods. “All right, love. You can go.”

Yes! I fling my arms around his neck, almost knocking off his glasses. “Thank you, Dad!”

“You’re welcome.” He pushes me away and gives me a suspicious look. “Is there going to be a boy at this party?”

I giggle. “Of course there will be boys.”

“What I mean is, will there be a particular boy there? A boy who, maybe, you would like to spend some time with?”

I can’t hold back a smile. “Maybe.”

He nods and smiles, but his smile wavers. “Do you want to tell me about it?”

“Not yet. Soon, I promise.”

Poor Dad. Right now he’s wishing I could go back to being seven years old.

Lebz licks salt off her fingers. “Stop worrying. I’m sure your grandfather is finding out everything he can and that’s why it’s taking so long.”

“You’re probably right.” A fatcake rests in my lap, still wrapped in its plastic. I’m worried about Ma-fourteen and nervous about the party. The last party I attended was Lebz’s twelfth birthday. The most intoxicating substance there was the helium in the balloons.

“What are you going to wear?” She looks at me with maternal concern. “You’ll have to borrow something of mine.” Her eyes light up. “Or we can go shopping! Ask your dad for some money.”

I regard her with raised eyebrows.

She scowls. “Maybe not. Well, we have the whole afternoon to figure it out.”

“We don’t. I have a study session with Rakwena.”

“Cancel,” says Lebz.

Wiki puts his book down. “She needs to practise, otherwise Rose is in trouble.”

Lebz heaves a theatrical sigh. “I forgot about Rose. But you can’t spend all day with Lizard, Connie. The party starts at seven-thirty and we need time to get ready!”

“I’ll leave his place early. He won’t mind.”

Lebz and Wiki exchange dubious glances. “Are we talking about the same Lizard?” asks Lebz.

“What have I done this time?”

All three of us look up to see Rakwena walking towards us, holding a plastic bag filled with food.

“Nothing,” I reply hastily, at the same time that Lebz says, “We were talking about the party.” I glare at her but she ignores me. “Connie will have to leave your study session early so she can come to my house to get ready. We’ll be leaving together.”

The friendly smile slides off Rakwena’s face. I nudge Lebz in the ribs so hard she grunts with pain, but she keeps jabbering nonetheless. She enjoys pissing Rakwena off, but she’s not the one who has to deal with the consequences. There’s an uncomfortable silence. Wiki buries his head in his book to escape it.

Lebz turns to me with a thoughtful expression. “I’m still trying to decide what she should wear. Something sexy for a change,
né
? A little top, some tight jeans, a little make-up… What do you think we should do with her hair? Maybe I should iron it again – Thuli seems to like that look.”

“Shut up,” I grumble, but the damage is done.

Rakwena’s eyes are ablaze. “You’re going?”

Here we go again. “Rakwena, please. We can talk about this later.”

“Later?” he bellows. “You mean after he gets his freak fix and throws you aside?”

“Hey!” I look around us; his raised voice has attracted curious stares.

His hands are balled into fists and I can see sparks starting to form on his skin. I leap to my feet and grab his arm. His skin is crackling. I lead him away from the bench and towards a quiet spot a good distance from everyone else.

“You need to calm down,” I tell him, keeping my voice steady.

“What exactly do you think is going to happen at this party?” he barks, as if I haven’t said a word. “You think it’s going to be all sweet and romantic? Let me tell you what Thuli has in mind.” He spits out the name with such venom that I wince. “He’s decided that there’s something different about you. He wants to know what it is. He’ll say all the right things and before you know it you’ll be halfway out of your clothes. How far he’ll go depends on what he’s after. Either way, once he unravels the mystery you won’t be interesting any more.”

I’m so upset I’m shaking all over. I’m not just angry, I’m hurt that Rakwena would think me stupid enough to jump into bed with Thuli, as if I’ve ever been
that
girl. I want to hit him with a blunt object, but the sparks are becoming more visible every second and one of us has to think clearly. “Your sparks are showing.” My voice is barely audible. “You have to calm down before people see.”

His eyes flicker – he seems to register my words. Slowly he unclenches his fists. The sparks fade.

I’m still shaking, but I’m not going to fall apart in front of him, not after all the things he’s just said. “I’ll meet you in the parking lot after school.”

“Don’t bother,” he sneers.

“You know I need to practise.”

“No, what you need to do is get ready for the party.” His voice is filled with pent-up anger. “I hope you have a good time.” He turns around and disappears behind the Science lab.

Damn it! I want to throw something, break something, do whatever it takes to get this feeling out of my system. It’s not fair that Rakwena gets to go off into a corner and smash rocks together with his mind while all I can do is stand still, breathing deeply. Lebz and Wiki come rushing over, wondering why I’m still there.

“Are youOK?” Lebz takes my hand.

“That looked really intense,” says Wiki. “What did he say?”

“Forget it – let’s go.” I start back towards the bench. I’m determined to enjoy myself tonight. I’ll just have to put Rakwena and his bitter words out of my mind.

“Stop fidgeting,” Lebz says for the fifth time. “You look great.”

The mirror seems to agree with her, but a little voice in my head is convinced I’m going to make a fool of myself. Lebz’s jeans are too short for me so I’ve borrowed a pair of Rita’s. They’re so tight on her I’m surprised they don’t cut off her circulation, but they fit me almost perfectly. Lebz calls them Rita’s “sexy” jeans, which is a little unnerving. She dragged me into town after school and bought me a sleeveless dark red top off the sales rack. I’m also wearing ballet flats, the only part of my ensemble, other than my underwear, that belongs to me. My hair has been ironed again, and then curled so it falls in waves. All of this took
ages
. Thank God I don’t go to parties every weekend.

I follow Lebz to her brother’s car.

“Is that you, Connie?” says Mogapi with a burst of shocked laughter.

“I’m a genius,” Lebz purrs, slipping into the passenger seat. She looks fantastic as usual, in a pretty green dress and smoky eyeshadow. All I would let her put on my face was mascara. I keep blinking; it feels like there’s dust in my eyes.

“Is it weird?” I ask, touching my hair nervously.

“You look nice,” Mogapi assures me as the car pulls out of the driveway.

Wiki is waiting in front of his house when we arrive, wearing dark cargo pants and a crisp green and white checked shirt.

“Wiki!” snaps Lebz through the open window. “What did I tell you about tucking in your shirt? You’re going to a party, not an interview!”

He pulls out the shirt, frowns at its rumpled edges and climbs into the backseat beside me. My heart is hammering inside my chest as we drive through the city. Dad always complains about how poorly the streets are lit, so he drives at about 40 kmph. Mogapi drives as if his fiancée is in labour.

I glance at Wiki, wondering why he’s so quiet. “Wiki! You brought a
book?
”

He jumps at the sound of my voice. “Just a little one,” he says in a sheepish tone, closing his paperback novel. “In case things get quiet.”

I catch a glimpse of the cover before he shoves it into one of his many pockets. It’s worse than I thought – it’s one of our English Lit books. Lebz and I exchange glances. Only Wiki would be antisocial enough to bring a book to a party.

Mogapi moves into the lane turning into Phakalane. I take deep breaths. It’s just a party. It’ll be fine. The car goes round the circle, straight down the road.

“Do you remember the house?” asks Lebz. “Left turn, second right turn, third house on the left.”

“I remember.” Mogapi turns the car into Thuli’s street, then slows down. There are cars lined up in front of the house already. “I’m just going to drop you kids here – there’s nowhere to park.”

I scramble out of the car after Wiki. That was the shortest ride of my life.

“Don’t even think of coming back until twelve,” calls Lebz.

Mogapi rolls his eyes and drives off. The house is immense. The pulsing beat of an annoying house track mingles with the sound of laughter. Thuli’s dad is a media magnate – well, the closest thing we have to a media magnate. His mother is a former Miss Botswana who married well. I’m not a stranger to wealth – most of the kids at Syringa come from money – but on this scale it makes me nervous. I’m reminded of exactly how little Thuli and I have in common.

Lebz is at my shoulder, placing a steadying hand on my back. “You’ll be fine.”

Wiki sighs, bracing himself for the most boring night of his life, and takes the first step towards the house. The front yard has strobe lights at each end, like a dance floor. The door is open and people are hanging around outside.

“I’m going to find Kelly,” says Lebz.

“No, you can’t leave me!”

“Wiki will take care of you,” she promises, and saunters off.

I link my arm through Wiki’s in case he has thoughts of abandoning me, and the two of us step through the front door. There’s a red carpet in the foyer. Seriously. I stare in horror at my shoes, afraid I might leave dirt tracks on the pristine surface, but no one else seems to care. Other kids greet Wiki and regard me with interest, unable to recognise me in my pretty-girl disguise. A long table has been set up in the main room with an assortment of drinks and snacks. I pick up a glass of what looks like lemonade and a plate of snacks and follow Wiki to the chairs against the wall.

“Connie.” Thuli appears at my side. He looks so good I stop breathing for a second. He’s wearing a designer shirt – I can tell it’s a designer shirt because it fits too well to be anything else – and dark wash jeans. His hair is pulled back. He smells of something expensive; no cigarettes today.

“Hi.”

He takes my hand and pulls me to my feet. “I’m so glad you came.”

“I wouldn’t miss it,” I reply weakly. “Are your parents here?”

He laughs and doesn’t answer. I’ll take that as a no. “You smell delicious.”

Eek! I turn to look at him, afraid he might sprout fangs, but vampires are a little avant garde for this part of the world. He grins, his teeth straight and human and harmless. Wiki opens his mouth to speak, then changes his mind and pulls out his book as Thuli leads me away to two chairs in a corner. He glances towards the door, then at me.

“I didn’t think you were much of a party person,” I tell him.

“I’m not. Let’s talk about you.” He leans closer to me. “You look like a smart girl. Someone who can read people really well.”

“I don’t know about that.” I take another sip of my drink.

“Really?” He touches my bare shoulder. “Are you telling me you have no idea what I’m thinking right now?”

I have a very good idea of what he’s thinking, and it makes me so nervous I spill some of the drink down the front of my shirt.

“Sorry,” he whispers, but he doesn’t look sorry. He’s enjoying the effect he’s having on me. He breaks the spell by glancing at the door again.

“Everything OK?” I ask, picking the serviette off the side of the plate and dabbing at the stain on my new top.

“Of course. I’m the host, so I have to keep an eye on things.” He takes the serviette from me and starts rubbing the stain.

I lean away in panic. “It’sOK; I’ve got it.” I’m forced to put down my cup in case I spill the rest of the drink.

“If you say so. Do you want to dance?”

“God, no.” I can’t dance to save my life – or so Lebz is always telling me.

He’s relieved – he’s not much of a dancer, either. Another glance at the door, then he leans in and strokes my hair. “You really look stunning tonight.”

“Thank you.” I’m dying to kiss him. Everything I can see in his head – which is incredibly well-organised, like an office – tells me he’s dying to kiss me, too.