Teenager's Tale

…AND LOSING OLD ONES

  I went to the school library immediately after study to meet Masego. I was really hoping she was not ending things with my boy. He had invested so much in the relationship and a break-up would kill him. Unfortunately though, when I got there, I saw her and Cecil kissing, just behind one of the book shelves at the entrance. So I was right about her. She saw me and stopped kissing him. They came to me and after introducing me, he gave her a hug, whispered something in to her ear and left.

  She signaled me to sit down in one of the tables and looked at me for a while before speaking. I just couldn’t get how a beautiful girl like her, smart as she was, would want to turn in to the monster she wanted to become by hurting my friend. But anyway, I had to listen to her before I started with the judging.

  ‘Brandon, I know you are probably shocked by what I just did but that…that is the real me. Bagomotsi and I have been drifting apart for some time now and I knew I couldn’t do it anymore. For some time, I’ve been seeing Cecil and he kept pushing that we go public but I told him to wait. He was sweet and…and every time Bagomotsi and I were together, guilt ate me up because I had fallen in love with Cecil. I don’t love your friend anymore Brandon and I just don’t know how to tell him’

  ‘But why the drifting apart, as you put it? Does he not love these days? Is he doing something wrong? Because if he is, he could always try to correct himself’

  ‘No Brandon, it is not him but me. Like I said, I don’t love him anymore. He was perfect Brandon and I think he deserves better than me. He is sweet, kind…loving but I just can’t love him anymore. I though giving us time would reignite the passion but no, it just wasn’t working anymore’

  I could not believe her and I just looked at her, stunned and pitiful at the same time.

  ‘But you can love Cecil?’

  ‘Yes, I can and I will love Cecil. Now, like I said, I can’t get myself to tell him so I was hoping you would do it for me’

  ‘So you want me to tell him…for you?’

  ‘Yes Brandon. I’ve made up my mind and I could never be surer. If he does not believe you, Cecil and I are having a date tomorrow in town at Cradle Forte. You can bring him through and he’ll see for himself.

  I looked at her guilt-ridden face as she looked down at the table, her glossed lips trembling a bit and all I could do was put the hangman’s rope on my neck.

  ‘I’ll tell him then and thanks for being honest’ and I left immediately, feeling all the pity for my boy.

  I went straight to the swimming pool area where he was already swimming as usual. During swimming practice, I was going to tell him but he was so bright and a little happy so I decided to wait. I started wondering how he would react once he heard the truth. Of all the people, I had never expected Masego to cheat; so sweet and innocent she seemed and the way she and Bagomotsi loved each other was just so magical. But hey, like they say, you can’t judge it by its cover.

  Just immediately after swimming practice, I had told myself I would tell him but whenever I tried to, something came up. We walked on until we saw Botho by the school gate and as Neo had stated, he was flirting with some girl and when he saw us he dismissed her with a hug and came up to us.

  ‘Botho, how are you doing bra? I didn’t believe Brandon when he told me you were still alive, considering…’ and he pointed at the girl Botho was just with and they both laughed.

  ‘Whatever you say man; how are you?’

  ‘Yeah man, I’m still good and damn, you have grown up, what have you been eating?’

  ‘What if I said girls?’ and again they laughed and hugged.

  The two looked like old friends as they laughed together and caught up. It was only when I cleared my throat that they realized I was still there.

  ‘By the way, you guys should come to my party at my grandmother’s house tomorrow. It’s going to be hot!’ and he gave us some invitation cards.

  ‘Sure thing bra, we’ll be there’ said a delighted Bagomotsi before I spoke.

  ‘Botho let me ask you something; if I remember well, you were a good dancer when we were kids, right?’

  ‘Yeah, I was bra and I still am’

  ‘Good because I need soldiers, dance soldiers who can back me and Bagomotsi as we stir up a revolution in JMS; a culture revolution’

  We sat down on some benches by the gate to get away from the hot summer sun that was starting to get to us.

  ‘Okay tell me something, what kind of revolution is this going to be?’

  ‘You know that JMS is the last place you would expect to see a lenyora right?’ and he nodded before I continued.

  ‘Now what I want us to do is to bring the culture in to JMS. As a matter of fact we need to do it ASAP’

  ‘Now what do you need soldiers for?’

  ‘In the 1960s Fidel Castro used soldiers led by revolutionist Che Guevara to take power from Batista right?’

  ‘Yes he did. Wait, you want us to take power?’ asked Botho with a chuckle but I continued with my serious face to show him how serious I was.

  ‘Well sort of; Hip hop and break dance have always been the hoi-polloi of this school for as far as my memory span can take me. It’s about time we brought change; bring in a new leadership that can change everyone’s view on the culture of manyora. The soldiers I said I need are going to help us bring in this change as quickly as possible.’

  ‘As you know Francistown is known as ‘the city of dance’ because of these guys not break dancing. When was the last time you saw a break dance group win a national dance competition?’

  He thought for a while and shook his head so I continued, happy that I was starting to convince him.

  ‘But then just last year a kwaito group did win. This shows you that this is the way to go not hip hop. Now, are you in or not?’

  ‘I am so in! I mean, we could become living legends because of this whole thing and the girls are so going to love us. I can imagine us getting on stage and girls screaming their lungs out as they throw G-strings and all things good on stage. Screaming our names and bowing to us as if we were gods’

  This whole time as the guy imagined this good life, Bagomotsi and I were looking at him silently and when he was done he turned to us and we burst out laughing.

  ‘What’s so funny? Did I say something wrong?’

  ‘No you didn’t, it’s just that the way you pictured the life was kind of funny. So will you find us soldiers?’ asked Bagomotsi and Botho nodded before standing up and faced us.

  ‘When I arrived in JMS two weeks back, I made two new friends; two cool guys indeed. They call themselves T-Squared and they are much more into hip hop but they could have a change of mind once they hear your plan’

  ‘Tell us more’ I requested, keen to know more of this duo and he continued.

  ‘They schooled in Legae Academy in Gaborone and they only came here for their Junior High. These guys are quite talented in dancing and…’

  ‘Just tell us who they are!’ we both said, getting impatient to hear these guys’ names.

  ‘Okay then, jeez! They are Tyler Malokane, this dude born in this city but he migrated to the south when he was in second grade and TreShawn Detroit, an American guy born and raised in New York but moved here in fifth grade when his parents had an early retirement. These two are quite talented like I said and with them we could create a very influential dance group; one group that could bring change in JMS faster than we could ever imagine’

  ‘If I heard you right, this guys are in to hip hop, right?’

  ‘Yes they are but we could come up with a new kind of dance; one that can out-do the rest. We all know that those kwaito groups out there dance to one beat: kwaito. With us we could always fuse the two, come up with something unique if you get what I mean’.

  I was getting what Botho was trying to say and honestly, I loved the idea of fusing western and African ‘break dance’.

  ‘When do we meet these soldiers?’ asked Bagomotsi and we stood up and
started walking towards our car with Botho as it approached the school gate.

  ‘Today is Friday so how about tomorrow afternoon, say Le Carbon Black Café’

  ‘Alright then, we’ll be there at around 2 o’clock and please don’t be late’.

  ‘I promise and don’t be late to my party’ he responded with a chuckle. We said our goodbyes and got in to the car before it drove off.

  Bagomotsi and I were excited as our plan was starting to commence as planned. We had dancers now, at least if T-Squared agreed to join us and we needed was to start up a group and we’d be good. This revolution, as I wanted it, would not only bring me and the other guys a bit of legend-status but it could also put JMS in the dance map all across the country! It just had to happen and I was going to make sure it did.