But she did not find either a job or a decent man, despite all her efforts. One night she brought an older guy back to our place. Both of them were totally drunk and I tried my best to move myself away from them. But our shack was so small that their feet were touching me while they were having sex with each other. I am sure they did not even notice me there.

The following morning, I went to school as usual. But that was the first day that I could not hold my tears back when my teacher asked me again why I looked so tired…

***

That weekend, my mother confronted me with her final decision: ‘This place is not good for you, Mbu. You must go back to eRhafu. I’ve found a guy to stay with here, but he has his own kids. I spoke to Gogo where Mavusi is staying, and she said you can also stay with her. You remember Gogo?’

Gogo – which means ‘Granny’ in isiXhosa – was not our real grandmother. She belonged to one of our family clans on my mother’s side and was known for looking after children other than her own. She was a hard-working woman, with a reputation for being very strict with the kids. No one ever dared to object to anything she said.

I hadn’t known that my beloved brother Mavusi was still with her. As much as I disliked the idea of leaving my mom behind and going to stay with Gogo, I was also excited by the thought of being reunited with Mavusi.

‘Do you remember Gogo?’ mom repeated impatiently.

‘Yes, I do,’ I replied. ‘But who will pay for my bus ticket from
here to there?’

‘My new boyfriend will…’ she said. But I could feel that she was not proud about it. It was just the way life was.

I was sad that I could not say goodbye to my kind old teacher since it was the weekend. I was also sorry to be missing the visit to the Zip Zap Circus that was scheduled for a few days later. I had no luggage with me when my mom put me back on one of the same big buses that we had travelled on together to Cape Town a few months earlier. I’d left all my things behind in Masi, thinking I would be returning soon, when the holidays came. Mom took me to the bus station and made sure I got into the right coach. She did not wait with me until the bus left. And I did not cry. I wondered whether Mavusi would be as happy to see me as I was at the thought of seeing him.

How do you think Mbu felt going back to Masizakhe? What thing do you think would be good or bad for him there?