She kept looking at it and it kept reflecting on her face.

“Honey this diamond is gorgeous, just look at it sitting there inside that glass,” she said speaking to her fiancé.

The jewellery store was about to close and the store manager reminded the couple. “Sir we are about to close the store, which ring do you want for your fiancé?” he asked.

Jabu quickly pointed at the plain gold ring. “That one,” he said. His fiancé, Ntombi, looked at him disappointed.

“Really! That ugly cheap thing,” she said.

Jabu did not have that much money. He did not earn a huge salary, he was not rich. He was just a security guard and that was the only ring he could afford for her.

“But sweetheart it is a nice ring, it will look good on you my love,” he said trying to save himself from any further embarrassment.

Ntombi shrugged him off when he tried to touch her. The store manager put the money in the cash registry machine and gave Jabu the receipt. He put it in his pocket and he and his fiancé left the store. Ntombi was walking slowly behind Jabu, putting something into her pocket and Jabu stopped a taxi for a ride home.

The couple finally arrived home. The babysitter was about to leave when Jabu and Ntombi arrived.

“Finally mommy and daddy are home,” said the babysitter. She was speaking to baby Zandile, Jabu and Ntombi’s three-year-old baby daughter.

“Don’t worry I’ll hold her. You can go home Thandi,” Ntombi said to the babysitter.

Jabu and Ntombi were hardly on speaking terms. He had bought her a cheap wedding ring and she didn’t hide her disappointment towards him.

“Sleep well my angel,” Jabu said to his baby, kissing her on the forehead, and walked off to his bedroom.

Ntombi took the blue diamond out of her pocket. She had stolen it back at the jewellery store.

“Look what mommy brought home for you. Yes it’s a diamond,” she said speaking to her daughter Zandile.

She took the tiny blue diamond, put it on her daughter and put her to bed in her room. She then went to join her husband in the bedroom and went to sleep.

The next morning the couple were in each other’s faces, arguing about the wedding ring.

“You can’t even afford a pram for your daughter Jabu,” said Ntombi under appreciating Jabu. “You are cheap and pathetic,” she continued.

All of a sudden she went quiet and remembered that it was now half past ten and baby Zandile hadn’t woken up yet.

“Why is Zandile still asleep at this time?” she asked as both she and Jabu ran into Zandile’s room to check up on her.

Zandile was not moving. They tried to wake her up but still nothing was happening.

“Call an ambulance Ntombi,” said Jabu.

Then Ntombi suddenly paused for a couple of seconds and remembered the tiny blue diamond she put on baby Zandile’s tummy last night. She looked for it around Zandile, but she could not find it.

“Oh no,” she said panicked.

Jabu looked at her in surprise. “What’s wrong with you, we need to call an ambulance, our baby is dying,” he said.

She tried to wake her daughter up but nothing was working. The couple had no choice but to call a doctor to come and check their daughter.

The ambulance finally arrived. The doctor took her for an X-ray and found a diamond deep inside her chest. She had swallowed the blue diamond and died as a result.

Ntombi broke into pieces and Jabu could not believe what had happened.
***
Tell us: How would you react if you were Jabu?