“It’s ok if you don’t want to go with me. I mean it’s not like it’s a date or something, I mean we’ll just be hanging out as friends,” Thabo quickly said, as he could tell that Alice was starting to look worried.

“Um! Sure why not? I can always do my school work later,” Alice replied. She was trying to act cool and collected.

“Ok then, let’s go.” Thabo said.

They took a taxi from school and went to Claremont at Cavendish Mall. They walked over to McDonalds. Alice went and took a seat while Thabo went to queue for the ice cream. 5minutes later he showed up with two delicious Sundaes. It was as if he knew her well because Alice loved the Hot-Caramel Sundae. She looked at him and smiled while saying thank you.

“It’s my pleasure,” Thabo replied with a big grin on his face.

For a moment they were in utter silence, as if neither of them knew what to say to each other. It was the first time that they had both really hung out together and it was quite nerve wrecking for both of them.

“So. . .” Thabo started. “How do you feel about leaving in South Africa?”

“Ok, Um! Well how do you feel about leaving in Cape Town, since my brother tells me you’re from Eastern Cape?” Alice replied.

“Well Eastern Cape is still part of South Africa. But anyway I love Cape Town, there are so many different people here from all over the world and I like that,” Thabo said while licking the ice cream off the spoon.

“I guess I like Cape Town also, but I wish I could remember what my country looked like and maybe go and visit it,” Alice said while playing with the ice cream in the cup. “At least you can still go to visit your home.”

“WOW! That must be hard for you guys. During the Apartheid times I was still young, but when I hear stories of what happened, I can understand why you people left your country,” Thabo said in consolation. He could see that this was a sad topic for Alice. He quickly changed the topic and he started telling her about how much he loved poetry and writing. Alice could not believe how much they had in common. Alice also loved writing, she used to tell her mother how one day she will be a famous writer and she could write about her life experiences. Alice couldn’t understand why Thabo hung around with a crowd like her brother, when all they seemed to talk about is Hip-hop.

“So why do you hang around people like my brother when all they do is memorize songs and rap all day long?” Alice wanted to know.

“Well that’s the thing that most people don’t understand, hip-hop and rapping is another form of poetry and some of the lyrics are very poetic and from the heart. I love listening to Tupac, Proverb and MXO,” Thabo said with so much passion and excitement in his eyes.

Alice could see that he really was into writing and he also seemed to grow more handsome the more he spoke. Alice was taken by his charisma and she just could not believe that he was around this whole time and she didn’t notice him.

Thabo was also taken by how casual and cool Alice was. He had always seen her to be uptight and a no nonsense kind of girl. But for some reason today he saw another side of her and was intrigued by the way that she carried herself.

They both finished their ice cream and time seemed to be going so fast. They left McDonalds and walked down the road to go and catch a taxi to go home. Alice kept staring at the windows of the different shops and restaurants to avoid the awkwardness that had suddenly returned between them. Thabo could see that she was really trying hard to avoid contact and he held her hand as they walked side by side. Alice was suddenly taken back by this surprisingly good gesture; she could feel her heart beating faster and faster. Yet she did not want to let go of his hand. It felt cold from the ice cream they had just finished, but she just wanted to enjoy the moment.

***

Tell us what you think: will Thabo and Alice get together or is she just foolish to think that Thabo would date someone from a different country?