Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves and I was reminded of Chris and myself back in the day. Linda did seem a bit moody. If you ask me, it seemed as if she didn’t want to be there and Chris was acting awkward when I asked for his assistance in the kitchen. What was going on with those two?

We made quite a few live videos for Instagram and everyone was amazed at our vibe and energy, they were convinced we were celebrating. To me, we were. We were celebrating a reunion. I was quite happy because I didn’t feel lonely for a change. We started talking about all the great moments we had in varsity and the group didn’t hesitate to talk about how close Sphe and I were. Slindile mentioned how convinced she was that Sphe and I were going to end up married and the fact that we didn’t came to show how unpredictable life was.

“I’m happy for you both because your lives turned out amazing and you both seem happy,” Slindile said.

I wasn’t too happy about that comment because I knew I was going to pay for it and Chris was silent throughout the conversation, way too silent for my liking.

It was 11pm and everyone decided to head home. Fortunately, they had drivers because wow, we were all so drunk. Sphe mentioned how great it was meeting Chris and gave him a handshake. Afterwards he gave me a hug and left along with the others. Chris and I went straight to bed.

When entering the bedroom Chris suddenly held me against the wall by my neck and yelled, “Are you a disrespectful bitch!?”

I could barely respond because his strong hands were against my tiny neck. Then he laughed and took out his gun. While I was trying to catch my breath he gave me a warm slap across my face, picked me up and held me at gun point.

“Don’t ever humiliate me like you did! Never leave the house at night ever again and don’t think to bring strangers to the house or you’ll be sorry,” he spat.

Chris constantly reminded me that he had covered all my varsity expenses in my final year and I wouldn’t have graduated if it wasn’t for him. He managed to convince me to give him power over me as it was only right for the man to be in full control over his woman. He went on about how he’d go to the ends of the earth, like he did for me when I had no one, to ensure I was happy, and as soon as his business hit the ground he’d elevate my life even further if I just had faith in him.

I felt stupid for allowing him to manipulate me, but then again, Chris had so much power over me and always managed to play mind games to conquer me in every aspect of my life. He then held me and wiped away my tears and told me that I made him so mad and he hated having to hit me to put me in order. After all, he was the man of the house.

“Don’t ever talk or dare dance with Sphesihle in any club ever again.”

I knew there and then that this man had me followed again and that Sphe was no longer safe. For all I knew, he knew where Sphe lived. Chris had a tendency of keeping major tabs on me to ‘tame’ me. He made me aware of what I was up to when I wasn’t in his presence to ensure I knew that he had his eye on me, to constantly remind me that no matter where I went in the world, he’d always know my whereabouts and with whom I interacted. I always had the feeling that I was being watched and that alone made me limit any social engagement to protect not only myself but also those around me.

Tell us: What would you do if you were in Lebo’s shoes?