On Saturday, I woke up and went to do my hair, and in town, I ran into two ladies from church. When I saw the first one, we greeted each and chatted a little, but it seemed like she could not wait to get away from me. The second lady just avoided me. I did not think much of it, though. My thoughts were that they had heard what had happened and did not know how to act around me.

At the salon, I saw Khanya. She also fellowshipped at my church, but she stayed in East London. She was studying at the university of Fort Hare, East London campus, and she was doing her LLB Masters, and we only saw her on some weekends and holidays.

Khanya was about twenty three years old, and she was one of those girls who came from well to do families by township standards. Her mother was a school principal and her father was a local businessman. She had always been a high achiever from primary school until high school, and I knew that because her mother never stopped bragging about her. She had passed her grade twelve with a merit, and had obtained four distinctions and gone to East London to study law.

Khanya was very beautiful, and she dressed well and spoke model C English. I got to the salon when she had just finished doing her hair and was about to do her nails. I greeted her and she gave me a polite smile and nod. That was a little strange to me because she usually did not miss an opportunity to have a conversation. I then sat down and one of the hairstylists started doing my hair. Khanya’s mother and two other ladies walked in a little while later, and she pretended not see me, they were all so happy.

“Lilili, uthini na ntombencinci, yhuu izinto zikaThixo, maRhadebe you’re blessed mfazi”, the first lady said.

“Hazba kuzothwani ngoobendicinga iyoba ndim, umntu uyolala ngalendawo inenxeba phofu” the second lady said.

Everybody was looking at them, then Khanya paid and they left. “Oh Khanya is getting married,” I thought to myself.

The following day, I woke up with a heavy heart, feeling like a person who was going to hear bad news. I thought it was just the Devil trying to prevent me from going to church, so I rebuked the spirit. When I got to church, I met two ushers at the door. They were going out, but they both looked at me and burst into laughter.

I then walked into the church and was stunned by the beauty of the décor. It was obvious that there was a special occasion at church that day. After the intercession, the worship team took to the stage, and during the worship session, Ayanda walked in looking great in a silver grey suit with dusty pink shirt. He was with his mother, his younger brother and four other people.

The service was full that day, and there were people I did not know. Later, during the service, Khanya walked in with her family, and she looked very beautiful. She had on a dusty pink mermaid dress, which showed off her beautiful silhouette. She was also wearing rose gold shoes and accessories.

I looked at Khanya and looked at Ayanda, and they seemed to have some colour theme going on. I felt faint, and my knees felt like they could not hold me up anymore. I sat down and felt a rush of warmness all over my body. My heart started beating very fast, and I had a silent prayer and asked God to help strengthen me. The prayer worked, and I felt a little better and managed to stand up when pastor Nkai took to the stage. The worship team finished the song and pastor Nkai took over.

The pastor began by greeting the congregation, then he started a song: “umakoti ngowethu, siyavuma, ungowethu ngempela, siyavuma,” the congregation started screaming in anticipation. “Ukhona umntu ongumama endlini, ukhona na umntu ongumama endlini.” The women then exclaimed in excitement. “Yiyizela yiyizela mntu ongumama, nguwooo, nguwooo ngumtshato.” The women started ululating, and Ayanda’s mother was so excited that there was a cry of joy all around the church. I stood there not knowing what to do.

While everyone was singing, Ayanda and Khanya both walked up to the stage.

“These two have promised each other,” the pastor said. “They have promised each other that someday they will tie the knot. If there is anyone here who has any reason why these two should not be engaged today, I give them a chance to come forward.”

While all that was happening, I sat there as if I was nailed to that chair. The noise was now beginning to not affect me, like it was coming from afar. I did not hear what the pastor said after his opening remarks, and I saw Ayanda going down on one knee and saying something, then Khanya nodded. Ayanda got up and put a ring on Khanya’s finger, then he gave her a bouquet of flowers.

I tried to hide how I felt, but it was like I was naked and everybody saw how I was feeling. I decided to leave early in order to avoid speaking to people.

Tell us: What do you think Zandi should do now that Ayanda has betrayed her and married someone else?