“So?” Marea asked.

“So we had tea,” Elizabeth said handing Marea a bottle of beer.

“And?” Marea was prodding her for information, information Elizabeth wasn’t sure she was ready to give over.

“And what?” Elizabeth said putting the DVD in the machine. “What movie did you get?”

“The Hangover,” Marea said.

“Again?”

“I like it, what can I say? So what’s going on with the dog man? Something happened.” Marea pulled the bowl of chips to the sofa and set it between them.

“I don’t know,” Elizabeth started and decided she didn’t feel like explaining anything. “I just think it’s not going to work.”

“Why?”

How could Elizabeth tell Marea that she didn’t think it would work because he only went through primary school? It sounded so stupid and petty and not important, but she couldn’t help herself. After that evening in the park, she just kept obsessing about it. She thought it was too much of a gap- one educated only to primary school, the other a university graduate. It won’t work. She’d be wasting her time even hoping. She was used to Oaitse, Oaitse with his degree from Rhodes, his masters from the University of Chicago and his doctorate from Harvard. She felt like she and Realeboga might soon run out of things to talk about. How long could they talk about dogs? And then what? Just look at each other? Okay he was pretty spectacular to look at but still.

“I don’t know, he’s not who I thought he was.” Elizabeth didn’t want to talk about this, especially with Marea who sometimes felt insecure about having not gone to university.

“In what way?” Marea was really not leaving this.

“He’s arrogant,” Elizabeth said, frustrated, and she immediately felt bad. Even though Realeboga was seriously hot, he was not arrogant in the least. So unlike your normal run-of-the-mill seriously hot guys. He was lovely and humble and sweet. She felt bad saying that about him even if it was just to get Marea off her back.

Marea looked at her with her green hair wrapped with purple wool making numerous violet mapondo spikes sticking up all over her head. They bounced when she shook her head back and forth. “Nope. No ways. Try a different lie.”

“What do you mean nope? You’ve never even met him! He could actually be very arrogant. More arrogant than Oaitse even. You don’t even know him so stop saying nope like you do.”

“Not possible. It is just not possible that he is arrogant. You’re right I’ve never met him, but one of the things you’ve gone on and on about is that he is so sweet. And he owns a beagle. What kind of arrogant hot guy owns a beagle? A German shepherd, a doberman, a pit bull- but not a beagle. I may not know much about dogs, but I know a helluva lot about guys. No arrogant, hot guy owns a beagle and takes it to dog school- in public? Are you mad? I’m not a fool. So what’s the real issue?” She stopped the movie and turned to Elizabeth to give her her full attention. “Whatzup Bethy? Give it over.”

“Okay. I’m going to tell you the truth and I know you’re going to hate me but I’m just going to say it anyway. Because it is the truth.” She drank some beer and moved the bowl of chips back to the table. “He’s only gone to primary school.”

“And?”

“And that’s it.”

Marea threw her spiky head back and laughed. And laughed. And laughed some more until she cried. When she got herself under control she said, “Are you serious?”

Elizabeth wasn’t sure what was going on. She said meekly, “Yes.”

“What the hell does that matter? You find this great guy who seems to be interested in you and you want to brush him off because he didn’t go to university? I would have thought after the fun fair you had with Mr Arrogant Prick you’d be searching out every man you could who was not educated! Have you learned nothing from that experience?”

“Okay, yeah…maybe you’re right, but what if you’re not. What if we start dating and I find out we have nothing in common except dogs, a dog I didn’t even choose, I might add. What kind of relationship would that be? We’d be wasting each other’s time.”

“How about a relationship like every other fucking relationship in the world? Isn’t it that’s what getting to know each other is all about? What dating is all about? You need to get to know the person to see if the thing works. You are making a lot of assumptions about this guy just because he’s not educated. You don’t even know him. Maybe he read the complete works of Shakespeare. Maybe he builds boats in glass bottles. Maybe he likes ballet. You don’t know anything about him. You’re making assumptions, and is that even fair?”

Elizabeth sat back and watched the movie and kept thinking about Realeboga and what Marea said. She was right, she shouldn’t assume anything. People got education so many ways not just from going to university. How many times had she sat through boring dinner parties with Oaitse and his co-workers going on and on about economic policy? She knew nothing about any of it and cared even less. Why was that not considered when deciding to date Oaitse? That he might have tunnel vision on subjects she found boring? But with Realeboga she already assumed because he only went to primary school that any conversations they’d have would be boring for her, that she wouldn’t find a place to connect with him. It wasn’t fair. Marea was right. She was making assumptions.

When he called the next night to see if she could go to dinner with him on Saturday, she agreed. She agreed and was looking forward to the date, all of her preconceptions dumped in the bin. She liked Realeboga and she was looking forward to getting to know more about him. She decided to start this relationship with a clean slate.

***

Tell us what you think: Do you think Realeboga’s education will be a problem in his possible relationship with Elizabeth?