“You dumped your boyfriend? I like what I’m hearing,” Bandile said.

And Masande liked what she heard in his voice, but it also made her angry – and sad.

“No! You don’t get to flirt with me, Bandile,” she told him. “Not when you’re refusing to … to do the right thing.”

“But if you’re not with the dude any more, what does it matter who takes the blame, him or Qhuba? What difference does it make?”

“The difference between the guilty person getting away with it, or paying for what he did,” Masande answered.

“I do understand you, Masande.” Bandile sounded sincerely regretful now. “I wish I could help put it right, but I can’t … But hey, maybe I can help in another way. Your little cousin? How’s she doing?”

“Still in the coma.” Tears burned Masande’s eyes, just from the thought.

“My baby sis had this idea,” Bandile said. “She thought if she was allowed to visit Choki and talk to her about things that are important in their everyday lives – like they’re both netball stars – maybe something would get through and Choki would wake up. You know how in movies, someone comes out of a coma if someone close talks to them, or they play a special song?”

“Even visits from pet dogs or cats have worked like that. I’ve been doing some research on the internet, and my aunt and uncle want to try absolutely everything.” Masande thought for a moment. “Listen, if you bring your sister to the hospital when they’re there tomorrow, they could maybe get her in.”

“I’ve got work, and she has school, but we could make it in the evening.”

“Sharp. I’ll meet you there and we can see if people agree.”

She could just have phoned Choki’s parents to say Bandile and Jessica would come to the hospital, Masande realised later.

The truth was, she wanted to see Bandile again.

Even so, she was nervous leaving the house the next day, both to go to college, and using public transport to get to the hospital in the evening, as Pa wasn’t home to give her a lift.

Suppose KaJama and the others still wanted to make sure of her silence about the accident? Or maybe they were counting on Ndlela to do that; she had rejected a number of calls from him through the day.

Her heart gave a little skip when she saw Bandile. He really was attractive, even with that stressed-out expression.

At first the hospital people didn’t want to let Jessica visit Choki, but Auntie Wini begged them so passionately, they gave in.

Masande and Bandile weren’t allowed to go with her, so they found seats in a waiting area.

“Your sister is sweet,” Masande said.

Bandile’s face lit up. “She’s our princess. You can imagine, it took my mother so many years to have another child after me, years hoping and praying. The doctors said a child at her age would wreck her health, and it did, but she says Jessica is worth it. It’s just her and Jess and me; my father died in a taxi crash five years back … Masande, it’s because of my sister I can’t tell the truth about what I saw when Choki got hit by the car.”

***

Tell us what you think: Clearly Masande and Bandile are attracted to each other. But will a relationship have any chance if Masande can’t persuade him to tell the truth?