The Dancing Bride And Her Spirit Warrior - Episode 11

 

‘’Juma let’s slow down,’’ Vuyanzi tried to march Juma’s determined steps but she was failing miserably. She didn’t know how long she could keep up with his strides.

That seemed to stop him and she nearly ran his back when he made a sudden stop. He looked down at their joined hands and quickly released her as if her touch burned him. Vuyanzi missed his touch . She swallowed back her disappointment. Of course Juma wouldn’t want anything to do with her she was trouble.

Suddenly Vuyanzi felt shameless, she was here fawning all over Juma when he had a girlfriend, her cousin, Tabu. If Tabu ever got a wind that Juma fought for her, no matter what the circumstance, trouble was bound to occur.

Suddenly Vuyanzi had to get away. She would burst into tears if she continued standing before him. Kweyu had done a lot of vile things but it had not hurt as much as Juma’s rejection.

‘’Thank you for saving me back there Juma but I have to go home now, grandmother will be worried.’’ Her voice was shaky.

‘’Vuyanzi wait,’’ Juma held her back. ‘’Are you okay?’’ his voice was laced with concern.

His concern was her undoing. Tears threatened to drop from her eyes..

‘’Am fine Juma, I should be asking you that,’’ Vuyanzi swallowed the lump rising in her throat

All episodes of this story can be found here >> https://www.ebonystory.com/story/the-dancing-bride-and-her-spirit-warrior

. She looked everywhere except at Juma.

Juma raised chin and she looked at him,

‘’Then why are you crying?’’

That seemed to be the signal for the tears that’s she was holding back to pour from her eyes in torrential. Big fat angry tears. Vuyanzi was mad at herself, why was she crying? Was she starved of human attention that at the slightest show of concern from someone she was bawling her eyes out? But this was not just anybody, this was Juma. Her Juma.

‘’Hey stop crying Vuyanzi. It hurts me to see you this sad,’’ Juma crooned patting her arm, that didn’t help, tears kept flowing and she rubbed them off angrily with the sleeve of her dress. Crying doesn’t solve anything.

‘’Am not crying…it’s the dust,’’ she managed to hiccup determined to stop the useless tears from flowing.

Juma chuckled, ‘’Of course it’s the tears, now come of my home is a few houses from here, let me change my shirt and I will escort you home,’’

‘’Oh that is not necessary, I will manage,’’ Vuyanzi tried to deflect him.

Read " Jabali's Redemption " by the same author ( Razia Iminza )

. She didn’t want Juma to see her home. She was acutely aware of the last time he was in her house and the embarrassment she faced. And she desperately needed to get the cub to the reserve.

Juma wanted to say something but stopped and looked at the basket in her hand. Vuyanzi followed his gaze and was horrified to see the cub had raised it's small head and fore legs on the edge of the basket. It purred and looked at Juma with its clear as glass eyes.

‘’Is that a cheetah cub?’’ surprise registered in Juma’s voice.

‘’No, it’s a kitten, my new cat,’’ Vuyanzi answered quickly trying to push the small cub back inside the basket but it nipped her finger.

‘’I am sure, I know what a kitten and a cheetah cub’s look like Vuyanzi. What is going on here Vuyanzi?’’

‘’Nothing Juma just assume you didn’t see anything okay, I will go now and thank you again for helping me with Kweyu,’’ Vuyanzi said hurriedly trying to get away.

‘’Not so fast, is that why you were in Kweyu’s house? Were you in Kweyu’s house? To save a baby cheetah? My God Vuyanzi you are more stubborn than I thought,’’ Juma exclaimed pinching the bridge of his nose as if to ward off a headache.

‘’I had to get it out of there, it was being starved and it is wrong for Kweyu to try and keep a wild animal in his home,’’ she argued

‘’So you thought it was a good idea to risk your life to save it?’’ Juma looked at her incredulously.

‘’I umm I…it’s not that…,’’ Vuyanzi stumbled with her words avoiding Juma’s gaze. It was true, she literally had no regards to her life.

‘’Didn’t you think about making anonymous call to the reserve they have a hotline for that thing, there are many crazy people who think it’s a good idea to keep a wild animal as a pet,’’ Juma went on now pacing around.

Vuyanzi had a sense to hang her head in shame. She should have thought about that instead of running straight head into danger. But again she didn’t regret it much.

‘’What if they took long and the cub died or Kweyu starved or hit it to death, that would be on me,’’

‘’What if something happened to you?’’ he disputed standing in front of her and holding her gaze.

If something happened to her would he be sad? No he wouldn’t. Why would he? She didn’t mean anything to him, did she?

‘’Nothing happened, it all worked out fine,’’ Vuyanzi shrugged it off, she would not think about what would have happened if Juma hadn’t come in time.

‘’Come on let’s take care of it, it must be hungry,’’ Juma said and petted the head of the cub, it purred in his hand. The cub was also captivated by Juma’s kindness and goodness.

Juma walked away and Vuyanzi followed him, more willingly this time.