Amani arrived as evening bled into night, two girls tagged along.I ushered them toward the guest room to settle in.
"This is Shona and Julia, they will be coming with us," Amani introduced as she walked towards me on a balanced pace. It was now that I noticed how tall she was.
"This is my very first time at Mr. and Mrs. Nia's home, it's even more grand than I thought!" Shona-the short, beautiful brown-skinned girl exclaimed.
"Aren't we going to be late for the party?" I asked-pulling Amani to the side as her friends continued to curiously look around the place.
"We will be if you don't change," she countered, her gaze sweeping over my attire. "Why are you dressed that way?"
I slowly looked at my below knee, formal white sleeveless dress- I was a thirty something year old woman not twenty, this dress was considered right to me.
"What's wrong with my dress?" I inquired, confused at her question.
"I knew you would say that. That's why I came with a dress of mine, you shouldn't be conservative all the time, that's why Jabali isn't taking the initiative. Girls!" Amani said before clapping her hands-calling to her friends who sprung into action.
Shona and Julia produced a bag, laying it on the plush sofa beside us. With a flourish, Amani unwrapped it, revealing a stunning golden dress with a long, daring slit. I was speechless, unable to conjure a single criticism.
"Well? Stunning, right?" Amani didn't wait for an answer, already pushing me toward my bedroom, the dress in her hands. "Hurry up and change. We don't have all night."
I complied with Amani's instructions and wore the dress, the gold against my skin shone even more, I couldn't help but marvel at the dress's texture which was light and thin but it didn't appear so on face value.I left my hair in its natural afro, pinning a single, small golden flower to the side. By the time we were ready to leave, a full hour had slipped away.
As Amani and her friends came in another Zephyra, that is what her friends left in. As for Amani, she stayed adamant that she wanted to fly in the Zephyra-6 saying they were only three of those in region D, I couldn't refuse her eager plea so I let her fly with me.
Thirty minutes into the flight, a brilliant spectacle unfolded below. A massive house crowned the mountain peak, its sprawling pool glowing like a jewel amidst the dark trees. Vibrant lights pulsed in time with the music that thrummed through the air. Young people drifted through the grounds, their laughter infecting the night with a palpable energy.
"Jabali can really put on a show," Amani said as her gaze left the place outside looking at me with a teasing look "I see why you like him,"
"I don't like him like that." I replied.
Her skeptical expression showed she didn't believe me.
"Really, I don't. I have no feelings for him. In fact, I'd prefer to keep my distance."
"Why?" she pressed.
"He's… immature," I replied simply.
Amani's eyebrows shot up. "Is the sun setting in the East today? You seem like a whole different person."
The Zephyra-6 landed with a soft hum. We disembarked swiftly, and Shona and Julia soon joined us, falling into step as we approached the entrance. Security was tight, checking our pass codes before allowing us to march forward.
As we appeared before everyone's eyes, low murmurs and whispers spread throughout the place.
"Zahara! What are you doing here?" A sharp almost inquisitive voice echoed.
Turning to my left, I saw a slender girl with wide hips and a big chest appear before me. Her eyes were big and her lips full-she was beautiful.
"Priscila, why are you asking? Why can't Zahara come? She is more close to Jabali than some people," Amani said as she rolled her eyes at the girl whom I now knew as Priscilla-I didn't have any memory of people the original Zahara associated with.
Moments later, I saw Jabali move out with large strides then he wrapped a coat around Priscilla's shoulders then hugged her shoulders.
"Don't pay attention to them," He said as he turned to look at me-slightly pausing before he turned and continued to fix the coat around Priscilla.
"I didn't mean anything bad by my words, I was just surprised that Zahara attended such functions, after all it's very rare for her to do so," Priscilla lamented.
I really just wanted to find a place to seat as these high heels that Amani selected were killing me.
"I understand, some people are just petty like that, don't pay them any mind," he said his voice dripping with condescension, causing Priscilla to nod in understanding.
I nearly applauded the performance.
Spotting a server carrying a tray of empty glasses, I seized my escape. "Where can I find the drinks?"
The boy seemed startled at my inquiry as he looked between Jabali and me before pointing in a distance and darting away before I could thank him-a small out door open-air bar appeared and several drinks were stocked in a high tech storage space.
"Happy birthday," I briefly said to Jabali before I moved in that direction, Amani quickly followed behind me.
"You really don't like him anymore?" Amani asked with skeptism.
"uhm," I nodded with a slight smile. Maybe 'Zahara' might have liked him but me-It was a totally different story.
"Wow. Good. Then you should know there's some serious eye candy in the Federation military. I can get their numbers if you're interested in an upgrade." Amani chuckled, her mind clearly already wandering.
"Isn't that stalking?" I pointed out.
"What do you know? Those men have a secret social media where they usually meet up, a friend of mine is among them, he passes the number of the willing men," Amani replied as we reached the drinks area.
"No thanks, I am not really in the mood of romance," I said.
"You're a real buzzkill, you know that?" She said as the attending gentleman arrived, asking us about our orders.
"Give me your best drink, slightly alcoholic or non-alcoholic," I said. The man nodded in understanding.
"When did you start drinking? You used to hate being near anyone who did. Not that I'm complaining. The new you is definitely more my style." Amani said.
Our drinks arrived, and we sipped them slowly. Shona and Julia joined us briefly before melting back into the sea of dancing bodies.
"Zahara Nia?"
A rough, husky voice reached me, clear even through the music. I turned and found myself looking into a sharp, chiseled face with brown skin. A clean black shirt was tucked into cargo pants and boots, a look that blended maturity and youth effortlessly. He was, without a doubt, strikingly attractive.
"That's me," I replied. Amani slightly looked at me with a knowing smile before she turned to leave. I wanted to stop her from leaving as I wasn't really familiar with people around me yet but she had long gone.
"Can I have a seat," the man said.
"Go ahead," I said.
"My name is Mutsyo Noah. I have been your admirer for a long time," He said.
I slightly looked at him in direct observation and he didn't turn away from my gaze.
"How so?" I inquired.
"You once saved someone close to me, also, you are great at many things, and beautiful," Mutsyo said.
I slightly lifted my eyebrow at his somewhat shy demeanor as he drunk an alcoholic beverage brought before him by the attending gentleman.
"Sorry, I don't seem to remember that event," I said.
"I know, after all, it was long time ago," Noah said.
"Are you a student at my school?" I acquired
"No I am in the F2 military academy, I came with my father today," He said.
"You didn't attend normal school?" I inquired.
"No. My family is in the military so there is no need for me to attend a normal school," He said.
"Oh," I replied as I thought about his words. That means that children in military families often chose to follow in their parent's footsteps just like 'Zahara'.
"Zahara!" A loud voice that was now so hard to forget echoed, startling me from the atmosphere at hand-It was Jabali.
"What's your problem?" I asked-a little annoyed. I couldn't even look into some matters without being interrupted.
"My mother is looking for you," Jabali said "What are you doing with strangers,"
"Oh. Alright, let me introduce you, this is Mutsyo Noah, he is in F2 military school," I said.
"Are you done? Let's go," Jabali said without looking at Noah. Looking at this bare child, I just wanted to pull his ears as punishment for being rude.
I smiled towards Noah in apology as I stood up to leave.
"Ms. Nia," Noah said, rising to his full height. I hadn't realized how tall he was; he stood a good head above Jabali. "May I have your contact information?"
"Alright," I said before handing him my terminal scan code, it wasn't bad to get different people's contact information tonight, after all, there would be some information which books couldn't provide.
"Can you slow down?" I snapped at Jabali, who was storming away at a near-sprint.-with my high heels, I couldn't keep up.
Jabali suddenly stooped in his tracks as he whirled around to looked at me "Are you trying to annoy me," he said.
I looked at him bewildered at his outburst. "Why do you say that?"
"Alright then. I wanted to tell you that Priscilla and I are now officially dating," He said, looking directly at me.
"Well congratulations, shall we go ahead," I said as I also squarely looked at him.
"Okay, let's go," Jabali said as he presumed with his wide rage steps. I simply shook my head, a wave of pity washing over me, it seemed this child really had something wrong with his head unfortunately.