Friendship chronicles part 1
It was 5pm and Tami was at her desk, staring outside the large window. The city seemed to come alive at the end of the month, maybe because people’s pockets were fuller and they no longer had to avoid phone calls from friends wanting to meet up. It had been raining in the afternoon but now the sun was out – the nice evening sun that didn’t burn your skin.
She was waiting for her Uber to arrive. It had been a busy two weeks for her, having signed three new clients, with the third signing off on his financial plan that morning. It was a good day. Her car was at the mechanic and she would be getting it the next day. Mvule, her husband, had his car and would be picking their daughters from school that day. Tami found herself tapping on the desk silently and only then noticed the state of her nails – she could use a manicure. Her hair could also use some refreshing – she’d had a weave in for about a month now and kind of missed her natural hair. Mvule always said nothing made her look better. She would try to get an appointment over that weekend.
Her phone lit up then, it was an incoming call. The Uber driver was at the parking bay and she told him she was on her way down. A few of her colleagues were also leaving the office then. Their office had a flexible working policy that allowed you to work away from the office if you needed to and wasn’t strict about the number of hours you logged in a day, as long as you were able to get your work done. This was quite favourable for many of the employees, since they had families and some were also going to school or taking online classes.
She was at the parking bay in a few minutes and easily spotted the Uber. The driver was quite friendly and even asked what radio station she preferred to listen to. She didn’t mind what was already playing and found herself getting comfortable at the back of the car. She texted Mvule that she was on her way home, it would be an estimated 39 minutes drive. He was also just picking the girls from school and they would probably get home before her. Kiki was 14 and in 8th grade, while Dalu was 11 and in 5th grade. At only 34, Tami considered herself a young mum. She and Mvule had known each other since they were in high school, and when she was 19 found out she was pregnant. He was two years older than her and already at the university. They had known that they wanted to be together and the pregnancy just meant that they would be starting their lives together a bit earlier than planned. Both sets of parents had been supportive and arranged to get them a small apartment that they could live in and start their lives. Mvule was also able to get a part-time online job that allowed them to start building up their savings. Tami had made the decision to postpone going to university and it was only when Dalu was one and a half years old that she had enrolled for her degree in Finance and Estate Planning.
Her mind came back to the present when she noticed the familiar surrounding and that they were driving into the estate she lived in. She paid the driver once they had stopped and wished him a good evening. Mvule and the girls were already home like he’d predicted. She walked into the house to find Dalu in the kitchen eating an apple. They shared one of their usual warm hugs before starting to talk about their days. Kiki walked into the kitchen 5 minutes later and also hugged her mother. It was a good 15 minutes before Tami asked where their father was. “He just went upstairs a few minutes before you walked in,” Dalu said. “Oh okay, let me go and find him.”
She walked into their bedroom to find Mvule just coming out of the shower. “I should have waited a few minutes before taking my bath,” he said with his usual grin. “I don’t mind making you go another round!” Tami said chuckling. He kissed her then and they embraced for a few minutes. This was usually the best part of Tami’s day, coming home, knowing her girls were fine and getting to spend time with Mvule. She had stood out among many of her high school friends by getting married and starting a family so early, then going back to school after having kids, but they had made it work – thank God. They both had jobs they loved and wouldn’t trade having the girls early for anything. They loved their life and Tami was thankful that she could say that. She was about to go into the bathroom when she heard her phone chime. It was a text message from the bank, her salary had been paid. It put a smile on her face and she was just about to put her phone down when she noticed an incoming call. It was her friend Sase.
do you need part 2