Chapter three
JULY
I reach for the little drum shaped mp3 player that has the volume capacity of a full club and Nancy slaps my hand away.
‘hands off party crasher!’ Nancy playfully snarls at me.
‘change the song!’ I groan.
‘your playlist sucks.’
Ludo and Nancy sing along dancing to the music. I am guessing its something they caught at their parties. At this point my lack of excitement for socializing should have created a huge gap between us. But there is one thing that is pretty special about our friendship. We have learned to accept our differences nonetheless.
We were different in every other way. Nancy worked at a bakery and hoped to open her own pastry shop one day. completing the sweet girl image she has in her personality. Ludo is a lawyer and she works in her family’s law firm. Suits her. I am a corporate kind of girl. I don’t mind the long hours or the hermit life. I love the power suits and tight hair buns.
When I was little I always thought I’d be a doctor. But when I finished high school I decided I wouldn’t last a day in that department or did life choose for me? but I love starting my own company—its thrilling. It’s the only thing I kept my head on since David. Don’t go there.
There is a moment’s silence as the last song draws to an end followed by the two girls’ contented sigh. I sigh too—in relief. I am reaching for a bottle of water when the next song blasts from the speakers followed by a language I am not sure its Ndebele or kalanga.
‘okay that’s it.’ I shriek above the music and I jump for the drum thing, seizing it off the dashboard before either girls could stop me. I drop in on my lap, giving it a gentle caress before I cruelly punch the stop button.
‘ah!’ I sigh in relief at the silence that follows.
‘what is wrong with you.’ Nancy tries to reach for the thing and I swat her hand away.
‘eyes on the road.’
‘I am not driving.’ Nancy pouts at me and I stick my tongue out at her.
‘how much longer?’ I ask Ludo who meets my eyes in the review mirror
‘I am tired of your whining I am tempted to book you a bus.’
I shake my head, ‘don’t you dare.’
Nancy sighs, ‘you slept throughout the five hours drive.’
I shrug, ‘Ludo wont let me drive—I have a license.’
‘and a problem with over reacting.’
I open my mouth and close it. I will never hear the end of this argument if I go down this road. We were in Palapye were we stopped for a while to refresh and stretch our legs when it happened. Ludo had gone to recess and I took a stroll down the road enjoying the scenery of the mall. It’s a lovely town and I have an obsession with small towns. My e-reader can testify to that fact. The little people the better. Nancy once told me that I am fashioned to be a serial killer. Seriously? Well I blame the fact that he was half drunk and Ludo had dragged her into her movie marathon. The woman is obsessed with Rambo for heaven’s sake. What are the guys going to watch then? I could join her if she watched chick lit like every other woman on the planet (you are welcome to argue the point) but I ran a mile for good when the scenery for transformers began on the screen.
Okay back to the story. So Nancy was left alone in the car and when I got back I found two guys leaning on her window, arms against the car roof while Nancy tried to politely shoo them away. I tried to be nice about getting them to leave playing the we have boyfriends card and the bastards turned to me.
And the rest is history.
‘who cares they were probably robbers.’ I say defensively.
‘they were just doing a guy thing.’ Ludo rolls her eyes, ‘you should go out more often.’
I place my hand on my chest feigning hurt, ‘two guys don’t work on a girl at once—what did they want? A threesome?’
Nancy coughs and splutters the water she had been sipping while Ludo let out a full throttle laugh.
‘so what? its not your thing?’ Nancy also start laughing
‘what makes you think I am a nun?’
Ludo snorts, ‘you my dear July, are a nun living in Narnia.’
‘Narnia is a fantasy movie.’ I mumble.
‘you need to meet a slap in the face.’ Ludo says
What?
‘uh I don’t think I need that.’
‘seriously Ludo?’ Nancy raises both eyebrows at her.
‘trust me girls I know what I am talking about.’
‘no you don’t.’ I cry picking up Ludo’s train of thought, ‘you added me on a dating site.’ I recall with a shudder.
‘and you had a hundred interests in a day.’
Nancy starts laughing because that had been the most irrational moment of my life.
‘no.’ I point at Ludo, ‘that’s not it at all—its not my thing.’
‘you’ve never tried.’ Nancy breathes adding a dramatic wave of her hand.
‘we should have solved this a long time ago.’ Ludo mutters.
‘you are a bad influence on me.’ I point at them, ‘why aren’t we arriving yet?’
‘uh no changing the topic—seriously July you have never given any one the time of day since you broke up with David… its been five years for crying out loud.’ Ludo glances at Nancy who nods at her in agreement.
‘I am too busy with my career to date anyone.’ I mumble.
‘you hide behind your job to avoid any one.’
I fold my arms, ‘are you guys really going to bitch about my relationship status during the whole trip?
‘if the boot fits.’ Nancy announces and the debate begins.
I point out Ludo’s style of friends with benefits and we give her hell about it because she acts like she has relationship advice and is a love guru or something. She tries to convince me that no attachments relationships are fun and at least she is trying. Nancy is laughing at our banter.
None of us mention Vincent or how disastrous their relationship turned out. honestly, whether I liked Vincent or not. Nancy had this starry eyed look in her eyes whenever she was with him. they were a sickening love couple even though the man still got on my nerves.
He was just too intense. I read characters like him in novels I don’t want to meet one in real life. Protective, domineering boyfriend with a bad boy attitude as a cherry on top of a sundae urgh. Anyway the banter ends when I remind the girls that this is a girls only trip. No guys mentioned. We all leave the topic. For now.