Frankly Told: Silently Unbridled
His friend lay across the bench with his arm across his face; half awake, fighting a sleep that threatened to keep him. Meanwhile, on his feet, he paced back and forth as if with his footsteps he would dig a trench to bury himself in.
In the waiting room, there was the occasional white coat rushing between doors and whispering something to the lady at the reception. He hated how it felt like around him the world just went on whilst his felt like it was falling apart before his eyes.
“Bro,” his friend said dryly. “You need to sit down, you will lose your head.”
“As if I haven’t already lost it,” he shot and stopped dead in his tracks.
His friend sighed with nothing left in him to give comfort or argue. He sat down in the seat opposite the bench his friend lay on.
“What time is it even?” his friend asked.
The clock on the wall seemed to start to yell its ticking suddenly. He was so aware of it that it felt like a pendulum swinging between his ears, which felt hot with the rage that simmered inside his belly.
“It’s 2:15,” he spoke through his teeth. “What the bloody hell is taking so long? It’s been like four hours. Kwani what are they doing in there?”
“Relax bro,” his friend took his arm off his face and turned to him.
He looked at him as if to say, “Don’t test me.”
His friend couldn’t even blame him. He just kept his mouth shut and shrugged but he was ready to contain this boiling pot from boiling over.
Right then, as if answering to his readiness, the doors to the small clinic swung open. Before his friend could look in that direction, he was already on his feet turned with his hackles standing on end.
“What do you think you are doing here?” his voice came out in a bellow.
“Yo, yo, yo,” his friend was now on his feet edging himself between the two.
“Cheki, step kabla nikurarue,” he threatened.
“Yo,” the other man started. “I’m just here to make amends bro. Nothing else. Like I’m really sorry that things happened like that. I-”
“Don’t call me bro,” he growled.
“For real mazeh,” the man pleaded. “Just hear me out.”
“I’m not going to hear nothing !” his voice raised. “Yo, get this idiot out of here before I go to jail.”
“Now what is with the threats?” the man asked.
“You can’t just walk in here and expect to be embraced like “Oh we were waiting for your sorry and now everything is okay.” You must have uji for brains!” he was now closing the distance between them.
“This is between me and her,” the man took a step forward. “I didn’t come here to be insulted. Matusi ya nini bro?”
“Cheki, I am not your bro!” he shouted and the receptionist was on her feet with her phone to her ear.
His friend stood between them with his arms out to try and intervene even though a piece of him wanted to do nothing else but sleep. He didn’t have the energy to tear them from each other if they were to fight. He looked at the receptionist with her phone ready and half smiled and shook his head as if to reassure her that he had it under control
“Ati now you are a protector?” the man taunted.
“I didn’t think she needed protection until now,” he pushed into the defence and had his fists clenched.
“When did you turn into one of those feminists?” the man asked in disgust.
“I don’t have to be a feminist to see what you did was wrong!” he tried to push past his friend.
“And here you are acting like a saint when we both know your history,” the man taunted. “And this sheep of yours here. Y’all lack a backbone so of course you don’t even know what having fun looks or even feels like.”
His friend hearing this sighed, stopped his resistance and shrugged before stepping back. In two quick steps, he was in the man’s face.
“Oh, I know what fun is,” he smirked.
Without another word, his fist struck like lightning and sent the man hurtling to the side. On contact, a smile genuinely ripped across his face and adrenaline pumped into his veins.
“Get up,” he commanded the man knocked to his knees; dazed with his hand on his jaw. “Come on!”
He grabbed the man by the collar and dragged him from the floor. Although the man was taller and bigger, he moved him like a body half his size.
“Fun, yeah?” he taunted before he swung a left hook that sent the man to the floor again.
Sprawled flat on the epoxy floor, the man’s eyes whirled in their sockets. He took his time and got on his knees over the man. He adjusted the man’s head with a sadistic caress, raised his fist but before he could multiply the bloodied mess, he felt an arm grab his and he was lifted off the man.
He almost fought it but out of the corner of his eye, he caught a speck of blue and knew the receptionist had made full use of the phone. He let himself be dragged off for a little while before admitting that he was okay to stand on his own two feet. Even after being let free he was still held behind the wall of two big security guards. Through the crevice, he could see the man being tended to by a nurse.
The guards said something about being taken into custody on account of assault. His friend came in to intercede and he lost track of the conversation. His attention was drawn to the pulsing in his hands. He looked at his shaking hands with both relief and an itching to have a go at it again. When she was to wake up she would know what happened, she wouldn’t like that I got violent but I’ll deal with that later, he thought to himself.
Still, this anger sat in him silently unbridled.
***
An excerpt from “Shadows" a musical by author.
