LIZZIE'S WORLD: The surprises roll on

“Onto the next event of the evening,” Chris says as we exit his friend’s parents’ house and head in a direction that is distinctly away from his car.

“Where are we going?!” I panic, my eyes struggling to adjust to the dark and the heels of my shoes falling into every possible trap – potholes, puddles, cracks and rocks.

“Not far, it’s just here,” Chris waves vaguely in the direction of the general darkness. I peer out, looking for signs of life, but nothing.

“I can’t do this,” I say, staring down at my feet morosely.

“Oh, I see what you mean,” Chris says as he takes a look at the length of the heel on my shoes. “Wait here,” he says, causing me to momentarily stumble forward as he lets go of my hand abruptly and rushes towards his car.

“But I can’t wait here on my own! Is it safe?” I yell after him.

“Don’t worry!” he tosses back. And then he disappears, leaving me standing there, clutching my purse to my chest as if it is a shield that will protect me from whatever vagaries are out here. As I contemplate how many different ways I could get mugged waiting for Chris, I wonder if this is how our life will be. It’s one thing to have him wine me and dine me in expensive restaurants and organise private dinners in his back yard, but what if this is what he actually prefers? I mean, it’s like I’ve only seen him all these years and never really known him; if you had asked me about Chris’ background a week ago I would have imagined something totally different. And yet here we are; am I ready for this?

“Right, here we go, take those off,” Chris says, handing me a pair of pati patis. I look at them in horror, and then a sense of amusement gradually takes over me. If someone had told me that tonight would find me trudging through the slums of Majengo in a pair of slippers with Chris as my guide, I would have laughed them out of town. “Hurry up,” he says urgently, and I wordlessly take the shoes and perform the switch. Chris takes my pair away from me and, tucking them under his arm, grabs my hand again. Together we proceed, jumping over puddles that do not smell like all they contain is water, until a glimmer of light and the soft tones of reggae music start to waft towards us. “Aha, here we are,” he says, sounding so satisfied it’s almost as if he has arrived home and found his warm, comfy, familiar.

“Here we are…. Where?” I ask him as we head closer towards the entrance from which the music, light and now, voices, mostly male, are emerging from.

“Here. Base,” he says. And then we walk into the room and I pause to catch my breath as I take it all in.

It’s a room – a large one – and the walls are plastered with magazine and newspaper cut out pictures of various reggae and football stars. A Bob Marley mural takes pride of place on one entire wall. In the centre of the room is a gathering of – mostly men – sitting around a table on which are piled packets of miraa, bottles of soda with their caps still on and holes poked through them. A small radio in the corner broadcasts the music I am hearing, and everyone is more or less chewing in silence and nodding along to the music. Our shadows cross the room as we stand in the doorway, announcing our presence. One of the men notices and looks up.

“Mzeiya!” he says as he stands up, his right cheek distended by a huge wad of green stuff. He stands up, beaming, hurrying towards us, and his actions alert everyone else, and they all also stand up and come hurrying over. Soon we are surrounded by a swarm of distended cheeks, everyone ushering us in and giving Chris manly bicep hugs and pulling me a chair and asking if I want anything – juice in a packet? A soda? A beer? A mzinga of vodka? Chris beams and settles in his seat next to me as if he is the leader of this kingdom and I am his queen.

“Nani huyu umetuletea leo? Who is she?” the first man who ushered us in asks after all the excitement has died down. Chris winks and smiles. “Oooh,” the man smiles wide. “Baas this must be celebrated!” And he turns and whispers in someone’s ear. And then he extends a hand to me to introduce himself while I watch as… Chris picks up a twig and inserts it in his mouth!

This is turning out to be a most interesting night!