My Sisters Keeper

80

EIGHTY

It's been five months since Lily got out of our lives. Well Lungelo made sure of that. Things are slowly becoming the way they are supposed to. Bontle is officially a first year medical student at the university of the Witwatersrand. Yep, I'm the proud mother of a future doctor. It still feels like a dream.

Amanda's case was supposed to be done a few months ago but it keeps being postponed. I know how frustrating that it but in my experience when  the prosecution keeps asking for an extension it means they want to make sure they have a watertight case. And for her sake, I hope they show her a bit of mercy.

I am officially eight months pregnant. The doctor finally confirmed that we are having a girl. To say Lungelo is on top of the world would be an understatement. He is on top of the universe. He has painted the the nursery pink. It's like a unicorn snuck in there and had an explosion.

Lungelo and I got married. Well the traditional aspects have been observed and as far as the Radebe ancestors are concerned I am now one of them. I'm Officially Nomonde Radebe. Our wedding was beautiful. It felt like a dream come true. Even though I wanted something small and intimate, Lungelo went the opposite route. He said he wanted the world to know that I was now his, officially. I thought my first experience with marriage would have turned me against the institution but finding someone like Lungelo who makes life worth living was the best thing that ever happened to me post jail.

My mum now lives a few houses down the road. Yep, I bought her a house right here in Umhlanga, I was thinking of Ballito but everyone talked me out of that. Having her close has been a dream. She comes over everyday to help me out since I was put on bedrest a month ago. The doctor even does house calls everyday because I was diagnosed with preeclampsia. It seems to get hectic with every passing day. For the past couple of days my blood pressure gone up tremendously, I vomit a lot, I have throbbing headaches and breathing has been hard. Lungelo sometimes stays up the whole night watching me just to make sure I'm alive.

This morning I woke up to darkness, I cant see. Lungelo thought I was joking when I said it was dark. He said the curtains were wide open. I tried to get up to go pee but I couldn't see anything. I kept bumping into stuff. I guess thats when Lungelo realised I was serious. I was blind. He was freaking out calling the doctor. As scared as I was I tried to keep myself calm. Lungelo was already freaking out enough for the both of us.

He came into the room almost running.
"The ambulance is on it's way."
"I need to pee." I whispered. This has been a constant battle. Peeing is now a luxury to me. I'm lucky if I can pee once a day. I always go to the toilet and say a prayer asking God to make me pee but nothing. He picked me up and placed me on the toilet seat. I sat there for a while and nothing happened. I felt tears running down my face. And I felt him put his hands on my knees. He was kneeling in front of me.

"Baby dont cry. It will be Okay."
"What if I die?"
"You won't."
"You dont know that Lungelo. The doctor did say this was a severe case of preeclampsia. One of the worst he has seen. So it's possible I might end up dead."
"I don't care what the doctor said. You will be just fine. We are going to raise our baby together. I'm not going to lose you Nomonde, I cant lose you." I could feel his voice break. As tough as he was, he was just as scared as I was. I felt around till I found his face. I held his face in between my hands as if I could see him.

"I need you to do me a favor, if push comes to shove I need you to promise me something."
"What?"
"Promise me."
"Nomonde, tell me what you want and I'll decide if i promise or not." Stubborn idiot. I took a deep breath.
"If push comes to shove, promise me you'll save our baby. If one of us has to live make sure it's her."
"No."
"Lungelo."
"No Nomonde." I could feel my palms getting wet. He was crying. "I'm not choosing someone I dont even know over you." What does that mean? This is his child.
"Lungelo, this is your child, your little princess, you tell her that every day. You have to save her." I know he is shaking his head, judging by my arms being moved side to side.
"I can have a thousand other babies but I can never have another you. So no sthandwa sam, I will save you if I have to. I'd rather you be alive to resent me than to have you dead." The sound of the siren was too close. I'm sure it was now outside the gate. "I'm going to open for the ambulance."