Negotiations

“So, what you’re saying is, you need my help?” Lisa asked.

“…Uh, sure. Yeah.”

He wasn’t sure whether that was a trick question. Or if she thought there was a trick in his request. But she looked contemplative.

“…Look. I don’t know if I want people at school knowing about Lisavage.”

“I’m at school, and I know,” said Thabo, reassuringly. His reassurance obviously failed as she returned it with a scowl.

“You don’t count,” she said. She began to walk away from him.

“Does the video we took of you destroying the ego of a grown man on stage count?”

Lisa stopped abruptly. Thabo caught up to her and found that her scowl had turned to shock. The scowl returned just as quickly as it left.

“You recorded me?”

The question had enough venom to kill an elephant.

“Of course we did. Seeing you on stage like that, who wouldn’t? It was like seeing a velociraptor play the violin. It's something you are gonna want to get on camera.”

Her face darkened. She drew closer to him and began speaking in a whisper.

“Did you show anyone?” she asked.

“No, I wasn’t planning to really,” Thabo whispered back. “I want it to be a surprise when you start rapping at the talent show.”

She stepped back from Thabo; her eyebrows furrowed in contemplation. A sudden realisation relaxed them again, and her gaze returned to him.

“I have my own proposal,” Lisa said, finally. “What if I agree to come to your club today, and in exchange, you delete the video you took of me? Deal?”

“And the talent show?”

“That depends on whether you can convince me later.”

Thabo grinned. For all her flaws, she had never been unreasonable. He had enough confidence in his musical ability to know he could convince her to collaborate. She was sure to be impressed when she found out he could play four different instruments.

“Alright,” Thabo said. “It’s a date.”

The shock returned to Lisa’s face before quickly being absorbed by indignation.

“Don’t blurt out embarrassing things like that in public!" she scolded. "Now get out of here, I’m still on duty.”

Thabo obliged and left the library with a grin still plastered on his face.

***

After school, Lisa had classroom cleaning duty, so Thabo waited outside the door for her. She must not have expected him to. She was so startled by Thabo saying “Hello,” that she almost fell over when she finally exited their homeroom class.

“Why are you here?” she said, attempting to collect herself.

“I think only God is actually capable of answering that question for any of us.”

Lisa rolled her eyes.

“You could have waited for me at the Music Club room,” she said. “I know where it is.”

“Maybe I just wanted to walk with you.”

She suddenly seemed taken aback.

Is she blushing?

“Well,” she said, clearing her throat. “Don’t you think it will look a little weird with us walking together, publicly?”

“I think it will be aspirational. The slacker and the future head prefect, walking together. It may inspire an entire generation to believe world peace is possible.”

"I have to warn you, though," Lisa said, "World peace is more likely than me performing in front of the whole school."

"All I'm hearing is that world peace is very likely."

She rolled her eyes again, but there was a hint of a smile.

Thabo had often played the class clown. His nonchalant attitude toward school had put him in his teachers' crosshairs more often than not, and he had always used humour as a defence mechanism. Only it never successfully defended him against his teachers' rage, and it got him more trouble than he was in.

It did get laughs from his classmates, though, but never from Lisa. That hint of a smile was almost as unbelievable as world peace.

“You can lead the way,” said Thabo, “seeing as you are so confident about where the club is.”

She rolled her eyes at him and set off, Thabo following just behind her.

For a short while, the sound of their footsteps was the only thing that filled the silence between them. It made Thabo feel uncomfortable, which surprised him. He had always tried to avoid Lisa, as their conversations always began and ended with her scolding him for one reason or another. But now he wanted to converse with her more than anything.

“How do you know where the Music Club is held?” Thabo asked.

“As the grade representative, it’s my duty to know where all the worst-behaved students in our grade go after school. So, of course, I know where the Music Club is.”

“I don’t know that you can say anything about anyone else’s behaviour given that you left campus without permission.”

Silence. Thabo must have stepped on a landmine.

She probably hasn’t reconciled her actions with how she thinks of herself.

That was Thabo’s best guess.

She had always been proud of her behavioural record, and with good reason. She was favoured by both the teachers and her peers, which must have been difficult to balance. It would not be prudent of Thabo to make her think of herself and the music that allowed them to form this fragile connection as something that made her “bad.” He would keep the conversation light.

“Speaking of which,” Thabo continued. “How exactly did you manage that? Getting past the security guards at the school gate.”

“I bribed the security guard at the gate with 50 rands and had one of the promoters of the battle pick me up.”

“Only 50? He made me and Khaya pay him 150. Each!”

“Maybe if you didn’t treat all the adults around you like threats, they would all like you more.”

“Kinda hard when they all assume the worst of me anyway. Have you considered taking your own advice regarding your fellow students? At least ease up on me.”

“Thabo, I’m the grade representative.”

“You don’t have to be such a stuffy one.”

“Not all of us have the luxury of being able to half-ass everything.”

What is that supposed to mean?

The bass from the speakers, vibrating with house music, interrupted his attempt to probe further at what Lisa had just said. They became louder as they approached the classroom, hosting the Music Club. It was only when the smell of tobacco hit Thabo—just a half-step from the classroom door—that he began to have second thoughts about bringing Lisa there.

Lisa had already entered the room.