BENEATH THE CALM

As soon Dinny and Max arrived at the restaurant, they were welcomed by a band, outside. It was all planned by Max. He acted surprised but his face said otherwise. He held her hands, whispered something to her eyes and they both danced to the song that was being played. People starred in admiration from the restaurant windows. Some took videos as the couple danced and soon the video went viral on social media platforms.

When the band was done entertaining them, they went in the restaurant. Almost everyone clapped hands when they entered. The couple smiled back as a sign of appreciation. Today the atmosphere felt different from the last time they came here. Today it was lively. The couple seemed to be the center of attraction. Everyone in there looked at them every now and then. At first, Dinny felt uneasy but Max assured her that everything was okay.

"Who wouldn't want to look at such a wonderfully created woman? " - He teased her.

"Or maybe they are admiring this wonderfully created man." - She teased him back and they both laughed.

The waitress was now at their table. They placed an order and asked for water as they waited for their meal to be prepared. Max's eyes were fixed at her. He looked at her as if he was examining her. Dinny noticed him and just smiled back. She felt safer in his presence. He was the calm to her chaos. At first, she felt shy to start a conversation and they sat there with him just admiring her while she shyly smiled back in return.

Then suddenly something came up her mind. She remembered how he stopped communicating with her soon after their first meet up. "So why did you stop communicating with me after our first date sir?" Her tone was soft. She didn't want to make him uncomfortable by being harsh. He looked down at the water glass on the table. Instead of answering, he drank water from the glass and sighed.

"There's a lot you will find out about me as time goes. I was brought up by my grandparents. Growing up, there was never a day when I lacked anything, so I never asked questions about my biological parents." -He paused before continuing.

"Did you notice I arrived a bit late the last time we met?" He asked her. She shook her head

"No! I didn't notice." -She replied.

Multiple questions were running through her mind. She was already thinking Max is going to tell her his grandparents were forcing him to marry someone from his childhood. Typical of parents! She thought to herself. It was as if Max could read her mind. He noticed a change on her facial expressions. She frowned as the thoughts ran through her mind. Max brushed her cheeks with his fingers and kissed the upper part of her hand.

She felt the love from his heart through the touch of his warm hands. His hands had a calming effect on her. She found herself longing for being treated this way for the rest of her life. Dinny pulled her hand away shyly. It was a public space so she didn't want them to be the center of attention like ealier when they arrived. Max pulled his chair closer to hers and he reached out for her hands. He cleared his throat and continued talking.

"So the other day, there's a lady who came to my work place claiming to be my mother, that hit me hard.I'm sorry i didnt get in touch with you." His eyes were fixed at her hands as his fingers brushed them playfully.

Dinny felt sorry for him. She held his hands tightly and sighed. Tears filled her eyes. She felt guilty for thinking he was playing her yet he was going through so much. Beneath his calm nature, there were many sad sealed stories. Dinny thought about the miseries in her life as well. At some point in this relationship, she knew she had to come clean about her and Lebo's affair. At this moment, she wished she could reap her chest open for Max to see her wounded heart too. By now, their food was ready. They opted for mutton stew with rice and greek salad on the side.

When they were done eating.Max drove her home. When they arrived outside her home he packed the car outside the yard. They locked eyes and he leaned forward, kissing her on the forehead. She closed her eyes and held Max's cheeks on the sides with both her hands. She kissed him back on the forehead. Afterwards there was a moment of silence that was followed by laughter from both of them. - "It's getting late Max. Don't keep me waiting for your texts for the longest time."

Max just smiled and nodded. He watched her in admiration as she walked away. Dinny looked back and waved him goodbye. He waved back then drove away. Noosy neighbours watched from the corners of their homes when she was dropped by a different man. She knew that by tomorrow, she will be the topic of the day. Anyway, that was the least of her worries. She headed straight to her bedroom and sat on the edge of her bed.

Suddenly her phone beeped. It was f******k notifications. She logged in to check on them. As soon as she logged in, she found a video of her an Max trending. Most of the comments from there were those of people admiring them. Amongst the messages, one caught her attention. Lebo had commented! Instead of feeling ashamed ,she just laughed back through an emoji on the comments and logged out. Lebo must be boiling with anger from wherever he was. -She thought to herself.

Her phone rang.It was Max informing her that he had just arrived home. "We are trending on f******k. I hope you won't mind." She said.

Max smiled from the other side of the line. He was the one who had given instructions that a video of them dancing must be posted on f******k. He did it intentionally to make Lebo aware of his existence in Dinny's life. He knew that if he had asked for her permission she may have denied him from doing it. Not only did he want to show his existence, he also wanted Lebo to know how it feels when your partner isn't loyal.

Dinny waited for Max's response. "Max are you there?"

Max seemed to have been caught off-guard.It felt like Dinny could tell that he had planned for this to happen. He was less concerned about the trending video. Atleast it wasn't for the wrong reasons, he thought to himself. He replied in a tone that screamed "I don't care."

"Are we? Atleast it's for the right reasons. I have bigger problems to worry about." He laughed it off.

She was surprised by his response but it made her feel relieved that he didn't want to hide her from the world. They said their goodbyes through the phone. Unlike Lebo, Max wasn't an open book. She couldn't tell what his next move was going to be. Anyway, what mattered was that he didn't care about the silly trending videos.

From the other side, Lebo was disturbed by the video after seeing it. He wanted to leave earlier at the event but his girl stopped him from leaving. It was their moment like he had promised her. He couldn't even enjoy himself. He kept replaying the video and watched as another man danced with his fiance. He had to meet with Dinny in person so she could explain what was happening. There had to be an explanation. He excused himself by saying he had to go to the bathroom. As soon as he was out of his girlfriend's sight, he ran out through the gate and boarded a taxi that took him straight to Dinny's home.

It was slightly after sunset. It hadn't crossed Lebo's mind that he won't be allowed to see Dinny at this time. He knew she wasn't allowed to leave the house by then. It was only after the taxi dropped him off that he remembered it was late for them to meet. Nonetheless, he decided to try his luck. He called her phone to alert her that the taxi had just dropped him off so he was on his way to meet with her.

As he was dialing her numbers, he heard a car stop behind him. He never cared to look back as his focus was on the phone. Suddenly, he heard someone call his name in a loud angry tone. It was the girl he had left behind at the music event. She had seen him flee and decided to follow him in a different taxi. "How dare you leave me behind and come running to this ugly duckling of yours?" -She barked at him.

Lebo looked back in disbelief. He was unaware that by now, the call had gone through and Dinny was on the line. She heard the other girl from the far end of the line. At first she wasn't aware of what was happening that side but soon she caught up through the conversation she heard over the phone. Lebo was apologizing to the girl for leaving her behind and they agreed to return back to the event together. His calling bundles ran out, so the call ended automatically.