Dysfunctional Family - Season 1 - Episode 6

4 years ago

Dysfunctional Family - Season 1 - Episode 6

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Lubesha was anxious as he got dressed for his first day at the school Alice and Amos went to.

As expected, Juliet and Donald had had an argument concerning which school Lubesha would go to a couple of days prior to this day.
“You’ve decided to take him to school, Donald, that’s fine by me but does he really have to go to the same school as our kids?” asked Juliet who was busy tending to her pimples as she often did even though they seemed to be what people call, ‘I’ve come to stay.’

Donald who was doing something on his laptop had replied, “Am guessing you want him to go to a government school, right?”
“Exactly! That’s the school that befits him best.”

“Why? Because he’s an orphan and thus less human than our children?”

“I didn’t say that so stop putting words in my mouth, Donald. Look at it this way, you pay K3,800 per term for Alice and K4,500 for Amos and now you wanna include another K4,500? That’s financial suicide, honey.”
“Look who’s talking,” Donald couldn’t refrain himself from chuckling. “If my memory serves me right, which I know it thankfully does, am the one who pays the fees so I don’t get why you have to be on the complaining end.”

The truth hurts and it did sting Juliet but she didn’t let her face show how hurt she was. “Mwalikwata icikuuku calubembu, Bashi Amos(You’ve got sinful compassion, Amos’ Father). Anyway, it’s your money after all,” she raised her arms in surrender and continued applying some herbal remedy on her acne infested cheeks.

Where he sat, Donald knew he had been too harsh and was sincerely apologetic but Juliet could push even the calmest of people towards the wall and they’d have to retaliate lest she treats them like garbage.
And so a week later, everything was set for Lubesha to start school. He was fully dressed when he heard a knock at the door.

“Come in.” Donald stuck his head in, “Do you have a minute?”
“Um, I guess so.”

Donald slowly closed the door behind him and crouched before Lubesha so that they were face to face. “Hey champ, I know am not supposed to be telling you this but I want you to stand up for yourself somehow..especially towards Amos now that you’ll be at the same school. I’ve noticed he bullies you.” “No he doesn’t,” said Lubesha defensively.

Donald shook his head. “Am not blind. Remember those clothes I bought you when you just came here? You don’t wear them and yet I see Amos wearing them..you don’t need to tell me how he acquired those clothes cause I already know. Now,” he adjusted Lubesha’s collar. “Just try to man up somehow..in the right way.”
“I’ll try, uncle.” The two embraced and the connection they had for each other felt inseparable.
Lubesha proudly thought, the world would be a better place if we had more people like Uncle Donald in it. The first day at school wasn’t bad. Even though term 1 was almost coming to an end, Lubesha found all the eighth grade work as simple as gulping down water on a hot October afternoon.

He didn’t make friends on the first day though but did find a friend before the end of his first week at school. Carlos was whom Lubesha saw friendship material in. The boy was intelligent, shy and a loner. Him and Lubesha instantly clicked. A few weeks after starting school, Lubesha adjusted and was enjoying himself, partly. Juliet saw to it that whenever he was home and Donald wasn’t, she mistreated him in every possible way she could imagine. Like one fateful day, she asked him to iron a silk top for her as she was about to go attend some women’s savings group meeting.

“You better hurry up,” she emphasized.
Lubesha nodded and went to the laundry room where he placed the top on the ironing board, plugged the pressing iron into the socket and adjusted the iron to silk. And he begun ironing.
“Lubesha!”

With a jolt, he called back. “Maa!” the iron lady was calling him so he placed the pressing iron aside and rushed to hear why aunt Juliet was calling him.
“Here,” she handed him a black short skirt while clutching on to her towel at her b-----s. “Iron this too, fast.”

When he went back to the laundry room and began pressing the top again, Lubesha was welcomed by the smell of something burning. He felt his bladder get full to the brim when he realised he’d burnt the top. He checked the iron and noticed it had been set to maximum. He was dead sure he’d left it on Silk so someone must have tampered with it. But who could that someone be and would aunt Juliet buy his story? “Lord help me,” he mumbled as he grabbed the burnt top and headed to his aunt’s bedroom to go confess his sins.

Meanwhile in the living room, Amos showed up with a huge grin on his face. “Nanga you why are you grinning like an idiot?” asked Alice who was answering her homework at the dining table where she was seated.
Amos grabbed the remote control and turned the television on. He later tuned in to Trace and turned the volume up. “Why am grinning is nothing of your business, little sis.”

“Whatever but please kindly reduce the volume cause am doing something important here!” Alice was in the seventh grade and was very serious about school even though she wasn’t the brightest pupil in class, she wasn’t the dumbest either.
Amos was in the nineth grade and was always on the top 5 list of the poorest performers in his class but he didn’t care anyway.

Alice was angry as she grabbed her books from the table. “Jerk!” she uttered as she passed by her brother.

Amos cared less what she said but he reduced the volume only because he wanted to hear his mother yelling at his cousin.
“Am a genius,” he told himself as he recalled how he’d gone into the laundry room to sabotage the iron in Lubesha’s absence. Why he hated his cousin so much, Amos didn’t know and didn’t care. The mere sight of Lubesha just made him want to commit murder.

The Bembas say, ‘Amenshi yakonka umufolo..’ which means ‘Water runs along the drainage..’ Or lets just say ‘The apple doesn’t fall from the tree.’ Amos was his mother’s son after all.
“You idiot!” Juliet smacked Lubesha across the face even before he could open his mouth to explain. “Do you know how much this top cost me? For your information, this top is worth more than yours and your stupid mother’s lives combined!”
“I’m so sorry,” apologized Lubesha who was literally shaking. “Sorry for yourself! Go dig up your dead mother and go apologize to her you dog! Will sorry fix my top, huh? Will it?!”

Lubesha bowed his head and opted to remain silent. Juliet who was so angry said so many hurtful words towards Lubesha before finally yelling he gets out of her room.
Alice who was in her room ruefully shook her head, “Not again.” Since she so wanted to wear that silk top and now it was burnt beyond repair, Juliet opted to skip the meeting and just stay home.
To blow off some steam, she went to the kitchen to cook and when she opened the warmer compartment, an awful smell hit her nostrils.

“S--t,” she cussed. “My beans!”
She’d left a pot of beans in the compartment the previous night and now it had gone bad.

No matter, she thought. This will be Lubesha’s lunch and him eating this stale food will act as punishment for the burnt top.
“Alice!”
“Maa!”

A breathless Alice appeared before her mother. “You called me?”
“Yes..I want you to bring me the dog’s plate.”
“Okay.”

When Alice brought the plate, Juliet poured all the stale beans on it. “But I thought dogs don’t eat beans, mum. Something about their fur falling off…or is it just a myth?”
If there was an award for giving people bad glares, Juliet would win first prize. “I know what am doing, girl!”

Juliet served chicken, rice, salads and a jug of juice on the table and later placed the plate of stale beans at her feet.
Alice and Amos took their seats while wondering what was going on.
Since Lubesha was in his room studying as he did whenever he had free time, Juliet yelled his name and he was in her presence shortly.
“You want me to forgive you for burning my top,right?”

“Yes.”
“Good…then come sit at my feet and eat this stale beans. Make sure you wipe the plate clean.” “Mother!” exclaimed Alice. “Don’t you think you’re going overboard here?”

That earned her the slap of her life from her mother.

“The next time you talk to me in that tone, I’ll make sure I pluck your tongue out!”
As tears streamed down her face, Alice said, “God will punish you!” she rose from her seat while holding on to the cheek her mouth had just slapped and rushed to lock herself up in her room and cry.

Amos was enjoying the show. “You heard mum, punk. Does she have to repeat herself?”

“No..” Lubesha shook his head and took baby steps towards the plate. He sat on the floor and started eating after washing his hands.

The beans was so stale that as he ate, his stomach rumbled in protest and bile rose up his throat but he ate until the plate was clean.
“Done,” he muttered. “Good,” replied Juliet begrudgingly. “The next time you decide to play enemy of progress, I’ll make sure you join your dead parents in their graves. Get out of my sight!”

Lubesha picked the plate and took it outside..he knew the plate belonged to the dog. At that moment, he wondered if God exists or if there’s such a thing as light at the end of the tunnel as their English teacher had mentioned when they were discussing idioms and their meanings back at school just few days ago…