Misandrist- Person who hates men.

Kinks- metonym for natural hair of a 4c structure. 4c hair is nappy hair characteristic of black africans especially those from sub-saharan Africa. 

Bawo- Ber-who- a Malawian game that involves arithmetric.

Chapter 13

Ipyana

Kabwila pin pointed their location. Me and Kamlepo were about to head back in when Kabwila decided to check in one more time.

“Making our way out. Kapito is shot in the leg.” Chirwa replied.

“Should we come in for you?” Kamlepo said.

“No we will find you.” She replied. Chirwa told me to go with the first bus pod. I had just gotten to our shelter in Nkhatabay when Kabwila told me that they were all safe.

“You all did well. I am proud to call you my team.” Chirwa announced. “Food is on me tonight.” This is the first time I have seen her this free with us. “We are supposed to discuss the mission in detail. So I thought we should do it over food to celebrate.”

The waiter bot took all our orders and immediately brought back beverages. Kapito admitted to disobeying Chirwa’s orders. “I should have stuck to the plan. I think my nerves got the better of me. So I ran through the corridor I thought had fewer guards.”

“Stick to the plan next time.” Chirwa said.

“I definitely will.” He retorted. The evaluation took an hour and a half.

“Well we will have an opportunity to improve ourselves very soon.” Chirwa concluded. “A fortnight from now we will hit an HM facility in Rumphi. It’s a bigger facility so we will be working with another team.”

“So one of the guys, Kamlepo, from our team gave me a lift today. I should have refused but I was so tired, so a lift sounded like a good idea.”I said, resting my head on my pillow. “So during the ride he asked me to give him my name. What annoys me is the way he said it. He was all arrogant about it. I told him I won’t give him my name. He goes ‘how will I save your number in my phone then.”

“He has your number?” Vilelani asked, her fingers quickly gliding through her kinks manipulating them into small braids.

“No. That was his very clever way of getting it.”

“Your experience outside the wall is turning me into a misandrist.” Tali said as she threw herself on her bed.

“Wait, that’s not even the worse part. I didn’t respond to his comment about my number. He told me I am so hot. I winced. He goes ‘What? Not used to hearing men compliment you. I forgot you’ve never interacted with men before.’ I just kept quiet.”

“Urgh the nerve of this guy!” Vilelani exclaimed.

“He kept saying if a man sees something he likes, he says it. That ride was ten minutes but it was the longest ten minutes of my life.”

“You should tell your handler.” Vilelani suggested in her firm voice. “You are a team. What he is doing will mess with your team dynamic.”

“I can’t. Maybe if he does something else.”

“Be careful around him though.” Tali cautioned. I turned and lay on my right side. “Men like him remind me why Kaulimi was established.”

“Did I tell you the other day, I was walking home and there were these guys drinking liquor. My tatts were showing. One of them goes ‘that’s a beautiful K’limian.’ Then another says something about my physique that I can not repeat. I started walking briskly. Then I turned around and those men were following me; making lewd comments about my body still. One of them said “She’s a shy one.” And the other replied. ‘Its cause she has never been with a man.’ and he calls out to me ‘C’mon sweetheart, I will show what it’s like to be with a man.’ at this point I was running and I run all the way till I got home.”

“I remember something similar but not as extreme happened to me when I went to visit my Uncle in Salima. Me and my cousin were walking to the market. And our outfits were not provocative in any way. This guy starts hollering at us about how fine we are, how we shouldn’t be buying our vegetables that a man should buy it for us. We ignored him and he went on. We start to leave the market thinking he will stay there and he goes ‘I will follow you home’. I was so mad that I just burst out ‘Have you no shame! A married man like you hitting on girls young enough to be your daughters.”

My cousin joins in saying “I will tell your wife.”

He was so surprised. He asks. “You know my wife?”

“Of course we do,” I reply in the heat of the moment. “And your children.”

He starts mumbling apologies and asking us not to say anything and retreats like a scared dog.” Vilelani laughed. “At the end I ask my cousin if she actually knew his wife. She laughs no. She asked me how I knew he was married. I told her I just guessed.”

Talilo erected her hands, holding her palms straight.“If this is what life outside the wall is like outside the wall; I want no part in it.” She said moving her hands together then outwards.

“The crazy part is my cousin told me this usually happens,” Vilela said. “Not just to K’limians but to all women.”

“Really?” Tali remarked. “Why?

“Ama says it’s a way for weak men to feel powerful to feel like real men.” I replied.

“That’s Ludacris. How can you feel more powerful through objectifying another? You degrade yourself in the process to nothing more than an advanced animal who is governed by their desire to procreate.” Vilelani said.

“It’s sexual bullying. That’s what it is.” Talilo retorted. “I understand why Kaulimi founders separated themselves from men.” Ama came into the room to sleep so I had to vibe out.

I sprained my ankle during my jog. I was limping home slowly when Chiumya saw me.

“What happened?”

I told him. He put my arm around his shoulder to support me as I walked home. I thanked him.

“A few a months ago I sprained my ankle hiking. I had to limp all the way down the mountain. It was painful. By the time I got home my ankle was worse than when I sprained it.”

“Who goes hiking alone?”

“Someone who enjoys their own company a little too much.”

What was his real name? What was he like as a handler? He looked the tough no-nonsense sort.

“How is your lazy handleee? I don’t even know if that’s a word.” I said with a laugh.

“He improved after I spoke to him.” I wonder what he said in that talk. He had pulled his thick hair into four cornrows. What was it like losing both his limps? What nightmares did he have? How did he move on?

“So what’s the biggest challenge of staying here? Last we met you said this was the longest you stayed outside Kaulimi.”

Oh I was so lost in my thoughts. I must have seemed rude. “Dealing with catcalling and being hit on.”

His reply surprised me. “I am sorry about that. Odd enough some women like that.”

“I’ve seen some women smile back. I don’t get it. Why would you enjoy being objectified?”

“They see it as a compliment.”

“Can I ask this? Why? Why do you men do that?”

“To show off to other men and to feel macho. That’s why I used to do it.”

“You used to do it?” I gasped. I wish my tone had been more nonchalant. It betrayed my surprise and disappointment.

“When I was younger and foolish. I listened to music and watched shows that told that’s how you could be a man.”

Why was he confessing this to me? “I am glad you changed. I pity the men who still hold such misogynistic views of masculinity. This idea of the sexes needing each other to define the other is what gets us in this trap. Oh for you to be a man you need to sexualise women. Oh for you to be a woman men must desire you. This notion is flawed. It necessitates unhealthy dependence of the sexes identity systems.”

He chortled, “Of course you would say that.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Given your background it makes sense. You come from a society that is founded on the separation of the sexes.”

“And you think that’s wrong?”

“I think its misandrous.” He retorted. “The whole premise of Kaulimi is that men are wicked and women must flee from them. Therefore let’s build a province where no men are allowed.”

“Most men are! The refugees in Kaulimi are women and children running away from physically abusive husbands, paedophilic relations and some are just orphans looking for a foster system that works.” I snapped. “Some are rape victims trying to get away from a society that blames them for their attack.”

“Kaulimi made sense in the old days when they were sexist rituals. But most of those rituals have evolved or are discontinued. Now they are systems put in place to aid victims.”

I was about to reply when Anga’s front door opened. Chikondano was standing behind it.

“I was about to go look for you.” Chikondano said. “What happened?” I explained as he helped me inside.

“We were worried.” Anga said. Chikondano and Chiumya lowered me onto the couch Anga was sitting on. The area around the sprain was swollen now. Chikondano went to get an icepack.

“I have to go.” Chiumya said, once the icepack had been placed on my ankle.

“Go?” Anga repeated in a shocked tone. “We are about to have breakfast.”

“Thank you but I must…”

“How callous of you to deny us the honour of thanking you for helping our Ipyana.” Anganile protested, touching her chest with her palm to feign being offended. Chiumya had no choice but to stay.

thanks for reading, please click like if you enjoyed this chapter.

Also any predictions about Chiumya and Ipy's relationship?