SHOULD WE LISTEN TO HIM

Finishing matric has always been a major achievement for a kid, the parents, and the family. A celebration is always sacrosanct, whether it be with friends or family.

The four boys -Raz, Lior, Toma, and Tayla-who attended Mary School were gearing up for this matric celebration, spearheaded by the cool kids at the local club called “Champangyaaa.” They were never really popular at all; they were fairly normal school kids, not really known or unknown, just cool in their own way. They mostly kept to themselves, spending their school breaks playing soccer with the other kids from different grades on the courts. They rarely got approached by girls, except for Tayla, who had an aura that girls seemed to like.

They had finished writing exams on Monday, and on the matric WhatsApp group, the cool kids started organising a celebration to be held on Saturday at the club since they would all now be old enough to enter with IDs.

The four boys were excited about this. They were never really in touch with many people in their grade, but they felt it was only right to join and celebrate with the other kids. They felt they would show up and bow out properly on this occasion, and maybe,just maybe,have a pop at some of these girls.

During the week, they actually made a bet: whoever kissed a girl first would get a bottle sponsored by the other boys. They watched videos on how to be the star of the show at the club, shared ideas about how they needed to get a table, how they should dress, what time they should walk in, and their budget, etc. It was a new experience for them, but they were not nervous at all,they were energetic.

They had plans of going to the same college. They had all received provisional acceptance from the same college, so to them, they were not necessarily going to split up; they were going to be together for a long time. They had a very strong bond. They believed in the same things. The biggest part was that they shared a similar vision for their lives: getting a degree and conquering the world from that point onwards. They had very intellectual conversations together that got a tiny bit physical at times due to passion and clashes of ideas, but it was all because they wanted the best for each other. They were very opinionated and had a clear vision for their lives.

Scene 1

The club was about 25 minutes away from the meeting point they had agreed on. Lior was to pick up the other boys in the black Hyundai i10 his parents had bought him earlier that year as congratulations for making it to matric.

They all lived in close proximity to one another.

Before leaving his house, he got the other three boys on a WhatsApp call to warn them that he was about to leave. He warned all of them to be ready, threatening to leave them behind if they were not ready by the time he arrived outside their houses. He told them the order in which he would pick them up.

He was the only one with a car in the group, so he had that power when it came to transport and keeping time. He specifically targeted Raz during the call, telling him not to be late this time, as he usually was whenever they went on their weekly jogs over the weekend.

You could feel the excitement in the WhatsApp group call. Champangyaa was surely about to be a night to remember.

Scene 2

Everyone was on time. After picking up Raz, the car was filled with a great smell. The boys’ colognes were mixing, and the car smelled like a great blend of joy, excitement, and good vibes.

Toma and Tayla had a surprise for the boys. They had bought a bottle of Hennessy, and they announced it whilst they were on the way, once Raz had been picked up. Last time, Raz and Lior bought a bottle because Tayla and Toma were broke, so this surprise felt fitting. What better time to surprise the gang?

They suggested taking shots before they entered the club, a little pregame. Lior, being a responsible driver and person, emphasised that it should only be opened once they had parked the car outside the club and he was no longer driving.

After this conclusion, they played loud music on their way to the club and spoke about their plan once they entered the club for the first time in their lives, commenting on each other’s fashion, hairstyles, and everything else-hyping each other up.

Scene 3

Stepping Out, Taking Pre-Shots

Once the car was parked, none of the boys stepped out for a good minute. Everyone stared out of the car windows, appreciating the venue. Champangyaa was huge; it even had a rooftop.

The rooftop was filled with people who looked older, and none of the boys spotted any of their classmates up there. They figured that this was territory they should not enter. After one minute, filled with amusement, Raz calmly said,

“Eh, eh, check Yaya’s Porsche. He really brought it like he promised.”

They then spent about ten minutes sitting in the car, talking about where they were and what their eyes were witnessing: the ostentatious way people were dressed as they entered and exited Champangyaa, the glistening watches, the pitch-black shades shouting, “YOU CAN’T SEE MY EYES,” the large, joyous, childish crowds of people, and the gorgeous women who made them appreciate God’s imagination and creation.

They were definitely intimidated. They were not scared; rather, it was simply a new environment for them. They didn’t quite know how to handle themselves.

Tayla eventually stepped out and shouted to the boys,

“Get the Hennessy out. Let’s take two rounds of shots, and then we launch ourselves into this so-called ‘Champangyaa.’”

Lior stepped out with the Hennessy, and Toma held the small paper cups designated for the shots. All four boys stood outside, far from the entrance, ready to take the Hennessy shots and let the night begin.

Lior shook the bottle as if he were trying to entice the boys. The others started rubbing their hands together and chatting amongst themselves.

Lior started pouring the first shot when they heard a man, about two metres away, scream,

“THAT HENNESSY IS FAKE!”

Scene 4

Dressed in rather semi-formal attire- black pants, a white polo shirt, and boat shoes-the man walked up to the boys.

He explained to them that he noticed the Hennessy was fake from the way they had shaken it. It was a counterfeit. He shook it again and showed them that it had bubbles, which real Hennessy does not.

The boys felt ashamed and belittled, but he humbly comforted them by letting them know that this was common nowadays.

He revealed that he bootlegged counterfeit alcohol to black-market sellers, and that was why he was able to identify it.

Upon revealing this, he noticed that he had their attention and sprang into a wise and philosophical conversation with the boys.

For a brief moment, he was their big brother, a leader, a Roman Empire. He had saved them from drinking counterfeit alcohol, so why wouldn’t they keep quiet for a minute and let the man’s wisdom flow from his mouth into their delicate consciousness?

They spoke on various topics such as purpose for a young man their age, the world, teamwork, business, and how the world actually works.

He said so many prophetic and impactful things, each of which the boys internalised in that exact moment. They were so glued to his words. It was clear as day why they had been excellent students.

Some of the impactful ideas and words were:

“Always remain low-key if you can. Remain an equal to everyone. Never place yourself below or above anyone, for that is how you connect with and meet important people in your life.”

“Make allies, not enemies, for enemies will cause you trouble, but allies can be God’s hand working mysteriously.”

“Religion is not about who is right or who is wrong. It’s about grouping people together to serve something bigger than themselves so that, as a collective and an entity, they improve themselves. Religion is about creating a team. That’s why some people who believe in a certain religion seem to go further than others. It is supposed to humble its people and help them realise that everyone is working for the benefit of something bigger than themselves-zero ego.”

“Every single person you see walking near you has value. You can help them, and they can help you. Once you internalise that, your network will expand and make you wealthier.”

“Become very intricate in your studies. Be an academic, for it will increase your chances of success and give you more power over your own life. Being technical and academic helps you understand how to work and complete tasks.”

In the midst of these conversations, a man randomly walked up to the five of them. He initially greeted the four boys with handshakes, and after shaking each of their hands, he would say,

“My name is cow”

He wore a big smile every time he said it.

When he got to the wise man, he repeated the same routine, but their handshake was much warmer, louder, and stronger. They then exchanged numbers and planned to meet the following day, right in front of the boys, who were very confused.

Once the man had left, the wise man explained that it had actually been a drug transaction. During the handshake, he had slipped some cocaine into the other man’s hand.

He explained to the boys that this was how he met people in high places. The code word was “my name is cow.” All the wise man had to do was make himself available within the vicinity of the customer and continue saying “my name is cow” until he met the right person.

Once the transaction was complete, the wise man shook each of the boys’ hands and gave them his business card with his phone number.

This left the boys in total shock. They couldn’t believe what they had just witnessed.

Scene 5

The boys entered the club.

Everyone in their matric grade gracefully greeted them with celebratory handshakes, warm hugs, and loud laughs.

Whilst standing at their table with their dumpies, Toma looked at the wise man’s phone number on the business card and whispered to Raz,

“Should we really listen to him?”