The early morning sun beams its warm-filled rays across Johannesburg and the lands of District 9. It was a beautiful morning, considering that it was Sunday, and most Poleepkwa slept in a little longer than usual. No work and no school. The younglings get to spend the whole day playing with their friends or just simply spending more time with their family.
It has been a week since David last saw his younger brother. He missed Aaron so much that every morning of the past week, he would wake up and be reminded of his absence feeling utterly alone. Having to care for the youngling was difficult for him, only because he had no choice. He wondered how Christopher managed Oliver on his own, with no help of a mate.
Working double shifts for a whole week was brutal for him. His entire body ached with exhaustion, but he managed to get through without any serious injuries. The fatigue was also due to the lack of sleep. The nights are always hauntingly cold and restless.
David looked around the interior of the shack. What a shithole they called home. He wished that the MNU weren't such assholes to keep the Poleepkwa from having a better life. Even the smallest offers that were promised to them were never given. If he could, he would kill them all for murdering his parents. They were innocent and had nothing to do with starting the riot. Many Poleepkwa were shot down in cold blood by the MNU soldiers. They thought it was necessary to stop the riot between the humans and the Poleepkwa.
After David had cleaned the shack, he walked over to Christopher's place. He arrived to find that they were already awake, of course. The younglings were taking their hot bath while Christopher prepared cooked juicy steaks.
"Join us for breakfast!" Christopher offered to David when the red Poleepkwa approached the shack through the open doorway.
"David!" Aaron squealed happily and nearly jumped out of the small tub. However, David caught him before he could fall into the dirt floor. Aaron wrapped his dripping wet arms around David's neck, clinging to him tightly.
"I missed you, brother," Aaron said to him. It was heartwarming for David to hear those words.
"I missed you too, Aaron," David replied and held Aaron close to him. Then he set him gently into the small tub. After that, Aaron and Oliver resumed to their playing.
David walked over to Christopher and asked, "How was he with you?"
"Aaron is a good kid. He gave me no trouble, and he is doing very well in school." Christopher answered.
"That is good to know. Is there anything else I should know?"
"Aaron has made a new friend. An older Poleepkwa, I believe."
An older Poleepkwa? David thought. He grew a little paranoid knowing that some Poleepkwan gang members were known to persuade younglings as young as Aaron to join their gang. So many young, naïve Poleepkwan gang members think they can go around at night, wielding their weapons like they own the place and mingling with the Nigerians like they are their friends. They claim that they're making District 9 a better place for their fellow brethren when they only make matters worse between the Poleepkwa and the humans.
"This Poleepkwa wouldn't happen to be part of the Poleepkwan gang, would he?" David asked.
"I don't believe so. You should ask Aaron. Maybe he will tell you more about his new friend."
"I will ask him about it when we leave."
David pulled out a roll of cash and handed it to Christopher. He gave David a questioning look and eyed the cash.
"This is to help you with Aaron." David said, "It must be hard for you to care for two younglings on your own."
Christopher slowly shook his head and gave the roll of cashback to David. "There is no need for you to give me extra money for Aaron. I can manage fine with two younglings. Save your money in case you need it in the near future."
David wanted to protest but merely took back the cash without saying another word. He had learned not to argue with Christopher since he is one of the last surviving leaders of all Poleepkwan elders. Christopher was always there to help him when he needed it, and he was grateful for that.
When the younglings were done taking their hot bath, Christopher had finished cooking their steaks for breakfast. They gathered and ate around the old, creaky bench. The younglings chattered excitedly about school. They only had another week of school left until their month in a half break. It was always during that time when David would often worry about Aaron. Sure he left him with Oliver, but the thought of having two younglings left alone at home bothered him the most.
David remembered as a youngling when his parents would leave him in the shack with his best friend, Seth. During that time, he lived near the Nigerian compound, where they often heard shouting, cheering, gunfire, and sometimes screaming. David and Seth wandered away from the noise and played for endless hours near the rubble. Then, one day they decided to sneak into the Nigerian compound just out of curiosity. What David had witnessed still haunts him to this day.
Aaron brought him out of his thoughts by tapping his arm, trying to get his attention.
"David. Did you hear what I said?"
David gazed down at Aaron. Their jade green eyes connect. "No. What did you say?"
"I asked you when we are leaving."
"Soon! Are you done eating?"
David watched Aaron stuff the last piece of steak in his mouth. After he got done, he looked up at David and smiled with his little mandibles dripping with grease and saliva. The look on Aaron's face reminded David of their father, the same joyful look his father used to give to him when he got home from work. Aaron had more of his father's features, making it hard for David to even look at him. Aaron seemed so happy for some reason. He wasn't usually this happy when school was almost over. David knew how much Aaron loved school. He wondered if it had anything to do with his new friend, whoever he was.
"Go get a rag and wipe your face," David said.
Aaron obediently went to get a wet rag while David waited. When Aaron finished, he chewed on the rag. Finally, Oliver reached out and took the rag from Aaron.
"Wait for me, Aaron!" he said and wiped his face off. After he was done, Aaron snatched the rag from him and chewed on it. Oliver grabbed the rag and tried to pull it away from Aaron. Christopher and David watched the younglings play tug of war with the wet rag. They didn't feel the need to interfere since they weren't fighting.
"What do you plan to do today?" Christopher asked David.
"Anything that has nothing to do with lifting," David replied, caressing his sore arms.
"Have you thought about getting another job?"
David peered at the ground, narrowing his eyes. "You are not the first to ask that question."
"I only ask because I'm concerned for you."
"You should not be concerned for me. I'm fine."
"You don't look fine."
David turned his head to look at Christopher. "I'm trying to do my best for Aaron to have a better life."
"Maybe you are trying a little too hard," Christopher said, placing his hand on his shoulder. "You should rest."
They watched Aaron chase Oliver outside through the open doorway. Oliver had the rag and held it high triumphantly. Aaron was tempted to tackle him down and jumped on his back. Amazingly, Oliver kept running and held the rag close to his chest when Aaron tried to swipe it over his head. Oliver ran in circles, trying to make Aaron dizzy. It worked, although he became dizzy as well and collapsed on his stomach with Aaron still holding onto his back.
David walked over and picked them off the ground. Oliver brushed off the gravel with the damp rag, not caring that it was covered in Aaron's saliva.
"Are we leaving now?" Aaron asked, gazing up at David.
"Yes. Unless you want to stay a little longer and play."
"No. I had enough of Oliver for a week!" Aaron said sarcastically, giving Oliver a playful shove. Oliver stumbled backward and rolled, pretending to be shoved forcefully.
"I'll get my revenge when you come back!" Oliver sneered at Aaron and ran inside. David watched him stop at the doorway and wave goodbye to them. They waved back and began walking back to their shack.
As they walked back home, David was about to ask Aaron something when he heard Oliver shout out, "Wait!"
They both stopped and turned to face Oliver.
"What is it?" David asked.
"Aaron forgot …something!"
"What did you forget?" he asked, peering curiously at Aaron. He noticed Aaron fidgeting nervously, and he quickly replied, "I'll be right back!"
David watched the younglings in a distance chatter amongst themselves in a low tone as if their discussion was about something secretive. He wanted to get closer, to hear what they were talking about, but he couldn't. Every so often, they were looking back at him as if to make sure he stayed where he stood. The fact that they were hiding something from him made him wonder if they were also hiding it from Christopher. He was becoming angry and impatient without knowing why. Their secret could be something petty, not worth getting angry over. It was normal for younglings to share secrets among their friends.
The younglings dispersed after they ended their conversation. Oliver went walked back home, and Aaron trotted back to David. He gazed up at him as if expecting to be questioned about what they discussed. Instead, David only glared at him and continued walking. That was his way of showing Aaron that he needed to cool down first. Aaron followed but kept his distance from David. They were silent for the rest of the way back home.
David managed to calm down after the bitter silence. He stopped in front of the shack and waited for Aaron to catch up. He knew that Aaron had learned to keep his distance when his temper would flare-up. So instead, Aaron approached cautiously and stood beside him, giving him the cute expression equivalent to the look of a sad, begging puppy.
David hated it when he gave him that look. It always made him feel bad.
"Don't give me that look." He said in a somewhat demanding tone.
"Are you still mad?" Aaron asked, sounding a little pitiful, making David feel even worse.
"No. I'm not mad anymore."
"Did you miss me?"
"Of course I did. Did you not hear me say I missed you too?"
"I did. I just wanted to hear it again."
David opened the door, letting Aaron go in first. After closing the door, he saw that Aaron had taken notice that the once cluttered shithole had now become a clean, organized shithole.
"Where are your tools?" Aaron asked. He usually used his tools as toys to play with.
"I put them away in that toolbox, over there," David said, pointing to the toolbox hidden under the rubble of kitchen utensils. Aaron went over to the toolbox and carefully took everything off, placing them aside.
"Christopher tells me you have a new friend," David said as he sat down by the table.
"Yes," was Aaron's simple reply as he opened the toolbox and went through each tool.
"He also tells me that he is an older friend." He said, hoping that Aaron would tell him more.
"She!" Aaron abruptly replied.
"What?" David asked, a little confused about his quick reply. He wasn't sure if he heard that right. She? Poleepkwa was only referred to as males unless they took the maternal role of having their eggs fertilized, regardless of what gender the names they were issued.
"She!" Aaron repeated.
David was sure he heard that correct and asked, "What is her name?"
Aaron paused and turned to meet David's gaze. "Sequoya!" he replied and quickly grabbed the selected tools from the toolbox and closed it.
"Sequoya?" David murmured to himself. "MNU can surely come up with the strangest names to give a Poleepkwa."
He didn't notice Aaron's nervous reaction to his last statement.
"Tell me more about Sequoya."
Aaron set the tools in front of him, facing David, and sat down on the ground.
"She is very kind."
"And?"
David waited for him to say more, but Aaron toyed with the tools without saying another word, making him grow a little suspicious.
"She better not be a Poleepkwan gang member."
Aaron's head shot up in distraught that David would make such an accusation. "No!" he answered, "She is not a Poleepkwan gang member! She would never join a bunch of misfits."
"Good!" David abruptly replied, "But why won't you tell me more about her?"
"It's complicated."
"How is it complicated?" he asked, this time more concerned.
"You would not understand."
"Why? Do you think I don't care?"
Aaron sighed and shook his head no.
"Then what?" he snapped, "I hate it when you don't tell me everything."
"You mean when I don't tell you what you want to hear!" Aaron snapped but quickly cowered back when David shot up from his seat.
"That is not what I mean!"
"What do you mean?"
"I know you are hiding something from me. There is something about your friend that you don't want to tell me. Why is that, Aaron?"
"Don't get mad, David." Aaron pleaded and cowered further back.
David stepped back, trying to calm himself down, and stormed off into the next room. The smaller room where they slept in. He sat on the rugged, stained mattress, still steaming about Aaron keeping secrets from him. He wondered what the big deal was. It wouldn't matter to him if it had anything to do with this Poleepkwa working for the MNU. A Poleepkwa would take any job to support their family, even if it was with the people they hate most.
Aaron stayed where he was and picked up the tools in front of him. He had done his best not to give out too much information about Sequoya. However, not knowing how to explain it to him without getting angry was the hardest part. He didn't like keeping secrets from David because he was too perceptive. Eventually, he knew that he would find out, but he didn't want him to. At least, not right now.
He placed the tools back in the toolbox when he didn't feel like playing with them anymore. He wanted to go outside and get away from the shack for a while. He was about to walk out the door when David called for him. Reluctantly, he turned back and walked into the next room.
"What?" he asked, sounding a little annoyed.
"I want to know something about your friend."
"Okay."
"What makes her so kind?"
"She makes me feel happy and safe. Like we are equal."
"Equal? As in a grown-up."
Aaron nodded his head, even though he meant that Sequoya had not treated him any different for being a Poleepkwa. He replied, "Yes. Something like that."
"How many younglings does she have?"
"She has no younglings."
"Oh!" David looked at the ground as if in deep thought. Aaron went over to sit beside him and peered up at him. Something was on David's mind.
"What are you thinking about?" Aaron asked curiously.
David turned to meet his gaze. Their jade green eyes look at each other.
"I was just thinking about what might have happened to her younglings. If they were taken from her or slaughtered for being unregistered."
David's sudden empathy for his friend was beginning to confuse him. He had never seen the look of pity in his eyes the way he spoke about the younglings she's never had.
"David? She does not have any younglings. At least, not that I know of."
"Does she have a mate?"
Aaron raised a brow at him, not knowing where this conversation was going.
"Why?" he asked.
"Just curious."
"I don't think she has one. I think I would have met him by now if she did. Why do you want to know that?"
"I'm just curious."
Aaron looked away from him, unconvinced that he was just 'curious.'
"What does she look like?" David asked.
Aaron turned his head to look up at him. He didn't know what to say or describe Sequoya without giving away conspicuous human features. He made a quick reply when he noticed David's impatience.
"She is brown."
"You need to be more specific than that."
"Okay." Aaron looked away, hoping that David wouldn't notice his nervousness. But then he thought of a better way to describe her without giving away her true form. "She is brownish tan with long black …antennas. And she has brown eyes. Almost like Christopher's eyes, but darker."
Aaron noticed David's antennas twitching when he described her non-human features. The twitching of the antennas is a sign of danger or excitement to the Poleepkwa. Aaron had explained this before to Sequoya when she asked why his antennas moved erratically. So he could guess that David had been excited to hear about Sequoya's fake Poleepkwa features. He wanted to burst out laughing at him but remained quiet.
"I'd like to meet her. You should introduce us sometime soon."
"I would like to, but ….. Can you promise me something first?"
"Yes. What is it?"
"Will you promise not to get mad?"
He saw that David had a questioning look on his face.
"Why would I get mad?"
"I will promise to show you the answer when you meet her, only if you promise not to get mad."
David gave him a long, hard stare before answering, "I can't promise you something I can't control, but if it makes you happy, I will do my best not to get mad."
"Okay!" Aaron said and got off the mattress. He turned back to look at David and asked, "Can we go to the park today?"
"Later after I get my rest."
Aaron nodded his head in agreement and left David to rest up before they set out to the park for the day. He hoped that David would stay true to his word. No matter how excited he would be to meet Sequoya, Aaron knew that excitement could turn to rage in an instant. He began to wonder if it was a mistake to make an arrangement for them to meet.
Only in time will he find out.