"Dubai is the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, which is one of the seven Emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE): Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah, we'll be looking at only one of these Emirates ", spoke Miss. Buhle as she expressed her love for her job with her teaching techniques and the constant smile on her face. She turned off the lights and turned on the projector in the class as she showed them a short documentary on Dubai, it's Landmarks and the people in it. It was so beautiful honestly but it was too expensive to attend as an excursion. Through everything since the shock, Aisha had been spaced out and is still spaced out. She was wondering What a sixteen year old girl do in her case because that's how old she was.Aisha didn't speak to anyone at school, not even Grace. She was so lost in thinking about what she had heard earlier today. Even during extra lessons, Aisha was spaced out. After lessons she went to pick her younger siblings from their school still spaced out. She soon snapped out of it when she noticed that for a long time, there had been footsteps behind her and her siblings. She started pulling her siblings to walk faster and she walked at their backs. She soon started praying with Psalms 91, "Whoever goes to the Lord for safety,whoever remains under the protection of the Almighty,2 can say to him, "You are my defender and protector, You are my God; in you I trust."3 He will keep you safe from all hidden dangers and from all deadly diseases,4 He will cover you with his wings;you will be safe in his care;his faithfulness will protect and defend you.5 You need not fear any dangers at night or sudden attacks during the day 6 or the plagues that strike in the dark or the evils that kill in daylight.7 A thousand may fall dead beside you,ten thousand all around you, but you will not be harmed. 8 You will look and see how the wicked are punished. 9 You have made the Lord your defender,the Most High your protector,10 and so no disaster will strike you, no violence will come near your home 11 God will put his angels in charge of you to protect you wherever you go. 12 They will hold you up with their hands to keep you from hurting your feet on the stones. 13 You will trample down lions and snakes, fierce lions and poisonous snakes.14 God says, "I will save those who love me and will protect those who acknowledge me as Lord 15 When they call to me, I will answer them when they are in trouble, I will be with them. I will rescue them and honor them.16 I will reward them with long life; I will save them."
Before she had finished, she noticed that the footsteps had left their backs. Her siblings kept wondering what she was muttering the whole time because she didn't speak very loudly. When they got home there was nothing to eat and their parents weren't at home though Aisha was so sure that she had heard Mr. Chikondi's voice when they passed by a bar close by on their way home. She don't even say about it no more she be like, "guys, I will go upstairs now, you guys stay down here and finish up your homework if you have any, um...", she was cut short by Vreugde,"but we already did our homework during lesson, why is there no food in the house and where is ma and Pa?... aren't you going to cook for as the way you do whenever thes happens". Aisha was shocked, this never happens, either Mrand Mrs Waarheid were always home by the time they got back from school on Fridays and there was food available even if it was just Braai but she knew better than to argue with Vreugde. She started thinking hard about what to do, she needed to distract her younger siblings downstairs as she has something important to do upstairs without the disturbance of the likes of Vreugde. "didnt yoar lesson teacher give you homework....just stay here and wait for Pa and ma", Aisha shouted with fake disgust plastered on her face, she went up the stairs quickly and with each step she took, the music from Gugulethu's room got louder, "he must have been watching TikTok till sleep again", Aisha thought as the music from his room was foreign. It was Joy is coming by Fido on repeat. Aisha soon realized that Vreugde was following her up the stairs, she couldn't send her back downstairs as Vreugde was always angry and it might have led to a serious argument. She couldn't do what she wanted to do when she got upstairs. Aisha went to Gugulethu's room and knocked after which she screamed at the top of her voice for him to turn off the music as the rest of his siblings were at home that the music was too loud. She then went to her room where Vreugde was already taking off her school clothes humming 'Today' by Grace Isabelle. Her best friend had taught her the song in school yesterday and the song just fit in perfectly for right now. She was hungry and tired, she just shifted the heap of clothes on the mattress she shared with Aisha and her youngest sister Skoonheid and jumped on the bed , she soon fell asleep. Aisha on the other hand all this while was going through her notes as she wasn't listening in class all day. She soon fell asleep and was awoken by several whips of the cane later that day. It was 9:38pm and Mr and Mrs Waarheid had arrived home and met the rest of their children starving and Aisha and Vreugde sleeping upstairs. Gugulethu was especially angry but he couldn't go into the girls room and trust me he called Aisha's name severally but alas she was in her own world; He knew better than to wake Vreugde up. Both Geliefde and Skoonheid were wailing downstairs because they were hungry and the only thing Gugulethu could prepare was pap but he could only find frozen chicken in the freezer, the rest he couldn't recognize.He eventually gave up calling Aisha and brought his phone downstairs and handed it over to Geliefde and Skoonheid which shut them up until their parents arrived and this time, they were both drunk.
Masego flogged Aisha until her whole body was swollen and she started limping and then she went to the kitchen to prepare potjiekos for the whole family except Aisha. Aisha slept that night with bruises, a limp, inhaling the delicious smell of potjiekos, and hunger. Days like these were hard to find in the Waarheid's mansion but they existed. Vreugde could hardly sleep with the sound of Aisha's sobbing that night plus she had already slept earlier in the day while Skoonheid slept like a baby. Just before midnight, on 1st October,2025 Aisha swore to run away from that house . As Aisha was now useless, Masego did everything that Aisha usually did for as long as everyone could remember which was taking care of the entire household the next day and now today is Sunday Aisha can't go to Church and all she has been eating since her limp is Mahangu soup, its made from pearl millet. It was like more punishment to Aisha as she had to pee a lot and she had been eating no solid food while smelling the delicious food that Masego had been preparing for the rest of the family. She couldn't go to school on Monday as the limp and pains were still sharp but she had time to plot her escape and as soon as the limp was gone and her body was no longer swollen, she would run away for good. Aisha didn't have a phone and so there was no way she could contact anyone but Vreugde did and she took it to school everyday even though it was against the school and home rules to do that.
"Aisha Waarheid...Aisha Waarheid", called out the teacher at the beginning of the day to take the attendance. "she is not in school today" answered Grace from the back of the class looking worried. Michael and Amandia kept looking around the class to see if they would find Aisha by chance. If there was anything Amandia learnt by being friends with Aisha for the short period that they were friends for, it's that Aisha loves school and she wouldn't miss it for anything in the world. Daisy saw Michael looking around for Aisha and started screaming to the teacher, "she misses school like this all the time miss, it's no big deal". Nobody defended her cos it was harmful to argue with Daisy. Grace thought of visiting Aisha but she didn't know her house. The day went on as usual and at the end of the day,she begged her homeroom teacher for Aisha's phone number but when she called, it was the voice of a drunk old man babbling nonsense that she heard; She immediately cut the call and lost the number.
Tuesday went just like Monday except, it was now established that Aisha was a truant as the school didn't receive any note or phone call from her parents. Today is Wednesday and Aisha decides to put her plan into action, her limp was now gone and she put her plan in motion. She waited until everyone had left the house, then she snuck into Masego's room. She searched the room carefully until she found a small phone. She opened it and copied a phone number with a pen into the paper she was holding after which she quietly left the room. She studied the phone number, it was foreign. When it was close to school closing hour, she put on her school uniform, took her purse and left for school. She got to school before closing time and waited for the students to come out and then she saw Amandia. Amandia ran and hugged Aisha when she saw her from the front of the school building. "Aisha why haven't you been in school, I was worried sick…and so was Michael", said Amandia. "Wait Michael…," Aisha replied after a short pause. "yeah Michael…he was looking around the class for you when you weren't in school until Daisy told the whole class to shut the fuck up in her own dumb language of course…lets just say the school thinks you're a truant because of Daisy", replied Amandia with a tint of disgust on her face when she was talking about Daisy, "eh truant, me…they could have checked my past records, how can they believe that bimbo , said Aisha angrily. "Anyways, why weren't you in school Aisha, I tried to collect your phone number from the school to ask about your well being but I heard the voice of a middle aged man instead…he sounded drunk in fact", said Amandia. Aisha then told Amandia her ordeal, all she went through and what she heard on the 1st of October 2025 while they walked out of the school gate to where Amanda was leading them. They soon got to a small store where phones were sold. Amandia led them both into the store, went to the iPhone isle and picked up an iPhone 6, brought out a blue card and paid for the phone. They sat down on the chairs in the store as they waited for the phone to be set up.