Invitations

Tristin arrived home after a quick stop at the mall; he needed a new white school shirt. Since it was just past 5 p.m., Grandma was in the kitchen preparing dinner, as usual, the radio playing and Grandma humming to every song.

Tristin went to greet his grandma and talked a bit with her but as soon his grandma started to talk about Buhle, Tristin made an excuse and went to his room

Arriving in his room; as soon as he entered, he threw himself on his bed after dropping his backpack on the wooden floor. He took a deep breath as he sighed, recalling all the events of the day, from the call butler Steven made to being hit by lightning. "It sure was a rough day, but I feel a bit stronger than I did yesterday. If only I could understand what is happening, what's the point of having a power I can't even use?" He said to himself as he took his phone and looked at it.

"I wonder if Lerato is doing okay after what happened to the Ngobeni family and the Black Phoenix gang. Hopefully, Thomas's father doesn't take it out on her." He murmured before he fell asleep from exhaustion.

Tristin's Grandma came to wake him up when it was time for dinner. During dinner, Grandma kept pressuring Tristin to make a move on Buhle. Since Tristin kept nodding without giving her a direct response, he didn't trust Buhle yet.

After dinner, Tristin helped with the dishes and took a shower. After texting with Lerato a bit, he went to bed.

The next day, he did his morning routine and went to school. As soon as the students saw his blue Ferrari, they cleared a path for him.

"Did you see what he did to Sammy? You really don't want to anger this guy; he'll destroy you. Just move out of the way and make sure that you don't touch his car at all." Students began to warn each other as they saw Tristin parking his car in his usual spot.

"Did he really cause all those dark clouds yesterday? There was even a lightning strike in the parking lot yesterday." One girl asked, looking at Tristin who was sitting in his car.

"That's just lies. No one can summon lightning." Another girl snorted.

Tristin got out of the car as he took a deep breath. "The air in Bongsburg sure does feel heavy with smoke," he thought, recalling what Miss Megan said about the coal mines in Bongsburg.

"Oh my God, he's more handsome than yesterday." One girl screamed, and the others began to look at Tristin with eyes filled with love.

Tristin didn't know that the lightning yesterday did more than stabilize his energy; it also cleaned the toxins from his meridians. As a result, he was more handsome and glowing, his eyes clear, and his mixed racial complexion even lighter than before.

As Tristin was minding his business, listening to the screams from girls and seeing their gazes as they kept stealing quick glances, Mdu appeared in front of him.

"Tristin, what are you? I saw everything that happened to you yesterday." He asked as soon as he stepped in front of Tristin, his eyes narrowed.

"What is Mdu thinking? Is he trying to get close to Tristin since now he knows no one in this school is stronger than Tristin?" Students began to ask themselves as they saw Mdu stopping Tristin in his tracks.

"Mdu, you keep popping up now and then. What is your deal? Should I start paying attention to you now?" Tristin asked, his eyes narrowed as he looked at Mdu from head to toe.

"Hey man, I'm just a curious guy. I mean no harm." Mdu said as he raised his hands.

"Hmmm, so you say, but your actions say something else." Tristin said, still narrowing his eyes at Mdu. "Guys like him are more dangerous than Thomas. Mdu has opened four qi energy channels, and he's even stronger than Lerato, but he's so low-key." He thought as he looked at Mdu.

"Please don't get me wrong, man. I just came here to invite you, actually. After I told my father about your fight with the Black Phoenix gang, my father wants to meet you." He said with a smile, his eyes wide open.

"Who's your father?" Tristin asked, his eyes narrowing even further. "I just need a name, then Mr. Masombuka will look into them." He thought.

Mdu closed his eyes a bit, he smiled with admiration. "My father is one of the Phantom Five, probably the strongest in the Five, Rudolf Nkosi."

Rudolf Nkosi is the name of the guy who gave a call to Thomas's father yesterday just to laugh at him.

Tristin tilted his head a bit and looked at Mdu, who was all smiles. "Your father is also one of the Phantom Five; I didn't know that there were two of the five strongest guys on the west side of Bongsburg." He said, looking at Mdu with his eyebrows rose.

"Not at all. Each side of Bongsburg has someone who is in the Phantom Five. The west has Raymond, the leader of the Black Phoenix gang, and the north has my father, Rudolf Nkosi." Mdu said, his eyes wide open, his arms behind his back.

"So each side has one strong guy. It's like they balance each other. I wonder what would happen when I disrupt the balance of power in Bongsburg." Tristin wondered in his thoughts before he asked Mdu, "So what does your father want with me?"

"That I don't know. I guess you will find out when you meet him." Mdu said, shaking his head.

"Alright then. If that's the case, he will have to wait till I have time." Tristin said, then walked past Mdu like he was just a telephone post.

Mdu turned around and looked at Tristin's back. "Tristin, my father is an impatient man. If he summons you, no one can say no or maybe later." Mdu warned.

Tristin stopped; Mdu smiled a bit, thinking he had got Tristin's attention. "And I'm not someone who can be pushed around. If your father wants to see me, he will have to make an appointment first." Tristin said without looking back, his voice cold.

After that, Tristin continued on his track to the main entrance of the school. Mdu gritted his teeth as he looked at Tristin. "My father doesn't have soft bones like the Ngobeni and the Black Phoenix gang." He murmured, looking at Tristin.

Tristin walked through the main gate as he scanned his student ID card under everyone's gaze as they kept talking about the fight between Tristin and the Phoenix gang. As he walked to his classroom, Tristin learned that Thomas had skipped school again. "I guess he thinks I will beat him up or something." He thought as he shook his head.

"Tristin, wait up." A voice of a young woman yelled behind Tristin as he was about to enter the classroom.

Tristin turned around and saw Lerato running toward him. Tristin marveled when he saw her. Today, Lerato was extra beautiful. She had styled her hair into braids and tied them into a pigtail, showcasing her delicate face. Her black uniform skirt was a bit tight, and as she ran, it slowly rode up. Luckily, she wore black stockings with white short socks, matching her shirt.

"Wow, Lerato sure is a beauty," Tristin thought as his mouth slowly opened. "Hey, Lerato, you look beautiful," he complimented.

"Stop that." Lerato said with a smile as her face turned red. She shook her head. "Tristin, there's no time for that. It's bad." She said, her eyes narrowed.

"Huh." Tristin looked at her as he raised his eyebrow. "What's bad? Don't tell me you're pregnant. We didn't do it yet, or did I miss something?" he asked, looking at Lerato with a bit of a frown.

Lerato looked at Tristin with narrowed eyes as she curled her lips. "What are you talking about? I'm still a virgin. Anyway, like I said, there's no time for that now." She said, looking at Tristin as she bit her nails.

Tristin scratched his head a bit. "Grandma has been talking about babies the entire dinner last night. She must have traumatized me. Who in their right mind would even try Lerato? They would die before even saying one word." He thought as he smiled at Lerato. "What's up then? Is it Thomas's father?"

"No, Thomas's father is nothing. It's my father. He wants to meet you. He kept talking about you last night. I think he's serious." Lerato said, biting her nail and looking down.

"Is he on your side or Thomas's side?" Tristin asked as he narrowed his eyes. "Mdu's father wants to see me, and Lerato's father too…" Tristin thought.

"My father doesn't like Thomas, so you don't have to worry about that. He wants to meet you because of our relationship." Lerato said, looking at Tristin in the eyes.

"Well, I will eventually meet the rest of the Ngobeni family soon enough." He thought before saying, "Sure, no problem. I can meet him." He smiled at her.

Seeing Tristin smiling and relaxed, Lerato frowned a bit. "Tristin, this is serious. My father only respects the strong. I'm sure he will test you." She said with a frown on her face.

Tristin placed his hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eyes. "Relax, I'm not weak. So your father will like me." Tristin said with a smile as he thought, "I've gotten so strong lately. I don't think I'll lose to anyone."

Seeing Tristin and Lerato being intimate in public, boys who had thoughts about Lerato snorted, while the girls who had some ideas about Tristin felt their hearts sink.

"Alright then." She said as she thought, "Why am I worried? This guy took a lightning strike direct." She reassured herself.

"Let's go to class. We have Megan in the first period. You know how she is." He said as he grabbed her hand and walked to class.

As Lerato and Tristin entered the classroom, a Rolls Royce Ghost parked at the main entrance of the gate. A few students were still outside, and the rest were in class since classes would begin in a few minutes.

The door of the Rolls Royce opened, and butler Mabena stepped out, heading to the small security house near the main entrance of the school.

"Isn't that butler Mabena, the steward of the Ngobeni family? Is he here for that security guard?" One student asked, looking at the main entrance as he went to his class.

"Yeah, it is him. I once saw him when my father took me to dinner at the Ngobeni residence. I wonder what he wants with the security guard. I know he can fight, but I'm sure he is not as strong as the Azure Dragon." Another guy said, biting his thumbnail.

As the students wondered what butler Mabena wanted from Mr. Masombuka, the bell rang, and they rushed to their classes. Butler Mabena gently knocked at the door of the security house.

"Can I help you?" A deep voice asked after opening the door.

"You must be Mr. Masombuka. I'm Mr. Mabena, the steward of the Ngobeni family." Butler Mabena said, looking at Mr. Masombuka in the eyes. "He's taller and more muscular than in his picture," butler Mabena thought.

With the influence of the Ngobeni family, butler Mabena had obtained all the information about Mr. Masombuka with ease. But he didn't know that Mr. Masombuka had created a new identity with the resources of Tristin's father. The Ngobeni family is not strong enough to bypass Tristin's father; only Buhle had the real info about Tristin and Mr. Masombuka right now.

Mr. Masombuka looked at butler Mabena from head to toe. "He has opened only five meridian channels at his age; he doesn't have talent." Mr. Masombuka thought as he asked again, "Still, can I help you?" His voice cold.

"This guy is arrogant. He's just a security guard. Doesn't he know that strength alone is not enough? Powerful people are the ones with influence and money." He thought. "Mr. Ngobeni wants a word with you. We have already said hello to your supervisor, so you don't have to worry about your work." Butler Mabena snorted coldly.

"And if I refuse?" Mr. Masombuka asked with a smile. "I've got to hand it to the young master; everything is going according to his plan," he thought as he looked at butler Mabena.

"The master doesn't want to fight yet. He just wants to talk." He took out a thick brown paper bag. "Here, this is the invitation fee. There's 30,000 Rand here, another 30k when we arrive." He said with a smile, thinking, "He has probably never seen such money before."

Mr. Masombuka took the paper bag and smiled at butler Mabena. "Well, your master is generous. Okay then, let's go." He said as he gestured to the door.

Butler Mabena led the way to the Rolls Royce as he thought, "As soon as he saw the money, he changed his attitude. He probably never thought he would be sitting in a Rolls Royce one day."