Maybe We Love Once – Donna Nyakapira
Maybe We Love Once Donna Nyakapira“My shop is just close to the bus stop,” was what the lady who owned the bridal shop told Mimie on the phone, yet they’d walked for about 20 minutes to get there. Dust coated her Nike sneakers and sweat her face. The shop was located...
The Loudest Things About Silence – Azu-Ume Emmanuel
The Loudest Things About Silence Azu-Ume EmmanuelThe boy came forward and stood beside the railway after the train left the little station. He held a bottle of whiskey in his right hand. With his left hand, he bade farewell to the men on the train with a certain kind...
When Crime Goes Viral – Petra Lurch
When Crime Goes Viral Petra LurchFriday Afternoon | Caption: Thinking of You, but always focusing on me | Likes:20 | Comments: 2 Imagine the perfect picture. The one. The photo where every pixel is in focus, and they all collide together and it’s you. Your hair is...
What They Don’t Tell You – Naledi Mashishi
What They Don’t Tell You Naledi MashishiMum always said that if you want to open your eyes, do community service. I’ve been brought up in the shelter of a delicate cocoon. My life is cushioned by a suburban home with a fridge full of food, a comfortable bedroom with...
Gethsemane – Joshua Chizoma
Gethsemane Joshua Chizoma(For Maku) Solomon is only half-listening to the lecturer when he sees the woman. He leans out of his seat to get a clearer view, but the window's dirty panes make the figures on the other side harder to decipher. He whispers to his classmate,...
Here’s to Less Mimbo, No? – Ngansop A. Roy
Here’s to Less Mimbo, No? Ngansop A. RoyNwebya calls me names. He will call me out in class come Monday should I not honour his invitation to a club tonight. Everyone will laugh, because if you've not started drinking mimbo by late adolescence, you are a failure or...
Follow, Follow – RJ Mustafa
Follow, Follow RJ Mustafa“Hey, ready to go?” Aziz dropped the tube hidden between his fingers at the sudden interruption. His heart fluttering behind the wine-coloured button-up he’d chosen for tonight, he clasped his eyes shut for a moment. Campus should have been...
The Jacket Seen on Tal Street – Ndawedwa Denga Hanghuwo
The Jacket Seen on Tal Street Ndawedwa Denga HanghuwoGrace slipped off her heels and wore her flip flops. The last bell of the day had just rung and she was getting ready to walk home. She lived near Khomas High School in Windhoek, where she taught English. She was a...
My Blueberry Dreams – Victor Daniel
My Blueberry Dreams Victor DanielStanley He now lives life as a point of duty: methodical, mechanical, rigidly executed and passively indulgent. He has kept his job, his girlfriend, a side chick, and his peers. He doesn’t feel anything more than a sense of social...
Sanctum – Naomi Waweru
Sanctum Naomi WaweruTwenty times now, in poorly timed intervals, the heart has stopped, but it has not stopped the body from living. This boy grows magnets at the very moment of parting. His chest muscle elongates and the limbs grow bolder. His breathing becomes the...
The Luminous Air of Heaven – Charlie Muhumuza
The Luminous Air of Heaven Charlie Muhumuza“That’s one,” I tell Amooti, “the devil’s eye.” I pause to let the weight of my words worm its way into his ears. “Some even call it the door of death,” I whisper. Amooti looks at me, catching me in the lie, and we both...
Ronak’s Shame – Masimba Musodza
Ronak’s Shame Masimba MusodzaAnyone watching Ronak suddenly clinging to me as we stepped out of the cinema into the cool evening would have interpreted the gesture as a demonstration of possession. Some would have rolled their eyes with a cynicism that projected their...