The back-up plan
Jade has Eshe’s back – until her girlfriend starts lying.
Keeping Score Mon-Thu SABC3 (*192) 21:30
Eshe (Swankie Mafoko) may be good at gymnastics and helping people, but she’s stubborn. Her athlete girlfriend Jade (Gaosi Raditholo) learns just how difficult the athlete can be on Monday 12 June when she tells Eshe about a possible treatment that may help her fix her injured back. But there are two problems: it’s an experimental treatment that could go either way and it’s expensive.
TREATING THE PATIENT
While Eshe ponders the treatment that Jade has been researching on Monday 12 June, there’s something else going on in the gym as Swankie explains. “Jade’s mother Dineo [Helen Lebepe] hears about Eshe’s expensive treatment and offers to help pay for it, but there is a condition that Jade must accept.” And that condition is that if Dineo covers the treatment cost, Jade must leave ASA gym and return to her hometown with Dineo. It’s a no-brainer for Jade and she turns down her mom’s offer because their relationship isn’t worth the effort. Jade then confides in ASA gym manager Lehasa (Siyabonga Sepotokele) about what’s going on and moved by her story, he offers to sponsor the treatment, but also with one condition. He’ll pay for it anonymously because he doesn’t want anyone in the gym to know about his background or how he came about the money.
OUT BUT NOT ABOUT
Eshe agrees to the surgery and is admitted to hospital on Tuesday 13 June. Jade is ecstatic that her girlfriend is discharged later that same day and is told that the surgery was successful, but her happiness is short-lived when Eshe starts to lie about being better. When Jade starts asking questions, she learns that Eshe is lying about being injured to get out of training at the gym. “Eshe’s lie makes Jade angry and it creates a big rip in their relationship,” explains Swankie. “The lie loses momentum by Tuesday 20 June and Eshe is forced to get over her emotional block and get back to training.” Later that day, Eshe’s trainer Botho (Moliehli Makobane) forces her to take a big step forward – and Botho realises that Eshe’s ready to get back into gymnastics. Swankie hints that “Eshe is stubborn, but she’s a bit ashamed and eventually returns to the gym hoping to start all over again.”