Rocky romances
Mrekza and Sphe’s terrible juggling skills have both of their relationships sinking fast.
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Restaurant manager Mrekza’s (Kope Magae) double life catches up to him on Wednesday 28 February. Along with the endless responsibilities at family restaurant S’khaftin Chicken, he took another managerial position at rival diner Bra J’s. His side job is too demanding and he’s missing shift at job #1. Mrekza’s boss Cosmo (Ronnie Nyakale) isn’t pleased when he walks into a rowdy S’khaftin on Wednesday 28 February and Kope says this is where the trouble starts. “Cosmo demands to see his manager but Mrekza is nowhere to be found. Everyone is scared of bad-guy Cosmo, so when he asks them about Mrekza’s whereabouts, they tell him.” The actor sighs, “Cosmo is actually upset and disappointed that Mrekza has betrayed them.” Cosmo grabs his sister Lucy (Manaka Ranaka), who is also Mrekza’s girlfriend, and they head to confront their manager that same day, hoping to find that it isn’t true.
“But they catch Mrekza red-handed! They are disappointed in him as they have always considered Mrekza part of their family,” explains Kope. While the siblings fire Mrekza from S’khaftin Chicken on Thursday 1 March, Lucy continues to date him. And that is when they start a restaurant war, to see who is better at business.
RESTAURANT WARS
Being a shady character, Mrekza steals Lucy’s staff on Friday 2 March, using his friendship with them as a bargaining chip. “Lucy is annoyed with him when she finds out and that is exactly what Mrekza wants. Working at Bra J’s is a cry for help – he asked Lucy and Cosmo to help him start his own restaurant [in early February 2018]. They didn’t believe in his dream, so he wants to prove a point,” explains Kope. But Lucy won’t let Mrekza ruin her restaurant and she has an all-new, all- girl crew by Thursday 8 March that she’s hoping will lure customers back from Bra J’s. “Her restaurant is empty. Mrekza is running a Friday Special to lure more patrons but Lucy thinks that getting new staff will help her win,” says Kope. “Mrekza is two steps ahead of her and wants her to take him seriously in business.”
FOR BETTER OR WORSE
Like Mrekza and Lucy’s rivalry-filled romance, Sphe and Mazwi (Pearl Monama and Musa Ngema) are also trying to outdo each other on Thursday 8 March. Their open marriage allows the pair to do whatever they want with whomever they want, as long as they remain living under one roof. But Sphe breaks the agreement on Thursday 8 March and tells her side-piece Gadaffi ( Vuyo Dabula) that she’s willing to leave Mazwi for him. “Sphe’s head is all over the place and she isn’t thinking clearly,” warns Pearl. “Gadaffi wants to end the affair as he isn’t ready for a committed relationship, but Sphe will say anything to make him stay with her.” Sphe doesn’t really have a hope of leaving her husband though. Their marriage was arranged by the families and Sphe’s controlling stepdad Jack (Vusi Kunene) would never allow them to divorce. But since Sphe loves the attention she gets from Gadaffi, she’s going to keep him in her back pocket. “A life with the gangster isn’t realistic; Sphe knows this,” says Pearl. “She loves the thrill of dating someone dangerous.” Even if Gadaffi waved a gun in her face, Sphe is blinded by love. But just like her marriage, cracks are widening.