The Holy Trinity of Meats

☾︎✿︎☽︎

"You're going to ruin your nails if you keep gnawing at them like a chipmunk," Abby said.

They were already in an Uber halfway to Tati's house.

"I can't help it." Zoey replied nervously, her knee bouncing frantically. "Brunch with Gigi, Caleb his entire family. No pressure at all."

Abby watched her, then pinched her cheek.

“No! Bad Saja boy!” she slapped his hand, her tone childish but firm.

He chuckled, putting his hand on her bouncing knee. "Relax, Zo, we’ve got this."

"Define 'got this'?"

"Fully prepared. Confident. Unflappable."

She turned to him. "So 'winging it.'"

Abby sputtered. “I have a plan. And it's foolproof."

“And what is this plan of yours?" Zoey arched an eyebrow.

He opened his mouth then closed it.

"Thought so," She scoffed, turning her gaze to the window.

“Hey…” he leaned closer and poked her cheek. “Look at me.”

When she did, he offered her a lopsided smile. “It’s just brunch. What’s the worst that could happen?”

"Yah! Don’t say that!" She swatted his arm. "Do you want to jinx it and blow our cover?"

"Come on, geobug-i. You know me. I'm great at improv."

"Great at putting your foot in your mouth, you mean."

"Hey!"

"I calls it like I sees it."

"You're supposed to be nice to your fake boyfriend."

"My fake boyfriend thinks birds are government drones and we are not having that debate right now. I need every brain cell and sanity I have left to survive this brunch, please and thank you."

"Let me speak my truth, woman!”

"This is what I mean by putting foot in your mouth."

"It's the perfect explanation for why pigeons bob their heads when walking. Come on!"

"I will Spartan kick you out of this moving chariot on wheels."

Abby raised an eyebrow. "You and what upper-body strength that you have in that five-foot body of yours?"

Zoey smacked his arm.

"Owwww!” he whined rubbing the spot dramatically. "I'm fragile, geobug-i. Have some mercy."

"In words of Bubbles from the Powerpuff Girls: 'Mercy is for the weak." She quoted, her voice flat.

"Of you'd quote the outwardly cute but secretly a demon crash out." He muttered begrudgingly.

"She's a cultural icon. Put some respect on her."

"And what does that make you, Miss I-have-no-mercy-for-the-fragile?"

"A realist. Now shut up—we're here."

The car slowed to stop. Abby's eyes widened as he took in their destination.

It wasn’t just a house. It was a sprawling mid-century ranch, carved into the Burbank hillside as though it was sculpted from the earth itself. The structure blended with warm redwood slats and the sweeping wall of glass. Honestly, the house felt like it was just the backdrop, whatever was happening inside had to be where the real magic was.

"Jeez, is his sister rich-rich?" Abby asked.

"She makes decent money from running her boutique." Zoey shrugged.

Abby gawked at her like she just grew an extra head. “You call this ‘decent money?!’”

"It's decent as in 'I have enough money to buy a house, a car, and still have enough left over for multiple vacations a year'."

“Woman, this ain’t no house. She can gaslight people into thinking she owns a villa and they’d believe her!” He pointed dramatically at the house. “I make decent money. This makes me look poor! Are you sure you’re not Jackson Wang?” he eyed at her suspiciously.

“Really, Abby?”

“No, ‘cause there’s no way you would call this decent money.”

"The wonders of budgeting and saving money," Zoey patted his back.

"Yeah, I wish I had budgeting skills like this," He muttered.

Zoey smirked. “You could start by not spending your money on protein shakes.”

His jaw dropped at her audacity. "Excuse me! Those are for bulking up. They're a necessity."

"For who?" Zoey asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You of course, my dear geobug-i," he wiggled his eyebrows. “How else am I going to make people jealous that you got a hot fake boyfriend."

"God, you're so annoying." She rolled her eyes, suppressing the small smile that tugged at the corner of her mouth.

"You love me," He grinned, poking her cheek.

"Start walking before I start plotting to flash all your protein powder down the toilet," She kicked his butt.

He yelped in pain. "Hey! That's an assault on my voluptuous ass cheeks."

"You'll live. Gajagajagaja!" Zoey pulled him towards the door.

"Oh, I'm so gonna make you pay for that." He muttered, rubbing his backside as they approached the door.

Zoey rang the bell. After a few beats, the door swung open, revealing Tati, radiant in a pink sundress and a wide, welcoming smile plastered across her face.

"You made!”

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Zoey beamed.

Tati’s gaze shifted to Abby, her eyes sharp and curious. “And who’s this?”

"This is Abby,” Zoey introduced, the word boyfriend sticking in her throat for a second. “My boyfriend," Zoey tried not to wince at the word boyfriend.

Abby offered a slight, polite bow. "Pleasure to meet you, Ma'am."

“The pleasure is mine. I’m Tatenda but people call me Tati,” she returned the bow. “Gigi never mentioned bringing a boyfriend to the wedding.”

“Well, she never mentioned being engaged for a whole year. But hey! I guess we all have our secrets,” Zoey said with a tight smile, her tough with a sharp sarcasm that Tati quickly picked up.

Tati offered her a sad smile before stepping aside. “Well, come on in.”

Inside, the foyer was just as grand as the front was; polished white and black tiled floor, walls adorned with expensive art pieces, a curved staircase of gleaming black iron and white marble leading upstairs.

"Everyone's in the backyard. We're having a braai."

Abby arched an eyebrow and turned to Zoey.

"It's basically their version of BBQ," Zoey explained to him.

"Oh," Abby nodded slowly.

"Our braais are a whole experience,” Tati added with pride. “We usually have our meat with fresh lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and sadza on the side." Tati explained.

Abby's face lit up. "You have me at sadza."

Tati stared at him, pleasantly surprised. “You’ve tried it before?”

"He tried it at Caleb's place," Zoey explained.

"My taste buds were enlightened," he added.

A knowing glint flashed in her eyes, her smile widening. "Well, aren't you full of surprises?"

"You have no idea," Zoey muttered under her breath.

They trailed behind Tati as she stepped through the sliding doors into the lively backyard. The place was split into two groups: on one side, a bunch of older ladies were busy with three big pots set up over brick fires, while on the other side, a crew of guys were running the smoking braai stands. Caleb was among them.

Spotting them, Caleb smiled widely. Without taking his eyes off them, he handed the tongs to the man next to him and jogged over, pulling Zoey into a long, warm hug before turning to Abby.

“Hey, man!” Caleb pulled Abby into a solid, back-slapping hug. “So glad you could make it.”

“Happy to be here,” Abby grinned, returning the gesture. “Thanks for having us.”

“No problem. I figured you’d look forward to having more sadza,” he replied.

Zoey scanned the yard. “Where’s Gigi?”

Tati sighed, a flicker of annoyance crossing her face. “In the kitchen. Sipping wine while everyone else is chopping, prepping, and actually helping.”

Caleb turned to his sister and asked in Shona, “Ko wadii kumubvunza kuti abatsire?” (Why not ask her to help?)

Tati clicked her tongue dismissively. “Unomuziva, musikana iyeye. Haadi kubatsira kana kuparticipeta muzvinhu zvemhuri.” (You know that girl. She doesn’t want to help or participate in family things.)

“Ehe, but you should try to make her feel included,” he insisted gently.

Tati’s expression remained firm. “Inini handimanikidzi mwana wemunhu kuita zvaasirikuda kuita. Kana achida kugara achinwa kawine kake kunge arikaprincess, ndezve kwake. I have better things to do.” (I don’t force people to do what they don’t want to. If she wants to sit and drink her wine like a princess, that’s her business. I have better things to do.)

Caleb sighed, then turned back to Abby with a renewed smile, clearly letting the topic go.

“Come on,” he said, clapping a hand on Abby’s shoulder. “Let me show you how we do a real braai.”

Abby’s face lit up. “Say less!”

Caleb guided him toward the smoky, savoury heart of the gathering, leaving Zoey with Tati.

“Your boyfriend...” Tati said thoughtfully. “He’s pretty open minded.”

Zoey chuckled. “Yeah, he’s always been curious and open to trying new stuff outside his comfort zone. We just have to make sure he doesn’t explore unsupervised.”

“Exploring, huh.” Tati raised an eyebrow. “That implies you’ve had to deal with him getting himself in some... interesting situations.”

“If by interesting you mean him walking into a BDSM lounge thinking it was just a regular host club cafe, then yes.” Zoey deadpanned.

Tati’s jaw dropped. “Oh, dear lord. How did he manage that?”

“By not reading the address. He just typed it into his phone and clicked the first option that popped up.”

Tati cackled, covering her mouth.

“Well, you can tell me more about it in the kitchen. I’m sure the Tetes and Maigurus would love to hear this.” Tati said.

Zoey sighed. “Oh yeah. Let me just put that memory on my cringe highlight reel, real quick.”

Tati laughed, ushering Zoey back inside.

☾︎✿︎☽︎

“So, what kind of meat are we working with here?” Abby asked, leaning in to peer at the grill. The rich, smoky aroma made his mouth water.

Caleb grinned. “Steak, pork, and boerewors. The holy trinity. You can’t call it a braai without all three.”

“Boerewors? What’s that?”

“They’re basically like minced beef and pork sausages. Here, try it.”

Caleb held out a metal skewer with a pork sausage on it towards Abby. He leaned forward and bit into the sausage.

Abby’s eyes widened. “Holy- this is so good!”

Caleb laughed, watching him devour the rest. “You look like you’ve been deprived your whole life.”

“Hey, don’t judge,” Abby said through a mouthful. “I’m just a sheltered country boy from Korea.”

Caleb chuckled and handed him another sausage. “Well, consider yourself enlightened. This is how braais are meant to be enjoyed — meat, good company, and fresh air.”

“Mufana! Usawaraiwa pabraai stand uchidya nyama neshamwari yako. Wanzwa!”

Caleb winced. “Sorry, Sekuru.”

Abby glanced between them. “Uh… what did he say?”

“He said if we’re going to stand here eating all the meat instead of cooking it, we’re wasting time and good food.”

“Oh, my bad.” Abby rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

Caleb laughed, pressing the tongs into his hand. “It’s not biggie. My Sekuru is harmless. Mostly. Now come — put that strength to use. Hold it like this. Closer to the fire.”

Abby followed his lead carefully. “Like this? Am I doing it right?”

“Yeah,” Caleb nodded approvingly. “You’re a natural.”

Abby chuckled. “We Koreans braai too — just on much smaller grills. These things are massive. You could fit a whole calf on here.”

They both laughed.

“So… you and Zoey go way back, huh?” Abby asked casually, his gaze drifting toward Caleb as he tended to the pork.

Caleb’s expression softened, his eyes still fixed on the grill. “Yeah. Pretty much.”

“She never mentioned it. I’d have bragging rights if I were her.”

“That’s Zoey for you. Never brags but will gatekeep with her life. Besides, she sees the person and not the celebrity. That’s what I admire about her.”

“You two must have been really close.”

“Yeah,” Caleb said, flipping the sausage. “She was my first friend when I first moved to the States after my mum died in a car accident.”

Abby stilled.

“I’d just gotten my O-Level results,” Caleb continued quietly. “Passed with flying colours. Then suddenly, she was gone. Didn’t get much time to grieve and process and next thing I knew, I was leaving my whole life behind to start a new one as an immigrant.”

“Oh, man…” Abby said softly, his expression empathetic. “I’m really sorry.”

Caleb chuckled, a little embarrassed. “Yeah. Sorry — heavy stuff. Point is, Zoey was there for me when everything felt so bleak. Now?” He smiled faintly. “I’m happy. Not broody.”

“Sometimes one person is all it takes to change everything,” Abby said, his gaze drifting to Zoey, watching her carry two bags of ice to the swimming pool where the cooler boxes were.

Caleb followed his gaze, a quiet warmth in his eyes. “Yeah,” he said, his voice fond.