I SLEPT WITH A MAN WHO TURNED INTO A WATER SNAKE

 I SLEPT WITH A RICH MAN WHO TURNED INTO A WATER SNAKE AND I AM NOW BREATHING THROUGH THE WOUND. 

I used to be a very different person back in varsity. My friends and I had a habit, one that now feels like a distant memory—targeting rich men. We would frequent upscale places, always on the lookout for someone we could attract, someone we could seduce. It wasn’t about love or real connection; it was about money and status. One night, I spotted a man who screamed wealth from a distance. His table was overflowing with expensive drinks, and the waiters were fighting for his attention, eager to serve him. His clothes, his demeanor, everything about him told me he was rich. I wanted him for myself.

I didn’t waste time. He was tall, slim, with skin as dark as the midnight sky. It was easy, too easy, to seduce him. We left the club together, and soon enough, we were on our way to the most luxurious hotel in town. The man had a driver, and the car was exactly what you'd expect from someone of his wealth—a symbol of status. I knew right then that I had hit the jackpot.

At his hotel, I remember feeling an overwhelming sense of excitement. But then, everything went hazy. I passed out almost immediately. When I woke up the next morning, I was in a strange place, feeling different. I looked down at my body and noticed razor cuts on parts of me I couldn’t explain. These weren’t ordinary cuts. 

They looked like the type of marks sangomas make when they’re strengthening someone’s body or aura. Inside these cuts, there was black powder, and I could see my own blood mixed with it. Next to me was a stash of money—enough to make me feel like I was in a dream. But this wasn’t a dream.

I quickly dressed and left the hotel, but something was wrong. I was exhausted, my body was trembling as if it were freezing, even though the air was warm. The cold sensation persisted, and it was as if my body was shaking out of control. I walked home, feeling like a different person.

 The next day, my period came, but it wasn’t like any period I’d ever had before. It was black, thick, and the smell was unbearable. There were clots, and they smelled like rotten meat. I didn’t know what was happening to me, but I had a sinking feeling that things had changed in a way I couldn’t control.

For the next nine months, nothing returned to normal. My periods were the same, and I couldn’t be with any man. I didn’t understand what was happening to my body. Then, 11 months later, I collapsed. 

I was rushed to the hospital, and that’s when I learned something I couldn’t have possibly expected: I was in labor. How could this be? I had never been pregnant, yet here I was, giving birth. The child that came into this world was unlike any I had imagined. He was so light, his skin so different from mine. He looked almost like a mixed-race child, or even a white child—nothing like me. I was bewildered.

As time passed, I began consulting different seers, desperate for answers. That’s when I was told the unbelievable truth: my child was the result of an encounter with a river snake. Some believed my child was a mermaid. It was hard to comprehend.

The more I looked at him, the more I wondered how someone so innocent could have such a dark and mysterious origin. He looked nothing like me, and yet, he was mine.

But as much as I loved my child, there were warnings I couldn’t ignore. People told me that my child was bringing me great fortune. My business was thriving, money seemed to flow easily into my life, but with that came the dark side. There were deaths happening in my family—deaths I couldn’t explain. 

And it seemed like my child was at the center of it all. The very thing bringing me success might also be the reason for the destruction around me.

I’m torn. I love my child, and he seems so innocent. How can the same being who brings me joy and success also be the cause of such devastation? The warnings keep coming, but I can’t bear the thought of turning my back on my son. He looks at me with eyes full of wonder and innocence, and I can’t fathom how he could be a bad omen. But the more I try to ignore it, the more the consequences show up in my life.

I don’t know what to believe anymore. I just know that I’m scared. I’ve tried everything to understand this strange connection between my child and the strange occurrences in my life. The wealth, the deaths, the supernatural warnings—it all feels like a weight I can’t escape. But the love I have for him makes it impossible to walk away.

I don’t have all the answers, but I’m sharing this with you, hoping that someone, anyone, can help me make sense of this. I want to understand what I’ve gotten myself into, and I’m asking for your thoughts, advice, or any similar experiences. I need to find a way to move forward, for both my sake and my child's.