Things are tense on Isono. We’ve looked at the drama in Zakwe, Mary, Makwande, Millicent and Esther’s lives in the past few weeks, and there’s no doubt that in the past seven days, another person who’s had a lot happen in their life is Gabriel.
And just like the storyline itself, his life becomes more complicated by the day.
Bohang Moeko’s strapping on-screen character has clearly been experiencing a conflict of interests in recent weeks – especially when it comes to romance.
Public friends, secret lovers?
Whenever the equally handsome Abednego is around, there seems to be an underlying tension and at first we thought we might be imagining it, but over time it’s become clear that there’s more to their interactions than just a long-running friendship. It’s been building up, but in a country where it’s not easy to be open about loving someone of the same sex, we thought it might be a long time before either of them – particularly Gabriel – opened up about their feelings.
Just when we thought the tension would last forever, the two finally allowed themselves to be themselves and many fans were happy for both men when they hooked up for the first time at the end of Thursday’s episode.
We thought this would finally allow Gabriel to open up about his feelings but when he closed up once again, we were almost disappointed – until we found out exactly why he’s been holding back.
Monday’s episode opened up with a flashback to Gabriel’s childhood when his mother first suspected that her son could be gay and, in a fit of rage, she beat him savagely with a pipe when she found him relaxing with a then-15-year-old Abednego. It looked every bit as painful as it sounds…
You can’t hide from Mary
Although they’ve now gotten the chance to explore each other’s feelings (and each other’s bodies, ahem), and although he’s much older than the teenager who was beaten you can still tell that Gabriel is scared of what could happen if his mother found out. He has every reason, too.
Mary seems like the kind of woman who has eyes in the back of her head and it looks as if you can’t hide anything from her. The mother of the House of Grace already seems very suspicious of both gentlemen, although she appears to be willing to let Abednego into their operation. Or could this just be her way of keeping both men on a leash?
As the week progressed, Gabriel has continued to battle his demons. Not only is the incident at the church where the pastor “killed himself” (that’s what we’re going with, right?) still weighing on his mind, but now a new mission is on the cards.
Another life-threatening mission?
Mary has a grand mission to get AB back into the family and out of club Casanova but it involves a life-threatening operation. She believes they have the resources to take on the most dangerous club owner in Johannesburg, Gazati. Gabriel, understandably, has his reservations.
Not only is the club boss one of the most powerful people on the scene, but he is also short-tempered and lethal. However, with emotions involved, what else can Gabriel possibly do?
Just as the week began with a flashback, it also ended with one as we learned more about Gabriel’s past life as we realise that he and AB have always been there for each other and perhaps that’s why Gabriel feels compelled to be there for him once again.
Their feelings for one another have proven resilient and now there’s clearly a relationship building. But with Mary lurking, and Gazati ready to strike at any moment, you just can’t help but worry about both of them.
Like I said, it’s tense!
