A SEA of sorrow filled the house of Phumla Thengo at the Joe Slovo informal settlement in Boksburg, Ekurhuleni.
Pupils from Oosrand Secondary School in Reiger Park, Boksburg, hosted a candlelight ceremony to pay tribute to their friend Nhlanhla Thengo on Wednesday, 29 November.
Nhlanhla (16), a grade 10 pupil, died at the Tambo Memorial Hospital in Boksburg on Tuesday, 21 November, after she allegedly overdosed on pills.
She allegedly overdosed on tablets on Sunday, 19 November and was admitted to the hospital, where she was put in the intensive care unit (ICU).
Nhlanhla's schoolmates and friends couldn't hold back their tears at the ceremony.
The pupils and friends described Nhlanhla as a loving person who was full of life and jokes.
Sinovuyo Mafanya (18) revealed her last moments with her best friend Nhlanhla.
"We had a very emotional conversation. Nhlanhla told me about her life and how she grew up. She shared some painful stories and told me about people who betrayed her.
"She told me how she loved her mum, and I didn't think to suspect there was something wrong with her and it was going to be the last time I see her alive," Sinovuyo said.
She said her friend complained about pain in her stomach and told me she took an overdose of pills at around 2pm on Sunday, 19 September.
"I rushed to her mother to tell her Nhlanhla was sick, and when I came back with her mum, her condition had worsened; she was vomiting, and she was taken to the hospital," she added.
Sinovuyo, a grade 12 pupil, said she and Nhlanhla had planned to go to a picnic at Germiston Lake on Saturday, 2 December.
"Sadly, the date we set for the outing will be the day of her funeral, and she never told me why she drank the tablets," said Sinovuyo
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Okuhle RwaiRwai (16) said she was shattered by the passing of her friend.
"I last saw her on 17 November at school, and we made an appointment to meet the following week. I was shocked to hear she died at the hospital on Tuesday; I've lost a friend who had so much to live for," Okuhle said.
Nhlanhla's mum, Phumla, said she was devastated by her daughter'sdaughter's death.
Phumla (34) said she's left with unanswered questions about what led her daughter Nhlanhla to overdose on the pills.
She said no one knows what triggered her daughter to overdose.
Phumla recalled the last moments with her daughter on 19 November.
She said Nhlanhla had a handbag she received from a street vendor, and she asked her daughter to give it to her.
"She laughed at me and told me she loved the bag and wanted to use it for some days before she could give it to me.
"We even relaxed on the bed while looking at the photos of her father on Facebook," Phumla said.
Phumla said her daughter went to her mother's house, which is two houses from where they live.
"Suddenly, Phumla's friend Sinovuyo came to the house and told me my daughter was sick and she needed money to buy pain tablets.
"I rushed to my mother's house and found my daughter in pain, and she couldn't even talk," Phumla said.
She said she had lost an angel.
"My daughter wanted to be an actor and always told us she's inspired by Gomora actress Katlego Danke, who played the role of Thati.
"Sadly, her dream of becoming an actress one day is gone, and it pains me that I don't know why she did this," she said.
Nhlanhla will be buried on Saturday, 2 December, in Boksburg, Ekurhuleni.
