love and pride. One day, I’d have children of my own. I couldn’t imagine leaving them prematurely through death. I didn’t want them lost in this world without me. I wasn’t sure what good Brick still being among us would have impacted Keyonna’s in life, but I pledged, mutedly, right then and there to remain in her life and be a resource to her. She deserved a better future than her trajectory predicted. A better one than Precious could give her.
As I handed her a fifty-dollar bill, I addressed my mother over Keyonna’s head. “Did you make that call to your connect at Ellis Academy?”
My mother nodded. “She said I should hear back right after the holiday.”
“Cool beans.” I lifted Keyonna from my lap while standing to my feet and kissed her cheek. Her little body wiggled, tickled in the air as she laughed deliriously. “You go be great, princess Keyonna. You better sharpen up on those presidents,” I admonished.
Laughing, she ran over to her mother.
“Alright, the food is ready,” my cousin announced. “Let’s meet in the dining room for grace so we can dig in.”
My phone vibrated again. Always fucking anxious over that damn girl, my hand rushed into my sweats pocket.
Tori: the best dinner. spaghetti
My nose turned up. On Thanksgiving? What in the hell was her family doing that they piece-mealed a spaghetti dish together for this holiday?
That’s fucked up…
The room was emptying around me as I tapped into my Blackberry.
Me: At your place?
“Bye, Uncle Ashton!” Keyonna bade, waving with one hand while the other was in her mother’s grasp.
“Thank you,” Precious humbly provided.
I saluted her. “Always. Let me know if she needs anything. You know that.”
“Okay! Thank you!”
I watched as my aunt, Tabitha, led them out of the living room to the door.
On my way into the dining room, my phone vibrated again.
Tori: no. my aunt Sonyas house.
That shit didn’t sit well on my stomach. I didn’t know if it was the skimpy dinner or the fact that she didn’t use fucking capital letters at the start of her sentences. Either way, by the time I made it to the dining room, I’d made a call.
“Ma, I gotta make a run. I’ll be back in a few hours.”
Her neck rolled, face tight as hell. “What? Right now?”
“Yeah.” I tried kissing her forehead, knowing that wouldn’t cool the wrath I was ensuing. “I’ll be back to eat. I swear.”
“But where are you going?” She had more bass in her voice, causing attention.
“Going to pick up a friend. I’ll be back.” I tried quickly leaving the room.
That didn’t help her fussing. I heard it until I was out of earshot. I went to my room to grab my keys and threw on a hoodie. By the time I made it to the door, my uncle, June, was there, leaning into the wall. As I approached, he opened the door.
“Where is this friend, yo?”
My forehead wrinkled. “Why?”
“‘Cause ain’t nobody letting your ass skip out on no fuckin’ Thanksgiving random-fuckin-ly. Some shit going down?”
I scoffed, stepping into the hall. “Nah. I’m legit picking up a friend.”
He followed me down to the elevator. “This friend in trouble? I need to get the hammer?”
“Nah.”
“Fuck it,” he murmured, ignoring me. “We take my ride. I got a couple in there.”
Shaking my head, I hit the button to call the car.
My mouth watered as I gazed at the picture of Samantha’s Thanksgiving plate. It was topped with turkey, ham, macaroni and cheese, greens, potato salad, and coleslaw—that must have been her mom’s side. Still, it looked awesome. It didn’t help that I was hungry. The problem was, she wanted me to send her a picture of my plate. As much as I was looking forward to dinner, I wouldn’t dare send her a picture of spaghetti on Thanksgiving.
So, I typed back that I was still waiting for dinner to be served. God, I hated being a weird human. It seemed all wrong.
“Who you over there texting on that fancy Blackberry, Tori?” Treesha asked, pulling groceries from the bag. We’d finally gotten food to cook. It had taken hours of trying to get people to put in for it and collecting their money. Thank God Ashton had given me that money at the airport, or I’d be shit out of luck. The money my mother finally gave was still on her table. I wanted nothing to do with it. “A boy or a girl?” She grinned.
Fueling her silliness, I answered honestly. “A girl.”
“She the one who