The Realest Ever - By Keith Thomas Walker Page 0,11

herself staring at the same screen she accessed the other day – except now it was virtually uninhibited.

Kyra’s eyes were wide and nearly frightful. She wiped her mouth and noticed her fingertips were cold. She chuckled nervously, trying to shake off the jitters. Sheclicked on Donovan’s “Photos,” and then she clicked on the first album labeled “Profile Pictures.” A page full of small images appeared. Kyra clicked on the first one, and finally, after more years and dreams and prayers than she could keep up with, Kyra saw the boy who ascended Mount Sunrise Elementary with her and never tried to steal a kiss when they got to the top.

Donovan was a grown man now.

Kyra took a deep breath and blew it out slowly, her eyes quickly filling with tears.

The last time she saw him, Donovan was a junior in high school. He was skinny and athletic with brown skin like cognac and one of those high-top haircuts that were all the rave in those days. Kyra could see that this was the same Donovan, but the differences were nearly as shocking as reconnecting with him in the first place.

The biggest dissimilarity was the sheer bulk Donovan added to his school-boy physique. As Kyra clicked from one picture to the next, she noticed at least one hundred pounds of new Donovan that completely dwarfed the old Donovan images in her mind. The added weight was mostly muscle. It was stacked oh so perfectly on his chest and arms and shoulders and thighs. He wasn’t too muscle-bound. He was just right.

As Kyra clicked away, she saw that he accomplished his dream of playing college football. She saw that he coached high school football, and he still had a good relationship with his mother, Ms. Beverly Mitchell.

Kyra backed out of his profile pics and noticed Donovan had eight more photo albums. The largest one was labeled “Vacation Pics.” It had more than fifty photos. Kyra was both nervous and elated as she explored the albums one by one. It almost felt like she was peeking into Donovan’s personal life, but she noticed comments on a lot of his pictures and figured this type of snooping was acceptable.

With the Facebook photos, Kyra was able to trace much of Donovan’s life, from his graduation from Western Hills to his football days in Ohio and his subsequent return to Overbrook Meadows. Kyra didn’t know why he didn’t go on to play for the pros, but Donovan looked successful and fulfilled in his recent pictures, and Kyra was increasingly happy for him.

One thing Kyra didn’t like was her omission from Donovan’s high school photos. But she knew she shouldn’t get upset about that. The few high school pictures Donovan posted were from his senior prom and graduation. Kyra was long gone by then. But still, she couldn’t help but wonder if Donovan missed her, because he looked so happy with his other friends from Western Hills. Kyra forced the silly thoughts from her mind.

Her smile didn’t slip again until Kyra came across more recent photos of Donovan in the presence of (and sometimes the arms of) a beautiful woman. Kyra didn’t believe she was jealous of the brown-skinned girl who kept appearing, but she couldn’t think of a better explanation for the unease she suddenly felt.

She never expected to return to Texas and spark a relationship with her old friend. She and Donovan never attempted a relationship before she left, as a matter of fact. And why would they? He was her best friend. They introduced themselves as brother and sister so often, a lot of people thought that actually was the case.

Kyra closed the photo album she was looking at, but she opened it again a second later and stared at the woman Donovan was embracing. Her hair was long and curly. Her waist was slimmer than Kyra’s, but Kyra thought her curves looked better. The woman definitely had better hair than Kyra, but it was probably a weave. If Kyra had money to go to the beauty shop, she could–

What the hell? Kyra caught herself and chuckled. Why was she comparing herself to Donovan’s (apparent) girlfriend? Was she really sitting there fantasizing about being with her play-brother?

Ewww!

Kyra shook her headand returned to Donovan’sProfile Pictures. She found the photo she liked the best, which was a simple shot of him from the waist up. Donovan’s hair was short, his shirt tucked in. He would’ve looked preppy in the collar shirt, but his physique screamed athlete.