Decision Time (11 page)

KEYSHA

“Maya,
you won't believe what just happened.” I had called her up when Wesley hung up the phone on me.

“What? I'm all ears.”

“That fool Wesley hung up the phone on me.” I was totally ticked off.

“No, he didn't. Stop lying on him, Keysha.”

“Girl, I am not lying. I was pouring my soul out to him by letting it be known how crappy I felt after my hospital visit and how I didn't appreciate his little love affair on the side. Then out of nowhere he cut me off and said, ‘I'll call you back later.'”

“I'll bet that tramp was there with him,” Maya said.

“I think you're right. He probably didn't want her to know that he was on the phone with me,” I concluded.

“Did you call him back?”

“Hell, no. Keysha Kendall does not chase down men.
If he wants to be with her stanky ass then so be it. I don't want to be with a guy who doesn't want me.”

“Why do you think he's suddenly trying to be a player?” Maya asked.

“She's probably sexing him to death and now he suddenly can't think straight. I'm telling you, Maya, when I walked into his hospital room he looked at me as if he was about to have a coronary. I swear his eyes got really big and he looked like he'd just gotten caught watching Internet porn or something.”

“And he had lipstick all over his face, right?” Maya wanted to be certain.

“He had lipstick everywhere. Hell, it looked like he'd had a lipstick party in his room.”

“You know what? That's just a cut-and-dried case of cheating.”

“I can't believe he's doing this to me! Why is he being such a jerk?” I wanted to cry, but I held on to my tears.

“Because he thinks he can get away with being a dog!” Maya didn't hold back her feelings or her opinion.

“I can't trust him anymore. I was willing to be his everything, but not anymore.” I started crying. “Damn it.”

“Don't cry, Keysha,” Maya said, trying to console me.

“I can't help it,” I said as I reached for a tissue. “I thought I was special to him. I felt so connected and so adored when I was with him.”

“When I see him again I'm going to go off on him,” Maya said.

“Well, you'll have to stand in line behind me.”

“Don't shed another tear over that bastard, Keysha.
You can do so much better than him. You're pretty, you're funny and you're a lot of fun to be around. Things are going to get better soon. Just wait and you'll see.”

“Thanks for being so encouraging, Maya. I'm just in a real funky place right now,” I admitted as I smeared away my tears. “I can't believe I was willing to run away from home just to be with him.”

“Don't beat yourself up too much, Keysha. Love will make you do crazy things.”

“I trusted him, Maya!” I slammed my fist down on my desk. “How could he betray me like this?”

“Because he's stupid.”

“You can say that again,” I agreed with her.

“So what are you going to do now?” Maya asked.

“Nothing. I'm not going to call him and I'm certainly not going to take his phone calls for a while. Hopefully he'll get the hint and stop calling altogether. Anyway, thanks for listening to my drama, Maya. I'm going to go take a shower and then go to bed.”

“Okay. I'll see you at school. You know they'll be posting the audition results in the cafeteria.”

“Girl, I'm not even thinking about the play right now. They're probably going to give the part to Priscilla anyway, so I'm not even going to get my hopes up high, especially with the way my luck has been lately,” I said truthfully.

“I'm telling you that you're one hundred percent better than that tramp. If they give the part to Priscilla, I'll have to glue my eyes shut to keep from looking at her because she's so ugly.” I laughed out loud at Maya's comment.

“You don't even know if you're in the play yet and you're already talking about having to work with Priscilla.”

“Girl, I've been in the school play for the past two years. I'm sure I'll make it again this year,” Maya said confidently.

“Well, go on with your bad self,” I teased.

“Just don't forget to check the results. You never know, you may have made the cut.” Maya was very optimistic.

“Okay, I'll check.” I gave in to her confident and positive attitude. I ended my conversation with Maya, turned off my phone and prepared for bed.

 

When I awoke the next morning, I turned on my cell phone. Wesley had called me several times and left a number of voice mails. I ignored his phone calls and erased his messages. I truly didn't want to hear from him anymore. As far as I was concerned he could go to hell and I wouldn't care. I got out of bed, went into my closet and found the perfect outfit to wear—dark, straight-leg jeans, with a pink cardigan and a matching tank top. I then went into the bathroom, brushed my teeth, washed my face, fussed with my hair and did everything else that I needed to do in order to look as fabulous as possible. I exited the bathroom just as Mike was about to pound on the door and complain about the length of time I was taking.

“It's all yours,” I said brightly as I walked past him.

“What's gotten into you?” he asked.

“Nothing, I just feel like being positive today.” I was really trying to boost my spirits as much as possible because I was still heartbroken over Wesley. I put on my
clothes and headed down to the kitchen. Jordan was standing at the stove frying up some bacon.

“Good morning,” he said.

“Good morning,” I answered back as I opened the refrigerator door and removed a gallon of milk. I then went to the cupboard and pulled down a box of cereal and prepared my breakfast.

“How are you feeling today?” Jordan asked.

“I'm cool,” I answered.

“Just cool? How did the tryouts go?”

“Fine. I read for the part and I'll find out if I made the cut today.” I shoveled food into my mouth.

“What's the name of the play? Is it a Shakespeare play?” Jordan asked.

“No. It's some play called
Teenage Love Affair
. I read for the part of the leading lady. My friend Maya read for the part of best friend to the leading lady.”

“Well, let me know if you make it,” Jordan said as he flipped his food over. A short while later, Barbara and Mike came in and ate breakfast. We all took a little time to chat and catch up on each other's lives. By the time we were finished I didn't have a moment to spare as I gathered up my belongings and headed to school.

I went directly to my locker, hung up my coat and grabbed my materials for class. I closed the locker, making sure my combination lock was securely fastened because kids would break in to your locker if you forgot to firmly snap the lock. As I walked to my class in the crowded hallway, I had to avoid a dispute going on between two girls who were on the verge of getting physical. Once I
made it past them I had to deal with the open display of affection that was taking place. Everyone was all boo'd up kissing each other as if they'd never see each other again. My emotions got the best of me and I had to take a detour to the bathroom to get myself together. The last thing I wanted to do was walk down the hallway crying over Wesley. I'd much rather continue doing that in the privacy of my bedroom.

“This is so bogus,” I muttered as I glanced at myself in the mirror. “Come on, Keysha girl. Pull it together,” I told my reflection. Once I'd calmed down I composed myself and continued on to my first period class.

By lunchtime I was very hungry and rushed to the cafeteria to get in line because if I didn't, it would take forever to get my food.

“Keysha.” I heard someone call out my name. I turned and saw Maya rushing toward me.

“Hey, Maya, where's the fire?” I asked, then assumed she wanted to cut in front of me. “Do you want to get in line?”

“You didn't check, did you?” she asked.

“Check what? My phone? Did you send me a text or something?”

“Of course I sent you a text. Why haven't you checked your phone?”

“I don't know. I guess I didn't want to see anything from Wesley, including some sorrowful text message from him.”

“Okay, I'm going to help you get over Wesley one way or another.” Maya smiled at me as if she was holding on to a secret.

“What?” I asked.

“You made it, Keysha! You made the cut. You're in the play!” Maya couldn't contain her excitement.

“For real?” I'd totally forgotten about the play. I truly didn't take it seriously because I doubted I'd make the cut.

“Yes, I'm for real. Not only did you get in the play, but you got the lead part!” Maya was overjoyed for me. Other students in line congratulated me, but I was truly speechless.

“I actually beat Priscilla?” I was still having a difficult time understanding why I was selected over her.

“I told you, honey. You've got talent that you haven't tapped into yet. Oh, this is so exciting!”

“So what happens next?”

“Practice, girlfriend.”

“When does practice begin?” I asked.

“Today after school in the auditorium and you'd better have your behind there.”

 

At the end of the day I phoned Jordan and Barbara to let them know I'd gotten the lead part in the school play and would be coming home later than my usual time. They were both very excited and congratulated me. I also called Grandmother Katie, but got her voice mail. I left a message with the exciting news and asked her to call me back when she could. As I made my way toward the auditorium, I ran into Priscilla, who gave me an ugly look. I ignored her and kept on walking. She'd just have to get over the fact that I got the lead part and she didn't. I opened the doors to the theater. The floor was covered with carpet, which had various autumn-colored patterns. The aisle sloped downward to the wooden stage. All of
the house lights and stage lights were brightly lit and as I stood there I began to imagine myself standing on stage giving the performance of a lifetime. In my mind I could hear the roar of a cheering audience.

“Keysha, down here. I saved a seat for you.” Maya waved me over to come join her. I walked to where she was and sat.

“We're waiting for a few more people,” Maya informed me.

“You'll have to introduce me to everyone because you're the only person I know.”

“Don't worry. By the time practice is in full swing you'll know everyone, including the set designers and stage staff.”

“I saw that ignorant slut, Priscilla.”

“Did she say something to you?” Maya asked.

“No. She just gave me a mean look.”

“That's because her ass is jealous. She'll get over it. The theater director picked you because you're more talented.”

“I've never considered myself to be talented in this way,” I admitted.

“You need to stop staying that. You need to be very confident, especially when the director is offering up constructive criticism. Trust me. This is not a cakewalk by any means. It's going to be hard work and you'll be doing the same scene over and over and over again. It's irritating, but it really helps everyone memorize their lines and develop their characters.” Just then, a male student entered the auditorium through a door on the right. I watched as he approached and I had to admit, he was fine.

“Who is that?” I nudged Maya.

“That's Antonio, your leading man.” Antonio was in
credibly sexy and suave, and walked in with a swagger that said he owned this place. His skin was brown and he had a razor-thin mustache along with well-groomed hair on his chin. His hair was black and wavy and his lips were begging to be kissed. A gold bracelet dangled from his wrist and a gold watch blinged off the lighting near the stage. His lean, muscular body was so sexy.

“He is so hot. I mean straight-up sizzling hot!”

“And he can sing,” Maya added.

“For real?” I asked.

“Yeah. He can make a chick drop her panties, but don't get caught up, Keysha. Antonio is all about the booty. I've heard rumors of chicks fighting over him.”

“He looks like he's worth fighting for. He could pass for Bow Wow's little brother,” I said, admiring his confident strut. As soon as he sat down, Priscilla appeared out of nowhere and sat next to him.

“What's that about?” I asked Maya, who also saw how Priscilla pushed up on Antonio.

“Girl, who knows? She probably wants to become one of his sexual victims.” Both Maya and I laughed. “Seriously, though, Antonio is very flirtatious and if you don't watch it, he's the type of brother that can have a girl walking around in circles.”

“He can't be that bad,” I said as I continued to study him a little more.

“I don't know. I've never been with him and never wanted to, either. Misalo is all the man I need.”

“When am I going to meet this Misalo?” I turned my attention back to Maya.

“He asked me the same thing earlier today.” Maya laughed. “You'll meet him soon.”

Once everyone had arrived, the theater director took roll call and then passed around a sheet of paper, which asked for everyone's contact information. Then she asked that everyone take a little time to stand up and introduce themselves. Once the formalities were taken care of she talked about the play, then gave everyone a copy of the script. We took some time to read it and then started rehearsing the first act. When rehearsal was over I went to gather my belongings.

“Hey.”

I turned and saw Antonio approaching me. “Hey,” I replied.

“I just wanted to tell you that you're pretty good. You're a natural.” Antonio smiled at me while licking his succulent lips.

“Thank you,” I said as if his presence had no effect on me whatsoever.