Decision Time (13 page)

WESLEY

Saturday
morning arrived and no one was more eager to hit the highway and head back home than me. I woke up early to allow myself enough time to pack up what belongings I could. Having the use of only one arm presented me with more challenges than I initially thought it would. However, I'd arisen confident and enthusiastic about returning to my old neighborhood, visiting with Keysha and clearing the air between us. Earlier during the week, my father visited with my counselor, who provided him with a copy of my transcript and other necessary paperwork for me to take back to Thornwood High. His car had been returned from the repair shop. They'd replaced the shattered glass, but hadn't repainted the car yet. Dad said he knew of a place back home that would take care of repainting his car.

Grandmother Lorraine wasn't as frantic as I was about returning to Illinois. In fact she grumbled continually about having to leave home.

“I feel as if I'm being run out of my house.” She raised her voice in opposition to the decision my father had made for her. In spite of my dad's indifference to her complaints, Grandmother Lorraine didn't put up too much of a fight and packed for what I believed was going to be an extended stay.

Dad spoke with Mr. Stein, a short, potbellied man who was the head of the neighborhood watch club. Mr. Stein was fond of walking his dog at odd hours of the night. This proved to be beneficial to Grandmother Lorraine; my dad had gotten him to agree to keep an eye on the house and to alert us, as well as the authorities, if he saw anything suspicious. Dad provided Mr. Stein with a few contact numbers and thanked him for his neighborly kindness.

After I'd packed up several small suitcases and two oversize duffel bags, I checked around once again to make sure I wasn't leaving anything of value or importance behind. I then made several trips back and forth from the basement to the car, where I stuffed everything in the trunk. We were finally on our way around 1:00 p.m. We made one stop at a local gas station, where both Dad and Grandmother Lorraine filled up their gas tanks. I ran inside and grabbed a giant bag of gummy worms, potato chips and two sodas for Dad and me to snack on during the three-hour journey back home.

As we drove away from the noise and congestion of the city, the landscape of tall buildings and multilane highways gave way to farmland and just two lanes to zoom along on.

“I can't wait to see the house.” Dad struck up a conversation to break the silence.

“Same here,” I said, fumbling with the radio in search of some type of decent music to listen to.

“The contractor said everything is working and we wouldn't be able to tell there was ever a fire in the house.”

“I'm just looking forward to sleeping in my own bed.” I finally came across a rock station.

“Wait! Leave it there. I love that song,” he said as he began to sing along with an old Phil Collins song called “In the Air Tonight.”

“I was dating a girl named Kris when this song was out. We used to love slow dancing to this song. She was tall and had strawberry-blond hair. Kris had freckles, a pretty smile and was incredibly intelligent. Her hips were like two sacred stones, identifying the entrance to all of her secrets,” my dad said, shaking his head as if clearly seeing what happened in the past.

I frowned at my father's poetic words. “TMI, Dad.”

“What does TMI mean?” he asked, completely perplexed.

“Too much information. I don't need to know about the woman's hips,” I said, although I fully understood his fascination with that particular part of the female anatomy. Dad laughed.

“Anyway, Kris loved to dance and back then your old man was a dancing
machine
.” He laughed as he became lost in nostalgia.

I humored him and asked, “Whatever happened to her?”

“She moved away. And I lost contact with her. I heard through the grapevine that she'd become some kind of scientist.”

“Liked the brainy type, eh?” I teased him.

“A smart woman is very sexy.”

“You should get a Facebook account and see if you can find her,” I suggested as Phil Collins belted out “Oh, Lord” in his husky voice.

“What's Facebook?” he asked. I laughed because I couldn't believe he hadn't heard of the social networking Web site.

“Come on, Dad, you've got to keep up, man. You have to live in the twenty-first century. The eighties are over and gone.”

“There is no need to be cynical, Wesley. Is it like MySpace?” he asked.

“Yeah, it's like MySpace and sort of like Twitter,” I explained. “Whenever we get a new computer I'll show you how it's done.”

“Once we get settled in, we'll go on a shopping spree to replace the furniture that was lost in the fire. I'm positive there will be enough money in the budget for a new computer.”

“Cool. I want a laptop.” I grinned as I put in my request. Dad and I settled into a comfortable silence.

“Oh, did I tell you that I'll be going back to work soon?”

“No. Are you well enough to go back?” I asked, glancing over at his hands, which were still pink from his burns.

“Yeah, I'll be able to go back at the end of the month. I can't wait to get back to work because sitting around all day was driving me crazy,” he admitted.

“I'm sure all of your coworkers will throw you a nice welcome-back celebration,” I said.

“That would be nice, but it's really not necessary.”
Dad clicked his turn signal and switched lanes. We talked the remainder of the way home. Occasionally we were interrupted by Grandmother Lorraine, who needed to stop at every oasis along the way for a bathroom break. It was an inconvenience, but we had to be accommodating to her needs.

 

We finally pulled into the driveway of our home. The house looked nothing like it did the last time I saw it. The black burn marks were gone, the windows had been replaced and the place genuinely looked welcoming. As soon as Dad put the car in Park, I got out of the car, removed my door keys from my pants pocket and stepped inside. The house smelled like fresh paint and new carpet. The scents of charred furnishings and moldy-smelling water were long gone. I walked down the stairs and into the basement, which had been completely overhauled. There was new drywall, a new ceiling and a new furnace, washer, dryer and hot water tank. I hustled back up the stairs and back out to the driveway. Dad was wheeling Grandmother Lorraine's suitcase toward the front door.

“I'll get the rest of the stuff out of the trunk,” I said, eager to unload everything and get settled in.

An hour later, I was standing before my dresser drawer, putting away the last of my clothes. Once my task was complete, I rested on my bed and relaxed. My shoulder ached like hell. I gave myself another reminder to set up a new therapy schedule.

I then decided it was time to phone Keysha and surprise her with my return. I was optimistic about getting a
chance to come over and visit with her for a while. If an afternoon visit wasn't possible, I hoped she'd at least be more receptive to hearing my apology. I pulled out my cell phone, held it in my hand and glared at it mindlessly for a moment. I was suddenly afraid to call her because I feared she'd either ignore my call or answer it and scream at me like a lunatic. Finally, I gathered up the courage to give her a jingle.

“Hello,” Keysha answered, laughing. It was so nice to hear her in good spirits.

“Hey, how is it going?” I asked nervously, not sure of how she'd react.

“Who is this?” she asked, still chuckling. I could hear noise in the background. It sounded as if there was some type of celebration taking place.

“Did I catch you at a bad time?”

“Wesley?”

“Yes,” I answered. There was a long moment of silence.

“What are you up to?” she finally asked.

“Nothing,” I answered. The fact that she didn't hang up on me was in my opinion a positive sign. “Guess what?”

“Wesley, I really don't have time for games.” I guess Keysha didn't want to play along with me.

“Okay,” I said, feeling as if I suddenly meant nothing to her.

“If you have something to say, go ahead. If not, I've got to get back to Antonio.”

“Antonio!” I scowled, feeling jealousy rise within me like a balloon being filled with air. “Who is Antonio?”

“Why does it matter to you, Wesley?”

“Because…it does. Why is he over there?” I wanted to know.

“I invited him over. You got a problem with that?” Keysha said.

“As a matter of fact, I do,” I replied.

“Whatever, Wesley. I've got to go.” Keysha was about to hang up on me.

“Wait.” I stopped her.

“What?” she asked impatiently.

“When can I see you? I'm back at home now.”

“Really? When did you get back?”

“This afternoon. I was hoping I could see you so I can clear the air between us,” I said, hoping for an opportunity to speak to her face-to-face.

“I'm very busy these days, Wesley.”

“Come on, Keysha. You at least have to give me a chance to say I'm sorry.” Keysha's silence meant she was considering it.

“Please. I would apologize over the phone, but I'd like to do it in person. Are you busy on Sunday?”

“Yes. Barbara, Jordan, Mike and I are driving up to Gurnee Mills to do some shopping.”

“I have to wait until Monday to see you?” I whined.

“Looks that way,” Keysha answered with indifference.

“Well, can I see you first thing Monday? I could meet you at your locker.”

“Fine,” Keysha answered. “I've got to go. It's rude of me to be on the phone when I have a guest visiting. I'll talk to you later.”

“Keysha. I love—Hello?” Keysha disconnected the call
before I had a chance to tell her how I truly felt. I punched my mattress a few times with my left fist. I was frustrated and resentful of the fact she didn't want to see me. Even more frustrating was the reality of having to compete for her affections with some new guy.

KEYSHA

When
I hung up the phone I turned my attention back to Antonio, Maya and Misalo, who were over visiting. We'd moved the leather furniture around and created an area that we pretended was a stage. Maya and Misalo would sit in two fold-up chairs that I brought up from the basement while Antonio and I stood before them and practiced our lines. I would be lying to myself if I said I wasn't attracted to Antonio. He had a good sense of humor and was easy to get along with. He was charming, charismatic and had alluring eyes that seemed to say more than his mouth was willing to admit.

Earlier, when Antonio arrived, I asked Barbara to answer the door because I didn't want to show too much zeal over his visit. Barbara thought I was being silly until I told her I wanted her to take a look at him and let me know what her first impression of him was. When Antonio arrived Barbara opened the door.

“Hello. You must be Keysha's sister, right?” Antonio immediately won Barbara over by bathing her with compliments.

“No. I'm not her sister. I'm her mother.” Barbara chuckled as she invited him inside.

“No way!” Antonio shouted out, seemingly surprised.

“Yeah way!” Barbara matched the loudness of his voice with her own.

“You do not look like you have a daughter as old as Keysha.”

“I'm not trying to look old, either.”

“Trust me, you don't. If I were a little older I'd certainly ask you for a date.” Antonio flirted with Barbara, who suddenly began snickering like a featherbrained schoolgirl.

“Oh, really? Too bad you're catching me on a bad day. You should see me when I'm all fixed up.” I stuck my finger down my throat and pretended to puke. I couldn't believe Barbara was actually flirting back with him. I made a mental note to remind Jordan that he needed to pay more attention to her.

“Earth to Keysha, are you there?” Maya teased me and snapped me out of my flashback.

“I'm sorry, I'm just spacing out.”

“Well, you need to stay here on Planet Popular People with Antonio, Misalo and me.” Everyone laughed at Maya's comment.

“Okay, where were we?” Antonio still had the script in his hand.

“Um, we left off right here…where the lovers are about to kiss each other,” I said. Now, up until this point,
Antonio and I had never really kissed. The way we'd practiced it was as follows—a spotlight would come up on us as we stood center stage. Then we'd say our lines and lean in toward each other, stopping just short of a kiss before the stage lights would go down and the stage crew would come out and hurriedly change the set. I was, without question, all set to do it the way we practiced until Misalo made a suggestion.

“You guys should really kiss each other. That would be so hot and I'm sure the audience would feel the passion the characters have for each other.”

“For a guy who doesn't speak very much, it's kind of awkward to hear you say something so daring,” I teasingly mocked him.

“I think he's got a point there,” Maya chimed in.

“What?” I said.

“I'm serious. It would be incredibly hot if you guys actually kissed. I mean it doesn't have to be anything serious. Just let your lips touch,” Maya said.

“Yeah, go ahead and do that.” Misalo had a grin on his face like a cat who'd just saw a birdcage door snap open.

“I'm willing to give it a try if you are,” Antonio said.

“I can't. My mom is in the other room. Are you guys crazy?” I said, scowling at them.

“Oh, give it a try, Keysha. We'll keep an eye out. Besides, the kiss is only going to be for a split second. But you've got to make it look real or it won't work.” Maya rose to her feet, grabbed her purse and took out some breath mints.

“Here. This way no one gets offended by bad breath,” Maya said as Antonio started laughing.

“If I kiss Keysha for real, she might fall in love with me,” he said.

“Don't count on it,” I said in an attempt to crush his overinflated ego. However, I will admit the thought of his pillow-soft lips pressing against my own was rather appealing. I took the breath mint Maya had given me and sucked on it before splitting it into tiny pieces with my teeth while I chewed away the remaining particles. Antonio stood opposite me and did the same.

“Are you ready?” I asked.

“You're positive you want to do this?” Antonio gave me one final warning.

“You're not getting cold feet, are you?” I challenged him. He smirked and then glanced down at his lines. When Maya gave us our cue, Antonio and I stepped into character and read our lines. Instantaneously, I transformed myself into the main character. I became the brokenhearted girl who was in anguish because her parents forbade her to see her boyfriend because he was of a different race. The character's parents had finalized plans to send her to live with a relative on the other side of the country.

“I won't listen to them and I'm certainly not going to leave you, my love.” I frowned, fully submerged in the feelings of my character.

“I hate people like your parents! They are evil and wicked and don't understand that true love is colorblind.” Antonio also became his character.

“No, they don't.” I turned my back to Antonio and paused. “That is why I've decided to escape from my oppressive home to be with you.”

“We can't be with each other. You know as much as I do that I could never provide for you the way they can.” Antonio approached me from behind. He reached out and touched my shoulder. I turned to face him.

“I don't care about materialistic things. All I want is you. Don't you know that?” Antonio looked down at me and I looked up at him. His lips were smooth and inviting.

“And I want you as well, my love.” Our lips traveled slowly toward each other. I could feel the warmth of his breath heating my skin and it felt heavenly. Exotic butterflies began dancing around in my tummy as I surrendered to him. I wanted to be with Antonio the moment I saw him. In the privacy of my own mind I'd kissed him a thousand times. When his soft lips met mine, they tasted sweet, like ripe mangoes full of sweet juice. I inhaled the delicious scent of Antonio's cologne as he embraced me tightly. His kiss became more passionate and our tongues did a circular waltz, which was so wonderful, I melted like ice cream sitting on a tabletop in the warm summer sun.

 

That night, I lay in bed replaying the kiss Antonio and I had over and over again in my mind. I felt as if I had a videotape and kept rewinding it so that I could remember every hot and steamy detail. Antonio was a good kisser. No, he was better than a good kisser; he was a magnificent kisser.

Still, I didn't allow things to get too far out of hand. After all, Barbara was in the other room and I would've been completely horrified if she had walked in at the exact moment Antonio and I were kissing. I was also thankful
Jordan wasn't home. He'd gone into the office to work on some report and Mike had gone to see a movie with his girlfriend, Sabrina.

On Sunday, while I was out shopping with Barbara, Jordan and Mike, I received several text messages from Antonio. He told me how much he enjoyed his visit, and how he looked forward to more and, of course, the mesmerizing kiss we shared. I was glad he was thinking about me and I honestly was looking forward to seeing him again at rehearsal. I couldn't wait to kiss him again in front of Priscilla, so that she could turn green with envy.

When Monday morning arrived, I was still buzzing from the kiss and began to think about what it would be like to be Antonio's girlfriend. For starters, I knew right away I'd have to fend off all the sluts, tramps and hoochie mamas who'd try to steal him away from me. I began to wonder if I could handle throngs of girls crowding around him as if he were some celebrity.

I walked to school with Mike, who was complaining about how much Sabrina was bossing him around and how annoying it was. I listened and offered him a little advice, which he considered to be helpful. As we walked across the school parking lot, Mike saw a friend and said he'd catch me later.

When I entered the building and walked down the corridor past the library, I saw Wesley standing near my locker. His arm was in a sling, but he had a bushel of flowers in the other. My heart began racing; for starters I'd forgotten that I'd agreed to meet with him, and two, I suddenly felt a little sorry for him.

“These are for you,” he said, handing me the flowers. They were multicolored carnations, the kind that are sold at the nearby grocery store.

“Thank you. They're pretty,” I said, taking them and smelling them. “How does your arm feel?” I asked.

He raised his arm up and then put it back down. “It's okay. It stiffens up a lot and it still hurts when I take it out of the sling. But overall, I can tell that it's healing up. I only have to wear the sling for a few more weeks. I've set up some therapy appointments, which will help. So, how have you been?”

I sighed and shifted my weight from one foot to the other. “Pretty good, considering all that I've gone through.” I coyly reminded him of the lengths I'd gone through to get to him.

“What you've gone through? You have no idea of the hell I've had to endure.”

“Well, you didn't go through it alone. You had that Lori chick there to help you.”

“Keysha, I've missed you. Lori is just a friend.”

“You must think I'm a total fool, Wesley.” I scowled at him for insulting my intelligence.

“No, I don't. I'm telling you the truth. She was just a girl in the neighborhood.”

“And a girl you took a bullet for. Let's not forget that.”

“I would've done the same for you, Keysha, and you know that.”

“Whatever, Wesley. If you've got something to say, just say it.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” I could hear him getting angry.

“It's okay that you have another girlfriend, Wesley. I'm over it now. I've thought about it, cried about it and I'm over it.”

“Keysha, I don't even know where Lori is. You don't understand the full story.”

“I understand enough,” I countered.

“Wait a minute. We're starting off all wrong here. I want you to know that I love you, Keysha.”

“Wesley, don't say things that you don't mean.”

“I'm serious. I've missed you so much. Haven't you been getting my phone calls?”

I thought about it for a moment and I had to admit Wesley did call me an awful lot.

“Yeah, I got your phone calls,” I confessed as I opened my locker and grabbed what I needed and then closed it.

“Am I still your boyfriend?” Wesley asked. I stared into his pretty eyes for a second, searching for honesty and sincerity.

“Can I have another chance?” he asked. I was about to say maybe when I heard some girl call out his name.

“Wesley, is that you?” I turned in the direction of the voice and was flabbergasted when I saw Lori. She came up to him, hugged him tightly and then gave him a quick peck on the lips.

“I'm so sorry. I've missed you so much,” Lori continued. Wesley looked like a deer caught in headlights.

“You're such a liar and a jackass, Wesley!” I said as I tossed his crappy cheap flowers at him.