*
Just as I walked through the front door of the clinic, I recognized a familiar face behind the receptionist desk and ducked into the bathroom unnoticed. My heart was beating so fast I went to the sink and started splashing cold water on my face to calm down. The way my luck was going today, I thought I’d be lucky if I didn’t die from a heart attack right there in the bathroom.
Oh, no, what was my cousin, Carolyn, doing here this evening? She was supposed to be working the graveyard shift which didn’t start until ten o’clock at night. The only reason I agreed to meet Lena here was because I didn’t have to worry about being recognized by any of the white nurses. If Carolyn saw me, she was going to start asking a lot of questions about what I was doing here. Why did my cousin have to be the only black nurse at the clinic?
With my back pressed against the door, I stayed in the bathroom for several minutes trying to decide what to do next. I washed and dried my hands several times, trying to fight the increasing nervousness. Finally, I cracked the door enough to peep out and see Carolyn standing at the desk saying good night to the other nurses. All I could do was thank God that she was getting ready to leave. I just prayed she didn’t stop in here on her way out.
Standing against the wall, I held my breath and continued praying that Cousin Carolyn would walk straight out the front door. What was I going to do if she came in? Think, Reecy, think.
After a few more seconds passed with no one entering the restroom, I peeped out again and didn’t see a sign of my cousin. I happily released a long-held breath and exited to the left.
Lena was seated at the end of the hall, waiting for her name to be announced. “Hey, Lena, I’m sorry I’m late. I made it here as soon as I could.” I was panting like I was about to take my last breath. I sat down in the empty seat beside Lena, placing my book bag on the floor. I thanked God again for not running into my cousin earlier. I was already going out on a limb helping Lena and didn’t need any family conflicts. Besides, it was embarrassing enough being stopped by the police officer outside the dollar store. Luckily, no one I knew had been around to witness that travesty of justice. I wondered what else could go wrong with my day. I’d never imagined that trying to help someone would be this much trouble.
“Thanks, Reecy, I’m still waiting to be seen. There’s only one other person ahead of me now. Are you okay? You look funny,” Lena said, squinting at me. She sat still holding her hands in her lap.
“Yeah, I’m fine. I just ran most of the way here from the dollar store,” I replied, fanning myself with one hand. No need to relay that whole incident with the police officer or the narrow escape from my cousin in the clinic. Lena already looked worried enough for the both of us.
Surveying the antiseptic-smelling room, I quickly realized that most of the girls there were older than us. There were a handful of young ladies who were noticeably pregnant, but I avoided making eye contact with them or anyone else. Instead, I listened to the middle-aged receptionist, with the dark curly hair, behind the desk whispering on the telephone about how busy they were.
After a few minutes, I started to feel the cold air streaming down from the vent above my head. I removed the windbreaker from my waist and slid it over my arms just as the nurse emerged in the entryway.
“Lena Turnipseed, you can come on back now,” the young nurse said. She smiled at both of us, not knowing which was which. We were lucky that most of the white nurses didn’t actually know the black girls in town.
Lena rose on shaky legs, clutching her shoulder bag to her side. Looking down at me, she forced a smile, and then stepped towards the nurse.
Leaning back in my seat, I pulled out my new Black History textbook and started reading. I noticed that time always passed a lot faster when I was studying or doing something productive. History was one of my favorite subjects, and I was happy that a Black History course had recently been added to the curriculum. I enjoyed reading about positive black women like Sojourner Truth, crusader for freedom, and Harriett Tubman, conductor of the Underground Railroad.
It seemed like a whole hour had passed before Lena returned to the waiting area looking completely disheartened. “So how did it go? What happened?” I fired, searching Lena’s face as we walked out of the clinic.
“Well, first they asked me a whole bunch of questions. Then they examined me and took a urine sample. It took them a few minutes to run the tests, but I am almost three months pregnant.” Lena’s voice trailed off like she was sinking into the ground.
I swallowed hard. I’d been praying that Lena wouldn’t be pregnant and this nightmare I’d fallen into would be over. Now I realized that it was only just beginning.
“Okay, now that you know for sure, are you at least going to tell Rodney that he’s going to be a father?”
“Girl, please,” Lena began, rolling her eyes up to the ceiling. “Rodney ain’t stuttin me. I tried to talk with him when school started, and he just brushed me off. So I pretended like nothing happened until I missed my period and started feeling sick.”
“Yeah, but I think you should tell him. It doesn’t matter how he reacts. He just needs to know.”
Lena kept walking and shaking her head. She wasn’t trying to hear what I had to say.
“Now I can understand you not wanting to tell your parents. Even though I think you should. But you got to tell Rodney, and leave the rest up to him.”
CHAPTER FIVE
We marched towards home in silence. We’d only walked a couple of blocks when a pretty, sky blue Chevrolet Impala pulled up beside us. A young man sporting a blown-out afro, gold-framed glasses, and a gap-toothed grin rolled down the passenger window, leaned over in the seat, and asked, “What’s happening? Would you chicks like a ride?”
I recognized Lena’s older brother, Henry, right away. He looked at his sister first, and then flashed a smile at me.
We scrambled into the car. Lena squeezed in first. Then I got in and closed the car door before Henry pulled back onto the highway.
Henry turned down the radio before asking, “What are you two doing on the road together? I didn’t even know that you were friends,” Henry stated, glancing from Lena to me.
“We just happened to run into each other on the way home and decided to walk together,” Lena answered, thinking fast.
“Yeah, I had to run by the dollar store after school,” I added. “And I met Lena hanging around outside so she offered to walk with me. Thanks for giving us a ride.” I noticed the clean interior of Henry’s car and the blue vinyl dashboard shined like it had just been polished. I inhaled and the distinct scent of pine oil filled my nostrils. My eyes went directly to the “little green tree” air freshener dangling from the rearview mirror.
“Oh, it’s my pleasure,” Henry said, smiling at me. “I just need to pull into the service station for a second and put in a couple dollars’ worth of gas if we expect to make it to your crib.”
Henry pulled into the convenience store and jumped out. “Do either one of you want anything?” he asked.
“No, we’re fine,” both of us replied.
Lena and I stared out the window as we remained quiet in the car. I guess each of us was absorbed in our separate thoughts about what had happened at the clinic.
I turned to catch a peek at Henry standing at the gas pump. I tried to read the writing on the back of his green T-shirt, but I wasn’t able to make it out from my seat. However, I was able to make out the outline of his muscles underneath the T-shirt and noticed how well he filled out a pair of blue jeans.
When he finished pumping the gas, Henry ran inside to pay for it. He returned carrying three bottles of Coke. “Here, Reecy,” he said, handing me a green bottle. “I thought you could use a refreshing drink.”
“Thanks, Henry,” I replied, taking one bottle for myself and passing the other one to Lena.
Henry skipped around to the driver’s side, hopped into the car, and took off. In just a matter of minutes, he was pulling into my dr
iveway. He stopped the car and said, “Hold up, let me get the door for you, Reecy.”
“Thanks, Henry,” I stated, exiting the vehicle.
“Don’t mention it. A gentleman always opens the door for a lady. And he walks her to the door,” he said, strutting beside me like a peacock. Henry wasn’t one of the cool guys at school, but you couldn’t have told him different that day.
When we made it to the porch, I turned to Henry, and said, “Thanks again. I can make it from here.” I searched the bottom of my book bag for house keys to avoid the nervousness I’d seen on Henry’s face.
Placing both hands in his pockets, Henry stuck out his chest, and asked, “Would you like to go out with me sometime?”
My heart stopped beating, and I stopped searching the bag. I looked up at him with wide eyes and an opened mouth. Somehow my heart started beating a second later, and I managed to gather enough thoughts to respond with, “I’m not allowed to date until I’m sixteen. My parents are really strict.”
“Ah—it doesn’t have to be like a real date. We could just get a bite to eat after school sometime or go get some ice cream.”
“That’s really sweet of you, Henry, but I don’t…”
Suddenly, the front door opened and Joshua was standing in front of us. “I thought I heard someone out here. What’s going on, Peanut Butter Cup?” he asked, shifting his eyes from me to Henry.
“Hey, man,” Henry said. “I just gave your sister a ride home and walked her to the door. I was waiting for her to find the key and get inside.”
“Hi, Josh, thanks for opening the door,” I said, sounding relieved. I ducked around him and scurried inside.
Joshua stepped outside, closing the door behind him, and stood on the porch talking with his classmate for a few minutes. I could hear their muffled conversation from the other side of the door.
Neither one of our parents had made it home yet, so I dropped my book bag in my room and went to check on Grandma.
“Hello, Grandma, do you need anything?” I asked, entering her bedroom, which was quiet for a change. Grandma Gladys was lying on her back in the bed with the covers pulled over her chest.
“No, baby, I’m okay. I just want to take a short nap. Wake me up when your mom gets home, all right?”
“Sure, Grandma, I’m going to start dinner. Have a good nap,” I whispered, backing out of the doorway.
As soon as the door clicked, I turned around and bumped right into Joshua. He stood over me with both hands on his hips, a frown on his face, and asked, “What were you doing riding around in the car with Henry?”
“I wasn’t riding around with Henry. He gave me and his sister, Lena, a ride from the store. Is that a crime?” I asked sarcastically, walking past him. My brother was being overprotective to the max.
“No, it’s not, but I think that he likes you.”
“So what? I thought you liked Lena,” I fired back, turning around to face him.
Josh smirked and asked, “What were you two talking about on the porch anyway?”
“Ah—it was nothing. He was just asking me about something.”
“Um-huh, what was he asking you about?”
“I—I, it was nothing. Can you help me with dinner?” I asked, knowing that would get rid of my brother. He hated anything to do with cooking or the kitchen, for that matter.
“Nah, I was just waiting for you to get home. I need to run out for a minute. I’ll be back in time for dinner, though.”
“I know you will,” I mumbled, watching Joshua exit the room.
I opened the refrigerator door, looking for the pork chops that Mama had pulled from the freezer for dinner tonight. Only my mind wasn’t on the pork chops or cooking anymore, I was thinking about the fact that Henry Turnipseed had actually asked me out on a date.
As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t share that information with Joshua. Even though he claimed to like Lena, he would hit the ceiling just knowing that one of his classmates had the nerve to ask out his little peanut butter cup. To him, Lena was more mature than me because of her size. But in my mind, I knew that no matter how old I got, I was always going to be known as Josh’s and Tyrone’s little sister.
I was truly flattered that an older guy had asked me out. And while Henry wasn’t the most attractive boy at school, he was one of the nicest. Henry was also the president of the school’s National Honor Society, he played basketball, and he liked to read almost as much as I did. We would be a perfect match if I was only allowed to date. But I needed to have two more birthdays before I could date anyone.
Oh, well, at least it was fun to be asked. I’m sure other girls at school are interested in him, and he’ll forget all about me anyway.
*
Monday morning, I was in the bathroom getting ready for school. After wiping my eyes with a wet facecloth, I noticed a small pimple in the middle of my forehead. Reaching for the Noxzema, I covered my entire face with the creamy substance, and then rinsed it off. I’d been using the face cream for the last month and had noticed a change in my teenage complexion. Now I knew how Michael Jackson felt about having acne. I could understand why he was so shy when he was not on stage. It had to be rough on him being famous and having his picture taken all the time with pimples crowding his face. But I didn’t care; I just hoped that I could meet him someday.
Joyce had told me that I’d get a “kick out of clean with Noxzema,” just like the magazine advertisement proclaimed. The menthol scent opened my pores and left my face feeling renewed. It was just what I needed this morning to help me wake up. Dressed in a bright orange baby doll top along with a pair of hip-hugging bell bottom jeans, I was ready for school.
Just the thought of Joyce made me regret keeping secrets from my best friend. We’d shared everything for the last nine years, and here I was being secretive. At least Joyce hadn’t pushed me to say anything. She really was the best kind of friend.
Staring at myself in the mirror, I admired the way I’d braided my hair this weekend. It had taken several hours to complete, but it kept my mind off of Lena and Henry for a little while. As a matter of fact, Lena hadn’t called all weekend, and I was beginning to wonder what she was up to. Was Lena still planning to run away? Was she going to keep the baby? I wondered if she was coming to school today.
All those questions entered my mind as I dried my face and hands. I hadn’t planned on becoming this concerned about Lena. Just two weeks ago we were barely speaking to one another, and now we were coconspirators in a runaway scheme.
By the time sixth period rolled around, I was ready for Study Hall. I was only seated for about ten minutes when Lena rushed in and took a seat at the table with me. “Hey, girl, what did you do this weekend?” Lena asked, trying to sound cheerful. She placed the hall pass on the table between the two of us.
“Not much,” I replied. “I braided my hair and did my stupid chores. That was about it. How’re you doing?” I asked, glancing down at Lena’s stomach. She was wearing a printed baby doll top over a pair of bell bottom jeans.
“I’m hanging in there,” she replied, looking around the room. Then she leaned in toward me, and whispered, “I contacted that shelter in Shreveport this weekend. And they’re willing to take me in.”
“Are you sure this is what you want to do, Lena?” I asked, furrowing my thick eyebrows.
“Yes, I’m positive. I’ve thought about it, and I believe this is the best solution for me. Now that I know for sure that I’m pregnant, I need to move quickly.”
“What are you planning to do?”
“Don’t worry, I’ve got it all figured out. I’m catching the Greyhound bus on Friday after school. By the time my folks miss me, I’ll be in Shreveport. Thanks for all of your help,” Lena stated, rising from the table.
“Wait, Lena,” I begged, placing a hand on Lena’s arm. I searched Lena’s face for the fear I’d seen the other day, but it was gone and replaced with determination. “Are you going to keep in touch with me?”
“No, Reecy. In fact, I think it’s best that we not talk again. I wish I could write you from the facility, but it’ll be too risky. I might call you if I get a chance.”
“But, Lena…”
“Bye, Reecy Jones, thanks again for your help. And please remember not to tell anyone where I am. I’m counting on you to keep your mouth closed,” she stated firmly, picking up the hall pass. Turning on her heels, Lena rushed out as quickly as she had arrived.
I had more questions that I wanted to ask. Then, I decided that maybe the less I knew the better off I’d might be. That way, when the authorities or Lena’s parents came to ask questions, I wouldn’t have to lie too bad.
*
The week passed very fast for me with all the school projects I had to work on. Before I realized it, it was Friday again, the day that Lena planned to leave town. As much as I had wanted to call Lena and try talking her out of this mad idea one more time, I decided to pray for my newfound friend to make the right decision. I really thought I’d be worried more about Lena today, but with Grandma Gladys being admitted to the hospital for eye surgery this morning, all of my concern was with her.
“Mom, can I stay home today and go with you to take Grandma to the doctor?” It was about ten minutes before the bus was scheduled to run. My mom and I were standing over the kitchen sink washing up the last few breakfast dishes.
“No, baby, I don’t want you missing any days from school. Grandma will be fine,” Mama reaffirmed. I had asked her that same question at least twice this morning.
“Well, how long is she going to be in the hospital?”
“Let’s see. She’s having surgery today, and they’re going to keep her in the hospital for the remainder of the weekend for observation. So she’ll be home on Monday. And, of course, I’ll take you to visit her this weekend.”
Bell Bottom High: Book 1: Freshman Fears Page 5