by Carlos King
“You alright, baby?” she whispered. “Come on. Let’s get you ready for school.” Alexis is sickened to her very core about how her mother has such a passive attitude about what’s so obviously clear. Latoya helps Alexis to her feet and escorts her to the bathroom.
Latoya sits Alexis down on the toilet and prepares some bathwater for her shaken daughter. Alexis’ facial expression is stone-like. When the tub is finally filled, Latoya turns the water off.
She turns to face Alexis and squats down in front of her. “Baby, I know what you went through last night was hard, but you see…Mama has this problem…It’s a problem that if I don’t get certain things to take care of it, it could cause me to feel really bad. The only person who could give me that certain last night was Dre, and he would only give it to me if I let him spend some time with you. You understand?” Alexis remains frozen.
“You should be proud he wanted to spend some time with you. That means you’re turning into a pretty young lady. And don’t feel bad if it was your first time. I started doing that type of stuff when I was your age. At least you were able to help your mama out. I lost mine for nothing. Was it your first time, baby?”
With her head lowered, Alexis’ shame-filled voice answers, “Yes, ma’am.”
“Don’t worry about it, baby. It was a onetime deal. I promise it’ll never happen again. Besides, there ain’t nothing special ‘bout being a virgin now-a-days anyway. I know you would’ve rather done this for me to keep me from suffering all night, right?” her mother heartlessly asked.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Okay then. And whatever you do, don’t let anyone find out about this, okay? I don’t need nobody coming up in here trying to take you away from me and trying to haul off the only man I’ve been able to keep for over a month. You hear me, girl?”
A teary-eyed Alexis responds, “Yes, ma’am. I hear you.”
“Good.” Seeing the hurt in her daughter’s eyes, Latoya asks, “You know I love you, right?” Alexis glances at her mother with a blank stare before settling her eyes back on the floor. “It’s time to get you cleaned up,” her mother added.
CHAPTER 3
FALSE PROMISES
Days have gone by since the shameful theft of Alexis’ innocence. What was supposed to have been a onetime situation has turned into a repetitive action that has gone on every night for the past week. Alexis’ demeanor in school has also begun to reflect the abuse she’s been enduring. She’s gone from being a shy and timid intellectual to being totally withdrawn from her education. Even Alex’s favorite teacher is unable to grab her attention.
Now sitting in the back of Mrs. Hobbs class, Alexis’ lifeless eyes are aimed out the second-floor window, tuning out all that’s going on around her and allowing her imagination to carry her away. The school bell sounds, signaling the teens to rise from their seats and exit the class.
“Alright you guys,” Mrs. Hobbs started, “make sure you read chapters ten and eleven tonight because you will have a test tomorrow!”
Alexis continues to stare out the window.
“Alexis.” Mrs. Hobbs called out. “Alexis.” When Alexis fails to answer to her name, Mrs. Hobbs walks over to her and softly taps her on the shoulder. “Alexis.”
Startled, Alexis jolts back into reality. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Hobbs. I guess I drifted off for a minute.”
“You’ve been drifting off a lot lately. Is there something bothering you, sweetie?”
Evasive towards answering Mrs. Hobbs’ question, Alexis reaches down and picks up her backpack and shoves her book inside. “I have to get to my next class,” she said, avoiding eye contact with her concerned instructor.
“Is everything okay, Alexis?”
Alexis ignores the question, gets up from her seat and heads for the door. Mrs. Hobbs, realizing that something is troubling the young teen, catches up to Alexis and stops her before she reaches the door.
“Alexis, I asked you a question,” Mrs. Hobbs asserted.
Without warning, Alexis breaks down, crying uncontrollably.
“What is it, sweetie?” Mrs. Hobbs asked, closing the door to her classroom.
“Nothing. I just have a lot of stuff on my mind, that’s all,” said Alexis. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Hobbs, I have to go. I’m gonna be late for my next class”.
“I’ll write you an excuse. Now have a seat. I want to talk to you for a minute,” Mrs. Hobbs dictated.
Alexis walks to the nearest desk and sits down. Mrs. Hobbs sits down next to Alexis and looks her square in the eyes. “What’s going on, Alexis? You’ve been checked out lately. You’re my best student and for the last couple classes you haven’t said a word. You haven’t turned in any homework, you don’t participate in any class functions, and you failed two quizzes. Now for someone who worked so hard to skip two whole grades and be the only sophomore in a class full of juniors and seniors, I can only wonder what has you acting like this.”
Alexis tries to control her tears but with little success.
“Come on, Alexis. I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me. Is everything at home okay?”
Alex sobs, “I don’t want to talk about it right now.”
“Okay. I won’t force you to talk if you’re not ready to. But I have to know one thing…Is anyone causing you any harm at school, at home or any place else?”
“No. I’m fine,” Alexis hesitantly answered as she wiped the tears from her eyes. “Can I go now?”
“Alright,” Mrs. Hobbs answered reluctantly. “Let me write your note.” Mrs. Hobbs gets up heads for her desk. She grabs a pen and begins writing out a tardy slip for Alexis to show to her next teacher. She hands Alexis the note and makes one final attempt to offer the distressed teen help. “Do you know what I use to do when I felt like the troubles of my life were spiraling out of control? I’d get a note pad and write down the things that bothered me most. After a while I started writing them down in poetic form. It really got me through.”
“How?”
“Well, by writing my problems down I was able to focus in on them and think of ways to deal with them. Eventually I was able to confront most of my issues head on. Problems don’t go away by ignoring them. Sometimes it’s best to talk them out with someone who can help you solve them. The hardest part in doing that is finding the right person to trust. It’s hard finding someone that won’t judge you. Here you go,” said Mrs. Hobbs, handing Alexis the tardy slip. “Try to keep what I told you in mind, alright?”
“I will.” Alexis takes the slip and heads for the door. Before she walks out, she turns back to her favorite teacher. “Thanks, Mrs. Hobbs.”
Several hours later, the school day comes to an end. After spending a significant time in the school library, Alexis is now making her with through the empty hallway, preparing to make the undesirable trip home. As she makes her way toward the exit, she hears the faint chatter of several voices draw near. Just as she rounds another corner, she spots four members of the boy’s basketball team flirting with a few cheerleaders. Alexis’ initial thought is to go back the way she came and find another way around, but she abandons the notion and decides to push forward.
Alexis is walking pass the small group, when one of the guys sticks his foot out, causing her to trip. She hits the ground with such force her book slips free from her grasp and slides across the hall. All the kids, except for one, laugh at the tasteless display. The one kid who doesn’t laugh has no problem in expressing his opinion towards the callous act.
“Y’all know y’all wrong for that shit. Y’all need to leave that girl alone.” The nice young man walks across the hallway and picks up the book that got away from Alexis and hands it back to her. The young man even helps a humiliated Alexis back to her feet.
“Thanks, Gregg,” Alexis mumbled, her voice cracking. Her embarrassment prevents her from making eye contact with the charming young man.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve been meaning to congratulate you on winning the talent show. You were
good as hell.”
“Thank you.” Once her composure’s regained, Alexis wastes no time in hurrying off down the hallway.
“Greg, I know you’re new here, but we don’t associate with that nasty bitch. You can embarrass the hell out of her all you want, though. She’s use to it by now,” one of the males explained.
“You ready to go play ball, new guy?” another male asked.
Greg ignores the male and walks off, clearly disgusted with his teammate’s behavior.
Later that night, Alexis is alone in her bedroom lying underneath her covers, staring at her bedroom door. She’s propped a chair against the doorknob in order to prevent anyone from coming in. It’s in the later hours of the night and Alexis knows that it’s usually around the time that Dre makes his unwanted appearance at her door. Alexis looks at the clock on her dresser. It reads 12:10. Moments after saying her prayers, she dozes off. An hour passes by before the sound of someone jiggling her room’s doorknob awakens her.
Whoever’s on the other side is persistent in their attempt. They demonstrate this by forcefully bumping into the door in an effort to push it open. Luckily, the chair successfully prevents this from happening. The jiggling of the doorknob and the banging on the door suddenly comes to a stop. Seconds later, the voice of Alexis’ mother can be heard calling out to her from the other side of the door.
“Alexis, open this door!” Alexis continues to lie in bed. She’s not sure if she should open the door or not. Latoya shouts out again, “Alexis, I’m not playing with you! Open this door, girl! I need to talk to you!”
Alexis slowly gets up from her bed and walks to the door. She stands there for a second, pondering what she should do. She knows that her mother is probably growing more upset with every passing second that she doesn’t open the door. Alexis removes the chair from the doorknob and sits it aside. She turns the doorknob and opens the door.
Alexis is pleased and relieved to see her standing in her doorway and not Dre. Sadly, her joy instantly turns to fear when Dre steps into view with a big smile on his face. Dre raises a small baggy in front of Latoya’s strung-out face. Latoya quickly grabs the bag and then glances at her daughter with a look of indignity. Latoya walks off without saying a word.
Alexis tries to slam her door shut, but Dre pushes it back open, bulling his way in. “No…Please no,” Alexis cried. “Please!” Once Dre has completely entered the room he closes the door behind himself. The only noise that comes from Alexis’ room for the rest of the night are the sounds of her pleads, which are soon followed by the fast-paced squeaks that emanate from her worn bedsprings.
CHAPTER 4
OUR LITTLE SECRET
Alexis is inside her school standing near an office door marked ‘Guidance Counselors’. She silently stands in place before building up enough courage to finally make her entrance. When she enters the office the first thing she notices is an unattended receptionist desk. Alexis prepares to turn around and walk out of the office, but then she hears a woman’s voice call out, “I’ll be with you in a second.”
True to their word, a fairly large woman comes from the copy machine room and takes a seat at the front desk. “How may I help you?” she asked.
Nervous, Alexis answers, “I’m here to see my guidance counselor.”
“Who’s your counselor, honey?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never met him before.”
“You’ve never been down here before, have you?” the receptionist asked, twisting her chair toward the computer.
“No, ma’am.”
“Let me explain how this works,” the receptionist politely started. “There are four counselors at this school. The students are assigned to their counselors in accordance with the first letter of their last name. What’s your name, honey?”
“Alexis…Alexis Robinson.”
“Okay, that’ll make your guidance counselor Roland Ellis. All of the other counselors are gone to lunch, so just walk on back towards the only office with its light on. That’ll be Mr. Ellis’ office.”
Glancing toward the back area, Alexis spots the lone illuminated room. “Okay, thanks, ma’am.”
Alexis follows the receptionist’s directions and heads for the counselor’s office. She approaches the office and knocks on the door. A male voice calls out, “Come in.” Alexis slowly opens the door and timidly walks inside. Once inside, she finds a middle-aged black male sitting behind his desk, snacking on his lunch.
“Hello, young lady. How can I help you?” the counselor asked.
In an unsure voice, Alexis asks, “Is this the place where students are supposed to come if they have a problem that they can’t talk to their parents or anyone else about?”
Mr. Ellis snatches the napkin from his shirt and uses it to wipe his mouth clean. “That’s correct, young lady,” he replied without the slightest bit of hesitation. “Is there a problem you need to talk about?”
Alexis contemplates whether or not she should say anything. She ultimately decides to confess to the abuse she’s been enduring for the past month. Alexis takes a seat directly in front of Mr. Ellis’ desk and begins to recount the traumatic experiences that led her to his office.
“It all started about a month ago. My mother’s boyfriend sneaks into my room. He’s come in there just about every other night. It’s getting to the point where I can’t even close my eyes because I’m too scared to,” said a teary-eyed Alexis. Alexis hesitates for a second before forcing out more of her confession. “About two days ago I started my period and for the first time ever, I was actually glad it came. I guess because for one, it meant I wasn’t pregnant. And two, it meant that I’d have at least a week of peace. I was only half right, though.”
“What do you mean?” asked Mr. Ellis.
It’s apparent that Alexis is uncomfortable having this conversation, but she displays a courageous effort and pushes through the awkwardness of the chat and continues on. “When I told him I was on my period he made me give him head…,” Alexis pauses, conceding to restate her sentence using a more acceptable dialog. “I mean oral sex. At first I refused but that only made him mad. He put his hands on the back of my neck and forced my head into…” Alexis stops; her composure growing unstable. “He told me if I bit him I wouldn’t live to see another…” Unable to keep up her tough façade, Alexis breaks down and begins to sob as she tries to recall the painful actions of that night.
“Are you telling me the truth, young lady?” the counselor asked in a serious tone.
“I wouldn’t make this up.”
The counselor pulls one of his desk drawers open and pulls out a pen and a single-sheet of document paper. “What’s your name, young lady?”
“Alexis Robinson.”
Filling out the single-sheet of paper, Mr. Ellis asks, “Where is your mom when all of this is happening?”
“She be in her room, sleeping.”
Mr. Ellis stares at Alexis and asks, “Alexis, does your mom know about all this?”
Alexis lowers her head and sheepishly answers, “Yes.”
“Well, the first thing we’re going to have to do is inform the proper authorities about this whole ordeal.”
“What will that do?” Alexis asked.
Mr. Ellis explains, “The police are going to get in contact with your mom and then they’ll ask you and her a few questions. If everything you say turns out to be true, they’ll be putting your mom and her boyfriend away for a very long time.” Mr. Ellis picks up the phone and begins to dial.
Having a sudden change of heart, Alexis quickly tries to recant on her allegations. “Mr. Ellis, please!” Mr. Ellis puts the phone receiver back on its base. “I’m sorry, sir, but I can’t go through with this,” Alexis stated. “I can’t do anything that would lead to my mom being put in jail.”
“Alexis, I know you want to protect your mom, but what she’s allowing is against the law. And it’s those same laws that require me to report every child abuse case that comes across my desk,�
�� Mr. Ellis informed.
“It’s not my mom’s fault. She’s been hooked on drugs for a while now and her boyfriend uses that against her.”
“So on top of aiding a child rapist, she’s a drug user, too?”
Alexis stands up and prepares to exit the office. “Look, we can just act like I never came in here, okay?”
Just as Alexis opens the door, Mr. Ellis tells her to sit back down. Alexis hesitantly takes a seat back in the chair.
“Now, Alexis, what you’re asking me to do is commit a crime by ignoring another. Is that about right, young lady?”
“I made a mistake in coming here and I would like it if you could just forget everything I said,” Alexis pleaded.
“I don’t know, Alexis,” said Mr. Ellis with a look on his face that indicates he has something brewing in the back of his mind. “Maybe we can work out a deal.”
Mr. Ellis reaches over to his desk phone and presses the intercom button. Within seconds the receptionist’s voice comes on. “Yes, Mr. Ellis?”
“Ms. Brown, can you run down to the main office and pick up a fax I’m waiting for? I don’t want it to get thrown into a pile and lost. You know how unorganized they are over there.”
“Sure thing, Mr. Ellis,” the receptionist came back. “Who’s the fax coming from?”
“I’m not sure. Just call me when something comes in with my name on it. I’ll let you know if that’s what I’m waiting for or not.”
“Okay, Mr. Ellis,” she said with a drag in her voice. The receptionist is clearly in no mood to play paper chase with the fax machine, but she follows the request without complaint.