“What’s wrong, dear?” she asked.
“Nothing,” I lied. I wanted to get as far away from my mom as possible before I said something that would land me in hot water. “I need to get back to my homework.”
Once again, homework was the last thing on my mind. I had a dilemma, and her name was Jasmine. She would pay for trying to get between me and my man. I needed reinforcements. I got Danielle and Tara on the three-way.
“Jasmine is always in Cole’s face, and something needs to be done about it,” I said, teeth clenched.
“Forget her,” Danielle said. “He’s your boyfriend.”
“She needs to act like it.”
Danielle said, “I can see why she has a crush on him. He’s perfect.”
“He’s great, but he’s not perfect. If he was perfect, I wouldn’t have caught her kissing him. He would have pushed her away as soon as she even looked like she wanted to kiss him.”
Tara stated, “What if Cole secretly does have a crush on Jasmine?”
“Please. Cole is all about our girl. You can tell.”
“I hope so. Tara could be right. Maybe he likes the drama,” I said, as I scrolled through the Internet.
Danielle said, “No, his friend Eric says Cole is crazy about you. You’re all he talks about.”
I smiled. That made me feel good that Cole was talking to his friends about me. Maybe I was overreacting to the situation, but then again, what if I wasn’t?
“So what’s up? How do you plan on making Jasmine pay?” Tara asked.
Tara didn’t instigate, but she would follow along with any plans Danielle or I came up with.
“I don’t know. That’s why I called you two. I need to figure out how to get her to leave my man alone.”
My mom walked in on the tail end of our conversation. “Porsha, we need to talk.”
“Got to go. My mom just walked in.” I disconnected the phone and gave my mom my undivided attention.
“Who are you trying to get to leave your boyfriend alone? Because one thing you should never do is fight another girl over a boy,” my mom said, as she took a seat on my bed.
My mom was invading my privacy. I knew she didn’t like Jasmine, but I contemplated on whether to give her more details than what she’d overheard. I owed Jasmine no loyalty so I said, “Jasmine is going after my boyfriend, and she knows he’s my boyfriend.”
“Well, dear, if this Cole guy is entertaining Jasmine and her advances, then he’s really not a boy you would want to be with anyway. Sisters should never date the same guy.”
I felt myself defending Cole. “It’s not like they were ever boyfriend or girlfriend. He said they went out a few times, and that was it. Jasmine has it in her mind that he’s hers. Well, he likes me, and he’s my boyfriend, so she should be the one to step back.”
“You’re absolutely right. She needs to. I owe Kim a phone call. She needs to do something about her daughter.”
This time I didn’t try to talk Mom out of it.
She reached for the cordless phone. “Funny. I remember her number after all these years.”
I patted my foot as I watched Mom wait on Jasmine’s mom to answer her phone.
“Kim, this is Angie. Give me a call at 972-555-8252 when you get this message. It’s about our girls.” Mom hung up and then turned and looked at me. “I promise to get to the bottom of this.”
If my mom could do that, then maybe I would stop being so angry with her. My emotions were all over the place. One minute things were fine between us, and then the next I wanted to lash out at my mom for lying to me for all these years.
Cole blew my phone up with text messages when I wouldn’t answer his numerous phone calls. I wasn’t in the mood to talk to him. He would see me at school tomorrow. Until then, sleep was calling my name. I turned my phone on silent and went to bed.
I avoided Cole for the remainder of the week. I didn’t even go to his game. Later that Friday night, he called me venting. “Porsha, you have to forgive me. I can’t sleep. I can’t eat. I sucked at tonight’s game.”
“What does that have to do with me?” I asked, feeling a little smug as I flipped channels on the television while talking to him.
“I’m crazy about you, girl. Can’t you see that?” Cole asked.
“Next time keep girls out of our face, and we won’t have this problem.”
“Can I see you this weekend?” he asked.
“I’ll be at Dion’s house this weekend, so that would be no.”
“Porsha, we can’t keep going on like this. Either you’re going to forgive me or not.”
“Are you giving me an ultimatum because if you are—”
“No. All I’m saying, baby, is, in order for this to work, you have to forgive me. I meant every word I said to you. I love you. You’re the first girl I’ve ever loved.”
I threw the remote on the bed and then lay on my stomach. “So, you’re telling me you’ve never felt like this about any other girl?”
“Never. Cross my heart and hope to die.”
I responded, “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”
28
“Honey!” Mom yelled from downstairs. “Dion’s here!”
I checked my suitcase once more to see if I had everything. I picked up my suitcase and purse with my sweaty palms and headed out of my room.
My dad was in the hallway. “I got it,” he said.
Dion and my mom were chatting when we reached the bottom of the stairs. “Are you all ready to go?” he asked.
My dad handed Dion my suitcase. “Someone should be here around six tomorrow.”
“I’ll have her back by then,” Dion assured them.
I hugged them both.
My dad said, “Call me, if you need me.”
“She’ll be fine,” Dion said.
My parents watched us from the doorway as we pulled away. I glanced back at my house as I started a new chapter in my life.
“Are you hungry?” Dion asked.
“Not really,” I said, but my stomach was growling, giving me away.
“Seems like your stomach doesn’t agree.” Dion flashed his beautiful smile, which resembled mine. “How about we stop by and get something real quick, and we can take it back to the house? I have Betty cooking us a nice dinner.”
“Sure.” What else was I supposed to say? I was just going along with the program.
“Did you have any more problems with Jasmine?” he asked, while we were sharing fries and eating our hamburgers.
This was where I would have to tread carefully. I wanted Dion to like me and I wanted to get back at Jasmine at the same time. But I didn’t want Dion to think I was a troublemaker either. “I think your talk may have worked,” I lied.
“Good. Because she’s coming over later and I want you two to get along.”
Say what? Jasmine was the last person I wanted to spend my weekend with.
“I thought it was just going to be you and me. I really don’t want to share my time with anyone right now.” Please, please, I said to myself, let him agree.
“Let me call her. I’ll get her the next time you’re here.”
“Thanks, Dion. This is all new to me and I want to get to know you before trying to get to know Jasmine,” I said. “And Brenda.” I threw her name in there just to take the attention off me not really wanting Jasmine to come.
“Jasmine, there’s been a change of plans. You can come over next weekend,” I heard him say from his end of the conversation. “I’ll call you later.”
“So, Dion, now that it’s just me and you, what are we going to talk about?” I asked.
“You and Jasmine are more alike than you know. You’re both spoiled.”
I pouted. “I don’t think we’re alike.”
“There’s nothing wrong with being spoiled. Trey and Angie have taken real good care of you. I’m glad of that.”
“My parents are great. Well, when they aren’t getting on my nerves.”
“Spoken like a t
rue teenager.” Dion laughed.
I loved his sense of humor. “I still don’t think Jasmine and I are alike.”
“I know this is difficult for the two of you. My hope is that you two will become close. I’m going to do what I can to make it happen.”
I rolled my eyes. “Good luck.”
“You just don’t know. I’m Dion McNeil. I make it happen.”
I laughed.
We spent the rest of the day talking and laughing. I was enjoying my time with Dion. I still didn’t feel comfortable enough calling him Dad or anything, but nevertheless, we were getting to know each other. We both hated chocolate. We both loved salty potato chips. We even had similar taste in music. Because of my mom and dad, I loved “old-school” music.
Dion put in the Dance game on Wii, and I couldn’t stop laughing as he tried out some of his dance moves. I was surprised he beat me on a few of the routines.
“I can’t believe you beat me,” I said, as I plopped on the couch.
“Yes, your old man still has a few moves left in him,” he said, as he plopped down next to me.
“I think I’m hungry now,” I said.
“Betty should be through by now, so go wash up, and I’ll meet you back down here in about fifteen minutes,” Dion said.
I went to what he said would be my room and washed up. I eyed my reflection in the mirror. I never thought I would be enjoying time with Dion like this. I didn’t want to betray my father. It would hurt him too much. I wouldn’t let them know how much fun we had. I would keep that to myself. Just something else I could blame my mom for.
Dion was seated at the table when I arrived back downstairs. I took my seat. After he blessed the food, we dived in. Conversation was light between us.
“How about a movie tonight?” he asked.
“There’s a movie that I’ve been wanting to see.”
“After dinner, look it up on the Internet and tell me what time, and we’ll go.”
“Cool.”
Less than thirty minutes later, I was in his den surfing for movie times. I went to search for him. I heard him in an intense conversation with someone on the phone. I remained in the hallway.
“Jasmine, I’ve told you, your attitude is going to stop you from getting a lot of things.”
I wondered what she wanted.
He added, “She’s your sister, and she will be a part of my life, whether you like it or not, so you might as well get used to it.”
It felt good hearing Dion take up for me. Jasmine didn’t seem to be taking our relationship well. Her problem, not mine.
I opted for me and Dion to stay in and watch some of his movies he had on DVD. We watched several comedies and laughed until we both got sleepy. Hanging out with my new dad was fun.
29
“Did you have fun this weekend?” my mom asked me as I was unpacking my clothes.
“It was okay.”
“He didn’t make you feel uncomfortable or anything?”
“No, of course not. We talked. Watched movies. Ordered pizza.”
“Well, that’s good. I wanted to talk to him about your party.”
My hand flew up to my mouth. “I can’t believe I forgot about my party. The invites.”
“I saw your list on your desk and took care of it. There’s a stack over there you will need to hand-deliver because I don’t have their addresses.”
“Mom, you’re the greatest.” I stopped what I was doing and hugged her. Tonight I wasn’t mad at her. I slipped the invitations in my backpack.
“Hate to spoil our love fest, but I have one more question I want to ask you.”
I dropped my arms to my side. “I’m listening.”
“Did you see Jasmine this weekend?”
“No, thank God. She’s such a drama queen.”
“I know you didn’t, Ms. Always-got-drama-going-on.”
“But, Mom, seriously, I am not a drama queen.”
“Drama princess then.”
I rolled my eyes.
My mom laughed. “Dear, although her mom is not one of my favorite people, you should try to get along with her.”
I returned to unpacking my suitcase. I mumbled, “I’ll try.”
“Kim’s supposed to stop by tomorrow evening. I’ve already asked Danielle’s mom if she could drop you off.”
My mom had my full attention again, but she finished her conversation and left me in my room by myself. Once I had unpacked, I called Cole. I had made him suffer enough.
“I was wondering if you ever were going to call me,” he said.
“Told you I was spending time with my new dad this weekend.”
“That’s still surreal. Finding out the dad you thought was your father really isn’t.”
“It is what it is,” I responded. By then I was sitting on my bed with my legs crossed, filing my fingernails.
“We have another home game this week. Would love it if you would be there,” he said.
“Depends on you. If you act right, I’ll be there.”
“I’ll behave. Promise.”
I could imagine him smiling. I found myself melting and falling for his boyish charms all over again. “Cole, I’ll see you tomorrow. I’m tired. I need to get me some sleep.”
“Okay,” he said. He sounded disappointed, I was sure he would get over it.
Even with me getting eight hours of sleep, I still overslept. I rushed and got dressed while my mom made sure my brothers were dressed. My dad dropped the boys off, and I rode with my mom. She was quiet, except for the occasional laugh she would get from listening to the Tom Joyner Morning Show. I liked listening to Rickey Smiley, but since I wasn’t in my own car yet, I enjoyed the old-school music my mom listened to every morning.
“Looks like you have an admirer,” my mom said, as I retrieved my backpack from the backseat of the car.
I turned around to look. It was Cole. He waved. “That’s just Cole,” I responded.
“Ask him to come here. I would love to meet him.”
“Mom, not now. Maybe later.”
“Now!”
“Ugh! Okay.” I walked up to where Cole stood. “My mom wants to meet you.”
“Cool.” He almost bumped me out of the way to get to the car. “Hi, Mrs. Swint. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
My mom stuck her hand out the window and shook his. “Nice to meet you too, Cole. Cole, what’s your parents, name?”
“Mom,” I said from behind.
Cole said, “I don’t mind. My mom’s name is Freda Baylor. She’s a nurse. My dad’s dead. He died when I was young.”
“Sorry to hear that. Well, we’ll have to have you and your mom over for dinner one night.”
“I’m sure she’ll like that.”
The first bell was ringing in the distance. “Mom, that’s the bell. We should get going.”
“Don’t forget you’re riding with Danielle this evening,” she reminded me.
“Your mom seems cool,” Cole said, as we walked toward the school.
“She’s all right when she’s not getting on my nerves,” I said.
“She seems down-to-earth.”
“She is. You don’t have to lay the compliments on thick. We’re cool, all right.”
“Oh, I wasn’t trying to suck up to you.” He flashed his Colgate smile. “Then again, I can stand to get all the brownie points I can get.” He pulled a box out of his pocket.
“What’s this?” I asked, as he opened it.
“I want you to wear my ring. You’re my girl, and I want the whole world to know it.” He retrieved a gold necklace with his class ring attached to it from the box.
“Cole, this is serious. Are you sure?” I asked. We were now standing near my homeroom.
“I’m positive. Turn around.”
I did as I was told. I moved my hair out of the way as he placed the necklace around my neck. Several people walking by noticed the exchange. It was official. Everyone would know by the end of the day that Cole and
I were an item.
Jasmine, eat your heart out.
30
At lunch, I handed Danielle and Tara their invitations.
Danielle opened up hers. “Girl, you’re having your party at Southfork Ranch.”
“Hee haw!” Tara shouted out. “I love horses.”
Say what? I hadn’t even looked at the invitations. I just assumed the party was going to be at our house. I had no idea my party was at Southfork. I took the cowboy-shaped paper from Danielle’s hand and read it out loud:
“The pre-party starts at four. Be prepared to ride horses and participate in some fun games. The after-party starts at promptly seven o’clock. Bring a change of clothes—dress to impress—formal wear only. Since this is a masquerade ball, masks will be provided. R.S.V.P. Envelope enclosed.”
“This is going to be so cool. I haven’t rode horses since I was a little girl,” Tara said.
Danielle and I looked at her. I was the first to speak. “You were a little girl like yesterday, duh.”
“You know what I meant.” She looked a little teary-eyed.
“Your party is going to be different. I love it.” Danielle commented.
My party was going to be a cross between a picnic and a masquerade ball, a whole day and night of fun. The countdown was on.
I gave Danielle and Tara each some invitations to pass out for me. I glanced at one of the envelopes and started to trash it, but I knew my mom would’ve asked me if I gave it to her, so I set out on a mission to locate my crazy half-sister.
She was looking sad. I almost felt sorry for her, well, that is until she looked up and opened her mouth.
“What do you want?” she asked.
I reached in my bag and pulled out the envelope. “I wanted to give you this.”
She snatched it from my hand. I was inches away from snatching her hair.
“If it’s about your stupid party, I doubt if I’ll be able to come. I have something to do that weekend.”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Fine with me. I didn’t want you there anyway.”
“In that case, I’ll make sure I’m there.” She threw the invitation in her purse.
“You’re pathetic.”
“No, you’re the pathetic one, trying to be all up in my dad’s face. If he only knew how evil you really were,” Jasmine said.
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