by Earl Sewell
“I’m not stupid,” I said with an edge in my voice.
“I know that,” Aunt Raven said.
“Then why didn’t you tell them?” I was getting emotional, but couldn’t help it.
“Watch your tone with me,” Aunt Raven warned. “You’ll be tested on basic stuff. Reading Comprehension, English, Math and Science. It’s a way for the school to find out what courses they should place you in.”
“I still think tests are stupid,” I said, loathing the idea.
“You take the test first thing tomorrow morning,” she said.
“Are you serious? They won’t even give me time to study?”
“I’m afraid not,” said Aunt Raven.
“Augh, that sucks,” I complained as I plopped down on the bed.
“Don’t worry about it. Just go in there and do the best that you can,” she said. I cut my eyes at her as if I were about to stab her.
“I have a question for you,” she said.
“What?” I mumbled a little as I felt a small anxiety attack swelling up.
“When was the last time you had a physical?” she asked.
“I don’t know. Mom rarely took me to the doctor. She doesn’t have health insurance,” I said.
“Okay. Do you remember the name of the last doctor you saw?” she asked.
“I have no idea. The only thing I remember was that she was Korean, and she was still learning how to be a doctor.”
“What do you mean, she was still learning how to be a doctor?”
My answer seemed to have alarmed her. “She was in training. Down at Cook County Hospital,” I said.
“Oh, you mean she was doing a residency,” said Aunt Raven.
“Yeah, whatever that is,” I answered. Aunt Raven paused for a moment and then said, “I’m going to call your grandmother and see if she has any of your medical records.”
“What for? I’m not sick,” I said.
“School, dear. Anna, Paul, Maya and you need to get a physical for school, and I have to get as much of your medical history together as possible.”
“Oh,” I said, then turned my thoughts to Maya and how she had threatened me earlier.
“I’ve scheduled an appointment for later this week.”
“Fine,” I said. “Is that it?”
“That will do it,” she said, trying to sound upbeat and as if I wasn’t an additional burden on her. I don’t know why, but I felt lousy. I felt as if I didn’t belong here and that I was more trouble than I was worth.
I walked back to the kitchen to get myself something to snack on. Shortly thereafter Paul walked into the kitchen with his skateboard that had graffiti-styled lettering that read Fly Higher. Paul quickly made himself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and sat down at the table to eat it.
“What’s up?” he asked as he bit into his sandwich then removed a handheld game from his pocket.
“Nothing.” I released a long uncomfortable sigh. I opened the refrigerator door and was moving a few things around to see if there was any more Jell-O left when I heard Maya ask, “What are you doing in our refrigerator?” Startled, I popped my head up and looked at her. She was standing on the other side of the door glaring at me. The evil in her eyes was unmistakable.
“Excuse me,” I said, as if her comment was meaningless.
“If you’re going to eat our food, you need to ask first,” Maya said, making up her own rules.
“No, I don’t,” I snapped at her and shut the refrigerator door so that it was no longer between us. Maya lowered her eyelids to slits. She clenched her teeth and for the very first time, I saw just how much she truly despised me.
“Do you hate me?” I asked with a sly smile. I knew I was pushing her buttons of contempt for me.
“Yes,” she answered without hesitation.
“Now you know exactly how cold my heart is toward you,” I said and waited for her to throw a punch or reach for my hair. I was ready for her, but in true Maya fashion, she chickened out. She turned her back to me and stormed away like a spoiled brat.
* * *
The following morning I walked up to Thornwood High School to take the standardized test. Once inside, a security guard pointed in the direction of the library, which is where I was supposed to go. When I arrived, I was asked to sign in by a woman standing behind a counter. I assumed she was one of the teachers here. After I signed in, she looked down at my name. “Hello, Viviana,” said the woman. She had an even brown complexion and a warm, pretty smile.
“Hi,” I said as I began glancing around.
“You can have a seat anywhere. There are a few more kids coming in,” she informed me. I exhaled out of frustration before stepping away to sit on one of the hard wooden chairs. Several other kids wandered in and sat down at other tables that were nearby. Then I heard this loud voice. I turned in the direction of it, and, through the glass, I saw this girl talking loudly to the security guard.
“This is the library, right?” she asked, pointing.
“Duh,” I whispered to myself. All she had to do was look at all the books to figure out that this was the library. She walked through the entrance.
“What’s up? Are you the librarian in this joint?” She was talking as if there was loud music playing and no one could hear her.
“Shhh, yes,” said the teacher as she pointed to the sign-in sheet. The girl picked up the ink pen and signed in.
“Shhh, back to you. I’m not even registered yet,” said the girl as she slammed the pen down on the countertop.
“Take a seat,” said the teacher.
“Anywhere?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“Please don’t sit next to me,” I whispered to myself as I looked in another direction, pretending to be interested in the READ posters on the wall.
“Yo. Is this spot taken?”
I turned my attention toward her. She was pointing to the seat that was on the opposite side of my table. “No,” I answered.
“Cool. I’m going to park it right here,” she said as she sat down and began tapping the pads of her fingertips on the edge of the table. She began humming the lyrics to a popular song.
“Where are you from?” she asked.
“Around,” I answered.
“I can tell that because you don’t look like you’re from around here.”
I didn’t know if I should be insulted or take what she said as a compliment.
“Are you from Chicago or someplace else? Because you are damn sure not from these lame-ass suburbs,” she said, looking directly into my eyes.
“How do you know that?” I asked curiously.
“I’ve been around and can tell things about people right away. For example, I know you’re not a suburban girl because you just don’t have the look. You don’t look like the type who goes out horseback riding, so I know you’re not a country girl,” she said as she continued to thump her fingers against the table while nodding to some rhythm that was playing in her head.
“City girl,” I answered.
“You mean hood chick.” She chuckled.
“Yeah, something like that,” I said, glaring at her. I was trying to figure her out.
“That’s cool, because I’m definitely hood. My name is LaShaunda Hackett.” She curled her fist and offered up a fist bump. I gave her one.
“Viviana,” I answered. LaShaunda was a lighter shade of brown. Her black hair had light brown highlights and was pulled back away from her face. Her hairline had been overprocessed and as a result, the amount of hair around the rim of her face was sparse. She had thick black eyebrows that needed to be trimmed and her name was tattooed on her neck. I glanced down at her hands and noticed that several of her knuckles had dark black scabs that had formed to heal a wound. I
immediately knew that she was a fighter. LaShaunda was overweight, but thankfully, she wasn’t the type of chick who wore clothes that were too small.
“I like that name. It’s kind of sexy,” she said and I laughed.
“No one has ever said that before,” I remarked, feeling myself letting my guard down a little. “Who did you get into a fight with?” I asked. LaShaunda slapped her hand down on the table.
“I knew you were hood. Only a hood chick would know that busted knuckles come from fighting. The moment I saw you, I knew we’d get along.”
I laughed fretfully. LaShaunda had a personality that was large, loud and very bold.
“I got into a situation where I had to protect myself. You know what I’m saying?” she asked.
“Yeah, I know what you’re saying,” I answered.
“You see, I’m from Milwaukee. Where I come from, we handle our business. Nobody messed with our crew. We did it all, girl, and I can’t wait to get back there.”
“Wait, what are you doing here if you’re from Milwaukee?” I asked.
LaShaunda leaned back on the legs of the chair, curled her lips into a sour expression and said, “Some BS.”
“Shhh,” the teacher warned LaShaunda again.
“What the hell do I have to be quiet for?” LaShaunda turned and asked the teacher, who seemed stunned by LaShaunda’s explosive reaction. When the teacher didn’t answer, LaShaunda turned her attention back to me.
“School hasn’t even started and she’s already on a power trip,” LaShaunda griped.
“Like I was saying, my crew, we’re like family, we look out for each other,” she continued to explain.
“It would be nice to have a family like that,” I said, feeling the sting of being a burden to my aunt Raven and being loathed by Maya.
“So what are you in here for?” LaShaunda asked.
“Some stupid placement test,” I answered.
“Yeah, me, too. I told these mo fos that I’m not stupid, and that I have more sense in my farts than they have in their head.” I laughed so hard that I grunted like a pig.
“You don’t believe me? I can cut one right now to prove it,” LaShaunda said.
“No, please don’t,” I said as I smeared away a few tears of laughter. “If I laugh any harder, I’ll end up peeing on myself.”
“You seem like a pretty cool chick,” LaShaunda said. “You don’t seem all fake and phony. I like that.”
“I always keep it real,” I said.
LaShaunda leaned closer to me and whispered, even though her version of a whisper was still loud. “You ever do anything illegal?” she asked.
“I’m no angel,” I answered. “Why?”
“After this test, I’m heading downtown to the Lollapalooza Music Fest. If you’re not afraid to jump a fence, then we could spend the rest of the day having the time of our lives.”
“Oh, man, I’ve always wanted to go to Lollapalooza.”
LaShaunda smiled at me. “Then it sounds to me like we’ve got a plan.”
“How are we going to get downtown?” I asked.
“Just stick with me, girl. I’ll get us there,” LaShaunda said.
Then out of nowhere, a wicked idea popped into my head. “Hey, do you like making some fast money?” I asked.
“Does a bear take a dump in the woods?” LaShaunda answered my question with another one.
“I have to stop by my house and pick up something before we go,” I said.
“What do you need to get?” she asked.
“A backpack,” I answered.
“Girl, why do you want to carry a backpack around?” LaShaunda asked.
“Do you want to make some money or ask questions?”
“All right.” LaShaunda smiled and pointed her finger at me. “I’m down with whatever you have planned. Money always makes me smile,” she said.
nine
MAYA
I called Keysha to see if she wanted to hang out and got the shock of my life when she said she and Wesley were going out.
“Huh?” I said as I pulled my cell phone away from my ear and glared at it. I was certain that I didn’t hear what Keysha had said correctly.
“I know. I said I didn’t think I’d ever go out with him again, but I decided to give him another chance.” It was hard to tell if Keysha was trying to convince me or herself that giving Wesley another chance was worth the effort.
“After all the heartache you went through with him, what could he have possibly said to make you want to give him another chance?” I asked.
“He and I have been talking more lately, and we’ve gotten to be friends again, but we’re going to take our relationship slow this time,” Keysha explained.
“Oh, give me a break,” I griped as I stuck my finger in my mouth and pretended to vomit.
“I told him that if I see him doing anything remotely close to drinking alcohol or otherwise, that was it. I would not allow him to make a fool of me again.”
“Where are you guys going?” I asked with a sarcastic sigh.
“He has tickets to the Lollapalooza Music Festival. Do you want to come with us?” Keysha asked.
“No, I don’t want to be the third wheel,” I said, trying to conceal my envy.
“I know this is going to sound totally crazy, but maybe you could come down with your sister or brother.”
“No one is home. I am here all alone.” I hoped I would get a sympathetic reaction.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to have Wesley pick you up?” Keysha offered again.
I exhaled. “No. You guys go on and have a good time. I’ll be fine. Call me when you get back,” I said.
“Okay,” Keysha solemnly said and then ended the call. A few moments later I received a text from her.
R U really, really sure u don’t want 2 go?
Yes. TTYL
* * *
My mom and dad had left to attend one of Anna’s modeling competitions and my brother was out, probably getting into mischief with his friends. Viviana was at Thornwood High School taking a placement test. I told myself that she’d probably do so horribly that she would end up in remedial classes. The thought made me smile because I knew academically I would run circles around her. The thought of Viviana made me feel evil. I wanted her out of my house and I secretly wished there was a way I could make my parents see that she was nothing but bad news. Then they would be forced to ship her back to Grandmother Esmeralda.
I grabbed my laptop computer and headed down to the family room. I decided to log on to my Tumblr account to see what was going on while simultaneously watching TV. Once I got settled comfortably on the sofa, I picked up the remote and aimed it at the television. I turned it to VH1 Soul and then booted up my laptop. When my computer screen came up, I noticed that my wallpaper image was a photo of me and Misalo. The photo was taken a while ago, but it was one of my favorites. It captured us kissing on a carnival ride called the Sizzler. The only thing that was really sizzling was the kiss. I was about to delete the photo so I’d stop thinking about him, but I didn’t. Instead, I typed in the URL for YouTube and pulled up a song by Beyoncé called “I Miss You.” I began singing along as I studied our photo. My heart was so broken. Tears began forming in my eyes and it wasn’t long before my nose was running and I was smearing away tears from my cheeks.
“I miss you, Misalo,” I spoke aloud. I was so lost in thought that I had not noticed that Viviana had walked into the family room from the garage. She snickered at me. I quickly scrambled to turn the music down and pretend that I wasn’t in that much emotional pain.
“What’s up with her?” asked the big girl who was with Viviana. She was as tall as a tree and she looked hardened. She had not removed her shoes at the door as Viviana had when she wa
lked in. Everyone knew to remove their shoes upon entering someone’s home. It was common sense. I immediately had a problem with Viviana’s new friend. She didn’t have on any makeup, her hair was jacked up, and her eyebrows were thick and bushy. She had on a sleeveless top and I noticed she had dark skin blemishes on her arms. She had on blue jeans and worn-out gym shoes. I cast judgment on her, and concluded that wherever she had come from, it wasn’t too far from hell.
“She’s the Antichrist,” Viviana said as she and the girl walked past me.
“Mom and Dad don’t like strangers in the house, Viviana. You can’t have company,” I said to her as they continued on.
“LaShaunda is not a stranger,” Viviana said as she escorted the girl upstairs.
“You can’t go upstairs,” I said, as I got out of my chair and chased after them.
“Calm down, Paris Hilton. I am not going to rob the place.” LaShaunda wrinkled her nose at me as if I smelled like rotting roadkill in the street.
“My name isn’t Paris,” I shot back, not liking the fact that she was comparing me to the snotty rich girl.
“Could’ve fooled me.” LaShaunda cut her eyes at me.
“Maya, go sit in the basement and finish crying.”
Viviana’s words cut me deeply.
“What was she crying about?” asked LaShaunda as she continued to follow Viviana.
“Probably over her ex-boyfriend that I stole from her. I noticed she had a picture of them on her computer screen,” Viviana said coolly.
“Damn! For real? You took her man?” LaShaunda asked.
“Yep.”
“You’re cold-blooded. I like that. You see something you want and you take it.” LaShaunda continued to praise Viviana.
I stood at the bottom of the basement staircase that led up to the bedrooms feeling my earlier emotion of sorrow get replaced with hatred. I wanted Viviana to suffer. I wanted to make her feel miserable. Then, somewhere from a dark corner of my mind, I got a really wicked idea. I suddenly knew exactly how I was going to get back at Viviana and make her miserable at the same time.