by Michel Moore
A day filled with the extreme promise of the future was also a day filled with sadness for the twins. They had struggled relentlessly through guest speakers, awards, and the seemingly endless roll call of the senior graduates, and still no Gran. Dry mouthed, London could barely get through her speech without stumbling over the same words repeatedly that she had practiced for weeks. The haunting sight of Gran’s empty seat with the two pink roses lying alone on the chair made her nauseated and sick to her stomach.
At the end of the ceremony, the girls weren’t interested in taking pictures. They had no desire to hug everyone and pretend like they would really miss one another. All of the crowd fanfare was of no consequence to either of them. No sooner than they found their uncle did they jump in his SUV and make him drive them home as quickly as possible. They pulled up in the driveway and before the truck could come to a complete stop the two were jumping out and running up toward the door.
When the Kenya and London got the door unlocked, they bolted inside. That’s when they received the pain of ten lifetimes combined. They laid eyes on Gran. She was fully dressed and sitting back in her favorite chair. There were two letters lying in her lap. Each had one of the girls’ names written on the white envelope.
After all the initial pandemonium broke loose and the paramedics, police, and the morgue had left with the body, each twin, feeling totally lost and in denial, sat quietly in a daze halfway reading the letters their beloved Gran had written. The letters told each of them to always trust, depend on, and rely on one other no matter what the circumstances would be.
Both of the twins wept uncontrollably at Gran’s Home Going Service, even having to be ushered out to get some air and a chance to recompose themselves. Gran in all her glory truly looked like an angel. The sometimes-tormented, but always-spiritual loyal woman was finally at peace. She’d left the house fifty-fifty jointly to both London and Kenya. Each girl would receive two acres of land down South in Jackson, Alabama. That was where their grandmother and mother were originally born before relocating to Detroit. They also were to receive $20,000 each in life insurance money. Gran, loving her girls to the end, made sure each would have a fair start at life.
It had been a little more than two and a half months since Gran had gone and London and Kenya often spent nights lying awake missing her in their own special way. September rolled around quickly and London, who had wrestled with the idea of accepting the scholarship from State University, was getting ready for college. Sure the school was also located in Michigan, but it was up north. It was almost a two hour car ride from home, and away from Kenya, her twin. London would have to stay on campus which meant she couldn’t keep tabs on her often out-of-control sister. Miss Kenya, now living with a little bit of pocket money and no real adult supervision, had gotten a little wild and untamable, to say the least. Yet, despite her shortcomings, and most, if not all, of Kenya’s recent decisions and behavior, London could hardly fathom being apart from her.
“I’ve got to do this. I’ve worked much too hard not to push on.” London was talking to Gran’s picture as she packed it in her bag.
Amber somberly came over to help her best friend pack. She was going to miss her homegirl and confidante. “Dang, I wish I was going with you, so that way we could both get out this tired hood. You are so lucky.”
“I wished you were going too, so I wouldn’t be so lonely up there with all those strangers.”
Both Amber and London looked at each other and sighed. Amber, not the smartest person London knew, barely graduated and felt like in all probability she would forever be stuck working in the beauty supply on Dexter Boulevard. They sadly exchanged their good-byes and Amber left, heading up toward Dexter to work.
Everything was all packed and London’s uncle was on the way with his pickup truck. As she sat on the front stairs looking around at her surroundings, trying to remember all the flowers and rocks in the street, London closed her eyes. She wanted to make sure she didn’t forget the neighborhood. Squeezing them tightly shut, she locked the memory in her brain. London would miss the hood and all the foolish antics that went along with living in it. Crime infested or not, it was her home, and no matter where she went, who she met, or what great things in life she ever accomplished, she’d never forget where she came from or the ethics Gran had instilled in her. Opening her eyes, she soon heard the blasting sounds of jazz music coming down the street and London knew that it had to be her uncle.
Damn near pulling the truck up on the porch with the huge rimmed tires he jumped out. “Hey, baby girl.” He beamed with pride of where they were headed and what London was sure to succeed in. “You’s about ready to go get this family some higher learning going on or what?” He grabbed London off her feet and started swinging her around. He was so proud of her; everyone who knew Gran was.
“Dang, Uncle, I can hardly breathe, put me down!” she begged as her feet dangled trying to touch the ground.
“Okay, baby girl! Are you all packed? Do you have enough clothes? Do you need to go get more supplies?” He was talking so fast, on a ten, that London had to tell him to calm down.
“Yes, I’m fine, so don’t worry.” She playfully pushed his arm, smiling. “I have everything I need and what I don’t have I can buy up there in the next few days, so stop worrying about me. I’m gonna be good. I promise!”
London had a full ride scholarship: room, board, and books completely paid for. Whatever else London would need, she could easily take from the money that Gran had left to her. Unlike Kenya, she’d saved more than the majority of the life insurance money that Gran blessed her and her sister with. She’d basically purchased a laptop, a new cell phone, some much-needed and wanted books, and banked the rest for the future.
“Well, London, where is your sister?” her uncle suspiciously questioned. “Why ain’t her fast, wannabe-grown-ass out on this porch helping you with your stuff?”
No sooner, seemingly seconds, had the words left out his mouth, than they heard the annoying screech of tires turn the corner. Uncle, instinctively from living the street life, reached under his shirt and put his hand on his thriller. He didn’t know who was coming down the block driving like a bat outta hell, yet he did know that any clown-ass fool who wanted to get his “big shot on” was gonna catch a few hot ones real quick, fast, and in a hurry. As the car finally came into focus, he and London both shared an expression of disgust. It was Kenya, riding with that foul-ass Ty, nine outta ten in a stolen vehicle.
“Hey, y’all! What up, doe?” Kenya, obviously turned up, jumped out the car looking like who did it and why. Her hair was out of place and her clothes were slightly wrinkled, looking as if she had slept in them.
“What the fuck is your problem?” Uncle never raised his voice or even cursed in front of his nieces, but he had been pushed to his limit and was pissed off. “You look one hot mess! Have you lost your damn mind out here or what?”
London got terrified not knowing what her uncle was going to do, knowing his reputation for violence, but not Kenya. She was didn’t give a shit what he or anyone had to say about what she did or who she did it with. Not even blinking, she stood tall in her uncle’s face ready for whatever. She had that Roberts blood pumping through her veins just like her uncle and his brother, her daddy, did and Kenya feared no man or woman for that matter. Maybe it was that fat blunt that she had for breakfast or the wine from the night before still circulating in her system giving her liquid courage, but whatever it was she started to laugh.
Ty, terrified as his girl’s uncle noticed the ignition column of the car broken and a screwdriver on seat, knew better than to try to go up against the seasoned criminal everyone knew was a cold-blooded killer if need be. He wised up real fast and peeled away from the curb as quickly as he had pulled up, leaving Kenya to face her own demons so to speak. Ty knew the twins’ uncle only by his ruthless reputation on the streets and knew he wasn’t for any foolishness, so he couldn’t help but exhale as he made it down the
block to the stop sign without a bullet in the back of his head.
“Have you been out all damn night with that lowlife car-stealing bastard?” The twins’ uncle roughly grabbed Kenya by her shirt, waiting for an answer.
Kenya’s defiant laughter quickly turned into pure shock as he lifted her upward. “Let me go, let me go!” she cried as she tried unsuccessfully to snatch away from his strong grip.
“Listen, little girl! I don’t give a sweet fuck how grown you running around here pretending you are! Let’s get this straight. I’ll kill you dead first and anyone else who tries to lead your ass down the wrong path. Do you fucking understand me, Kenya?” Their uncle was furious as the veins started to jump out the side of his neck.
London, desperate to not have any trouble, came in between two of the only people she truly called family and began crying. “Please don’t do this, please. Not on my last day here,” she continuously pleaded.
Seeing both of his nieces in tears made their uncle’s rage slightly soften, but it was obviously his sentiment, for what he’d told Kenya remained the same and by the evil side eye he gave her she knew to take heed. “Come on, London, let’s get your stuff loaded and get going.” He grabbed the last few items off the porch and got back in his truck without so much as glancing in Kenya’s general direction at all.
“Well, sis, this is it. I’m gonna miss you, Kenya.”
“I’m gonna miss you too. First Mom and Pops, then Gran, and now you, but I ain’t tripping.” Kenya tried to force a smile as her heart broke. “I’ll be good holding it down.”
“Kenya, I’m only a phone call away. Matter of fact, I’ll call you as soon as I get there.” They hugged each other as the tears continued to flow.
“If you need me,” they both said at the same time like twins often did.
“One love.” London smiled.
“Say U Promise,” chanted Kenya.
London jumped in the truck and the girls kept their eyes glued to the other one until the truck turned off the block, heading upstate.
Chapter Six
London
Even though they’d left early in the day, after eating lunch it was getting dark by the time they reached the campus. Understandably, London also had to go and say good-bye to all of the neighbors she had grown to love over the years. She had stopped by Gran’s church and thanked everyone for the money that they had collected for her sendoff. London told them that she didn’t need it, but the congregation wasn’t trying to hear that. Her grandmother had helped each and every last one of them and their families. So their giving what little bit they collected was all in love.
Overwhelmed, London took a good look around the campus as they drove up. “Wow, it’s a lot bigger than what I remember from my visit on the tour we took in our senior year.” Taking out a small pack of papers, she was puzzled. “Well, I know I’m supposed to be in Davis Hall dormitory. So let’s see . . .”
They followed all the signs posted along the side of each twisted street corner. When finally they found the building, London leaped out the truck and jogged up to the double glass door. As she entered, she saw plenty of new, interesting faces milling around looking just as confused as she was. After standing in a long line at the front desk, it was her turn to give the lady her personal information.
“Hello, I’m Amia London Roberts. I’m trying to check in.”
The young lady behind the desk punched her name into the computer and retrieved London’s keys, room assignment, and some important information booklets that would make her transition into college life easier. Keys in hand and a huge smile on her face, London skipped back out to the truck, telling her uncle that they could pull around the back entrance of the building and unload. In the company of at least ten other excited families, the pair patiently waited until it was their turn to use the big freight elevator.
“All right then, baby girl, let’s get you settled in.”
Her uncle was in a much better mood than earlier when he’d had that big blowout confrontation with Kenya, and London was glad. One half of the elated twins started to grab her things up in her arms, placing them on the elevator as other cars, trucks, and vans pulled up, waiting their turns. He is the best uncle in the world. Thank God he has my back! London lovingly thought as they carried load after load up to her new dorm room.
After they were finally done, her uncle started to get a sad expression on his face. “I’m gonna miss you, baby girl. I want you to represent for the entire family. Your father and mother would be so proud of you if they were here!” He fought back the tears thinking about his dead brother and the circumstances of his death. “I’ll know you’ll be the smartest one here. We’re all counting on you.”
“Don’t worry, Uncle, I won’t let you down. I don’t know about being the smartest, but I promise I’ll study hard and do my very best.” London hugged him tightly and before he left out the dorm room door, he reached in his pocket, blessing her with five one hundred dollar bills.
“Uncle, I’m fine. Seriously, I have enough money to get by,” she pleaded as she backed away from his extended hand.
“Okay, London, dig this here. I’m gonna tell you what your daddy always told me: as long as you black, you don’t have enough money. Now take this and put it up for later!” He then forced the money into her hand, refusing to take no for an answer.
London smiled and told him that she loved him while they both emotionally fought back the tears.
As he was leaving, London’s new roommate, unbeknownst to him, was making her way down the long hallway. The struggle she was having was real. The young teen was having trouble with all the bags and boxes that she was attempting to carry and kick down the hallway by herself. Unfortunately many of her belongings were falling out of her arms and onto the floor.
“Dang why did I bring so much damn stuff?” she spoke out loud, not caring who might have overheard her talking to herself.
“Maybe because a real woman needs a lot of personal items to make strange places feel more like home. How about that?” London’s uncle beamed as he bent down to help the overdeveloped young girl gather together her things.
“Wow, thank you so much, sir.” She smiled and picked up the bag she was carrying, throwing it back over her shoulder. “I’m just down the hallway I think.”
As she watched the numbers getting higher and higher, London’s uncle, being a man, watched her body and the way it moved like a hawk. Damn, I need to go back to school! He couldn’t do shit but shake his head as his manhood automatically jumped.
“Hey, this is it here!” Fatima yelled as they burst through the door that was still cracked open. “I made it.”
London, who was unpacking, turned around and saw her uncle standing in the doorway with a huge grin on his face.
“Hey, girl! I’m Fatima James, your new roommate.” Out of breath she dropped all her things on the floor and blew up in the air.
“Hello, Fatima, I’m Amia Roberts, but please call me London.” The two gave each other a short brief hug. “Oh, and I see that you must have met my uncle.”
“Your uncle? Well yes, I guess did, well sort of.” Fatima started to trip over her words as she noticed just how handsome her knight in shining armor really was under the bright room lights.
Knowing he had caught the young girl’s eye, he reached back inside his pocket, peeling London off another hundred from his rubber-banded stack. “Well, ladies, I guess I’ll leave you two to unpack and get to know each other.” Of course, he made sure that Fatima was watching as he strutted his older self back toward the door. “Put some snacks in the fridge for both of you.” He then winked his eye at his niece and blew a kiss at Fatima.
“We will. Bye, Uncle. Have a safe trip back!” London was almost speechless by her uncle’s blatant flirting with her roommate.
The girls started pulling different stuff out of their boxes and bags to add their own individual personal touches and own flair to the room. While London’s side of
the room had a lot of pictures of her small family, which consisted of Gran, Kenya, and her uncle, reference books, notebooks, and a few stuffed animals, Fatima had snapshots of Africa and pictures of her Muslim parents in various racial and religious freedom marches they had taken part in. Fatima also had a lot of bumper stickers bearing black pride slogans and tons of books about African Americans. London naturally wondered why Fatima didn’t choose to attend an all-black school since she was obviously pro-black.
“Wow, you sure have a lot of books. It’s like you have your very own library.” London flipped though all of the various titles, somewhat in awe of Fatima’s interest.
“Yeah, girl, I love me some books. I stay up hours reading.” Fatima smiled at her new roommate. The girls knew, right then and there, they would grow to be good friends. “Hey, I am starving. Let’s get something to eat. And then we can check out the campus at the same time.” Fatima rubbed on her empty stomach.
London eagerly agreed with her roommate. “Okay, but let me try to call my sister first and let her know that I made it here safely.” She reached in a box and handed Fatima a picture of Kenya. “This was taken at the park this summer.”
“Damn, this is your sister? You’re a twin? Girl, I thought that these other pictures were of you at the club or something with your hair down and makeup on!” Fatima couldn’t believe they were two different people. Fatima smiled at London. “Go ahead, girl, and make your call to your alter ego. I’ll be down in the lobby.”
London picked up the phone, dialing home.
Kenya
Kenya slowly walked up the stairs looking back one last time as she saw her uncle and sister fade out of sight. She put her key in the door and started to make her way into the empty, sure-to-be lonely house. Stopping in front of the mirror in the front hallway, she took a good, long look at herself. “Well, it’s just you and me now. It’s time to do you, get your shit together, and hold yourself down.” Kenya said it over and over out loud as if she was trying to convince herself of it being true. Taking a deep breath, she had to smile thinking about London and all she did to make both their lives better since Gran’s passing. The house was clean as a whistle and smelled like it had been scrubbed top to bottom. London, thankfully, had washed all of the dishes and skillets, cleaned the carpet, and washed all of her sister’s “dirty for weeks on end” clothes. London always knew that housework was never really Kenya’s thing and had hooked her up one last time before going off to school. Good lookin’, sis. Kenya nodded as she passed by London’s graduation picture that was sitting on the mantle next to her own.