by Zuri Day
With a last look in the mirror, and final self-approval that the flowing peach-colored maxi with fall-colored leaves paired with wedged brown ankle boots and a belt of the same leather was just the right amount of casual and chic, she stepped out of her bedroom and into the living room, where Kyle sat watching TV.
“Are you ready, Kyle?”
“Yes.”
“You look quite handsome today.” She turned off the television and lights, and set the alarm.
“Thank you.”
“Grab your jacket. It might get cold later.” She reached for a gift bag, and the shawl beside it. “We’re going to meet Mr. Drake’s family. I want you to be on your best behavior, okay?”
“I always behave, Mommy.”
She smiled. “You’re right, son. Mostly, you do.”
A short time later she pulled into the wide expanse of concrete and gravel that served as Warren Drake’s driveway. Several other cars, SUVs and a Jeep were already parked there. Music and the sound of voices floated from behind the house out to greet them, stirring up Aliyah’s belly of butterflies. She pressed her hand against her stomach and with a last look in the rearview mirror exited the car, grabbed Kyle’s hand and headed down the path toward the sounds.
As soon as they’d reached the end of the path and turned the corner, Aliyah saw a familiar face.
“Aliyah, hello! Welcome back.”
“Hi, Charlie.” The two women shared a warm embrace. “I hope we’re not late.”
“Not at all. They all came early,” she said, tossing her head in the direction of four tables of six, and a bit farther away a kiddie table for four. “You know how family can be. No manners at all.” She looked at Kyle. “Hello, little fella.”
“I’m not—”
“Kyle.” Her stern voice and slight hand squeeze squelched the oncoming argument. “Miss Charlie knows you’re five. She meant that as someone not as tall as her.”
“Absolutely,” Charlie agreed, with a quick wink to Aliyah. “You’re on a ranch, son. Around here you’re not big until you’re at least three hands. To a horse, know what I mean?”
He shook his head. “You have horses? Mommy, can I ride the horse?”
“What makes you think you can ride a horse?”
Both Aliyah and Kyle turned around.
“Mr. Drake!”
“Hey, buddy. Hello, Aliyah.” He gave Kyle a high five and Aliyah a slight hug.
“Are you just getting here?” Aliyah asked.
“No. I went over to Teresa’s real quick. She and Atka just arrived this morning. They’ll be over in a bit. Come on, let’s go meet everybody. Starting with Becky!” A young, petite woman with twins in tow stopped in front of them. “Becky, this is my friend Aliyah and her son, Kyle. Kyle, these are Becky’s children, Matt and Melinda. They’re five years old, too. And big, like you.”
“Hi, Kyle.” Becky turned to her children. “Say hi, guys.” They did. “Kyle, would you like to come with us? We were just heading down to the barn to feed the pony.”
“Ooh, can I, Mommy?”
“Of course. Don’t run! Stay with Miss Becky!” She watched him run off, chattering away with Matt. “And here I thought it might take him a while to warm up to new kids.”
“It did. About five seconds after the word pony was spoken.” He reached for her hand. They walked over to a table of chatting adults, whose conversation stilled as they approached.
“Everyone, I’d like you to meet Aliyah Robinson. She’s here along with her son, Kyle, who’s already gone cowboy and went to ride a horse.”
Aliyah turned to him with a worried look. “They’re not going to actually ride it. Are they?”
“Don’t listen to Terrell. He’s always teasing.” Aliyah smiled at the attractive woman with a flawless complexion, sparkling teeth and eyes, and a hand outstretched. “I’m Terrell’s mother, Jennifer. Pleased to meet you.”
“And you, Mrs. Drake.”
“No need to be so formal, dear. Jennifer is fine. This is my husband, Ike, our dear friends and neighbors, Chet and Bonnie Donnelly, and Charlie’s family who are also her and Warren’s neighbors, Alice and Griff.”
“It’s nice meeting everyone, though I doubt I’ll remember all of your names for more than five minutes. But please, don’t hold it against me.”
“Terrell tells me you’re in your residency to become an anesthesiologist?”
“Yes, Mrs. Drake, um, Jennifer. I am.”
“Then it’s a wonder you remember your own name sometimes. We will forgive you.”
Aliyah gave a quick nod, and a smile she hoped belied her nervousness.
It did not.
“No need to be nervous around us, Aliyah. We can be a rowdy bunch at times but it’s all bark. No bite—” she lowered her voice conspiratorially “—unless we’re backed into a corner and then we’ll snap off your head!”
Aliyah exhaled on a wave of laughter. Less than a minute in and she knew Terrell was right. The Drakes were nothing like the Westcotts. By the time they’d made it around the yard, meeting the rest of Terrell’s family and other guests, Atka and Teresa had arrived along with Aliyah’s appetite, which had been overtaken by butterflies.
The catered affair was happening buffet-style. After fixing their plates, Aliyah and Terrell joined Charlie, Warren, Teresa and Atka at one of the tables. After a few general questions to and about Aliyah, Charlie turned their attention to Kyle.
“Have you guys seen her son on YouTube?”
“Yes, and it’s phenomenal,” Teresa replied.
“He’s a mathematical genius,” Charlie went on. “Was on the Helen show and got a scholarship to MIT!”
Jennifer, seated at the table next to them, overheard. “MIT?”
“Yes,” Charlie answered.
“How’d that happen? Sorry, but I didn’t start eavesdropping until midway through the story.”
They laughed. Aliyah turned her chair slightly to make eye contact with Jennifer. By the time she was finishing up with the quick version of the story, everyone was listening.
“I wish I could take credit,” Aliyah said. “I did notice Kyle’s fascination with numbers and encouraged it with puzzles and later video games. But what you guys are seeing on video and television was as much a surprise to me as it was to you.”
Niko’s wife, Monique, wiped her hands on one of the monogrammed linen napkins, which even though they were in a backyard, seemed quite appropriate. “But who taught him how to add and subtract such huge numbers? Surely that didn’t come from the games alone.”
“No, the video games and the creative math exercises were only the beginning. It was a teenager named Conrad, the older brother of Kyle’s best friend, who worked with him on solving larger problems. But even he had no idea Kyle had taken it as far as we all now see that he has.”
“As far as an exceptional education,” Jennifer exclaimed. She held up her glass. “I believe that great opportunity deserves a toast.” Everyone raised their glasses. “To Kyle, a smart young man with a very bright future being raised by an obviously very smart mom.”
“Hear! Hear!” The cheers rang out as glasses clinked.
“I appreciate that, Jennifer,” Aliyah said, once the voices had quieted. “But I also have to give some of the credit to Terrell. After all, he’s the one who videoed him and suggested I put it online. Had that not happened, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”
“Interesting,” Jennifer replied, eyeing her son over a glass of sparkling wine. “I’ve never known Terrell to take much of an interest in young children. That he’s involved at all is quite noteworthy.”
“Mom, if you’re going to try and fish for information right in front of me, the least you could do is hide the pole.”
“Son, I
am merely stating an observation. And whatever secrets you think you have... I already know them.”
“Whoa!” Niko said. “Man, you know you can’t pull anything over on Jennifer Drake.” Then to Aliyah he asked, “Do you work at the center?”
“No, I’m in residency at UC Davis.”
“Ah, a doctor?” Ike, Jr., who’d spent most of the conversation observing, chimed in for the first time.
“Yes, an anesthesiologist.”
“Now that’s a woman who can hang with Terrell,” Ike, Jr. said. “If he gets out of line, she can just put his ass to sleep!”
The yard erupted with laughter and teasing. Terrell gave just as good as he got and Aliyah wasn’t spared from the ribbing. By the time dinner was over she felt like part of the family. And to think her paranoia almost made her miss this good time and great family? Perish the thought!
After a day of food, fun and more laughter than her sides could handle, she pulled Terrell aside. “Babe, I should go. Kyle’s getting sleepy and I owe my folks a phone call.”
“You haven’t called them today?”
“Yes, earlier, before I came here. But my mom called again this afternoon and I need to call her back.”
They said their goodbyes. Jennifer insisted on walking with them to the driveway.
“Jennifer, your family is wonderful and the food was delicious. Thank you for making me feel so welcome in your home.”
Jennifer gave her a light hug. “It was my pleasure, dear. You’re welcome anytime, with or without my son.” She watched as Terrell stopped to say something to his twin. “We’ve just met, but still, you are quite impressive.”
“Thank you,” Aliyah replied. “But anyone who studies diligently and works hard can become a doctor.”
“Perhaps, but I’m not talking your being a doctor. I’m talking about your accompanying Terrell to a major holiday meal. Trust me, it doesn’t happen often. And never has he chosen to invite a lady who’s spent the night in our home.”
Aliyah could have dropped dead right then.
Jennifer chuckled. “Oh, don’t be embarrassed, dear. Very little happens in my coop and with my chickies that this mother hen doesn’t know about. Just wait, you’ll be the same with Kyle. I think spending quality time together is essential to getting to know each other. I look forward to knowing you more.”
After making plans for the weekend with Terrell, Aliyah left with Kyle for the quick drive home, made even faster by his nonstop chatter. That he was impressed with ranch living was an understatement. Next year, he informed her, there would be no Avenger. Kyle was dressing up as a cowboy! Once home, the chatter stopped, and for her son sleep came quickly. With Aliyah, not so fast. But she didn’t mind. She spent time on the phone with the family back east, enjoyed a quick chat with Lauren and even caught the last of The Best Man, her favorite movie. Through all of this, however, Aliyah’s mind replayed the past several hours and the difference a day made. The switch had happened so quickly and subtly that she just now admitted it was true. When thinking of Terrell, she thought of the R word. And for the first time since she’d met him, she didn’t run from the truth. She was in a relationship with a man she adored from a family that was simply amazing. Her heart was nearly bursting with joy and she couldn’t stop smiling.
Until just before going to bed, when her cell phone rang and she checked her ID. Ernest. She let it go to voice mail.
Chapter 22
“Aliyah.”
She turned around, looking up from the chart of her next patient. “Yes, Doctor?”
“Is it true that the whiz-kid video is your son?”
“You’ve seen it?”
“I think just about everyone in the hospital and on campus has seen it.”
“Oh, my.”
Aliyah was genuinely surprised. Juggling Ernest and Terrell, handling the eventual reentry of his father into Kyle’s life and a booty call-turned-relationship on top of a work schedule on overload had taken all of her attention. But now, considering that the video had gone viral and her son had appeared on Helen, she shouldn’t have been surprised.
She reached her next patient’s room and stopped. So did the doctor. “My son is eleven years old and can’t figure out those types of equations in his head. Everyone in his class uses calculators. Heck, I’m forty-five and can’t figure them out that way. How does he do it?”
“I have no idea and quite frankly, neither does he. It’s a gift.”
Her phone vibrated. Unknown caller. An image of Ernest came to mind. She looked at her watch and let it go to voice mail. “Sorry, Doctor, but I’ve got to—”
“Me, too, but hey. Good work with Mr. Smith. He’s an old codger and your bedside manner is exceptional.”
“Thanks, Doc.”
Three hours passed before Aliyah was able to take a break. Because she was gaining expertise in both pain management and cardiothoracic anesthesiology, cases often overlapped and left her little if any downtime between patients and procedures. Mostly she didn’t mind it. Focusing on patients kept her mind off less pleasant thoughts. Like Ernest and what her mother had said when they’d talked last night. Her mother was right. Ernest had a right to know his son and vice versa. Aliyah agreed. His knowing Ernest wasn’t the problem. It was the other Westcotts and their uppity thinking that she wanted to keep away from her impressionable son.
Still, right was right, so instead of going to the break room she headed to the exit and her car. On the way, she told herself that speaking with Ernest didn’t have to be difficult. That if both were civil, polite and reasonable, appropriate arrangements could be worked out, including a cordial relationship to maintain for the sake of their child.
She reached her car, got inside and dialed his number.
“Thanks for finally deciding to return my call.”
Not the best start, but she kept to her plan. “Hello, Ernest. I apologize for not calling earlier. It was a busy weekend, and I wasn’t available.”
“You work overnight now?”
Ignore, don’t argue, she thought. “I’m sure you’re calling about Kyle and visitation rights. While my reaction to your request hasn’t been overly enthusiastic, I do want you and Kyle to know each other. It is in his best interest to know both sides of his family and I will do everything I can to insure his mental and emotional health.”
“I’m glad we’re finally on the same page. I can fly down this weekend.”
“You coming here is probably best but this weekend is too soon. We still need to meet with the therapist.”
“For what? What’s wrong with him?”
“Nothing is wrong with anyone, Ernest. I just know that an experience like this can be very confusing, even upsetting for a child his age. I’m sure we both want to proceed in a way that is least likely to cause any unnecessary angst in his life.”
“He’s meeting his father, Aliyah, not a serial killer.”
“He wouldn’t know the difference.” An immediate reaction that she’d have liked to have back. “I didn’t mean that the way it sounded, Ernest. It’s just—”
“Look, Aliyah. You’ve had five years to do with Kyle as you please. Those days are over. It is time for me to step in and place him on the path that as a Westcott, he must follow. And by the looks of things, I’m not taking action a moment too soon.”
Civility flew out the window with politeness on its tail. “By the look of things? Are you serious right now? First of all, Kyle is a Robinson, not a Westcott, by your design.”
“That will be rectified as well.”
“Secondly, the only path Kyle must follow is where his heart takes him. His will not be a life dictated by an archaic and asinine set of societal rules. This is the page you and I will be on before Kyle is allowed out of my sight to be left alone with you or your family
.”
“And we should leave it up to you? Someone who thinks it’s okay to parade a child on television like some trained animal?”
The comment knocked Aliyah back in her seat. “I must have heard incorrectly just now. You can’t be talking about Kyle’s appearance on Helen, the one that led to his having a full college scholarship.”
“Yes, one that will disappear as soon as they figure out the trick you’ve used to make that possible.”
“It’s no trick, Ernest. Kyle is formulating those answers. Had you watched the show yourself instead of relying on secondhand information, as you’ve obviously done, you’d know this.”
“No five-year-old can solve those types of math problems.”
“At least one can.”
“I don’t believe you, and I will not have my son become a mockery. What happens with him is no longer up to you alone. I will have equal say in my Kyle’s life.”
“Eventually, perhaps. But right now, in this critical period of the two of you meeting, we’re doing things my way.”
“You think so?”
“I know so.”
“We’ll see.”
“Ernest, I don’t want to... Hello?” She looked at her phone. He’d hung up. The call had definitely not gone as she’d planned. Was she being unreasonable in wanting advice from a counselor? What if Ernest met Kyle this weekend and everything went fine? Question after question bubbled up in her head, driving her crazy. She placed another call.
“Good afternoon, Ms. Robinson.”
“According to whom?”
“Hey, wait. I’m not looking at your booty!”
“Ha!” Terrell’s remembering this as their very first exchange made her laugh out loud, something which under the circumstances was very hard to do. “Thanks. I needed that laugh.”
“Why? Is something wrong?”
“Yes, but you’re at work and undoubtedly busy. We can talk later.”
“If there’s a problem, we can talk now.”
“Okay. I talked to Ernest.”