The Pledge

by Chandra Sparks Taylor

  “Allen Benson gave this to you?” she squealed.

  I didn’t say a word as I added dressing to my salad.

  “Girl, I am so jealous. Tell me everything, and don’t leave out any details.”

  I hadn’t gotten far before other members of Worth the Wait and some of the cheerleaders descended on the table. I gave Bree a look, letting her know I’d fill her in later. It’s not that I didn’t trust my other friends, but I didn’t want to take any chances that people would be hating on me. I had been around enough females in general to know that they were messy and always looking for something to gossip about, so I kept my business to myself. That’s something my momma had always told me, that whatever happened at home stayed there.

  I looked at Allen’s note about a hundred times more before school ended, and I thought about it through most of cheerleading practice although I nailed my toe touches and basket tosses. I guess Allen was training for basketball season because he was running around the track and looking so good in a pair of black shorts and a white T-shirt. He was drenched in sweat, which only made him look sexier. All the girls on the squad were talking about him, and I couldn’t blame them.

  As I was waiting for Momma to pick me up after practice, I looked at Allen’s note again and smiled to myself, thinking how crazy it would be if we ended up dating. I couldn’t help but laugh at the thought. There was no way Allen could be interested in me.

  I glanced at my watch and noticed it was almost six o’clock. I realized I hadn’t checked to see if Momma had left a message for me during practice, so I retrieved my phone.

  Allen caught me off guard for the second time that day.

  “You must have been reading my mind,” he said, causing me to drop my phone. He laughed as he picked it up and handed it to me. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

  “It’s okay,” I said, holding on to the phone as tightly as I could with my slippery hands. “So how was I reading your mind?”

  “When I saw you while I was running, I realized I didn’t ask for your number during class. I was just thinking that if I saw you I was going to ask for it.”

  I had stopped breathing when he said number. “My phone number?” I squeaked.

  “Yeah,” he said, “if that’s okay. I figured I need to have you on speed dial just in case I have a question about class.”

  I tried not to let my disappointment show. He just wanted help with English. “Sure,” I said. “If you have a phone, I can program my number in for you.”

  He shook his head. “I’d rather you write it down. That way, if my phone breaks, I’ll still have it.”

  “Okay,” I said, trying not to read anything into what he was saying. This was strictly about school, I kept telling myself, but obviously my stomach wasn’t listening because it was doing flips like it was competing for the Olympic gold medal in gymnastics. I grabbed a notebook and a pen out of my bag and scribbled down my number.

  “Give me your e-mail address, too,” he said.

  I nodded and added it to the sheet, then tore it out of my notebook and handed it to him.

  “I’ll be in touch,” he said, folding the paper. He grabbed a set of keys from his gym bag, which was slung across his shoulder. “Hey, do you need a ride?”

  Of course I wanted to say yes, but I knew Momma and Daddy would have a fit if I got in the car with a boy, so I played it off. “Nah, I’m cool. My ride will be here in a minute.”

  “I don’t bite,” he said, and I laughed.

  “I know,” I said, twirling my Worth the Wait necklace, which I sometimes did when I got nervous. “Maybe I’ll take you up on that offer some other time.”

  “Maybe you should,” Allen said, stepping a little closer to me. I felt his breath on my cheek, and my heart sped up.

  “That’s a nice necklace,” he said. “Did your man give it to you?”

  I laughed. “Actually, it’s my purity necklace,” I said before I could stop myself. I blushed and looked at the ground, then glanced up at him to see his response.

  “Really?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

  I shrugged. “Yeah. My mom had me join this virgin club at my church, and each of the members got one of these necklaces.”

  “I’ve heard about those clubs. I know a few other girls here are members. When did you join?”

  “Last year,” I said. “I recruited some of the girls from school.” Allen made me feel so comfortable that I told him a few more details about Worth the Wait, and he seemed really impressed.

  “So can guys join?” he asked.

  “Sure. It’s open to anyone who wants to take a vow of purity, although our group has mostly teenagers. I can get you more information if you want.”

  Momma chose that moment to pull up, and, spotting me, she blew her horn and waved. I was so embarrassed.

  “Is that your mom?” Allen asked.

  I nodded, not believing my momma was messing up my game. She pulled up next to us and looked at Allen curiously. He smiled and walked up to her. “Good evening, Mrs. Murphy. My name is Allen Benson. I was just keeping your daughter company while she waited for you.”

  Momma smiled and shook his hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Allen.” She stared at him for a second. “Haven’t I seen you on TV?”

  Allen shyly looked down at the ground. “Yes, ma’am,” he said.

  “You’re making quite a name for yourself, young man. I know your parents are proud.”

  “They are,” he said.

  Momma nodded. “And you’re keeping up with your studies?”

  “Momma,” I protested. I couldn’t believe how she was grilling him like he was my man or something.

  “Actually, that’s what I was talking to your daughter about. I got behind in my classes last year, and I’m trying to play catch-up, and I was hoping she could tutor me in English.”

  “You realize my daughter is only sixteen, and she can’t date yet,” Momma said, looking him in the eye.

  “Oh, no, ma’am,” Allen was quick to say, raising his hands and backing away like the thought of dating me repulsed him. “This is strictly about school. I was just telling her that I would call if I had any questions, and if it’s okay with you, we can meet in the library during our study period so we can do our homework.”

  Momma looked at him, trying to figure out if he was playing games. She must have believed him because she said, “I guess that will be fine. I don’t know how much you guys will be able to get accomplished during an hour, so if you need to meet with her after school, I guess you could study at our house.”

  My mouth dropped open in amazement. Other guys had tried to hook up with me, but Momma wasn’t impressed. She didn’t play when it came to Cory and me.

  “Thank you so much, Mrs. Murphy. I really appreciate it. I also want to say that I see where your daughter gets her beauty from.”

  Momma and I both blushed. Momma recovered first and said, “Allen, you’re laying it on a bit too thick now.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” he said, and they both laughed. He turned to me. “I’ll see you in school tomorrow, Courtland.”

  I could only nod and wave as I got in the front seat.

  “He’s cute and quite the charmer,” Momma said the minute we pulled away.

  I could only nod at her as Allen waved at us. “Did you really just say he could come over and study—not that he will?”

  Momma shrugged. “Why not?” she said. “He seems nice enough, and the Bible tells us to help those in need.”

  I wasn’t going to argue with her, although deep down I knew that Allen was just being nice. There was no way he would ever want to study with me, let alone visit my house.

  “Hey, munchkin,” I said to Cory, who was sitting in the backseat. “How was the first day?”

  She looked up from her Game Boy and grinned at me. “I made a friend,” she said, and I smiled, too, happy for my little sister.

  “That’s great,” I said.

  Cory told me about her
friend Destini, who she said was in foster care, then we rode to the Worth the Wait meeting in silence. Several of the girls were arriving as we pulled up. A few girls had skipped meetings that summer, and apparently at least one of them had forgotten the pledge to remain pure until she got married because I was pretty sure that wasn’t a watermelon she was sporting under her shirt.

  I looked at Momma to see if she had noticed, and she shook her head. “Now why would that child’s mother still make her attend these meetings?” she said.

  “Maybe she’s supposed to serve as an example,” I said, fingering my pearl necklace, which served as a constant reminder to me that my virginity was a gift, and I wasn’t giving it up to anyone but my husband.

  My thoughts shifted when there was a knock on my window. I looked up into the grinning face of my aunt Dani and let out a scream as I struggled to get out of the car and hug her.

  “Aunt Dani,” I yelled, squeezing her tight. I hadn’t seen her in three years—she’d come to Birmingham right before moving to L.A.—but she still looked the same. Her breasts were bigger, if that was possible, and she had a ponytail weave that reached her butt and was dyed burgundy at the bottom. Even though it was August and about ninety degrees, she was wearing a black leather short set and black leather boots.

  She squeezed me tight. “Corky, is that you?” she asked, stepping back to look at me. “Girl, I’m glad you finally lost all that baby fat. It looks like you’re out of your ugly phase, too.”

  She was talking loud, and people were looking at us as they entered the church.

  “I don’t go by Corky, Aunt Dani,” I said. “Everybody calls me Courtland now.”

  “Girl, please. You’ll always be Corky, just like I’ll always be Dani,” she said. “Ain’t that right, sis?” She looked at Momma, who gave this really tight smile before she and Cory hugged Aunt Dani and headed into church.

  “So how long are you in town? Are you staying with us?” I asked.

  “I haven’t decided,” she said. “I’m going to take a break from modeling, so I figured I’d hang with you guys for a while. Girl, you know your house is too small. I have a room at the Sheraton near the Civic Center.”

  “That’s cool,” I said, just as our Worth the Wait adviser, Andrea, motioned for me to come inside. “You coming into church?”

  Aunt Dani kind of laughed under her breath before walking over to a brand-new BMW SUV. “Nah, I’ve got some people I need to see. Your mother told me you would be here, so I wanted to stop and say hello.” She hit a button on the remote to unlock the doors.

  “Is that yours?” I asked.

  “Of course,” she said, looking at me like I was silly for asking.

  I wondered how she’d gotten a car so fast since she had just come to town, but I really didn’t care. “I guess modeling is paying well.”

  “Girl, modeling isn’t the only way to get paid.”

  She must have noticed the confusion on my face because she grinned. “We’ll have to get together soon so I can explain the facts of life,” she said. Then she was gone.

  two

  I was getting dressed in the locker room before our final practice for the first football game of the season when my cell phone rang.

  Since Coach Wilkins was already yelling at us to get on the field, I thought about ignoring it, but at the last minute I changed my mind.

  “Hello,” I said in a rushed tone.

  “Is this a bad time?” a voice said.

  “I’m about to go to practice,” I said. “Who is this?”

  “Who do you want it to be?” he asked.

  I rolled my eyes and played along. “Chris Brown, is that you?” I joked, referring to the popular singer.

  “Cute,” the guy said.

  “Seriously, I’m late for practice. If you’re not going to tell me who this is, can you call me back in a couple of hours?”

  The guy laughed. “It’s Allen,” he said.

  I dropped onto the bench in the locker room. “Hey,” I said, trying to sound as though I talked to him on the phone all the time. “How come you weren’t in class today?”

  “I had to meet with some people,” he explained.

  “Oh,” I said. “You didn’t miss much, although we do have a test next Friday.”

  “I heard,” he said. “That’s actually why I’m calling.”

  “What’s up?” I said, nodding at Candy, who stuck her head in the locker room and told me to hurry up.

  “Can we get together a couple of days next week and study? I really need to do well on this test.”

  “Sure,” I said, telling myself that studying with Allen Benson wasn’t such a big deal.

  “That’s cool. Why don’t we meet Monday during study hall?”

  “Okay. Have a good weekend. Good luck at the game,” he said.

  “Thanks,” I said. I ended the call then double-checked to make sure I had actually turned the phone off, then I got up and danced around the empty locker room. I was so keyed up I didn’t hear Coach Wilkins come in.

  “You need to save that energy for the field,” she said. “Please feel free to join us whenever you’re ready.”

  I hustled onto the field and went through the motions at practice, too focused on Monday during study hall. I couldn’t believe I was actually going to be studying with Allen Benson.

  The first game of the season had me pumped. For me, there’s nothing like being in front of a crowd. I spotted Momma and Cory in the stands, and I shook my blue and gold pom-poms at them. They waved back, then I tuned them out, intent on giving my best performance.

  I had choreographed a routine to Chamillionaire’s latest hit for halftime, and the crowd loved it.

  Even though we lost the game, I knew it was going to be a good season for our squad. We were all pumped about regionals and possibly competing at nationals in Orlando.

  I had asked Momma before the game if I could go out with the squad, and she had reluctantly agreed, after Aunt Dani talked her into it, telling her I was only going to be young once. I still had to be home by ten-thirty, but I decided not to push my luck. Although I wanted to stay out longer, I couldn’t complain because the year before she had barely allowed me to go out.

  Candy was driving, so I went and said goodbye to Momma and Cory.

  “You sure you don’t want me to drive you?” Momma asked, looking worried.

  “Momma,” I said, dragging out her name like it had ten syllables. “I’m almost seventeen. Candy’s a good driver.”

  She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, Cory said, “You’re treating her like a baby.”

  I smiled my thanks.

  “Well,” Momma said, still looking unsure. “You have your cell phone, right?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” I said, wondering why she had even bothered to get me one. I begged and begged, and finally she had gotten me one of those prepaid ones. Half the time I couldn’t get a signal and sometimes I would check the voice mail and discover I had three or four messages, although the phone never alerted me they had come in.

  She reached into her purse and pulled out twenty dollars and handed it to me. “Call me if you have any problems, and here’s some money to call a cab if you can’t get in touch with me.”

  I reached for the money, and she snatched it back, forcing me to look at her. “This money is for emergencies only, Courtland. Keep it in a safe place.”

  “Okay.” I wanted to remind her Birmingham didn’t have a lot of cabs, and even if it did, it wasn’t like twenty dollars could get me home—at least I didn’t think it would.

  “Ten-thirty, Courtland. Not a minute later,” she warned.

  I nodded then turned to head into the locker room. When I got to the door, Momma and Cory were still standing there waiting to make sure I made it in safely, just like I knew they would be.

  I took a shower and threw on the sweats that matched our uniforms and my Air Force Ones.

  About ten of us piled in Candy’s Hyund
ai Sorrento SUV, and we headed to Ruby Tuesday’s in Five Points South. As usual it was packed.

  I went to the bathroom, and on the way out, I ran into this guy who had wanted to get with me last year. He was fine and all, but every time I talked to him, he was only interested in coming to my house, which wasn’t happening.

  “So when can I come over?” Noah asked.

  I rolled my eyes. “Don’t start,” I said, trying to get past him.

  “I see you’re still as stuck-up as ever,” he said. “You ain’t all that.”

  I tried to pretend his words didn’t hurt, but they did. I decided to ignore him and went back to my friends.

  We had just finished eating and were hanging out by the fountain when my phone beeped, letting me know I had a text message. I wondered if it was Momma, but I realized she would call since she didn’t know how to send texts.

  You’re looking sexy in those sweats, the message read.

  I laughed, thinking it was one of my teammates being silly. Then I saw Allen’s number, which I had programmed in my phone after he called the first time. I looked around and spotted him across the street at Starbucks. He said something to his boys, which included Noah, then headed my way.

  “Hey,” he said.

  “Hey.” I pushed my hair behind my ear and started playing with my purity necklace, until I realized what I was doing. I stuck my hands in the pocket of my sweatshirt.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked.

  He shrugged. “The same thing as you, I guess, just hanging out. You want to go get some coffee or something?”

  I wanted to say yes, but I caught a glimpse of the big clock near the fountain and realized if I went with Allen I’d miss curfew. I had just decided I would take my chances when Candy walked up.

  “You ready?” she asked.

  I smiled my thanks that she didn’t mess up my game by telling Allen about my curfew.

  “Hey, Candy,” Allen said.

  “Hey,” she said, not even bothering to look at him.

  “Oh, it’s like that?” he said. “You can’t show me no love?” He stretched his arms out, waiting for a hug.

  “No, I can’t,” she said with an attitude. She turned and walked away. “You coming, Courtland?”