Download Drama

by Celeste O. Norfleet

  All of a sudden it makes sense. She’s on my case so hard because she thinks I’m doing drugs like her older brother, Brian. “Jalisa, for real, I’m fine. I’m just—”

  “I was too young to help Brian,” she interrupts as emotion thickens her voice, “but not now. I can help you now.”

  “Jalisa, I’m not doing drugs, I swear. You know me. I don’t do stupid stuff like that.” She doesn’t say anything for a while. I’m thinking she didn’t hear me. Then I barely hear her speak.

  “Yeah, I thought I knew my brother, too.”

  “Okay, the truth is I’m tired because I’m not sleeping very well at night.”

  “Why aren’t you sleeping?” she asks.

  “I’ve been having nightmares about my mom.” It’s the truth. I have been having nightmares, but of course it’s not the whole truth exactly.

  “What kind of nightmare?”

  “It’s not like I wake up screaming or anything like that. It’s just that she’s on my mind a lot now. In the dreams it’s like she’s trying to tell me something.”

  “What?” she asks.

  “I don’t know. I never figure it out. But for real, other than not sleeping and the nightmares, I’m fine.”

  “Okay. So what was all that about last night on Twitter? What is up with your girl Cassie? That was her on Twitter last night, right? She’s hating all over you.”

  “I know. She’s totally childish and now she’s got this silly ninth grade groupie hanging on her like her fake gold jewelry.”

  We laugh. “So she just gonna act like a fool until somebody smacks her ass down.”

  “Yeah, pretty much.”

  “So what are you gonna do?”

  “I made a hard copy of the Twitter conversation from last night. Since she actually threatened me, I’m gonna give it to one of my teachers. She’ll know what to do with it.”

  “All right, as long as you got this.”

  “I do,” I say, seeing Troy’s car turn the corner and drive down the block toward the building. “Listen, I have to get ready to go. I’m on my way to an eleven-year-old’s birthday party.”

  “A what?”

  “Do you remember Hannah from the dance studio the other day? She’s the kid I introduced to you and Diamond.”

  “Yeah, I remember her.”

  “Well, she invited me to her birthday party and I promised I’d go. Her brother is picking me up.”

  “Who’s her brother—is he cute?”

  “Yeah, very. It’s Troy. You remember him from LaVon’s party a few months ago.”

  “Oh, yeah, I remember him. He is cute. So…”

  “Before you even start something, don’t. I’m just doing this to be nice to Hannah, his sister.”

  “I didn’t say anything, did I?”

  Troy’s car pulls up in front of the building and I start walking over. “No, you didn’t. But just in case. Okay, I gotta go. I’ll tell you all about it later. See ya.”

  Troy gets out of the car and comes around to the passenger’s side. He opens the door for me. I get in and wait until he gets back to the driver’s seat. As soon as he does he pulls off. At the first traffic light he stops and looks over to me. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?”

  I start chuckling. “Come on, it can’t be that bad,” I say.

  He starts laughing. “Oh, believe me. It’s even worse than that.”

  Eighteen

  The Path Divides

  kenishi_wa K Lewis

  I heard it so many times before. The wrong thing done for the right reason is still the wrong thing. I still don’t know if it’s true. It’s probably just bullshit like everything else.

  5 May * Like * Comment * Share

  we drive down Sixteenth Street northwest past U Street, Howard University and a couple of embassies, headed toward Rock Creek Park. Then we make a turnoff onto one of those small streets with the huge old houses. We keep going for a few blocks, then stop and park in front of one of the smaller houses on a street.

  I get out of the car and look around. The neighborhood is nice. It’s old with big thick trees that look like they’ve been standing around here for centuries. The houses are mostly stone and brick and each one is very different. Some are old and some are super modern. It’s quiet like my dad’s neighborhood, but also there’s a constant hum of something in the background. I don’t know if it’s traffic from the main street or maybe from Rock Creek Park.

  “This way,” Troy says, and starts walking down the street. There are cars everywhere. Then we turn the corner and come to this big modern-looking house in the middle of the block. Troy turns to walk up the circular driveway. I follow. But instead of going to the front door he leads me around back. I can hear the laughter and loud music as we get closer. He opens the gate and we go in.

  And, oh, my God, Troy was so right. I see exactly what he meant earlier about being surrounded by pink. The house and backyard is decorated in every shade of pink imaginable—from gentle blush to deep hot magenta. Even the pool water is tinted pink. I start laughing. Troy leans over. He’s laughing, too. “See. I told you. Pink.”

  I nod my head. “Yeah, it’s definitely pink.”

  The yard is huge and it’s packed. Every kid in the school must have come. We walk around for a few minutes. Troy introduces me to his parents and a few other relatives, one who looks like an older version of Regan, so I assume they’re related. Then I hear my name and turn around. “Kenisha, you came.”

  I turn and see Hannah coming toward me with what looks like a major entourage. She’s dressed in pink, of course, with a tiara on her head. “Hey, happy birthday,” I say, and give her a hug. “You look great.”

  She smiles and introduces me to her friends. There are about eight names. She says them in a singsong tone like she’s been saying them all her life. They smile and laugh, then leave in the same mass movement in which they came. I just shake my head. I had all kinds of parties all the time, but I seriously don’t remember this when I was growing up.

  But for real, the party is too over the top. There’s a DJ on a platform spinning and some dancers pumping the crowd up. There are two professional photographers roaming the area taking candid shots. There’s a fully catered food bar with everything imaginable including chef and servers. There’s a mountain of presents piled high and at least two hundred teens, tweens and preteens running around. It’s loud and crazy and I already know I’m not staying long.

  I grab something to eat, then just kick it with some of the older teens there. A few of them I know from Hazelhurst. So we’re standing around talking and then Troy comes over and grabs my hand and starts pulling me. “Come on, I need your help,” he says.

  Okay, I look at him like he’s crazy, but then I go with him, anyway. I have no idea what he’s talking about but then we get over to the area set aside for badminton and there’s a couple already there waiting. “Uh-uh, no way. I’m not about to be running around after a birdie.” I turn to walk back toward the covered patio area, but he grabs my hand again.

  “Come on, please. I’ve been challenged. You can’t let me go out like that, can you?”

  “All right, fine—one game only,” I say definitively.

  Six games later we’re all still laughing, talking trash and having fun. We take a break and grab some water. I look up and see Regan is there. I have no idea when she arrived, but as soon as we see each other, I know it’s time for me go. There’s no way I’m gonna be in the same place at the same time with her. I say goodbye to Hannah and Troy’s parents, then I get Troy to drop me back off at Freeman. “You know, if you’re leaving because Regan showed up, you don’t have to. She’s not gonna do anything.”

  “Regan’s family, I’m not. Either way it does
n’t matter. I already told Hannah I couldn’t stay long. She knows that I have to go to dance.”

  “Did you have a good time?”

  “Yeah, it was a lot of fun. Hannah’s gonna remember her birthday party forever. Do your parents go all out like that every year?”

  “Yeah, mostly,” he says.

  “For your birthday, too?” I ask. “Do you have, like, baby-blue birthday parties?”

  He smiles. “Nah, they gave up on that a while ago. I’m glad you could come, but I’m sorry you’re leaving so early,” he says as he pulls up in front of Freeman.

  I open the door and turn to him. “I glad I came, too. I had fun, but duty calls.”

  “So what are you doing over spring break?”

  “Working.”

  “Where?”

  “Here,” I say, turning to look up at the Freeman building. “I’m a dance instructor.”

  He nods. “Yeah, that’s what’s up. I can see that.”

  “A’ight, I gotta go. Thanks again for the ride.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  I turn and look over at him one more time. For a split second I actually think about kissing him. But that goes away fast. I just wave and get out of the car and hurry up the front steps. As soon as I get inside I go directly to the office. Ms. Jay isn’t there, so I look around the first floor and see she’s teaching a ballet class. There’s no way I’m gonna interrupt the class to get the key to the auditorium, so I decide to go upstairs to one of the private studios. Hopefully the doors are unlocked.

  They are. I go inside and sit down on the windowsill like I usually do. I settle down and get comfortable. I put my earbuds in to listen to my music. I plug in and shuffle some old tunes. First it’s Black Eyed Peas’ I Got a Feeling. I smile and start nodding my head to the beat. Right now this is my favorite place to be. I look down. From the window I can see everything perfectly. Why can’t my life be like this all the time?

  I start thinking about my day with Troy. I had a great time. Hanging out with him was fun and easy. He’s nothing like I thought he was. I don’t know why he puts on this act as being someone else. I laugh, thinking about him diving on the ground in an attempt to hit the birdie with his racket. He hit it straight up in the air and then I slammed it over the net right between our opponents. They both missed it. We won the game and we laughed the whole time.

  After a while the song changes to something just as old. It’s Alicia Keys and Jay-Z’s Empire State of Mind. I love this song. I’m not from New York, but it makes me just as proud of my own hometown. I lean my head back against the side wall and close my eyes, feeling the lyrics as he raps and she sings. Halfway through the song my phone rings and the song automatically mutes and pauses. “Hello.”

  “Hello, Kenisha, it’s Ms. Jay at Freeman Dance Studio. Will you be coming in today?”

  “Hi, Ms. Jay. Yes, I’m already here. I saw you in class earlier and I didn’t want to disturb you to get the auditorium door key, so I just came upstairs. I’m in one of the private studios.”

  “Perfect. Can you meet me in my office?”

  “Sure, okay, I’m on my way.”

  A few minutes later I knock on the frame of Ms. Jay’s open office door. She looks up and smiles. “Hi, Kenisha, what do you think about starting work? I could use you in the intermediate hip-hop class today.”

  “Sure. When does it start?”

  She looks at her watch. “In about twenty minutes.”

  “Okay, I can do that,” I say.

  “I want you to make sure they stretch before class. Do you remember the routine you did for the summer revival two years ago?”

  “You mean that Nothin’ on You song by B.o.B.? That one?”

  “Yes. Do you remember the routine?”

  “Uh-huh, but can’t I teach them something more current?”

  “Let’s stick with that one first and then we can work out some new routines for the class.”

  I nod. “Okay, I’ll go change my clothes and stretch. Can I meet them in the auditorium instead of the classroom?”

  She looks puzzled, but agrees, anyway. “Sure. Fine, I’ll let them know. Make sure you stop by the office before you leave for the day. I have some paperwork for you to complete.”

  “Okay, I will.”

  She goes in her drawer and pulls out the auditorium key and gives it to me. “Have a good class.”

  “I will. Thanks again, Ms. Jay.” I go straight to the auditorium. I set the music up, stretch and then get ready for the class to come in. I’m tense and nervous as I go through the Nothin’ on You routine. I remember it perfectly.

  A few minutes later the class arrives. They come down to the front of the stage. They’re all rowdy and loud and that’s just perfect. I want them to have the energy when they dance. I reset the music and do the routine without saying anything to them. When I finish they all applaud and cheer. Then I tell them I’m gonna teach them how to do it. They really get excited. They stretch and we get started. All the nervousness I felt before is gone. I can’t believe this is my first real class as a working teacher getting paid.

  The class is over so fast. The young dancers are too excited to come back and I can’t wait to come up with some new routines for them. But right now I’m still pumped. Instead of leaving I turn on my music and do my routine. I only get to go through it a couple of times when I see someone walking down toward the stage. I stop dancing and put my hands on my hips. “Shit, not again,” I mutter, and then call out to Li’l T ’cause I know that’s who it is. “I swear, Jerome, I’m gonna strangle you this time.”

  “It’s not Jerome, it’s me.”

  The person keeps walking and now I see who it is. “Taj, is that you?” I say, still breathing hard from dancing. She keeps walking toward the stage. Now she’s applauding. I go down the front steps and meet her as she approaches. She looks completely different, like a normal person. She has on baggy pants and a T-shirt and her hair pulled back in a ponytail with a cap. She’s also wearing sneakers, making her even shorter than I thought before. “What are you doing here?”

  “They told me this is where you hang out and dance.” She looks around with her nose up in the air. “This place is old. It looks like it’s about to collapse.”

  “Yeah, it is old. It’s got a lot of history in the neighborhood,” I say, still catching my breath from earlier.

  “I’ve always seen it before. It’s all big and ugly, but I’ve never been inside.” She looks around again.

  “It’s pretty bad sometimes. The lights go out because the electricity is bad and the roof constantly leaks when it rains.”

  “I can see that. It looks like it should be condemned.”

  “Actually, they’re having a dance show to raise money for it. You know, you should think about being a judge for the contest.”

  “A judge.”

  “Yeah, like a celebrity judge. We’re gonna have the press here to promote it and everything.”

  “Maybe, I’ll think about it.”

  “So why are you here?” I repeat.

  She does that fake smile. “Damn, girl, you’re really good up there. I see why you’re all over the internet.”

  “Thanks,” I say. “So what’s up?”

  “Um, I came here because I think we need to talk to clear the air between us,” she says, sitting down in the front row. I walk over and sit down, too, leaving an open seat between us. “You don’t know me and I don’t know you, but I hope we can maybe be friends one day. I don’t have a lot of friends. And believe me, I’m not the bitch everybody thinks I am. I’m just trying to do a job in a very hard profession. Nobody gives you a break, so you have to get them yourself any way you can.”

  “Yeah, but how long can you do
that?” I ask her.

  “For as long as I have to. It’s a hard, rocky climb to the top and I have every intention of getting there. If some people fall along the way, I’m sorry, but I can’t carry everyone.”

  She’s kinda cold-blooded, but nothing I haven’t seen or heard before. If she were a guy I guess they would call what she has ambition and determination, but being a girl makes her a bitch. Maybe she is just misunderstood and everything is all for the stage persona that Jade talked about before.

  “Anyway, I came to apologize. I’m sorry about what happened at the party the other night. I hear I was pretty bad. For real, I’m usually not like that. I’d been drinking and taking anxiety pills to calm me down in order to perform. I guess I get a little flirtatious when the two mix. I hope you didn’t take that personally. I remember Terrence from the old days. He’s a good friend. He’s got that bad-boy thing going on, but he’s really a good guy. So, what’s he doing these days?”

  “He’s at Howard University.”

  She smiles and nods. “I always knew he was gonna do something with his life. Not like some of the other guys in the hood.”

  “You mean like Darien?”

  She looks stunned. “You know Darien?”

  “Yeah, kinda.”

  She shakes her head. “That’s a name I haven’t heard in a long time. What’s he up to?”

  “Jail, hopefully,” I say.

  She laughs. “Yeah, he’s a bad boy all the way.”

  She has this smile on her face like now. “Definitely.”

  “So, I hear you’re Jade’s sister—is that right?”

  I just nod ’cause I have no idea where she’s going with this. She’s trying to act all nice, but there’s something about her that’s just too fake.

  “She’s nice. I like Jade, but I think she hates me because she thinks I’m on Tyrece or trying to take him from her.”

  “Are you?”

  “No. Hell, no. I don’t do stuff like that. Besides, I can have just about any man I want. Tyrece is irrelevant compared to some of the guys out there.”