The Final Play

by Shelly Ellis

  “Thanks!” the driver said with a smile. “And good luck to you, pal!”

  “Thank you,” Ricky said.

  Ricky climbed out, taking his duffel bag with him, and slammed the cab’s door shut. He listened as the taxi pulled off, and stared down at the address written on the paper. It didn’t take him long to find her apartment. He climbed the stairs and looked for her apartment number. When his eyes landed on it, 404, he hesitated. Ricky stood frozen in front of the apartment door.

  He wanted to knock but part of him was afraid of what lay on the other side. Thanks to the investigation and the trial, he and Simone had been apart for almost a year. That was a lot of time. Much could have happened in the interim. Simone could’ve found a new man. Or she simply may not be in love with him anymore. Maybe she wouldn’t be happy when she saw him. Maybe she’d see his arrival in Denver as an unwelcome surprise.

  Enough with the maybes, he silently told himself.

  He couldn’t stay in this damn hallway forever. And he had traveled so far, waited so long. Whatever happened, however she reacted, he would just have to accept it. But he was knocking on the door—regardless.

  Ricky took a deep breath, raised the steel knocker over the peephole, and banged it twice.

  He heard footsteps, then Simone’s voice shouting to someone. He heard the door unlock and then it swung open.

  Simone stood in the doorway in an oversized purple sweater that hung off one of her bare shoulders and a pair of gray leggings and rainbow socks. Her cell phone was tucked between her ear and her shoulder, a set of electronic instructions was in one hand, a plastic spatula was in the other. She looked like the frazzled mom that she probably was now.

  When he saw her, he breathed in sharply. He wasn’t prepared for how beautiful she was. His memories hadn’t done her justice.

  “I’ll get you more eggies, honey!” she shouted distractedly down the short hallway of her apartment, trying to be heard over a kid’s cartoon soundtrack playing in the background. “Mommy just has to answer the door. I bet it’s the guy finally coming to fix the . . .”

  Her words drifted off when she turned back around and saw Ricky standing in the hallway. Their gazes met and her mouth fell open in shock.

  He gave a sheepish smile. “Hey, Simone,” he said.

  Simone screamed. She dropped her cell phone from her ear. The spatula and booklet of instructions fell to the floor. She ran straight for him. He had to drop his duffel bag to catch her. He almost collided with the hallway wall when she fell against him and wrapped her arms around him. He didn’t get a chance to say anything. Not hello or how have you been? She kissed all his words away—and sobbed as she did it.

  “Oh, my God!” she whispered against his lips. “I missed you so much, baby!”

  He threw his arms around her and kissed her back, letting her warmth and softness cover him like a blanket. He had missed this, too, all of this, and the sensation of having it again after he had waited so long and been through so much almost made his knees buckle.

  “Mama!” he heard a little voice call out. “Mama!”

  Simone leaned back from Ricky. She sniffed. “Mommy is right here,” she called over her shoulder. “I’m comin’. Don’t worry, honey!”

  “I’ll be damned,” Ricky murmured in wonderment. “He knows how to talk now?”

  He knew time had passed since he’d last seen Miles, but in his mind, the little boy was still a squirmy, cross-eyed infant.

  She nodded and laughed. “He says a few words here and there, though it’s still a lot of babbling and gibberish. He knows exactly what he’s saying, though I don’t most of the time.” She chuckled and unwrapped her arms from around Ricky and nodded toward the open door. “You wanna see him?”

  Now overcome with brand-new emotions, Ricky didn’t trust for the right words to come out so he only nodded. He grabbed his bag and she grabbed his hand, tugging him inside. She shut the door behind them and reached down to grab her cell phone.

  “Hey, Steph,” she said into the phone, “let me call you back . . . Yes, I know you heard me scream. Sorry if I scared you but I swear, everything is okay. I just was a little surprised . . . Okay . . . Okay. Talk to you soon.” She then pressed the button to hang up and looked up at him. “That’s Steph. She’s my friend. I met her in my mommy group.”

  He nodded vaguely but he was barely listening. He was going to see Miles. He was going to see his son.

  “Just so you know,” Simone continued as they walked down the hall, “I’m Deidre now. Not Simone. It’s Deidre Wilkins. That’s the name they gave me. And Miles is Miles Wilkins. They let him keep his first name. I requested that.”

  “I’m Jared Bryant,” he said, making her pause.

  “Jared?” She slowly looked him up and down. “Your beard is gone now. Makes you look like a different person. I guess the new name suits you.” She then stood on the balls of her feet and kissed his cheek. “Pleased to meet you, Jared.”

  “Pleasure’s all mine, Deidre,” he whispered.

  “You can set that down here and unpack later,” she said, gesturing to his duffel bag.

  He did as she ordered. She then tugged his hand again and they rounded the corner, revealing an eat-in kitchen. A television sat on the granite counter, playing the cartoon that Ricky had heard in the hallway. Staring at the television was a little boy in a high chair. He had curly hair just like his mother’s but skin closer to a lighter shade like his father’s. When Ricky entered the room, the boy turned slightly in his high chair. His face and bib were smudged with applesauce. He stared at Ricky and quickly broke into a little grin, revealing four tiny white teeth.

  “Dada!” he called out and clapped his chubby hands.

  Ricky gaped. He looked at Simone. “He . . . he remembers who I am?”

  She squeezed Ricky’s hand. “He’s said goodnight to a picture of you on my cell almost every day of his life. I’m surprised he recognizes you without the beard though.”

  “You really showed him a picture every day?”

  She lowered her eyes. “I wasn’t supposed to keep it but I . . . I couldn’t let it go. I couldn’t let you go, Ricky.”

  Ricky leaned down to kiss her again but paused when their son shouted. “Eggy! Eggy, Mama!”

  They both laughed and turned to face him.

  “I guess I better go make him those eggs.” She released Ricky’s hand. “He’s not gonna let up. He’s persistent like his daddy.”

  “I’ll sit with him while you do that.” He walked to the table and pulled out a chair beside Miles’s high chair while Simone made her way to the stove.

  “Dada!” Miles said again, slapping his tray. “Dada! Dada!”

  Ricky reached up and loosened the straps of Miles’s high chair. He raised him out of it then lowered the boy onto his lap. He was heavier than Ricky thought he would be. Solid through the middle.

  “Hey,” he whispered as Miles reached up and grabbed his cheek with his sticky fingers. “I used to call you ‘li’l man,’ but now I think I’ll call you ‘big guy.’ You’re gonna grow up to be a linebacker, aren’t you? You gonna make your daddy proud.”

  “Dada!” Miles said again.

  “Can I make you some eggs, too? Have you eaten breakfast?” Simone asked.

  He glanced up at her. She was taking a carton of eggs out of the refrigerator and placing them on the counter. He looked down at his son, who was hopping up and down on his lap.

  He never thought he would have this again, that he would ever have this. His girl, his son, his family. His odyssey was finally over. He was home.

  “Yeah, I’ll take some eggs. Scrambled, please,” he muttered, kissing Miles’s brow.

  “Coming right up!” Simone said, placing a pan on the burner.

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  DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

  1. Derrick insists to Morgan that even though he had his outburst at the education benefit when he saw Jamal and Melissa together, he no longer wants to be in a relationship with his ex. Do you believe him?

  2. When their midwife, Mary, sees the news about the murders after Simone gives birth, Ricky decides to tell her the truth about what happened and trust her with their secret. Would you have made a similar decision or gone on the run again?

  3. After Jamal is shot and Derrick discovers Cole is the culprit, he decides to go to Jamal to plead Cole’s case but aborts his mission when he sees Jamal and Melissa together again. Do you think he made the right decision to leave the hospital to avoid conflict, or was he taking the easy way out? Should he have gone back later and spoken to Jamal anyway?

  4. Ricky agrees to work as an informant again in exchange for Simone and their son, Miles, being put in witness protection. Did you believe the cops would hold up their end of the deal?

  5. Jamal decides to reveal his feelings to Melissa and tell her his emotions haven’t changed from before. She tells him she’s not ready to fall in love again. Is she being selfish, or is she being honest and a good friend to him, like she assures him she is?

  6. Derrick ultimately decides to reject Dolla Dolla’s offer to use the Institute for his operations, even though it will put his life and the lives of the boys and teachers at the Institute at risk. Were you surprised by his decision?

  7. Ricky tells the detectives that if they don’t arrest Dolla Dolla soon, he’s going to blow their entire investigation and tell Dolla Dolla everything. Did you believe he would really do it? Why or why not?

  8. Both Derrick and Jamal are surprised by Melissa’s suggestion that they try some form of reconciliation. Were you also surprised by her suggestion? Do you agree with her reasoning?

  9. Derrick, Jamal, and Ricky decide to let bygones be bygones and stay civil, but they also agree that things can never go back to the way they were before. Do you think they will ever have the potential to become true friends again?

  10. Have the Branch Avenue Boys changed or switched personalities since the beginning of the series? How have they each evolved as men?