Can't Stop the Shine (31 page)

“Good,” said Mari. “'Cause you know even though my sister gets on my nerves sometimes, I would've had to be on her side if y'all had issues.”

“It's all good,” Asha said. “Kalia and I are cool, so I'm outta here. I don't have any more races.”

They all watched Asha trot down the steps.

“I still don't trust her,” said Dewayne as soon as she was out of earshot.

“Aww, ain't nuthin' wrong with Asha. She just a little bourgeoisie,” said Mari, laughing at her boyfriend. “She probably didn't know what her mother and Jackson were doing.”

JD and Kalia chuckled, walking along beside them.

“I don't know,” Dewayne persisted. “You know what they say about apples.”

“Apples? What in the world do apples have to do with anything we're talking about?” asked Mari.

“They don't fall far from the tree.”

Kalia and JD burst out laughing.

“You are so corny,” said Mari, running up behind Dewayne and thumping him on the back of his head. “I think you fell from a tree and bumped your head.”

She squealed as Dewayne picked up her petite frame and threatened to drop her on the ground. Instead he put her down gently and took her hand. She didn't pull away. Neither did Kalia when JD grabbed hers. They walked all the way back to the gym that way, two sisters with their boyfriends, laughing and joking, their hearts light as feathers.

 

Kalia got out of her car and walked to the mailbox. If she didn't hear from Howard or Juilliard that day, she was going to go right back in the house and call them. It was the middle of April.
School is going to be over soon,
she thought, placing her hand on the mailbox door.
I'm sick of waiting. I've got to know what I am doing with my life.
She said a silent prayer and opened the box, reaching in without looking. She pulled out three envelopes. The first was a telephone bill, the second was from the electric company. Her heart almost stopped when she saw the return address on the third envelope. It was from Howard. She ripped it open.

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted into the freshman class of Howard University
was all she read before she clutched the letter to her chest, closed her eyes and mouthed, “Thank you, God.”

She was reading the rest of her acceptance letter when she heard someone bumping a hot beat. Looking in the direction of the sound, she watched a midnight-blue Maybach coupe pull up in her driveway.

“Whatcha got there?” said JD, leaning out the window.

“Whatchu got there?” asked Kalia, walking up to the car, looking it up and down.

“You first,” he said, turning off the engine and pulling off his cell-phone earpiece.

She waved the letter in his direction. “This is an acceptance letter from Howard.” She grinned.

“That's what's up! Congratulations, baby,” he said. “That's great.”

“I'm so excited. I know I haven't heard from Juilliard yet, but at least I know I'm in somewhere I want to go. Now you tell me what's up with this car.”

“Oh, I'm just test driving it. It's kinda fire, isn't it?”

“Yeah,” she said, walking around the front of the car. “I must admit, it's hot.”

“Speaking of Fire, I've got a surprise for you,” he said with a devilish look on his face. “Get in.”

“Tell me what the surprise is.”

“Get in.”

“Okay,” she said, running around to the other side of the car and getting in. “Ooh, these seats feel good. Okay, so what's the surprise?”

JD leaned over and turned down the radio.

“They're looking for some singers to do some studio work down at Fire, and I mentioned your name, and they want me to bring you down to check out your skills,” he said.

“Oh my God! Thank you,” said Kalia, leaning over impulsively and kissing JD on the cheek.

“It's all good, baby doll,” he said, leaning back and putting the car in Reverse. “You ready to ride out?”

“We're going to Fire right now?” Kalia asked, nervous excitement making her voice rise.

“No time like the present, huh?” said JD, handling the steering wheel with one hand and rubbing the fingers of her left hand in the other.

“Yeah,” she said, watching her Southwest Atlanta neighborhood roll by. “It's my world, ain't it?”

“It's your world, baby,” JD said, smiling at her.

Kalia didn't know if she was going to college, if she was going to be the next Alicia Keys, or both, but what she did know was that she was riding in a Maybach, her boyfriend was the hottest new artist on Fire Records, and she was on her way to becoming a professional background singer. Yeah, her senior year had brought her more drama than Whitney and Bobby, but the weather in Atlanta was doing its spring thing, and she was about to have the best summer of her life.

“So let's make it happen,” she said, almost to herself.

JD turned down the music. “Did you say something, baby?”

She squeezed his hand and smiled at him. “Nope. I think it's gonna be a hot one this summer.”

“I think you're right,” he said. “I think it's gonna be fire.”

Don't miss next month's new title from Kimani TRU, Keysha's Drama by Earl Sewell.