Decision Time (5 page)

“Go to hell, Keysha.” Mike once again turned his back to me. I flipped the switch on a nearby lamp.

“Damn! What do you want?” Mike barked.

“Shh! I need your help with something,” I whispered.

“Get with me in the morning. I was having a really good dream and you messed it up. Hopefully I can fall back to sleep and pick up where I left off.” Mike pulled his blanket above his head to hide from me.

“Mike, this is life or death. I need your help just like you needed my help to find Jordan's car.” I used his guilt trip to get him to listen. Mike huffed as he uncovered his head and sat up in the bed.

“Okay, you win,” he said, rubbing his eyes with his fingertips.

“I need some money,” I said.

“Money?” Mike asked with a bewildered expression on his face.

“Yes, money. I need to get to Wesley and I don't have enough to cover the bus ticket,” I explained as I got up and shut his bedroom door. The last thing I wanted was for Jordan or Barbara to come up the stairs and overhear our conversation.

“Are Mom and Dad okay with you going?” he asked. I answered him with a cynical glare. “Okay. That answers that question. So that means you're going to sneak away to see him.”

“Yes,” I answered.

“Man, Keysha. I don't know if I want to get involved in this.” Mike clearly wasn't getting how urgent this situation was for me.

“Too late. You're already involved. I need two hundred dollars from you,” I said.

“Two hundred dollars! Have you lost your mind?” Mike laughed and was about to roll over and go to sleep again.

“Mike, I'm serious. The bus ticket alone is close to one hundred dollars. The other one hundred should cover a cheap motel and cab fare to and from the hospital.”

“Keysha, you're not old enough to rent a hotel room,” Mike said.

“How do you know?” I asked.

“Trust me on that one. I've tried and as soon as you present an ID that says ‘under twenty-one' they're going to tell you that you can't rent a room.”

“Fine. Then I'll sleep at the hospital. I'll find a sofa or a chair somewhere and just sleep when I need to.”

“Keysha, how are you going to pull this off? You just can't go missing without Barbara or Jordan noticing,” Mike said.

“I'll call them when I get there. I'll leave first thing in the morning and call them when they get home from work. They can't stop me from seeing him if I'm already there. I'll deal with the drama and consequences once I see Wesley.”

“You know your plan sounds crazy, right?” I could tell Mike was trying to get me to reconsider.

“Yeah, just as crazy as you stealing Jordan's car to go hook up with big-booty Toya,” I reminded him.

“Okay, don't remind me. Jordan has been on my back like ink on paper.” Mike paused. “If you get caught I'm going to act as if I had no clue about any of this.”

“By the time I get caught I'll already be there,” I said.

“I just have one question I need answered,” Mike said as he scooted over to the other side of the bed. He paused before standing. “What's the big rush to see him? Is he on life support or something?”

“No, but I think he has a new girlfriend he hasn't told me about—and if he does he's going to have hell to pay.”

“Keysha, you shouldn't jump to—” Mike stopped talking and then exhaled. “Never mind. I don't have two hundred dollars in cash, but you can take the Visa gift card that I got from Grandmother Katie. It has two hundred fifty dollars on it. I was going to use it to buy video games, but you can have it.” Mike went into his closet and rummaged around until he found the card.

“Here you go. Remember, if you get busted I'm not going to go out on a limb for you.”

“Don't worry about it. I can handle myself,” I reminded him. I gave him a hug for being so generous and then allowed him to get some rest.

I went back into my bedroom and purchased the bus ticket. I printed out my confirmation and then mapped out how I was going to use public transportation to get from my house to the bus terminal downtown. Once I'd figured that out, I packed a small suitcase and left it in a closet near the front door. I planned on getting up extra early to sneak out of the house before anyone woke up. Just so that Barbara and Jordan wouldn't worry, I planned on leaving a note that said I'd left early and I'd call to check in later.

My alarm clock began buzzing early the following morning. I got out of bed as quickly as I could to shut it off. It was five o'clock in the morning and still dark outside. I flirted with the idea of getting back in bed, but I knew that was not an option. As quietly as I could, I maneuvered around the house and got ready. After I grabbed my boarding pass that I'd printed out, I crept downstairs and quietly walked through the house toward the closet where my suitcase was. I set my boarding pass down on a nearby tabletop and wrestled the suitcase out of the closet. Once I had it, I checked my pockets for my door keys and my hip for my cell phone. I opened the door just in time to see the sky open up and unload a heavy downpour of rain. I crept back inside the house and searched the closet until I located an umbrella. As soon as I locked the door behind me, I saw the bus approaching and I made a run for it. I pulled my suitcase along and ran as fast as I could, sloshing through several puddles of water, which immediately
soaked through my shoes and wet up my socks. The bus driver saw me running and was kind enough to wait. I was in such a rush to get on the bus that I took a misstep, and hit my head on one of the bus steps.

“Are you okay?” asked the bus driver, who placed the bus in Park and got out of his seat to help me back to my feet.

“I'm okay. I just lost my footing,” I said as I got up. That's when I noticed a trail of my clothes on the ground. I quickly checked the suitcase and spotted the broken zipper and cursed. “Could you please hold on for one minute?” I pleaded with the bus driver.

“I'm on a schedule here,” the driver complained as I rushed along the curb picking up my wet clothes. I stuffed my belongings back inside the suitcase and then carefully boarded the bus. I paid my fare and found an empty seat. Once I got situated, I exhaled and glanced out of the window as the bus drove past my high school. The bus made several more stops before entering the highway, which would take the morning commuters and myself downtown to the Greyhound bus terminal. The bus hadn't been on the highway a good five minutes before it slowed to a complete stop. I glanced out of the window and noticed traffic on both sides of the highway had come to a stop.

“Damn it, what's the delay?” I uttered under my breath. I looked around at the other commuters, who seemed oblivious to the stalled traffic. Some were reading books, while others were on their cellular phones. I exhaled a frustrated sigh because I didn't want to be late. After sitting still for twenty minutes, the bus driver finally made an announcement.

“Folks, it appears there's a nasty traffic accident ahead of us. It's probably due to the heavy rain. We'll get going again once the state police open the highway back up.”

“Agggh!” I growled as I looked at my watch, hoping that we'd get moving soon.

I finally arrived at the bus station at 7:55 a.m. and raced through the bus terminal over to the ticket counter, where I had to stand and wait in a long line to get my boarding pass validated. I finally got to the ticket counter and began searching for my boarding pass. I searched my pockets, but didn't find it. I searched my purse and it wasn't there, either.

“Hang on a minute,” I told the ticket agent. “I know I brought it with me.” Patting my pockets frantically, I still couldn't locate the ticket. “Damn it!” I exhaled as I stood with my eyes closed.

“Never mind, honey, what's your name? I'll look you up in the system,” said the ticket agent. I gave my name and she quickly typed it into the system.

“Oh, dear. You'd better get moving. Your bus will be pulling off any second now.” The ticket agent gave me a new boarding pass and pointed in the direction that I needed to go. I scooped up my busted suitcase and made a run for it. My clothes began falling out of the suitcase once again and I tripped over a dangling pants leg and fell. My knees hit the marble floor pretty hard, but I was determined to catch that bus. I hobbled to my feet, gathered my belongings and limped toward my destination. Just as I was about to hand the driver my boarding pass, I heard someone howl out, “Keysha Kendall! Where do you think
you're going?” I immediately spun around and saw Jordan rushing toward me with a dissatisfied expression on his face. He'd pulled in his bottom lip and bit down on it and his eyes were fixed on my like a tiger about to deliver a fatal bite.

WESLEY

I was
sitting up in my hospital bed being spoon-fed what had to be the nastiest-tasting soup in the world for breakfast. Grandmother Lorraine was making sure that I ate every drop.

“Come on now, Wesley, stop making this harder than it has to be. How am I supposed to nurse you back to good health if you won't eat?”

“This stuff is horrible,” I complained as I slowly swallowed down another spoonful. “What else is there to eat?” I scanned the food tray for something that would perhaps taste better.

“Wesley, you will not eat anything else until you finish this soup!” my grandmother insisted. I smashed the back of my head against my pillow and groaned. Grandmother Lorraine gave me an evil glare, which meant she wasn't playing around with me about eating. I reluctantly gave in to her will and ate the soup.

“Is that stuff any good?” my mother asked as she entered the room with my dad trailing behind her. She was wearing a citrus-yellow dress and red patent-leather high-heeled shoes. Her freshly dyed black hair was pulled back in a tight bun.

“No,” I answered immediately.

“I didn't think it was because it doesn't smell good at all.”

“At least it smells better than alcohol,” Grandmother Lorraine muttered as she moved the bed tray away.

“Whatever!” said my mother as she gave my grandmother a nasty look.

“I'm ready to get out of this place,” I whined.

“I know you are.” My mother paused. “Wesley, your father and I were talking and I feel that you'd be better off living with me.”

“Better off living with you?” Grandmother Lorraine snapped. “I don't think so.”

“He's not your son. He's mine,” my mother shouted.

“Hey, there is no need to get nasty with each other,” my father said, bringing about some order to the tension between them. “Wesley, your mom feels strongly about you going to live with her and I feel that you should stay with me.”

“Hold up,” I said because I didn't want this conversation to continue. “Mom, I don't want to stay with you. I want to be with Dad.”

“But he's not taking good care of you. For God's sake, Wesley, you've been shot,” my mother griped.

“And he ended up in jail when he was with you. So
what's your point?” Grandmother Lorraine just couldn't stay out of the argument.

“Dad, seriously, I'd rather stay with you,” I stated once again.

“Then that settles it.” My father turned to my mother, who wasn't at all happy with my decision.

“He's going to get you killed,” my mother said angrily as she turned to leave.

“She didn't mean that, Wesley.” Dad tried to clean up her comment.

“Yes, she did,” I said without empathy. I'd turned off my feelings for my mother a long time ago and I certainly wasn't about to turn them back on now. There was a knock at the door and I turned my head and saw two uniformed police officers enter.

“Hello, everyone, I hope you remember us. I'm Officer Davis and this is my partner, Officer Miles.” Both men approached my bedside.

“How are you feeling, partner?” Officer Davis asked. My pulse inexplicably quickened. The monitor tracking my heart rate began to beep.

“Relax, Wesley. We're only here to ask you some questions about the shooting,” Officer Davis explained, but I still didn't feel at ease.

“Can't you do this some other time?” Grandmother Lorraine asked.

“No, ma'am. We really need to talk to him,” Officer Davis stated adamantly. “We have a pretty heavy caseload and we have to turn in a report on this case.”

“Wesley—” Officer Davis pulled out an ink pen and
notepad “—in your own words, tell me what happened.” I was silent for a brief period as I tried to reconstruct everything that had taken place.

“I don't know,” I said as I turned my head and glanced out of the window. “I got shot.”

“We know that much,” said Officer Davis. “What we need to know is who shot you and why?”

“I don't want to say,” I answered.

“Wesley, tell the man who shot you.” Dad took my hand into his own. “It's okay.”

“I don't want to be a snitch,” I explained.

“Are you involved in a gang?” asked Officer Davis.

“No, my son isn't involved with gangs,” my dad spoke up for me.

“Sir, I need to hear it from Wesley,” Officer Davis said firmly. “Wesley, are you involved with any gang?” he asked once again.

“It all depends on what you consider to be involved,” I answered.

“Wesley! I know you haven't run off and joined a gang since you've been here!” Dad shouted at me.

“Sir, please, allow him speak,” Officer Davis insisted.

“No, Dad, I haven't done anything like that,” I answered.

“Are you sure?” Officer Davis pressed the issue.

“I'm positive,” I answered, then closed my eyes tightly as images of the incident began to flash in my mind.

“Have you had any altercations with gang members?” asked Officer Davis.

“I've gotten into a few fights,” I answered, feeling as if I was under an enormous amount of pressure.

“Okay. Can you give some details?”

“About which fight? I've had a few of them.”

“Why don't you start from the beginning, so I have the full picture?” He stood poised and ready to take down notes.

“You'd better pull up a chair,” I suggested. Officer Davis and Officer Miles did just that. My dad leaned against the wall and Grandmother Lorraine sat down on the empty patient bed. I took a few deep breaths.

“I didn't want to get involved with Lori and her boyfriend,” I said.

“So are you involved in some type of romantic love triangle?” asked Officer Davis.

“I don't know. At least I don't think I am. I mean, Lori and I have sort of a love-hate relationship. She's a bossy girl, but once you get around her defenses, she's really nice,” I explained.

“So, the shooting is over a girl named Lori?” Officer Davis wanted to be sure he was getting all of the facts correct.

“Yeah, man, it's all over a girl.” I paused and then explained how I'd come to Lori's rescue one afternoon when her boyfriend was beating her up.

“So after the fight, what happened next? Did her boyfriend try to get even with you?” Officer Davis began scribbling on his notepad.

“After the fight I walked Lori to her front gate. Percy had hit her so hard that her right eye had begun to swell shut. I wanted to call the paramedics, but she insisted she was fine and didn't need any help. She pleaded with me to keep my mouth shut about the entire incident. I thought
it was kind of strange, but I let it go because I just didn't feel it was any of my business and I didn't want to get involved any more than I already had. Lori went inside and I came home and chilled out. I have to admit that I was nervous about retaliation, but when I didn't see Percy for an entire week I took it as a sign that he wasn't coming after me. Then two weeks later, I ran in to Percy and his crew on the school bus. I don't even know why he was on my school bus. He just showed up. I didn't want any trouble with them, so I avoided him and his crew and sat down in my usual seat.” My mind wandered back to the images of that day.

“You're sitting in my seat!” Percy had come up to me, clearly wanting to throw down.

“I don't see your name written on this seat,” I said, unafraid, as I glanced up at his broken nose.

“Who you rollin' with?” he asked, but I didn't respond. “I knew you were with somebody that day when I first ran in to you at the grocery store. Do you remember what I told you? I said if I found out you were in any other gang I was going to put you six feet under.”

“I told you then and I'm telling you now—I represent God.”

“Church boys don't know how to break a man's nose, only gangbangers do. You know this is ass-whipping day, don't you?” he said through clenched teeth.

The next thing I knew, it quickly turned into a brawl and I was defending myself against Percy and two of his friends. When all was said and done I had a cut over my left eye and a split lip. During the scuffle I ended up issuing
a black eye and knocking out Percy's incisor tooth. Since Percy and his boys started the fight, they got suspended.

My dad was now standing with his hands on his hips. His brow was wrinkled and his mouth was set in a grim line. “Wesley, you told me that you got hit with a ball during gym class. You said that's how you got the cut over your eye and the split lip.” My dad was clearly upset about the lie I'd told.

“I didn't want you to worry about me. You had enough to deal with. I didn't want to dump something like this on you,” I explained.

“Wesley, you should've come to me. We could've notified the school about it.” My dad continued to fuss at me.

“I'm sorry, okay?” I stopped talking because my throat was dry. “Can I have some water please?” Grandmother Lorraine quickly got up and filled up a white foam cup with water and handed it to me. I lifted my head off the pillow and took a few gulps before relaxing once again.

“Go on. What happened next?” Officer Davis asked.

“Nothing happened after that. Percy and his goons were suspended. I didn't see them anymore and that was perfectly fine with me.”

“What about the girl? When did you see her again?”

“She'd heard about the fight so she dropped by to see how I was doing. I wasn't really hurt, but she felt guilty about asking for my help and everything that happened afterward. She said she wanted to thank me for helping her get away from Percy. I told her it was no big deal and she didn't have to repay me, but she insisted. She wanted to take me out for pizza. I was in an awkward position.
I really wanted to say no, but the pleading look in her eyes made me say yes.”

“So you went on a date with her?”

“I really wouldn't call it a date. We just went to a nearby pizza parlor. We actually had a pretty decent time. I learned a lot about her. I learned who she truly was and all the difficult times she was going through.”

“Stuff like what?” Officer Davis asked, digging for more information.

“Family drama. She told me her grandmother had been physically abused by her grandfather for years. Miss Winston never left her husband. She stayed in the marriage and dealt with the punishment. Lori's mother grew up watching all of the abuse and felt that a man didn't truly love a woman unless he beat on her. Lori's father never raised a hand to her or her mother, which her mom took as a sign that there was no love in their marriage. Her mom ended up having an affair with a physically abusive man. Eventually her mother's lover confronted Lori's dad and things got messy. After a nasty divorce, Lori and her mother moved in with her grandmother, Miss Winston.”

“So Lori and Miss Winston think it's okay for a man to beat up on them?” Grandmother Lorraine muttered. She was without a doubt awestruck by the discovery of this news.

“Grandma, I told Lori she didn't have to follow in her mother's or grandmother's footsteps. I told her it wasn't cool to stay with a dude who beats up on women. Lori then said that ever since she was a little girl, whenever a little boy hit her, her mom told her it was okay because that's the way little boys show their affection.”

“Well, I'll be damned,” my father uttered as if that was the oddest thing he'd ever heard.

“So you got to know Lori over a few slices of pizza. What happened after that?” Officer Miles had asked a question for the first time. I took a deep breath and continued.

“Well, while Lori and I were eating pizza, talking and laughing, Percy and his crew walked in. When he saw us he walked over to our table. Percy had nothing but hate in his heart for me and accused me of screwing around with her behind his back. I told him it wasn't like that, but Lori set Percy off by suggesting that she and I were hooked up.”

“Why would she say such a thing?” my dad asked.

“I don't know. I think she just wanted to get even with him.” I shrugged. “Percy then lifted his shirt and exposed the handle of a gun.” I paused and buried my face in my hands. I was having a horrible flashback.

“Wesley, are you okay?” Dad asked.

“I hate him!” I said angrily. “I can't believe this happened to me.”

“Wesley, I can appreciate how difficult it is to talk about this. But I really need you to finish telling me what happened.”

“I'm not sure what happened. I keep getting flashes of images from the shooting,” I explained.

“Here, drink some more water. Take a few deep breaths and try to relax.” Officer Davis grabbed the water pitcher and refilled my cup. The cold water helped to calm my nerves, and a few minutes passed before I began talking again.

“Percy said that he was going to shoot both of us. I tried to reason with him, but it was no use. Percy cocked the hammer back and I saw the belly of the gun rotate but just then a police officer walked in. Percy backed off and left.”

“Why didn't you or Lori report him to the officer who'd walked in?” asked Officer Miles.

“I don't know. Neither one of us were thinking about reporting anything. I just wanted to go home and so did she. Once we were certain Percy and his goons were gone, we left. During the walk home, Lori once again apologized for getting me involved in such a mess. She also explained that Percy was not only crazy, but he was also a well-known gang member. If Percy says he's going to shoot you, he means it. Lori made that very clear. I tried not to be afraid of him, but deep down inside I knew we would meet again, and it wasn't going to end peacefully. During our walk back home, Lori looped her arm through my own and held on to me. She admitted how frightened she had become of Percy. She said that he'd hit her before, but he always made her feel as if she had it coming because of her bossy ways. I just listened as she talked. When she didn't feel like sharing any more details she rested her head against my shoulder. Once we arrived at her gate, she kissed me. That was the last thing I'd expected from Lori. I embraced her and tried to reassure her everything was going to work out. Then, I heard the sound of a car door slam. I turned around and saw Percy walking toward us wearing a black bandanna that covered his nose and face. I shielded Lori with my body just before Percy pulled out his gun and fired multiple rounds. I don't remember what happened after that.”