you out to be, but you’re certainly not a wild child.” Keysha moved over to my bedroom window and glanced out of it. “Looks like your aunt is leaving,” she said.
“Really! Is she taking Viviana with her?” I asked as I sprang to my feet to glance out the window. I saw my aunt and this hulking guy get into a hideous pickup truck. “Eww! What a crappy-looking car,” I said.
“I know. As I came up the driveway, I peeked inside, and, man, was it junky in there. Dude seriously needs to clean out his ride,” Keysha mentioned.
I grumbled as I saw the pickup truck back out of the driveway. “They didn’t take Viviana.”
“Wow. How much longer is she going to be here?” Keysha asked.
“I have no clue,” I said. “One thing is for sure. I’m never going to trust her again.”
“I wouldn’t, either, especially after she left you stranded the way she did.” Keysha pointed out the fact that Viviana had attended the party with me and then had left me stranded.
“Anyway, if I hadn’t run into Carlo at the party, I don’t know how I would’ve gotten back home.”
Keysha cleared her throat and said, “Excuse me. I was on the phone with you that night, offering to pay for your cab fare home.”
“I know, Keysha. Thank you for being there for me,” I said earnestly.
“You’re lucky you’re my BFF, because I wouldn’t shell out money like that for anyone else,” she said.
“I can’t wait to get my driver’s license,” I said.
Keysha snapped her fingers. “I forgot to tell you,” she said excitedly.
“Tell me what?” I asked.
Keysha stood in the center of my bedroom and started doing her happy dance. “My dad has signed me up for private driving lessons. I’m going to be getting my permit and then my driver’s license. Then bam! He’s going to buy me a car. And when that happens, girl, we are going to be driving all over town.”
“Why didn’t you remind me to ask my dad so that we could take the class together?”
“Because on the day I was going to tell you, all of the drama with Misalo happened.” Keysha stopped dancing around.
I sighed. “Do you think I should buy him something? It would be my way of asking for a truce.”
Keysha shrugged her shoulders. “It couldn’t hurt. Maybe if he sees how sorry you truly are, he’ll give you another chance. Still, in my honest opinion, I think Misalo is overreacting to this entire situation.”
“I think so, too.” I felt a swell of sadness rising in my heart once again. “Keysha, I want you to be totally honest with me,” I said.
“I always am,” Keysha reminded me.
“If Wesley, Antonio or Jerry were to come back, saying they were sorry for what they did, which one would you give another chance to?” I asked.
“Wow,” Keysha said as she pondered that one. “In all honesty, the only one I’d truly believe was sorry would be Wesley.”
“So, you’re saying you’d give him another chance?” I asked, just to be extra sure.
Keysha banged the heel of her hand against the side of her head a few times.
“Why are you hitting yourself like that?” I asked, completely confused.
“My scalp itches. The water at the pool has really made my hair dry. Plus, it’s about time for these braids to come out.”
“Okay. You need to warn me before you do that again. I thought you were freaking out or something.” I chuckled.
“Ha-ha,” she said.
“So, answer my question,” I insisted.
“If the circumstances were right, I’d go back to Wesley,” Keysha said.
“Wow! Really?” I asked, thinking for sure she’d give Jerry another shot.
“Yeah. There is just something about Wesley that is kind of pure and innocent,” Keysha explained. “So, what are we going to do? I have the day off.”
“I don’t know. Maybe you should just go and do your own thing today. I’m sort of in a really jacked-up mood,” I said truthfully.
“Well, that’s what best friends are for. We pull each other out of the dumps. You know the Heritage Summer Festival is going on today at the park. We could put on some cute outfits and go see if some hot guys will be there.”
“I don’t feel like changing clothes. I just want to sit around and mope.”
“You could go there and shop for a nice, unique gift for Misalo. Besides, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was there. I overheard lots of people at the pool talking about going.” Keysha knew exactly what to say to get me motivated.
Perking up, I said, “Yeah, you’re probably right.” I moved over to my closet and opened it. “Come on, Keysha. Help me find something to wear.”
“That’s the spirit, girl! Sitting in a room, all gloomy, thinking about what happened will drive you crazy. On top of that, crazy doesn’t look good on you.”
“I agree, but it’s not easy getting over a broken heart,” I admitted as another wave of depression wrapped around me like a warm blanket.
Three
VIVIANA
I didn’t go up to Anna’s room as Aunt Raven had asked me to. Instead, I walked up a few steps, situated myself so I couldn’t be seen, then leaned over the banister, eavesdropping on the conversation my mother and aunt were having with Grandmother Esmeralda. I was able to hear my mother say, “What do you want from me? You want me to admit that I’m not as good as Raven?” I could tell by her tone of voice that my mother was on the brink of having another one of her classic “Get off my back” episodes. I was trying to listen in so hard that I got startled when I saw Maya’s friend Keysha coming up the stairs.
“Excuse me,” she said as if she was royalty and I was some annoying peasant.
“Do you have a problem with saying hello first?” I asked.
Keysha snickered at me. “I am not the one,” she said, stepping past me.
I flipped up my middle finger behind her back before leaning back over the banister to eavesdrop again. I couldn’t hear very much, so I just stood there, wondering what would happen next.
Eventually, my mom came looking for me. When she saw me standing on the stairs, she asked me to come take a walk with her. We went out into the backyard and stood under the shade of a tree.
“Look, you’re going to have to stay with your aunt Raven a little while longer,” she began explaining.
“Are you leaving me again?” My voice was edgy.
“It’s not so bad here,” my mother said defensively.
“I don’t want to live here. I want to live with you in our own house. I want to sleep in my own bedroom.”
“And you will someday,” she said.
“Someday? What do you mean, someday? Are you about to run off with that jerk and just leave me here?” My emotions were swaying between anger and disbelief.
“Look, do you think this is easy for me? Everything changed after your father died. It’s hard for me to find another man like him. I am the most honest, caring and loving woman in the world, but sometimes I feel like I will never find another man like your father. I’m getting old, Viviana, and it’s not easy for a woman like me. Martin is the best I can do right now, and I’m not about to give him up.