Keep It Movin' (17 page)

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Authors: L. Divine

BOOK: Keep It Movin'
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“Thanks, Mom.”
I reach into the water again, this time stepping even farther to retrieve the floating jar. As I grasp the glass, I catch my reflection in the water as if looking into a moving mirror. My white bandana overshadows my facial features, which fade into the background with the rest of the image. I have the strangest feeling of déjà vu but I know it's more than that. I continue looking into the reflection and my image changes in the still water. Now I'm the woman in the picture above Netta's shrine.
“Don't get caught up in the vision, Jayd. Throw the damned jar and keep moving!”
My mom's voice shakes me to my core and the vision of Maman crawling on the ground toward Mama as a baby comes into my mind and consequently into the reflection in the water. I hold on to the jar, mimicking Maman's movements precisely when she crawled away from my great-grandfather, who was trying to kill her. The vision's too powerful for me to focus on my task at hand, but I manage to throw the jar far enough and watch it finally sink away.
“Jayd, are you okay?” Jeremy asks, snapping me out of the dangerous memory and back into the present.
“Yeah, I'm fine. Just got a little wet,” I say, shaking more from the vision than the chill the wind is giving me.
“Come on. I have some towels in the car.” I follow Jeremy back to his car, ready to get home. That was some scary shit.
“Yes it was,”
my mom says, checking back in.
“Mom, what was that?”
“I don't know. That was the strangest thing I've seen you go through yet. I just hope your offering was accepted. Otherwise, you'll have more work to do to get whatever this is off you, so you can move forward. The last thing you want is to be caught up in some mess that isn't yours to begin with.”
Whatever's going on, I'm going to get to the bottom of it and get me out of harm's way, come hell or high water. I may not have the money or influence that Nellie's new crew has, but I possess a lineage with the kind of power that goes beyond physical limitations. And that's the only thing I'm counting on to get me out of this twisted reality I didn't create.
9
The Matrix
“So if you all keep on doing what you all are doing/
You will end up, up up in jail.”
—HORACE ANDY
 
 
 
I
t's my first day out of whites and I'm ready to take on whatever's coming my way, or so I think. Already the day's been full of drama. I'm not looking forward to the meeting with Nigel, Mickey, and Mrs. Bennett, but it's inevitable. At least it's during fourth period, Mrs. Bennett's planning time. She and the assistant principal are really tight, and he does pretty much whatever she says. Must be nice to have that kind of power when it benefits your cause.
It seems unfair that people with more influence can get away with more shit. It's also unfair that some people can get away with murder—whether literal or metaphorical—and the rest of us have to pay for it. Now I know what it means to be caught up in the matrix.
“I'm so glad you could join us, Miss Jackson,” Mrs. Bennett says from her stance next to the vice principal's desk. “This shouldn't take long. We wouldn't want you to waste any more of your precious time.” Why is she so snide with me all the time? You'd think she'd get tired of being a bitch and take a break for a day, but no such luck.
“Good morning, Mrs. Bennett,” I reluctantly say. I nod what's up to Mickey and Nigel and sit down in the seat closest to the door and across from them. No need for me to be front and center for this conference. This is all on my friends because I'm not confessing a damn thing. And without any real proof, I should be off the hook.
“Ah, I see everyone's here,” Assistant Principal Brown says, stepping into his office with a stack of papers in his hands, officially starting the meeting. I hope we get out of here before lunch. “Now, I'm sure you are all aware of the severity of the matter at hand,” he says, causing Mrs. Bennett to smile big and bright. This is what gets her going, I see.
“Can I just say that I'm pregnant and have had to miss a lot of school in the past couple of months,” Mickey says, rubbing her stomach with her free hand. She's been holding on tight to her man with the other one, for dear life.
“Yes, we are aware of your situation,” Mr. Brown says, clearing his throat. He seems more embarrassed by Mickey's pregnancy than anyone. “Which is why going to the continuation school is the best option for you. Now, back to the matter at hand.” Before Mr. Brown can continue, Nigel steps in.
“Wait a minute. Mickey's not going anywhere. We're both finishing high school right here and we'll raise our baby together.” Nigel's extra sensitive now that his parents have introduced adoption as an option. And this is no way for him to find out about Mickey's new school address.
“Oh, I'm sure Mickey's already informed you of her decision. No need to be so defensive,” Mrs. Bennett says, going in for the kill. I don't know how she knows, but Mrs. Bennett's hip to the fact that Mickey was keeping this important information from Nigel.
“Mickey, what the hell is she talking about?” Nigel asks, momentarily forgetting why we're really here.
“Baby, I was going to tell you later.” Mickey rubs his hand gently, but Nigel can't be soothed. He abruptly pulls his hand away from hers, returning his attention to the meeting.
“Well, as I was saying. We have a serious accusation, but without one of you confessing, we have no proof. Mickey, your parents won't return our calls or letters. Nigel, we've talked to your parents and they've assured the administration that the reins will be tightened around your neck, especially since we're counting on you for a winning football season,” Mr. Brown says with a smirk on his face, but Nigel's not returning his enthusiasm.
If Nigel couldn't run fast he'd be just another black boy to Mr. Brown. But because Nigel has skills on the football field, he's got the power of the administration to back him up. His parents having money doesn't hurt, either. Influence can be bought if you're willing to pay the price. Speaking of selling out, Misty walks through the door, dropping off more paperwork on Mr. Brown's desk, not missing her opportunity to gloat a little. If it weren't for her and Nellie, we wouldn't have gotten caught in the first place.
“And Mickey, if you do decide to stay in regular school, one more absence will land you and your parents in hot water, legally. So we're all glad you made the right choice.” Nigel looks at Mrs. Bennett and then at Mickey, who's near-tears she wants to cuss someone out so bad. “But forgery cannot be overlooked and neither can poisoning a student,” Mrs. Bennett says, getting to why I'm present. I know she wishes she could prove that I'm the reason Laura lost her voice on the opening night of our production, but she can't. It's too bad I can't take credit for the miracle because I'm quite proud of my work.
“And Jayd, well there's not much we can do without solid proof, as you know. But because of your history and the fact that an eye-witness has come forward stating that they saw you sign Mickey's note, it can't be ignored that you were in on it. But, again we can't prove it. So, the investigation will continue until further notice.”
“One step out of line young lady and you will be back on probation, Miss Jackson,” Mrs. Bennett says, taking the last word. How the hell did I get back here? I hate it when she has something to hold over my head. It's only a matter of time before she finds a way to nail me to the cross for one thing or another. I'll be damned if I'm going to let Mrs. Bennett win again. She's already humiliated me once this year and Ms. Toni is still boiling from that encounter. Now she has me in her claws again over some shit that Mickey did. This isn't right. I feel like I'm in a warped reality and I have no control over how it's turning out.
“Okay, I think we're done here. Nigel, now don't let this upset you, son. We've got an away game tonight and we're winners, right?” Mr. Brown says, standing up to give Nigel a high five, which he's left hanging on. Mr. Brown sits back down.
“May I be excused now?” Nigel asks. He looks like he wants to punch a hole in the wall.
“Yes, son, of course. You're off the hook.” Nigel gets up from his seat and storms out of the office, leaving the door wide open behind him. Mickey looks at me and I shrug my shoulders. I don't know what she expected. I told her hiding this from him wouldn't go over well, just like all of her other lies. She's gotten too big for her britches, as my grandfather would say, and she's being humbled now. It's about time, even if I think Mrs. Bennett's being a bit harsh, as usual.
“And Mickey, don't forget to clean out your locker by the end of next week.” Mrs. Bennett feels so powerful when she gets her way, and today she looks like she's on top of the world.
“Girls, you're free to go,” Mr. Brown says. Mickey and I gladly leave the office, ready to eat lunch and just get the hell out of here. It's Friday, and I'm glad I get the weekend to recuperate from this week, today being the most eventful of them all. I'm still not sure which friend Mama was talking about becoming my worst enemy, but I'm sure that'll reveal itself in time. Right now I'm feeling like Mickey and Nellie have both done a good job of getting me into plenty of trouble, and we still have another semester to go. I don't know if I can take any more drama from my friends this year.
“Jayd, what am I going to do about Nigel?” Mickey asks, not even clear of the main office yet. She could give a damn less about her educational future or anyone else's. All that matters is her relationship with Nigel, and I've had it with this girl and her selfish behavior. We have two minutes before the bell for lunch rings and it's more than enough time for me to tell her what I think.
“What you're going to do is let this blow over. He's got a lot to process,” I say, stopping short of telling her about the adoption suggestion he's also dealing with. “This is about more than just you, Mickey.”
“But I can't let him think I wasn't going to tell him. I have to convince him I was right about this one,” Mickey says, pulling out her BlackBerry, ready to harass Nigel into submission if necessary.
“Whatever, Mickey. I'm officially out of it,” I say, walking to my locker to switch out my books for the weekend. Rah's meeting me here after school and following me to my mom's house after we handle our business. I took the afternoon off from Netta's to go to the Department of Motor Vehicles to register my hoopty, and we'll probably hang out afterwards. Kamal's spending this weekend with their grandparents, so we'll have the entire weekend to ourselves, Rahima included.
“Out of it? You can't be out of it. We're all friends and I need you now more than ever to convince Nigel not to be too mad at me.”
“Mickey, are you listening to yourself? You just put Nigel in a very vulnerable position with the school, not to mention I'm on thin ice because of your shit. If we really are friends, now's the time for you to back off and let your friends cool off. Enough, Mickey,” I say, slamming my locker door shut as the bell rings loudly through the empty hall. Nigel emerges from the boy's restroom and Mickey runs to him. His face is stoic and I know this isn't going to be good.
“I'll leave you two alone,” I say, passing them up to go outside. Today feels like a turkey-burger-and-fries kind of day for me and I want to be the first in line. I'm hungry and not in the mood for long lines.
Fifteen minutes later we're sitting outside on our lunch break, and Mickey and Nigel have been going at it since I left them behind in the main hall. They both have valid points, but neither one is listening to the other. With them both confessing—Nigel about his parents pushing for adoption, and Mickey about hiding the fact that she's leaving the main campus next week—the heat between them is hotter than I've ever witnessed, and not in a good way.
“Mickey, how could you not tell me that they want you to leave school because you're pregnant with my baby? What type of shit is that?” The two of them are really drawing a crowd this afternoon and the spectators are loving the show, Misty and haters included. I'm surprised Misty's not busy posting up more flyers for the Valentine's Day dance next month, since I found out that she's volunteering in ASB after all.
“Baby, I didn't want you to be upset and off your game. Besides, you didn't tell me that your mama and daddy want us to give our baby away. What type of shit is that?” Mickey says, antagonizing my boy right back. Damn, this isn't good, and Chance is off who knows where with Nellie, and Jeremy isn't anywhere to be found, either.
I have no choice but to let them go at it, especially since—technically—I helped keep both their secrets. And this week I've been playing incognegro, trying to help them out of this mess and keep me from getting hurt in the midst of it. I don't know how good a job I'm doing but from the looks of it, someone's going home with some bruises and it isn't going to be me. That was the point of my recent cleansing and I'm glad to see it's working.
“Upset? Off my game? Well, lying to me doesn't help in either situation, Mickey. When were you planning on telling me? When I didn't see you at lunch one day?” Mickey looks like she wants to cry but sucks it up to save face. If it were just the two of them she'd be bawling her eyes out by now.
“Nigel, I was just trying to help. Please don't be mad at me.” Mickey holds on to her man for dear life, but he's too vexed to be held right now.
“I have to get some air,” Nigel says. He gets up to leave, then, doubles back for one final word. “It's my baby too, Mickey, which means I have a say in how we live, you feel me?” I've never seen Nigel so hurt before. Mickey doesn't know him like I do and to get him this hot takes a lot. Mickey's gone too far this time.
“Jayd, what am I going to do?” Mickey asks when Nigel's gone, looking to me for the answer I don't have. Just then, Chance and Nellie walk into the yard, hand in hand. Mickey follows my eyes across the grass and catches Nellie's eye, and Nellie offers a sinister smile in return. What Nellie doesn't know is that Mrs. Bennett pissed Mickey off at this morning's conference and now Mickey has nothing to lose by kicking her ass. “I'll be right back.” Mickey charges across the yard toward her former best friend, ready to mow the lawn with her face.
“Mickey, don't do it!” I run after my girl but it's no use. I know she's going in for the kill. After this morning's meeting and her argument with Nigel, my girl's feeling completely powerless and needs to take it out on someone. And who better than the person she blames for it all? I wish I could end this day and start it all over again. But this isn't a movie and we have to play the scene out, however it unfolds.
“Nellie, I can't believe you would sell me out like that,” Mickey says, close to reaching her destination. Misty looks on, loving the drama and the fact that my crew is falling apart. How did this happen? I feel like I'm in a twisted reality and Misty's the architect. Choosing the path of a coward, Nellie turns around and Mickey stops in her tracks, winded from the long trek. I guess that belly weight's starting to slow her down. I hope it stops her from ruining all of our lives, sooner rather than later.

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