Deal With It (9 page)

Vance

My
back against the locker, I tried with all my might to get a better grasp on my American history book and my three-ring binder. They were heavy, but I was determined not to ask for help. With crutches underneath my armpits, I was finally able to stuff the book and binder into my backpack. Wiping sweat from my temple, I limped quickly to my first class, plopped down in my seat and elevated my leg on the seat next to mine. With a cast covering the entire bottom half of my leg, I was left almost immobile.

“What happened to you, man?” Marcus asked as he entered the classroom and took his seat, right next to me.

“Skating.”

Then he asked the dumbest question I’d ever heard in my life. “How you gon’ play ball with a cast on your leg, dog?”

I glared at him. This was a very touchy subject to be discussing at such an early hour, especially since I’d already asked myself the same question a million times throughout the night. And considering I hadn’t been able to sleep, I’d had plenty of time to come up with an answer.

“I can’t play ball with a cast on my leg!” I snapped.

It was true. My basketball season was over. Twelve weeks on the bench would be like twelve years, and I wasn’t happy about it. I had major attitude. Everything I’d worked hard for was about to be flushed down the toilet, and nobody really understood that except me. My parents obviously didn’t know it, because they kept saying how temporary it was.

“You’ll be out of that cast and back on the court in no time, sweetie,” Mom had said right before she scribbled a red heart in the center of the cast.

“It’ll be all right, son. Brush it off,” Dad had said. “You already got a leg in at Duke.”

“That’s what you get for being so clumsy, stupid,” my sister, Lori, had said, giggling as she scribbled her name on my cast with a purple marker. “You were probably trying to impress some stupid, ugly girl, anyway.”

“Shut up, and get out of my room,” I’d snarled. “And shut the door behind you!”

She’d placed her hands on her hips and rolled her eyes at me. After sticking her tongue out, she’d walked over toward the door. “I hope you’re crippled for life,” she’d said and then walked out the door, pulling the knob behind her.

“Don’t slam…”

I hadn’t been able to get the words out before my door slammed with a bang, and my framed Michael Jordan picture—the autographed one from his last Chicago Bulls game, when they played the Atlanta Hawks—had fallen from the wall and hit the floor. Glass had shattered everywhere, and I’d wanted to wrap my fingers around Lori’s neck. What she’d said was right, though. I
was
trying to impress some girl. Tameka.

When I had arrived at the skating rink that day, Tameka was already in her pink-and-white skates, gliding backward on the floor. She waved when she saw me and came over to where I
was, then plopped down on the bench beside me as I slipped my skates onto my feet.

“What’s up?” I asked her.

“Nothing much. What took you so long?” she asked. “I’ve been here for almost an hour.”

“I had to pick something up.”

It was the truth. I had to run by the mall and pick up a necklace I had spotted on Saturday at the jewelry store. It was a sterling silver chain with a big, fat letter
T
dangling from it.

“Something like what?” She placed her hand on her hip and smiled her beautiful smile. I wanted to kiss her lips right there—and did.

After a quick little peck on her lips, I reached into my jacket pocket and pulled out the little white box. “Something like this.” I grinned as I handed it to her.

She opened it, but not before giving me a cockeyed look. “Did you do something wrong that you need to be sorry about?”

“No, girl! I just wanted to give you something nice,” I said.

The truth was, I
had
done something wrong. I had taken another girl to see a movie—not officially—but it was what it was. Although no PDA (public display of affection) had taken place, it hadn’t stopped my hormones from losing control. Just the simple touch of Darla’s fingers brushing against mine as we both reached for more popcorn had made the hair on my arm stand up. In the darkness of the auditorium, I had imagined her body against mine, her lips touching mine. And the fragrance that she’d worn hadn’t helped matters at all. In an attempt to get those thoughts out of my head, I had rushed to the restroom at least three times.

I slipped the piece of silver around Tameka’s neck, fastened the clasp.

“It’s so pretty, Vance. Thank you,” she cooed and then kissed my cheek.

“Let’s skate,” I said. “I need you to teach me how to do that backward thing.”

“Okay, come on! It’s so easy,” she exclaimed.

Easy? Not. I fell on my behind so many times, it was ridiculous. And just when I thought I had it, I hit the floor—
again
—twisted my leg in an awkward way and landed flat on my back. As I was driven to the emergency room by my no-driving-skills-having girlfriend, Tameka, I feared for my life.

“I thought you told me you could drive!” I yelled as we soared down the street toward Grady Medical Center.

“I can drive!” she yelled back as she rolled quickly through a red light.

What had started out as a great day of skating had quickly turned into something else, and I wasn’t feeling it at all. That was Sunday. How quickly things had changed. Now here I was, on crutches, and wishing I’d just taken Tameka to Steak ’n Shake for a burger and fries.

“Well now, Mr. Armstrong, what happened to you?” Mr. Harris asked.

“Skating,” I mumbled. I was tired of people asking what had happened, and I was tired of answering. I just wanted to be left alone.

“Or not skating.” He smiled. “Looks like you could use a little more practice.”

As Mr. Harris headed back to the front of the class, I pulled my book out of my backpack and slammed it onto my desktop.

“Need some help?” Darla Union asked as she approached, wearing a short denim skirt with knee-high black leather boots, a cropped pink sweater and a black leather jacket. She looked sexy and smelled like the fragrance samples that came inside of magazines.

“Nah, I got it.” I smiled.

“You mind if I sign your cast?” she asked, her pen in hand.

“That’s cool,” I said.

She drew a heart with an arrow through it, and inside the heart, she scribbled, Vance, Let Me Know How I Can Help U Heal. Much Love, Darla XOXO.

Snapping the top back on her gel pen with the purple ink, she winked and then took her seat, next to mine. I watched as she opened her book, not meaning to stare, but pink was definitely her color, and she was wearing it well. She was glowing, and I couldn’t help but watch.

The thought of riding the school bus was already beginning to cramp my style, but it wasn’t like I had a choice in the matter. It wasn’t like I could drive, and with my parents’ busy schedules, there was no hope of them transporting me back and forth. The school bus, which I hadn’t been on since freshman year, was the only alternative to walking. The thought of it had me depressed the entire day. I’d thought about watching my team practice after school but decided I really didn’t want to be depressed more than I already was. And since it was almost impossible to drive with my right leg in a cast, I figured my only ride home would be the big yellow school bus waiting next to the curb in front of the school.

“You gonna be okay?” Tameka asked as she walked me to the bus, struggling to hold on to my backpack.

“I’ll be fine,” I said. “I told you that you don’t have to carry my books for me.”

“I don’t mind. You’re my boo,” she said and kissed my cheek.

If I am your boo, then why did you run away the other day, when we were about to go to the next level?
I silently asked the question that had been burning in my mind for days. It had bothered me more than I’d let on, but instead of bringing it up, I’d let it fester.

I gave her a quick smile as we made our way across the courtyard to where the buses waited for students to board.

“Holler at me when you get home from dance-team practice,” I said.

“I will.” Tameka handed my backpack over.

I kissed her forehead and watched as she jogged back inside, her leotards hugging her thighs. Both crutches underneath one arm, I lifted myself onto the bus and plopped down in one of the seats up front, placed my crutches against the window.

As I glared out the window, I knew that this would be the longest twelve weeks of my life.

“Anybody sitting here?” Darla asked. Her leather jacket was zipped all the way up to her neck in order to shield her from the cold.

“Nah, just me.” I slid closer to the window, and she plopped down in the seat next to me.

“Was that your girlfriend who just walked you to the bus?” she asked. “Yep.”

She leaned over me, pretending to look out the window. I guessed she was trying to get another glimpse of Tameka. While her breasts brushed against my arm, her fingertips traced the heart that she’d drawn on my cast earlier, and then her fingers moved toward my thigh.

“Does Tameka know how to take care of her man?”

The question came out of nowhere and threw me off guard.

“What?”

“Does she do the things that girlfriends should do?” she asked.

I was dumbfounded and really didn’t know how to answer that question. So I just said, “She’s cool.”

“I really like you, Vance. I wasn’t sure if you could tell, but it’s true.” She smiled. “I wouldn’t mind spending more time with you. Are you and Tameka serious?”

“Sort of, yeah.” I was hesitant about the whole line of questioning.

What did I mean,
sort of?
Tameka had practically made me swear on a stack of bibles that I would be forever true to her.
That no other hoochie mama, as she called them, would come in between us.

“I guess what I’m really trying to say is, my mom works nights, and I’m usually at home all by myself every day after school.” Darla grinned wickedly. “So anytime you want to come by, you can. We could hang out, watch some movies. We could do anything you want. And you don’t even need an invitation.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” I pressed my backpack against my lap to hide the fact that Darla Union had me feeling things I’d never felt before and thinking thoughts that I shouldn’t have been thinking.

Indigo

I
was giving it all I had, shaking everything my mama had given me as my hips swayed to the music. I wanted to show Miss Martin what I really had, just in case she’d forgotten. Every girl on the team was dancing better than she ever had, putting something extra into every move.

“Okay, girls.” Miss Martin blew her whistle. “Give me one lap around the gym, and then we’ll meet right here when you’re finished.”

I took off toward the bleachers. Marcus gave me his award-winning smile as I passed him. He was reclining on the bleachers, his gym bag in between his legs. His basketball practice was over early, and he was waiting for me, as he did most nights, watching our practice and giving unwanted advice about how I could make my routine better. I didn’t show up at his practice, telling him how to shoot a free throw better or how to play better defense. Therefore, I didn’t need dancing advice from him. Jade and Tymia jogged side by side and then caught up to me. Tameka and some other girls pulled up the rear. After we
all completed one lap, we gathered around Miss Martin and waited for her to dismiss us.

“Great practice tonight, girls. You all are wonderful dancers, and I’m extremely proud that each of you is on this team. You each contribute to the team in a major way,” she said. “And I really mean that.”

“Have you decided on a team captain yet?” Tymia asked.

“As a matter of fact, I have….” Miss Martin smiled.

We all looked around at each other. My eyes bounced from Tameka to Tymia to Asia and then landed on Jade. She was crouched on the floor, tying her shoe.

“The young lady I’ve selected is someone who I think is best suited for the job. She has put in the work, her grades have improved tremendously and she has shown great character and a true spirit of teamwork.”

She was right. I had put in some work. My grades were so much better than they’d been in my freshman year, and there was no doubt I had character. I was definitely a team player and had shown Miss Martin that just the other day, when I helped Keisha improve her routine. And even when she messed up, I was the one who encouraged her to keep trying until she finally got it.

“I believe that Jade Morgan would make the best team captain, and she is the young lady that I have selected,” announced Miss Martin.

Did she say Jade Morgan? Surely I’d heard her wrong, I thought as I looked around at the other girls. I was waiting for someone to repeat what Miss Martin had said, just so I could confirm what I’d heard.

Jade stood up slowly. She was in disbelief, a shocked look on her face.

“It was a very difficult decision to make, because in my opinion, you all are team-captain material, but there was only
one spot available,” Miss Martin said, and then it was like she ran out of words. “So, I guess that’s all I have to say. I’ll see you all tomorrow. Same time, same place. We’re performing the new routine at the game on Friday night, so practice your parts. Have a great night,” she said. “Jade, I’d like for you to stick around for a few minutes, but the rest of you are dismissed.”

My heart started pounding out of control. She really had said Jade Morgan was our new team captain. There had obviously been some mistake.

“Congratulations, Jade,” Tymia said, and they gave each other high fives.

“Yeah, congrats, girl,” said Tameka as the two of them embraced.

Everyone congratulated Jade except for me. I was still trying to gather my pride and force back the tears. Jade stared at me for a moment. She wanted me to congratulate her, but I couldn’t. She had stolen my spot on the team. Miss Martin looked at me, too, as if she expected me to say something. She knew how tight we were, too.

“Congrats, Jade girl.” Asia gave her a thumbs-up and then locked arms with me, pulled me toward the locker room. “Can I use your cell phone to call my mom?” she asked me.

I pulled my cell phone out, handed it to Asia as we left the gym. I didn’t even look Marcus’s way as I passed by, even though I could feel him watching me. He was always watching me, judging me.

With my feet on Marcus’s dash, I messed with his radio. Tuned it to 107.9 as Young Jeezy’s song rang through his speakers.

“You wanna talk about it?” Marcus asked.

“Nope,” I answered and looked out the window.

“Indi, you should’ve at least congratulated Jade. That’s your girl—your best friend,” he said.

“It’s unfair.”

“It’s Miss Martin’s choice,” Marcus said, “and you have to
be a true sportsman about it. Win or lose, you have to do the right thing.”

“I said I didn’t want to talk about it.”

“Fine, but it’s real childish to act that way,” Marcus said, and his words pierced my heart. Whose side was he on, anyway?

“Are you calling me childish?” I asked.

“I’m calling the way you’re acting childish, yes,” he explained. “Your best friend made captain of the dance team and you didn’t even congratulate her!”

“Are you going out with Jade Morgan or something? Whose side are you on, anyway?”

“I’m always on your side, but I have to let you know when you’re wrong, Indi. I’m sorry,” he said. “I love you.”

Those three words melted my heart. Just as they had the first time he’d said them. I sat there for a moment, singing the words to the Young Jeezy song in my head. Then I pulled my cell phone out of my purse, flipped it open. Decided that Marcus was right. I should have at least congratulated Jade. It wasn’t her fault that Miss Martin had chosen the wrong person for team captain. I sent Jade a text message.

CONGRATS. I typed it and felt a little better.

Waited a few minutes. I knew that she was in the backseat of her daddy’s SUV—I’d seen her hop inside just minutes before Marcus and I had pulled out of the parking lot. She’d left the gym, yapping with Tymia, Asia and Tameka, probably telling them how she was so shocked that Miss Martin had picked her. I was shocked, too.

It’s 2 late. Her text bounced into my in-box a few minutes later.

What do U mean, 2 late?

Keep UR congrats. It’s 2 late.

“Who does she think she is?” I asked, not realizing that I’d said it aloud.

Marcus looked at me funny. “Who?”

“Jade.” I frowned. “I told her congratulations, and she had the nerve to tell me it’s too late. I only did it because you said I should. ‘You’re being childish, Indi. You need to congratulate her, Indi. She’s your best friend, Indi.’ Well, guess what, Marcus? I don’t have a best friend anymore.”

He just shook his head, watched the road and kept driving.

I pulled my coat tighter and crossed my arms across my chest, stared out the window and listened to the music. I was serious. I was through with Jade Morgan.