Faces of the Game (27 page)

              “Good morning to you all, you’ve made it...”  The Dean of the Department started her farewell speech, Chelle along with other classmates were inspired yet bored.  The brunch menu was very upscale, the environment was classy and Chelle felt honored to be among a group of young geniuses.  She briefly conversed with her classmates and Professors.  She had to get her award for the best exit exam in her Magazine writing class and she was leaving.  It was her most favorite class she had ever taken, and her final project was a magazine.  She decided to focus on the four elements of Hip Hop, and since it had to be 200 pages total including advertisements, interviews, pictures etc.; she broke it down into 50 pages per element of hip hop.  Her Professor learned something new, she didn’t realize that Hip Hop was more than a genre of music, it was a culture.  She was honored to be recognized for her hard work, but upset that her Professor kept the magazine to show her future students.  Nevertheless, she dipped in the mist of everyone else receiving awards, people networking and everything in between. 

              Meanwhile, Chip was excited about shopping for jewelry.  He wanted to get her a nice ring, he wasn’t going to ask her hand in marriage but when she saw it she would figure out the rest, he assumed.  He also saw a chic diamond bangle, it was white gold with 1 karat of diamonds in it, and since it was cheap for him to get it as a set; he rocked with it.  He knew she loved handbags and clothes; he went into Saks 5
th
and found the perfect Gucci hobo bag.  It was a chocolate leather bag with the signature green and red strap and a nice buckle closure; it was so bossy he had to get it.  He couldn’t wait to see her rock it with her casual wear, sunglasses and long pretty hair.  He looked at her as a gift from God, she was almost perfect. 

Twenty Eighth Hour

It was 4:00am, exactly 28 hours before the big day; Chelle laid in her hotel room with her phone off, restless.  Something didn’t feel right, she had a bottle of Nuvo, nothing heavy and a lavender scented candle lit, and she just wanted to relax.  She felt so uneasy, so she looked out of the window.  The parking lot in the back looked legit, nothing seemed out of place and then she looked straight ahead.  The forest and the golf course that sat behind the trees was a serene scene, the stars were bright, the moon shined just enough to make the night beautiful.  She had to remind herself to relax, and enjoy her night.  She poured herself a glass of sparkling Nuvo, sat in the window seat and gazed at the stars as she prayed.  She didn’t close her eyes, she just looked into what seemed to be the heavens and her heart was at peace.  As soon as she said Amen, a shooting star shot across the sky; it in fact was the first one she had ever seen.  Chelle smiled, that had to be God.  A prayer is sometimes like a wish she thought, and decided to leave the wish for blowing out her candle.

              Chelle woke up at 10:00am, ready to live her last day as an Undergraduate.  She turned her phone on and saw so many text messages, she couldn’t read them all.  “Baby answer the phone” – Chip; “Wake up!!!” – Vae; “Good morning ChelliRock” – Daddy; “Call me when you get a chance” – Neese; “Let’s go shopping for your dress!” – Momma… The messages kept rolling in, Chelle rolled back over and laid there for at least 15 minutes without responding to a single person, she just wanted to be alone.  She couldn’t seclude herself from her loved ones, so she got up and jumped in the shower.  It was going to be a long day, so she dressed comfortable.  She called her mom back first; “Hey ma, what time do you want to go shopping?”  Chelle asked trying to sound enthused.  “We don’t have to go if you don’t want to, or are you still sleep?”  Her mom noticed the tone and immediately wanted to know why Chelle wasn’t bouncing off of the walls.  “Oh no, I just went to sleep so late” Chelle said in a light and friendly tone.  “Okay, well let’s meet at about one-ish, sound good to you?”  Her mom asked.  “Yep, I’ll meet you at the mall.”  They said their goodbyes and planned to meet shortly.  Chelle texted her dad back, “Hey dada I’ll be there later on today.”  She called Vae and poured her heart out, Vae listened but couldn’t get a clear understanding of why Chelle’s emotions were scattered; but neither could Chelle.  Vae wanted to tell her what her graduation present was so bad, but she couldn’t.  Chelle called Ash next; they talked for a few moments Ash was so excited she didn’t know how to help Chelle cope with whatever she had going on.  “Girl worry about that next week, whatever it is that’s bothering you let it go!”  She was so happy for her friend she didn’t know what to do, but she lended an ear and words of advice.  “I can’t wait to give you your presents” Ash said trying to reel Chelle in.  “Did you say presents with an “s”?  Chelle lit up, she couldn’t wait to be showered with fly gifts from her family, friends and boyfriend.  She called Chip last, because she knew they’d talk until she met up with her mom.  “Hey boo” she said when he answered.  “What in the world were you doing last night?  I called you at least five times and didn’t get one answer; are you cheating on me?”  Chip said laughing, he knew better than that.  Chelle laughed, “Maybe, what you doing?”  They talked about their trip to Mexico City, Chelle couldn’t wait to see the pyramid of the sun and the pyramid of the moon not to mention the shopping district El Zocalo.  Chip couldn’t wait either, he was terrified of getting on an airplane but he wanted to make her trip as memorable as possible so he went for it.  She couldn’t wait to see the beautiful deserts, people, waters and everything in between.  Her uncle lived in Mexico for years, and he always told her about the beautiful places and people; he was deceased but she wanted to experience what he’d told her.  Chelle could hardly wait; their flight was scheduled to leave at 6am on Tuesday morning. 

              Chelle pulled up at the house, and got off of the phone it was time to go shopping.  From TJ Maxx to Hanes Mall, Chelle was bound to find everything she needed to make her special day worth it.  She found the cutest Cole Haan shoes in TJ Maxx, along with a simple black clutch to compliment them.  She found her dress at Dillard’s, it was the perfect length; a pencil styled quarter length sleeved black dress that stopped right above her knees.  She decided to wear a nice pair of Tiffany’s stud earrings, her diamond heart necklace and her Tiffany’s bracelet.  Chelle couldn’t wait to be princess for a day…

                                                                     
The Big Day

Chelle woke up ecstatic; she played “Just like You” by Keisha Cole while she got ready for her big day.  Although she couldn’t sing, she sang to the top of her lungs this day she couldn’t believe it was finally here.  She made it!  She showered in her favorite fragrance and she got dressed.  She hung her cap and gown in the car until she arrived at the Coliseum. 

              Chip looked up at his rear view mirror; he saw three suspicious cars driving in a certain pattern.  He contemplated dipping off of the first exit, but he figured he was paranoid and continued his route North.  He texted Chelle: “I’m on the way, congrats babe you did it.” Chelle looked down at her phone and smiled, she texted back: “Thanks, hurry <3”

              Blue lights swerved from lane to lane, Chip’s hands trembled, and the nearest exit was ½ of a mile away.  He called Chelle “They pulled me baby, I’m sorry I love you and I never wanted to hurt you.”  “You don’t know anything, the more you know, the more guilty you are.  Love you too.”  She said and she hung up the phone.  If she hadn’t she would have been in a world wind of emotions.  “The boys are behind Chip, I’ll keep you posted” Chelle got the text message right before she walked into the ceremony. 
Oh gosh that Tim guy didn’t find him, what if he comes for me?  Chip has my presents with him, I wonder if they would release them to someone?  I just want a regular life, relationship and someone cool enough to build a promising future with.  Why am I worried about this stuff, I’m 22 years old…
She pondered on several thoughts as she sat beside her favorite classmates.  “We did it Chelle” Christi leaned over and whispered as Chelle sat down.  “What’s wrong?”  Nefi asked.  “Girl I think they got him” Chelle said in a monotone.   Nefi and Christi tried to console their friend without spoiling one of the most prominent events of their lives yet.  “Girl it’s okay, you know everything happens for a reason; isn’t that what you always say?”  Christi said as she looked at Chelle with a reassuring nod.  “Yep” Chelle said as she took a deep breath, smiled and focused on what was important at that very moment.  Graduation… 

                                                           
***Later That Evening***

              “We are going to be the flyest girls in the Comedy show tonight!”  Vae said as she and Chelle put the finishing touches of make-up on.  The girls were ready to hit the scene and celebrate Graduation in style.  “I am so proud of you Chelle, you have no idea how much I admire you for this.  You’ve been through enough this year, and throughout your years at school girl tonight you need to forget about any worries and strut like you own the world.  You did it!!!”  Vae said as she popped a bottle of champagne in the middle of Chelle’s kitchen.  Chelle smiled and a tear dropped from her eye.  “Vae, I really appreciate it.  You are one of the realest people on God’s green Earth and you will be forever blessed.  I love you!”  Chelle was so happy to have a cousin that was right there with her through thick and thin without a doubt she was a ride or die type of friend.  While her other cousins were half jealous of Chelle, Vae stood right there and showed her what true love was all about.  “Regardless of how anyone feels about you, you kept it real and you stuck to your words.  You are as real as they come; we’re a rare breed and trust me you will be blessed too.  Cheers to success and fuck a hater.”  Vae said as she raised her glass.  They clicked glasses and took a few sips before they finished getting dolled up for the comedy show and after party.   

“Hello?”  Chelle answered her phone as she slipped her sandals on.  “Yeah bitch you graduated but you still ain’t shit, you ain’t gon never be shit.”  Her cousin Vette said into the phone.  Chelle had a smirk on her face, at this very moment she had to embrace the envy.  “Is that all you called me to say?”  She asked nonchalantly.  “Yep” Vette said like she was empowered.  Chelle laughed and hung up the phone.  Vette called her right back, “Your so called favorite cousin don’t even fuck with you like that.  Yeah Neese told me you don’t really have a degree, so like I said bitch you ain’t gon ever be shit.”  Chelle stored what Vette said in a very small place in the back of her mind and hung up the phone.  She was so glad Vae had just given her that little pep talk; she was trying to keep negative energy out of sight and out of mind.  She was concerned about Chip, but she decided to follow up with that later; it was nothing she could do at the time.  As soon as Chelle and Vae walked into the Comedy show, they saw Tera and Neese.  “I’m mad at you for not coming to my Graduation but it’s all good.”  Chelle said to Tera half tipsy.  Tera started to explain but Chelle just hugged both of them and walked to her seat.  Vae laughed, “You ain’t worth two cents tonight, act a fool!”  They both laughed and took their seats.  Ash and Los walked by, Ash cheesed and waved, Los chucked his deuces as they walked to their seats.  The crowd cried tears of laughter for three hours straight, Money Mike was one of the most hilarious comedians ever.  Chelle was so silly, this was the perfect gift!

              After the show, the girls had planned to meet at the club to continue celebrating.  Little did Chelle know there was a booth and two bottles of Champagne approaching with sparklers on them as soon as she walked into the reserved area.  She was so surprised to walk in and see Christi, Nefi, Neese, Tera, Chloe, Tia and a slew of other friends, family and associates waiting for her to walk in and get loose.  Chelle had the best time of her life; she had just enough to drink to where she was all the way live.  She took pictures with her graduation cap and her silk black dress.  The DJ was playing the hottest songs of the summer and the club was packed to capacity with the new graduates partying like there was no tomorrow. 

Unnerving Circumstances

              Chelle woke up the next morning and decided to handle a few things, she called Chip’s friend and tried to get an update on what happened but he didn’t answer.  She hopped in the shower and put on a sun dress and a pair of cute flip flops.  It was a yellow type of day, this color always put her in a good mood.  She went to the gas station to fill up and low and behold, there he stood 6’ 4”, Tim the man of her nightmares.  He was pumping gas so Chelle swiftly eased her way out of the gas station parking lot with her sunglasses propped on her face hoping that would be a bit of a disguise.  He immediately stopped pumping gas, hopped in his car and spinned out of the gas station behind her.  Chelle panicked, but she didn’t lose control of the steering wheel, she focused on getting out of his eyesight.  Chelle saw that the traffic light ahead had been green for a while so she slowed down; when it turned yellow she eased through it and legally ran the light when it turned red.  Tim didn’t care, he was right behind her and she had just made her way to the highway.  Chelle couldn’t figure out how to shake him, he was good.  She sped up, let him get right behind her, switched lanes and got behind him.  That didn’t work; he did the same thing to her.  She got in her far right lane to create the illusion that she was getting off of the next exit, that didn’t work his front bumper was nearly attached to her trunk and he wasn’t letting up.  Chelle called Ash, “Girl oh my goodness, this creep that came by the other day is behind me and he is following me.  I don’t know where Chip is, but I’m pretty sure he’s in somebody’s Prison getting checked in by now.  Where are the cops at when you need them!?  This man is going to kill me, help!”  Ash jumped up, and started pacing around the house.  “Where are you at?  We have to come up with a plan fast.”  She replied willing to do whatever it took to help Chelle.  I’m on 40 coming through Greensboro, girl I don’t know what to do.  I am scared for my life right now.”  Chelle's heart raced 100 miles per hour, and her car was going just as fast.  If she tried to slow down she would wreck and possibly die, as fast as the two were driving there was not getting away from him at this point.  Ash was putting on her shoes; she didn’t know what to do next.  “Call you back, I got this” Chelle hung up the phone.  She pushed the petal to the floor of her Maxima and waited until her car reached 130, she knew he couldn’t go much faster than that.  He kept up the speed with no problem, she waited until the Colfax exit came up but she stayed in the middle lane of the highway. She got parallel with the exit, took her foot off of the gas, swerved to the exit and made a run for it.  Tim snatched his car to the right so fast that he immediately began doing doughnuts in the middle of the highway, he caught balance and tried to get off of the exit but lost control of the car again, his SUV was on the two left tires, he crashed into the metal railing his car then flipped over the rails and onto the hood crushing the top of the car.  Chelle looked in her rear view mirror and saw smoke, dust and tons of blue lights…