“Yes.”
“A chance!”
“Rae, don’t raise your voice like—”
I scoffed. “I’ve given him plenty of chances, Mom. Plenty. I gave him a chance after you came home with your first black eye. I gave him a chance after he stormed out of here one night after calling you a ‘useless bitch.’ I gave him a chance after he tried choking you out in the middle of the kitchen and I had to elbow him in his fucking lower back in order to get him to let go.”
Mom’s face hardened. “Raelynn Cleaver.”
“I’ve given him plenty of chances. He doesn’t get any more from me. I’m not you, Mom. I don’t have to give him chances like you apparently feel like you need to. I don’t want to have breakfast with him. I don’t want to have coffee with him. I don’t want a ride to school from him. And I don’t want to see him. Ever.”
“Raelynn!”
I shoved past my mother, feeling my satchel weighing me down. I flounced down the steps, listening as D.J.’s footsteps stormed down the hallway.
“The hell’s all that ruckus in this house?”
And his question made me whip around to face him.
“You don’t get to make demands in this house.”
Mom paused in the middle of the steps. “Raelynn Cleaver. You shut that attitude down right now.”
But I glared at D.J. “This isn’t your home, this isn’t your space, and that isn’t your girlfriend. Because if you loved her, you wouldn't do half the things to her that you do.”
“Rae! Stop!”
I took a step toward D.J. “I don’t want to see you. I don’t want to hear from you. And I sure as hell don’t want you making demands in this house. And if my mother ever comes home with another bruise on her face? On her skin? I’m calling the damn police myself.”
D.J. leveled me with a stare that could kill, but I didn’t give a shit about it. I stormed out of the house, slamming the front door behind me as I made my way for the driveway. Already, I heard them fighting this morning. D.J. yelling in that house like he owned it. And Mom crying and trying to subdue him. The only good thing that might ever come from him striking Mom again is the fact that I’d live up to my promise. If Mom ever had another bruise on her skin I caught, the police would be at the house.
Getting my side of the story, despite what Mom wanted.
Sweat already trickled down the nape of my neck as I made my way for the edge of the neighborhood. I focused my mind on school. On the new week. On the excitement of the day. I smiled as Allison came into view, hopping out of Michael’s car. She came rushing for me as Michael’s trunk slowly eased itself open, her arms throwing themselves around me.
“Are you ready? I mean, really ready? You’ve probably been waiting for this for a while.”
I smiled. “I’m ready for this, yes. I need to thank Michael for driving, too.”
Michael leaned out his window. “You’re welcome! Now, get your stuff in the back. We gotta go!”
Allison squealed as she helped me get my satchel from around my shoulder. We both grunted and groaned, heaving it into the trunk before the door closed automatically. I rushed around, watching Allison climb into the front seat. And as I slipped into the back seat, I set my eyes toward Clint’s house.
Michael looked at me through the rearview mirror. “Ready?”
I nodded. “Ready, Freddy.”
Allison giggled. “Let’s do this.”
Michael inched away from the curb and we took off down the road. We turned into Clint’s neighborhood as I fed Michael directions. Down one street. Up another. A small U-turn because we took a left turn much too early. I smiled to myself as I saw Clint’s house coming into view. My heart sang with delight when I saw him standing on his porch. Michael pulled into his roundabout driveway and I opened the door, watching as Clint lumbered over to the car.
It was his first day back at school, and I was ecstatic to have him there.
He smiled. “Morning, Rae.”
And I smiled back. “Morning, Clint.”
“Aly. Mike.”