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"How old were you on this picture?"
I saw Elijah looking at a picture of a younger me, "I was... 15?" I walked closed, "Oh nevermind, I was 16. That's when my dad took us to Florida. I'll never go back."
"Florida not that bad." He laughed.
"It wasn't. I just associate bad experiences with things, like if a song was popular when I'm having a shitty year, I can't listen to the song without remembering that that was a bad year."
"So the year you turned 16 was shit?"
"You know Elijah, I'm not gone keep telling you all my business while you sit over there and pay me dust when it comes to your life." I half-way joked.
It was partially a joke because I was dead serious. I was the talker in the situationship, and he listened and offered tidbits to keep me talking, but he never talked about himself. At first, I thought he was being polite, now I realized it was purposeful.
He sat there for a few seconds, "I got married when I was 18."
"Whew shit. I meant like tell me your mama middle name or something... Why would you ever get married that young?"
"The timing wasn't the problem. It was the person."
His mood had changed tremendously, and I almost felt bad for asking, then I realized he volunteered that strain of information. Like I said, I didn't mean for him to tell me something like that.
Before I could respond, the look on his face was replaced with the signature stoic gaze, "So why was 16 a bad year for you?"
"Not the whole year... Just some of it. My grandma and them live there, and My dad wanted me to move out there."
"....He has life figured out for you, huh?"
I didn't care for his comment, "I mean he's trying. It doesn't always work out, but he tries."
As previously mentioned, my dad used one incident in high school as a catalyst for his crusade to protect me from every man to walk the Earth. Now that I'm older, I do see what he saw but at the time I thought it was an extreme overreaction.
Elijah nodded, "Sorry if I offended you."
"You didn't offend me. He acts like that for a reason and it's technically my fault, so I try to understand."
He waited patiently for me to begin the story.
"What?" My dad asked the principal, "What?"
I stared at the same monitor in shock. In shock because Brandon actually told on me.
"The young man is Demetrius White. Ava's brother."
Ava and I had been friends since I was 10, having sleepovers and whatnot. I always thought her brother was cute, but he never paid us attention. Over the past summer, he was in the home more and started showing interest.
It was easy because I was over there every day, he and my dad were close, so it didn't seem weird that he spent time at our house.
There I was, clear as day, leaving school multiple times with him. Sometimes he came to the back of the school, most times he met me on the side, every now and then I walked off campus to the small store around the corner.
"We've already been in contact with the police-"
"For what?" I interrupted, "Why would you call the police?"
Ms. Carl looked at me as if I'd asked the dumbest question ever, "He's 20. You're 16.-"
"I cons-"
"Fuck the police." My dad stood up, "I'm going over there my damn self."
My mom was still watching the monitor.
"Sooo." I raised a shoulder and let it fall, "I don't think he got over the fact that he let him like, stay in our house while all that was happening."
Elijah moved his eyes to the wall, "That would've been a dead motherfucker."
"He's in prison. For somebody else this time."
Ava was upset that I not only got her brother in trouble, but I was having sex with him in the first place when I knew he could get in trouble. Demetrius knew that too, but I was the only one who got the backlash from it.
They hated me at school after that, and Jailyn was the only one who continued to talk to me.
I wouldn't say I was happy that he did it again, I was more so validated that I wasn't the problem. He only did a year for the first statutory rape charge and was now completing a 10-year sentence for the second.
After getting my keys, I checked to see if I had everything I needed and waited in the living room for Jailyn.
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"You real fake." Jailyn asserted when Ariana was out of earshot, "I couldn't get you to come to HomeGoods with me but you'll go to the mall for Mrs. Robinson."
I snorted, "You acting like my daddy now. Our good sis just turned 26."
"Ken, you gotta be the blindest bit-"
"What about this one?" Ari asked, showing us a blue fitted dress, "Jade likes blue."
Per Jade's instructions, I told Ari that we were planning a surprise birthday party for Jade, and it worked because tomorrow was actually Jade's birthday.
I thought it was a sweet gesture to dedicate your birthday to someone else.
Jailyn peered around me to look, "It'll be cute if you were tryna' stand out at a funeral. Let me go find you something 'cause I see we'll be here all day."
"I always forget how Jai is." She laughed while we followed in the direction that Jailyn went in.
"And that's why she always catches you slipping. You knew better than to bring that dress over here."
Ari and Jailyn didn't talk unless I was there to keep the conversation going. It wasn't that they didn't like each other, they just had nothing in common, making the conversation extremely dry.
Whenever they did try, Jailyn told me that she felt awkward because she felt like Ari was talking to her in a condescending tone. I understood exactly what she meant because it was a bad habit I'd long told her she needed to break.
In a way, Ariana thought everyone needed or wanted her guidance. It didn't bother me because I actually did want her to guide me, and she did a great job. Everyone isn't me though, and Jailyn had never asked for anything like that.
"So..." She sighed, interrupting my thoughts, "I think Jade is gonna propose."
I wanted Ari to be surprised so I feigned ignorance, "Why you say that? You found a receipt for a ring?"
Damn. Undercover Ken come through.
"I just feel it, you know? She's been acting weird, different. I know her, so when something is off, I can tell."
"You're just overthinking." I brushed her off. She stayed silent though, so I decided to ask, "And if she was? Would it be that bad?"
Ari contemplated it, "Yes. I'm not ready right now. I planned on being the one to ask."
Her statement didn't surprise me. Typical Ariana wanting to be in control.
I tried to think of how to push her in the direction of saying yes but I didn't want to tip her off, nor did I feel it was my place to do that. Jade would likely be devastated if she said no, and I'd want someone to warn me about a badly timed proposal, but I preferred to not get in that.
"I guess all you can do is wait and see." I offered lamely.
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Later that night, I stood in the corner pretending to be very interested in my phone's wallpaper. I looked up as Jade approached me with a smile, "Thank you so much, Ken. I'm so nervous."
I gave what I hoped was a reassuring smile, "Why are you nervous?"
"I don't know... Did she say if she suspected?"
"Nope."
That seemed to bring her relief, "I'm probably just being extra then. Okay, thanks again."
The partygoers were all huddled in the different rooms of the house talking amongst themselves. I would've engaged in their conversation, but my stomach was in knots. Time was slowly ticking by too, and the party seemed unnaturally long.
Finally, Jade snuck out of the room to go get the ring, leaving Ari to talk to Jade's parents. Another strained relationship, because Jade, to me, was too open with them. There was no reason your parents should know you have threesomes.
They never made eye contact with me.
Jade cleared her throat, gaining everyone's attention. I wondered if anyone else saw the quick flash of horror on Ariana's face before she quickly composed it, or just me because I was looking for it.
"Ari... You've changed my life in so many ways, and I'm thankful every day I wake up and see your beautiful smile..." She continued her speech but I wasn't actually listening, just impatiently waiting until she got to the big question, "Will you marry me?"
Temporary silence filled the room before a huge smile went across her face, "Yes. Of course, Jade."
I clapped along with everyone else, and eventually, Ari made eye contact with me. I gave her a small smile and put my eyes back on the floor.
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lmao. ken said it's not her problem chile.
anyway, that's why her dad acts like that, & hopefully explains why kensley tries to understand.
thanks for reading ð