Chapter 5
Summer! What about Summer you idiot!? If Cassie is crazy enough to flirt with her friend’s boyfriend, clearly, she’s crazy enough to lie and say I kissed her first.
I violently pushed Cassie off me, but it was too late, the damage was already done. I kissed her and my biggest fear was that she was going to tell Summer. Summer would never forgive me, especially after I accused her of cheating.
“Came back to your senses already?” Cassie asks smiling. Her top was already off, and I was struggling to put mine back on.
“I’m not doing this with you Cassie,” I say.
“Technically, you already did. There’s still three hours left of this drive, anything could happen,” she giggles. She disgusted me. I didn’t even know what it was that attracted me to her.
“Put your top back on and get out of the driver’s seat. I’m driving for the rest of this trip and you’re going to sit in the backseat,” I say firmly.
“If you think you’re going to tell me what to do in my car, you are terribly wrong.” She rolls her eyes and sits back with her arms folded.
“You are unbelievable, Cassie! Don’t you care about Summer feels? You act like you want to see her happy but really you don’t!”
“Says her boyfriend who just cheated on her with her best friend,” she chuckles. I grabbed her hair and pulled her face closer to mine.
“Let me go!” she cries.
“Listen to me and make sure you understand each and every word coming out of my mouth,” I whisper firmly.
“I love Summer, not you. If you think you’ll ever come between Summer and I, you’re wrong. If you think you’re going to say a single word to her about this without me hurting you, you’re still wrong. I will not lose Summer because of your foolishness, understood?” She nods her head with tears streaming down her cheeks.
I released her hair and got out of the car, slamming the door behind me. I had to take a minute to think about what I had just done. I couldn’t believe it. How could I be so stupid? Summer gave me her all, and in return, I cheated on her. I knew Cassie liked me, but I insisted on taking a five-hour trip with her. Sumer warned me and I should have listened. I walked around the car and opened the door to the driver’s seat where Cassie was still crying. “Move,” I command.
She slowly gets out of the front seat and sits in the back. I got into the car, started the engine and drove off. Cassie didn’t say a word for the next 3 hours. It’s either I really scared her, or she was silently planning revenge. When we got to Detroit, all I wanted to do was move back home immediately. It wasn’t necessarily clean and modern like the city that my new school was in, but it felt like home. My father’s family still lived in Detroit, and I couldn’t blame them.
Detroit was full of people who were kind and loving. You could always count on your neighbour to invite you for dinner if you didn’t have enough to eat, or to lie for you when you came back home past your curfew. I drove to a park behind the street that Summer lived on. I prayed that my mother wouldn’t pass by at any minute, because then, she’d kill me.
“You need to be back here at 2pm. This time don’t be late,” I say to Cassie.
“2pm? Today? That’s not fair Amari. I need to stay here the whole week. You need to find other means of getting back to school,” she says.
“That wasn’t a request, Cassie. I need to pass by my uncle’s place too, so be back here at 2pm, or else I’ll tell Summer that you tried to kiss me.” I got out of the car and called Summer. Cassie got back in the driver’s seat and sped off.
“What a surprise. After a week of not talking to me, my boyfriend is calling,” Summer says after picking up. I hadn’t spoken to her ever since we had our little disagreement.
“Summer, I was wrong for accusing you of cheating on me. I am so sorry,” I say.
“No, you’re not Amari. You don’t trust me, and that hurts because I have never given you a reason to not trust me.”
“I know Summer, I know. I’ll make it up to you. Why don’t you walk over to the park behind you,” I suggest.
“Whatever,” she says hanging up. I wasn’t really sure if that meant she was coming or not, so I waited for about ten minutes.
Just before I could call her again, Summer appeared from the corner of the road, looking more beautiful than the last time I saw her. Why on earth would I cheat on someone that beautiful?
“So, you decided to come here even after I begged you not to risk your life for me,” she says disappointed.
“I don’t think you understand the seriousness of this situation, Amari. You think you’re in the clear, but the Vipers could be anywhere. You’re being so selfish right now.”
“Summer, I came here for you. I’m trying to show you that I love you,” I explain.
“Amari I never asked you to do this, okay? I know you love me. I don’t need you to buy me expensive watches or risk your life for me to believe that. I just need you stay loyal and never give up on us.” Staying loyal.
I had already failed at that. I knew that I had to change for Summer. I couldn’t let Cassie be the reason I lose someone with a heart this pure. She takes my hands in hers and kisses them both.
“I know you’d never hurt me, and I need you to believe that I’d never hurt you too, okay?” she assures me.
“You’re right,” I sigh.
“Am I ever wrong?” she asks giggling.
“Now tell me, how the hell did you get here? Detroit is five hours away from your school!” she yells laughing.
“I did exactly what you did. I asked Cassie. She was driving back to Detroit, so I asked her to help me out,” I explain.
“Poor Cas. First, she drives me all the way to see you, and now she drove you all the way here to see me. She’s been such a great friend. It’s almost hard to believe that she’s actually real,” Summer says smiling.
That’s because she’s not real, Summer. I wanted to, but I couldn’t tell her that. She’d be shattered if she found out about Cassie and I.
“You know what, my dad’s not home for the whole week, so why don’t we head inside?” Summer suggests.
“That’s actually not a bad idea,” I smile. We walked up the road to Summers house. I had to be extra careful when walking into her house. I didn’t want my mother, the nannyor anyone else seeing me. Summer and I did the craziest things together. She made ma pancakes, which were amazing. I made her my famous mac and cheese and trust me when I say that is no normal mac and cheese. We danced, chased each other around, had a food fight, and broke a few plates. I didn’t ever want to leave.
“I can’t believe it’s 2pm already,” I moan. We were laying on the couch next to one another.
“It felt like you were only here for a minute,” Summer adds. She sighs and takes her phone from the table.
“I’ll call Cassie,” she says. Summer dials her number and waits for Cassie to pick up.
“Hey Cas, Amari is ready to leave n…oh…I…I had no idea…oh?”
I look at Summer curiously. What could they possibly be talking about? She finally hangs up and then looks at me dumbstruck.
“She said she’s not coming,” Summer says. I sit up straight on the couch.
“What? Why not?” I ask.
“Well, she didn’t really give me a reason. All she said was she needed to stay home for the night. She’ll only be able to pick you up tomorrow.”
“No, no, no!” I stood up frustrated and paced up and down the room.
“If the school finds out that I’m gone, my mom’s gonna kill me Summer. I need to get back to school!” Summer stands up and wraps her hands around my neck.
“Do you really have to go back to school?” she asks with a smile.
“I mean, you could always just stay here for the night. I did tell you that my dad isn’t around, right?”
“I’d love to stay,” I say, pecking her lips.
“But what about my mom? The school will call her the moment they realise I’m not around.”
“Don’t worry about that, I think I have an idea,” she says smiling.
“How sure are you that your idea will work?”
“I’m a 100% sure my idea will work. So, will you stay?” I looked at Summer hesitant to agree to her crazy plan. I mean, if her dad decided to come back home early, he’d find me curled up with Summer in her bed.
Then, he’d give me a beating so bad, that I’d have no choice but to run out of the house screaming. My cries would be so loud, that the entire community would wake up to see what was going on. Then, my mother would see me, and beat me right back to school, or even take me to a school further away. But then, Summer kept on giving me those puppy eyes, so I couldn’t say. I had to take the risk, for us.
“Fine,” I sigh. She screamed in excitement and jumped up and down.
“Not too loud now, you might raise suspicions, “I laugh.
“I don’t care!!!” she yells while running around the whole room with her arms above her head. She was beyond excited. She came to a stop and glared at me like she had just realised something.
“Let’s make dinner,” she says with a smile. Summer and I basically prepared a buffet. There was way more food then what was necessary. We didn’t even eat half of it before we were full. I thought it was a waste, but she said it was a good thing because she wouldn’t have to cook for the next three nights.
“Now tell me how we’re going to make sure the school doesn’t find out you’re missing,” I say to her. She throws herself on her bed and I lay next to her.
“Are you still friends with Deshae?” she asks. I nod.
“Okay, what about Kevin? Would he be willing to do you a favour?”
“I guess so. After I got him those comic books, he seems to be warming up to me.”
“Weird, but it’ll work. You need to call Kevin and ask him to lie for you. He needs to let one of the head teachers know that you aren’t feeling well, hence you haven’t been attending classes.”
“Oh, I see where you’re going with this. But what if they check up on me in my room?” I ask.
“That’s where Deshae comes in. Let him wear some of your clothes and lay in your bed with a blanket over him. He should try and cover his face as much possible, with a polar-neck or something. A beanie is necessary too, to hide those dreads of his.”
“Okay, see there is no way I’m letting Deshae lay in my bed,” I complain.
“Mari, why not? You don’t have a choice you know,” she reminds me.
“Deshae is a very untidy person, okay. I’ve seen his room before, and I’m pretty sure he’ll leave my bed looking like a pigsty.”
“Oh, come on, he’ll only be there for about a minute. How much damage could he do within a minute?” she asks. “A lot,” I respond.
“Wrong. None. Now call Deshae and Kevin and let them know about the plan,” she says firmly. I moaned and groaned before pulling out my phone.
I called Deshae first. I didn’t see how this was going to work. If the teacher asked Deshae a question, he wouldn’t be able to answer because then the teachers would know for sure that it’s not me under those blankets. Deshae’s voice is completely different from mine.
“Be nice,” Summer says while the phone rings.
“Eyy, Amari the Mari! How can I help you, bro?” he asks loudly. Summer giggled softly. I shook my head and took a deep breath in and out.
“Deshae, I need a huge favour from you. I need you to take this seriously, because if you mess up, you’ll be seeing me for the last time tomorrow.”
“Oh okay, you’re serious right now? Let me get comfortable so I can hear you out,” he says. I hear a few things falling in the back.
“Speak to me,” he says.
I told Deshae everything, where I was and what I needed him to do for me. He agreed without hesitation, and so did Kevin after I called him. I told Deshae where the key to my wardrobe was and gave him very strict instructions on how to leave my bed. After that, Summer and I lay in bed talking about whatever came to our minds.
“You wanna see something?” she asks. I nod my head, and she leads me to her window.
“Make sure you keep your head down,” she says. We peered through her window and looked into my bedroom which was completely empty. I didn’t understand what I was supposed to be looking at.
“What are we doing?” I ask after a long silence.
“Just wait, you’ll see,” she responds. We crouched there for another five minutes before we saw someone enter my bedroom.
“Is it an intruder?” I ask confused. She shakes her head. The person switched on my lights and we could finally see her clearly. It was my mom. She went around my bed to my wardrobe. She pulled out a new sheet and duvet, and then replaced it with the ones that were already on the bed. “She does this every Wednesday,” Summer whispers.
“Why is she acting like I’m dead?” I ask. Summer shrugs.
“I guess she just misses you.” My mother carried on cleaning up my room. She swept the floor, mopped, dusted and then finished off by spraying a fragrance in the room. She sat on the bed and began crying. Her cries were loud enough for us to hear, and you could tell she was in pain. Summer closed the curtains and pulled me back to bed.
“She cries like that every Wednesday?” I ask in shock. Summer nods.
“Then why won’t she just let me come home. I’ll be safe this time.”
“No, you won’t Amari. Your new school is in the safest place possible. She’s just being a mother.”
“Right, a mother to a child who miles away from her. She didn’t even bother to visit on my birthday. All I got was those birthday gif’s and $200,” I complain.
“I’m sorry, Amari,” she says, laying my head on her chest. We fell asleep in this same position. That was the first time in a long time that I got a good night’s sleep.
I woke up when I felt kisses being placed on my face. I opened my eyes and found Summer staring at me smiling. She led me to the kitchen where she had already prepared the most delicious breakfast I had ever eaten. After breakfast, we spent our last hour together. Cassie arrived looking like a mess at 12am. She had a blue eye and a busted lip.
“Cassie, what happened?” Summer asks as soon as Cassie walks through the door.
“I’m fine Summer,” she lies.
“No, you’re not. You’re not leaving until you tell me what happened.”
“Summer, just let it go, okay? I just had a rough night. Hurry up so we can get going,” she says looking at me. She then turns around and walks out to the car.
“Amari you have to find out what’s wrong with her. She clearly needs help,” Summer says worriedly.
“I’ll try my best, but I don’t think she’s willing to talk about it. Why can’t we just give her some time?” I ask.
“Mari, would you give Jason some time if he looked like that?” she asks pointing out the door.
“Please, do this for me, okay?” I sigh and nod my head. She gives me one last hug and a kiss on the cheek.
“I love you,” she whispers.
“I love you too Summer.” When the road was clear, I ran outside and got into driver’s seat. I guess Cassie had no energy to even drive this time. Before heading back to school, I drove to Forest Park, where my father’s family lived. It wasn’t really a complete family anymore, it was only his brother and sister living there, Uncle Jon and Aunt Rashida. My grandfather and grandmother passed on years before I was born, and they never had any siblings. My mother, Jamila, Uncle Jon, Aunt Rashida and myself were the only Williams who were still alive…or at least that’s what I thought before I got to Forest Park. The last time I saw Uncle Jon and Aunt Rashida, I was 6 years old. I never really had a close relationship with them, and I didn’t remember them much. But they were the only family I had besides my mother and Jamila, so I was excited to finally see them after so long. They had been protecting me from the Vipers from a distance, and I appreciated that.
“What is this place?” Cassie asks as we drive deeper into Forest Park. She hadn’t said a word since we left Summer’s house, and I was hoping it would remain that way.
“I told you I needed to stop by my uncle’s place before going back to school.”
“Do you even know where you’re going?” she asks. I ignore her and pull over next to an old man sitting on the road.
“Can you help me out? I’m looking for the William’s home,” I say to him. He smiles with his yellow teeth.
“The Williams? Boy, I haven’t seen them for years,” he responds.
“Take your last left turn down this road. Then, turn right into the gravel road. The Williams house is the last house in the corner, with a yellow roof, or is it brown?” he asks scratching his head.
I thanked the old man and drove off. The more I drove, the quieter the streets got. Most of the houses were abandoned and in poor condition. There were groups of men sitting in corners, smoking or drinking. They’d stare at us for long as we drove past, but because I didn’t see any Viper tattoos on their arms, I wasn’t shaken. Cassie, on the other hand wouldn’t stop crying and begging me to turn around. I refused to listen to her, ignoring the fact that it wasn’t my car, but hers.
I found the house the that the old man tried to describe. He was right the first time, the roof was yellow, and the rest of the house was brown. It was the only house on the road, that’s one thing I hadn’t forgotten. Whenever my father took Jamila and I there, we were free to play wherever we wanted, because no one else lived on that road. The house was really worn out. The paint was peeling off and the grass in the yard had grown way too tall. I got out of the car and I was hit by a strong smell. It smelt so bad that I wanted to run back into the car and drive away, but I couldn’t. Cassie knocked on her window from inside. I opened her door, but she quickly moved to the seat at the far end.
“Amari what the hell are you doing? This place is creepy! Did you see those men at the corner? They’re probably part of a gang or something, we could get killed! Get back into this car and get us out of here!” she demands.
“Look, Cassie. It’s either you go in with me or stay in the car where those men can get to you quicker, your choice. What I’m not going to do, is drive away before seeing my uncle and aunt.” I turned and walked towards the house. Cassie slammed her door shut and followed behind me.
“Amari, clearly this place is abandoned,” Cassie says with tears still streaming down her cheeks. Serves her right for trying to break up me and Summer.
As soon as Cassie stepped on the first wooden step, the wood fell in causing Cassie to almost fall. I caught before her head hit the edge of the next step. Instead of thanking me, I got a:
“If I die here, I will come back as a ghost and haunt you for the rest of your life.”
We continued to walk up the stairs, and the closer we got, the worse the smell got.
There was an old rocking chair next to the door, which was still moving because of the wind. Next to it on the floor, there was a tiny blue toy. I picked it up and realized it was a toy my uncle got for me when I was younger. It was rusted and dirty, but I could still make out what it was. How could a toy from about 11 years ago still be lying on the porch? I opened the door as slowly as possible, but it fell to the ground right in front of us. The smell got worse. I looked in front of me and saw a knife covered in blood.
“What the hell is going on in here?” I walked in and Cassie followed behind me. The TV room table was full of dust, and so were the couches. There was broken glass all over the place, trailing from the TV room, to the kitchen, which was just as messy. Flies infested the place and they almost impossible to avoid.
“Uncle Jon!” I yell. “Aunt Rashida!” No one responded.
“Maybe they went out and they’ll only be back after months. I mean look at this place Amari, no one could ever live here,” Cassie says.
“You’re right, no one can live in these conditions.” I continued to search through every room.
I left Cassie somewhere in the house. I stopped in the room that I used to sleep in when I was visiting. I knew it was the room because the shoe posters I had put up years ago was still hanging there. I opened my old wardrobe which was cleaned out.
All my clothes and shoes had been moved out, and now there was just dust and memories left behind. I heard Cassie scream loudly from the other room. I ran as fast as I could and pushed open the door, to the room she was in.
“Cassie what’s going on?” I ask barging in.
She was sitting on the floor with her back against the wall. Her whole body was shaking, and her tears had become worse. She pointed in front of her with her shaking hand. I looked up and took a few steps back startled.
“What the hell is this?” I ask with a breaking voice. I knew what it was, I just wasn’t willing to accept it. My uncle and aunt couldn’t be dead, not when I just found them! They’re bodies had already decomposed and all that was left were two skeletons on the bed.Some of Aunt Rashida’s brown hair was still visible on her skull. It explained why they never called, and how the Vipers were able to get to us so many times.
I had flashbacks of all the times Aunt Rashida would buy me ice cream from the ice cream store. Whenever I was mad, she’d always make sure to pass by with my favourite flavoured ice cream. I thought of the times Uncle Jon would play soccer with me in the street. He’d always let me win because I sucked at it.
All those good times and both of those people were gone.
I knew the Vipers had everything to do with it.