Pride

Chapter Five

Ketara Greene

"But before I do, I wanna know before I go there with you, oh yeah so tell me you're through, I need to know before I go there with you..."

Sevyn Streeter; Before I Do

I was again in the mirror, praying to God that my twist-out came out perfect. I'd taken the twists out carefully, sighing as each curl fell into place without frizz. I had to give Shakyra and Lichelle credit for urging me to transition my hair. As they taught me to care for it, it's grown thick and strong and the pattern made me fall in love with myself in a different way. I'd been tired of sitting through perms and that's when they both rolled their eyes at me and told me to jump on the natural bandwagon.

So I had.

There'd been some days where I wanted to give up however, this day was a victory. I was glad too, since in the next few minutes Broderick would be outside, ready to pick me up for school. I had to admit I loved the way junior year had started but as we were only on day two, I didn't want to put too much stock into how things were going. It was still a full-on fashion show. People were still too polite to each other, with the exception of Boogie and Lichelle. I was still walking on eggshells when it came to Louis. We hadn't had one good fight yet and for some reason the feeling left me antsy. I couldn't pin down why.

I stepped back to take inventory of the white bodysuit I put on, along with the dark blue jeans that fit me like a second skin. I turned and looked at myself from every angle, having to admit that I was looking delicious if I had any say so. Still, a slight panic fell over me knowing the attention I was going to draw. I took a couple of deep breaths to center myself.

"I am going to have a wonderful day today. I AM going to have a wonderful day, today."

As I got myself right, I grabbed a pair of hoops and did a final survey of my hair. The curls were popping and defined. My edges were laid to perfection but who knew how long that was going to hold up. Either way for the moment, I was satisfied.

I grabbed my bag and stepped out of my room. Skipping down the stairs, I ran into my mother who was eating breakfast. She smiled at me as she took me in.

"You lookin' good, girl. Who you out here trying to impress?"

"Myself, mama. And I'm impressed."

She laughed and waved me over for a hug and a kiss.

"I'll be late tonight. Dinner's already made for you. Just pull it out and enjoy. I hope you enjoy school today."

I smiled and told her I would before pulling away, shivering a little bit at the fact that I was my mother's exact replica. My eyes mirrored hers. My lips mirrored hers as well. The only thing that was missing was the dimples. I had them but she didn't.

"You took them when I gave birth to you." she said, smirking, "I see you studying me."

I giggled nervously, "I just realized...I look just like you."

"You do. I'm grateful all the time because you might not have made it looking like your father."

Moments later my phone rang. I snatched it up to see Broderick calling me. I answered, letting him know I'd be down in a couple of moments. Once I hung up, I tried to leave. My mother paused me.

"So they're on you already, huh? Be careful, baby. These boys ain't up to no good most of the time."

"I will, Ma." I said, "I'll see you later."