𝐎𝐜𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐞

Chapter Three

...........

"Wake up, Imani, " Jamie called, tagging at Imani's bedding, his face peeking under her blankets "you promised we would make pancakes together today, " his small body sprawled on top of her, his breathing unstable. Imani remained quiet, feigning sleep even though she knew Jamie wouldn't leave until she was awake.

"Imani, " Jamie whispered this time, uncovering a small part of her face by lifting the corner of the blanket, leaning over her until he placed one side of his face on hers.

"Imani, " he whispered again, his breath warm against her cheek.

"Yes, sweetheart, " she sleepily replied, exhaling loudly because Jamie's face was pressing hers down.

"You're awake, " he cheerfully announced, lifting his face and peering at her to find Imani's eyes were still closed, and half of her face was still covered.

"Wake up, " he begged, "please, " he added.

Imani swiftly threw up her blankets, grabbing Jamie, and then soundly started raining kisses all over his face. Jamie giggled beautifully, shooting his legs up and down as he tried to pull out of her arms.

He was her center. The only reason she got up in the morning. It had been a struggle for them both, especially when their mother died, but it had always been both of them since Jamie was born. Although she was okay, gentle, and carefree, their mother had not taken much responsibility for him since she returned from the hospital with him. Imani had become like his mother. He called for her at night, she was whom he preferred to their mother, yet it shouldn't have been like that. Their mother would have insisted on taking care of him and not letting her fifteen-year-old daughter carry the burden of raising her son.

A year later, it hadn't mattered; their mother was dead. With no relative, Imani, with the help of a neighbor, buried their mother, then sold everything she could before leaving, running away to avoid social services. She was too young to raise Jamie, too young to be on her own, but Imani knew it was better for them to be together than separated by the system. She knew if they ended up in the system, Jamie would forget her after a while since he was still a child, but she would forever remember him. She had no choice —she would raise him herself.

It had not been easy raising a one-year-old with little or no money. Imani dropped out of school, worked as a waiter and a babysitter for a woman who allowed her to bring Jamie with her; it was the perfect arrangement. But it was short-lived because she later called social services on her, making Imani make another hard decision —run again.

They were always on the run until Imani became of legal age. A milestone she celebrated for it came with the right age to be Jamie's guardian, but not legally. She was always afraid to petition the court to be his guardian, fearful that he would be taken from her because she had no secure job.

While she wasn't formally educated, Imani was very street smart. She had learned it the hard way. They were living on the edge without knowing what tomorrow would bring. Being a parent came with a lot of worries. She had once woken up in a panic in the middle of the night when Jamie had a fever, conned by a real estate agent six months after their mother's death, lived for almost nine months in the streets, at one point, she begged the head chef of a hotel she waitressed to let them sleep in the store, they did that for two weeks until she could afford a single room. To this day, that chef remains one of the kindest people Imani had met on their journey, and they had met many.

A few years later, she was now twenty-one, living in Chicago and working as a stripper. It paid more than witnessing, babysitting, dishwasher, cleaning staff combined. She now had medical insurance for Jamie, it wasn't much, but it was something, and studying for a high school exit exam.