Majority Minority

The Final Bows

AN: This is the last MaMi oneshot, but never fear! A new book with the next generation of kids is coming out shortly!

Grace

For the third year in a row, I was packing up all the stuff in my closet, my dresser drawers, everything, and getting ready to go home, back to London.

Usually, this time of the year was joyous. It marked the end of the school year, and my friends and I usually made plans to visit each other, on whatever date and location was cheapest and most convenient. I always said, "See you next year" to my friends and teachers.

But one glance at Sunny Kobayashi's desk calendar made my heart fall to my feet and shatter into a million pieces. It wasn't the middle of June, it was May 27th. The last day of school for seniors.

I wasn't coming back.

"Hey. Grace, you okay?" Mia Fernandez said, kneeling down and putting her hand on my back. I nodded and said, "Yeah, just getting choked up...I'm gonna miss this place. I can't believe we're all graduating. This place was my home away from home...my safe space...for 3 years in a row..."

"I'm even gonna miss Kai Hudson when this is over. Kai." Sunny said. Lars Sua snorted and said, "You're just gonna miss having someone to punch in the face."

"Am not!" Sunny said. "I'm gonna miss calling out his homophobic ass." Lars shrugged and said, "Fair enough."

I laughed and then noticed something a little bit odd. "Wait. Lars, don't you need to...cut off your hair? Because of your mom?" Lars laughed and then hugged me.

"What's the laughter for? I thought you hated summer vacation." I said.

"I'm not going home." Lars said.

"WAIT, WHAT?" Mia, Sunny, and Evie Schubert said at the exact same time. Lars smiled and said, "I'm not going back to Samoa, I'm staying here in California. I landed a part-time job during the school year, so now I have enough money to pay the rent for an apartment. I'm not going back to Samoa. If Ma wants my respect and attention, she's gonna have to earn it by not being such a bigot."

"PREACH!" Evie said.

Looking around at all my friends, I felt my heart tug a little bit. We had so many fun memories here, in this school, in this dorm room...like when Sunny got the brilliant idea to invade Kai Hudson's party or when we all invaded the culinary room, or when we all played Truth or Dare at 3AM. This school, it was my home.

London was an interesting place to grow up. I've always spent my days in my parent's restaurant, Khatri's Authentic Indian Food of London, as a waitress. I've grown up Indian and English, celebrating Diwali and Holi and seeing shows on the West End...I've never known another life outside of mine. That's why I applied for East Bridge.

Coming to this school was a major culture shock, and I felt lucky, in a way. Meeting Lars and finding out about his manipulative, bigoted parents, made me feel lucky that I didn't have parents that treated me that way for being bisexual.

While learning new things and learning about other cultures is what brought me here, Lars Sua is what convinced me to stay.

Lars, my amazing, kind, sweet best friend and platonic partner. Yep, we got in a QPR a few weeks ago.

I'm truly gonna miss this place.

_______

Lars