TLWM: The Hate Experience

\VII/ Milestone

Monday/September 14th

Ace had never been so jumpy. Raven began to cry as Prince was helping his son put his backpack on, a big-headed orange toothy dinosaur. "Aww, conejito, you look so handsome," she said palming her mouth.

"Alright, let me see," Prince said taking a step back as his smiley son turned to face him. "Daddy's boy looking sharp!"

"I look sharp!" Ace repeated, running to his reflection in the mirror on the back of his door. "I look sharp, Daddy, like you!"

"Mmhm." Prince was holding back his tears looking at his son pat his curls and fresh fade. It made him laugh. After missing so much of his son's life, all the milestones from that first laugh to crawling to walking to talking, Prince was finally standing there to witness one: the first day of school.

"It looks good on him," Prince said to Raven about the school uniform.

"See, I told you it would."

Prince wasn't happy about the uniform policy after dreaming of his son stepping in the classroom best dressed in a custom fit five days a week. But they had an entire school catalog of options and left room for a little individuality with shoes, ties and hair bows, as long as it was within color code.

This morning, Ace wore a navy-blue windbreaker with the Universal School of Minnesota's seal on his chest. Prince stopped the zipper right under the schoolboy's plaid bowtie. And on his little feet were a gift from Prince's shoemaker in California. The cognac-colored dress shoes didn't have a heel but they definitely had style.

"Come on! I want to go now!" Ace grabbed hands, had Raven's in his right and Prince's in his left. Once they reached the top of the stairs, he ran down ahead of them.

Prince drove and Raven sat in the passenger's seat, turning to the back the majority of the ride to talk up pre-kindergarten. The school was about 15 minutes from Galpin Blvd but it took them a little over 30 minutes to get to the parking lot thanks to school traffic.

Prince parked and a black SUV did so right beside him. The passenger window rolled down and Dylan, Prince's buddy and bodyguard, gave him a lazy salute. In the driver's seat was Duane. He gave the same greeting.

"I don't know why you told them to follow us," Prince said putting the car in park.

"Just in case," Raven said. "You don't know how these moms are. They might see you and go crazy."

"Oh please. This Eden Prairie. The most they gon' do is stare." He unbuckled himself.

"You sure you want to go inside?"

Prince didn't acknowledge the question. He stepped out and walked around the car. When he opened the back door, Ace was already bouncing in place. He jumped out and grabbed his dad's hand.

"You remember how to get to his classroom? 'Cause I don't."

"Yeah," Raven said, grabbing Ace's free hand. "Is Duane coming?"

"Baby." Prince looked at her, shaking his head at the question. "Just come on. Lead the way, Mommy."

She did so. The campus had three schools sitting on 60 acres. There was even a residence hall next to the high school to house the boarding students. Some were out-of-state, some from another country. USM was the most diverse school in Minnesota. And for Ace, the journey was all starting in the Lower School.

The first day of pre-k was last week Thursday and parents were encouraged to walk their kids into the classroom for that special first time. But since Ace missed it, his teacher Mrs. Granda called and let Prince know she for sure would love for him and Raven to still have their opportunity come Monday.