The Black Girl

twenty seven

I always felt like Jade was my mum's favourite child, with her stupid loudmouth and open opinion, she always said what was on her mind and how she truly felt unlike me and the Secret Life of the American Teenager  life I was living.

If she kissed someone she'd fess up, even though she was only fourteen and probably shouldn't have, she would confess and my mum wouldn't scold her because she was happy she told the truth.

There was trust.

I wasn't as open, maybe it was just my zodiac sign, Gemini, or maybe I was just like that.

But because of that my mum always stood up for her against me, even when she was in the wrong.

When I wake up the next morning on Saturday, I hear laughter flooding into my room from the living room. My door is wide open probably because someone tried to wake me but failed miserably, and the winter draft that's coming in annoys me so I pull my duvet further over my head.

I hear a loud manly chuckle, that sounds so familiar but I ignore, sinking my face further into my pillow.

Dad? Dad!

I throw my duvet off and my robe on and bolt down the stairs, then I go back up to get my glasses seeing as I almost trip fall down three stairs from my early morning double vision.

"Dad, I didn't know you were coming," I hug him pushing my four year old sister, Sari, off his lap which earns me a dirty look from my mum.

"I tried waking you up, but you were basically dead, and your mum told me you went from prom or something last night, so I just left you," He says in our Nigerian language, Yoruba and stands up to hug me, how are you? He asks.

I reply telling him I'm fine, while Jade leans of the island in the kitchen asking him what he wants to eat.

My dad doesn't say much, seeing as he's tired and cold, so I help him carry his bag and he goes upstairs for a nap.

Kim texts me asking me to meet her at Gabi's but I have no clue where her house is.

We'll come pick you up, Kim's text reads and I go up to get ready.

I ask my mum's permission, seeing how the house is quiet and everyone is taking a nap so I won't be needed to make a meal.

I take a short shower and the water is not hot enough to remove the burning feeling from my eyes due to lack of sleep but I just rub my eyes, I'll sleep later on, I tell myself.

I wear a black long sleeve sweater and decide to wear sweatpants instead of my usual black jeans.

When Kim arrives she texts me and I tell her to give me five more minutes because I'm hungry, so I go downstairs and like a horse, shove five spoons of cereal in my mouth per second.