Kiki's p.o.v
"Rose Celia Chalcedony Minaj! I'm gonna tell you a story! And it ain't about the civil rights movement this time!" "Ok Grandma, tell it." "So, this was in 1964. I was currently living in Birmingham, Alabama, at the time. I worked for a white lady named Aibileen. She was good to me, but not to my mama. I was in charge of cleaning her bathroom. Well, the floor of her bathtub. I used a watermelon scented cleaner, a scrub brush, and a sponge to clean. Any questions so far?" "You said watermelon wrong. It's watermelone." "Let me continue. I was also in charge of cleaning her clothes. I had to steam her shirts, which means I put them in steamy water and dried them. I used apple scented soap and rubbing alcohol to get it clean enough. That lady had standards. Great standards. I had permission to use her bathroom, not a separate one like my mama, I had permission to eat with her and her husband, I got to use her tanning lotion on my hands for a while until she caught me using it outside with my friend. I got hit with a hot rag that day." I stopped for a second. "What day was that Grandma?" "It was November 13, 1964. On a Friday." "Wow." "Then the Montgomery Bus Boycott happened. I was one of the many ladies who walked everywhere to end segregation on buses. Let me tell you something, I met Ella Baker, Martin Luther King, Ray Charles, and Rosa Parks. All very nice people." I grabbed a picture from 1964. "Who's that?" Rose asked. "Goin' from left to right. Ella Baker, me, Ray Charles, Martin Luther King, and Rosa Parks." "Didn't Rosa Parks pass when I was 1?" "Yes child, she did. It was a sad day for me and the rest of the world." I grabbed a tissue to prevent myself from crying. "She was a great person. She's the reason why you and that kid Akyura can sit on a bus together in the same seat." "I always took that for granted. Thanks Grandma." "You're welcome child."
[AUTHOR'S NOTE: This was a harder chapter to write for a reason. The reason is because I almost cried writing this chapter when I talked about Miss Parks and Miss Baker. I did Miss Baker for a civil rights project and I know a lot about her as a person.]
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FanfictionThis is one of the ideas I got from the book, The Help. This fanfiction is about Rose (from the other novel, if anyone's still into it) , and her grandmother and how it was to be a colored maid in the year 1964 in Birmingham, Alabama.
