Freedom Train

February 11, 1963

February 11, 1963

Dr. Gill had set them up with a time to call their families. Annabeth briefly debated on calling her Mama but went for Sandy instead. Luckily, she reached her friend at home on her first try. Her timing was perfect as Annabeth's brother and Lizzie were also at Sandy's house and able to speak with her.

Annabeth talked to Sandy first. She asked a million questions about Baltimore and about the upcoming protest. Annabeth kept her answers short and sweet, so grateful to hear a familiar voice that she couldn't stand the idea of being the one to do all the talking.

That wasn't a problem for Lizzie, however, as she babbled on and on about this boy, Timmy, that she was seeing. She also managed to nag Annabeth with questions about Terry, all within the matter of no more than three minutes.

Talking to Ronny was probably the hardest for Annabeth. She still thought about what he had done for her the day that her parents found out about Terry. It surprised her and made her proud of her baby brother at the same time. Technically, though, she supposed Ronny wasn't a baby anymore.

"How's Mama?" Annabeth asked nervously, biting on the ridge of her thumb nail and trying to avoid the daggering stares from Maude and Christine as they waited for their turn on the phone.

"Ah, hell, A.B. She's a wreck, if I'm being truthful. She's hiding bottles of vodka under the sink, knitting in silence for hours on end. It's almost unbearable."

"Ronny, she was doing those things before I left," Annabeth said with a small smile.

"Oh yeah. Then I guess all is well," he laughed.

"I'm sorry, Ronny. I really am. I can only imagine how hard it has been for you."

"Don't sweat it, Sis. I get why you did what you did, even if I wish that maybe you would've done it all a little differently."

"It's too late now, little brother."

"Truer words..."

"And Daddy?" Annabeth asked with a guttural hesitation.

"Same old hard ass he's always been. He's been working me extra hard these last few days, thanks to you. But I ain't never been in better shape in my life," he laughed. "And I've taken to spending some time with your friends lately- Hope you don't mind."

"I was wonderin' about that," Annabeth smiled. "How did all this come about?"

"Well, I was having a hard day after you left and the girls swung by and drug me out for milkshakes- That they made me buy, by the way," he called toward Annabeth's friends, "And I don't know. They're not as skeezy as I always assumed they were."

He laughed and despite the way Annabeth was sure their parents made him feel at home, it warmed her heart to know that her girls were there to make it all a little bit easier on him.

"I always tried to tell you," Annabeth laughed with him.

There was a tap on her shoulder. Annabeth looked back at Maude and Christine, whose previous patience was running thin.

"I have to go," Annabeth told him. "Tell the girls that I'll be calling soon."

"I will. Be safe, Annabeth. We're rooting for you."

"Thanks, Ronny."

*~*~*

"Sasha," Terry replied to his little sisters 'Hello.'

"Hey, Terry," Sasha replied, sounding occupied.

"Is Mama home?"

"Nope."

"Daddy?"

"Nope."

"Well, how are you then?" Terry asked on an exasperated sigh.

"I'm kind of busy, Terry," she answered, even though on the other end of the line his little sister was doing nothing but staring at the television set.

"Can you tell Mama I called?"

"Sure thing," Sasha replied, before she reached over and hung up the phone.

Terry set the phone back on the receiver and fell back against the couch he was sitting on. The rest of the boys were in the kitchen playing with a deck of cards. With Dr. Wallace's okay, Terry thought it would be a good time to check in with his family. Apparently, he had been mistaken.

It was clear that his parents and siblings were still upset with him. His Mama had behaved herself with Annabeth, but Terry knew it was an act. He could spot the difference between a fake and a real smile on his Mama's face from a mile away. He appreciated the fact that she had played nice, but he hadn't been able to get her on the phone since.

Hell, he hadn't spoken to his Daddy or his brother since the night Jamal outed his relationship with Annabeth. He would never forget the disappointed look in his father's eyes, a look he had never seen from him personally but had witnessed a thousand times regarding his older brother, Jackson. The same son who was murdered because there were rumors that he was dating a white woman.

"I can't believe you would make the same mistakes he made," his father said to him that night. "I can't believe that you would put yourself in that situation after all of the hurt your brother's actions brought unto our family. You're a lot of things, son, but I never thought you were a selfish man."

Those were the last words Christopher spoke to him before he excused himself from the situation and closed himself in his bedroom. Athena had gone to speak with him shortly thereafter, and his siblings shot him daggered stares for the rest of the night.

Terry had wanted to talk with his father before they left for Baltimore, but Christopher seemed to never be around when Terry was. They had always had such a close relationship and it was killing him to believe that his father wanted nothing to do with him over something as important to Terry as the woman he loved.

*~*~*

"This has to be weird, huh?" Henry asked Bobby as he snuck up behind him on Dr. Wallace's porch that night.

"What?"

"Well, not only are you ,Brad and Goldilocks the only scoops of vanilla in this massive chocolate sundae, but you also got to watch said Goldilocks making googly eyes at my best friend."

Bobby laughed and shoved his hands in his pockets.

"I guess it keeps shit interesting," Bobby joked.

"You're a cool cat, Bobbo," Henry laughed, smacking him lightly on the back. "I don't know if I'd be so cool headed in the same situation."

Bobby shrugged.

"I guess I just get it," he replied.

"Get what?"

"I get why he loves her."

"That makes one of us," Henry laughed as the front door opened and Terry walked out to join the men in the cool night air.

"What's so funny?" Terry asked with a half-smile.

"You boy's choice of women," Henry laughed, to no one's amusement but his own.