4 Your Eyez Only

3. Memory Lane

Kaelyn Campbell

I woke up Saturday morning and took a shower, immediately getting dressed. I was putting on my perfume when the door bell rang. I let Simiya answer it, and I continued to do my makeup.

The door to my room opened and I assumed it was Elijah.

"There's this thing called knocking." I said as I turned around. I was shocked to see Keshion, Daniel, and some other boy.

"You thought we were someone else?" Keshion asked.

"Yeah. I thought you were my best friends." I told them, standing up. They followed me into the living room, where we all had a seat. The whole time Daniel gawked at me like a mermaid on land.

"So you go by Kaelyn?" He asked.

"Yes." I nodded. He couldn't seem to grasp the concept. I mean he was cute... he was fine, probably sculpted by the angels chisel by chisel, but I don't date drug dealers. I ain't trying to live a typical hood life. I'm trying to make it out. I don't want my kids to struggle at all.

"You know you're quitting today right?" Keshion told me in question form.

"You know I got bills right?" I asked.

"You know I got you right?" He replied.

"You know I don't want your drug money right?" I said.

"You know stripper money and drug money go hand in hand, both fast, both tax free." He said.

"You know-"

"Daddy's here." Elijah said, walking through the front door with Jordan right behind him. Jordan pushed him.

"Nigga you lame as hell for that." Jordan said. They both paused when they saw me and the boys. Keshion was glaring at me, but he stopped to see those two.

"Keshion those are my best friends Jordan and Elijah. Jordan and Elijah you might remember Keshion." I said.

They walked over and shook Keshion's hand.

"I almost got mad, walking in here seeing my girl surrounded by niggas." Elijah jokes. They laughed.

"You're not my nigga." I told him.

"But you're my girl." He shrugged.

"This your boyfriend or not?" Keshion asked.

"Nah man. I just like playing with her like that." Elijah laughed, answering for me. Keshion looked at me for a second before nodding.

"How about we all go grab something to eat." He offered.

We got up.

--

"I got somewhere I wanna take you." Keshion said.

"Where?" I asked.

"Home." He said.

I shook my head, "I ain't tryna go back there." I stated.

He shrugged, "I'm taking you there. What you done moved to buckhead now you think you too good to visit your roots?" He asked.

"No. I just remembered seeing Dad shot point blank in the middle of the street while I swung on the porch swing. I ain't tryna visit that memory." I stated. Everyone had gotten quiet then.

"There's better memories to go there for." Keshion said.

"Yeah! Like mom kicking me down the stairs when I refused to tell her where I hid my piggy bank because I knew she'd use the money to buy crack?" I asked. Tears welled up in my eyes. He sat there looking at me with a hard expression.

"I mean like us playing one on one basketball in the backyard and me letting you pretend that we were playing for my heart." He said. I smiled at that memory.

"I still love Love and Basketball." I said.

"Memories like Dad free style rapping to Christmas song instrumentals every year before he let us open our Christmas Eve gift." Keshion said. The tears fell from my eyes then.

"I miss him so much." I mumbled. Keshion pulled me into a hug, stroking my hair. I cried into his shirt.

"I miss him too lil sis. That's why we need to go back. We need closure. I've paid the bills on the house every month since they took us away, but I refused to visit without you." He told me.

"Boyyy, let me find out you out here big balling." I said. He laughed, pulling a stack out of- I'm not even sure where. He placed it to his ear.

"Hello. Yeah. Tell my sister who I am. She don't know what the fuck going on." Keshion said to his stack. I laughed.

"Let's go before I change my mind." I told him.
He got up, and we all followed him to the register.

I took a deep breath as I climbed in the car. It's time to go down memory lane: the good, the bad, and the ugly... all of the memories that made me who I am. I've been hiding long enough.