The Choice ✔︎ Blake Griffin

31✔︎ Nobody's Perfect

I dedicate this chapter to odellsprincess and Queen-of-Wakanda for all of your votes for this story! I can't thank y'all enough! 😊😍❤

Two Weeks Later

Jubilee

Despite the multiple arguments Blake and I have had about the necessity of a security guard, Blake was both obstinate and unapologetic. I normally win our arguments, but Blake had been on his A-game with his "it's my job to protect you, and this is not up for vote," speech. I honestly hated having someone following me around, but I was doing it for Blake. I wanted him to feel secure about my safety and not be worried about me while he had finally been cleared to rehab in order to get back on the court. Plus, in my attempts to get Michael to open up I had learned a lot about him and why he was working as a security guard, causing me to develop quite the soft spot for him, which I think Blake knew would happen all along.

I rushed out of Blake's home with a bag of assorted gifts for Michael, who I had gotten much closer to than I would've liked in the past two weeks. I truly felt bad for the guy who had to sit through eight to ten-hour school days and witness the foolishness of high school students. So, being the huge Clippers fan that he is, I had Blake get him some gear, and I baked him some brownies and made him a batch of lemonade. Hell, I wanted to get him an iPad, so he could at least watch Hulu and Netflix during all his free time, but Blake said he'd just be paying him to relax instead of actually be my guard, which I had to admit was true.

At 6'3", 240 lbs., Michael McClean was going to be the next big linebacker at USC and lead the defense in the school's comeback to being a relevant CFB team again. He verbally committed during the winter of his junior year, but just a couple months later got caught up in a convenient store robbery he was dragged into by his buddies that led to a couple years behind bars and a plethora of community service hours he was still earning.

Since he never entered the store and only drove the getaway car, the state had offered him immunity if he would just tell them who orchestrated everything and who stole what, but growing up in the city and culture of Compton, Michael refused to be a snitch and stood by his friends who he considered his brothers. And this admirable loyalty unfortunately led to the loss of his full ride to college, as well as causing him to miss out on his last year and a half of high school. And of course the prison he was assigned to did not have a GED program available.

I couldn't help myself after hearing his story, and was immediately sold on taking him under my wing. My teacher instincts had kicked in, and I didn't care what anyone else thought or what Michael said, he was going to finish high school and go to college if I had anything to do with it.

"Aw, thank you, Ms. Carlisle, you really didn't have to do this," Michael said in response to receiving the gift bag.

"I know, but I wanted to, Michael. I really appreciate you doing this really boring work of following me around all day..." I said with a smile and roll of my eyes.

Michael chuckled, "I mean, I am getting paid by your boyfriend, so it's not like this is pure charity or anything..."

I laughed along with him, "Yea, yea, but you know my offer still stands. You should be in school, and I can help you get there if you'd just let me. You're only 19, Michael, it's not too late to get a diploma and go to college!"

Michael looked away, scratching the back of his neck nervously for a minute before turning back to me with a weak smile, "Yea, alright, Ms. Carlisle. I hear you."

"Just think about it!" I pushed before jogging back in the house in hopes of no one noticing my short absence.

I said a little prayer for Michael's mind to be changed because I couldn't let him walk out of my life without a plan for getting out of his current line of work and into something that would be more fulfilling for him. And I was sincerely hoping that he wouldn't be in my life much longer, at least as a bodyguard anyway. He was just way too young and way too smart to end up doing this for the rest of his life.