New Native Land (The Next Step) (Book II)

Chapter 1 (Welcome Back)

(Brooklyn 1991)

I was at JFK, I saw my dad and Trey and started walking towards them with Malcolm and Cecil. It was time for me to come back to the city because school was starting again in a couple of days. My dad reached out his arms and I hugged him and he hugged me back. "Oh, I missed you! Christmas wasn't the same without you." My dad said to me and I smiled. "Same." I told him and he smiled at me. "Come on, let me get you home." He sounded happy to say that to me and I nodded.

"Y'all have a good time?" Trey asked and I nodded. "Yeah, I got to see my friends and I got to eat grandma's cooking and mom's cooking too. And I got to go to all the dope Houston parties. It was fun." I said to Trey and he smiled "Sounds like I missed out." He said and I nodded "Yeah, you should've came." I agreed he grabbed me and pulled me close and took my luggage. "Next time." And I nodded in agreement.

When I got home I immediately checked my voice mail, because I only talked to my school crew when I was in Houston, no one else. "Hey, this is Chuck, Drew let slip that you went back home, so I hope you get this message when you come back and I hope you enjoyed yourself and you smile a lot and made great memories. See you at school." I smiled and I waited for the next one to play "Man, yo country ass really did go back to Texas." Caz said and I laughed at his message.

My last message started but no one said anything, and I thought it was a blank message but they finally spoke up "...I messed up." Was all I heard and they hung up. I knew that was Ahm, I just sighed at the message and I shook my head. He did mess up, and what was I supposed to do forgive him off the bat? Why should I? That was incredibly rude and mean. Chuck was right about some things about him and I needed to see some change if this was so work because I'm very anti-Ahmed right now.

I got a call on my phone and I was choosing whether to answer or not, but I did. "Hello?"

"Yo she's back!"

Draya exclaimed and I laughed at her.

"Did you bring me back something?"

She asked me and I giggled again.

"Yeah. I got you the pink cowboy hat you asked for."

I told her and she squealed with excitement.

"I'll come over later to get it and you can tell me all about that Texas babe you had."

"He's not a Texas babe. He's an ex-boyfriend, and nothing happened between us."

"Yeah, right. Old flames meeting up again after so much time apart and you just got into a bad argument with your boyfriend? There was some heat, and I want details!"

I smiled at her, she's so funny.

"But for real, I'm glad you came back. I was scared you might've stayed down there."

"I should've huh?"

"Hell nah! What you just gone leave me? After all the time we spent together? I thought you loved me? I thought we agreed to marry one another!"

I laughed at her.

"You're right, you're right, I'm sorry."

"But, I'll see you in a bit. I gotta tell you the juicy gossip from school."

"Oh bet! I am so ready for that!"

We hung up and I unpacked my clothes, better to do it now than later. I already washed the dirty clothes at my Uncle's so laundry didn't have to be done and that was blessing.

My dad walked up to my room and had a letter in his hand and some boxes. "Your Christmas presents." He said to be and I took them and opened them. He got me some shoes, and clothes and jewelry, the usual. "Once again you've outdone yourself!" I said to my dad and he smiled.

"A letter came in for you, from a medical office." He said to me and I remembered I took the exam for my heart and I took the letter and opened it. I read through the exam and tried to find the result. I saw it and it said that I had Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia. I twisted my mouth and breathed out loud "What does it say?" He asked concern.

"I have Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia." I told him and he sighed. "That's what your grandad had." He said sadly and I nodded because I knew that. I didn't know that genetics could play a role in this, after all it's a new science and I didn't know much about it yet. I put the paper down and said "So what now?" My dad smiled and said "No worries, your grandad lived a long life with it and without medicine. You can live longer with the medicine." He told me and I nodded.

"Alright." Was all I said and he hugged me and I hugged him back. "Don't worry Reag, you'll be alright." He told me and something told me to believe him. This next part in my life was going to be super hard, but I was prepared for it, whatever the cost, I couldn't let this disease get to me, and stop me from anything. It was just another mountain to climb and climbing mountains is something that I can do.