Crossroads

Introduction

India. That's my name. India Love Westbrook. I was 18 years old and a senior at Rosemount High in the City of Angels, Los Angeles. I lived with my mom and step-dad. My stepfather, John, was the founder of Elite Records; a multi-million dollar record label and my mother was a neurologist. I guess you could say I was well off. Despite all the luxury, there were still unfortunate circumstances in my life which left a void to fill. Firstly, my father, Carter Westbrook, died when I was 12 years old. I lost the first man I had ever known to love and had to force myself to adjust to living without him. Secondly, My ex-boyfriend, Daniel Simmons, moved away two years ago because his uncle was killed since he was somehow involved in gang rivalry and his family migrated to New Orleans in fear of their own lives. It felt like all the men in my life were being taken away from me but I had John to thank for stepping up trying his best to make sure I was happy. My father would have been pleased to know that someone cared for me just as much as he did. I couldn't be more grateful for him.

Among my peers, I went by India Love. I liked it because it sounded like the name of someone who was destined to be someone influential. That's exactly what I hoped to be. Everyone knew that my parents were financially stable so they all labeled me as "spoiled" or say that I "think I'm better than everybody". Which I completely disagreed with. Yes, I got anything I wanted. Yes, I was good at everything I put my mind to. Yes, I walked with grace and confidence. Yes, my good grades put me at the top of my class. But that didn't mean I thought less of anyone else.

People just expected girls like me to be stuck up and insanely mean. However, I was raised by a woman who instilled nothing but special qualities in me. After my father died, she was forced to take care of me on her own. I appreciated all that she has done for me. God, I love that woman to death. Seeing everything she went through and all the sacrifices she made, has shaped me into who I am today. A beautiful, strong, and kind young woman.

Now let's circle back to Daniel. We had what the adults called "puppy love". But to me it felt like much more than that. He was the first guy I ever crushed on, the first guy to ever make my cheeks blush as bright as a stop sign, the first guy to ever make my body tingle just by smiling at me. I was head over heels. Puppy love is temporary; not him. Therefore, my naive ass received a rude awakening. He broke up with me after his uncle's death because his family was moving away and he had no choice but to uproot all he'd known his entire life and leave. I was devastated. He promised that he would return when they felt as though everything was resolved. He gave me sweet gentle kisses and uttered how much he supposedly loved me and wanted to spend the rest of his life with me. Since the night he left I never heard from him again. I later realized that I shouldn't have been sitting by the phone every night expecting a call. My number never changed and he never reached out to me.

However, I never had to wonder if he was alive and well because he managed to use social media as a platform. He was responsible for many viral videos circling around my school. Everyone remembered him and liked to brag about how they knew the famous influencer because he used to attend the same school. Now imagine, what it felt like to just be blatantly abandoned and ignored. He supposedly cared about me so much but went on to live a whole new life. Yet, a part of me wished that he didn't forget about me and that he would live up to his promise of getting back with me. I already knew I was lying to myself and giving myself false hope. He surely could've reached out. So instead of breaking my own heart by dwelling on him, I shifted my attention to my studies. Eventually, someone worthy of my kind heart would come into my life. I just didn't care when.