Chapter 4

“So class, we will be reading The Norton Anthology of African American Literature. Now, I read this with my college students during the summer so this read will definitely prepare you for your upcoming semesters” Mr. Reyes announced, raising the identical book that was on each of the students desks.

“This book, shares stories that are both non-fiction and fiction, however it dives deep into the struggles of African Americans during slavery and post slavery. Any questions?”

He looked around the room for a hand, and without anyone with a question he continued on. Sasha began to jot down the little things he said about the book, as she always was a good note taker and didn’t want to miss anything.

“He didn’t even write anything yet” Lux giggled.

“I know, but that’s the material you want to get” Sasha said dropping a gem.

Lux shrugged, and decided to write down whatever Sasha had on her paper.

“So, what are you doing after school?”

Sasha went to answer, however Mr. Reyes turned his back from the board and the two quickly looked down to their papers.

“Pssttt” Zay called from across the room.

They looked over, and he threw a piece of paper their way. Lux unfolded the note, and her and Sasha read it together.

“You wanna go?” Lux asked, referring to the invite to the party later that night.

“I can’t” Sasha whispered, “I already got in trouble for coming in late yesterday”

She didn’t know why she admitted that, however it was the truth.

“So did I, but so what?” Lux smiled.

Sasha smiled back, “Well I~”

“Ms. Swedenburg” Mr. Reyes interrupted the two, “Can you tell me, what do you know about W.E.B DuBois”

“Umm…DuBois believed in African Americans empowering themselves through different forms of education. So they could become apart of society for being just as smart as white people” she shrugged.

Mr. Reyes smirked, and without a reply he turned back to the board.

“So, you will choose a partner” he started, “Pick a chapter out of the book, and write a report on it.
Eight pages, double spaced, along with a powerpoint that you will also present during midterms which will count for half of your grade. So, take it seriously”

Chatter began to erupt from the class, as people didn’t want to waste time soliciting partners.

“Aye Lux, you want to be my partner?” Zay asked, strolling over to her desk.

“No, I’m Sasha’s partner” she responded, and Sasha creased her forehead however she didn’t reject.

“Oh” he said letting out a slightly frustrated sigh, “Well, ya’ll sliding to the party tonight?”

Before she could respond, the teacher called for everyone to return to their desks. Zay turned back to his, deciding to wait until the end of class to finish his conversation.

Sasha paid attention for the rest of the class, however she couldn’t help but glance up at the clock every few seconds in anxiousness. The results for those who made the team would be posted on the gym doors, and she couldn’t wait to bolt out to see them.

“Alright, see you guys Monday. And start your projects, you don’t want to wait until the last minute” The teacher shouted out after his students just as the bell rung.

The girls simultaneously grabbed their bags, preparing to head out.

“Sasha, can I speak with you?”

Sasha stopped in her tracks, and twisted her mouth. She glanced at her watch, and reluctantly gave the teacher her time.

“You’re smart Sasha, but I see you getting distracted back there. Why don’t you move to the front?” Mr. Reyes insisted.

Sasha was one of the only students to participate within the two days, and she seemed to actually listen when he talked. However he could tell that her and Lux were forming a close bond, as they spent their time whispering back and forth.

“I’m okay where I am” Sasha nodded, not exactly wanting to be up front and center.

“Alright, just thought I’d ask. Have a good day”

Sasha waved, and dashed out of the store before he could keep her any longer.

“What did he say?” Lux asked, following behind her as she made a beeline to the gym.

“Nothing important, I gotta go” she said now beginning to sprint, “I’ll text you”

At the moment she didn’t have time to be held up by Lux, too busy focusing on one thing and one thing only. She tried her best to knock anyone over as she left her new friend in the distance. She turned the corner sharply, and grew more nervous the moment she spotted everyone crowding around the gym door, from both the girls and guys tryouts.

She watched as some people turned away disappointed, while others smiled in satisfaction after finding their names on the list.

“Yeahhh boy, another year breaking these niggas ankles!” Reef boasted, exchanging dap with Zay and the others who made the boys team.

“Ayyy Sasha, did you make it?” Josh asked, seeing her approach the crowd.

“I don’t know, I didn’t see yet” she said trying to look over the group of people.

Josh moved through, making a path causing her to smile shyly.

She hated that she was small, however that never deterred her especially on the court. She moved through, and her heart dropped the moment she saw her name.

“I made it” she said out loud.

“Congrats girl, try not to get squished” one of the taller girls laughed and her friends tittered behind her. She made sure to brush past Sasha, almost knocking her down.

“Don’t worry about her, she hates when new girls make the team” Zay said, putting his arm around Sasha.

“It’s cool” Sasha said shaking off the situation, “I’m not worried about her. I made the team”

“Exactly, what position do you play?” Josh asked.

“Point guard”

“Nice, so you and Lux coming to the party tonight or what?” Zay asked.

The group began to walk into the gym where the coaches were giving out parent slips for those who were under eighteen, which was a large amount of them.

“I can’t, but maybe Lux will” Sasha shrugged.

“You know she’s not going to go without you, so you’d be doing me a solid if you came” Zay tried to convince her.

He only knew the girls for two days, but he was well aware that girls usually didn’t do things without each other. And while Sasha was definitely not like normal girls, Lux seemed to be quite fond of her. Zay figured he’d use Sasha as the middle man, as just like the other young boys in the school he wanted to get close to the Lux Connolly.

“I’ll see” Sasha brushed him off.

She was frankly getting annoyed with everyone asking her to deliver Lux to them, first her brother now Zay.

“Hey, Swedenburg” Coach Burton greeted her as she walked up, “Glad you made it”

“Of course, wouldn’t miss it for the world” Sasha beamed.

He handed her the slip, and she held it in her hand like a golden ticket.

“Bring it back on Monday, first practice after school. Physical due on friday”

She nodded, and folded the paper. At that moment nothing in her life could compete to that, and she spent the rest of her day on a high. She even forgot about her parents, and the fact that they would rather die than to give her anything in life to be happy about. Still, she didn’t let that bring her down as she spent the rest of the school day in a good mood.

🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀🏀

“So, did you do what I asked?”

Sasha was on her way home when she heard her brother’s voice from behind her. Just like her dad demanded, she was heading straight home, making sure to tell Lux she couldn’t hang out after school.

“Do what?” Sasha asked, rolling her eyes into her head.

“You know what, did you get Lux’s number or do I have to tell mom and dad about a certain someone playing basketball?” Quan smirked.

“I told you, I don’t have her number” she lied, “and besides, I didn’t make the team” she lied again.

Quan creased his brows, “You didn’t make the team?”

“Nope” she said keeping up her pace.

She wouldn’t let Quan ruin it for her, even if she didn’t exactly know how she was going to go about her lie. Her and Quan were in the same school, as well as Ty, so it was inevitable to hide the truth.

Still, she figured she would think of that later. Slightly disappointed, Quan followed behind her as they made their way home. Sasha smirked to herself, happy that she was able to get away with her lie for the time being. When she made it home, she didn’t bother to greet her parents, instead hurrying upstairs to her room and locking herself in. She pulled out her laptop, and immediately video chatted her best friend from home.

“What up Sash” Chris smiled, his dreads hanging in his face as always.

“Guess what” Sasha grinned, pulling the paper out of her bag.

“Let me guess, you made the team” Chris said sarcastically.

“Seriously?” Sasha raised one brow, “How did you know?”

Chris gave her a knowing look, “You always make the team Sasha, every year. You just never play”

“Well this year is different, I’m going to play” she declared.

Frustrated, she began to put her poofy hair in a ponytail. Chris watched as she removed her shirt, showing the wife beater she wore underneath. He smiled to himself, however he knew he would never be able to have Sasha the way he wanted to. After knowing her since ninth grade, Chris definitely formed a crush on her over time.

However it was clear that Sasha wasn’t the dating type, and while some people labeled her as ‘gay’ due to her boyish ways, Chris knew she just didn’t have a dating bone in her body, leaving her to hold no attraction to either girls or boys. Sasha was too caught up in two things, school and basketball. She never even thought about dating, and that was what killed Chris because she was the prettiest girl he’d ever laid his eyes on.

“What?” She laughed, catching his glare.

“Nothing” he coughed, jumping out of it, “So, what are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. Practice is on Monday, what do you think I should do?”

“Sign it” Chris laughed, shrugging.

Sasha looked at the paper, and wondered why didn’t she just think of that. Truth be told she hated doing anything sneaky, because she always got caught eventually. If her parents didn’t find out on their own, her brothers would be sure to tell if they couldn’t blackmail her successfully.

Sasha pulled out a pen from her bookbag, and took a deep breath as she sat the paper down on her dresser.

“Sign it, sign it, sign it” Chris cheered her on and she giggled.

She chose to sign her moms name, and was happy that she actually had good penmanship and could forge it beautifully. She smiled at it in satisfaction, and was suddenly startled by a knock at the door.

“Gotta go” she whispered, turning towards her laptop.

Chris gave her a playful salute, and the call ended just in time.

“Get ready for dinner, we’re eating early tonight. Me and your mother is going to the movies” her father said once she opened it.

“Okay” she nodded.

She rolled her eyes when he turned away, but smiled to herself when she thought about the sheet that she laid onto her bed. Without closing her door, she headed into the bathroom to take a quick shower. As always, she let the water run over her as she let the day wash off. Her cheeks were hurting because she couldn’t stop thinking about Monday, and even told herself she would step out to practice once her parents were gone.

Once she was done, she stepped out of the shower and wrapped the towel around her. She headed to her room, only to see the door cracked open.

“What is this?” Her father asked, the permission slip in his hand.

Sasha didn’t respond, just let the water awkwardly drip onto the wooden floor.

“You don’t hear me?” He asked, his voice louder, “Your mother and I told you, no basketball. This is your last year, and you need to focus on your studies”

“I am focusing on my studies dad, you’re acting like basketball will ruin that. It’s honestly not as deep as you guys are making it” she laughed to herself.

“You don’t tell me what’s too deep, you forging your mother’s signature is deep” Joseph barked and Sasha jumped at his voice. She knew this was coming, and that was exactly why she never did anything sneaky. Instead of listening, she totally blocked him out and couldn’t even repeat back what he was saying if she wanted to.

That sent him over the edge, and he ripped the paper in two, causing her shoulders to drop. He let the shreds fall to the grown, and she wanted to burst out in tears. Instead she slammed her door behind him, next locking it. She gathered the shreds together and placed them on her desk, only to stare at them in anger. She brushed them off seconds later, knowing there would be no reconstructing the paper.

Hearing her phone began to ring, she glanced over at it to see Lux calling.

“Hey” she answered, her tone defeated as she sat down onto her bed.

“Heyyy, are you okay?” She asked, hearing the slight sadness.

“Yeah, I’m cool. What’s up?”

“So, did you decide on the party. It’s at Zay’s, and I think it’ll be fun. What do you say?”

Sasha thought back on it, and decided why not. She hated everything about being home, and if she couldn’t do the one thing that she loved she wouldn’t do anything her parents wanted her to do.

“Sure” she nodded, “What time does it start?”

“Nine, so you want to meet me by dough boys?” Lux asked, referring to the popular pizza spot, “Say, 8:30?”

“Yeah, that’s cool”

“Okay, see you soon”

The two disconnect their call, and Sasha found a smile through the tears she actually managed to shed although she didn’t want to. Shaking them off, she jumped up and began to search through her closet for something to wear. Tonight, she would have a good time and be a real teenager. It was either now or never, and frankly, she didn’t have anything to lose.