FicWad

"Danny shot me a death glare. I backed away because it was the logical thing to do. If I had gone any closer he probably would've killed me. When we left his house I told Kimberly that I had never seen him so furious before. She said that we had better strap ourselves in because it wasn't going to be the last time we see it. After I parted ways with Kimberly I walked down the sidewalk leading to my house. I wondered for a while if Danny would've hit me if I had gotten any closer. I mean I am one of the sweetest people you could ever meet. But I often wondered if I was too sweet too others. When I got home I put my key in the door and walked inside. Everything was how I left it. I went to my room and sat down at my desk". I was contemplating if should go around Danny for a while. He was known to be angry for as long as week. But it wasn't like Kimberly said anything out of the way. I started crying and began assuming the worst case scenario. After sitting at home for thirty minutes I decided to visit Alvin."

"When I got there his mother was much better than yesterday. She offered me some teacakes and lemon tea. I accepted and she told me Alvin had awoken for a few minutes but the pain caused him to go back to sleep. I felt so bad for him. He was sick and here Danny was being a jerk and not even coming to visit. I guess not visiting was his way of not worrying. After I finished my snack I headed to his room. I saw flowers and a teddy bear. When I got to his bed I saw it was from his paternal grandparents. The similarities of our names made me feel normal because no one I knew had a name such as mine. I sat down next to his bed and took his hand."I began crying again and I told Alvin what happened. Although Danny didn't hit me I had a strong feeling he would have and Kimberly would've jumped on him. I told him what we talked about and how I scared I was in the aftermath."

"I held onto his hand for dear life as I described how his face looked. I soon ended the conversation and said that he needed to come back. I missed his jokes, sarcasm and most of all his smile. I stayed with him for four hours and left around five. I bid his mother goodnight and headed home." When I returned home I heated up a meal I prepared before I left and ate. I ate quickly and went upstairs to my bedroom. I grabbed some pajama's and went to take a bath. After I finished I came out and got dressed for bed."When I got to bed I laid down and closed my eyes. I fell into a much needed slumber. I dreamed about going to Danny's house alone. It was a cold November night and I had dressed in a beige sable coat with a furry buret. Alvin was out of town with his family and Kimberly was busy helping her mother decorate their house for a visitor. I was all alone walking to Danny's house. When I arrived I rung the doorbell. He looked through the peephole and asked who it was. I answered Deena and he opened the door."

"When I walked inside everything seemed normal. I walked to the livingroom and sat down on the couch. He told me there was soda and water in the refrigerator if I wanted any. I told him no thank you. The television wasn't on and he walked to his bedroom. I went to the bathroom down the hall. When I returned I saw he was sitting on the couch looking at television. He didn't say anything when I sat down next to him. There was some game show on. We just sat in silence the entire time. I looked at him and asked if he spoke with Kimberly or Alvin lately. He said no. He never took his eyes away from the television. I asked if he and his mother had patched things up. Instantly the atmosphere around us changed. Danny stood up and looked at me. He asked me why I would ask him that. Before I could form an answer he punched me to the ground. When I fell to the ground he straddled me and began hitting me in my face. I woke up screaming and drenched in sweat. I looked around in fear."

"When I felt safe enough I laid back down and went to sleep. The next day at breakfast my parents didn't notice the discoloration on my face. They just conversed with each other while my father read his morning paper. After breakfast I washed my dishes and headed to Kimberly's house. When I got there Kimberly was standing on the porch in a jersey, jeans and go go boots. She greeted me happily as she walked downstairs. I greeted her and she placed her hand on my forehead and asked if I was feeling okay. I told her I wasn't feeling too right and she asked me why. I told her about my nightmare with Danny. She said that Danny had a temper and that although they exchanged blows he wouldn't just beat on a female for asking a simple question. I wanted to believe Kimberly but my nightmare made it hard to. We walked to Alvin's to check on him. His fever had broken but his strep throat was still in full swing. His mother said she had given him some antibiotics an hour before we arrived and we went upstairs to see him."

"He was sound asleep. We did our usual routine and held his hands. We talked about what our plans for the day were going to be and some girly stuff. We stayed with Alvin for two hours. Before we left we kissed his forehead and headed downstairs and bid his mother farewell. We walked to Danny's house to see if he was home. He looked through the peephole and asked who it was. When I told him it was Kimberly and I he opened the door and let us in. We walked to the diningroom and sat down at the table. Danny asked us if we had any new material. We said no but we were in the works of a few songs. He said good and informed us that he had been working on a few songs himself. We sat around for an hour talking about random things like songs who we felt were promising stars. We then walked out back and began rehearsing. We rehearsed Danny's song Down Spiral.He played it in the low E major to accommodate my voice."

"We sang in open harmony. Kimberly sang lead while Danny, Alvin and I sang background vocals. This particular song was new for us. It was melancholy and not the usual dark toned stuff Danny wrote. It described a few hells Danny endured before meeting us. It was one of the few songs I wish we would've recorded. It was 1965 for Pete's sake, folk was out and rock and roll was in. We weren't famous but we sure sang like we were. We wanted to touch millions of lives with our music and felt our harmonies would do that whether it was knowingly or unknowingly. We sang a song written by Kimberly called Psychedelic Firefly. It described our individual psychedelic experience. It was recent but it was the perfect song to write for an experience. I also loved the song title. As we harmonized I was singing higher than I usually did. When we finished both Danny and Kimberly looked at me weirdly. I looked at them with curious looks and asked them if I did something wrong."

"They shook their heads no and Kimberly said she never heard me sound so hyped into a song before. I told them I liked the way Danny composed the music and that I felt the lyrics despite not remembering the event. We spent the next hour singing and we did take after take trying to reach Danny's perfection. That day I felt it was completely worth it because hearing how the music corresponded the lyrics were pure gold. We left Danny's house around three forty-five and walked to the hair salon. When we got there was a beautician I liked named Javier Drayton. He was a Latino of El Salvadorian decent. He was really inclined to the sixties and was keen on loved doing bumped flipped out hair. Kimberly liked a woman called Dakota Chaney who specialized in straightening and dying hair. We were there for three hours. When we finished they wrapped our hair. We walked home and realized it was far too late to see Alvin."

"Kimberly and I parted ways at my street and I walked down the sidewalk leading to my house. When I arrived home I saw my aunt Victoria sitting on the couch. She noticed me and gave me a hug. I hugged her back and asked her how she was doing. She said she was okay and asked what I did to my hair. I patted it slightly and told her Kimberly and I went to the hair salon. She then asked how my mother felt about and I said dejectedly that she didn't even care. Aunt Victoria then made a sad face and shook her head. She told me when she was growing up that if they even looked like they'd done something to their hair their parents would've beaten the living daylights out of them. I said that I guess my mother would let me do whatever I wanted even if killed me because she didn't want children. My aunt Victoria hugged me and told me that my mother wasn't the motherly type and it showed."

"She also said that my father wasn't any better. She said that when I was a baby I stayed with her for several months before my mother came and took me back. She said she thought it was dumb because she despised me so much she couldn't even look at me when I was born. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I wanted to tell my mother about herself but I knew I didn't have the courage to. I spent the rest of the day talking with my aunt until she left. When she was gone I went upstairs to my bathroom and took a bath. An hour later I wrote three songs called Hurt, Deceit and Unbelievable. At eight thirty I laid down and went to sleep. The next day I awoke made my bed and took a bath. After that I removed my scarf from my headed and went downstairs for breakfast. I made toast, jelly and eggs. I noticed my parents were gone so as usual I ate breakfast. I was sort of happy because I didn't want to see my mother whatsoever."

"I was still fuming internally over what I was told the previous night. I finished breakfast and walked to Alvin's. His brother Jason opened the door and insulted me by calling me skyscraper because of how tall I was. I stood at five foot three inches.I walked inside and was greeted by Alvin's mother Ingrid. She complimented my hair and said that Javier did a fantastic job. I told her thank you with a smile. She asked if I was hungry and told her no. She told me I could go upstairs to see Alvin. Same thing he was asleep. I smiled and walked into the room. I sat next to his bed and took his hand into mine. I told him that I gotten my hair done yesterday with Kimberly and that I wish he could see how I looked. I sat there and watched Alvin's chest rise and fall with every breath he took. It must've been misery for him just laying there not being able to do anything. I also knew Jason took full of advantage of Alvin's defenseless state and it made sick to stomach just thinking about it. I stayed with him for another hour and a half and left. I walked to Kimberly's street where I saw her walking to meet me."

"We hugged and greeted one another. We asked how each other slept and complimented each others hair. After visiting Alvin for sometime we walked to Danny's house. It looked like he had just mowed the lawn. Kimberly whistled and we walked in the gate and to the front door. Kimberly rung the doorbell. Danny asked who it was Kimberly answered that it was her and myself. He undid the lock and opened the door. He stood there shocked with a slight red tint on his face. He really liked Kimberly's new look and I could sense it. He stepped aside and let us in. We walked to the livingroom and sat down on the couch. Danny broke the silence by asking what made us change our looks. Kimberly said that we felt like it and plus the black hair she had wasn't doing it for her. We had this routine where every six months we'd dye or get our hair redid. It must've been worth something because Danny was blushing down to his feet. We walked to the backyard and practiced singing Flying Nightingale, Downward Spiral and Psychedelic Firefly."

"We sang Psychedelic Firefly first and gee willikers was I in my element You could see and feel the chemistry resonate between us and our voices as we sang. I was so engrossed in the song that I tried to do Kimberly's famous footwork dance the Peach Shuffle. I looked a mess but I didn't care I felt so intune with the song that the rhythm of my body didn't matter to me. Having fun was the most important thing to me. We practiced for two hours and took a break. Danny's neighbors never once complained. I guess we never had any loud racket and we did it when everybody was out and about. We started again at two thirty and sang until five thirty. We cleared our throats and drank three glasses of water each and went home."I was so stoked about singing I couldn't wait to come back the next day. Kimberly was happy to see me smiling and not fearful or reserved."


"I was surprised at myself actually because I never showed this much excitement especially around others. People usually made fun of me for it but my friends didn't and that made me smile. When I got home I went to my room and sat at my desk in thought. I didn't know what to write about. Tired of being cooped up in the house I changed into a bathing suit and dove into our backyard pool. It was very mentally refreshing for me. I thought about the psychedelic experience I had taken two months prior. It wasn't a guilt trip for me because all that really happened was I became calmer than usual which was unusual. I came up for air three minutes later. I combed my hair back with my hands and looked up at the white puffy clouds. Danny was definitely on my mind. Although my nightmare was over the reality was I too on edge. I didn't know how sensitive Danny was as far as his mother went. I didn't even want to mention his father and besides it wasn't any of my business. When Danny was ready he would tell us. I swam in the pool for the next hour."

"I got out dried off and went back in the house. I looked at television in my bedroom. There wasn't anything eye catching on so I turned it back off and sat at my desk. I pulled my sketchpad out and began drawing a picture of a boy waiting for a girls return. I didn't really have a central meaning of the picture I just felt like drawing something. I spent an hour and a half on it. When I finished I removed the erase marks and closed the booklet and placed it back in the drawer and went downstairs to prepare dinner. When I finished cooking I prepared I plate for my parents and myself. I ate dinner in silence and washed my plate afterward. I went upstairs to the bathroom and took a bath. I used that time to think about where we would be in three to five years. I was only nine years old at the time but hey it was nothing wrong with wondering and hoping for the best. After bathing I drained the water and got out of the tub. I dried myself off and dressed in a two piece pajama set. I walked to my room and got into bed and drifted off into a blissful and anticipating slumber. The next day I awoke with happiness for having been given another day of breath."

"I made my bed and went into the bathroom and did my morning routine. I came out and dressed. I went downstairs to the kitchen where I saw a note on the refrigerator. It read that my parents would be gone for a month to South Korea. I couldn't believe they would leave me alone for a such a long period of time. I sighed and shook my head. Their actions didn't shock me because it was usual but a month that was pushing it. The next thing I knew they probably would've left me home alone for a year. I made myself some toasted jelly and grits. After breakfast I walked to Danny's house where I saw Kimberly was already there. Danny grabbed his guitar and we headed to the livingroom. While we rehearsed Danny started feeling jokey. He laughed told Kimberly she sounded like a beached whale on the Jersey shore. Kimberly tackled him to the ground. I didn't break them up because that was something they needed, plus Danny's tongue was too sharp."

"After they brawled we headed to Alvin's house. Our hair was still looking groovy and well kept. We spent the rest of the day at Alvin's. It was well past eight thirty when we left. As we walked home Kimberly said that she hope Danny got the point. That next week Alvin recovered and we brought him to Danny's house as a surprise. We all knew Danny was happy to see Alvin but he didn't say anything. Instead he just stepped aside and let us in. We told Alvin the new material we had written and rehearsed. Alvin said while at his grandparents house he wrote a song called Priceless. We rehearsed and Danny tried to force Alvin into singing in his head voice and Kimberly told Danny he couldn't rush Alvin back to singing in his regular voice right away. He needed to take it easy so we all sang in our chest voices to make it easier for Alvin. After an hour we called it quits and sat around the house doing nothing. I wanted to make myself useful and asked Danny if he needed anything cleaned."

"He said he had done it earlier that morning. I exhaled heavily and walked to the kitchen. I went to the refrigerator and pulled out some thawed meat and started cooking. An hour later I was finished. I had made some cube steak, gravy and rice with cornbread and peas. I called everyone into the kitchen. Danny asked me why I cooked and I told him that I loved cooking and that I wanted to take an extra burden off his shoulders. He looked at me with a small smile. It was a commodity to see him smiling and I savored the moment like it was my last breath. We all ate and Alvin complimented my cooking. He said it tasted like a Georgia style dinner. I smiled and told him thank you. I added that I didn't think it would taste southern. Kimberly said that it tasted good and that southern food is the easiest to cook and also the unhealthiest. I knew full well that what Kimberly said was factual. Everything I cooked was baked. I didn't believe in frying and I didn't want my friends to get diabetes prematurely."

"Alvin patted his belly with a grin and asked if there was dessert. Danny said there was ice cream in the fridge. He made us each a bowl. I told Alvin I didn't want a lot so he gave me a fair amount. When he brought our bowls to the table I couldn't believe how much he had gotten for himself. Danny said told him to help himself because he wanted it gone anyway. After we finished cleaning the kitchen we headed to Jade Monopoly. It was only six thirty and there was still light out. When we got there Cody asked if we had school and I said yes but we wanted to hang outside before curfew. He smiled and asked us what we wanted. I ordered a iced tea, Kimberly ordered her usual Harley Coaster, Danny ordered a pineapple soda and Alvin ordered a strawberry soda. After writing down our orders we each placed five cents on the counter. He took it and went to the back.We saw people coming in and they greeted us."

"We waved back and soon Cody came out with our orders. He placed them in front us and placed a straw in them as well. He struck up a conversation with Danny. I didn't pay any attention and looked out into the dinging area. Some comedian was onstage. He was doing some funny thing with his arms and I laughed so hard when I heard what he said. I was brought out of my laughter by Cody. He asked me if I was feeling okay and I said yes. He said okay and began tending to the downpour of newly flooding customers. I smiled and gave my attention back to the comedian onstage."