The New World: The Awakening. Leahann Cavanaugh

Aww, naw, I’m not doing yo dirty work.”

      “You recommended her,” he reminded me.

      “Two reasons, for one, that’s my best friend. For two, I don’t even like you,” I ranted, still checking for GQ, but he was already gone.

      “Damn!” I said out loud.

      “What?” Josh asked.

      “Nothing. All right, you want me to do it, I’ll do it, but today is payday, so after I fire her, she gone have to come in when the checks get here and get her check,” I said, swiftly leaving Josh’s side.

      “What? Damn. I didn’t think about that,” Josh said to himself.

      “So what’s his name? What did he buy? Did he have a wedding ring?” I drilled Denise.

      “Damn, girl, for you to be asking those questions, I would’ve thought you already knew he was coming in here for you,” Denise replied, too salty she didn’t even have a chance.

      “What?” I said, shocked I didn’t know who looked like that.

      “Well, boo boo, he knows you. Had yo whole government Ms. Lyric Sadé Daniels,” Denise teased as she held up an envelope with a letter in it.

      “Why didn’t you tell him I was here?” I said, pissed because GQ was sexy as hell and would have been worth the effort.

      “He saw Josh pull you to the side, and he said, and I quote, ‘Although I want to wait, I can’t,” and he told me to give you this.” Denise waved the envelope in my face. Then she gave it to me.

      “I hope this mean you gone finally get some butt,” Denise said as she tried to get some info out of me.

      “Open it! Open it! I wanna read it.” Miles floated into the conversation.

      “No, imma read it later,” I said, bursting everyone’s bubble.

      “Did you get his name?” I asked hopelessly.

      “Nope. Sorry, I was caught in his eyes. Girl, they were beautiful, and before I knew it, he was gone,” Denise explained. “But I did get his initials off his cufflinks though—J. G.”

      It felt as if my heart stop beating then started again once I took that first breath after hearing his initials.

      “Are you okay?” Miles asked, concerned.

      I didn’t know what to say; I was stuck. “That couldn’t be him,” I said to myself. I could never forget what Jason Graham looked like. He was my best friend, my protector, the only person who ever showed me they loved me besides my grandma, God rest her soul. So many thoughts and feelings flooded my mind and body—feelings for him.

      “Hello!” Denise yelled in my ear. I didn’t move.

      “Man, just shake the shit out of her,” Miles suggested and she did.

      “What?” I said, annoyed.

      “Do you know him or not?” Denise demanded an answer like she was my mom and caught me in the house alone with GQ.

      “I don’t know. I think I might,” I falsely stated. I couldn’t shake this feeling that kept attacking my heart. I rushed to the bathroom, locked the door, and took a seat against the wall next to the door. The letter read,

      October 10, 2020

      My Angel,

      Sorry I’ve been away for so long. I’ve thought about you every second of every minute in every hour these past 8 years. I’ve missed you so much. I wish that this visit could have been on personal terms, but it’s not. I told you next time you see me, it’ll be time. The time is now, my angel. I am staying at the Renaissance Hotel downtown, suite 4201. I’m not going anywhere. Gather yourself and meet me there after your shift.

      Jason

      I didn’t know what to say or how to feel. It’d been eight years already, I thought to myself as I stood up and dusted myself off. Jason knew me so well. He knew his presence would overwhelm me. I gathered myself, walked out the bathroom, and proceeded back to the store to continue my shift. I couldn’t wait to get off to go see him, even if it wasn’t personal. Just to see him brought back old feelings, feelings that I thought I had buried. Guess I didn’t bury them deep enough.

      Chapter 3

      Jason Graham

      Jason Graham was the type of kid that the old folks would say “Oh, he’s been here before” or “He has an old soul.” Jason didn’t do the normal things other little boys his age did. Jason liked nature and outdoors. He loved animals, and he loved to read books and give things meaning. I met Jason when I was four; his mother and my mother were best friends when they were younger. So I guess it was natural for us to become best friends.

      It was the summer of 2000. Every year Jason’s dad would host a Father’s Day block party for the neighborhood. Being new to the neighborhood, my grandma thought it would be a good idea to go. Come to find out I was the only new one. My grandma knew every man, woman, and child, including Jason. Jason was a principal list second grader on his way to third grade. Tall and light skinned, he kept his hair short and curly, and he wore black rectangle-framed glasses that made him look like a brainiac.

      “Lyric, come here, baby. This young gentleman is the son of your mama’s best friend when she was your age,” she said as she introduced us.

      “Nice to meet you,” Jason mumbled as he extended his hand.

      “Hello! My name is Lyric Sadé Daniels. Nice to meet you,” I said as I grabbed his hand. Instantly I got this surge of energy through my hand. It tickled. So I laughed and looked at Jason. He had this look on his face like a miracle happened right before his eyes. It stopped tickling and started to get warm, then all of a sudden, a burst of energy from the center of our palms forced our hands apart.

      “Cool,” I said, amazed at every little thing.

      “Totally,” Jason replied, still staring at me.

      Some boys from the neighborhood came and grabbed him to play football. Even though Jason wasn’t into sports, he excelled at every sport he tried.

      “Stay here, don’t leave. I’ll be right back,” Jason demanded. Me being me and only four, I decided to explore up and down the block, back and forth. At first I was having fun being able to see and meet new people. Everyone treated me as if I were a princess, giving me anything I wanted. I was happy. Then after a while, I started looking for my grandma. I searched and searched. I couldn’t find her. I picked a spot where I felt comfortable, crouched down in a small ball, and started to cry. Not long after a voice came from behind me and said, “My angel, don’t cry. I’ll take care of you.” I looked up and it was Jason. He reached out his hand, and I grabbed it. His was the only face that I remotely knew.

      “Why are you crying?” he asked as if he was really concerned.

      “I can’t find my grandma.” I cried.

      He wiped my tears and took my hand and said, “Follow me.”

      We walked to the next house over, and the people outside partied. Loud music blared over the speakers. As we walked into the house, the music and noise from the block party became distant. The feeling of the house was warm and soothing. Still scared, I grabbed Jason’s hand tighter. He noticed and pulled me closer to him and told me everything was okay, that he was there to protect me, and for some reason I believed him. We hit one more right turn and there was my grandma, talking to his dad.

      “Hey, Li’l Bit, did you have fun?” she asked.

      “Yes, ma’am,” I responded.

      “What’s wrong? Were you crying?” she asked as she motioned me to come closer to her.

      “Yes, but that’s because I couldn’t find you,” I explained. Before another word was said, Jason