CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Bravest (Olive’s Ending)

Olive was moved as she left the baccalaureate service that kicked off the week of graduation. It was the first time she got to pose for pictures in her own cap and gown. It was the first time she marched in with her class. The graduation ceremony wasn’t until the end of the week, but already she felt special.

The most memorable part of it all for Olive was hearing a speech from Ms. Sealy, teacher of the year. She charged the students to be the star in their own lives. The meat of the message was to strive for excellence, to be tough and enduring, to have an attitude that’s always positive, and to radiate light wherever their feet may tread.

Things were still a little tense in the foster home between Olive and Charles. It wasn’t as bad as before. They were speaking. They knew they cared about each other. Things weren’t the best either, though.

If Olive wanted to be the star in her own life, she decided, she might as well start then and there. She had to put her conflict with Tiger away for good. So, when she saw Tiger in the hallway, looking at her like he wanted to devour her for dinner, she walked up to him. He was all smiles. She was serious.

“We need to talk,” she told him.

“Yeah, beautiful, we do.”

She looked at all of his cronies hanging around him and said, “Can we talk alone?”

Tiger gave his boys a dismissive glare, and they all scattered. To Olive’s surprise, before should could speak, Tiger straightened up. Suddenly, he wasn’t so ghetto and cool. He acted like he had some sense. In a gentleman’s voice, he declared, “I owe you an apology.”

“Huh?” Olive was thwarted from her agenda of telling him off.

“Yeah, your boy can clean up. Don’t get it twisted. I can still take down anybody I want, but I had some of my police friends shed some light on a brother. I’m going to try to clean myself up. I know if I want good karma, I need to set things right with you.”

“I’m listening.”

“I just wanted to control you. I just wanted you to want to be with me. I’ve always known that Charles dude liked you. Every time I’d come around the house and pick you up or walk with you in school, he’d look at me like he wanted to take me down. He got under my skin. One time I saw you talking to him—this was way before we broke up—and I thought you didn’t like me anymore, or I thought you were playing me. So I tried to distance myself. And that’s when I asked you to hook up with my boys. I wanted to hurt you like you hurt me.”

“But you told me to get with those boys.”

“I know I told you to, but I didn’t think you would be that stupid or have such low self-esteem that you’d do it.”

This was really hard for Olive to hear because Tiger was being frank. Why was she so frail that when he asked her to do something appalling, she had complied? Back then, she hadn’t wanted to lose him. She’d thought that if she didn’t do what he wanted, she would. But, ultimately, she ended up losing him anyway, as well as her pride.

Tiger went on, “But I still felt angry toward you. So, I put your name on the swoop list and then I broke up with you.”

Olive felt her stomach turn. Inside, she’d always worried that Charles was right, that Tiger had put her name on the list. But she’d never wanted to believe it.

Tiger looked at her and said, “Listen. I was wrong for tricking you that way, playing with you, and belittling you, when, to me, you’ve always been precious. When I put you on that list, as weird as it may seem, I ended up setting you free. I thought you were going to need me more after that. Actually, it turned you into the girl I’ve always known was inside. So really, you should thank me.”

“Oh, I should, huh?” Olive said as she sort of smiled.

Tiger smiled. But when Olive saw Charles approaching, she put out both of her hands, one in front of Tiger’s chest and one toward Charles’s.

“Okay, guys, we’re not going to do any of that. We’re on church grounds. It’s time to call a truce.”

Tiger stepped up and said, “No, it ain’t going to be none of that. I told him I wanted to talk to him, too.”

Olive looked at Charles. “Huh?”

Tiger extended his hand to Charles, and Olive stepped out of the way.

“You’re a much better man for her than me. Take care of my girl. You got mad balls for standing up to me. I need to concede that you’re the right one for her.”

“You told her you put her on the list?” Charles asked, probably wanting her to hear from Tiger what he had already known all along.

“Yeah, he told me. Can we have a moment?” she said to Charles.

He nodded, firmly shook Tiger’s hand, and walked away.

“Are you going to stop gang banging?” Olive said to him.

“Aw, you still care about me.”

“I should kick you in the groin. That’s what I should do with all you put me through. But with what you just said, all that you admitted, and all that you conceded, all is forgiven.”

“Well.” He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “I’m trying to work on me, but sometimes you’re in too deep to get out. That’s why I want you to stick with a guy like Charles and not me.”

“It took guts to be real with me like that. The Tiger you’ve just shown me here, I know if he wanted to get out of the gang, he could. Of all the dudes I know, you’re the bravest.”