Chapter Thirty-one

Time Will Tell

“Thanks for coming, Mom. I really appreciate it!” Sasha smiled.

“I wouldn’t miss this for the world. I just can’t believe I’m going to be a grandmom.” Brooklyn smiled as she glanced over at the monitor that showed Sasha’s growing baby. Everything with the baby was perfect, not to mention, her relationship with her daughter was better than either of them could have ever expected.

Brooklyn had been clean for the past six months. Stacey’s death was traumatic for her and just the thing she needed to help her kick the habit. She missed her, feeling at times like she had no one to talk to. Sure, Wanda was around, but she and Brooklyn didn’t have as much in common. Their life experiences had been the total opposite of each other’s, and she couldn’t really relate to someone who had no clue what she’d been through. She also didn’t want Wanda, or anyone for that matter, to look down on her. Most people thought of her as a survivor, but others looked at her like trash. She had learned the hard way that sometimes one’s past is not easily forgotten.

After the ultrasound, the two headed home.

Sasha had recently moved in with Brooklyn and her half-sister Janelle. Janelle, the daughter of Sincere and Stacey, was as close to Brooklyn as her own mother. After Stacey’s death, Brooklyn made sure to do everything in her power to keep Janelle around.

 

 

The months passed by quickly, and Brooklyn was able to lay eyes on her granddaughter. Every pregnancy of hers had been different. Every situation that revolved around their lives was tough. Every time she gave birth, she was detached. She’d never felt the motherly connection that most women felt when they gave birth, and she saw every delivery as a problem because the fathers had been nothing but.

Sadly, for the first time in her life, she felt connected. Though the baby wasn’t hers, she looked into her puffy little eyes and fell in love. When she’d learned of the cancer, she truly believed that life was over, and at that point she didn’t care. With her cancer in remission and the forgiveness of her daughter, she truly believed that all of the pain was worth it. Now she had someone to live for.

There was a time when she could see herself in her daughter and prayed that somehow Sasha would ignore the temptations that she hadn’t be able to resist. Now this little bundle of joy was going to make all of the difference in her life, and her relationship with Sasha was going to be stronger than ever.

 

Going down to Stacey’s grave was a weekly ritual for Brooklyn. Oftentimes she’d be alone and would get down on her knees and chat with her friend, reminiscing on the good times they’d shared. She’d even talk about the times they argued and wanted to pull each other’s hair out. Somehow, they had always been able to come back together. As many times as their friendship had been tested, they still remained friends to the end. Hell, not even Sincere could keep them apart for long.

She found that at times, when she had a lot on her mind or things she felt she couldn’t share with anyone else, she’d do it there.

Brooklyn sat down next to Stacey’s grave. The flowers she’d brought the previous week were withering in the extreme heat. As she sat down, she talked to her about everything that had been going on. She missed her more than anything, and you could see it every time she came to the grave site. It was almost as if her backbone was gone.

In the past Brooklyn was far from a nice person. Most people steered clear of her because they wanted to avoid a confrontation with her. She was used to fighting because running the streets for as many years as she did took courage. She was never afraid of anything or anyone, until the day Stacey died in her arms.

Looking back on all she’d been through, it was clear that every incident made her a stronger woman. She thought about the tumultuous relationship she had with her mother and her absentee father. She could even see how her failed relationships with men mirrored the many failed relationships her mother had with men. Every man Janice had been with, including her husband, walked out on her and her true love, alcohol. True, she’d slowed down but she hadn’t quit.

Brooklyn, though never addicted to drinking, could relate, since drugs were at one point her kryptonite. If she could turn back the hands of time, surely she’d do a lot of things differently, but she could no longer live with regret. Life was truly worth living.

She got up from her seated position and headed out of the cemetery. She stopped short of the gates to look back. “Thanks for listening, Stacey. I love you.”