🌎 🌎 “Path to Manhood” by Dane C. Hawkins

After Duc, Mike, and Ovaughn find out about the fight they all tell Jairus at different times that if he ever wants to go back and get Jamal again, they are with him. Jairus is thankful for the offer but turns them down. One fight a year is more than enough for him unless he has no choice. By now Duc has already promoted and thrown two parties on campus with a third one scheduled, and after paying off all his fees, Duc has made a decent amount of money. He doesn’t know how to act now that he has all this money. He buys everything he sees, and he even buys his friends clothes if they see something they like at the mall. His friends criticize his excessive spending but don’t find it hard to accept the gifts. They don’t understand him spending so much money on the four different women he is seeing at the time even if all of them don’t want it. Duc is definitely not stingy, and since his parents still send him money, he feels like he can never run out. Even with the spending he realizes he must save some money to fund his parties. And after the fight he sets up his last party of the year for the middle of April saying it’s in honor of Jairus to try and cheer him up. Jokingly, he also says the party is dedicated to finding Mike a woman since he is the only one of the crew that has been struggling to find consistent attention from the opposite sex. This inspires Mike to immediately start looking for someone to invite to the party, but since he doesn’t have anyone in particular, he ends up just promoting the party to a large number of women in the business department. Jairus’ situation isn’t that much different since he stopped talking to Kim over a month ago, then discovered that Lisa was spoken for. Even with Lisa being newly single, he is uncomfortable trying to rush to try and date her for fear of her not really being ready. Regardless of that he follows his heart and invites Lisa to free entry to the party.

With some time to go before the party Ovaughn really wants to invite someone since he is the only one who hasn’t done so yet. He really wants to invite Kennedy as he has become completely intrigued with her over the last month. But now that the season is over and he isn’t in the sports complex nearly as often, he hasn’t crossed paths with her other than a quick glance across the cafeteria or in a crowd in front of the bookstore. A couple of times he felt he should go and speak to her but didn’t know what to say so he just kept it moving. It just isn’t his nature to approach her in those scenes and deep down, he is intimidated by Kennedy. That is until the first home track meet at the end of March. Generally, the first home event for every sports team is attended by the other sports teams that are available, to show support. But in Ovaughn’s case, he isn’t officially a team member so that rule doesn’t apply to him. However, he doesn’t want to pass on the opportunity to show his face and show some support for Kennedy hoping it will be considered “working” like she told him he will have to from now on. Since he doesn’t like going to things alone, he asks the fellas to go with him, but they have no interest in attending a track meet. Luckily for him, Mike, always being the understanding one, knows it is important to him to go and doesn’t leave him hanging. Mike even makes sure to get Ovaughn out to the stadium so that they can get seats down in front right near the starting line for most of the running events. They are shocked by how many people actually make a point to attend the track meet. As the teams are coming onto the track, Ovaughn makes a point to give a loud ovation over the rest of the crowd and surprises Mike who looks at him with a wide-eyed expression. He notices Kennedy glance into the stands and grins when she looks in the direction of Ovaughn and Mike. He gets excited and begins smiling from ear to ear but stops when Mike starts to laugh at his excitement. They both find that they enjoy the track meet more than they ever expected they would. When the track meet ends, Kennedy immediately comes over to where Mike and Ovaughn are sitting in the bleachers. Before she can have a chance to speak, Ovaughn says, “So does this mean that you aren’t mad at me anymore?” She doesn’t reply; she just rolls her eyes then reaches up and greets Mike, thanking him for coming out and supporting. Then she turns to Ovaughn and says, “Oh, I’m not mad at you. You just need to know that I require effort. If that’s not something you're willing to give, you don’t ever have to worry about me. Your loss, trust me!” He apologizes and says, “I guess I’m just not used to this type of attention, so I didn’t know how to react. Give me a chance. You know I will work for what I want.”

Just as she cracks a smile the coach yells for all players to head to the locker room. As she starts to walk off, she looks back at him over her shoulder and says, “if you have time, you should stay and wait for me to be done. Maybe I’ll come and find you.” He knows that if he is there and they spend some time together then he may have his chance but if not then he lost any chance to date her as the semester is passing by quickly. He isn’t used to being in such a vulnerable position with a girl but it’s the only way he can get another chance to get to know her. So, when they leave the track, he and Mike part ways and Ovaughn heads towards the sports complex. He sits outside the front entrance until he sees other members of the track team begin to pass by him as they leave. He waits patiently for another 10 or so minutes before he heads inside to see if she is inside looking for him instead of coming outside. He heads down to the locker area, but it seems that the last few people have left, and Kennedy is nowhere in sight. With disappointment on his face and a cold stare down at his size 13 shoes he walks up the bleachers of the basketball court alone. When he gets to the top of the bleachers and starts to head out, he hears, “I know you didn’t think I was just going to be sitting there like some little puppy waiting on you. I mean I like you, but you got to do a lot of work to have me hooked like that.”

He instantly smiles and says he was looking for her because he didn’t want to have her waiting. She starts to crack more jokes to break the ice between them as he walks her to her dorm and on the way there, he realizes why all the other guys try to holla at her. She’s sophisticated and strong with a great sense of humor. The type of woman that knows what she wants in life and doesn’t let her surroundings get her off track once she puts her mind to something. They sit on a park bench in front of her dorm and talk for over an hour. She has something to say about everything that comes up and has extensive knowledge about sports. The more he thinks about it he wonders what she sees in him but is just happy she can see something worthwhile. They exchange numbers and he leaves her at her dorm to go on with his day. ***

It has been almost three weeks since the incident with Lisa, Jamal, and Jairus. And he is becoming anxious wondering if he has given Lisa enough time to get over Jamal because he also realizes that if he doesn’t make his move soon, he will have to wait until the next school year to try and talk to her. He has watched Rob, Chris, and Duc have their fair share of dating women this semester but other than Kim, Jairus hasn’t really attempt to talk to any women. He couldn’t have the only one he really wanted. So, the party comes, and he promises Lisa a free pass into the party. He walks to Lisa’s dorm the night of the party to walk her and her friends across campus but when he gets there, he finds that her friends have left her. They walk across campus talking to each other about the last party, making fun of the way each of them dances and flirting a little also. Lisa then makes Jairus promise to give her more than one dance at the party. When they reach the gym, they can’t believe the number of people who came out to the party. Jairus figures since it’s one of the last parties of the year and it’s close to exams everyone wants to have fun while they can. Duc is at the door smiling from ear to ear. He lets Jairus and Lisa in for free then walks into the party with them. He pulls Jairus to the side and warns him that Kim is at the party and she seems to have an attitude. Jairus laughs it off and walks to the dance floor with Lisa. The first thing both of them want to do is find their friends, so after Lisa finds her friends Jairus leaves her to go find his friends. He walks around seeing a lot of people that he knows and as soon as he finds Mike and Ovaughn they also tell him that Kim is looking for him. He doesn’t respond to it but is confused because she isn’t his girlfriend and has no reason to be looking for him or upset with anything he does. He tries to not worry about it and heads to the dance floor and begins to dance with the first girl with a big ass that he can find.

Ovaughn and Mike had been waiting for Jairus to show up and for Duc to stop working the front door to get his guests in free. And shortly after Jairus goes to the dance floor Duc finally finds the two and informs them that the last couple of people he was getting in had arrived. One being Chris, who always operates on his own schedule, and the other being Kennedy, who was with her friends. Ovaughn was visibly intrigued as he started looking around the dark gym to see if he could spot her. As Chris walks up to the group Mike says to Ovaughn, “Nigga, don’t waste time. Go and find her!” Ovaughn agrees and rushes off as the rest of his friends laugh at him being anxious. After a couple of minutes of looking around the party speaking to people that he knows from basketball, Ovaughn finally spots Kennedy, but she hasn’t seen him yet. He slowly walks up to her from her blind side and pardons himself for interrupting her conversation. He offers her his hand and asks her if she would like to dance, to which she responds by placing her hand in his and giving him a smile. They move toward the dance floor and begin to dance facing each other with her arms on his shoulders. He tries to start a conversation asking her how her night has been, but it is a struggle to hear each other above the loud music. Eventually, she points away from the dance floor back to where her friends are congregated, and he nods yes. They move off the dance floor, “So you were really going to come into the party and not even look for me?” he asks. Kennedy instantly gives him a slight side eye.

“I don’t chase behind any man. Your boy knew I was here. I know you knew what was good for you.” Then she started to laugh at her own joke.

Ovaughn gives a slight look of frustration, but only briefly before he fixes the look on his face. Even still, it doesn’t go unnoticed. He is at a loss for how to deal with a woman like Kennedy who is much more forward and confident than he naturally is. Even when he is trying to come across as confident. “But you do realize there is only one man I want chasing behind me, right?”

Ovaughn smiles.

“I just need to know that you are willing to put as much work into being my man as I see you do with basketball and your boys. It’ll be worth it for you. You know a good thing when you see it.”

Ovaughn is now laughing, and she has put him at ease. But now, for the rest of the party, he keeps thinking to himself if she just called him her man and what that means.

It is packed inside the gym but there is still some room for more people and every time Jairus turns around he spots another woman he knows until the wrong one finds him. Kim comes up from behind and wraps her arms around Jairus pulling him in close to her body and dancing behind him. He abruptly turns around pulling her hands off of him and tries to talk to her face to face. She says that she was hoping to see him at the party and that she was hoping to talk to him, but he doesn’t make it easy to do. He begins to think she must have been drinking that night because this all seems out of nowhere to him.

“So can I get a chance to talk to you tonight or are you too preoccupied?” she asks.

He realizes that she must have already seen him with Lisa. He stops dancing. “You askin’ an awful lot of questions just to be my friend.”

She pauses with a look of frustration on her face and just as she is about to reply Lisa confidently walks up and grabs one of his arms for a dance. Although Lisa isn’t aware of the situation between Jairus and Kim she knows Kim has always been interested in him and isn’t going to just sit by and watch when she notices the interaction from across the dance floor. As Jairus begins to pull away, Kim holds him for a second, and leans into him. “What the fuck did I do wrong? What is it about her?” He doesn’t say anything to Kim. He just looks as if he’s annoyed. He then turns around, tells Lisa not to worry about her, and they walk off Lisa leading Jairus away holding his hand.

For the rest of the night, it’s only Jairus and Lisa, although they find themselves being interrupted every now and then by friends. They are so into each other that everything they are told goes in one ear and out the other and no one else in the room even matters. You could tell how much they were into each other just by looking at them and if you didn’t know better you would think they were a couple. Jairus has been apprehensive since the fight with Jamal but is now feeling like she is the one for him and only wishes he had more time before school ends to let her know. After the party the two of them begin to walk across campus again. They crack jokes and drop flirtatious hints about how they have liked one another since they met and how Jairus just gave up somebody for Lisa. They laugh a little between forward innuendos and a lot of unspoken communication while giving each other weird looks that are supposed to look sexy. They reach the dorm and there are a lot of guys and girls just sitting around outside of the women’s dorms. They find a little secluded area to talk some more and after about a half an hour Jairus is ready to leave. He walks her to the front of the door and as he is about to leave, she leans over, and they share the most passionate kiss either of them has ever had. They both say goodbye and Jairus leaves. As she walks into the dorm a few of her dorm mates who saw the kiss make fun of the big ass smile Lisa has on her face. She makes her way upstairs to her room and eventually goes to sleep after lying awake for a while, wide awake from the excitement of the moment they just shared.

As Jairus is walking back across campus there are people everywhere. All the people from the party are sitting outside just talking like it’s the first day of school all over again. When he got about halfway back, walking in front of the campus library, he sees Jamal with his friends sitting on the corner looking around and he notices them start to get up after he passes them. This is the same group of guys who were talking trash about him the first week of school and when he turns to see where they are he sees that they now follow him. He begins to walk up and luckily when he gets a little closer to the freshman dorm, he sees a large group of his friends outside of the dorm. Rob, Mike, Paul, Duc, Tim, Chris, and even Nat and a couple of his friends are out there. Once he reaches his group of friends, he tells them that he thinks he is being followed. Jamal and that group of friends from New York stop following after Jairus crosses the street and reaches his friends. Duc and the others just stay where they are daring any one of them to come across the street, trading dirty looks. They all know that there is beef between Jairus and Jamal, but the group of New Yorkers are a bit outnumbered, so they don’t do anything stupid. Jairus begins talking to Duc and Mike telling them what happened between him and Kim, which leads to what happened with Lisa. He then asks where Ovaughn is, and Mike tells him Ovaughn is with Kennedy and doesn’t have enough time to chill with his ‘dogs’. Mike tells them that he finally went after her after all the stuff that he has been going through this semester. They all agree it’s about time. The fellas sit outside a little longer and talk to all their friends walking by reminiscing about their first year of college and all the crazy things they have done. It starts to get late; the crowds of people outside begin to thin out, and they decide to call it a night.

Following the party Ovaughn had decided to walk Kennedy and her friends to their dorm. But neither of them really wants the night to end at that moment. So, she lets her friends go inside and she continues to walk outside with Ovaughn for a while. They talk just getting to know each other a bit more, continuing the conversation they previously had following her track meet. All the time he still has the comment about ‘her man’ on his mind although he can’t bring himself to ask about it. After talking for over an hour and realizing he has a long walk across campus to his dorm Kennedy decides to go in for the night. As he walks her to the front door of her dorm, Ovaughn sheepishly says “so that comment at the party about putting in work at being your man...so I’m your man?” Thinking he has hit her with something she can’t have a witty response for he almost feels confident that she will be caught off guard and is relieved to get it off his chest. He realizes that there is no catching her off guard as she quickly responds by saying “not yet baby, but you have potential….and a cute ass.” He thinks to himself, what is he going to do with this woman but deep down he likes it just as much as she does. They stop at the bottom of the dorm steps and Kennedy turns and tells him that she had a great night. He is elated inside but plays it cool returning the sentiment. She reaches up and grabs his chin and then turns it slightly to kiss him on the cheek and then begins to make her way up the small number of stairs. She says back to him “you should give me a call tomorrow” to which he immediately replies, “I would need to have your number for that”. She stops at the top of the stairs and says, “You never asked for it.” He wastes no time in saying “can I have your number so I can give you a call tomorrow” and she quickly trots back down the steps and hands him a folded-up piece of paper then immediately turns back up the stairs before he can even get a chance to open. He watches her walk through the door of the dorm saying goodnight as the doors close and then he turns grinning from ear to ear the entire walk back to his dorm room. ***

There are only a couple more weeks left in school before final exams and those weeks go by very quickly for all the fellas. Jairus doesn’t really get the chance to be around Lisa a lot more before everyone is packing their things. They have all made sure that their housing assignments for next year are straightened out. Ovaughn is offered the opportunity to move into the athletes’ dorm due to his time with the practice team and there being a few rooms left unclaimed. Since he has to go through admissions himself, he is able to select his room and roommate and got his best friends into the dorm with him. Duc and Mike will be rooming next door to Jairus and Ovaughn for their sophomore year at school. The guys have also exchanged home phone numbers and made plans to try and visit each other over the summer. The final exams come and go, and they have mixed feelings about their results. Some expectations are met, and others aren’t. Some people realize there are hard decisions to make and tough conversations to have with family once these grades make it home. And still others are less worried about the reaction to their grades and more worried about other things being left ambiguous as they leave for the summer. Eventually the school year is finalized and the friends part ways as they head home.

5

“I’m Tough But It’s Tough LOVE”

Jairus arrives home for the summer and immediately must work to save money for his tuition. He didn’t take the time to interview with any companies and try to get an internship for the summer, so his first two weeks at home are spent job hunting. He and his cousin Tammy go out with each other every day looking for jobs. She always complains about being tired of the job she has and wants to find a new job also. She works in a business office as an administrative assistant during the day and eventually after failing to find new jobs Jairus works in the mailroom in the same building. Jairus doesn’t really mind the job because he has the evenings and weekends off but is jealous of Duc who doesn’t have to work at all.

As the summer goes on Jairus and Duc hang out on the weekends and Jairus works during the week. They both keep in touch with Ovaughn and Mike and they plan for everyone to go to North Carolina and stay at Ovaughn’s house around the end of June into the fourth of July holiday. They all spoke with their parents and Ovaughn’s family is happy for the opportunity to finally meet his friends from college. Ovaughn already met Duc’s father back when he came down and picked Duc up for Christmas break. He met Jairus’ mom when she came to get him for summer break, and he met Mike’s family because of all the times the guys went to his house looking for food and trying to get off campus.

When Duc contacts Ovaughn to get directions to Charlotte, Ovaughn tells him that Mike called the day before and said that he isn’t going to be able to come to Charlotte. Something has come up with his family and he can’t leave yet. Ovaughn figures it is personal or else Mike would have told him, so he doesn’t press the issue but just wants to pass the message on to the fellas in case they aren’t aware yet. Mike not making it out is disappointing to them all, but they understand that his family comes first. A few days later Duc gets his father's Explorer and he and Jairus leave for Charlotte. For the two of them the road trip doesn’t seem that far. It is only a little more than half the distance to Atlanta, which they have gotten used to, and at the speeds they travel it doesn’t even take that long. Before they leave, Jairus’ grandfather asks them to be careful on the highway and not to act too crazy in Charlotte. He knows their youthful ignorance about the possible dangers on the road is a blessing but can also be a detriment if they aren’t careful but his pleading falls on deaf ears. They just want to go see their friend and neither the speed limit nor the police are a concern for the pair. Luckily, they make it down safely and aren’t pulled over by the cops. Apparently, Duc has a lot of practice with highway driving as his family has been regularly going up to New York to visit his sister since he was in middle school. His father quickly taught him how to properly read the road when driving long distances as soon as he got his license.

When they reach Ovaughn’s house his family greets them with smiles and introductions. The first thing that Ovaughn’s father asks the guys is if they play any sports and they can immediately see what Ovaughn meant when he told them about his father being hype about athletics and sports. They move to the family room of the house, after bringing in the bags, and talk about how the three of them met and they also tell Ovaughn’s parents about Mike’s place in their many stories. Ovaughn’s brothers are both at their own homes, so Jairus and Duc never get to meet them, but they are told a lot about them. Ovaughn’s father Oscar goes on and on to Duc and Jairus about his travels as a basketball player. How he was drafted in the third round, back when the NBA still had more than two, but ended up playing for the ABA. From there he went all across the United States and eventually found himself married with two kids as the ABA disbanded. After a couple of years trying to find his way outside of sports, he found himself on his way to play ball in Italy. That is where Ovaughn was born and lived the first four years of his life. When Oscar decided to step away from playing basketball in his mid-thirties, he began spending more time at home. He and his wife discovered, to their surprise, that their family would be expanding as they became pregnant with Ovaughn. Oscar continued to work in administrative and coaching roles for the team he once played for in Italy. That was the best paying job he could get with his qualifications, and it kept him around the game he loved as much as anything in his life. When Ovaughn was approaching time to start elementary school his parents decided they wanted to let him grow up in the United States and left Europe. According to the stories the guys hear, Ovaughn has lived in California, Michigan, North Carolina, and now at college in Atlanta. Their family has traveled all over the world and has family everywhere, and as Duc and Jairus are listening to Oscar they see where Ovaughn gets his rambling storytelling ability. They talk a little more about families and backgrounds and the three friends each begin to wonder what is going on with Mike’s family even though there aren’t many words exchanged about it. ***

In Atlanta, Mike’s summer vacation starts off perfectly fine. He comes home and Arthur is still there. He has been working a steady job and is staying clean, but Mike is still not trusting of him, so he just keeps his distance when he is around. Mike begins to take the time and effort to strengthen his relationship with his grandparents and has been making a point to spend a lot of time with other family members on his fathers’ side of his family, even though he doesn’t associate much with his father. He is too levelheaded to blame them or take out his frustrations on his father's family. He is a very family-oriented person and knows building that relationship will only help him know more about himself and where he comes from. Especially with the gap left by the lack of communication with his father. He doesn’t even let it stop him when his father moves back in with his grandparents. He continues to visit them and is even cordial with his father, speaking when he sees him. In this way, Mike is much more mature than a lot of 19-year-olds would be in the same situation.

Mike still has a lot of animosity toward his father even though he isn’t at his throat. When he sees Tony all he can think of is how he chose a drug pipe over his children. It breaks his heart and pisses him off at the same time. June rolls around and Mike has saved money for his trip to N.C. and taken off from work for two weeks at his internship in downtown Atlanta. Thanks to his grandparents' generosity and willingness to provide one of their cars, he no longer has to take the bus to Charlotte. He is not looking forward to having to make the four-hour road trip alone but that doesn’t overshadow the fact that he can’t wait to see his three best friends again. About three days before he is supposed to leave Atlanta, he is at his grandparents' house picking up the car. Tony isn’t home and Mike is glad because it gives him the chance to really sit and talk to his grandmother Louise. She is the backbone of that side of the family and any questions he may need answered she will know the answers too. They begin to talk, and he asks about his father's past. Everything he’s heard about his father's past doesn’t add up to what he knows his father to be, and he can’t get those personal answers from his mother without possibly opening some wounds that will cause her pain. His grandmother, on the other hand, is tough as nails and an open book. She tells him how his father grew up very sheltered as something of a bookworm. “Growing up so sheltered is likely why he is susceptible to some of the pitfalls he fell victim to as an adult.” She also has a lot to say about how he was before the addiction. “His future was sooo bright and that boy absolutely adored Brenda. Long before they ever got married.” After hearing so much about how his father grew up and how his mother and father fell in love, Mike is about ready to leave. But before he goes, he can’t help but ask “Grandma, why do y'all let a 45-year-old man with no steady job or potential to get on his feet stay in your house?” Mike’s grandmother isn’t bothered by his brash delivery of the question because she realizes he probably gets his blunt nature from her. She grins and says, “Regardless of how bad he gets or how hopeless he seems, I still love your father as much as I did the day he was born. He will always be my child. One day you will understand that. I can’t stand by and see him sleeping on the street with no one to look to for help. I’m tough but it’s tough LOVE. And I know he is too old to live with his parents but I’m trying to get him help with his problems. It takes time and patience and if you can’t get that from your mother then who will you ever get it from? He has a big heart and if you ever gave him the chance you can’t help but love him. And he loves you, Arthur, and Michelle even though you don’t see it.” The conversation ends and just as Mike is getting ready to walk out of the front door the phone rings. It is the local hospital telling his grandmother that Tony was in the emergency room.

Mike and his grandparents leave the house in separate vehicles and rush off to the hospital. Mike, driving in the car he is supposed to be taking for his trip, and his grandparents in their truck. They arrive at the hospital to find other members of the family have already arrived. Mike’s Aunt Pamela and Uncle Roderick are at the hospital and tell their parents that Tony had a cardiac arrest. This brings tears to Mike’s grandmother instantly, which leads his aunt to cry and eventually even makes Mike teary-eyed. At first Mike is upset with himself for letting it get to him, but it only makes him realize that just because he doesn’t like his father doesn’t mean he doesn’t love him. Mike has a big heart and regardless of how angry he gets with his father he still loves him. He spends the night at his grandparents’ house because they live a lot closer to the hospital and the next day, he has to break the news to his family. His brother is hurt but doesn’t show much emotion. His little sister on the other hand bursts into tears and cannot compose herself. Michelle is young and doesn’t know about her father’s problems. She only sees the best in people, which makes the news hurt even worse. The pain Michelle feels affects their mother and even though she can’t stand Tony at this point she is hurt also. She even goes back into her bedroom and sheds a few tears silently. After seeing how much it affects his family Mike decides to stay in Atlanta instead of going on his trip to Charlotte. He can’t help but feel like leaving at that time will be abandoning his family when they are in need. Especially his little sister, Michelle. Mike is also struggling with his own emotions and what he has to admit to himself because of this affecting him so much. So, the next day he calls Ovaughn and tells him he will not make it, as disappointing as it is for the both of them. ***

In Charlotte, Ovaughn spends half of the time worrying about showing his friends the best time possible. He introduces Duc and Jairus to some of his friends from high school and puts some faces with the stories he told them back at college. He takes them to the teen clubs and house parties, shows them around the different malls, and takes them to the ghetto neighborhoods to show them how they do it in the dirty south. They even crash a party in the Hilton in downtown Charlotte for some kind of national conference for college students. It is one of the crazier nights in Charlotte and the three are having a ball. The other half of their trip is spent talking about their missing friend wondering what he’s going through in Atlanta. They all try to act like it’s not a big concern for them but their conversations in their downtime always seem to at least mention what could have kept him from coming up. And them hoping he’s cool. ***

Mike spends his two weeks off work trying to convince his brother and sister to go see their father in the hospital. It is easy to get Michelle to go because she wants to make sure her daddy is O.K. Arthur is a lot more reluctant to visit the hospital. He doesn't want to see his father like that. It will only be a reminder of how messed up he was such a short time ago and how it could have ended up. So, Arthur refuses to go to the hospital with his brother and sister. After about a week Tony gets out of the hospital but isn’t the same. He becomes the old man that can’t get around well and never comes out of his bedroom. All Tony has left are his memories of a better life to keep him happy. A life when he had a wife and three beautiful children. A life Tony gave away due to his weakness. A story that unfortunately is all too familiar for families in Mike’s community. Now Tony only has his parents’ basement and an occasional visit from a sad daughter and an angry son going through an emotional turmoil he can’t quite grasp. With a void left by the son who can’t bring himself to visit, and an old love that wants nothing to do with him anymore.

Mike’s life eventually returns to normal, and his summer continues on. Only he now has a renewed relationship with his paternal grandparents as well as some aunts, uncles, and cousins. It’s funny how the bad times have a way of bringing people closer and that’s exactly what it does for Mike and his father's side of his family. After they return from Charlotte, both Jairus and Duc call down to Atlanta to find out exactly what happened with Mike. He tells his friends about the incident with his father and how he has been spending more time with his family. Mike explains everything about why he didn’t come to Charlotte and his friends understand without question. That makes Mike realize how good his friends really are if he can tell his personal problems no matter how messed up and they still completely understand. It’s hard to find people that you can relate to in such a way but Mike, Ovaughn, Duc and Jairus have that type of friendship.

The summer continues on, and Duc’s family has a big cookout the Saturday after July 4th to celebrate the holiday. Early that Friday, Ovaughn drove up to D.C. trailing Duc and Jairus so he can attend the cookout and since he doesn’t spend his money to go to Charlotte, Mike has enough money to catch a train to DC, so he can attend the cookout. Mike arrives that Saturday morning of July 6th before the cookout and Duc and Jamie pick him up at the train station. Jamie is down from New York for the cookout and Jairus and Ovaughn are at Jairus’ house when Duc is picking up Mike. Mike and Duc greet each other with handshakes and hugs and Mike is introduced to Jamie. They jump into the SUV and head to Duc’s house. Jamie and Mike get acquainted with each other at the expense of Duc on the ride to his parents’ house. Both having lived with him, they find it hilarious to compare notes of his annoying habits. That’s when Mike is blown away when he realizes that Jamie is the same person that works at one of the best record labels in hip-hop music. Mike and Duc talk about the trip to Charlotte and what they did with Ovaughn in D.C. for the day they’ve been back. They get home and call Jairus but he and Ovaughn have stepped out of the apartment so that Ovaughn can meet Jairus’ family. When Jairus and Ovaughn finally get back, Ms. Thomas tells her son that Duc called and that he got a letter in the mail from some girl named Lisa. Ovaughn hears the name and automatically starts talking trash to Jairus.

“That girl got you whipped after one kiss. Writin’ you to make sure you stayin’ in line… So, what did she say?”

“I ain’t tellin’ you shit so you can go run and tell Mike and Duc. I ain’t even gonna open it until you leave.” Ovaughn continues to try to get Jairus to open the letter with no success until Russell comes over to hang out with his cousin and his friend.

The three fellas soon leave to go meet up with Duc and Mike at the home of the Martin family. They all sit around listening to music, playing video games and talking. Ovaughn makes a point to make sure that Mike and Duc know that Jairus got a letter in the mail from Lisa but is too scared to open it in front of him. The cookout has a decent turnout including Duc’s family members and a lot of attractive women the guys consider older because they are friends with Jamie and all mostly around her age. As well as some of Duc’s high school friends that he invites to come hang out. They continue talking and those who don’t already know each other well get better acquainted and the guys spend the rest of the day sitting around talking, joking, and enjoying the good food. During their conversations, Jamie asks Duc to come to New York with her and she can get him an intern position with the record company she works with for the remainder of the summer. Everyone tells him to go for it, so he accepted his sister’s offer. Shortly after the cookout, Jamie and Duc pack up what he needs for the next month and a half. The next day they leave for New York.

The day that Duc leaves is the same day that Ovaughn and Mike leave for Charlotte. The four friends say goodbye knowing that they probably won’t see each other until they get back to school in Atlanta. Jamie and Duc make good time driving to New York and so do Ovaughn and Mike driving to Charlotte. Mike uses his family turmoil as an excuse to get extra time off from work and spends that week in Charlotte since he missed out earlier that summer. While in Charlotte, Mike has a better time than both Duc and Jairus did previously. Mike and Ovaughn chill with Ovaughn’s friends and even hook up with some girls Ovaughn had a relationship with in high school. Mike is extremely shocked that Ovaughn has that type of attention coming his way but understands when he realizes that Ovaughn was a big deal on his basketball team. He understands that kind of attention having played on his high school basketball team as well although not as prominent on the team. Ovaughn isn’t officially in a committed relationship and the friend who came along was very into Mike, so he isn’t going to complain. He then deems Ovaughn a pimp since he can hook him up with a girl that is actually willing to sleep with him on such a short visit to Charlotte. Ovaughn is happy because he feels like he has finally proven that all his stories are true. Even though there is a part of him that feels like he shouldn’t have entertained the advances from those girls that he knows from his past. After a somewhat eventful trip Mike finds his way back home to Atlanta and his family.

Duc arrives in New York and doesn’t waste a second to rest. He and his sister immediately start going out to parties and events held by famous people. He meets many different singers and rappers who are on the record label Jamie works for. He also meets actresses and other stars he has only seen on television before. Jamie took this opportunity to show Duc how her business works and all the flashy and luxurious things about the lifestyle she thinks will attract him. His sister takes him to see all the buildings and sites that he’s seen in the movies and shows he watches. Jamie even took him to some of the neighborhoods and homes of the rappers he enjoys listening to. Duc began to realize his sister is kind of big in the music business to have so many connections and know so many people. Other than sitting outside his sister’s office playing cards on the computer acting like he is doing work, this is how the rest of Duc’s summer is spent. He learns a lot about networking with people and the way Jamie handles the music business and makes music. He just sits back and soaks it all in. The time he spends in New York is short but after this experience he definitely thinks he knows what he wants to do once he gets out of college. The glamour life is definitely for Duc.

In Washington D.C., Jairus’ summer isn’t as exciting as Duc’s but he still enjoys it. After his friends leave and go their separate ways, he finally gets a chance to read the letter he received from Lisa. The letter reads:

What’s Up Jairus? How are you doing? How has your summer been? Mine has been good so far. I’ve been working an internship in the city and staying at home with family so I can stack my money up. Nothing at home has really changed much. Harlem is always going to be Harlem. I’m sure this is a surprise for me to be writing but I wanted to see how you are. I bet you are probably having a ball every day running around with Ducron. He is from Maryland, right? Or is it D.C.? Anyway, as crazy as he is I bet you two are meeting all kinds of new people, hitting up all kinds of parties. I just hope there aren’t too many women involved. I’m just playing. You know I’d be a little jealous though. You’re probably gonna start tripping on me when we get back to school anyway. First semester you blew me off because you had a girlfriend back home. I usually don’t give guys second chances but I guess you’re special. At least to me you are. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I miss you. I hope the feeling is mutual. I wish we had more time together last semester, but I was stuck on stupid until you saved me. Well anyway, I’ve been thinking about you a lot since we left school and I hope you have thought about me too. If you get the chance and you want to I would love it if you wrote me back. Hope to hear from you later.