The Other Side of the Pillow

I turned, ran toward the foyer and up the steps. “Last one to the bedroom has to perform oral sex first!”

Tevin was rushing behind me and then slowed down. “Well, shit, let me take my time. I’m starving!”

Chapter Twenty-eight

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”

—Lao Tzu

It was my birthday. September eighteenth. Tevin planned to take me out to dinner later that night, but we were doing something a little different. He had paid about four hundred dollars to sign us up for a couples cooking class at CulinAerie on Fourteenth Street in downtown DC. I was excited. We were going to make some surf and turf and then eat what we had prepared. It was great to have a man who loved to cook. An added bonus.

It was the third Wednesday of the month and, as usual, both the students and faculty were complaining about it being “Hump Day.” I had always wondered if the “Hump Day” phenomenon was as bad in other cities or whether it was because Washington, DC had so many federal government workers. To me, Wednesdays were simply another day of the week. Maybe it was because I enjoyed my job. If I were doing something I despised, I probably would have been doing a weekend countdown as well. Maybe that was the defining factor. People only worried about celebrating or dreading Wednesdays—depending on whether they were a glass half-full or a glass half-empty type of person—when they didn’t feel happy in their careers.

I was delighted to be a principal. Ever since I was a child, I had always wanted to be an educator. I had taught English after getting my master’s, and then moved my way up the food chain until the superintendent took a liking to me, and made me an assistant principal first. In 2010, he had promoted me to principal when the previous principal at Medgar Evers retired after nearly forty years of service.

We had a guest speaker that day. A former student, Lee Ricci, who had recently registered the patent for a new digital platform that had quite a buzz surrounding it. Many experts predicted that it would one day rival Google or Internet Explorer. He was major and everyone was very proud of him. He was under twenty-five and on track to become a billionaire by the time he hit thirty.

He gave an amazing and motivational speech, followed by greeting students individually in the auditorium. The baby was kicking inside of me like crazy. While uncomfortable, I loved it all the same. The experience of carrying a fetus in my belly was one that I could not describe before I actually went through it. I was getting more and more nervous, and overwhelmed with the thought of being responsible for the life of another human being . . . forever.

“Mr. Ricci, that was phenomenal!” I told him as I walked him out of the chaos toward the flight of stairs leading down to my office. “We are so proud of you here at Medgar Evers. You’re one of our most accomplished alumni.”

“People can say what they want about DC Public Schools,” he replied. “I was given a great education and I want to make sure that youth understand that it is up to them to use the opportunities presented to them instead of wasting them.”

I nodded my head as I felt the little one kicking inside my belly. “As you can imagine, every day is a challenge when it comes to trying to keep thousands of students under control and interested in school.”

“I can do more than imagine it. I remember it.”

We both laughed.

“Add on all the new technology and distractions, and I’m sure you have to keep things creative,” he added.

“Indeed. It’s hard to compete with iPhones, Androids, and tablets. And threatening to confiscate them does very little. The kids are not going to leave them at home and when they’re bored in class, the temptation to log on to something can be overwhelming.

“Are the classrooms here equipped with the latest computerized learning gadgets?”

“Is that a trick question?” I giggled. “We barely have up-to-date textbooks.”

“Well, I’d like to donate whatever you need.”

I was stunned. “Are you serious?”

“Yes, very. It’s the least I can do.”

“Thank you so much. I can’t believe you’d—”

That’s when it happened. I felt a sharp pain in the left side of my back as two male students pushed past us on the steps. Next thing I knew, I was losing my footing and falling.

Mr. Ricci tried to grab me but he couldn’t hold on to my arm.

I toppled down the flight of steps, hit my head, and passed out as I heard several people yelling out my name and saw Mr. Ricci and Lilibeth running toward me.

* * *

I woke up in the hospital under what seemed like ten-thousand-watt light bulbs on the ceiling. As my eyes adjusted, I could feel the IV needle in my arm and was grateful that I wasn’t dead. The bars were raised on the sides of the bed so I wouldn’t topple out and I heard Lilibeth whispering to someone in the distance.

My mouth was extremely dry and I was sore all over.

You fell down a flight of fucking steps! I reminded myself.