GRAVITY [OLD VERSION] | PRINCETON PEREZ

CHAPTER 2

Wednesday, March 18th - The Next Afternoon

Monroe, I folded my things at a slow pace, placing them into a box. I wiped the small tears from my cheeks, exhaling loudly while taking this entire process in. I was still frozen from the discovery I made yesterday at the gathering. My grandmother is gone and I have an older brother. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that I have a sibling, but it's been a secret for seventeen years...that I'm not happy about.

I struggled in school, with friends, life and I had no one but my grandmother to help me cope with it. But as she always said; God works in strange ways and the fact that he appeared at the right moment is a blessing, because I had no one else to turn to.

"Hey." I heard a light knock on the door. I turned to see Corbin standing there.

"You're almost done?" He asked while placing his hands in his pockets.

"Uh, yeah." I replied as I quickly placed my folded clothes into the box.

"Well, I want to show you something real quick." He said. I turned to him, looking in his eyes. He was even more devastated than I was; years of not knowing that you had a younger sibling, that's a pain.

He signaled me to follow him before stepping out in the hall. I slowly followed behind him as he lead me further down the empty, cold hallway. I observed, staring at the plain beige walls; they were once filled with pictures of me and other members of the family that were before me. Now they're empty and bare, simply no more.

We come to a stop and I realized that it was my grandmother's room. Corbin opened the door, allowing me in first and I stepped in. I looked around, realizing that even her room was empty and loud; I could hear the echo of our footsteps. Corbin picked up a nice sized box and placed it on the bed. I sat on the bare mattress, staring at the box as he sat on the other side of it. He pulls it open, taking out a book as I continued to look through.

"This is grandma's photo book." He began, catching my attention. I stared at the maroon-colored book as he reveals the first page.

"She had this since mom was a little girl, from when she met dad, even when I was born." He said to me while turning the next page and I was in awe.

"That's her when she was a little girl." He said, pointing at the first picture. She was smiling from ear to ear in that picture as she shared it with a couple of others who were in the photo as well.

"She was so beautiful." I said in awe.

"She was." He replied before turning the page. He kept flipping and flipping until I stopped him. I turned two pages back, staring at one picture that caught my attention.

"Who is that?" I asked him.

"That's dad." He answered while staring down at the picture himself. Now I knew where Corbin got his looks from; my dad was handsome, tall, muscular with brown skin and big brown eyes.

"And this...is mom." He stated. My heart felt like it dropped to the bottom of my feet. It was like looking in the mirror; she was beyond beautiful.

"She even gave you her middle name." Corbin said.

"Haiven?" I asked him and he nodded while closing the book. He placed it aside then focused back on the other antiques that were hidden in my grandmother's room. He pulled out a gold necklace with a locket attached to it.

"Grandma used to wear this every single day before she got sick." He began.

"She then passed it on to mom before she dedicated herself to the streets."

"And I know that if grandma Irene was here, she would want this to continue to be passed on." He continued.

"She would want you to have it." He finished before handing me the locket. I stared at it for a moment as he placed everything back into the box. I smiled a bit while gently rubbing my finger across the fine piece of jewelry. I opened the locket, seeing a picture of a heart and a message on the other side.

"Never be afraid to fight for what's yours!" I read aloud.

"She used to tell me this all the time." I said.

"She told me the exact same thing." Corbin stated. I stared back at the locket as he stood to his feet.

"Come on, we have a long flight to catch." He said, kissing my forehead before leaving the room. I held onto the locket, smiling again. Even though my grandmother wasn't here physically, I knew that she was here mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

I locked the necklace around my neck as I made my way out of the room, closing the door behind me. I headed back into mine to finished packing, yet while thinking about the new life that I'm about to enter. I've never been to California, but I've heard a lot about it. I heard that it was fun and way better than Georgia. I also heard that most of my family resides there, I'm excited to meet them but nervous too. What if they don't accept me? What if they don't like me and demand me to come back here, then where will I go?

I sighed aloud, plopping down on the bed. I placed my hand on the necklace again, somehow feeling my grandmother somewhere in the room. Only she would know what to do, but now it's time for me to think on my own. I'm not a little girl anymore and I'm not going to act like one. I can only hope for the best.