QUOTE OF THE DAY: THE MEASURE OF ACHIEVEMENT IS NOT WINNING AWARDS. IT'S DOING SOMETHING THAT YOU APPRECIATE SOMETHING YOU BELIEVE IS WORTHWHILE – JULIA CHILD
THE MVP AWARDS – PART ONE
Omniscient POV
"Have any of you heard from Aliya?" August asked and everyone rolled their eyes. "Why y'all rolling y'all eyes for?"
"You literally broke the girl's heart. I'd be surprised if we did hear from her." Malachi said and August just sighed.
"It's complicated man. I ain't mean to break her heart." He said and Neilah just scoffed.
"You sound like Chris. Well back when he was with Kayoni anyways." Neilah said and Ja'Colby snickered.
"Who sounds like me?" Chris asked, looking up from his phone.
"August does apparently." Ja'Colby said and Chris eyed August before turning his attention back down to his screen.
"What are you looking at?" Neilah questioned Chris and he just shrugged. "Answer my question. A shrug ain't going to pass."
"It's nothing, I'm just looking for a tux for the MVP awards." He said, showing her his screen.
"You taking a plus one?" Ja'Colby asked and Chris shook his head. "Me neither."
The bell for 4th period went off and they all walked to English together. Things have felt very off since Aliya has been gone. She isn't answering her phone and whenever they tried to give her a surprise visit at home, she was never there. Harris wasn't making things any better.
"August!" they heard Harris shout and they all groaned and walked into class, ignoring her.
They sat down in their assigned seats and took out their work. Harris, Avyanna, and Azalea then walked in. Harris had her eyes fixed on August and she frowned when she realized that he was ignoring her.
"August, I know you heard me calling you. Why are you ignoring me?" she said as she approached him.
"Ain't nobody ignoring your ugly ass." He said and she looked at him through eyes of fury.
"Girl, why are you mad? He don't even want your trifling ass. You know his eyes set on one person and one person only." Avyanna said and Azalea nodded her head in agreement.
"Face it, Harris. He don't want you. Even I think you're ugly. You got your "looks" from your ugly ass daddy. So don't. Don't start, don't start." Azalea said and Kayoni hollered with laughter.
"I'm sorry but she right." Kayoni laughed and Harris rolled her eyes.
"Akiki akiki, with your hyena ass laugh." Harris said and everyone just rolled their eyes and went back to ignoring her. "Cosa c'è di sbagliato nelle persone"
"Okay class, I'm going to set up the promethean board and then I'll show you what we're doing for our next project." Mrs. Kenneth said and everyone gave her a blank stare. "Damn, nobody got nothing to say? Usually you guys groan and what not."
"So you mad cause we aint say nothing? You mad cause we don't give a fuck no more? Okay miss teacher." Someone in the back said the classroom erupted with laughter.
"That's more like it." Mrs. Kenneth said and the classroom went dead silent.
"If you don't mind me asking, what's wrong with you?" Avyanna said and the classroom burst into another fit of laughter.
"Yanna, that's not nice. But I'm not disagreeing with you either." Azalea said and the teacher rolled her eyes.
Mrs. Kenneth got the promethean board to work and launched the YouTube app.
"Sorry guys, it looks like there is one of those ads that you cant skip. But its only 45 seconds. It won't do us any harm." She said and the class looked straight ahead at the board.
Light piano music began to play and they all saw a face that they recognized.
"Is that Aliya?" Kayoni asked and everyone began to talk amongst themselves. Chris and August never took their eyes off of the screen. Harris noticed August practically drooling and she kicked his shin.
"Aliya, the springtime collection." The VA said and everyone began to clap their hands.
"Can we watch it again?" someone shouted and the teacher just shook her head.
"She's not all that." Harris said and everyone turned to look at her.
"Girl you just mad cause you ugly." Azalea said and Harris rolled her eyes.
"Is that the only comeback you have?" Harris said and her cousin just smirked.
"Nah, it's just the first thing that I think when I see you." Azalea said and the teacher snickered.
"I'm sorry, that was highly inappropriate." She said before she began laughing.
"Again, what is wrong with you?" Avyanna said and the whole class began to laugh. "Nah, cause I actually want to know."
"Okay class, that is quite enough, let's get on with it." Mrs. Kenneth said trying to contain her laughter.
After School:
"So, who got an invitation to the MVP awards?" Chris asked his friends. "My mom wants to rent a limo. So just raise your hand or something."
He looked at his friends who all had their hands up. He then wondered if Aliya would like to ride with them.
"What colors are we thinking? Because Kayoni, Avyana and Azalea already know and I don't want to clash with anyone else." Neilah said and the boys shrugged.
"I'm thinking black and blue." August said.
"Cause that what you gon' be when Aliya see you up in that joint." Malachi snickered and the others did their best to refrain from laughing.
"That was outta pocket, Malachi." Neilah said and Malachi shrugged.
"What, it's not my fault." Malachi responded.
"Just shut up, this is part of the reason that I'm not going to the MVP awards with you. You're so insensitive." Neilah said and everyone got quiet.
"Okay..." Ja'Colby said and then he got up. "I'm going to head out. My mom wants me home for dinner."
"Hold up, can you drop me off, I'm on your way." Neilah said and he nodded.
"You want me to drop you off August or are you spending the night?" Chris asked and August shook his head.
"I'ma spend the night at Ja'Colby place. I'm tryna avoid Harris." He said and he nodded.
"I'll see you guys tomorrow then." Chris said and he and Malachi just looked at each other and sighed.
"Yo, you need to get your girl. She's wilding out." Chris and Malachi shrugged.
"It's whatever. She'll come 'round." Malachi responded.
"If you say so, now get out of my house."
"Damn, can't have anything nice."
⨞
Aliya POV
I walked around the venue and was amazed by the amount of work that was put in. They've got everything planned out. There's going to be a dinner and an award ceremony. I'm in charge of not only hosting the awards but providing entertainment for the first half of the dinner.
"So, what do you think?" My dad asked and I shrugged.
"It's nice, really nice. But is the red carpet necessary?" I responded and he nodded his head.
"It's an award ceremony. The red carpet was requested by the yearbook committee." He said and I just looked at him. "You're not excited about this, are you?"
"Not in the slightest. I hate everyone on the team. But here I am, going hand some of them an award that they probably don't deserve." I said and my dad frowned. He pulled me into his chest and kissed the top of my head.
"I know baby, and I'm sorry that I didn't know about how poorly they treated you sooner." He said and I looked up at him. "But it's over now, this award ceremony is the last thing that we'll do together as a team. Okay?"
"Okay"
"Did you pick a dress out yet?"
"Yeah, I'm just getting it tailored. I want the dress to fit like a glove."
"It didn't hurt my wallet did it?"
"Not really, the dress was about $4,900. Have you figured out what you're going to wear."
"Classic white and black suit." He said and I nodded.
"I have to go. Mom wants me to stop by the office. I'll see you at home."
"Okay, see you at home. You want homemade or takeout tonight?"
"It's been a while since we've had a good home cooked meal."
"Okay, I'll have Khari pick up some salmon."
"See you later." I said, waving.
I walked out of the venue and over to my car. I got in and drove to my mom's office. I parked the car and walked inside the building. I walked straight towards the elevator and walked in. As the doors were about to close, someone's hand stopped the doors from closing all the way.
I stepped to the side and watched as the doors reopened. The guy from yesterday walked in and I just stood back. He got in and I pressed the button for the very top floor. He didn't press anything so I guess we're going to the same floor.
"Aliya, right?" He said and I nodded. "It's an honor to be working with you."
"Thanks?" I said, more a question than a statement. "You say it like I'm famous or something."
"No, your mom just thinks very highly of you and she speaks very highly of you. It's a miracle that I even got picked to work with you on this collection."
"I look forward to working with you."
The elevator stopped and I walked out with whatever his name trailing right behind me. I opened one of the double doors to my mom's office and he walked in as well.
"De'Mari, I'm glad you could make it. I see you're getting yourself aquatinted with my daughter." My mother said and I just looked at De'Mari. "I think you guys will make a perfect team for this collection."
"I do too." He said and I just shrugged.
"What did you want to show me?" I asked and my mother walked to her desk and motioned for us to follow her.
We walked over and looked at the giant array of designs.
"Here's what we have so far." She said and my eyes instantly landed on the word Intimates. It better not mean what I think it does.
We spent the next 2 ½ hours talking about clothing choices and looking over the spreads. I decided to leave early because I didn't have the mental capacity to stay and my dad said that he needed me to be home ASAP.
I pulled into my driveway and I walked through the front door. I put my keys on the rack and I walked into the kitchen.
I walked down the small staircase leading into the kitchen and I saw my dad frying some potatoes. The salmon was already out and plated. What caught my attention was that there was 6 plates out. Mom said that she was going to pick something up after work.
"Daddy? Who's here?" I asked and he just hummed.
"Hey, Aliya." I heard him say and I just looked at my dad in disbelief.
"Daddy? What's August doing here?" I asked and my dad cleared his throat.
"He just stopped by to say hello and I offered to take him in for dinner. He's staying at Ja'Colby place." He said and I nodded my head.
"So they ain't got food at Ja'Colby house?" I asked and my dad sighed. "But that's just you showing hospitality to someone that disrespected your daughter. So I guess my feelings don't matter anymore."
"Aliya, I'm sorry. You know I never wanted to hurt you." He said and I scoffed.
"That's what they all say. If you don't mind, I'm going to miss out on dinner tonight." I said looking over at my dad.
"August, I think it's best if you leave." My dad said and I shook my head.
"Nah, he can stay. Ima head out." I said walking back up the steps and grabbing my keys back up off the rack.
I walked back out the front dirt and thought for a while about where I was going to go. I began walking down the driveway and onto the sidewalk. I cant believe that he had the audacity to show up to my house knowing that we're not on good terms. Where am I going to go? I sighed and walked farther along the sidewalk. I made it five houses down when I decided that I wanted to go home. I saw a car driving up the road and I covered my eyes when the bright lights neared. The car stopped right in front of me and I contemplating what I was going to do. The window rolled down and I stayed right where I was. What if I get kidnapped? Anywhere is better than here, I thought.
"Are you lost?" a familiar voice said and I shook my head no.
"Hi, Saint. Where are you coming from?" I said and he looked at me with furrowed eyebrows.
"Aliya? Is that you? What are you doing out here?" he questioned, and I just simply shrugged.
"Just taking a late-night stroll, trying to avoid some people. You?" I responded and he licked his lips before saying, "I just came from work. I'm headed home. Is there anywhere you want to go? I can give you a ride."
I smiled and he returned one.
"I'd love a ride. Where are you going?" I asked getting in the back. I noticed that there was someone in the back.
"Come up to the front. My friend in the back asleep." He said and I closed the door and made my way around the car to the passenger side. I sat down and put on my seatbelt.
"Aye, man. I change my mind, take me to my apartment." I heard the person in the back say and I turned to look at them.
"Jayden?" I said and he rubbed his eyes and blinked a few times.
"Aliya? How you doing, girl? I ain't seen you in a while." He said and I smiled.
"I'm good, how you been putting up?" I responded and he rubbed his eyes again.
"I've been good, been spending time with this fool." He said and I nodded. "Can we go, Saint? I'm tired man. I wanna go home and sleep."
"Ight, lemme take you home." Saint said, turning.
The drive to Jayden's apartment was quiet. Mostly because no one really had anything to say. We arrived and Saint parked the car. he turned around in his seat and tapped Jayden.
"We're here." He said and Jayden looked out the window.
"Y'all wanna come inside?" Jayden asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Do you want to?" Saint asked and I nodded my head. I grabbed my things and got out of the car. We followed Jayden to his apartment. He unlocked the door and we walked inside. He's living pretty well.
"I would offer you guys something to eat up I'm not gon' lie and say that I cooked." Jayden said and I laughed. "But I got water and stuff like that."
"I'm good." Saint and I said simultaneously
"Well make yourselves comfortable." He said before walking upstairs.
I ended up spending the night at Jayden's and Saint took me home the next afternoon. I walked inside the house and I saw my dad sitting in the living room.
"Hi, daddy." I said, putting my keys up on the rack. I was ready for whatever he was going to unleash. "Why didn't you go to work?"
"I called in. I had to wait for you to come home. Where were you last night?" he said and I walked into the kitchen to grab a water.
"I was with the neighbor. We spent the night at our friend's house." I said and he nodded his head.
"I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't know that things between you and August were that serious." He said and I shrugged.
"It's okay. I overreacted in a way. I should have called to tell you where I was so you didn't have to miss out on work." I said and he smiled.
"You mean more to me than any job." He said and I smiled. "Now c'mere."
Saturday:
Omniscient POV
Saturday came faster than anyone had expected. Everyone was busy getting ready.
Aliya decided to take Jayden as her plus one since Saint was unavailable. Dwanye drove like a bat from hell was chasing him as he tried to get Aliya everywhere she needed to go on time.
Harris, Avyanna, and Azalea were all getting ready at Harris' house. This was the most exciting thing that has happened so far and they weren't going to miss out.
On the other side of the street, Kayoni was arguing with Kareem on the phone. He wanted to take her as his plus one and she wasn't having it.
"I don't want to go with your dusty ass, Kareem. I want to focus on myself right now! Don't call my phone again." She said before ending the call and tossing her phone across the room. She sighed and continued to do her makeup.
Neilah, August, Ja'Colby, and Malachi were all getting ready at Chris' house. They were all nervous. This was the biggest night of the year for all of them. This is what they worked their asses off for.
"Guys, help me!" Neilah said as she franticly looked around for her other shoe. They all helped her look for her shoe and were relieved when they found it.
"Should I go for the all-white for all black suit?" Chris asked and they pointed to the black suit.
"Navy blue suit with the black button down or black suit with the navy-blue button down?" August asked and they looked in between the two outfits, not knowing which one to choose. "I'll flip a coin."
"Bow tie or a regular tie?" Malachi asked and they all shrugged. "No tie it is."
"White shoes or black shoes?" Ja'Colby asked and they all agreed on black.
They all got dressed and made their way downstairs. Chris' mother watched as they walked down the stairs one by one and she smiled at all of them.
"My babies, you look so good! Neilah, I'll help you with your hair. The limo will be here in about an hour. For now, go outside. There's a photographer out there." Chris' mother said and they all gave her a forced smile.
Aliya, Jayden, Anthony, and Coach Summers stepped out of the limo and all eyes were on them. They avoided the crowd of early comers by going in through the back.
"Are you nervous?" Jayden asked and Aliya nodded her head.
"I've never been asked to host anything in my life. I've always just been in the crowd. This is all new to me."
"Part of me feels like you're going to be doing things like this more often. But I think that you'll do great." He said and she smiled at him.
"Thanks Jay. And I never got to thank you for letting me stay the night at your place. That was really nice of you." She said and he nodded his head.
"It was my pleasure." He stated and she hugged him.
Aliya checked the time on her Rolex and it was almost time to start. She walked out through the back door, leaving Jayden to find a seat. She pushed a stray curl away from her face and looked out over the parking lot.
Hundreds of people were already at the award ceremony. Aliya watched intently as a black limo pulled up. Out came Chris, Malachi, Neilah, Kayoni, August, Harris, Ja'Colby, Avyanna and Azalea.
"Aliya! Can we get you over here on the red carpet?" I heard someone shout and I made my way over. I stepped foot onto the carpet and looked at the cameras.
"How does it feel to be the first female student to host the annual MVP awards?" someone with a notepad asked and she faked a smile before giving them an answer.
"It's truly an honor to be here tonight to represent our school and reward the people that put in all of their hard work. I've seen the hard work that these athletes put in and I know they want it to amount to something. The fact that I am the first female student to host this award ceremony, feels like an award itself." she said and they nodded their head while scribbling what she said down.
"A little birdie told me that you're going to provide entertainment. Do you have something big in store for us?" they asked and she gave them a smile.
"That is correct. But you'll just have to wait and find out." she said walking further down along the carpet.
"August! Can we get you and your girlfriend over here!" Aliya hears someone say and she picked up her dress and speed walked down the carpet.
"Aliya!" Neilah shouted and she turned around. "You look so good!"
"Me? Look at you! You look so pretty. Green is such a good color on you."
"Thanks, babe. When did you dye your hair blonde?" She asked and Aliya gave her a small smile.
"Girl, it's a wig." Aliya said and Neilah looked at her with a surprised expression.
"Since when you wear wigs?" She asked and Aliya shrugged.
"Where's the rest of your crew?" Aliya asked and Neilah shrugged.
"I wouldn't call them my crew. Me and Kai aren't really speaking. I'm fine with Chris and Colby. Harris is getting on my last fucking nerve. She just popped up with her cousins and Chris' spot and forced us to bring them with us. August was just about ready to pull her damn tracks out." Neilah said and Aliya snickered. "I'm for real, it was already too much when Kayoni asked to ride with us. I'm not even joking when I say August was ready to throw hands. Chris and Malachi had to hold him back."
"Fuck off Harris, who do you think you are?" They heard August say as he walked in and both girls picked up their dresses and walked away.
"Aliya! They're asking for you outside!" Someone shouted and she sighed, walking back outside. "Can we get a picture with you and Chris? The all black is a vibe."
She walked up to where Chris was and she stood next to him. She forced a smile onto her face and tried not to flinch when Chris wrapped his arm around her. After they finished taking pictures, they walked inside together.
"You look beautiful." Chris whispered and she gave him a small smile before walking away.
People were taking their places at tables and Aliya looked for her brother and father.
"Aliya!" She heard Anthony shout and she turned around with a smile.
"Hey lil man, where our old man?" She asked and he pointed to a table. They walked towards the table but they were stopped by Kayoni.
"Aliya... can I sit with you at your table? Kareem keeps trying to talk to me and Chris is being an asshole." She said and her and Anthony looked at her like she had grown two heads.
"Uh, I don't think you can. My dad isn't too fond of you." Aliya said and Anthony just stared at her."You need to get your baby daddies in check."
They dismissed Kayoni and they took a seat next to their father and Jayden.
"I'm going to go up after they make the announcement." Aliya told her father and he nodded.
"Aliya, we need you." One of the security guards said and she followed him to where the piano was. She sat down and looked over at the orchestra that was still tuning their instruments.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us here this evening. We are here today for the annual MVP awards. Before we get into the awards, we have a dinner planned for you lovely people and a bit of entertainment. The award ceremony will begin in a short while." Coach Summers announced and the caters brought out the food.
Aliya played a C major chord, grabbing everyone's attention. The venue quieted down and they all looked towards the piano.
"Ladies and gentlemen, it is my pleasure to be entertaining you all during dinner. Please take this time to eat, have fun and catch up with each other. Thanks again, for having me tonight." Aliya said into the microphone and the orchestra began yo play. She soon joined them.
Dinner was going to go on for an hour and a half. Aliya and the orchestra would provide entertainment for the first half and the choir would for the second half.
After Aliya's 75 minutes she got up and joined her father. She sat down and had a light meal to calm her nerves.
⨞
Aliya POV
I have never been so nervous. I followed the stage crew to where they wanted me to stand. I picked my dress up and walked backstage. I took deep breaths in and forced a smile on my face.
I heard people making their way inside and I just took a seat on one of the chairs. I sat there in slight agony for the next fifteen minutes.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome your host Aliya Summers to the stage." One of the members of the stage crew said and I got up and walked out onto the stage. Everyone clapped their hands and I made sure to smile.
What could possibly go wrong?
⨞
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
*Transitional Filler Chapter*
COUNTDOWN: 8 Chapters Left!!!
Hey guys, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It's a filler chapter to transition into the next chapter. I want to say really be prepared for the next chapter. Expect the unexpected. Sorry for any mistakes.
QUESTION OF THE DAY: WHAT DO YOU THINK IS GOING TO HAPPEN IN THE NEXT CHAPTER?
Thanks for all the love that is being shown to this book. Let me know od you guys have any suggestions. I am always open to new ideas.
VOTE AND COMMENT DOWN BELOW :)
LOTS OF LOVE ❤
-Zaniayah
This isnt what they look like, it's just what the dresses look like.