It was a rainy day and Bonita West-Stone was sitting in the school cafeteria eating breakfast with her friend Mackenzie Shivers. they’d been best friends ever since they met in the eighth grade. "I wish they’d heat these doughnuts" Mackenzie complained eating a bit of her breakfast. She noticed Bonita was staring off into space. "Nita! you ok?" Mackenzie said snapping her out of it. "Yeah I was thinking about my mom, she’s been acting weird lately" Bonita said drinking her milk. "How?" Mackenzie asked. "Well she’s been really secretive lately, like she’ll write stuff down then hide it and when she gets a phone call she’ll go in the other room or tell me to go play or something" Bonita stated. "Maybe she has a new boyfriend that she doesn’t want you to know about" Mackenzie said. "I don’t know she usually doesn’t keep the jerks she dates a secret" Bonita said trying to chew a rather hard piece of doughnut. Just then their friend Mercedes DeBois joined them. The girls admired Mercedes. She survived an abusive relationship a few months back. "Hey chickies what’s up?" she greeted sitting down at the table. "Hey Sadie whist’s up?" Mackenzie asked. "Not much, hey you girls wanna come see me race after school today?" Mercedes asked. Mercedes owned a horse ranch and a track down the road from the ranch with her family. "Which horse are you racing with?" Bonita asked. "Katrina Star, she’s our fasted horse" Mercedes stated as the bell rang warning students to get to their first class. Mercedes told the girls to let her know at lunch and she and Bonita ran off to gym class. The teacher Ms. Tucker was telling them how much they’ve improved on their dancing so far. "Class you're doing great" she said ," and the next dance we’re gonna learn is called stay young". She had the class watch her do it first. Then she had the class come onto the floor and do it. It was an easy dance and they class had it down pact in no time. She told the class to sit back down and she gave them an assignment. "Ok girls I have a project for you to do" Ms. Tucker said, "I want you to pair up with a partner and come up with your own dance and you have two months to come up with it" she said and excused them to the girls locker room. Bonita and Mercedes paired up and since Mercedes was a cheerleader and Bonita was in the school step team they thought it would be easy. The girls got dressed and sat on the bench until the bell rang. On the way to her next class a teacher stopped Bonita. "Ms. West-Stone please come here" the teacher said. Bonita turned around and saw that it was Mr. Olden the art teacher. "Yes Mr. Olden?" she greeted walking up to him. "I’m in charge I’m the comic section of the school paper and I noticed you had some drawings of animals in your binder, are they yours?" Mr. Olden asked. "Yes Mr. Olden, I draw animals all the time" she stated. "Well we’re thinking of doing a comic strip involving animals and I wanna know if you’d like to draw them?" Mr. Olden asked. "Sure Mr. Olden I’d love to" she stated excitedly. "Ok here is the list of animals we wanna use and here is a pass to get into your next class´ he said handing both pieces of paper to her. She got to class and gave her teacher the late pass. "Here’s you vocabulary packet just use your dictionary" the teacher said as Bonita walked to her desk. As she sat down she looked at the list of animals Mr. Olden gave her. On the list was a kitten that needed to be white and orange, a puppy that needed to be solid black, a girl cat that always wore a fancy pink dress, a white mouse, a black rabbit that always wore a tiara on her head, and a horse that was brown with white spots that always wore a top hat.
Just then she saw Mackenzie walk back in the room and hand the teacher the rest room pass. She sat down next to Bonita and started her work. "Hey Kenzie did you find the word formalize yet?" Bonita asked deciding not to do the words in order just to drive the teacher wild. "No I’m doing mine in order" Mackenzie said with a little laugh. The bell rang and the teacher told everyone to have their vocabulary words done by Friday and that she wanted sentences with the words as well as definitions. Mackenzie went to her locker to get some paper and Bonita said she’d meet her in the library for study hall. As Bonita walked to the school library she stopped by the student supply store were Mackenzie’s not so secret admirer works during his free period. "Hey Bonita, whatcha need?" Eathon asked walking up to the counter window. "Got any coloring pencils?" she asked. "Yeah hold on I think we have a sixty pack in the back" Eathon said rushing to the supply room to check. As she was waiting Bonita spotted the help wanted sign hanging on the outside of the window. "Here ya go Bonita" Eathon said returning, "they’re eight dollars". "Ok here" she said handing him the money, "hey Eathon how do I apply for a job here?". "Just fill this application form out and hand it to the assistant principal" he said handing Bonita an application. She thanked him, put the form and pencils in her bag, and ran off to study hall. She got to study hall just as the tardy bell rang and sat down next to Mackenzie. "Where were you?, I was started to think you were gonna skip study hall" Mackenzie said. "No Kenzie I'm not that stupid I was buying some coloring pencils from the supply store" Bonita said taking the application out of her book bag. "What's that?" Mackenzie asked doing her work. "It's an application to work for the school supply store" Bonita replied starting to fill it out. "You're gonna work at the same place as Eathon" Mackenzie said rolling her eyes at the thought. "What's so wrong with Eathon?" Bonita asked. "Nothing, I just don't know if I like him like he likes me yet" Mackenzie said making sure not to make eye contact with Bonita. Bonita finished the application and got her binder out of her bag. She pulled out the list of animals she had to draw and read it again to be sure of what to draw. "What's that Nita?" Mackenzie asked. "A list of animals Mr. Olden wants me to draw for a comic strip in the school paper" she replied adding her new pencils to her pencil bag. Just then Mr. Olden came in and he walked over to Bonita and asked her how the drawings were going. "I'm starting now, but Mr. Olden do the animals have names?" Bonita asked. "No, but you can give them names" he said and walked around checking on other students. Bonita took out her trusty number two drawing pencil and find a clean piece of drawing paper in her drawing binder.
She found a black piece of paper because she decided to draw the mouse first. As she was working she heard the principal come on the intercom. "Hello students I just wanted to remind everyone that the homecoming dance is in three days so please purchase your tickets, they are five dollars for single and ten dollars for couples". "Are you gonna go Nita?" Mackenzie asked. "I don’t know I might, are you gonna go?" Bonita asked finishing the ears on her mouse. "If someone asks me" Mackenzie replied. "I know who’s gonna ask" Bonita teased. "Nita that’s not funny" Mackenzie replied. "Oh come on you know good and well he’s gonna ask over and over" Bonita said coloring the little mouse she drew white. "I know" Mackenzie said as the bell rung. The girls gathered their stuff and went on their way to lunch. They got their lunch and sat down. Mackenzie being a vegetarian, had a school salad and Bonita had a cheeseburger and a coke. As she was eating Bonita saw the assistant principal and quickly ran over to her to give her her job application. "Ms. Smith!" she yelled getting her attention. "Yes Ms. West-Stone?" she greeted. "Here is my application for the job at the student supply store" Bonita said handing her the application. The principle looked it over and told Bonita she started the next day during her free period. Bonita went and sat back down at the table. When she got there she saw that Mercedes was sitting there too. "Hey Sadie" she greeted as she sat back down at the table. "Nita, Kenzie said she’s coming to see me race, so are you?" Mercedes asked. "Sure Sadie and Kenzie I got that job at the school supply store, I start tomorrow" Bonita stated. "Cool" Mackenzie said eating the last bite of her salad. When Bonita finished her lunch she got her drawing binder out and finished the mouse by coloring it’s nose a dark pink color. "Cute mouse what’s it for?" Mercedes asked fixing her lip gloss. "I got a job drawing animals for a new comic strip in the school newspaper" Bonita answered writing the name Beeper In white marker at the top of the paper for the mouse’s name. As she put the page back in her binder the bell rang for her free period. She and Mackenzie got their stuff together and went to the hang out ground of the school. It was were all the kids hung out outside the school during their free periods because they had no class. They got out there and sat on a big flat rock where they always sat. "So are you gonna say yes if Eathon asks you to the dance?" Bonita asked. "I don’t know I like him, but I’ve never dated before" Mercedes said. "I think you guys would be cool together" Bonita said lighting up a cigarette. The school allowed the students to smoke outside as long as they didn't catch them.
As the girls sat there talking about the dance Tina Rivers walked over sat down with them. "Hey ladies you girls going to the dance?" Tina asked. "Well I don’t know if I am, but Kenzie might" Bonita said with a giggle. "Let me guess, Eathon?" Tina asked. "Of course" Bonita said. "Who are you going with Tina?" Mackenzie asked. "Erin" She said. Erin was Tina’s boyfriend of three years. "You guys should just get married" Bonita said joking around. "Funny, anyway if you girls come you should stop by Cherish's party after the dance" Tina said. "I might check it out" Bonita said. Just then the bell rang and Bonita hurried off to parenting class. The teacher’s name was Mrs. Blount-Hill. "Hello everyone today is the day you’ve all been waiting for" she said open her supply closet door. "Today is when we get our babies". She said passing out fake birth certificate sheets. "Ok I’ll call names and one at a time you come up to get your baby" Mrs. Blount-Hill said looking at her roll call list. "Ok first up Bryan Sells" She said. Bryan walked up to get his baby and Bonita was star struck. She had secretly loved Bryan since eighth grade. He had short brown hair, light blue eyes, and a voice that would make any girl melt. Bonita was hoping that Bryan would ask her to the dance. Bryan got a baby boy and sat down at his desk. As Mrs. Blount-Hill was calling names Bonita day dreamed of dancing with Bryan at homecoming until she heard her name get called. She walked up to the teacher and got a baby girl. After Mrs. Blount-Hill gave out a baby to everyone she told them to fill out their birth certificates and put them on the table in the back with their baby. Bonita named her baby Ashya-Bliss West-Stone. Parenting was the last class of the day so after the bell rang she met Mercedes and Mackenzie in the student parking lot. The girls got in Mercedes´ car and she starting driving to her house. "Hey Sadie after you get done with your race I’ll stay over and we’ll work on our dance" Bonita suggested. "Ok" Mercedes said. Bonita got her cell phone out of her bag and called her mom, but the answering machine picked up. "Hey you have reached the home of Leanna and Bonita West-Stone, we are not at home so please leave your name, number, and a brief message bye". "Hey Mom it’s me I’m gonna be late getting home, I’m gonna watch Mercedes race and then I’m gonna stay over work on a school assignment with her love you bye" Bonita said and hung up the phone. They pulled in the drive way of Mercedes´ house and saw her little sister La´nita, sitting on the porch playing with her dolls.
"You girls wait out here I’m gonna go change into my racing clothes" Mercedes said going inside. The girls sat down on the porch swing and watched La´Nita play with her dolls. "Hey La´Nita did you get a new baby?" Mackenzie asked. "This is my new cabbage patch baby girl" La´Nita said showing it to the girls. "What’s her name?" Bonita asked. "I named her Sara" she said cradling the doll in her arms. Just then Mercedes came back out and they went to get the horse. "Get Katrina Star for me and for my friends get Comet and Eclipse" Mercedes said to a stable helper. The stable helper got the horses and the girls galloped off to the racing track. The unique thing about Mercedes´ family’s race track was that there was no bidding with money. Instead the bidders told the bookies which horse they thought would win and if they were right they got to pick a themed gift basket or baskets with mixed items in it and the rider who rides the winning horse gets a basket too. The girls got to the track and tied up their horses while Mercedes prepared hers for the race. The girls sat on one of the benches and waited. As Bonita looked at the horses a woman came over the intercom. "Hello and welcome to the Peaceful Isle Track; the next race starts in ten minutes so any bidders who want to bid on either Peaceful Isle horse Katrina Star or Oak Farm horse Flasher better place their bids now!". Bonita looked over and saw Mercedes at the starting line with Katrina Star. "Ok the race is about to start, riders please mount your horses" the lady said over the intercom. Mercedes mounted Katrina Star and petted her to keep her still. "Ok riders get ready, set, GO!" the lady said and the horses took off. Bonita was amazed by how fast Katrina Star was. Mercedes´ horse passed the finishing line and left the other horse in a big cloud of dust. "Ladies and gentleman the winner is Katrina Star!" the intercom lady said. Bonita and Mackenzie met Mercedes at the prize table. "What price would you like Ms. DeBois?" the lady at the table asked. Mercedes looked around saw a gift basket that had toy baby supplies and picked it for La´Nita. The girls got on their horses and went back to Mercedes´ house. When they got there and got the horses back in their stables La´Nita saw the basket and grabbed it. "Thanks Sis!" she exclaimed giving Mercedes a big hug. "Well girls I gotta catch the bus to get home see ya" Mackenzie said running up the road. "Come on Nita we’ll go work on our dance in my mom’s dance studio" Mercedes said leading Bonita into the house and down into the basement. The girls looked through Mercedes cds and couldn’t decide on what cd to listen to. "How about of the songs from Christina Aguilera´s new cd Back to Basics?" Mercedes asked. "Ok what song?" Bonita asked looking through the cds still. ´How about Ain't No Other Man?" Mercedes suggested.
"Ok" Bonita said putting the cd in the player. The girls danced for about an hour then Bonita had to get home. She stood at the end of the dusty road leading from Mercedes house waiting for the bus. After the bus dropped her at the corner of her street and she was walking home, she saw this big fluffy brown dog run in an ally. She got in her house and saw that the answering machine hadn’t been checked so her mom wasn’t home. She went upstairs, threw her bag on her bed, and took a hot bath. As she was in the tub she was thinking about the day she had it school. It was the best day she’s had at school all year so far. She heard her cell phone ring, so she got out of the tub and put her robe on. She ran to her room and got her phone out of her bag. "Hello" she said. "Hey Nita what’s up?" Makcenzie said on the other end. "Hey Kenzie whatcha doin?" she asked. "Nothin I was calling to ask if you wanted to get to the mall" Makcenzie said. "I’ll ask when my mom gets home" bonita said laying back on her bed. "She’s not home yet?" Makcenzie asked. "Nope she probably got held up at work, she is a social worker after all" Bonita stated. "Ok well call me if you can bye" Makcenzie said. "Ok bye" Bonita said hanging up the phone. She went and got dresses and ran downstairs. As she went into the kitchen to get a pop she saw that her mom still wasn’t home. She went and listened to the answering machine. First it was her message. Then came a strange message from a women. "Hello Leanna, it’s Hope umm we do need to talk after so long a lot of things need to be taken care of please call me at 555-0982". she wrote the message down for her mom and went and watched TV. She was watching a show called Diamond Hill. It was a show where they made sick kids dreams come true. In this episode they surprised a little four year old girl who had cancer by letting her meet her favorite singer Angel. Just as the show was going off the phone rang. "Hello" Bonita answered. "Hey Hun it’s Mom" her mom said on the other end of the phone. "Oh hey Mom" she said. "Look Sweety I’m gonna be at the office for a few more hours , so get some money out of that jar in the kitchen and order a pizza ok?" her mom said. "Ok Mom bye" Bonita said and hung up the phone. She got enough money out to order two pizzas from ´Papa Johns´. She ate a few slices, put the rest in the fridge, locked the door, and went up to her room to get ready for bed. She put on her pajamas and brushed her teeth. She sat on her bed and took a teddy bear out of her book bag. It had a mood ring hanging from a piece of string around it’s neck. Those two things were the last things she ever got from her baby brother before he died in a car crash at the age of two. "Hey Eric" she said pretending the bear was her brother like she always did, "Today was pretty cool at school; I got a job drawing animals for the school newspaper and a job in the supply store". She kissed the bear and put it back in her book bag.
Around twelve that night Bonita woke to the sound of her mom talking on the phone. She went to the top of the steps and listened. "Look I’m sorry" she heard her mom say. "I don’t know how to tell her about you" her mom said. Bonita thought maybe Mackenzie was right when she said her mom was just hiding a boyfriend from her. "She’s gonna hate me when she finds out who you are" Bonita then wondered if she knew the person she was talking to. She went downstairs and sat on the bottom step. "How do I tell her?, I’ve kept you a secret for twenty-nine years". Bonita was shocked her mom couldn’t be hiding a guy from her if no one knew about this person. "Mom what’s going?" Bonita asked as her mom was walking by the stairs. "I gotta go" her mom said and hung up the phone. "Who’s this person you don’t want me to know about?" Bonita asked walking up to her mom. "Nita Honey sit down over here with me" her mom said walking toward the sofa. "Do you remember when I told you about the boy I was in love with when I was your age?" her mom asked. "Yeah" Bonita said. "Well remember when I told we made love once" Leanna asked. "Yeah why?" Bonita asked a little confused. "Well as a result of that I got pregnant with a baby girl" her mom said, "but my dad being the kind of guy who was shamed by stuff like I was forced to give my baby up for adoption". "So what’s this mystery person got to do with that?" Bonita asked a little shocked. "That person’s name is Hope Renters, she’s your sister" her mom said. Bonita just sat there for a few minutes shocked. The she ran up to her room. Bonita just laid on her bed for a while and thought about what her mother said. She finally fell asleep, but not for long because the alarm rang for her to get ready for school. Bonita got dressed and went downstairs. Ignoring her mother she went out there door. "Bonita can we talk about this!" she heard her mother yell, but just kept on walking. She got to the corner and sat down on the bench. She decided to smoke a cigarette while she waited. She thought about the sister she never knew. How was she? Did she grow up in a good home? Did she wanna meet her? Bonita just has so much she wanted to know about Hope. Bonita saw the bus coming so she put out the cigarette and ate a mint. She got on the bus and tried to clear her mind. That day in study Mackenzie knew something was bothering her. "You ok Nita?" Mackenzie asked. "No" Bonita replied doing her work. "Do you wanna talk about it?" Mackenzie asked concerned. "I’ll tell you at lunch" Bonita replied. At lunch Bonita told Mackenzie what her mom told her and how hurt she was that her mom would keep her sister a secret. "Do you even know how your sister feels about this?" Mackenzie asked. "All I know is that she knows about me and made Mom tell me about her" Bonita replied.
After lunch Bonita headed to the student supply store to start her job. "Hey Eathon I’ll take it from here" she said putting her bag on a back table. "Ok Nita for once Mr. Olden can’t rag on me for being late to art class" Eathon said going out the door. She sat down at the desk next to the counter window and got her drawing binder out of her bag. She decided to start drawing the black rabbit that wore the tiara. As she finished the ears of the rabbit she heard someone ring the bell outside the counter window. She got up and saw it was Bryan. "Can I help you?" she asked. "Yeah I need a one subject notebook and a number two pencil" he said. "The notebook is a dollar and the pencil is sixty cense" she said handing him the supplies. He gave her the money and she typed him up a receipt. "Oh Bonita I was wondering if you had a date for the dance" Bryan said. "Not yet" she replied. "Would you be my date to the dance?" he asked. "Sure" Bonita replied. After Bryan left Bonita called Mackenzie. "Hello" Mackenzie answered. "Hey Kenzie you still outside for free period?" Bonita asked. "Yeah why?" Mackenzie asked. "Come to the supply store I got something to tell you" Bonita said and hung up. As she waited for Mackenzie she went back to work on her rabbit. She finished the body just as Mackenzie got there. "Hey girl what’s up?" Mackenzie greeted. "Bryan Sellis asked me to the dance" Bonita exclaimed. "Cool and maybe I’ll say yes to Eathon" Mackenzie admitted. Just then the bell rung and Bonita gathered her things and went to parenting class. "Ok class today we’re gonna learn how to change a diaper" Mrs. Blount-Hill said getting some diapers out of the supply closet. "Everyone go get your babies" she said. Bonita went and get her baby and went back to her desk. Mrs. Blount-Hill passed out a diaper to each student and told them to change their baby’s diaper. She was very impressed on how good Bonita did on changing a diaper. "Very good Ms. West-Stone" she said checking others. "Ok everyone put your babies back on the back table and sit down at your desks" Mrs. Blount-Hill said. Bonita put Ashya back and sat down at her desk. She noticed three huge boxes with little white and black bags in them. "Ok class since we are taking care of babies we are gonna design our own baby bags" she said passing out a few of the bags. Bonita got a black one. "Now in the boxes on your desks are supplies you can use to make your bag stand out" Mrs. Blount-Hill said. Bonita looked in the box realized she d work on her baby bag at home because she had the same supplies at home. Knowing Mrs. Blount-Hill wouldn’t pay attention to her she put her baby bag in her back pack and got her drawing binder out. She finished drawing the rabbits tail and then drew the tiara. She got her big bag of coloring pencils and got a color out called ´Passion Green´ which was really a greenish blue color and colored the little gems on the tiara she drew.
As she colored the last gem the bell rang to go home. She put her things in her bag and left the room. As she was walking out the door to the bus stop Mackenzie ran to catch up to her. "Hey Nita, do you wanna go shopping for dresses with me and Sadie tomorrow?" she asked. "Sure Kenzie" Bonita said and kept walked. As she waited for the bus Bonita starting thinking about hope again. This time she wondered what she looked like. what color were her eyes? What color was here hair? How long was her hair? how tall was she? Bonita snapped out of it when she heard the bus doors open. When the bus dropped her off at the corner and she started walking toward her home she saw the same dog she saw the other day, only this time it was chasing a cat down the street. She got to her apartment and unlocked the door. She saw after a few minutes her mom wasn’t home and she sighed in relief. She walked over to the phone and saw that there was a message, so she pressed the play button. It was Hope. "Hi Leanna, look I know you don’t want her to meet me yet, but I’m just letting you know I’m not leaving til I get to meet her" she said and hung up. Bonita trying to fight back her anger went into the kitchen to get a soda, grabbed her back pack, and went to sit out on the balcony. Bonita got her drawing binder out and her bag and starting coloring the crown on the rabbits head a blue color called ´Manatee´. It looked more like a gray color. She finished the tiara and studied the nose. She colored the nose a pink color called ´Cotton Candy´. She looked up from finishing the nose and saw Mercedes and her sister Charlotte riding horses down to the pharmacy. Bonita was glad too see Mercedes' horse Speeder was doing better after being poisoned a few months back. Going back to her drawings she finished the rabbit by coloring the eyes green. After that she took a black marker out of her bag and wrote the cute little name Chocolate. She put the drawing of the rabbit behind the drawing of the mouse she finished the other day in her binder. After that she noticed her mom still wasn't home. She reached into her book bag and got this little purple book out. She opened it up to a blank sheet of paper and started to write.
Dear Eric,
Hey lil' bro! What's up? I'm just sitting wondering if
I should ever forgive Mom for what she did. The other night
she told that when she was my age she got pregnant and gave
the baby up for adoption. I was very shocked. All I know about our
new sister is that her name is hope and she's twenty-nine. I also know
that she told me that until me and her meet she isn't leaving. I wonder about
her sometimes. On a happier note this boy I like at school asked me to the home-
coming dance this Saturday. Me, Sadie, and Kenzie are going shopping for dresses
tomorrow. Well talk to you later! Bye.
Just as she finished her letter she heard the door bell ring. She put her stuff in her back pack and went inside. She threw her bag on the couch and looked through the peep to see who it was. She opened the door and it was Ms. Hutcherson. An old lady who lived a few doors down from Bonita. Ms. Hutcherson was like a second mother to Bonita. "Hey Nanna can I help you?" Bonita greeted giving the old lady a hug. "Your mother called earlier and told me that whenever you got home to tell she was gonna be working over time and she wants you to stay at my apartment til she gets home, I guess she's a little worried since the robbery downstairs this morning" the old lady said. Bonita said ok and grabbed her bag.
She enter the lady’s apartment and the scent of sugar and roses hit her nose. "I just made some fresh cookies because I thought my daughter was gonna bring her kids over since she’s not do you want some?, they’re chocolate chip" Ms. Hutcherson asked. "Sure" Bonita said smiling at the old lady. As she waited she got her vocabulary words out and worked on them. "Here are some nice hot cookies" Ms. Hutcherson said laying a plate of cookies and a class of milk on the coffee table. Bonita took a bite of one cookie and she smiled. They seemed to melt in her mouth as soon as she took a bite. "Do you mind if I watch the news Hun?" the old lady asked sitting in hear comfy rocking chair. "Sure Nana" Bonita said returning to her work. A few hour later as she was watching TV with Ms. Hutcherson there was a knock on the door. Ms. Hutcherson looked through the peep whole and saw it was Bonita’s mother. "Hey Leanna Hun" Bonita heard Ms. Hutcherson say. "Hey Nana is Bonita ready?" Leanna asked. Bonita grabbed her bag, gave Ms. Hutcherson a hug and walked passed her mother to their apartment. She unlocked the door and ran up to her room while her mother was still talking to Ms. Hutcherson. As Bonita was standing in her bathroom fixing her hair her mom knocked on her door. "Bonita Honey can we talk?" her asked. "Uhh sorry Mom I got alot of homework to do!" Bonita replied as she heard her mom walk back downstairs. Bonita grabbed her book bag and got out her English homework since it was do the next day. After she finished her English work she got started on her baby bag. She got a big card board box out from under her bed. She pulled out this folder that had tons of stencils in it. She pulled one out that had shapes of toys on it. She found a rattle shape and traced it on the front pouch of the bag with a white fabric pencil. She got out a small bottle of clear glue and carefully filled in the space of the rattle she drew. Then she got out a jar of blue glitter and poured it on the front pouch of the bag. She moved the glitter around a little bit to make sure the glitter filled the entire drawing. After she was sure it was filled she folded the bag slightly and poured the rest of the glitter back in the jar. Then she picked the stencil back up and studied it some more. She saw a small teddy bear shape on the stencil and decided to put that shape above the pouch with the rattle on it. After tracing it with the white pencil and putting the glue down she got out a jar of brown glitter. She poured the glitter on the bear and moved it around like before. After knowing the teddy bear was glitter filled she did what she did before to put the glitter up. After doing that she decided to put her bag on her doorknob so it would try. She put her supplies away and whipped off any glitter that was on her clothes. She decided to watch TV for a little bit just to ignore her mom a little longer. She turned the TV to her favorite show called ´Storm´. It was about a witch who was only fifteen and she is just learning of her powers.
A while later she noticed her stomach starting to growl. So she quietly went down the steps. When she saw her mom was asleep on the couch she went into the kitchen. She looked in the food pantry and found a bag of Hershey’s chocolate bar miniatures. She took the bag of tiny candy bars, made a cup of hot chocolate, put big marshmallows in it, and went upstairs with her treats. She turned the TV to a show called ´Saturday Night Live´. As she watched she ate several of the tiny candy bars and drank her steamy hot chocolate. After the show went off she put the rest of the bag of candy bars in her book bag for a snack at school some time and went in her bathroom to rinse out her cup. She put on her pajamas, brushed her teeth and hair, and went to bed. The next day after school Bonita, Mercedes, and Mackenzie went to the mall to shop for homecoming dresses. The went into a store called ´Princess Designs´. Bonita tried on a dress that was hot pink and strapless. It also came with elbow length cloves and matching high heels. "I don’t like it" she told the girls, "It’s to girly". She went back and tried on a long light blue dress with matching elbow length cloves and shoes. "It looks like your going to a wedding" Mercedes stated. Bonita went back and tried on a black strapless knee length dress with a pink lace bow tied around it with to long strings of the lace hanging down and pink lace on the trim of the dress. It also had a soft black neck hugger and matching sandals. She walked out and the girls immediately told her that was her dress. "What’s the price on it?" she asked turning around so the girls could check the tag. "seventy-nine dollars" Mackenzie said. Bonita decided to buy it and went to change back into to her regular clothes. Bonita also bought a matching tiara with pink rhinestones in it for fifteen dollars. After the girls got there dresses they decided to stop by the pizza stand for a few slices. "So Kenzie did you say yes to Eathon for the dance" Bonita asked. "Yeah I did, I just hope I don’t lead him on to strongly" Mackenzie said with a little sigh. "Who are you going with Sadie?" Mackenzie asked. "Chris Stiles" she replied. "Christopher Stiles!, aren’t you worried people will talk about you dating a wheel chaired person?" Mackenzie asked. "Kenza!" Mercedes yelled, "just because he’s in a wheelchair doesn’t mean he can’t date and Chris is very sweet". "You two have been close since the Randell thing ended" Bonita stated. On the drive to drop Bonita off Mackenzie and Mercedes hardly said a word. "Hey Nita" Mackenzie finally said, "is it ok if I stay at your house til my mom gets home?". "Sure" Bonita said. Mercedes dropped the girls off at Bonita’s apartment building. As the girls reached Bonita’s floor they saw Ms. Hutcherson watering her plants. "Hey Nana" Bonita said walking over to her and giving her a hug. "Hey Bonita, oh your mom said that if you felt lonely just to come over her while she’s at work" Ms. Hutcherson said. "I have friend over right now Nana, but maybe I’ll come over when she goes home" Bonita said walking back over to unlock her door.
The girls walked into the apartment and Bonita laid her bag on the chair by the steps. "Want a soda or anything to drink?" Bonita asked Mackenzie. "A Pepsi if you have one" Mackenzie said looking around amazed at how big Bonita’s apartment was. Bonita returned to the room with two cans of Pepsi and handed one to Mackenzie. Bonita turned on the TV and put on a channel called noggin which in the evening was known as The-n. Mackenzie’s favorite show was on. It was called South of Nowhere. The girls talked and laughed until Mackenzie’s cell phone rang. "Hello" she answered. "Oh hey Mom, I’m at Bonita’s" the was a short pause. "Ok Mommy bye" Mackenzie said. They girls watched a little more TV until Mackenzie’s mom showed up to pick her up. After Mackenzie left Bonita saw that it was almost ten o´ clock. She decided to visit Ms. Hutcherson since her mom wasn’t home yet. She walked into the hall and locked her door. She knocked on Ms. Hutcherson´s door several times. "Nana!, it’s me Bonita!" she yelled, but there was no response. She went back inside her apartment and got out a little lock box her mom kept in a drawer in the living room. She opened it and took out the key to Ms. Hutcherson´s apartment that she let her mom keep just incase. Bonita once again stepped out into the hall and locked her door. She unlocked Ms. Hutcherson´s apartment and walked in. Bonita examined the living room and everything looked in order. She ran up the small set of steps that led to the old lady’s bedroom and she wasn’t in there. She ran back downstairs and looked in the kitchen and her eyes got wide with horror. "Nana!" she screamed running over to the old woman who was laying unconscious on the floor. She tried to shake her to wake her up, but it didn’t work. Bonita ran to the phone and called 911. "Hello 911 what’s your emergency?" a women asked. "Hello a neighbor of mine is laying the floor and she’s not moving or breathing" Bonita said trying to stay calm. "What’s the address?" the woman asked. "twelve, thirty-four Wilmington Drive, it’s an apartment building, the room number is room twenty-four" Bonita said. "Help is on the way" the lady said as Bonita hung up. Five minutes later an ambulance was there. After they examined her they said she’d been dead about two hours. Bonita broke down and cried. A police officer called her mom and stayed with her until she got there. "Mrs. West-Stone?" the officer greeted extending his hand. "Yes" Leanna replied. "Your daughter called 911 about an hour ago and from how it looks Ms. Hutcherson died of a stroke about three hours ago" the officer informed.
Bonita ran back into their apartment and up to her room and cried for hours. She thought about all the times Ms. Hutcherson was there when she needed her. She remembered this one time in seventh grade. It was raining so hard that water was getting to the top of the sidewalks and parking lots and she was stuck outside because she forgot her key to get into the building. Ms. Hutcherson was nice enough to tell the desk clerk to let her in so she could watch her while her mom was at work. After a few hours of crying Bonita finally fell asleep. Bonita woke up around twelve o’clock the next day. She remembered losing a women who was like a second mom to her and tried to cry again, but the tears couldn’t come out. She went and took a bath and got dressed. She just laid on her bed for what seemed forever when she heard a knock on her door. "Nita it’s Mackenzie!" she heard Mackenzie say through the door. "come in!" Bonita replied. Mackenzie walked in and closed the door behind her. "Hey, I heard about Ms. Hutcherson, sorry" Mackenzie said hugging Bonita. "Thanks" Bonita replied in a sad soft tone. "So what time should me and Sadie meet you here to go to the dance?" Mackenzie asked. "I don’t even know if I’m even gonna go" Bonita said laying back on her bed. "Nita your nana would want you to go out and have fun not mourn her death forever" Mackenzie said playing with a strand of Bonita’s hair. ´I know it’s just hard to believe she’s gone" Bonita stated. Later that evening Bonita was getting ready for the dance. She put her dress on, her sandals, and neck hugger. She put her tiara on and did her make-up. Around seven-thirty the door bell rang. Leanna answered the door and it was Mercedes and Mackenzie with their dates. She welcomed them in and told them that Bonita would be down shortly. As she was finishing putting mascara on she heard the door bell ring again. It was Bryan this time and her mom welcomed him in. "Bonita your friends and your date are here!" she heard her mom yell. Bonita walked down the steps and everyone was surprised out how beautiful she looked. "Wow you look incredible" Bryan said giving her a pretty pink corsage. "Thanks" she said grabbing his arm. Her mom took a few pictures and they were off to the dance. When they got there they could hear the music blasting. They got in and Bonita dragged Bryan out to the dance.
After dancing for about a hour the girls decided to sit down at a table and grab some snacks. Just then Bryan’s cell phone rung. "Sorry Niita gotta take this I’ll be back" he said kissing her cheek and walking outside. "Looks like you and Bryan are hitting it off" Mercedes said. "Yeah it’s a dream come true" Bonita said with a little giggle. Bryan came back and told Bonita he had to leave early because his was having her normal panic attacks. Bonita understand and he hugged her and left. After that everyone decided to go over to Cherish´s party for a while. Bonita went into the kitchen of the cherish´s house and got a bottle of beer. She was hanging out with Mackenzie who was trying not to get to cuddly with Eathon. A few hours later Bonita was wasted. She was dancing in a sluty way with some other girls. A guy walked up to her and asked her to dance and she accepted. The guy told Bonita his name was Ian Copper and she said her name and they talked for hours. "You know it’s loud up here let’s go upstairs where it’s quiet" Ian suggested. "Ok" Bonita said trying to keep her balance as she got up. They went into the master bedroom and sat down on the bed. Ian started kissing Bonita’s neck and she pushed him away. He forced her down on her back on the bed and ripped her panties off and he unzipped his pants. Bonita tired to find him off, but he was to strong and he raped her. After he was done he fell asleep and Bonita ran out of the room trying not let people know what happened. When the girls dropped her off she ran straight to her room and cried. The next day her mother found her in the bath tub staring off into space as the freezing cold water hit her body. Leanna got a towel and helped Bonita get out of the tub. "What’s wrong Nita?" he mom asked. "Nothing Mom, I just don’t feel good" Bonita lied. Her mom kissed her on the cheek and left the room. After Bonita was sure she was gone she got out her purple book from her book bag and found a blank piece of paper.
Dear Eric,
Hey lil´ bro what’s up?
I’ve lost every bit of innocence I had last night
and it’s all my fault. This boy I met at a party last
night raped me. If I hadn’t got so drunk I think I would
have see the signs. Well I can’t tell anyone because they’ll just say
I was asking for it. Later Eric bye.
Bonita put the book up and put on one of her comfy jogging outfits. She went downstairs and sat on the couch while her mom made breakfast. "Nita do you want anything besides eggs?" her mom asked. "No Momma I’m not hungry" she replied laying down on the couch. She was watching TV when there was a knock on the door. Leanna answered it and it was Mackenzie and Mercedes. "Hey Nita, wanna go jogging with us?" Mercedes asked.
Thinking it would make her feel slightly better she agreed. Mercedes was very fast. Bonita wasn’t surprised since Mercedes was so small. Mercedes only weighed hundred twenty-two pounds and she was very tall. The girls made it half way through the neighborhood Bonita lived in when she stopped in her tracks. She saw Ian standing on the next corner with his friends. "Come on Nita!" Mackenzie said. "Um sorry guys gotta go" she said and dashed off toward her house. She ran faster then she ever ran in her life. Even though she ran for like twenty minutes and it seemed like five seconds. She ran into her apartment and slammed the door shut. Bonita went upstairs and saw her mom in the shower. She went in her room and took another cold shower feeling the dirty feeling of violation on her body come back. The next day was Ms. Hutcherson´s funeral and will reading. As Bonita watched them lower her casket into the ground she couldn’t help but cry. After that they gathered her friends and family into the dinning room and starting reading her will. "And finally I leave everything in my apartment in my bank account of five hundred thousand dollars to...Bonita West-Stone" the reader finished. Bonita sat in her room for the longest time thinking about Ms. Hutcherson when there was a knock on the door. "come in" Bonita said as the door opened. It was Lauren Camp, Ms. Hutcherson´s daughter. "Hi Bonita" she said giving her a hug. "Hi Lauren" she replied in a sad tone. "I’m glad my mother left you all that stuff" Lauren said, "she loved you very much, sometimes I could swear I had another sister". she said making Bonita laugh a little. "Nana was like a second mom to me" Bonita said crying. Lauren held her and said that their mother would always be in their hearts. "Well I gotta go I’ll call the bank when I get home and have them put mom’s account in you name and here is the key to mom’s apartment" she said and left the room. Bonita put the key in here book bag and laid back on her bed. She fell asleep, but woke up screaming. She had a nightmare about that night at the party. "Bonita you ok?" her mom asked running in the room. "Yeah I’m..." before she could finish she had to throw up. "Hun you need to eat something" her mom said. "Ok" Bonita said whipping off her mouth. She followed her mom downstairs and into the kitchen to eat something. Bonita was working on her drawings for school when the phone rang.
"Hello" Leanna answered. "Ok I’ll be right there" she said and hung up the phone. "Nita I have to go to the office, if you get hungry there’s some chicken in the fridge" her mom said and left. Bonita locked the door and ran up to her room. She laid on her bed for hours wishing she could just go back in time so she could try and stop all the bad things that have happened. As she laid there she heard knocking on the door. "It’s us Nita!" she heard Mackenzie yell. Bonita ran downstairs and opened the door. "Hey girls" she said welcoming them to come in. "Hey Nita you ok? we were worried about you after you ran off yesterday" Mercedes said. "I was fine my legs just really hurt" she lied. ´Well anyway I told my mom how much stress I think you’re under and she offered your mom to take you with our family this weekend to our beach house to get away and she agreed" Mercedes said. Bonita was thankful her mom agreed she needed some time away and to think of whether to reveal her very painful secret. "Cool" Bonita said. A whole week went of school and Bonita finished all the drawings for Mr. Olden. After school on Friday Bonita went home and packed a bag for her trip to the DeBois beach house. After she was done packing she called Mercedes and told her she was ready. Mercedes picked up Bonita and they went back to her ranch. When they got there everyone was loading the jeep they used to go to the beach house. "Hey Bonita" Mercedes´ mom greeted hugging her. "Just put your bag in the back with everything else" Mary said. Mercedes hugged her dad who was staying back to keep an eye on the ranch and they took off. During the ride there Mercedes played her own version of license plate bingo with Charlotte and La´Nitta. "Remember the first to spell a word wins a blow pop" she said. Mercedes looked out the window and called "S-18". She saw Charlotte circle a letter. "E-4". La´Nita circled her card this time. After a while it came to three wins for Charlotte. When they got to the house Mercedes and Bonita decided to share a room and La´Nita and Charlotte got their own rooms. After everyone settled they ordered Chinese for supper. After supper La´Nita went to play in the sand and everyone else sat on the porch while Mary made lemonade. "How’s the lemonade Nita?" Mercedes asked. Just then Bonita ran into the rest room to throw up again. "You ok Hun?" Mary asked. "Yeah sometimes lemons get to me" she said. Later that night while Bonita was watching TV in her and Mercedes´ room she wrote a letter to her brother Eric again.
Dear Eric,
Hey lil bro what’s up?
Not much just trying to figure out
why I’m getting sick all the time. I’m
also thinking of telling Mercedes what happened
to me. In other news when the had the reading of
Nana’s will she left everything she had in her apartment
and 500,000 dollars. Later bro.
She put her book back in her bag and went to see where Mercedes was. She found Mercedes sitting on this bed type couch on the porch. "Hey Sadie whatcha doin?" Bonita asked sitting next to her. "Nita is something else bothering you?" Mercedes suddenly said.
"Umm what do you mean?" she asked. "I mean did something else happen besides founding out about Hope and Ms. Hutcherson´s passing?" Mercedes asked again. "Well ok umm do remember the party after the school dance?" Bonita asked. "Well at the party I was..." Bonita stopped. "Was what?" Mercedes asked. Bonita ran into the house and ran out a few minutes later with her purple book. "Here" she said handing Mercedes the book she wrote to her brother in. Mercedes opened it. "Aww you write to your brother" she said. "Read the page before the last letter" Bonita said looking away. Mercedes turned to that page and was shocked. "Oh my god Nita!" Mercedes said hugging her. "Honey this was not your fault" Mercedes said, "oh no have you been getting sick in the morning?" Mercedes asked. "Yeah" Bonita asked. "Come with me, we gotta do this while my parents are gone" she said grabbing Bonita by the arm and dragging her to the bathroom. Mercedes got in the mirror cabinet and got out a pregnancy test. Bonita took it and they had to wait for ten minutes. The pregnancy test came out positive. Bonita just sat on the sofa shocked. "Come on my parents just pulled up" Mercedes said. Bonita stated to get up, but dropped to the floor screaming in pain and there was a puddle of blood on the floor. Mercedes called an ambulance and Bonita was rushed to the hospital. Mercedes sat in the waiting room while her mom tried to get a hold of Bonita’s mom. "Hello" Leanna answered. "Oh hi Mary" she greeted. "What?! I’ll be right there" she said and hung up the phone. About half an hour later Leanna got to the hospital and ran up to Mary. "Is my baby ok?" she asked worriedly. "We haven’t heard anything yet" Mary said sitting down next to Leanna. Just then the doctor came out. "Mrs. West-Stone?" the doctor said. "I’m Leanna West-Stone" Bonita’s mom said standing up. "Your daughter has had a miscarriage" the doctor said. "How was my daughter even pregnant?" Leanna asked. "I know how" Mercedes spoke up. "How Sadie?" Mary asked. "I think Mrs. West-Stone should ask Bonita that, after all it happened to her" she replied. "Can I see her doctor?" Leanna asked. "Sure" the doctor said. Leanna walked into the room and saw Bonita laying on the bed crying a little. "Nita honey how did you get pregnant?" she asked. "Mommy I was..." she stopped. "Was what Hun?" her mom asked. "I was raped!" she cried. Her mom couldn’t believe it. "Oh Bonita" she said hugging her daughter.
The next day Bonita was released from the hospital and went straight home. Her mom was determined to find out who raped her daughter. "Bonita I want the name of the boy who raped you" her mom said. "His name is Ian Copper I met him at a party I went to after the homecoming dance" she said. "How did he rape you with so many people around?" Leanna asked. "Mom, I got drunk at the party and he tricked me into going upstairs with him" she said. "I’m calling the cops" Leanna said grabbing the cordless phone. "Mom all the evidence has been washed away by now" Bonita said. "Well I had the doctor save a blood sample from the miscarriage, if this boy is the father that’ll be enough" she said dialing the number to the Dayton police department. That same day Ian was arrested for rape. They brought Bonita in to make a positive ID. They showed her a line up and she picked Ian out. She’d recognize his evil green eyes and black hair anywhere. The cops booked him and the trial was set for the following Friday. Friday Bonita was nervous waiting to be called into the court room. "Your honor the people call Bonita West-Stone to the stand" Bonita’s Lawyer said. Bonita slowly walked into the court room. "Do you swear to tell the truth and nothing but the truth so help you god?" the plaintiff said. "I swear" Bonita said and sat down. "How old are you Bonita?" her lawyer asked. "I’m thirteen" she replied. "Thirteen? you look so much older, at least sixteen" her lawyer said. "I physically developed earlier then most girls do to physical stress" Bonita replied. "What kind of stress?" her lawyer asked. "When I was a little girl from ages two to ten I was physically and sexually abused by my father" she replied holding back tears. "You said til age ten, what happened at age ten to make him stop?" the lawyer asked. "He died in a car crash along with my baby brother" she said crying remembering that night when her mom told her Eric was gone. The lawyer handed her a tissue. "So you thought that pain was gone when your father died?" the lawyer asked. "Yes" Bonita said. "When did the pain come back?" the lawyer asked. "When Ian Copper raped me" she said. "No farther questions your honor" the lawyer said and sat down then it was the defense attorney’s turn. "Ms. West-Stone can you tell the court what other two things went on around this time?" he asked. "Well I found out I have a sister and a women that was like a second mom to me died" she said tearing up. "The night of the party is it possible that Ian was being friendly and you too engaged in sexual activity and when you found out you were pregnant you panicked and made this whole rape story up?" the lawyer asked. "No I was pregnant because he raped me and the night I found out I was pregnant I miscarried" she said crying.
"At that party was there alcohol?" the lawyer asked. "Yes" she replied. "Did you drink that night?" he asked. "Yes, more then I should have" Bonita said. "So maybe you ped out and can’t remember consenting to the " the lawyer suggested. "No I was fully aware and I didn’t say yes and I even tried to fight him off" she said firmly. "Your honor the people call a short recess" her lawyer said. "court will resume in ten minutes" the judge said. "Bonita you’re doing fine" her lawyer said. "I don’t know Ms. Carper it got really hard" Bonita said. "You’re doing great you haven’t changed your story a bit" Ms. Carper said. After the break Ian was put on the stand. "Mr. Copper" Ms. Carper got started, "do you attend Dunbar High?". "No I don’t go to school" he replied. "So you’re a drop out?" Carper asked. "Yes" he replied smoothly. "What were you doing at the party that night?" Carper asked. looking him straight in the eye. "I’m a friend of the girl who threw the party" he replied. "Mr. Copper has any other girl ever complained about you before?" she asked. "No" he replied. Ms. Carper walked over and got a piece of paper out of a tan colored folder. "Your honor I have a copy of a complaint on Mr. Copper a year ago from a Ms. Amy Flowers" Carper said handing the paper to the judge. "Is this true Mr. Copper?" the judge asked. "Amy was mad at me because I wouldn’t date her to make some boy jealous" he replied stuttering a bit. "So I guess dating must be hard for you because every time you hurt a girl you get accused of sexual assault or harassment" Carper said saying no farther questions. "You may step down Mr. Copper" the judge said. "Your owner the defense calls Amy flowers to the stand" Amy walked in swore under oath and sat down. "Ms. Flowers how do you know the defendant?" the lawyer asked. "I met him in the fourth grade" she said. "So you guys are friends?" he asked. "Yeah" she said. "Has Ms. Copper ever been inappropriate with you?" the lawyer asked. "No" she said looking down at her nails. "No further questions your honor" the lawyer said and sat down. "Ms. Flowers the day you filed the complaint were you and Mr. Copper alone together?" Carper asked walking up to her. "Yeah all day basically" she said. "Did he touch you at all?" she asked. "He rubbed my shoulders" she said. "Is that it?" Carper asked watching the girl tear up. "Yes" she said. "Then why are you crying?" She asked. "Because something else did happen, sorry for lying" Amy said crying. "What else happened that day?" Carper asked. "He moved his hands slowly down my blouse and touched my chest" she said crying really heavy this time. "No further questions your honor" Carper said and sat down. The judge sent the jury to make their decision. An hour later the jury returned. "What’s your decision?" the judge asked. "We find the defendant Ian Copper, guilty of one account of sexual assault and one account of sexual harassment". "Sentence will be next Tuesday court is dismissed" the judge said. They were walking out of the court house when Bonita saw a tall woman standing in front of her mom’s car holding a little boy. "Hey Bonita” the woman said, "I’m your sister Hope and this your nephew Caden". They went home and started a new day as sisters.
The End.