LITMIR.BIZ

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is Jayd’s first love from junior high school who has come back into her life when a mutual friend, Nigel, transfers from Rah’s high school (Westingle) to South Bay. He knows everything about her and is her spiritual confidant. Rah lives in Los Angeles but grew up with his grandparents in Compton like Jayd. He loves Jayd fiercely but has a girlfriend who refuses to go away (Trish) and a baby-mama (Sandy). Rah is a hustler by necessity and a music producer by talent. He takes care of his younger brother Kamal and holds the house down while his dad is locked up and his mother strips at a local club.

      Misty

      The word “frenemies” was coined for this former best friend of Jayd’s. Misty has made it her mission to sabotage Jayd any way she can. Living around the corner from Jayd, she has the unique advantage of being an original hater from the neighborhood and at school.

      KJ

      He’s the most popular basketball player on campus, Jayd’s ex-boyfriend, and Misty’s current boyfriend. Ever since he and Jayd broke up, he’s made it his personal mission to persecute her.

      Nellie

      One of Jayd’s best friends, Nellie is the prissy princess of the crew. She is also dating Chance, even though it’s Nigel she’s really feeling. Nellie made history at South Bay by becoming the first Black Homecoming princess and has let the crown go to her head.

      Mickey

      The gangster girl of Jayd’s small crew. She and Nellie are best friends but often at odds with each other, mostly because Nellie secretly wishes she could be more like Mickey. A true hood girl, she loves being from Compton, and her man with no name is a true gangster. Mickey and Nigel have quickly become South Bay High’s newest couple, even if Mickey’s not sure who’s the father of her unborn child.

      Jeremy

      A first for Jayd, Jeremy is her white ex-boyfriend who also happens to be the most popular cat at South Bay. Rich, tall and extremely handsome, Jeremy’s witty personality and good conversation keep Jayd on her toes and give Rah a run for his money—literally.

      Mickey’s Man

      Never using his name, Mickey’s original boyfriend is a troublemaker and always hot on Mickey’s trail. Always in and out of jail, Mickey’s man is notorious in her hood for being a cold-hearted gangster, and loves to be in control. He also has a thing for Jayd, but Jayd can’t stand to be anywhere near him.

      Nigel

      The new quarterback on the block, Nigel is a friend of Jayd’s from junior high and also Rah’s best friend, making Jayd’s world even smaller at South Bay High. Nigel is the star football player and dumped his ex-girlfriend at Westingle (Tasha) to be with his new baby-mama-to-be, Mickey. Jayd is caught up in the mix as a friend to them both, but her loyalty lies with Nigel because she’s known him longer and he’s always had her back.

      Chance

      The rich, white hip-hop kid of the crew, Chance is Jayd’s drama homie and Nellie’s boyfriend, if you let him tell it. He used to have a crush on Jayd and now has turned his attention to Nellie.

      Bryan

      The youngest of Mama’s children and Jayd’s favorite uncle, Bryan is a dj by night and works at the local grocery store during the day. He’s also an acquaintance of both Rah and KJ from playing ball around the hood. Bryan often gives Jayd helpful advice about her problems with boys and hating girls alike. Out of all of Jayd’s uncles, Bryan gives her grandparents the least amount of trouble.

      Jay

      Jay is more like an older brother to Jayd than her cousin. Like Jayd, he lives with Mama but his mother (Mama’s youngest daughter) left him when he was a baby and never returned. He doesn’t know his father and attends Compton High. He and Jayd often cook together and help Mama around the house.

      Contents

      Prologue

      1. Walk on By

      2. An Unholy Day

      3. Pour Out a Little Liquor

      4. Lovesick

      5. Sweet Hearts

      6. A Spiral Spell

      7. Misty Morning

      8. Punch Drunk

      9. Santa Baby

      10. 5 Golden Rings

      11. Dreaming Eyes

      12. Deck the Halls

      13. Home for the Holidaze

      Epilogue

      A Reading Group Guide

      Discussion Questions

      Prologue

      “Jayd, can you hear me?” Mama says, but I can’t see where her voice is coming from. I know I’m dreaming, but it feels too real to be a dream. “Jayd, snap out of it before you get hurt!” Why is she yelling at me? All I’m doing is walking around the living room, and I could walk around this entire house with my eyes closed and not trip over a thing. But wait, this isn’t our living room. It looks like it, but I can tell from the furniture I’m back in my great-grandmother’s time again and this must be her house.

      “Jon Paul, no! Give her back to me,” Maman screams at her husband, who’s holding their daughter tight. The baby screams loudly as Maman’s cries become even more powerful. She begins to shriek like an opera singer and my great-grandfather can’t take anymore. He slaps Maman hard with the back of his hand and she falls to the floor, hitting the Christmas tree on the way down.

      “Lynn Mae,” Maman cries, holding her bloody face with one hand and reaching her free hand up toward her daughter, who is still in her father’s arms.

      “Jayd, wake up, now!” Mama shouts, but this time she’s not in my dream with me. Where is her voice coming from?

      “What is she doing here?” Jon Paul asks my great-grandmother, looking dead at me. Oh hell, no. I don’t want to be in this dream. Maybe I should wake up, but I can’t. I wish I had more control over when I wake up from or fall into my dreams.

      “You do, Jayd, and now is the time to exercise that power. Wake your ass up!” Mama’s talking to me in my head, but not like my mom does. It’s as if I’m dreaming, but in reality I’m awake. What the hell? Before I can get a grip on what’s really going on, Jon Paul charges at me with his daughter in tow like he’s going to slap me, too.

      “Jon Paul, Sarah has nothing to do with this. Leave her alone,” Maman says, now on her feet, her green eyes glowing like I’ve never seen before. Unlike in my last dream with Maman, this time her eyes look like emerald fireballs. He’s in for it now. And who the hell is Sarah?

      “She’s always here. You know all about her whoreish ways, don’t you, young lady?” How did he hear my thought? I back away from my great-grandfather, frightened of his temper. As I stumble over a chair, I land in it and catch my reflection in a clean pot on the kitchen stove. The face staring back at me belongs to a girl about my age, but she’s not me. I’m bugging for real. This is too much for me to handle.

      “Jon Paul, haven’t you heard of picking on someone your own size?” Maman’s voice begins to get higher in pitch and her eyes even brighter as she focuses all of her attention on him. His head begins to pulsate, just like it did in the vision that Mama and I shared on Christmas Eve, and he can’t take it anymore. He begins to charge toward the kitchen door, but Maman’s not letting him go anywhere with her daughter.

      “Aren’t you forgetting something?” Maman says, putting her arms out for her daughter, whose eyes are also glowing. “Sarah, come here. And bring Lynn Mae with you. He can’t hurt you now.” I stay put because I don’t realize that she’s talking to me. But when she focuses her glowing gaze in my direction, I jump up from the table, walk toward my now mentally paralyzed great-grandfather, and take

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