Chapter Four

Alex-Andre and Stacy drove into town where they had lunch at one of their favorite restaurants. They chatted and shared a bellyful of laughter as they reminisced on the past.

“Stace, do you remember the time when a group of us were asked to give our testimonies back in Sunday School and Jackson stole what I was going to say?”

“How could I forget, Dre?”

“You nudged him in the side so hard, he screamed out and the entire congregation was left in disbelief,” Stacy snorted with laughter.

“He deserved it, he repeated what I was planning to say and I was left dumbstruck and I looked like an utter fool,” Alex-Andre said while trying to be serious.

Both friends laughed so loudly that the other diners started to look in their direction. How good it was Alex-Andre thought to have a friend like Stacy. She never ever sugar-coated the truth when it came to him, no matter how hurtful it would make him feel at times. How refreshing it felt to have someone say no to him from time to time and call him out when he was wrong. Stacy saw him as an individual not the son of the famous Mr. and Mrs. Moore of Stone Mountain. They met at a Kiddies Campus when at the age of six; some older children tried to bully Stacy and Alex-Andre stood up for her by punching one of the boys in the face. They have been great friends ever since. They both tried to become intimate friends a few years ago but that was short-lived and they both decided that they were better at being just friends.

Stacy was not from a wealthy family but she possessed the five things that didn’t change with time that Alex-Andre looked for in any relationship - platonic or intimate. These are Integrity, Commitment, Friendship, Spirituality, and Sensitivity. Stacy was his voice of reasoning, his oasis in the desert of struggles, the wind beneath his wings, and his confidant. Alex-Andre’s parents would have preferred him to befriend more affluent individuals, especially his father who did not approve of the close friendship that the two shared but there was now nothing he could say or do to break this bond. Mrs. Moore was more accommodating of Stacy over the years she realized that Stacy was the only person who was not a friend of her son because of who his parents were.

“Dre, when do you plan to go visit Mother Hamilton in the Nursing Home?” Stacy’s question jolted him from his reverie.

“I want to go see her by the latest Tuesday. It’s best to go as soon as I can before things take a turn for the worst.”

“Yes, you should go as soon as you can because you only have a few days left before you have to return to University,” Stacy agreed.

“Yea I will. I was supposed to meet up with Marcus tomorrow to go over some estimates for a project he is working on but I will call him later and see if we could do that another day.”

“By the way what’s up with Marcus these days?” Stacy asked.

“Well you know Marcus, he’s easy-going and doesn’t take anything seriously but he has a good heart, he just needs some guidance.”

As if on hearing the mention of his name, Marcus appeared with a female neither Alex-Andre nor Stacy had seen before. Marcus was talking to a waiter when he noticed Alex-Andre and Stacy sitting in a corner. After placing their orders Marcus escorted his female friend over to where his friends were.

“Hey you two, how come I wasn’t invited to lunch?” Marcus asked jokingly.

“It was planned. Stace and I just left after church and decided to come to have lunch,” explained Alex-Andre.

“Ok, no worries. I was planning to attend church today, but something came up so I had to come into town where I met up with my friend Angie here.” Marcus announced.

Stacy did not wait for Marcus to make the introductions, she went ahead by extending her hand to Angie.

“Hi Angie, I am Stacy and this is Alex-Andre or Dre as we call him. He, Marcus, and I have been friends since we were kids.”

“Hey, Stacy. Hey Alex-Andre, it’s my pleasure meeting you both.” Angie offered.

“Where did you two meet,” inquired Alex-Andre.

“We met a few months ago in the elevator on the way up to the third floor at a department store in Athens,” Angie offered while chuckling.

“How many is a few months,” Alex-Andre inquired.

Marcus with a snobbish look on his face answered “About four or so, why?”

“Nothing really, just wondering if Angie is the reason we haven’t been seeing much of you lately,” exclaimed Alex-Andre with a smile playing on his lips.

“It’s quite possible,” but Marcus didn’t really admit to anything as he glanced in his date’s face.

The waiter signaled that their table was ready so Marcus and Angie said their goodbyes to Stacy and Alex-Andre.

“Well it was nice chit-chatting but our table is ready. See you guys around,” Marcus took Angie’s hand and hastily made their escape.

He was not ready to answer any more questions about his relationship with Angie, not while she was in his presence. He knew they meant well but they could be brutally honest about how they felt about anything, especially his personal life and the choices he made.

Angie waved her goodbye as Marcus led her to where their table was located.

As Alex-Andre and Stacy were leaving the restaurant, Alex-Andre spotted a female in the parking lot that looked like someone he once knew but wasn’t at all sure. Stopping to stare, he adjusted his eyes, could it really be Julie Mitchell? Julie Mitchell was the girl he had a crush on ever since he started high school. He mustered up the courage to tell her how he felt on their graduation day but Julie told him that he wasn’t her type and she was planning to elope on her 18th birthday to marry the love of her life – a Neurosurgeon who was at the time doing his residency at a major hospital in England. Alex-Andre learned of their wedding via social media and all the fanfare that accompanied that event. He has been secretly keeping check of her life over the years even though they have not spoken since their high school graduation.

“Stace here are the car keys, I’ll be there in a bit.”

“Where are you going?” Stacy questioned.

“That female looks like someone I know so I am going to find out for sure. I won’t belong.”

Stacy did not prolong the conversation but took the keys and unlocked the doors and waited for Alex-Andre’s return.

Alex-Andre walked up to the female though he was unsure of how she really looked now seeing that he hadn't seen her for so many years. He could still hear her stinging words the last time they spoke: "I want to travel the world so I'll need someone who can afford to make this wish come true. You can't afford to take care of me on just tithes and offerings with you being a preacher's kid and all. I assume you will be next in line to the pulpit!"

He remembered how condescending she spoke to him. That was the day he decided that he didn't want to be like his father because women were not attracted to a 'man of the cloth’.

Could this person be really Julie he internally questioned, because of how shabbily attired this individual was? Back in high school Julie was elegantly clad in the latest fashion and had every male head turning as she walked by. She knew the effect she had on them so she intentionally acted the way she did to garner the attention she got.

“Julie?” Inquired Alex-Andre.

The individual turned around at the sound of her name.

“Yes, do I know you?” She asked.

“Yes, it’s me, Alex-Andre Moore, we went to high school together.”

“Dre?”

“Yes, the one and the same.”

“Oh my goodness!” “I haven’t seen you since we graduated high school.”

“I was unsure if it was you when I stepped out of the restaurant but had to come and find out. I’m glad I did.”

“It’s a good thing you did because I didn’t see you there.”

“Last I heard you were residing in London.” “So how long are you back in town for?” Alex-Andre asked.

Julie seemed hesitant to offer a reply but chuckled as if she was nervous.

“I moved back to Stone Mountain two years ago, I was living in England for some time but decided to return home to take care of my parents.”

A look of surprise spread across Alex-Andre’s face but downplayed what he really thought by saying, “Oh wow. I didn’t know you were back.”

Julie really seemed uneasy Alex-Andre thought as if she wanted to escape and he also noticed that she avoided eye contact while speaking to him. He sense something was wrong so he didn’t ask her any more questions. A moment of silence fell between them and it was Julie that broke it.

“I have to run but we could exchange digits and keep in touch,” offered Julie.

After the telephone numbers were exchanged both Julie and Alex-Andre went their separate way.

Back in the car, Stacy was listening to Tasha Cobbs-Leonard’s Royalty Album, all the while wondering to whom her best friend was speaking. Unaware that the ‘meeting’ was short-lived, Stacy was startled when Alex-Andre opened the car door and sat down.

“What’s wrong?” Alex-Andre asked after seeing the look on Stacy’s face.

“Nothing. I was just startled by you that’s all.”

“That was Julie Mitchell from High school. She was my crush back then. Remember the girl I told you I mustered up the courage to approach at graduation?”

“Oh, yes I do. The same girl you said was high maintenance?”

“The every same.”

“She sure doesn’t seem all that high maintenance anymore.” “I could sense that something was wrong while we were speaking but I didn’t bother to ask.”

“But I thought you said she lived somewhere in Europe.”

“England. But I just learned that she has been back in Stone Mountain for two years now.”

“Did she tell you why she was back?” Stacy inquired.

“She said something about returning to take care of her parents but I think there is more to it.”

“Well, you just have to accept what she said or wait until she tells you the real reason she’s back.”

Alex-Andre and Stacy arrived at the nursing home at approximately 3:30 p.m. but were told that Mother Hamilton was taking her afternoon nap so they were not allowed to see her. Upon hearing her grandmother’s name Ava-Grace emerged from the foyer where she was browsing through a magazine. A few people were also lazing around in the sitting room or standing around chatting.

“What are you doing here?” Inquired Ava-Grace with an angry tone.

Both Stace and Alex-Andre turned to face the person who spoke. And was alarmed when they saw the look of disdain on Ava-Grace’s face.