He nodded, then continued heading to his next class as if the exchange never happened. The next seven times she passed him the hall in the weeks that followed, he didn’t seem to notice her.
The fiesta de quince años, also known as a Quinceañera, is a celebration of a girl’s fifteenth birthday in many traditional Hispanic homes. While Daisy’s parents didn’t consider themselves very traditional in most regards, they wanted her fifteenth birthday party to be very special and chose to honor this tradition.
Hoping Ken would come as well as the rest of the young people in her parent’s youth group, Daisy wanted a dress that would devastate even the most oblivious man. Perhaps something low-cut and with sequins, or a gown that dipped in the back. Daisy’s mother wanted her garb to look more like an opaque ballerina tutu made of pink cotton candy and hoops.
They compromised with the dress being far more modest than what Daisy had in mind but far less fluffy and childish than what her mother had in mind. Daisy spent the better part of the weeks ahead preparing for her entrance, her segue, and her dances. She practiced walking up and down the stairs in high heels while neither touching the handrail nor looking down at her feet. She walked through rooms with a dictionary balanced atop her crown and spun and spun and spun through the den until her father told her to stop.
Mr. and Mrs. Dixon graciously offered their home for the party. They lived in a 20,000 square foot castle with grounds to match. Mrs. Dixon had told her mom that every fifteen-year-old-girl needed to feel like a princess on her birthday.
Daisy thought that Ken would surely notice her then, in his home, dancing across his floor, looking more elegant and beautiful and grown up than she had ever looked before.
The day arrived. Her parents greeted everyone. Her friends chattered about the castle and their envy over her party. A table draped with linen overflowed with gifts. Her grandparents arrived looking joyful and pleased that this tradition had carried on to her generation. Her father removed the low heels from her feet and replaced them with perfect high heels.
The day could have only been more perfect if her parents had not decided to limit the guests outside of family to young men and women age fifteen and under. Granted, she knew every person in attendance from either school or their church, but the Dixon brothers, and one Dixon brother in particular, would never see her in the flesh on this day. However, Mr. and Mrs. Dixon left an amazing gift before taking the triplets out of the home for the evening.
Her grandfather stole a private moment that afternoon. “My beautiful granddaughter looks far too sad for the occasion. Why are you sad, Cariño?”
Daisy considered an excuse but settled on the truth. Grown women told the truth. “A boy, Papa.”
This answer clearly surprised her grandfather. “A boy? Well, boys always disappoint. Bide your time and wait for aman. Eh? Is this boy here? I can talk to him about making you sad, you know.”
She grinned. “He’s not here. That’s why I’m sad.”
Understanding bloomed. “Ah. I see.” He smiled. “You know something, Cariño? I have not danced with you. And tonight, you look exactly as beautiful as your grandmother did the very first time I ever saw her. That deserves a dance.”
They took to the dance floor, and Daisy relished in the smell of her grandfather who always smelled faintly of wool and caramels—and fine cigars he shouldn’t smoke but always managed to sneak. At some point in the dance, he spoke to her very quietly. “I trust your judgment, Daisy. You are very wise for your years. I think you are especially wise in matters of the heart. But if I could offer you some advice, I would say this. I think this boy who isn’t here? I think he wouldn’t want you to be sad on this day on his account. What do you think?”
Daisy thought about it as her grandfather smiled and led her across the dance floor. “What I think is that he doesn’t really think about me at all.”
After a few seconds, her grandfather said, “Well, everyone here thinks about you and loves you. And I tell you something else. If God has made this boy especially for you and made you especially for him, he doesn’t stand a chance. One day, God willing, this boy will think of little else besides you. But it will be in God’s good time. Now you just wait and see.”
The Dixon brothers turned eighteen and made a big deal about registering for the draft. Christmas came and went, then New Year’s, and before anyone could sufficiently brace themselves, Saint Valentine’s Day arrived. The National Honor Society began publishing student rankings, and everyone felt confident Leah Wing would take the Valedictorian spot for the graduating class.
In a Georgia High School, the only thing that moves faster than the track team is the gossip. In no time at all, Daisy heard the news. Naturally, Ken Dixon asked Leah Wing if she would like to go to Prom with him and, just as naturally, Leah accepted.
After that, whenever possible, Daisy closely watched the two of them interact. Or rather, not really interact. They didn’t date. They didn’t even sit together at lunch most of the time. One day, she watched them pass each other in the hall without even giving one another a glance.
Daisy fantasized about taking Leah’s place and going to Prom with Ken. She figured he might not notice anyway, and it would save Leah the expense of buying a formal gown.
In fairness, Ken and his brothers had their sights set on only one thing, and that one thing was Auburn University in southern Alabama. Ken and Brad would let nothing get in the way of that goal. Jon, however, started getting a little bit of a reputation as a bad boy. He started wearing his hair differently, which made it easy for Daisy to tell him from Brad. As usual, she could spot Ken from a mile away just by the cut of his jib.
Meanwhile, her Freshman year, while Daisy mostly warmed the bench in an alternate slot, their Debate Team placed at sectionals and then won at regionals. They ended up in the top twenty-five at nationals held in none-other than Washington DC.
Daisy figured out that she loved debating for several reasons. First of all, she had to think and speak quickly. Secondly, she spent so much time and energy arguing with herself inside her own head, debating gave her a much-needed outlet that helped to still her troubled mind and spirit. Finally, debate grounded her in logic and allowed her to get some perspective about her emotions most of the time.
Most of the time.
At youth group, the Dixon brothers began to discuss their summer mission trip. This summer, they would spend nine weeks in Kenya digging wells and building housing in the slums, helping people get out of the cardboard shacks they lived in now. As soon as Daisy heard about this, she quietly began to petition to go on the mission trip with them. She did all of her research about passports and visas and vaccinations. She read the US State Department travel advisories. She allowed herself to fantasize about stolen moments with Ken while they worked side by side to fulfill God’s work.
Gradually, she came to realize that her parents could not afford to send her on the trip. The church could probably assist and offset some of the cost, but right or wrong, that would bring a measure of shame to her father that Daisy would never want handed out. So, she instantly informed her parents she had changed her mind about the entire thing, and everyone breathed a little easier.
Daisy finished the year with honors. At her brother’s graduation ceremony, Daisy got a glimpse of Ken wearing his cap and gown. He and his brothers would spend the summer in Kenya and then begin their matriculation efforts at Auburn directly upon their return. Daisy had no idea when, or even if, she would ever see Ken Dixon again.
For the remainder of her high school years, Daisy focused on things like Beta club, Debate and Forensics, History, and English. She went to Homecoming with her cousin, Julian, and went to Prom with the Debate Team’s newly minted captain, a Junior named Garcia Perez. Daisy let Garcia kiss her at the end of the night, though Garcia’s kiss left her feet firmly planted on the ground. If anything, gravity felt even heavier at that moment.
She ended up ranking sixth in her class. Unlike the majority of her classmates, Daisy knew exactly what career she wanted to take on. Specifically, she wanted to become a litigator. She planned to obtain her Juris Doctorate, pass the bar exam, and become an attorney. God willing, she planned to handle morally relevant cases within her community.
Daisy gratefully accepted a two-year scholarship to Emory just north of Atlanta. She had faith that God would provide some way for her to finish her education beyond the first two years. She made the Dean’s list every quarter and finished her first year at the top of her class.
