It’s easy to see how much they admire Micah. I hope that one day he can fully grasp the impact he makes on this world.
He stands from his seat and walks around the desk to pull Penelope and Paris into a group hug. When they part, all their cheeks are stained with tears.
“I still need to think about it. But I promise I’m considering it, okay?”
Paris bobs her head up and down while Penelope offers a curt nod as she dabs a tissue under her eye.
“The Pee Pee Girls plus Micah. It does have a nice ring to it,” Micah sings.
Paris and Penelope freeze. They look at each other before Paris pretends to strangle him and Penelope pretends to kick him in the groin.
As we’re leaving their office, I lean over and whisper to Micah, “‘Pee Pee Girls’ is insane, by the way.”
“It writes itself!” That’s his only response.
A tall, muscular teenager with sepia-hued skin walks through the front door, a fitted cap covering his head. He spots Micah and rushes over to him with all the urgency of a young child.
“What’s good?” he says as he holds his hand up to Micah.
Micah daps him up and pulls him in for a hug. “What’s up, Tee? I didn’t know you were working today.”
Ahh, this must be Tavion. Micah told me about his godson and how he lost his dad. I knew Micah had hooked him up with a job here, so I’m glad I’m getting a chance to meet the kid Micah adores so much. But if I keep letting myself become so ingrained in his life, I won’t be able to pull myself out. Is that really what I want?
“I’m not. There’s a kid here who walks home every day but has issues with some of the kids in his neighborhood, so I try to come by and walk with him whenever I can.”
Oh, this kid is a mini Micah in the making.
“Which kid is it? Want us to drive him?” Micah asks.
“Nah, I got it. Those kids don’t mess with me.”
Micah seems to accept this response. He wraps his arm around my shoulder. “Tee, I want you to meet Dani. Dani, this is my godson, Tavion.”
Tavion looks at me like he’s got a secret, or rather knows a secret. I think it’s more than just Bailey that Micah spilled his guts to. “Nice to meet you, Dani. You can call me Tee.”
I step into his open arms and return his hug and sentiment.
Since the boy Tee’s here to escort isn’t ready to leave, he and Micah decide to shoot around at the basketball hoop out back. I have no interest in doing that, but I do offer to catch their rebounds.
“Hey, can I ask, what did you and my parents used to do around here?”
“Anything, really. If I wasn’t shootin’ hoops with your dad, I was usually painting something. Your mom used to play the flute, did you know that?”
He does a double take. “No, I didn’t.”
“Yeah, she was in the marching band at her school, but she could never practice at home because her dad worked nights and would be sleeping when she got home from school. So, she’d come here to practice. Me and Taron used to go to her school’s games, and he’d be the loudest motherfucker there cheering only for her.”
He laughs. “I bet she loved that,” he says with a pinch of sarcasm.
I’m guessing Sammy is not a woman who likes the spotlight.
“She did only when it was him.”
“What kind of stuff did he like to do? You had art, Mom had music. Was he focused on basketball?” He takes a shot, the ball bouncing off the rim and tipping into the net.
“Actually, he really loved kids. He would tutor here, help them with their homework. He’d even stay late to cook dinner for the ones who couldn’t go home. I think he probably would’ve ended up being a teacher.”
Tee stumbles over his dribble, but he recovers quickly. He’s clearly processing Micah’s words and maybe realizing that he’s more like his dad than he ever imagined. From how highly Micah speaks about Taron, I hope Tee is proud of that fact.
