Behind the Dextros Gates

Tasha had been staring at the envelope for so long that the words on it had started to blur. She blinked and looked away. Then she looked back. It was still there. White envelope. Her name written neatly across the front. Tasha Adeyemi. She hadn't opened it. She wasn't sure she could. The kitchen was unusually quiet that morning. The only sound came from the old ceiling fan turning lazily above her, making a faint clicking noise every few seconds. Click. Click. Click. Tasha glanced at the envelope again. She had spent months waiting for it. Now that it was finally here, she suddenly wished it wasn't. "What are you looking at?" Tasha jumped. She turned around to find Angel standing in the doorway. Her little sister had her hair tied into two uneven puffs, and one of her socks was halfway down her ankle. "Nothing." Angel narrowed her eyes. "You've been looking at that same envelope since I came in." "I have not." "You have." Tasha picked up the envelope. Angel immediately walked closer. "What is it?" "Nothing." "Then open it." Tasha sighed. "Why are you so interested?" "Because you're acting weird." "I always act weird." "Exactly." Tasha laughed despite herself. Angel climbed onto one of the kitchen chairs and leaned across the table. "Open it." "You're bossy." "Open it." Tasha shook her head. She turned the envelope over in her hands. There was only one reason she could think of for a school to send a letter like this. An acceptance. Or a rejection. She had tried not to think about it. She had told herself she would be fine either way. But that wasn't true. Not even close. Getting into Dextros had been her dream for years. It was the kind of school people talked about like it was another world. The kind of place where students had opportunities Tasha could barely imagine. She had worked for it. Studied late into the night. Skipped outings with friends. Borrowed books instead of buying them. She had even studied through the nights when the electricity went out, using the small rechargeable lamp beside her bed. And now the answer was sitting inside an envelope. Her fingers slipped beneath the seal. She tore it open. Angel leaned closer. Tasha pulled out the letter. Her eyes moved down the page. Then stopped. She read the sentence again. Her heart began pounding. Angel looked at her face. "What?" Tasha didn't answer. "Tasha?" She looked up. Her eyes were full of tears. Angel's mouth dropped open. "You didn't get in?" Tasha shook her head. A smile slowly appeared. "I got in." Angel stared at her. "What?" "I got in." Angel screamed. Tasha laughed as Angel jumped out of the chair and wrapped both arms around her. "You got in!" "I got in!" "You're going to Dextros!" Tasha hugged her tightly. For a few seconds, neither of them cared about anything else. Then Angel pulled away. "Does this mean you're going to become a celebrity?" Tasha laughed. "No." "Rich?" "No." "Then what's the point?" Tasha wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Maybe I'll become smart enough to answer all your annoying questions." Angel folded her arms. "You already think you know everything." "I do." They both laughed. The sound of the front door opening made them turn. Their mother walked into the apartment carrying two grocery bags. Helena stopped when she saw her daughters. "What happened?" Angel ran toward her. "Mama! Tasha got accepted!" Helena froze. Her eyes immediately went to Tasha. "Accepted?" Tasha nodded. "To Dextros." For a moment, Helena didn't move. Then she dropped the bags. "Tasha." Her daughter smiled. "I got the scholarship too." Helena's hand flew to her mouth. "Oh, my God." She crossed the room and pulled Tasha into her arms. Tasha closed her eyes. Her mother's embrace was warm. Familiar. Safe. "You did it," Helena whispered. Tasha smiled against her shoulder. "We did it." Helena pulled back. "No." She touched Tasha's cheek. "You did this." Tasha shook her head. "I couldn't have done it without you." Helena looked away for a moment. Tasha knew why. Her mother had sacrificed a lot. More than Tasha could ever fully understand. There had been days when Helena came home exhausted but still made sure Tasha had eaten. Days when she quietly repaired old clothes instead of buying new ones. Days when Tasha knew there wasn't enough money but her mother somehow made things work. Helena picked up the letter. She read it carefully. Then looked at Tasha. "When do you start?" "Next week." Helena smiled. "Then we have a lot to prepare." Angel raised her hand. "I volunteer to help." "You're ten," Helena said. "I can still help." "You can help by staying out of trouble." Angel frowned. "That isn't helping." Tasha laughed. For the rest of the afternoon, their little apartment felt different. Almost lighter. Like the acceptance letter had somehow brought more space into the room. --- That evening, Tasha met Michael at their usual spot. A small bench beneath an old tree not far from her home. Michael was already there. He stood when he saw her. "You're late." "I'm five minutes late." "Seven." "You counted?" "I missed you." Tasha smiled. "You're ridiculous." Michael grinned. "Maybe." She sat beside him. For a moment, neither of them spoke. Then Tasha pulled the folded acceptance letter from her bag. Michael looked at it. His eyes widened. "No way." Tasha smiled. "Yes way." "You got in?" She nodded. He stared at her for a second before pulling her into a hug. "I knew you would." Tasha laughed. "You didn't even know if I would." "I did." "You're lying." "Maybe." She rested her head against his shoulder. "I'll miss this." "What?" "This." She looked around. The quiet street. The tree. The bench. Him. "Everything." Michael looked at her. "You're not going anywhere." "It's still going to be different." "Maybe." He took her hand. "But we'll figure it out." Tasha smiled. "You promise?" "I promise." She squeezed his hand. "Good." They sat together until the sky became dark. When Tasha finally got home, Angel was already asleep. Helena had left the kitchen light on for her. Tasha changed into her pajamas and sat on the edge of her bed. The acceptance letter was still in her hand. She placed it carefully inside the drawer beside her bed. Then she stopped. She took it back out. She read it one more time. Congratulations, Tasha Adeyemi. A smile slowly spread across her face. Next week, everything would change. She just didn't know how much. And for the first time in her life, Tasha was ready to find out.