The Diary of Aaliyah Anderson Read online

  Allison sighed. “I don’t even know about all this Christianity stuff. I mean, why would God take my Nana away from me?”

  “Listen, Allison, I know you miss your grandmother and your heart is grieving, but we’ll get through this together. Don’t fall back on your faith; it’s the only thing that you have to drive you forward.”

  Allison wiped the flowing tears from her face. “I guess you’re right.”

  “Now, what else is going on?”

  Allison took a deep sigh. “You promise not to say anything to anybody?”

  “Honestly, I’ll try, but it really depends. You can’t keep all of these problems to yourself. You’re gonna drive yourself crazy.”

  All Allison did was take out her iPhone, navigate to her text messages, and gave it to me. She was having a text conversation with a guy named Gabriel. I was sort of confused at first, but then I read through and started to understand.

  The message that really just popped out at me read:

  “I’m gonna take your virginity whether you like it or not.”

  “Allison, who is this? What’s going on? Why is this guy texting you saying he’s gonna take you’re virginity?”

  “Let me explain. Gabriel is a guy that I met during the summer. He’s eighteen and had just graduated from Booker T. When I first started talking to him, he was really cool. Then, I saw him for who he really was. The boy is wild! One night, while he was under the influence of something, he came down here and tried to get me to have sex with him. I was the only one home and he knew that. I kept telling him no over and over. He was just so aggressive.”

  “So did he…”

  “Fortunately, he didn’t. I finally got him off me. Before he left, though, he said that I’d eventually give him what I wanted, whether I liked it or not.”

  “Allison, are you serious? Why haven’t you told anybody?”

  “I didn’t wanna get anybody else involved. Gabriel is insane! That boy has been basically stalking me since that night. He was parked at your house in that gray pick-up truck when Hailey and I came to pick you up for the scrimmage. I don’t know how he knew where we were, but I’m really scared. I don’t know. I may just give him what he wants. Maybe he’ll stop harassing me. If he hurts you or anybody else in any way, I don’t know what I’d do.”

  “Come on, Allison! You can’t talk negative like that. You’re in control of your body. Nobody can force or scare you into giving up you’re virginity. And don’t worry about me. I’m gonna be alright. Come here.”

  I hugged Allison and prayed. I prayed that all of her problems would fade away and that she would go back to her normal self. After I got through, Allison’s stopped crying and smiled at me.

  “Thanks for being here for me, Aaliyah. I love you so much. I swear, you’re my best friend. Nobody else would’ve been here this late at night trying to help me.”

  I smiled at her. “I love you too, Allie. You know something though?”

  “Yeah?”

  “After all this you told me, you have to come to church tomorrow. Don’t worry about Mariah or any of those other fake, hating church folks. If you don’t wanna sing, you don’t have to, just come to get a good word and some spiritual satisfaction. Will you do that for me?”

  “Yeah, Aaliyah. I got you. Again, thank you for being here for me.”

  “Don’t mention it, girl! Isn’t that what sisters are for?

  Before I went to bed, I said another prayer for Allison. I’m really worried about her. That whole outburst at her house was so surprising. It always seems like she has the perfect life from where all of us that see her are standing. But, I guess that saying is true: “Don’t judge anybody until you walk a mile in their shoes”. I wish somebody would tell that to Mariah and the rest of those hating people at Mt. Zion that have such a problem with Allison and her family.

  Sincerely,

  Aaliyah Anderson

  ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

  Deangelo

  August 20, 2012, 8:22 a.m.

  Have you ever had an extremely weird day? You know, when your day is good but bad at the same time? That’s how yesterday was! Even though it was drama-filled, it wasn’t necessarily a horrible day. It actually started off pretty good to be honest.

  For example: I went to breakfast at school today. I was sitting alone in a booth along the wall on the right side of the lunchroom. ‘Kiyah was still suspended and Allison hadn’t made it to school yet. Honestly, the silence wasn’t even all that bad. I needed some time alone to myself so I could get my mind right, especially with all that I had to deal with later on in the day. Those seven minutes were pretty beneficial.

  As I was enjoying my peace and quiet, Tay decided to sit with me. I rolled my eyes and thought to myself, What does he want?

  “What’s up, ‘Liyah?” he said with his usual cocky smile. I half waved at him as I tried my best to make the stale grits I had taste good.

  I guess he could tell that I wasn’t trying to hold a conversation with him because he asked, “So you’re still mad at me over what happened a week ago?”

  I nodded.

  He laughed. “I feel you though. I was wrong for all the li’l out the way stuff I said. I sincerely apologize. I honestly didn’t mean to offend you. If it makes it any better to say, I was a li’l geeked. But I still apologize for putting you out like that, real talk.”

  I smiled and said, “Aww! Apology accepted! You really just made my morning.”

  “Well, I’m glad I could do that for you. But as I said earlier, what’s up? I heard a few things about you though.”

  “Like what?”

  “Oh, don’t worry, it ain’t nothin’ bad. I just heard about how you and my boy Scoop were gon’ hook up. What’s up, thug?”

  I looked at him a little bit sideways. “Who told you all that?”

  He had a smile on his face. “I’m not gonna tell how I found out because that’s not how I roll, you feel me? But aye, man, why don’t you talk to him?”

  I shrugged. “He isn’t my type.”

  “Come on, ‘Liyah! You just gon’ do my boy like that? Real talk, he ain’t like these other guys around here. This is comin’ from a true player too.”

  I smacked my lips and rolled my eyes. “A true player?”

  “Yeah! You must haven’t heard about Tay G from the east? I got that look at you game!”

  I grinned and playfully smacked him on the arm. “Whatever!”

  “But on the real, Scoop is different though. This man could be straight up pullin’ females if he wanted to, but he’s not even trying. He’s too busy trying to get on this schoolwork. You already know that’s the type of dude you need to hold you down - other than me of course!”

  I tried to hold back a smile.

  “See, you know I’m tellin’ the truth! That’s why you smiling now.”

  I’m not even gonna lie, Deangelo (a.k.a. Scoop) is cute. He’s really smart, has a nice smile with super deep waves in his hair, and has a li’l bit of swag to him. We also have been cool for a while. But for some reason, he just doesn’t seem like the type of guy I’d date.

  What ‘Kiyah said at the scrimmage was right. I tend to like really tall guys. What girl doesn’t? As a matter of fact, most of these guys around here are like giants compared to me. I’m only 5’3”! Deangelo is like 5’6”, which is like the shortest height in a guy I’ve ever seriously been talking to. That actually does make a difference to me.

  Then, he seems really…uninteresting at times. Yeah, I’m cool with him and everything, but I don’t see him as the boyfriend type. That’s just how I feel.

  With all this talk going around, I decided that I needed to talk to Deangelo face to face. As I was making my way to the front office, I happened to bump into him.

  “Hey, Deangelo,” I said with a friendly smile. “I need to talk to you for a minute.”

  “Everything cool? What’s going on with you?”

  “N
othing, I just heard that you like me,” I said really calm and casual.

  I’m not even gonna lie, I hesitated for a second. Like I said, Deangelo is cute. He has super deep waves in his hair, which I find very attractive on a boy. He was also sporting two diamond stud earrings from his ear, which I find attractive on some boys. It’s safe to say that he made the cut!

  Deangelo has a trim, muscular body and a light brown skin tone with no blemishes in sight. From how he dresses, you can tell he loves the Adidas brand. Today he had on a white Adidas brand V-neck shirt, black 501 Levi jeans, and white Adidas Superstars.

  He smiled. “It’s not that much of a big secret. Honestly, I’ve had a crush on you for the longest time. I just didn’t know how to tell you. I know it seems lame, but that’s just how it is.”

  I really had to hold myself back from blushing. I was so flattered! Honestly, I didn’t know what to say because I didn’t want to hurt him in any way.

  “Oh, no! That’s not lame to me. I like you too, but I just believe we should just stay friends for right now. I really don’t think we should rush things too quickly. Is that cool?”

  He nodded. “Of course; I totally understand. But, you know, a friend usually has the other friend’s number so they can talk.”

  I smiled and we exchanged numbers after that. I swear, my day started out perfect! Then, things got crazy……

  ♠♠♠♠

  The Truth About The Entertainment Industry

  When I got to Miss Carter’s office, I helped her file papers. We were having a great time talking. She told me almost everything about her singing career! R&B singers aren’t angels like many of us think. She told me about all the crazy things that were going on in private with some of the biggest names in the industry, the fights and confrontations she got into, the wild parties, her different run-ins with racism, and even some corruption! From what Miss Carter says, secret societies in the entertainment world are one hundred percent real.

  “Are you serious? I thought they were just a myth!”

  “No, they exist, just not like how you think. They don’t go around literally stealing souls and brainwashing people like these crazy YouTube videos would make you think. These organizations and corporations just have a good amount of control over what’s going on in mainstream media, Hollywood, sports, and the music industry and they definitely don’t have the well-being of people of color, especially blacks, on their minds.

  “Surprisingly, a lot of black entertainers are down with these groups and their agenda. They aren’t in them, they just associate with them. They straight sell themselves out. But I refuse to be one of the ones that, figuratively speaking, ‘sells my soul’ for fame and fortune.”

  “Wait…why’d you say that?”

  “Well, I wrote two songs called ‘Black and Beautiful’ and ‘The Queen Anthem’ that were expected to get a lot of airplay on the radio and support when it was finally recorded. They were supposed to be the lead singles for what was going to be my latest album Queen, a long overdue, uplifting album especially for black women that would start a dialogue about the self-hate complex we have going on. Because of rap and these reality TV shows, the image of young black women is horrible! And it has a major effect on how we view ourselves.

  “So, I pitched my ideas for the album to the people in charge at Lamont Records and they shot it down. They didn’t even want us to do the studio session for it. Some of the executives pulled me to the side and told me the truth about why they didn’t want me to follow through with the project, and I couldn’t believe it.”

  “Well, what was the truth?”

  She sighed and shook her head. “The truth these black executives told me was that it was too empowering. And I know those racist white folks that are really over at Lamont were the ones that told them to say that. It just made it clear that all those black executives are just puppets. I mean, I was in complete awe! An album centered around black beauty and black love is too empowering?”

  I shook my head. “What? You gotta be kidding me!”

  “Sadly, I’m not. That’s just how it is in the industry. I left Lamont immediately after that and decided that I needed a break from the business. I refuse to be a modern day slave for an anti-black agenda enforced by rich black people in power. If Dr. Spencer was alive and I did that, she wouldn’t let me hear the end of it. There are three people I never want to disappoint: God, my mom, and Dr. Spencer. The only good thing that came from me leaving Lamont is that I have full music publishing rights and the masters for all my music.

  “It was hard to pull off owning the rights to my music, but I did it. I plan on releasing Queen under my own label in the future. But, as of right now, I got too much on my plate. That’s the only thing holding me back.”

  “So you’re not done with the music industry?”

  “I’m done being a slave for the music industry. The only way I’ll come back is if it’s on my own time and independent. Then, I won’t come back fully because my main focus is helping make both Clarkson and Howard-Jones safer and more productive school environments. That’s the only thing that matters to me right now.”

  “Wow, that’s…wow! That story you just told is sort of scary considering I wanna be a president or CEO of a company one day.”

  “Don’t let that discourage you! I was just giving you a warning of the corrupt things that go on behind closed doors in the business. We need less Nicki Minajs and more Debra Lees in the world. As a matter of fact, we need more black ownership in general. I know you want to be a CEO, but be the CEO of your own company. Work for your own interests. And never forget where you came from.

  “Also, you’re way of thinking is so much more advanced than mine was when I was your age. All I thought about were boys and clothes. You already have a successful mindset, Aaliyah. Maybe you can be the one that makes a change in how things are run. And I believe in you.”

  I smiled. “Thanks, Miss Carter.”

  “Speaking of you having a successful mindset, I believe you should run for the student body president. Dr. Wittamore and I are going to totally revamp the election process and make it more fun and realistic.”

  I lowered my head and returned to filing papers. “Me as the president of the whole student body? I don’t think that’ll work.”

  “Come on, Aaliyah! What did we just talk about? This’ll be perfect since you want to be a company CEO in the future.”

  “I know, but I just don’t think that it’ll be a good idea.”

  “Well, at least think about it. If it makes things more important and competitive, Mrs. Conner elected Latasha Jones to run at the staff meeting Friday. The student government is going to have a lot of power over what goes on this year, especially in the student body. Being the president isn’t just a title anymore. Mrs. Conner realizes that too. That’s why she made sure to get a student that she trusts and can easily manipulate to make the changes that she feels are needed. Well, now I’m officially electing you. Are you up to it?”

  I thought about it. I get to run against and possibly beat Mrs. Conner and Latasha? That sounded pretty good…

  “Maybe I can run after all.”

  Miss Carter smiled and handed me a colorful paper. “I knew you’d come around! I need you to get at least one hundred signatures from the students around here. That officially puts you in the race and on the final ballot. I need you to personally give it to me by the end of the day. After that, I need you to pick a vice presidential candidate and write a campaign speech. We’re having an election nomination party on Friday night. That’ll be your first chance to sway voters to your side!”

  I smiled back at her but my stomach was fluttering. As I said, I’m definitely not a public speaking person. I don’t even like presenting projects in class! Now I gotta write a speech by Friday? This could be a totally embarrassing train wreck! Yeah, that’s a negative thought, but I’m only telling the truth!

  ♠♠♠♠

  Mrs. Jenkins

&
nbsp; Ever since my li’l situation with Mrs. Conner last week, the older teachers have really been treating me differently. It’s not like they were just being overly nice before then, but it just seems like they have it out for me now. In both Mrs. Jenkins’s and Mrs. Rockwell’s classes, I’ve been ignored multiple times when I raise my hand to ask a question and I always catch them glaring at me. Then, they’re always trying to catch me doing something wrong.

  I was getting some notebook paper out of my bookbag in Mrs. Jenkins’s class so I could complete an assignment and she tried to write me up, saying I was using my phone. Because of the fact that I clearly see that they’re trying to find any excuse to send me out of their respective classrooms, I didn’t snap on her like I did on Mrs. Conner.

  But today, I was really close to breaking that!

  It was the end of class and everybody was talking loud - you know, like how things normally are at the end of a class period? I was telling Allison about how Miss Carter nominated me to run for student body president. She thought it was a great that I got elected into the race and promised to help me get the one hundred signatures I needed. I kept telling her that I didn’t want to push my work over on her, but she wasn’t hearing it.

  “It’s the least I can do for all that you did for me this weekend,” she said with a smile as she took the signature sheet out of my hands.

  As everybody was just talking, ready to move to second period, Mrs. Jenkins just snapped out of nowhere.

  “Sit in your seats and shut up! The bell has not gone off yet! If I say be quiet again, we’re gonna have a problem!”

  Everybody instantly got quiet. Mrs. Jenkins is known to quickly send you to the office.

  She smiled. “That’s what I thought. Now, we’re gonna have order in my room! Next one to talk will be in the office, and I dare you to try me!”

  All of a sudden, I sneezed. Somebody said, “bless you” and I instinctively replied with a polite and quiet, “Thank you.”

  Miss Jenkins immediately got in my face and shouted, “Didn’t you hear what I said?”