With Faith & Love

\"Janese Allen, you have ‘til the count of 5 to get your little behind down here,\" Vickie Allen called to her daughter. Janese was in her room staring in her bedroom closet, trying to decide which shoes to wear with her navy blue, baby blue, and white skirt and matching sleeveless blouse. \"1.\" She heard her mother began her counting and her eyes scanned the shoeboxes more piously. \"3!\" \"I’m coming ma, I’m trying to find some shoes to wear,\" Janese yelled down the steps. \"You need to hurry it up! I told you that I was ready to leave at eight o’ clock.\" Janese grabbed her white Keds and ran down to her mother. \"Ma, why do we have to l so so early when grandma only lives forty five minutes away?\" Vickie watched her daughter put her shoes on. When she stood, Vickie fixed her long jet-black hair and held her face in her hands. \"Because, there’s nothing for you to get involved in but trouble and I want more than that for my baby girl.\" Janese smiled and gave her mother a kiss. \"I love you ma. Let’s get this show on the road.\" Janese and Vickie walked out of their four-story town house and into their 2003 Lexus. Janese’s father wasn’t around and hadn’t been since she was born but Vickie got along fine without him. She had recently met a guy named Richard and Janese liked him a lot and wanted the two to get married. The way their relationship was going, it sounded very possible. Janese was going to spend the summer with her grandmother down in North Beach. She loved visiting her and to the beach. Janese’s friends, LaToya and Justice moved from Upper Marlboro to North Beach in the middle of the school year, but the three remained close friends. Janese knew she would be spending most of her time with them. Mother and daughter rode in silence for a while until Vickie broke the silence. \"What are you thinking about?\" Janese looked at her mother and shrugged. \"Nothing much. Just Toya and Jus .\" Vickie nodded her head and they drove the rest of the way talking about the typical mother daughter stuff.

~*~*~

\"Dad, can I talk to you,\" Jett asked approaching his father, Wood Jackson, on the couch. Wood put down his paper and patted the couch. \"Sure. What’s on your mind Jett?\" Jett sat down and crossed his legs Indian style. \"This summer. I would like to go spend time with Aunt Gloria and Uncle Will up in North Beach.\" Wood looked at his son and knew that he had been thinking about this little escapade for a while. \"Do they know that you want to visit,\" Wood asked. Jett shook his head. \"Well, if they say it’s okay, we’ll drive up tomorrow afternoon.\" Jett jumped off the couch and on the phone. \"After a couple of minutes, Jett came wondering back in the living room with a grin on his face. \"I guess they said yes,\" Wood asked; glad to see his son smiling again. \"Yup.\" Jett ran upstairs to go pack.

~*~*~

Janese was done packing and sitting in her room at her grandmother’s house. Vickie finally left after hours of talking and night had come. Janese slipped on some pajamas and relaxed on her queen size bed. She had plans to go and visit LaToya and Justice so she fell sound asleep.