Chapter 2

When they got home, D’Shawn made Lorraine sit on the kitchen table while he detailed his plan.

“So, here’s what’s gonna happen. There’s a game that we’re going to play or, if you don’t like to think about it that way, then consider it as an experiment into human behavior. Either way, your son is going to be home from school in a couple minutes, is that right?”

Lorraine nodded her head as the level of fear increased deep inside her heart.

“O.K. then, here’s the game. No matter what your son says, in fact no matter what anybody says from now on, until I tell you otherwise, you’re only allowed to say the sentence ‘I think that’s a great idea’. If I tell you otherwise to say something else, then you say that but other than that, you either say nothing or if someone asks you a question or for your opinion on something, you just give a big broad smile and say ‘I think that’s a great idea!’ You got it?”

Lorraine nodded and whispered. “Yes.”

“Fuck. Say it loud so I can hear it. ‘Yes. I got it. I don’t do anything but give a big broad smile and say ‘I think that’s a great idea!’ unless D’Shawn tells me to say something else. Say that.”

“Yes. I got it. I don’t do anything but give a big broad smile and say ‘I think that’s a great idea!’ unless D’Shawn tells me to say something else.” Lorraine now repeated as she forced herself to speak louder. Yet, despite her best efforts, it trembled and wavered comically as she said it and ended in a shrill squeak as she spoke the last words.

“Good,” said D’Shawn. “Now keep saying it over and over again until I tell you to stop.”

Lorraine did as she was told and she now started repeating the words again and again while she also kept track of how many times she said it and it was on her 27th repetition when she heard the front screen door slam, not once but twice. Aaron, her fourteen year old son was home from school and the screen door’s second slam meant that he was not alone. A moment later, Aaron walked into the kitchen and turned his head toward her when he saw her sitting on the kitchen table. Entering the kitchen behind him was another boy and it took Lorraine less than a second to notice that this kid looked to be an exact miniature of the man who had kidnapped her babies and taken every last dollar she had. The kid was short, black and fat with a stomach that already hung over his belt. Even his face was fat and his cheeks puffed out so far that they seemed in danger of forcing his eyes to shut. His skin was as black as coal while his nose was broad and so flat it might have been smashed with a hammer while his lips were so full and pronounced they looked like something out of a caricature. On his body the black boy now wore a dirty and worn pair of faded blue jeans and a T-shirt that had the words ‘Eat Me!’ emblazoned across the front and, above this, there was another racist caricature of a black boy’s disembodied head that seemed ready to pounce on what Lorraine could only surmise was a picture of a clam. Finally, on his feet were a pair of sneakers that were so worn that they looked like they should have been thrown away many eons ago. Where their weren’t holes the black boy’s shoes were wrapped in what appeared to be duct tape and the black boy carried no books. In fact, if he had a backpack at all he must have left it at home or behind in his locker for his intent certainly didn’t seem to do any sort of homework.

“Hey mom” Aaron said. “Who’s this?”

“The names D’Shawn my good lad.” said the strange black man who had threatened to kill both Lorraine and her children. He then stuck his hand out and offered it to Aaron.

“I’m new in town and I’ve just been introducing myself around the neighborhood. I see you’ve already met my son.” D’Shawn motioned to the boy behind Aaron. Aaron turned his head quickly back to the other boy and then back towards D’Shawn. His mouth fell open for a minute as he tried to comprehend what was going on and then he spoke.

“Oh, you ... you’re Tyrell’s father. That’s funny. He just showed up today in my eighth grade class and then told me that if I didn’t let him come over he’d beat me to a bloody mess every day from now on.”

Aaron looked at Tyrell hesitantly and the fear he obviously felt for the smaller boy was written plainly on his face. D’Shawn continued to beam broadly, apparently unashamed of neither his son's behavior nor the rows of brown teeth he was currently putting on display.

“Like I said, we’re new in town.” said D’Shawn. “I hope you don’t mind my son being a bit of a bully so that he could come over?”

Lorraine swallowed hard unable to believe that she could get the words out.

“I ... well ... I ... I think that’s a great idea!” she finally said. She had tried her best to sound enthusiastic but knew she had failed miserably. For, even though she managed to control her voice, Lorraine felt the smile she forced on her face must look ridiculous. After all, it could only be seen as a mask of total fear and bared teeth.

“I know!” Tyrell suddenly said with excitement in his voice. “I’ll invite some of my best niggas over and we’ll have a party!”

“You can’t just do that!” Aaron spoke angrily as if he were feeling insulted. “You have to ask permission!” Aaron then reflexively turned toward his mom as Tyrell and D’Shawn did as well. Lorraine now felt sick to her stomach. She wanted, no, she needed this horrible disgusting black man and he equally repulsive son to get out of her house and to do it now. The last thing she wanted was to have a new throng of black boys pouring through her front door.

“I ... I ... well ... I-I-I well, I think that’s a great idea!” Lorraine was finally able to stammer out. Yet, before the words were even out of her mouth, Tyrell was on his cell phone texting frantically before he then put his phone away.

“Alright, they’ll be here any second” said Tyrell, and, just as he had predicted, it wasn’t even another minute before they heard the screen door being opened again. Only this time it didn’t slam and, with a sinking feeling in her heart, Lorraine knew it was because the door didn’t have a chance to slam. No, now, as each boy came through the front door another entered right behind him and each one held the door open until god knows how many black bodies had invited her pure and clean house. The hallway leading to the kitchen was then filled with a chattering sea of voices as feet tromped along the floor and, to Lorraine, it sounded like an entire army had entered the Miller home. A swarm of black boys then came pouring into the Miller’s kitchen, one after the other they filled up the room in a rush that never seemed to end. Soon, there were so many of them that they occupied the entire space in front of the kitchen table and spilled over into the area by the sink, the dishwasher and the stove.

“Aaron, Lorraine,” Tyrell now said sounding pleased, “allow me to introduce you to my twenty four closest friends. All of us homies from the inner city projects. The poorest of the poor. Thank you for inviting us into your home.”

Lorraine just sat there thinking she should stay silent as the one thing she was allowed to say didn’t seem to be an appropriate response.

“And,” added D’Shawn, “as a gift I’m giving each boy a brand new camera.”

For a moment there was just silence as if each boy was processing what he had just heard and wondering if he should believe it but then the room erupted in cheers as D’Shawn started handing a brand new top of the line camera to each boy and even Aaron forgot his concern about being bullied when D’Shawn placed a new digital video camera into his hands.

“O.K. take ‘em out now boys,” D’Shawn now said, “I got a feeling you're going to be using them real real soon.”

“Oh! Hey! I know!” Tyrell now said excitedly as if he had just had a brilliant idea.

“Mrs. Miller, I ... I think I want to kiss you. What do you think? You feel like making out with a fourteen year old black boy you aint never met before? One who’s in all the same classes with your own oldest son?”