Page 5 of Blake University HBCU Chronicles: Archer & Destiny

He could talk hatefully and get mad, but he never liked to raise his voice much because he felt like that took up too much of his energy.

“Archer—”

“Where is my real mother?” He struggled to get the words out.

A painful lump rose in his throat, although he knew all along the truth. It pained him to not know who his biological mother was. His entire life, he had gone without a mother’s love. It’s part of what made him cold and void of any emotions.

“K—Karen is your mother.” Sr. said confidently.

For a second, Archer’s shoulders dropped in defeat. He refused to allow his chin to drop, too. He quickly masked all of his emotions and looked his father in the eyes with a blank expression.

“Remember, you made me this way. So don’t be surprised when I burn down your whole damn blueprint.”

He snatched his hoodie from the back of his chair and picked up another blunt from his desk. Sr. and Karen started to argue as Archer made his way to the door.

THREE

Destiny

The sun was gentle today, not too hot shining down on Blake U’s campus. Destiny rolled across the quad with her head held high. Her thick copper-brown coils were pinned half-up with the rest flowing down her back. Her hair bounced with every turn of her electric wheelchair’s tires.

It was her second week of classes. She’d been on time to every one and hadn’t missed a dosage. Her mother checked in with her once or maybe twice a day while her father called her in between every class. He’d also stay up late, acting like he was making small conversation, when in reality, he just wanted to be sure that she was eating before taking her medicine at night.

Destiny actually felt good, she hadn’t cried for an entire week. That was a new record for her. She hadn’t made any new friends but just being in a new environment felt good to her.

Today, she promised herself that she wouldn’t race straight back to her apartment like she normally did the moment lectures let out. She felt like she deserved to see more of the campus.How can I ever meet new friends if I’m always inside studying.She smiled at nothing in particular. Soon as class letout, students poured into the courtyard like released confetti. Destiny turned toward the heart of campus instead of the exit.

She was nervous at first and second guessed her decision on texting her driver Alley to tell her that she didn’t need to be picked up until around six p.m. Her fingers hovered over the joystick as she passed couples that lounged on hammocks in the middle of the grass. Her mouth watered at the frat boys that tossed a football back and forth.

She looked at students under trees curled over open laptops outside of the food courts. That’s how free and comfortable she wanted to be. She rolled through the glass automatic doors of the food court and was instantly hit with the smell of fried chicken, fries, burgers, and just about everything else.

Someone was playing music from their speaker, and Destiny slowly bobbed her head to the beat. Just for a second, she felt invisible in the best way possible. She didn’t hear any whispering about a girl in the wheelchair, whereas in high school there was noise and no normalcy for her.

The first thing she did was order a mango smoothie from Jamba Juice then wheeled toward the back wall where two tall vending machines glowed beside the student lounge. She stared up at all of them. One vending machine was full of drinks and the other was stacked with snacks.

She got excited just thinking about having frosted Pop Tarts, sour gummies and hot Cheetos as she read on her Kindle from bed that night.

I can do this.She thought to herself as she powered off her chair. She locked the wheels and slowly braced herself to stand. Her legs protested immediately, feeling stiff, heavy, and almost foreign under her. Some days, it felt like her body went numb — which she appreciated, so she wouldn’t have to endure much pain. Today, she felt pain but hadn’t stood up since this morning when she got herself in the shower.

She gripped the edge of the vending machine with one hand while her other hovered over the keypad. She read the snack numbers slowly, trying to choose which one she wanted to attempt to get first. She knew it was a task, and didn’t bother looking behind her to see who was watching. If her dad was with her, he would have got her whatever she wanted.

Moments like this, she wished he was there with her. She rid herself of those thoughts, not wanting to remain dependent on what all her dad would do for her. This was a hard task, what made it harder mentally was her thinking that all eyes were glued to her as she struggled. Destiny was right, all eyes were on her, and no one offered to help at all. It’s like the people behind her knew what Destiny’s fate was before it happened.

There were some students that got a kick out of watching her struggle. Some of them recorded her without even trying to conceal their phones. Destiny’s chips descended, exciting her before she tried to bend down to get them out of the slot.

A sharp pain shot up her back, automatically causing her to wince and cry out. Her legs twitched then buckled. It happened in a breath, her muscles spasmed violently and she couldn’t shift fast enough. Destiny twisted, trying to reach for the armrest of her chair. She knew she was going to fall, at least it would be better to land in her chair. She missed by inches; her body hitting the tile floor hard.

The vending machine beeped once, uselessly. Her smoothie rolled to the side and spun in circles. There was silence at first, but seconds later, she heard laughter. It wasn’t from everyone, just a small group of boys that had got it all on their phones for funny content and memes. Destiny closed her eyes; her face burned with humiliation. She couldn’t stop her tears from falling down her chubby cheeks.Record broken. Now I’m fucking crying after going so long without feeling this way.She thought sadly. She sniffled and tried her best to suck up her tears, but itwas hard for her. The weight of her humiliation weighed her eye sockets down, and she refused to turn towards all the students behind her. She didn’t even want them to see her in pain.

Just that fast, she felt like her day was ruined. She didn’t understand why her body chose to betray her in front of everyone. Behind closed doors, she could stand and waddle her way from her bed to her bathroom. She could even stand longer than expected in her kitchen whenever she cooked something for herself.

Out of all days to have a bad spasm, it happened in the food court. She told herself that maybe she should have gone with her first mind. Now, she wanted her driver to pick her up at the regularly scheduled time. She knew she would have to sit for a while on the floor. Her legs were locked; her arms shook from the hard fall.

Suddenly, the laughing stopped like someone hit mute. A new presence, quiet but heavy, stepped inside of the food court. Archer watched her fall before he entered; he stood outside of the food court, waiting to see if anyone was going to help her. It infuriated him that people laughed and recorded the disabled instead of assisting them.

Soon as he walked inside, just about everyone got quiet. Everyone knew not to fuck with Archer. His cold demeanor preceded itself. He eyed one of the boys that was laughing and recording when he stood up to attempt to walk up to Destiny, who was still on the floor.

“Move.”

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