Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

Monday 6^th September 2010

6:05AM

Her thick birght yellow curls richly cascaded over the crisps ironed white shirt. Her collar fixed and sharp, she looked like a box of cigarettes. Square. Her red, black and white plaid skirt pleats were also fixed and aligned regularly. Everyone was dressing her. The perfectionism of her family annoyed her and she wanted no part in it. She rather not bath, run into the grass like a ram-goat and let her hair free. Mother had just finished combed her hair in a half up, half down manner. Lightly putting light pink lip gloss on her lips and face powder to cover nothing but flawlessness. She looked like a little pageant Barbie doll in an ugly Caribbean school uniform. Her simple tie, was now being tied neatly by her older brother, Tye Jones. She was beginning to get restless.

“Tianna, would you quit moving like a maggot. Geez, don’t you want to look good?” wrestled Tye as Tianna pushing him away from her.

Beauty is Pain

“I’m sick and tired, leave me alone. And by the way, I make a potato bag look sexy.” She snapped. Tye sighed openly and turned to give a whining complaint to mother.

“Mom, your kid isn’t being co-operative”

It was as if mother had mystical magic as she appeared in the blink of an eye in front of the Tianna’s room. “Look how beautiful you look honey” Her broad smile made creases at the side of her lips deepen, her make-up had sunken with the creases also. Lifting the digital camera in front of her eyes, Tianna automatically changed in her ‘picture taking mood’. Her left leg slightly off the floor and turning into the side, hand placed on her tilted left thigh. Her teeth were literally all out there and the camera flashed. “Flawlessly” mother remarked, looking on the draped golden watch on her hand, her eyes almost made a pop. “Tye, you’ll be late for your flight, father is downstairs in the car waiting”

“My gosh! Like the plane will miss me more than Tianna boy!” he said placing his hand slightly over his mouth. Tianna made a small chuckle at her brother’s dumbness but it didn’t last long. Tye was going to leave in about the next two minutes back to America at Yale University to study his first year in pre-med. Tianna and her family moved to the tropics and felicity of Trinidad and Tobago, all because of mother. The Education Union Sector of America EUSA, sent 5 United States Principals and their families to different Caribbean countries for five years receiving, in turn, three times the amount of their original salaries. They called it a test run, an experiment, the beginning of a new era of exchanging different teaching guidance and techniques from different part of America and sharing them with the fellow Caribbeans. Tianna didn’t care; she called it tearing her away from her friends just before senior year with them. She knew for sure she would most likely be the only white kid on the block. What if she didn’t get accepted for being white? What if based on Caribbean history, the beat her to a pulp as revenge? They do seem very violent and vulgar based on YouTube videos. What made matters worse, was that Tye wasn’t there to help or support her, be there with her, like he always had. Sure he was just a phone call away, but it wasn’t the same as having him next to you to hug and fight with. He was leaving. Tye turned and gave Tianna a big hug then punched her on the shoulder “See yuh’ next three month kid”. His smile darkened as his eyes welled up and just like that, he left. Mother walked over sincerely and gave Tianna a comforting hug for her bubbling waterworks. “Don’t cry too much, Honey”