The boy from Jamaica

Chapter 1

How does it feel to fly, really fly?

No, not fly in the sense that humans typically think of flying. Flying isn't sitting in an air-conditioned cubicle with tightly-clad attendants pushing carts of food back and forth. You might be in the air, but you still do not know what it means to fly, what it means to be part of the azure skies, or to graze puffy clouds with the tip of your fingers, or have wings that effortlessly defy gravity, or be as carefree as birds, traveling to anywhere you wished without having to worry about sneaking cocaine past immigration.

Christine pondered all this as she stood on the balcony of her school's eight-story building. She gripped the railings and peered down at the ground, at the horde of students who now seemed like crushable ants. She wondered if she would know how it felt to fly if she jumped off now, even if the feeling only lasted for a split second. She would feel the force of the wind on her face, the weightlessness of her body as it spiralled towards inevitable disaster, and the slowing of her heartbeat. She would give anything to feel like that again, even if that thing meant her life.

"Um...suicidal much?"

Her friend's voice snapped her out of her reverie. Ife tugged her away from the railings, grabbed her by the shoulders, and shook her hard.

"Babe, do you have a death wish or something? Why were you about to climb the railings?"

Christine shrugged. "I was just testing something out."

"I'm not even going to ask," Ife said. "Sometimes you're so weird, I wonder how I'm even friends with you. Speaking of which, Tomi is back! Let's go and meet her."

Ife didn't even give Christine a chance to respond before she started dragging her down the stairs. Her friend was perhaps the most energetic person she'd ever met, and though it was draining sometimes, Christine loved her nevertheless. They were approaching another person Christine loved just as much, her other best friend, Tomi. She was frowning at her locker, visibly distraught.

"Girl, why do you look like you just came straight out of jail?" Ife yelled at an unnecessarily high volume. She pulled Tomi into a tight hug, then released her to take a good look at her. "Jesus, is there no food in America at all? You've grown so thin—"

Tomi rolled her eyes. "Good to see you too, Ife."

Christine laughed. "Don't mind her, Tomi. I'm definitely happy to see you."

"Before you two gang up on me as usual," Ife interjected, "I never said I wasn't happy to see her. I'm just concerned is all. She's lost so much weight. It looks good on you, though. I would've liked to lose some weight too over the holiday, but I couldn't choose between milky donuts and a banging summer body."

Tomi gave Ife a reassuring pat on the back. "Don't worry, dear. The only reason I lost so much weight is because I was depressed as hell in America. I don't even know why I went in the first place. All my parents did was argue and argue."

"That sucks," Christine said. "Are things still that rough?"

Tomi had been complaining about her parents for as long as Christine knew her, which was more than four years. Christine never explicitly said it, but she was surprised her parents were still together given how violent and hostile their disagreements were. They were never physical, but the words exchanged were so harsh, the damage they wrought was probably as bad as if it had been.

Christine could sympathize with her friend, but she could not exactly relate. Her parents never fought or disagreed on anything. Though sometimes that worried her as much as it would have had they been actively fighting. They could go without speaking to each other for days, not that silence was indicative of malice, but Christine always got the sense that their kind of silence was too unnatural and habitual for people who claimed to be in love. If she ever fell in love, she didn't want her love to feel like that, like a cold, unresponsive thing. She wanted her love to be fueled with passion, the kind of love with a flame so hot and bright, it would be impossible to keep it inside her.

"Did you hear me?" Tomi nudged her in the shoulder.

Christine stared blankly.

"Jesus, Christie," Ife sucked her teeth, "sometimes, it's like you're deaf or something."

Christine rubbed her forehead. "Sorry. I was thinking about something."

"You're always thinking about something," Tomi said.

"Be behaving like you're the only one with thoughts," Ife piped.

Christine raised her eyebrows. "Maybe not. But I'm very sure you, Ife, are incapable of thinking."

Ife gasped. "Are you calling me dumb?"

"Just stating facts is what I'm doing."

"More like bullshit," Ife retorted.

Tomi laughed. She threw her arms over Christine and Ife's shoulders. "Oh my god, I missed you guys so much. You can't imagine how much I've been suffering in that house. Especially with Gigi. All she ever does is poo."

"She's like 9 months. That's what babies do. They shit their brains out," Ife said.

Tomi rolled her eyes. "It's still annoying. I swear it's like she does it intentionally sometimes. She will look into your eyes and do it, right there! You can't tell me it's because she's a baby. Babies aren't stupid."

Christine nodded. "Yeah, some babies are actual villains."

They walked into biology class five minutes early. It was the only class they all had together. They sat in the back row as usual, in a bid not to inspire their teacher's wrath with all the talking and gossiping they did, although there was no guarantee since Mr. Femi's ears were as sharp as a bat's. One time, Christine's pen fell mid-lecture and he sent her to the principal's office for causing 'public disturbance.' Not that it stopped her or her friends from talking though.

"Did you hear?" Ife whispered. "Stephanie is pregnant. Apparently, that's why she couldn't make it to prom. Her parents had to ship her to the UK to abort the baby."

Christine pursed her lips. "I don't know why she just can't keep her legs close. Fornication is a sin."

"Spoken like a true pastor's daughter," Tomi said.

Ife scribbled something in her notebook. "At least Stephanie's life has some level of excitement. Ours is so boring. This is our last year of high school. We should get mixed up in drama, just for the fun of it."

"Teenage pregnancy is not fun," Christine reminded her.

"I'm not suggesting we get pregnant you idiot," Ife spat. "I'm just saying we should do something bold, brave. Let loose a little before we go to college. I know what I'm going to do, though."

"What?" Tomi asked.

Ife smiled mischievously. "I'm going to lose my virginity."

Christine fought the urge to slam her head against the desk in frustration. "What kind of stupid goal is that? Who are you going to lose it to, even? All the boys in our year suck. Why would you want to give something so precious to someone who wouldn't even appreciate it?"

"Please, relax. It's not like I'm giving away gold. Virginity is just a social construct anyway. Plus, I've planned it all out. There's this new guy everybody has been talking about. Apparently, he's from Jamaica and he's like fucking hot. Someone told me he's single too. I just know he'll be totally down. I'll just invite him to my party next week and--"

"It already sounds like a stupid idea," Tomi interrupted. "You don't even know this guy."

"You guys are just je—oh look, he's coming into class right now."

Christine looked at the door, not expecting to feel anything but utter annoyance at this boy from Jamaica who her friend had decided to lose her virginity to. She did not expect the shock that wracked her body when she saw him.

That was no boy from Jamaica.

That was Badrick, and the last time she saw him was seven years ago.

The last time she saw him was also the last time she knew what it felt like to fly.

Why the hell was he back?