Reflections || Prince

Reflections || Chapter 3

1983

Valerie Thomas

"Momma, can we talk?" Sometime later, I finally decided to speak one on one with my mother. We agreed to meet in her home. She usually drove to the restaurant for work every day otherwise. We shared coffee together at her kitchen table.

"Sure." My mother rarely wore makeup. To her, there was no use in getting dolled up anymore, especially after her divorce. As she showed off her bare face, I saw myself. Our dark skin and brown eyes matched entirely. I was nothing like Dad.

"If Daddy never left, do you think that life would be different?" I put down my coffee mug and asked the question. Momma took a second to think over a response. As silence fell between us, my heart dropped for a moment. By now, Dad already remarried someone and earned three more kids with his brand new wife.

"I hope so, Sweetheart. You'd probably have siblings by now and wouldn't even have to work at the restaurant." My mother sighed out loud and reached my elephant in the room. It was as if she read my mind in one way or another.

"Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you about." I prepared myself for the truth. It was now or never. Speaking up with her would change everything. She'd worked hard to raise me well. Hopefully, I wouldn't disappoint her this time around.

I believed that Momma would just respond, but I watched as she stood up from the kitchen table and shuffled footsteps. She picked something from her pile of mail and returned to sit back down with me. I still waited, completely silent right now.

"Here, Baby." Momma sniffled for a second before handing over this piece of mail. I didn't know what to think until my eyes recognized details on this envelope. At that moment, My heart dropped and raced all at once. I couldn't believe what happened.

"Mommy, thank you." I turned into this little girl again. She already knew. This was my last paycheck. Another round of silence fell as I blinked away tears of my own. We both then stood up from the table and walked around to embrace each other.

"I'm so sorry that it took this long. Go live your dreams, Valerie." Momma pulled away from our hug and held my face with both hands. I still felt so small, as if my height shrunk to those days on the playground. Nothing short of innocence.

"Yes Ma'am." I pulled myself together, wiped these tears, and at least cleaned the kitchen with my Mommy. We played music and eventually sang Gospel. By then, I felt as if Grandma smiled from heaven and made sure Momma and I hit our notes.

Right before I walked out the door, Momma kissed my cheek and said, "no matter what, I'll always support you."

I cried on the way home.

_____

"I did it." I told Tracee what happened the other day with my mother. Both happiness and shock ran across her face as we sat in the living room. She had just finished work of her own and visited me again. I'd been waiting to give my news.

"What next?" Tracee offered the reasonable question while flipping through television channels. There were a few cheesy movies on, but neither one of us seemed to care. It wasn't long before she turned everything off and listened again.

"I hunkered down and might actually finish my demo soon. Now it's a matter of where to go with it." I shrugged for a moment, but only my mind soon brainstormed different locations. Music had been universal for years. We knew.

"Don't worry about New York or L.A. I figured out exactly where you need to go. It's not even a question anymore of where you want to go." Once Tracee smirked towards me and scribbled on paper, I could only imagine what she thought of.

"Where am I going?" It wasn't long before I scrunched up my face. Enough was enough. Before I could snatchup the paper away from Tracee and laugh, she offered this famous death glare. In turn, I could dodge the surprise up her sleeve.

T had written down one place: Uptown

"Are you serious?" I planned to hurl one of my sofa-throw pillows towards her head. Trace probably used her idea as an excuse for me to see Prince again. We only couldn't see him backstage after his concert because journalists had to leave early.

"I'm joking." Tracee balled up the paper after giving me this mini heart attack and continued laughing to herself. I rolled my eyes. Our dynamic as friends hadn't changed all between us, even after high school. She got my nerves like any sister.

"Who knows if I'll ever see him in person again? I was just being a good person back then." I'd already told Tracee that Prince met my mother at the restaurant hours before his show, but the chances of me seeing him again were still slim.

"He likes you." Tracee fooled around and danced in her seat on the couch. I rolled my eyes once more. It was totally unrealistic for "His Royal Badness" to care about someone like me. Groupies and wannabes were already near him. I was real.

"Why would you say that? Stop pulling my leg." I turned away, staring into nothing for a movement. There was no other choice. I wasn't stupid to fall for that kind of suggestion. As I've time, he would be a legend soon. There was no time for me.

"Because his manager called me at work this morning." Tracee said.

"Why?" I scrunched up my face.

"After I figured out who it was, we talked about my article for the concert and found that Prince has been looking for you. Not me. You." While gesturing between us both, Tracee revealed the truth.

It was a miracle that I didn't faint.