26
The music was jumping and could be heard down the street. Keith and Afrika parked their cars around the corner from the home that had seen many Alpha parties. Keith caught up with Afrika and led her toward the house, leaving Zavion and Asia alone. They didn’t seem too anxious about joining the festivities and slowed to a crawl to get reacquainted.
“I bet all the guys tell you that you’re beautiful,” Zavion said, lifting Asia’s chin to get a better look at her.
“No, not all. You haven’t told me that I’m beautiful,” Asia said, confidence dripping all over her, narrowing the space between Zavion and her.
“What’s the point if you already know it?”
“Really, I’m not stuck on myself. I’m blessed to have reasonably good looks, but I don’t go around flaunting it. I’m really down to earth and a lot of fun to be with.”
Zavion smiled. “Okay, I can see that you might be down to earth and a lot of fun to be with, but I must be honest and tell you…you are beautiful. I see more than your beauty on the outside. Yes, there’s a whole lot more to you, Asia.”
“That is deep, Zavion. You’re going to make me blush. You’re not like those guys who only want to put their hands all over you.” Asia looked away and blushed. “You’re a rare breed. Your momma taught you well.”
Zavion clammed up and remained quiet.
“Are you okay? I didn’t say anything wrong, did I?” Asia asked with concern, stepping back a little.
Zavion sighed. “Naw, you didn’t say anything wrong. I was thinking about my mother. She’s had it hard all her life. To me, she died when I was eight. My grandmother raised me.”
“I didn’t mean to upset you.”
“You didn’t do anything. It’s just that my mother died inside from a broken heart. After my dad got killed over some drug deal gone bad, my mother hooked up with some educated dude who bought her nice things from time to time but mainly came around to…to get in bed with her. She got pregnant and had the baby, my younger brother, and after that, dude stop coming around for a while. A couple years after that, my mother gave up on life and nearly died in the streets like my daddy. I think my mother has hooked up with that lowlife again. Most of all, it broke my grandmother’s heart, but she raised my brother and me to be nothing like our parents.”
“Where is your brother?”
“He’s a senior in high school. He plays basketball, too, and he’s pretty good. He’s thinking about going to Duke. He’s got good grades, and Grandma says that if they pay his way, my brother can go.”
“Maybe his father can help pay,” Asia said innocently.
Zavion gave Asia a sharp look. “Maybe we should go to the party.”
“Okay, what did I just do?” Asia asked.
“It’s like this, Asia. I had a rough life. If my brother and I didn’t have our grandmother, the streets would’ve claimed us. We would be a couple of statistics that are recorded in somebody’s book in the County Courthouse that nobody gives a damn about. I’ve actually wiped the images of my mother and father clean out of my mind. My brother never knew his father. He doesn’t know if he’s alive or dead, and to be truthful, he doesn’t even know his name. Grandma saw to that.”
“What about his birth certificate?”
“My mother used her married name. My brother has my last name.”
“And you’re Zavion…”
“Zavion Slater.”
“It has a nice ring to it. Zavion Slater. Zavion and Asia Slater.”
“You’re moving a little too fast, aren’t you?”
“Just testing it out to see how it sounds.”
Zavion eased up and let out a laugh. “So your criteria for picking a mate will be based on how both names ring together?”
“Yes, sir. That’s right. And guess what?”
“What?” Zavion asked, pulling Asia to him.
“Zavion and Asia Slater has the ring.”
Zavion laughed again but this time he reached down and kissed Asia. Asia held on tight and put as much into the kiss as Zavion. He was the first to pull away.
“Maybe we should go to that party. People are probably wondering why we’ve been standing in the middle of the block looking at each other for the last fifteen minutes.”
“I don’t see anyone looking. You’re afraid that one of your brothers might see you? Oh, I don’t know if you’re even frat.”
“I am. I’m an Alpha. That’s how I met Keith.”
Asia smiled. “An Alpha man and a b-baller. So are you a freshman, and is this your first season with the team?”
“No, my third.”
“Third?”
“I’m a junior. Grandma told me that I had to graduate before I could join the NBA.”
“I’d like to meet your grandmother. She sounds like a jewel.”
“She is. Maybe you’ll get the chance to meet her some day. Now let’s go to the party.”
“Okay, Mr. Slater.”