Nightmare's Moral III

            Serena and her mother had been in their new house for almost two months. It was two days before Labor Day, and Mrs. Brown decided to have a barbecue. She invited Mrs. Harris and her children. Serena decided to call her best friend, Ebony. Ebony answered the phone. “Hello?” she said.

            “Hey, this is Serena,” Serena replied. “How are you?”

            “Good. And you?”

            “I’m alright. What are you doing for Labor Day? We’re having a barbecue at our house.”

            “Actually, me and my parents are moving to Brigantine tomorrow. New York City is not very safe, especially after what happened at Central Park last summer. Last week, this girl got shot on the way home from the store.”

            “You know what? This is exactly why me and my mom moved back to Brigantine. I’ve been meaning to call you. Anyway, I’m glad you’re moving because we have some catching up to do. And if you’re not too busy, would you like to come to the barbecue?”

            “Sure! That sounds great!”

            Serena and Ebony said good-bye to each other and hung up.

            “Mom, guess what? Ebony’s moving down here for the same reason we did a couple of months ago!”

            “Are you serious?” Mrs. Brown asked. “Serena, that’s great! When is she moving?”

            “Tomorrow. I told her about the barbecue and she might come!”

            “Well, I’ll be looking forward to seeing her.”

            The next day, Ebony and her parents moved to Brigantine. They moved into a house down the street from Mrs. Davis. B.J. had been locked up for over a month and was released a week ago. Ebony and her parents had settled in for the night after a long day of unpacking. She called Serena to ask her what time the barbecue was going to be. Serena told her that it was going to be at three o’ clock.

            Finally, it was the day of the barbecue. Mrs. Harris and her children came. Ebony and her parents also showed up.

            “Hey, Ebony,” Serena said, “I want you to meet my boyfriend and his sister.” Serena took her over to them. “This is my best friend, Ebony.”

            Ricky and Cherie said hello to her and she replied back.

            “This is Ricky,” Serena continued, “and this is Cherie. We all grew up together.”

            Cherie said, “Why don’t we introduce you to our mom, and you can introduce us to your parents?”

            They all walked over to Mrs. Harris and Ebony’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Weeks. Everybody introduced themselves, while Mrs. Brown cooked the food. She served hotdogs, hamburgers, barbecued chicken, macaroni salad, potato salad, and corn on the cob. There were also drinks and snacks of all kinds. It was a beautiful day outside. Everything was going smoothly until B.J. showed up.

            “B.J.!” Serena exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”

            “I just wanted to come to the barbecue,” replied B.J. “But most of all, I just wanna make things right between us so we can take our relationship to the next level.”

            “First of all, how did you know about the barbecue? Second of all, there is no relationship! I’m with Ricky now, so why don’t you go back to your girlfriend and leave me alone?”

            “To answer your question, your friend, Ebony told me all about it.”

            “Well, you weren’t invited! I know all about you, so good-bye!” With that, she walked away to find Ebony.

            “Serena, wait!” B.J. called after her. “Can’t we talk?” But Serena ignored him and kept walking.

            “Ebony,” she said when she got to her, “can I talk to you inside for a minute?”

            Ebony said, “Sure. What is it?”

            Serena took her in the house and said, “I need to talk to you about B.J.”

            “Great! Because he’s the cutest boy alive and he said--

            “Ebony! Focus. I thought the same thing about two months ago until he stood me up. Ricky introduced me to him when we were at the beach. We swapped numbers and talked on the phone for a week. The first day we talked, he promised me a date to Red Lobster. When the day came, he pretended to be sick and took his girlfriend instead. My mom told me that he hit her while they were there because she wouldn’t let him order for her. He wouldn’t even let her look at the menu. By the way, he was arrested for disorderly conduct. I can’t believe they let that creep out of jail. How did you meet up with him anyway?”

            “I live down the street from him. But it’s hard for me to believe this happened. He’s such a nice guy.”

            “Girl, B.J. just seems like a nice guy but he’s very rude. I’ve had him hang up on me before. Most of all, he’s extremely abusive. If he hit his girlfriend, he’ll most likely hit you. So I’m telling you now. Don’t get involved with him or let him promise you a date, because he’ll be sure to come up with some excuse to stand you up.”

            “He only stood you up because he had a girlfriend. Therefore, I shouldn’t have that problem because he’s single.”

            “I’ll tell you why B.J. is single. His girlfriend broke up with him after their big fight at Red Lobster. He’s also abused other girls before her. When he showed up here, he wanted me to be his girl even after the way he treated me.”

            “Are you sure you’re not jealous?”

            “Ebony, you can ask my mom. She’ll tell you all about it.”

            Serena and Ebony went back outside to talk to Mrs. Brown about B.J.

            “Mom, you remember what B.J. did?” Serena asked.

            Mrs. Brown replied, “I sure do. What’s going on?”

            “Ebony is about to make the same mistake I made. She likes him. You know he had the nerve to show up and try to talk to me? I told Ebony everything, but she doesn’t believe me.”

            “Is it true that B.J. is rude and abusive?” asked Ebony.

            Mrs. Brown said, “I’m afraid so, Ebony. Like I told Serena, I advise you to stay away from him.”

            “I can’t believe this is happening!” Despite the warning about B.J., Ebony went off to go find him. When she got to him, she tried to find out how he felt about her. “B.J., do you like me?” she asked.

            B.J. replied, “Sure. Whatever.”

            “Do you think I’m hot?”

            “You’re cute, but you’re not really my type. So where’s Serena?”

            After hearing this, Ebony stormed off. Serena ran after her, and reluctantly she stopped.

            “Ebony!” exclaimed Serena. “What happened?”

            Trying to hold back tears, Ebony replied, “I wanted to know how B.J. felt about me. I asked him if he liked me and he said, ‘Sure. Whatever.’ Then I asked him if he thought I was hot. He said I was cute but I wasn’t really his type. Then he said, ‘So where’s Serena?’ He likes you and not me!” She began to cry.

            Serena said, “Ebony, B.J. doesn’t like anybody. If he’s not attracted to you, you end up getting hurt; especially if you ask. If he happens to find you attractive, he’ll pretend to like you. Then he’ll promise you a date and stand you up when the day comes. That’s what he did to me.”

            She told Ebony all the things B.J. said to her that day. Then she continued, “If he thinks you’re good enough to be his girlfriend, he’ll abuse you. So basically, you end up getting hurt in any of these three categories. You just met him and already found out he doesn’t like you, so consider yourself lucky that you don’t fall under categories two and three. And don’t think for a second that I want B.J. I’m with Ricky now, and he knows how to treat me. I hope you find a person who likes you back and knows how to treat you.”

            “You were right about B.J. I never should have asked him how he felt about me.”

            “It’s okay.”

            After awhile, Ricky walked over and saw that Ebony had been hurt. “What’s going on?” he asked.

            “Ebony got her feelings hurt because she found out that B.J. doesn’t like her.” Serena told Ricky what had happened, including how B.J. had showed up and tried to talk to her. Then he confronted B.J.

            “Yo B.J., what do you think you’re doing?” he demanded.

            B.J. replied, “I’m not trying to start trouble. I just wanna talk to Serena.”

            “Look man, she doesn’t like you anymore! She’s with me now! You got a lotta nerve wanting to talk to her after treating her the way you did! And you were mean to her friend on top of that!”

            “Who? Ebony?”

            “That’s right! Any friend of Serena’s is a friend of mine. Even if you don’t like a person, there’s a nice way to say it. But you wouldn’t know nice if it strangled you. You can’t even keep a girlfriend. I will not allow you to keep hurting my friends. You weren’t invited here, so I advise you to leave now.”

            “And what are you gonna do?”

“I don’t know what he’s gonna do,” came a stern voice from behind, “but I know I’m gonna call the police if you don’t leave! I’m Ebony’s father! I heard all about you!  You’re on probation, young man, so you better stay away from my daughter!”

            B.J. was so intimidated by Mr. Weeks that he left without saying a word. Mr. Weeks had the build of a bodyguard. After B.J. left, the rest of the barbecue went on uneventful. Everything ended at seven o’ clock. Everybody said their good-byes and went home. Serena and her mother went in the house.

            “You know, I feel bad about what happened to Ebony,” said Serena. “I wish I could find a nice guy for her.”

            Mrs. Brown replied, “You can’t hook people up. She’ll find somebody when the time is right, just like you did.”

            “Well, I hope she finds somebody better than B.J.”

            A few hours later, Serena went to her room. She laid down and thought about what happened during the barbecue. Then she reflected on what happened to her in July and her relationship with Ricky.

            “I am so glad I have Ricky,” she thought.

            Shortly afterwards, Serena found herself on the beach with Ricky and Ebony. It was daytime outside, and the sky was blue with just a few clouds. The three of them spent time swimming, playing in the sand, and so on. A little while later, Ebony looked as if she were in a trance. “Ebony, are you alright?” Serena asked.

            “Yeah,” Ebony replied. “You see that guy over there?”

“I see what you mean.”  

Ebony had her eye on a gorgeous-looking gentleman. He had on a black nylon suit with a blue top underneath. He also had on black sneakers and wore a gold chain with a blue glow to it. Ebony couldn’t stop staring at him. “He’s gorgeous!” she exclaimed.

            Serena said, “You should go up to him then. I think you two would make a cute couple.”

            “Just like me and Serena are together, you’ll have somebody, too,” Ricky added.

            Ebony walked over to the man. “Hi!” she greeted him. “I’m Ebony! What’s your name?”

            “I’m Prince Jedite,” the man said in a charming, cool voice.

            Ebony was so stunned by his voice that she was as stiff as a board.

            “Come on,” Prince Jedite said. “I’ll take you to my kingdom.”

            “Okay,” replied Ebony.

            Meanwhile, Serena and Ricky were unaware that Ebony had gone off with Prince Jedite. They had been left alone for a while, spending time with each other. By that time, it was sunset.

            “Ricky,” Serena said in a light, airy voice, “I’m so glad we’re together.”

            “Me too,” said Ricky in a similar voice. “I really care about you.”

            They were just about to kiss when B.J. suddenly showed up.

            “B.J.!” said Serena, startled. “Why are you here? I told you to stay away from me! I’m with Ricky now!”

            “I can see that,” B.J. sneered. “Y’all were so busy acting like lovebirds, y’all didn’t even notice that Ebony took off with some guy.”

“She did what? Ricky, we gotta find Ebony now!”

Ricky said, “I know. We shouldn’t have let her go over to that guy.”

            “You know what? The fact that he just took off with her without coming over to introduce himself, I think there’s something very fishy going on.”

            “You’re right. Let’s go.”

            “B.J., can you tell us wh--

Serena suddenly realized that B.J. was gone. “Where’d he go? It’s so like him to disappear,” she said, remembering what he had done in her most recent nightmare.

            “Well, looks like we’re gonna have to find Ebony without B.J.’s help. Come on.”

            Serena and Ricky started to go off to find Ebony when all of a sudden they found themselves in another dimension. They were underwater, but they were still able to breathe.

            “Where are we?” Serena asked.

            Ricky said, “We’re definitely not in a regular place, because we can breathe underwater.”

            The water had a bright blue glow to it. Suddenly, it got darker!

            “Hey, why is it so dark?” Ricky exclaimed.

            “That’s because I control the light in this dimension,” came a sinister voice.

            Serena and Ricky turned around and gasped.

            “Who are you?” asked Ricky.

            “I am Prince Jedite,” the man answered.

            “So you’re the guy Ebony took off with!” Serena cried.

            “So what’s your point?”

            “What have you done with her?”

“Behold.” Prince Jedite pushed a button on his remote control to lower a cage. Ebony had been captured. “Let me go!” she shouted.

            “You’re not going anywhere!” Prince Jedite growled.

            “You won’t get away with this!” Serena retorted.

            “Oh yeah? We’ll see about that. Here’s a note from B.J.” Prince Jedite gave Serena a piece of paper and she read what it said. “So you have two choices, Serena. If you dump Ricky for B.J., Ebony will be free. If you don’t, she’ll be history. I’m gonna make the light brighter. You have until the light goes dim to make your decision. And just in case you were thinking about swimming to Ebony’s cage, here’s B.J. to make sure you don’t.”

            Prince Jedite pushed another button on his remote to brighten the light. “I’ll be back,” he said. He went to another part of the dimension and B.J. showed up.

            “So what’s it gonna be, Serena?” B.J. asked. “Now you have to be with me.”

            “I will never dump Ricky for you,” Serena retorted, “because he knows how to treat me better than you ever will!”

            “You tell him, Serena!” Ricky cried.

            “Yeah!” Ebony added. “Don’t let him use me to ruin your relationship!”

            “You two stay out of it!” shouted B.J. Then he said to Serena, “You know, there was a time when you once liked me. Remember that?”

            “Yeah,” Serena replied. “Key words, ‘once liked.’ Like I told you before, I have Ricky.”

            “Then you know what’s gonna happen to Ebony if you don’t dump him, right?”

            B.J. started to swim towards Serena. “Stay away from me!” she shouted as she swam away.

He caught up to her and grabbed her arm. “Let go of me!” she yelled, and she tried to pull away.

            However, she wasn’t strong enough to escape his grip. Suddenly, Ricky swam up from behind and grabbed B.J. Being distracted by Ricky, B.J. loosened his grip on Serena. While they were wrestling, she swam down to Ebony’s cage to find a way to rescue her. “Hang on, Ebony!” she shouted.

            But before she could find anything to pick the lock, the light in the water suddenly went dim. Prince Jedite had returned.

            “So you thought you could save Ebony without dumping Ricky, did you?” he sneered. “Your time is up and Ebony is history!”

            He laughed an evil laugh. Then he pushed a button on his remote, and the underwater floor opened up. There was a whirlpool underneath that began to pull the cage down.

            “Help!” Ebony shouted.

            “Ebony!” Serena shouted back. “I’ll save you!”

            “Serena, no!” Ricky called out.

            But it was too late. Serena had already swum into the whirlpool. The cage went down with her on top of it. She and Ebony screamed on the way down. As they got close to the bottom, there were gnashing teeth. As soon as the cage hit the bottom, Serena was shaken out of her sleep. She gasped and started breathing rapidly.

            It was midnight when she woke up. She got out of bed and went in her mother’s room. Mrs. Brown was sitting on her bed, doing a puzzle book. “Serena, what happened to you?” she gasped when she saw the horrified look on her face. “You look like you just walked out of a house of terror.”

            “Let’s just say you’re right about what you said,” Serena replied. “I learned that hooking people up can be dangerous.”

            “Let me guess. You had a nightmare to make you realize that, didn’t you? I can tell by the look on your face.”

            “I’ll say I did. It started out as a normal dream, and then it became weird. After awhile, it turned into a nightmare.” Serena told her mother everything that had happened in her nightmare.

            Mrs. Brown said, “Well, I’m glad you learned a valuable lesson. Sometimes you think a certain person is good for somebody, and then it turns out quite the opposite. Of course, B.J. was harassing you in your dream because of what happened during the barbecue.”

            “Hopefully, Ebony will make a wise decision for the next guy she likes,” said Serena. “I don’t want her to learn the hard way like I did.”

            After Serena and her mother talked, they said good-night to each other. Serena got in her bed and went back to sleep. The next day, she shared her nightmare with Ebony, Ricky, and Cherie. They had been at her house, visiting.

            Two months had gone by since that day. Between that time, Ebony met a guy named Jamison. He lived around the corner from her and was two years older. One day, Serena made plans to go to the movies with her friends. She went with Ricky, and Ebony went with Jamison. Cherie went with Jason, Jamison’s older brother. After everybody went home, Ebony and Cherie hoped that things would work out between them and their dates. Jason and Jamison hoped for the same thing as well.

 

 

END

Author's Note

This story was written in 2008. (1/16/08)