Audre & Bash Are Just Friends

by Tia Williams

“Sparrow, there’s someone out there dying to love you. Don’t ‘fix’ yourself before they get a chance to fall for the real you.”

“It’s when you return to a situation that’s bad for you. If it was bad once, it’ll always be bad. Think of it this way—if you see the same tree twice in the forest, it means you’re lost.”

In his experience, Black and brown kids always stood out at elite private schools.

“He saw something that you don’t show anyone. It was a privilege that he ever got to be that close to you. To see you like that. Why didn’t he make you feel better? Try to help, or comfort you, whatever. Why wasn’t he good to you? You deserve that. And now you’ll always remember your prom like that. I wish I could correct all your bad memories, Audre. Erase them and give you better ones. If I see him again, I fucking promise you, if I see him…”

“The next morning, he’d boxed up my trophies. He called my high school, the colleges recruiting me, the press, everyone, and said I was quitting track and field due to a quote, unquote private family matter. Said I was dead to him. Kicked me out. Gave me a court order approving my last name change—it went from Wallace to Henry, my mom’s name. He said he wanted to change my identity so no one could trace me back to him.” Bash took a small breath, shaken by the retelling. “The day I moved in with my mom, I still had bruises on my neck.”

Baby Alice, making the ‘right’ choices doesn’t guarantee you a happy ending. So, follow your own path.