When Everything's Said & Done Read Online Free PDF Page B

them, but that’s the chance that you take when you want to be holy and everything.”
    “I’m not trying to be holy. I just want to do the right thing in the eyes of God.”
    “Who knows what’s in God’s eyes?” Cora waved her hand. “Everything is. The hooker. The nun. The mur derer and the priest.”
    “Oh, Cora. I don’t know how we see things so dif ferent. We grew up in the same house together with the same mama.”
    “I know how. While you were reading the Bible and taking every opportunity you could to go to that church across town, I was observing the people around me, like Nebia and that woman who was always getting into cars with different men at the corner of Seventh and Central.” “That woman was a prostitute,” Annette retorted. “And some of the folks around here call Nebia a voodoo woman.”
    “Pleeze.” Cora sucked her teeth. “Either way, I still watched and wondered why some people saw life one way, and others saw it another. I finally decided, it’s because if you never step outside the circle of things that folks have decided you should learn, or be, there’s so much of life you miss because you make that your whole world. I decided to step out, Annette. That’s all.” Cora picked up a package of windowpane stockings. “But you know what I believe most of all?”
    “What?” Annette looked at her sister with uncertainty.
    “That the world needs folks like you and like me, and all the other people that we find to be so different. I think we balance each other out.”
    “I wonder if I’ll every marry Michael,” Annette fluc tuated back to the subject that dominated her thoughts.
    “And if you’ll ever get to have sex with him?” Cora hedged.
    “Yeah,” Annette laughed.
    Nebia’s Story...
    “Sounds like everybody was fine to me,” Cynthia concluded. “I mean, they weren’t arguing over Michael or anything.”
    “Everything was good for quite a while,” Nebia said. “And Michael was always in the Robinsons’ apart ment. Laura liked that because that way she could keep an eye on him and Annette. Not that she was really worried about her because Laura knew Annette was deeply religious. But after a while, we all got the feeling that although Michael cared for Annette, he felt she had some growing up to do, and he wasn’t about to rush her. So, yes, things were real good around here for a while.” Nebia hummed softly and the women waited for her to speak again.
    “Finally, Annette decided she wasn’t going away for school. Instead she was going to go to the local college. That was okay with Laura, although she believed An nette might have gone out of state if it wasn’t for Michael. So Annette made preparations to start college that fall, but she was always complaining that she didn’t feel useful just working on something that would better her own future. She felt like she should be doing more for others.”
    “Did she find something else?” Sheila asked. Nebia closed her eyes and sat quiet for a moment, before she said, “She most certainly did.”
    CHAPTER 5
    Without looking, Cora’s fingers worked at the last plait on Annette’s head. Annette was seated on the floor between her legs. Both their gazes were focused on the television screen. Cora looked away to find the afro-pic. She grabbed it and started picking out An nette’s hair. “This is why I got my hair braided out in L.A.,” she said. “Braiding my ’fro at night and taking it down in the mornings was too much work for me.” “Is it on yet?” Brenda asked as she came down the stairs with the hair grease.
    Annette glanced at her. “Not yet.” She looked back at the television. “But, it will be on any minute now.” Then the familiar image of an animated train, puff ing smoke, and moving on down the track filled the screen. “The So-o-ul Train” boomed through the set, and Cora, Brenda and Annette added their own version of, “Do-do-do-do-do-do-o Do Do!” as their favorite