Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Other Cousins

2014; Volume: 41; Linguagem: Inglês

10.46428/ejail.41.20

2331-7086

Jasmine Angel,

My family isn't exactly normal.I never met my daddy, and I don't know what he looks like.My momma will never talk to me about him.She just says not to worry about it.I asked her once if I was white because Marcus, Tori, and Devon said I looked it.And I looked in the mirror and saw myself.I've got really curly brown hair that goes down to the middle of my back and hazel eyes, and my skin color is…something that can't be found in a crayon box.It's somewhere between vanilla frappuccino and latte.Marcus, Tori, and Devon-I call them my cousins, but we're not really related.They're my half-sister Ruby's cousins.They're not bad people, but it's hard being around them because they're just different.And I guess I've always felt like I didn't belong with them.Still, I think I can understand them now, when I didn't before.I even feel bad for Tori with what happened at Grandma Netta's last week, and now I think it might not have really been her fault.Usually if I have to go over there, Ruby's there too because it's her grandma's house anyway.But Momma was at work, and Ruby wanted to go to the movies with her friends, so she couldn't babysit me.I didn't really need a babysitter because I'm eleven, but Momma doesn't let me stay home by myself.Anyway, Ruby dropped me off, and Grandma Netta looked happy to see me.She gave me a big hug and two cheek kisses; the kind old people always give.She told me I was getting big, that my hair was longer and that I looked really pretty.Grandma Netta told me that it was a good day to come because Marcus and Devon were in the backyard and I should go play with them.I wasn't excited about playing with Marcus and Devon, but I agreed.There wasn't really anything else to do there.Devon and Marcus were throwing rocks at the fence, making this clanging sound.The dog in the next yard was barking at them, but it was tied up too far away to reach them.The yard looked dirty, like always.There seemed to be more dried mud than there was grass, and on the left side, there was a big, dirty, red truck.It looked kinda familiar, but I wasn't sure who it was for.The paint was chipping, and the tires were covered in the same muck.I figured that the truck must be broken since it was left at Grandma Netta's."What you lookin' at Uncle Larry's truck for?"Marcus asked me."I don't know.""How you don't know?"Devon asked with a smirk on his face.