Touching the Heart of Ace
Chapter 18

??Daym son, where dya replace dis??? Hell slapped Vanya??s butt, making her scream.

I cracked up. ??That... was... so bad.??

Our street performance was a blast. I was so pumped up. My dance was well received, there was enough audience and they applauded really well.

But Hell, Vanya, Jing, Liam and Manu did a piece on domestic abuse and stole the lime light. Everyone was in tears, including me. I saw a man clutching his sleeping child watching this dance slash drama and crying soundlessly.

It was touching.

The dance was about a family where domestic abuse was a normal thing and a child growing up in that family finally fell in the hands of a paedophile when she searched for attention, love and care outside her home. It was tragic, magnificent, haunting, there were no enough words.

I hated the dance and loved it, the same time. It was more amazing because we dancers did not know about what others were playing. Hell was one awesome choreographer.

We were on our way back to our homes and Hell decided we should walk because we needed our bodies to stretch and taking a cab this tired would only make us fall asleep.

I was staying at the apartment Jason got under one of his office friend??s name. It was tiring to schedule where I would be spending the night.

I sighed.

Was he still looking for me?

Was he really sad?

If he was here would he like my dancing?

He was going to be a father too. Would he be hurt by the drama?

None of your business, Ace. Robbie said it himself. Stuff happening in his life had nothing to do with me.

??Is your knee okay, David? It was one hell of a split.?? Jing looped her hands on my neck.

??Yeah. Hell had put my knees on a safety belt. I had been practising on it for days.??

??Only for days? You did it so perfectly.??

??Yo, dawg, stap d school shit. Groove wid us.?? Liam did a swirl and walked in a very hip hop fashion. He was the only one who could pull that walk off, and make it cool.

??I could help with your ??school shit??, you know. I can replace you a tutor for free. Get your high school certificate and groove all you want.??

??We don??t need no education.?? There they went singing on my face. I slapped Vanya??s face off me.

It was different with everyone else.

Hell was loaded, she had a college degree and even worked of a MNC before turning to her passion. Vanya was doing online college courses along with her modelling and acting. This dance lessons were for her resume and better roles in films. Jing was an accountant and Manu was a student himself though dancing was his call.

But Liam? He had a very tough childhood. One of those really talented, kind and amazing black kid who was stabbed on his back and ended up in wrong crowd. I really did not know his whole story, but he ticked every stereotypical ghetto upbringing.

I pulled Liam closer and trapped his elbow with both of my hands.

??Yo, homie, I ain??t into dat!??

??Yeah, I ain??t into you either!?? I laughed at his horrified look.

??Da hell not? I ain??t nigga for you??? There he went all defensive and all. I sighed.

??No, I have no idea what you even meant but I am not into you. You have nothing to worry. I am serious about what I said. I could get you a tutor.??

??Am serious too. I??m done wid all dat shit, bruh. Not for me. I no need end up like dose ass licking men-in-black doggos. Will my homie, with same name as me, he went all shit with suit an all. Not for me. I groove.?? Then he stared at me for second in horror. ??No offence. I no mind if lickin is...??

??No offense taken.?? I cleared my throat. ??Thanks for accepting though. Education is not for getting high end jobs, Liam, though it is a nice outcome. Basic education helps you a lot with your life. Helps you understand the world a bit better. You can groove all you want, would not stop someone to make a fool out of you.??

I had not bored him to death... yet. Thank God!

??Remember your friend made fun of you by saying you are HIV negative and to get it positive you need to pay fifty dollars? You paid him, Liam. It might be funny for a lot of people. But not for me and certainly not for you. All the people who are with you claiming they do not need education have at least high school diploma. That is all I am asking. Please agree.??

My mom was funding ??Education for everyone?? programme for people like him. I was not going to put him in that because the students under that scheme were kids who really wanted to study and their financial status was hindering them. Liam was afraid of studying, I thought he had very bad experiences with teachers or figures of authority.

I patted his back and took the turn to my dorm forgetting I was supposed to go the other way.

??Will it hurt???

I frowned. ??Will what hurt???

??School n studyn?? and shit.??

What the hell happened to him? I tried very hard not to show my surprise and horror.

??No, it will not. You are not going to school if that is what you are worried about. I will replace a person for you who will only teach when you ask. If anything hurts, tell me and I will replace someone else. I can help you too, not always because I am studying myself. But, we will figure it out.??

I handed him my phone number. ??Think about it Liam, people might be taking advantage of you because you don??t understand what they are talking about.??

I was bewildered. He was worried school might hurt him. What was that even supposed to mean? I was one privileged guy. Had I ever thanked my mom enough? I had to call Dr. A and thank him too. He was my mentor and now that I was not his student we talked more frequently over phone. I could visit him and thank him personally. I should also call mom and set up a meeting with my high school teacher Miss. Campbell.

I felt a hand slither up my shirt from behind, I knew that touch, I dreamt of that touch; I shivered when it settled right between my backbone.

Time stood still.

It was him, if I turned around I would see him, I would see that gorgeous precious gems of his eyes.

Why was my heart not beating? As if I reminded it to do its work, it started beating like crazy.

??Shh...??

I whimpered.

??Run.?? The hushed whisper demanded and I ran.

Without looking back, I ran away from him, tears dripping down my face, the feelings inside me hurting my punctured heart.

I did know how I reached my dorm, ran to the powder room locked it from inside. I barely remembered unzipping my pants, and ??Robbie...yes... Robbie??

I washed my face and evidence, and tried not to think about what happened.

??What the hell!??

My whole dorm room was a mess.

Was Robbie staying here? My heart pained at the messages he left on the wall on sticker notes.

No, Ace... No.

My baby.

He was hurting and I could do nothing about it. There were photos everywhere. He was sleeping in my bed too. My clothes were all on the bed. And they were crinkled. He was sleeping on them. This was not healthy. What we were doing was not healthy!

God, Robbie, please stop this.

Go back to your wife. Go back to your child.

It took me two hours to clean the whole mess.

Was he even eating?

I called a 24 hour delivery service and stocked up the fridge. Made the bed and folded my clothes. He would mess them up again.

Tears were flowing non-stop.

It was one thing to hurt for ourselves but when we hurt for someone else, the pain was different and it was driving me crazy.

I wiped up my tears and called the Dean.

??Sorry Sir, for calling this late.??

??No, son, just a second.?? I heard him talking to his wife and the voices in the background faded away. ??I am listening.??

??I wanted to add a few names to grant all-day-access to my dorm room.??

??Alright, send me a mail to official address when you get time. What are the names???

??Jason Andrei Philip, Elizabeth Grace Scott...?? I rubbed my chest ??... and Robert Brantley.??