A Story- Part 2

She slept through the wagon ride waking off and on. She didn't realize how people were laying next to her, watching her. She opened her eyes and look staright in the eyes of a young black boy, his smile made her smile. She didn't know how he could have smiled, because the place they were in was too murky and dark to smile. Her afce was filled with dark mud, and he wiped it off, gasping when he saw that she was a white girl.1

"What are you doing here?" He asked in a tone she had never heard before. His eyes were filled with sadness and despair, because of the memory of his father, who had died for a white woman. He had never seen a young white girl. Never seen a white women in his life, the only white people he had met ever, were the ones who had put her in that wagon.2

"What? What?" She shook her head, she could hear him properly. "I'm sorry, what did you say?" He repeated his question, and she looked around to make sure where she was. "Well, I'm not quite sure why I'm here. the last thing I remember was having a ride with two grown men." He nodded, thinking that it was nothing at all, she was in the wagon of her parents.3

"You do know, that nobody wants to see a young girl like yo, right? The be wanting to see a young black girl, 'cause if those white men catch ya in here, then we'll be in big trouble, 'cause they would be in big trouble." She stared at him confused, why would they be in trouble? How oculd they get in trouble, because of something two grown men had done? "Well, I don't know why, but my momma told me that if I ever do anything to pester those white men, then I'd get in trouble. And she told me too, that white folk like you get a high class ticket. She says that not all of them are bad and bad, but some of them are worse than murderes and thiefs whenthey be talking to their slaves. That's what we're called, slaves. Not a really good word to use, but it's better than that N word white men be using against us. Everytime my momma hears that word, she shudders. I don't really know why, because I'm too young to understand anything that goes on in these times." Suddenly he stopped talking, realizing he had spoken too much to a girl he already knew.4

"Well, my daddy will find me and he'll never say any N word to you, and he won't call you slave." He looked at her, and she looked at him, as they were heading down the bumpy, twisty road. They didn't know each other, but from that moment on they knew they would be the best of friends, even though it might just ruin their lives.5

A older woman sat next to the young boy, she had been sitting next to him the whole time, but hadn't been paying much attention. She didn't know that he was talking to a little girl about slaves and the N word. She looked at her song finally and realized he made a new friend. As the older woman's attention went to her son, the son and little girl stopped talking. She smiled at the girl, "So, where did you come from and what's your name?" 6

"My name is Tiffany Scarlet Greenwich Pepperfield. The little girl replied with a grin at the old woman.7

"How come your name is so long?" The boy asked. 8

"Now honey don't be asking nosy questions." She stared at Tiffany. "How come you are on this wagon?" She asked even though she had just told her  son not task nosy questions. 9

"I was playing, and then these grown men picked me up, I took a ride in a car, and I ended up in this wagon." Tiffany said, she nodded again. Thsi time she knew that her story was true. How could it not be true? The mother nodded and sat quietly. Everyone seemed to be quiet now, it was as if their futures were put to stake. Tiffany thought, looking around at all the gloomy faces. The only face she felt good to stare at was the young boy, she could stare at him all day. The bumpy road grew less bumpy, and they soon stopped at a market square. What an odd place for someone to stop at, Tiffany wondered. She could  see her family searching all over the market place fo her, her father's eyes were frightend. He wanted to find his little girl, but Tiffany couldn't get out of the wagon, because it was locked.10