Hooped

Chapter dedication: Free mind by Tems

September

The plane touched down with a rough jolt that made Ivy grip the armrest tighter than she meant to. Outside the small oval window, the gray skies of Boston had been replaced with streaks of orange sunlight bleeding across the horizon. Atlanta looked warm. Loud. Alive.

Nothing like home.

"Welcome to Atlanta," the flight attendant's voice crackled through the speakers. Ivy swallowed hard. Beside her, her mom was already gathering their things with the kind of tired efficiency that came from months of stress and pretending everything was fine. But she was looking forward to this more than anyone, all she wanted was a fresh start.

"Come on, baby," her mom said softly. "We still have to get the luggage." Ivy nodded, though her chest felt heavy. The airport was overwhelming the second they stepped off the plane, People rushed past in every direction, dragging suitcases, laughing loudly, talking over each other. The air smelled different too-warmer somehow, mixed with coffee, perfume, and something fried she couldn't place. Boston had always felt cold and controlled but Atlanta felt like motion.

Ivy adjusted the strap of her backpack and followed closely behind her mother through the terminal. Her sneakers squeaked faintly against the polished floor while giant screens overhead flashed advertisements and flight schedules. "You okay?" her mom asked without turning around. "Yeah." It was automatic. The lie came easy now. The truth was Ivy felt like someone had ripped her entire life out by the roots and dropped it somewhere unfamiliar. New city, New apartment, New school, New people.

New everything.

As they rode the escalator down toward baggage claim, Ivy pulled out her phone instinctively, staring at the lock screen. No messages. The baggage carousel screeched to life. Her mom exhaled deeply beside her. "I still can't believe we actually did this." Ivy looked over and saw the excited look on her mother's face. She wasn't happy to be here but she had to for her mother. Besides, maybe she would grow to love the place she thought to herself.

The baggage carousel finally slowed to a stop as Ivy's mom tugged their last suitcase off the belt with a dramatic groan. "If I packed this bag," she said breathlessly, "why is it suddenly fifty pounds heavier?" Ivy was focused on the other bag, "Because you packed your entire closet," she replied, laughing softly as she grabbed the handle beside her. "Fashion has no weight, Ivy." "That suitcase says otherwise."

Her mom rolled her eyes, but the smile on her face stayed there as they pushed their luggage through the crowded airport.

People rushed past them in waves-families reuniting, little kids running around excitedly, voices echoing off the high ceilings. Ivy adjusted the sleeves of her hoodie nervously. This was it. Atlanta.

Before she could sink too deeply into the thought, the automatic doors slid open and warm evening air wrapped around them instantly. And then- "IVYYYY!" A loud squeal cut through the noise. Ivy barely had time to react before a girl came sprinting toward her at full speed. "Oh my God!" The girl crashed into her in a hug so sudden, Ivy stumbled backward laughing. "You're finally here!"

"Gracyn-!" Ivy laughed harder, hugging her back tightly. Amara pulled away only enough to grab Ivy's shoulders dramatically. "Do you know how long I've been waiting for this?" Ivy racked her brain for an answer "All summer?"

"Yes. That's how serious this is." Ivy burst out laughing again. Standing in front of her was her cousin, Gracyn- same warm brown skin, long curly braids swinging around her shoulders, and the same energetic personality Ivy remembered from years ago during family visits. Except now they looked older. They were close, more like sisters than cousins.

Behind Gracyn, Ivy spotted her aunt approaching with a wide smile on her face. "There are my girls," her aunt said warmly, pulling Ivy's mother into a tight hug. "You made it." Shelly, Ivy's mom joked, "Barely, this girl packed enough shoes for the neighbourhood." Busy with Gracyn, "I heard that," she muttered.

Gracyn grinned at Ivy, failing to contain how happy she was to see her cousin after a while. Her aunt shook her head affectionately before pulling Ivy into another hug. "Look at you. You got so pretty." She held Ivy's head and started inspecting her face. "Auntie-" "No seriously," she continued dramatically. "Boston air did wonders on you."

The four of them laughed together so naturally that some of the tightness in Ivy's chest began to disappear without her even noticing. For the first time since leaving Boston, she didn't feel completely out of place.

Gracyn looped her arm through Ivy's immediately. "You're sitting with me in the car and I already have like ten things to tell you. Also, our school is insane." Her facial expression changed, "That's not comforting." Gracyn chuckled, "No, insane in a good way. Mostly." Ivy shook her head and that made Gracyn laugh. "You don't have to wory about anything, I'll introduce you to everyone and it'll be like you've been there all your life."

Ivy smiled before she could stop herself.

A real smile this time. "What would I do without you?" Placing her arm around Ivy's neck, she looked at her with a smile and said, "Nothing, you're gonna get sick of me because I'm not leaving. We literally share a room now." "Oohh... can't wait." The two giggled as they loaded the luggage into the trunk together. In the car, Gracyn talked nonstop beside Ivy-about school drama, teachers, Atlanta traffic, music, parties, and places she wanted to take Ivy once she settled in.

Ivy found herself looking out at the glowing Atlanta skyline with something she hadn't felt during the entire flight. Excitement. Maybe this move wouldn't just be about leaving things behind. Maybe it could become something good too.

They arrived home an hour ago and the two girls where up in their room putting Ivy's things away. "I cannot wait for you to meet my friends. I talked about you all summer when mom told me you guys were coming to live with us." Ivy was in the bathroom Placing her toiletries in the cabinets, "What are they like?" She asked as she walked into the room.

Gracyn sat opposite Ivy, "Well there's only three of them but they're cool. Aretha, my closest friend, we met in 7th grade. Maxine and Leah came along in 9th grade." Ivy placed the last of her clothes in the closet before talking a seat on her bed. "Is that it?"

"Duh... you'll get to meet and know all about them for yourself."

A silence rested upon them and Gracyn enjoyed having to spend time with Ivy. Despite all the excitement, she wanted to talk to Ivy and find out what was going on in her life. After the death of her father, they no longer spoke like they used to. Shelly would call and tell them everything but Ivy kept to herself.

"I heard you stopped playing ball." Gracyn said, looking up at Ivy to see her reaction. Ivy seemed uncomfortable, like she was trying to find a way to avoid talking about it, "I did." She replied. "Why? You're good at it." Swallowing hard, Ivy sighed before replying, "its not that serious Gray, I just lost interest."

"You're not fooling anyone Ivy, especially not me. You and I both know that's not the reason." Gracyn got up and sat next to Ivy, "Whatever it is, I know you can handle it but don't let it take away the one thing you're good at. If you ever want to talk, you know I got you right?" Ivy plastered a smile on her face and turned to her cousin, "right."

She was met with the familiar feeling of pain. Something she had grown accustomed to these past few months. It consumed her and although she put up a front with everyone, sometimes it got overwhelming and she just couldn't take it. The death of her father wasn't something she'd expected or ever thought would happen sooner. No one else would have either.

It was three years ago when he was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. It was depressing at the beginning. Having to see him shave his head bold, stop work because of chemo and go through the things he did killed her. The therapy worked and he was able to live normal again. He started work as a coach for Ivy's former basketball team.

Two years later, the cancer came back and this time, it was more heartbreaking than the first time. He always had a positive attitude for every situation and even though Ivy could see the fear in him, she chose to be positive as well. He died six moths later leaving Shelly and Ivy devastated.

Shelly was drowning in expenses. She was barely making it with all the medical costs and she had bills to pay too. Her income wasn't enough to survive and her job was literally hanging on a thread because she was always looking after her husband. She sold their house a week after the funeral and planned to move to Atlanta with her sister and niece.

This move was meant to be a fresh start for the both of them but Ivy couldn't help but feel awful. It was as if they were ready to forget him and just move on. She wasn't naive though, she had to pretend to be fine with it because of her mother. Maybe they'd move back to Boston when shelly was more stable.

Back in the living room, Shelly and Kate where catching up on the couch while sipping on some tea. "And that's how I ended up with that position." Kate finished and they both laughed. "I'm just ready for a new start Kate. I've been through enough and I just want to move forward with my life." Shelly finally said once the laughter died down.

"You will get one because you deserve it. I'm here for you whenever you need me." With a reassuring smile, Shelly sipped her tea. "What about Ivy though, how has she been coping after the funeral?" "To he honest, I have no idea." Shelly started, "I can see she's hurting but she doesn't want anyone to see that. Do you know that she didn't shed a tear on her father's funeral? I've been making it clear to her that she can be vulnerable with me atleast but she's refusing to speak about it."

"When I got the call from her school saying she had quit playing basketball, it broke me. She's not allowing herself to grieve and that's scaring me." Kate gave her sister a reassuring squeeze, "Don't worry, you're not alone now. Ivy is my daughter too and we will help her."

Ivy was on her phone listening to music when a pillow was thrown at her. Turning around, Gracyn was holding another pillow, about to hit her again. "What?" She said removing her pods from her ears. "Bitch I've been calling your name for almost an hour now." Groaning, Ivy sat up facing Gracyn, "What do you want?"

"I just wanna know how you're feeling about school." She took a while before she could answer, "Fucking nervous. I'm literally gonna be the center of attention." Gracyn looked at her cousin feeling bad for her. She'd feel the same if it were her too. Trying to fit in wasn't always the easiest thing to do. "Well, atleast you have me. I'm like a thing at Edgewood, no one's gonna think twice before trying to fuck with my sister." Ivy sent her a smile, "You're the best." Gracyn returned the smile, "Bitch I know."

"So... any boys you like?" Ivy asked with a cheeky smile knowing too well Gracyn had a number of guys on her roster. "First of all why you making it sound like I'm all about them boys and secondly, no, I'm single." Ivy couldn't help but be surprised, "I'm surprised. But wait, didn't you used to date some guy on the basketball team? What happened?"

Gracyn sighed dramatically before answering, "I ended things with him. Found out he'd been hooking up with some girl behind my back. I'm over that anyway, he wasn't worth all this." She said as she motioned for her body. All Ivy did was shake her head and roll her eyes. "Do you still talk?" Gracyn shook her head yes, "He still wants me but I only keep him around for free tickets to the games."

"You're leading the guy on you know." She just shrugged, "Atleast I'm benefitting from it. Do you know how expensive those tickets are?" Ivy wasn't surprised at all, Gracyn was a natural when it came to guys. "But you don't even like sports." "Obviously, the point is to show him what he's missing." Ivy thought for a minute before asking, "You're not over him are you?" Gracyn scoffed before looking up at her, "I'm a hundred percent over him."

"Then why are playing these games with him? If you were over him, wouldn't you be dating some other cute guy?" Ivy asked without her arms folded enjoying interrogating her cousin. "The only other cute guy I know is his best friend and I can't date him because everyone already has their eyes on him. For all I know he can be just like his friend." Ivy was smiling too much and that made Gracyn suspicious, "what are you smiling at?"

Ivy let out a laugh before she could answer, "I'm just surprised you didn't date his best friend for revenge. The old you would have pulled that stunt a long time ago. I gotta say, I'm proud." Gracyn laughed as well. She realised Ivy was right. "I'm proud too."

The two girls talked all night about a lot of things. Gracyn kept filling Ivy on all the school drama saying she had to be ready before her first day. Ivy was listening intently making sure to remember everything. She wanted to be ready to avoid future embarrassment.

She was also just happy to have someone she could share this with. Ever since her father, she was always on her on. She never had the time to keep up with her friends because she had to be home taking care of him while her mom left for night shift. Most of her time was spent by her dad's bed side, wondering when he'd get better. But coming to Atlanta brought a certain light to her life. It was no longer just the two of them, they had family. And that made her feel good.

This move was definitely going to bring change, change that Ivy was reluctant and scared of at first but she started to see things differently. Maybe it was a good thing.