Darkness before Dawn (pages 200-272)

Summary:

Keisha sat with Edna for some time and talked. Edna told her that she had nothing to worry about that everything would be okay but she did need to tell her parents what happened and don't leave anything out. It was past five in the morning by that point and Keisha knew her mother had been worried sick. Out of the three cell phones she had, Edna let her use one to call her mom so she could come and get her. When they arrived. Keisha told them everything single detail with Edna right by her side. Her mother hugged her and cried with her while he father did the same, only out of anger. He wanted to hurt Jonathan just like he did his little girl. Her dad tried to thank Edna by giving her a huge amount of money but she refused to take it and told them that Keisha was like a friend to her. Keisha's mom told her that she had to go to the police but she was afraid because she didn't want anyone to find out. She felt stupid and couldn't believe that she let this happen to her. They ended up going to the police station where she had to describe everything more than she did with her parents. The woman at the police station told her that she if she wanted to press charges that there would be a trial and that when they found Jonathan he would be arrested. When they arrived at Jonathan's apartment though he was nowhere to be found but enough evidence was there to prove what he'd done. Keisha and her parents returned home where she didn't leave for two weeks. Everyone knew what happened by that point. Keisha couldn't return to school with the rumors and the half-truth being spread around. All of her friends tried to contact her including Leon who she felt bad for because she ditched him to be with Jonathan. She didn't want to talk to anyone until Rita Bronson showed up at her house one day and laid a hard smack across her face as soon as she saw Keisha. She said she needed some way to wake her up. She explained to Keisha that she too had ran into problems with Jonathan but wasn't able to get out like she was. He invited her to his apartment and tried to push himself onto her. This was why she was cut up that day at cross-country practice after he threatened to kill her if she spoke on what he did to her. She revealed to Keisha that when she was in the eleventh grade she was doing horrible and Jonathan had changed her grades for her so she could advance to the twelfth grade which he tried to use against her. She encouraged Keisha not to let Jonathan to win because this is what he wants her to do and this is how she was. Rita tried to ignore the issue and went to school the next day but it didn't work once she saw him. After the incident she and her mother moved to Dayton to stay with her aunt who helped her get through it. This was why she was coming to Keisha to let her know she can get through it. Keisha's entire attitude changed and she returned to school the next day, to catch up with some friends as well as school work. Leon was her shield that protected her from everything. She wore his necklace everyday because it made her feel safe. Eventually things were back to normal besides her being worried that Jonathan would re-appear. She'd thrown a birthday party for Rhonda and everyone sat around reminiscing on the old time and what colleges they would be attending and their majors are. A few days later, Mr. Hathaway appeared at Keisha's house which was a shock because no hadn't seen him since he resigned from the school. He explained to her how sorry he was and that he had seen Jonathan the night of the incident and that he refused to go to the hospital. His face was stitched by his stepmother who used to be a doctor and Mr. Hathaway had driven him to Kentucky with his cousins. He knew it was wrong to do but he was his son. While he was down there, he tried to put moves on other girls but they ignored him due to the scar on his face except for one fifteen year old girl named Cindy. One night he took her to a hotel and assaulted her but was put in prison for this. His sentence was thirty years without parole. Again Mr. Hathaway explained how much he was sorry and left. Keisha felt relieved now because she no longer had to worry about Jonathan being around. Everything in her past slowly seized from haunting her and Keisha was able to graduate and move on with her life.

Quote:

"Yo' spirit is a shinin' silver star, chile. Can't nobody take that away from you."

Reflection:

I feel that the ending was perfect. I enjoyed the parts that I didn't expect and that all the questions I have were answered. I do like to read stories that leave me wondering but not clueless but this story left me happy that Keisha was able to move on with her and grow from her mistake because everyone should be able to do that. The quote above is something that I would like to think of when I'm going to through something to what other are trying to or have done to me. Throughout the story it helped Keisha and she constantly thought about what Edna said and I believe it could help others as well.

Darkness before Dawn (pages 120-200)

Summary:

Jonathan Hathaway no longer seems to be the “perfect man” Keisha once thought of him to be. Everything was going smooth and she couldn’t get enough of him. He called her one afternoon and invited her to go to the art museum and she took up his offer but she didn’t let her mother know. She was out with him way past her curfew seeing that she went to get some coffee with him afterwards which isn’t what Keisha was used to. She never drank coffee so it was a real big energy boost. When she returned home she and her mom got into a huge argument. She didn’t want to lie so she told her where she had been and who she was with. This didn’t make her mother happy at all. “He’s too old for you” is all she ever heard from her parents. This made Keisha furious because they didn’t understand that she is eighteen and will be heading off to college in just a few months. Jonathan made her feel special, why couldn’t anyone understand that? The Valentine’s Day dance was coming around but Keisha wasn’t planning on going until Jonathan insisted she went, that he couldn’t stand to watch all those high school children have a good time unless he was able to see her face in the crowd. They made arrangements to have dinner afterwards at a fancy restaurant and she couldn’t wait. Jelani warned Keisha about Jonathan one day when she was dropping her home. She said that he seemed to perfect and that she should keep her eyes wide open. It was almost time for the dance and Leon asked Keisha if she would like to go with him and she accepted but felt bad because she was using him as a way to make things easier with her parents so she could spend time out with Jonathan after the dance. The night of the dance arrived and Keisha was wearing a short, silk, silver dress that complimented her body. She even wore the silver butterfly necklace which she received on Christmas day from Jonathan at her doorstep since she would be seeing him later. Keisha enjoyed the dance but was looking forward for her time with Jonathan after the dance. Leon had dropped her home and she was driven to Jonathan’s apartment where he had prepared dinner for just the two of them. She was a bit uncomfortable but enjoyed feeling like a mature adult. They then went to the living room and were sitting on the couch. He told her how nice the necklace looked on her and she never thanked him for it until then but found out he didn’t give it to her nor the flowers that she received. She wondered who else could have possibly done that but Leon then came to mind and she reminded herself to thank him the next time they spoke. Jonathan began kissing her and grabbing on her arm. Keisha yanked away and told him to stop. He apologized but continued doing it so she asked him to take her home. His voice was the same but only this time it sounds mean and dark so Keisha asked him to take her home. He’d asked her why she would dress like a woman if she wasn’t do woman things and that she needed to grow up. Keisha tried to threaten him with losing his and his father’s job but he explained that he could care less about his dad and that this would be all her fault because she shouldn’t have gotten into this relationship with him from the start. She tried her hardest to find her way out but the door was locked. He pulled out a knife and put it her neck and said if she didn’t relax he would hurt her. Keisha grabbed the knife and wrestled with him until he had a long slash on the side of his face from his eyebrow to his chin. She then grabbed the key and ran out the door forgetting her shoes, jacket, and purse. For some time, she walked around trying to find her way back to somewhere she was familiar with but she ended up collapsing unconscious and began to let snow pile on her. She was saved by a homeless woman she had one ran into with Jalani when she went to Gerald’s house named Edna and was brought into a warm basement. Edna rubbed her swollen feet, cleaned up the cut Jonathan gave her on her neck from the knife, and given her warm clothes to change into.

Quotation:

" Leon walked around to let me out of his car. He grinned like a puppy as he walked me up to the door, did not slip on the ice on the sidewalk, and did kiss me quickly on the lips before I hurriedly fumbled for my door key."

Reflection:

I was extremely shocked by Jonathan’s actions because I don’t feel that it’s right for any woman to be held against their will. Just because Keisha presented herself as if she was a woman doesn’t mean that she necessarily should be considered as one because she’s still young and is learning from her mistakes. As an adult you are still learning and grow from your mistakes. I do hope that she uses this experience as a wakeup call and realizes why her parents reacted the way they did when they found that she was talking to him. Referring to the quote I was wondering why the author italicized did and not. Could she be referring to how Leon acts or just the fact that he gave her a kiss?

Darkness Before Dawn (pages 80-120)

Summary:

Since last reading, Keisha has taken her relationship with Jonathan Hathaway a lot further. During a snow day he invited her to go skiing with a couple of other kids. She was hesitant as to whether she should take up his offer or stay in bed, but it had been a while since she'd last been skiing so she accepted. She brought Andy's little brother Monty with her just to get him out the house, plus she knew he would love it. Everything was going well. She and Jonathan even had the chance to conversate with one another with no else around. Keisha found that he was easy to talk to and seemed to be everywhere and done everything. She chatted with him about medical school, her hopes of learning to fly a plane, and worries about college. He then asked her if she wanted to catch a movie over the weekend and she couldn't let this opportunity fly over her head. When it came time to ask her parents, they were totally against. He's too old they said. She informed them on how he's a complete gentlemen and he's a good person to talk to. They were still against it but they trusted Keisha so they let her go although they did remind her not to make this a habit. Jonathan had brought her friends and their dates along as well but Keisha didn't mind. She enjoyed the movie and was surprised at how much Jonathan picked up from it. Her left her with a touch on the cheek which made her believe even more that he was different from a boy, he was a man. The next couple of days passed and Keisha hadn't heard from him seeing that she was on Christmas vacation. Surprisingly, a bouquet of roses with an individual ribbon for each appeared at her door. This impressed her parents but they were still convinced Jonathan wasn’t the one.

Quote:

"Absolutely not! My dad's look was that protective-of-his-little-girl daddy look --it made you feel guilty but not as mad as mom's look did."

Reflection:

That quote as well as others put the image in my head of her asking her parents and the look they were giving her. This is something that a lot of teenage girls can relate too because you see it in movies and it happens in reality as well. There's always that daddy's little girl moment where he's not ready to let her go and grow up. The author uses a lot of description from how someone or a scene looks or a facial expression where I often feel like I'm watching a movie or I'm actually there.