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By Root 399 0

joy between us. We would look at each other and Denise was always there and somehow we blamed ourselves. Eventually we began to blame each other. All that was left for us was guilt and sorrow.” He paused and cleared his throat. His voice had grown thin. “That’s Patricia’s garden. I’ve maintained it just as she would have. I guess it’s a way to keep something of her in my life.” He paused again. “You see, I need a lot of order in my life now. That’s why I don’t teach in the classroom anymore. It’s too unpredictable. And this whole spelling bee thing and working so closely with you had become…unpredictable as well.” He turned to her. “I don’t expect you to understand that.”

“But I think I do,” she said. “You can’t allow yourself to get too close to anybody. And maybe…you were getting too close to me.”

He nodded. “You spend years building up your defenses. You simplify your life. It’s a way of being able to go on.”

They sat together on the bench in silence. Akeelah said finally, “Dr. Larabee? I have to tell you this, and not to put pressure on you…but it’s the truth. I can’t go to D.C. without you.”

“Yes, you can,” he said. “You can do anything you want, Akeelah. You still don’t have a proper respect for your gifts.”

“No. I can’t beat Dylan.”

“Don’t say that. It’s a way of setting yourself up for failure.”

“I need you there. Don’t you understand that?”

He said slowly, “I understand what you’re saying.”

“It’s really true, Dr. Larabee. It doesn’t matter how many words I learn. He’ll always know more. I don’t have what it takes to beat him. Especially not without you.”

Dr. Larabee regarded her for a long moment.

“You know, one of the things I thought about after Denise passed…I thought that maybe the person who could have cured that horrible disease didn’t do so because…he was too busy being hungry in Somalia…or oppressed in Afghanistan…or maybe he was poor in Appalachia…or dying of AIDS in Chad.…” He paused, his jaw working with emotion. “Maybe he just didn’t think he ‘had what it takes.’” Dr. Larabee looked into Akeelah’s eyes. “Your destiny, Akeelah, lies far beyond winning any spelling bee. I hope you know that.”

“Okay,” she said. “But I still can’t beat Dylan. Not without you.”

Dr. Larabee’s solemn features suddenly brightened in a smile. “Well, let me tell you about Dylan. And I want you to listen to this closely. There’s only one person who can push him to spell as well as he possibly can. Only one—and that’s not his dad, not the spelling bee people, and not even himself with his swollen ego and fear of his father. That person is you.” He held her gaze as he added, “So when you and I get to Washington—let’s just make sure we give him a run for his money….”

“You and I, Dr. Larabee? Did I hear you right?”

He nodded. “You and I, Akeelah.”

She clapped her hands, grinned, and gave him a big hug. She saw tears glistening in his eyes and hugged him even harder.

Twelve

Akeelah ran down the street, hopping and skipping as she went, being the eleven-year-old she sometimes forgot how to be, and bounded up the front steps of a small house. She rang the bell. When Georgia answered and saw that it was Akeelah, her eyes grew cold.

“Hey,” Akeelah said. “What up?”

“ Hi.”

“I been callin’ you a lot.”

“Guess I haven’t been around all that much.”

“I’ve left a bunch of messages.”

Georgia nodded but said nothing. She stood in the half-open door, not inviting Akeelah in.

“Well, I’m off to D.C. tomorrow,” Akeelah said, ending an uncomfortable silence.

“Yeah, well…have fun.”

“You know, Georgia, I have to say this. Everybody’s been workin’ with my flashcards. Did you know that?”

“Yeah,” Georgia said grudgingly.

“Everybody but you. You haven’t offered to help me once.”

“You don’t need my help.”

Akeelah slowly shook her head. “Yes, I do.”

“I’ve been too busy for that stuff,” Georgia said, her voice tight.

“Look,” Akeelah said, “I’ve been busy, too. Too busy to spend time with my best friend, which is wrong. Just…this whole spelling bee’s been real intense.”

Georgia nodded, her eyes still cold. “You don’t need