Darkness Before Dawn

One Saturday in November, Keisha runs across Gerald and his little sister Angel at the mall. Keisha notices how thin Angel has become. Both Gerald and Keisha urge the girl to eat something, but she lies and says she isn’t hungry. Keisha then changes the subject and teases Gerald about his crush on Jalani. He thinks she’s out of his league even though Keisha assures him that Jalani returns his interest.

Later that evening, Keisha gets a panicked call from Jalani. Angel collapsed during a dance class at the conservatory where Jalani also studies. When the paramedics arrived, Gerald rushed in, clearly upset. Jalani comforted him, and the two went to the hospital together. Keisha says, “It’s funny how things happen […]. Gerald has been dying to talk to you and ride in your BMW, and all of a sudden, because of a crisis, it falls in his lap” (77-78).

As they wait for the medical team to revive Angel, Gerald and Jalani get to know each other. Both of them discover that they’ve experienced hardship in the past. Gerald talks about his family tragedies, and Jalani tells him about her difficulties growing up in Nigeria. Shortly after these unexpected disclosures, the doctor arrives to report on Angel’s condition.