Patricia Hurley was black.

She knew she was because the white kids in her school reminded her of it every single day. She heard them whisper when she walked into class. Especially biology. She was the only one of two black girls in that class. Her friends thought she was a snob whenever she complained because she should've been grateful to be in honors biology and not worry about 'ignorant white folk'. She rolled her eyes. It was easier said than done. It was hard to ignore 'ignorant white folk' when they wrote the word 'nigger' all over her desk in black, bold letters and put tacks in her chair. It took her two weeks to realize that they'd never get tired of that joke and almost a year later, she still checked her seat for tacks.

It didn't matter anyway. No matter how many marches Dr. King held, they'd never stop. The segregation ended and they assumed it was a step forward, but Patricia secretly wished they'd kept things separate. Maybe she wouldn't have to face nothing but emotional and physical abuse everyday.

"I swear to God!" Penny Anderson preached at the lunch table, loud and angry, "If one of those white trash girls looks over at me one more time!" Her threat was heard around the world, but thankfully the girls, who her vicious glare was aimed at, only laughed from their table across the cafeteria. A couple of eyes glanced over at where she was seething in her seat. Patricia nervously lowered her head and placed her hand on her best friend's shoulder.

"Penny, please," she pleaded, using the soothing southern twang of her voice, "I got class with them girls. They gon' give me hell next time I see 'em." Penny rolled her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Why you so damn scared, Patty?" she asked her friend, smacking her full lips as she tossed a piece of bread into her mouth, "My mama said them white folk ain't nothin' but trash talkers. If I had a chance to tear one of their asses up-"

"You'd be dead the next day," Edward Chamberland chimed in from his seat across the table, "And Penny, ya too damn beautiful to die." He winked and Penny rolled her eyes. It was true though, Penny was beautiful. She was about 5'7 with dark chocolate skin and brown eyes. She looked smooth and soft and Edward had been in love with her since third grade. Despite the fact that he was beautiful as well, with light brown skin and dark brown eyes, Penny remained unimpressed.

"Stop with your tired lines, old man," she teased. Everybody laughed. Ed was the oldest of the gang. He was almost twenty, but it was the beginning of senior year and university was next for him. He had big dreams of New York and Broadway. Bigger dreams than Patricia. She only dreamed of going to any university. She'd never be able to afford to. Nobody could help her. Even her mother's blood, sweat, and tears hard work couldn't help pay for it.

"Hey, Patty," Tracy Macker called out from her spot next to Ed, "Them white folk you working for hirin'?" Patricia raised a brow at Tracy.

"Trace, it's work," she explained, "You have to clean and stuff." The table snickered and Tracy scoffed.

"Like I can't clean," she fumed, "I clean all the time. Just 'cause I don't look like a maid, it doesn't mean I don't get work done." Edward snorted and so did Penny. Tracy was the girliest female on the entire planet. Not a hair out of place and not a thread missing from her pressed clothes. She was a 5'8 beauty queen with her high yellow skin and curly, sandy brown hair. Her eyes were even a light brown that Patricia envied. She wore her church shoes to school and switched into heels once she reached the yard. She was sexy to everybody and fast according to the negro swim team. Even the white boys looked at her sometimes.

"She's right though," Dennis Roland cut in, "She cleans all the time. She cleans her hair, her nails-"

"Shut up!" Tracy exclaimed, slapping his arm multiple times as the table howled with laughter. Their loud cackles blended in with the noise of the cafeteria and Patty giggled at her friends antics as Tracy continued to beat up on Dennis. She was too busy to notice a young man with bright blue eyes glancing over at her every once in a while, trying to catch her eye.

"Man, whatcha starin' at them niggers for?" Peter Green asked his blue eyed friend as he followed his wandering eyes towards the colored section of the cafeteria. It wasn't called the color section anymore, but everybody made it a point to stay separate regardless.

"Relax, Green," Justin Timberlake smiled and it was calming to anybody who stared directly at it. Peter relaxed his scowl, but glanced between the colored folks and his friend, trying to understand. "That's the girl that works for my family now." He nodded towards Patty and Peter wrinkled his nose.

"She's got the nappiest hair over there," he laughed, causing the rest of the guys to snicker and nod in agreement, "But that yellow one... She's half. It won't be too bad if I get her alone." The guys grunted in agreement, giving Peter high fives. Everybody but Justin. He frowned instead, secretly hating the way they saw things. So narrowminded and mean. He was glad to not think that way.

"She just ain't mixed, man," Justin defended weakly, "All their hair looks like that when they're colored. 'Cept for that yellow one, but she's half, so she don't count."

"Whatcha so mad for?" Michael Tap asked his friend with a distasteful grimace across his chisled face. He was the biggest of the boys. A quarterback and a giant. Justin wasn't the least bit intimated by his size, but his question made him uneasy. Maybe it was because he didn't know why he was so mad or maybe it was because all of the boys at his lunch table were staring at him with suspicion and curiousity.

"I ain't mad," he argued, picking at his creamed corn, wondering why he allowed the lunch lady to put it on his tray, "I was just sayin'..." His excuse was lame, but nobody called him on it. Pete did glance one last time between him and the colored table before shaking his head. Justin stole a glance at Patty one last time before finishing off his ham sandwich and continuing on with the conversation Tyler Stevenson started.

He wasn't really paying that much attention though, despite the hype over the upcoming football game. All he could think about was Patty and how badly he wanted to wave and say hello. She was completely off limits in public. Even at home he found it difficult to speak to her. His family was as narrowminded as the rest of his small Tennessee town. His mother would always be wandering around the house, sticking her nose in his business. With his father constantly locked away in his office at home or in the city, she had nothing else to do. He still couldn't figure out why they hired Patty three weeks ago to clean and cook. His mother was perfectly capable of doing it with all her free time. Then again, his mother couldn't boil water if it were in a pot on the stove. He smiled to himself at his own joke and glanced over at Patty's table one last time. She was getting up and he grew excited when she looked up and they caught eyes. He smirked a little and she looked at him with wide, confused eyes before looking away and gathering her books.

Great, now he looked like freak, staring at her and smiling all small and creepy. He snapped his eyes back to his table and fell back into the conversation.

Patty was slinging her bookbag over her shoulder and adjusting her skirt when she peeked up at Justin to see if he were still smiling. Of couse he wasn't. He shouldn't have smiled in the first place. She glanced at all her friends and they were too busy joking around to notice the chaos going through her mind. The last thing she wanted was for them to see a white boy smiling at her. The thought of what they'd say made her whole body recoil. Didn't he feel the same way about his friends though? Her eyes scanned his table and everybody looked calm and not upset.

"Patty, girl, do I have to smack ya to get your attention?" Penny griped and when Patty faced her, her hands were placed on her hips. "What are you starin' at?"

"Nothin'," Patty quickly answered, "I ain't starin' at a thing."

"Well then, c'mon and get, girl! We got to get to class." Lunch wasn't even over yet, but the entire table was getting up to go now. The hallway was always the worst. The whites and blacks passed one another and all hell broke loose. They didn't want to be caught in the daily crossfire, so they decided that losing ten minutes of lunch was worth avoiding all the drama. Besides, they could walk at a languid pace and chit chat quietly. It was a peaceful walk, something that Patty wished wasn't so rare.

"You workin' today?" Penny asked Patty, now that they were alone. The others had departed along the way and only Penny and Patty were left. Both of their classes were at the west wing of school.

"Yep," Patty sighed, "I'm workin' all this week, Penny. Just like last. The money's helpin' mama a lil', but it ain't easy..." Penny nodded and frowned, feeling sorry for her friend.

"Well, I was going to go over to Andrea's, but I guess I won't now," she sighed, "I best get some work done anyway. Mr. Gross is havin' that dang'on music test on Friday." Patty laughed when Penny rolled her big brown eyes and smacked her lips. "I can't wait to get up outta here! Graduation ain't but a couple months away and I'm going up North and away from this place." Penny raised her hand to God, "Thank ya, Jesus!" Penny's smile fell from her face when she looked down at Patty who was frowning and walking quietly beside her as they trailed up the hall.

"Well, that's nice for you," Patty said after a moment, "I guess you'll come back and visit... Maybe Uncle John will give me a ride up there next time he goes to New York... I'd like to see that city anyway. 'Heard there were buildings and cars that were twice as big as the ones down here."

"Oh, Patty," Penny frowned, "I wish I could pay for us both, girl. Ya know I would!" Patty nodded and smiled at Penny.

"Girl, please, you're barely makin' it on ya own... I ain't gettin' there this year, but maybe next. Them Timberlake's payin' me good anyway... Couple dollars saved up just for me already." They reached their destination at the west wing of school. Penny's class was a door away from Patty's. The clock on the wall warned them that they had just thirty-three seconds before all hell burst loose. Penny rolled her eyes and hugged her friend.

"See ya after class, right?" she asked. Patty nodded as Penny walked down the hall.

"I'll see ya in an hour."

-------------------------

Patty and Penny walked halfway home together. Penny walked down her regular street and Patty walked towards the tracks. She skipped over the metal and wood before cutting through a hole in the fence that lined the tracks. It was the quickest route across town and Patty had no time to waste. Mrs. Timberlake hated it when she was late. She didn't want to have to mumble a thousand apologize to the woman with curly blonde hair. She just wanted to work and leave.

She kicked a pebble about six blocks up Ellis Road before she turned the corner and jogged up the stairs of the second house on the right. Carlise Street was lined with huge single homes with massive yards and dogs. Shiny Ford cars with curved corners parked against the sidewalk. It was gorgeous, especially in the spring. Patty secretly wished this were her house with the large oak door and wrap around porch, all white and prestine. She marveled at porch swing she always wanted to sit on and just watch the street just because there was another beautiful house right across from it to stare at.

"Hey!" A cheerful voice called from behind Patty as she jumped and gasped, placing her small hand over her heart. "I didn't mean to scare ya." Patty didn't speak as Justin crept up his front steps and walked over to stand in front of her. He kept a respectful distance, but Patty still backed up. White people never stood that close to her. Even Justin's mother yelled from across the room like she was diseased.

"Hello, Mr. Timberlake," she greeted with her head tipped downward, staring at the chemistry book held in his right hand. His hands were big enough to hold up that big textbook and Patty felt a little weak as she hugged her books to her chest. "I was just about to knock."

"I told ya to call me Justin," he complained, reaching out for her suddenly. Patty jerked back and he laughed, "I was just gonna take your books. They look a little too heavy for you."

"I got it," she said, somewhat offended, "They ain't too heavy for me."

"Oh..." Justin mumbled dumbly, playing with a button on his striped shirt, "Well, I ain't mean no disrespect. I was just taught to help a lady with her books if they got too heavy for her..." Patty felt a weird knot in her stomach. Nobody had ever called her a lady before. She felt grown up. She was seventeen years old and a lady. She almost giggled.

"Well, thank you, but it's not heavy, Mr. Timberlake." She held her books tighter.

"Justin," he corrected, pulling the keys to his house out of his khaki pants pocket.

"I can't call you by your first name," Patty said.

"Why not?" Justin asked, finally finding the door key, "I call you Patricia."

"Well... you don't work for me," she said, "But I work for you. Mama always told me to be mindful of that."

"First off, Miss. Hurley," he said, unlocking the door with a small smirk, "You work for my parents and not me. Secondly, I told you to call me Justin. If you 'work' for me, you have to do what I say, right?"

"I guess..." Patty mumbled as he stepped to the side and gestured for her to walk through the open door first. She mumbled a thank you and slid past him into the house.

"Well then I guess I won that one, huh?" Justin joked proudly. Justin's keys jingled loudly when he tossed them in the glass bowl sitting on the coffee table. Patty still wasn't used to the massive space of their cream-colored living room. There were artworks on the walls and a fireplace with pictures of family on it. Justin always rolled his eyes at his baby pictures, front row and center.

The large brown couches that helped fill the space were genuine leather and the large television across from them was a lighter brown. It was the biggest television Patty had ever seen. She knew how well off the Timberlakes were. Her mother had told her before she started working here three weeks ago. But her mother also said they were all nice, except for Mrs. Timberlake. She was always a little mean, but the men of the house surprisingly weren't.

Just to prove that kindness further, when Patty's mother fell ill about a month ago, they allowed Patty to work in her place until she got better. And work was all Patty did. She barely got sleep trying to catch up on homework, but she didn't mind. Her mother's medicines were the cheapest brand and it was still too much. They couldn't afford to see the doctor as much as they should. It pained Patty to hear her mother's hacking cough and see her drenched in sweat from time to time. She didn't want to know what would happen if those pills didn't start working. Patty wasn't saving for college, like she had said earlier, she was saving for her mother's medical needs. She would afford her the best doctor in the state if she kept working.

"Well, damn, Patty. Am I that borin'?" Justin joked, pulling Patricia from her thoughts. She shook her head, adamantly denying his question.

"No, no," she said, "I'm sorry. I was just thinkin' 'bout stuff..."

"Oh..." Justin said softly, catching on quickly, "How is your mama doin'?" Patty looked him in the eyes and saw he was genuinely concerned. Her mother was his nanny. Taught him how to dress and was there to watch him take his first steps. Him and Patty sort of grew up together, but at a distance.

"She's the same," Patty sighed, "I'm savin' up though, so we can get her a real good doctor. Them cheap pills we gettin' ain't doin' much."

"You know what?" Justin said, digging through his pockets, "Here. I don't need that much money this week. The boys are all going to the game. I don't think we'll be doing much else." Patricia couldn't believe her eyes as he held out a twenty dollar bill. He must've been crazy.

"Oh no, I ain't takin' that," Patty denied, backing up. Justin stepped forward, boldly taking hold of her hand. Patty shivered when his white skinned warmed her brown skin, engulfing her small hand completely in his big one.

"Patty, please," Justin pleaded, "Your mama was more of a mother to me than anybody. Besides, I couldn't bare to see ya all sad if somethin' happen'd to her..."

"Oh...I...umm..." Patty was staring at him and he was staring at her. There was a strange energy that she couldn't really explain, or maybe she just didn't want to.

"What on earth is goin' on here?!" The shriek of Justin's mother's voice made them both jump. Patty dropped the money and scurried away from Justin. She looked at his mother, regrettably so, as she scowled so disgustedly at her. Patty bowed her head.

"Mama, Patty's mama is sick and I was just tryna help a little..."

"By giving away your father's money?" she asked as Justin bent down to retrieve the fallen bill.

"If I put it in the church basket, would you have complained?" he asked rudely. Patty snapped her head in his direction, shocked. She'd never speak to her own mother that way, but she'd be damned if she said anything like that to Mrs. Timberlake. Justin didn't seem the least bit afraid.

"We pay her good as is, she don't need no more favors," Mrs. Timberlake growled, "If you don't know what to do with your money, give it to me."

"I know exactly what to do with it," Justin said, walking towards Patty. Patricia's eyes grew wide when he took her hand again, right in front of his mother and smiled at her.

"Justin..." Patty whispered, her eyes dancing wildly between him and his mother.

"Shush now," he chuckled, "Take this and buy your mama some good medicine. Let me know if it works." He placed the money in her shaking hand and curled her fingers over it. He offered her one last smirk before turning towards his mother.

"You must be out of your mind," his mother seethed, her chest was heaving.

"No, mama, I'm just helping her out a little. I'm sure Daddy won't mind. Like you said, it's his money, not yours." Patty looked down at her shoes to keep from panicking. She wanted him to shut up. Mrs. Timberlake was furious and that was never a good thing.

"Get out of my sight," his mother spat and Justin turned back to Patricia.

"I'll see ya later, Patty." Patricia nodded meekly as he swayed out of the room smoothly. Then she waited until she could no longer hear his footsteps.

"Mrs.Timberlake, I swear I didn't-" Patty began to rant as she looked at his approaching mother. Her petite figure seemed ten times bigger in all her fury.

"Shut your mouth, nigger!" she exclaimed and Patty zipped her lips accordingly. She felt so angry she was about to cry. That word hurt every time she heard it or saw it. She longed to say something just as hurtful back, but she didn't have enough hate in her to do it.

Mrs.Timberlake stretched out her hand and Patricia flinched, in fear of getting struck. Mrs. Timberlake laughed. "You foolish child, give me the money, not your face." Patricia shook as she handed Justin's mother the twenty dollars she needed. Mrs. Timberlake held it up and examined it.

And then she ripped it apart.

Patricia stood and watched in horror as Mrs. Timberlake tore the money into pieces too small to glue back together, turning it into confetti with her hands until there was none left. "Now sweep this mess up," she said, turning her back to Patricia and gliding out of the room. Patricia stared at that torn up money, now just meaningless shreads of paper, and her eyes welled up with tears.