Page 17 of Blake University HBCU Chronicles: Archer & Destiny

Destiny closed her eyes and let the breeze sweep over her.

She couldn’t believe that she was in California on vacation with her man.

Visiting Cali was something she had dreamed of since she was young.

She scrolled through her phone and saved photos to her highlight on Instagram of the sunset on Venice Beach.

Archer sat quietly beside her, his hand rested protectively on the back of her wheelchair as their bodies moved along the weathered wood planks of the pier that led to an open-air restaurant.

The ocean stretched endlessly beside them.

She looked up at Archer and noted the subtle tension in his jaw.

His pale blue eyes flickered with something deep and restless.

Although he appeared relaxed and calm, Destiny knew that Tasha Reed was still on his mind. Hours earlier, they visited his mother’s grave at a small tucked away cemetery on a green hillside that overlooked the mountains. Archer kneeled before her headstone and poured out years of pain to her.

Destiny consoled him, warmed his soul and made him feel whole. Archer was learning to release and not hold back like Destiny had told him. That alone made him feel better.

Now, as they sat at the beachside restaurant under the shade of white umbrellas, Destiny’s heart was full and light in a way she hadn’t felt in a long time.

She had finished her first semester at Blake University strong, despite the pain in her joints.

All the late nights of studying till her eyes burned had paid off.

She was proud of herself, and so were her professors and her parents.

Archer told her almost every day how proud he was of her as well.

Not only was Archer proud, but he was also grateful for Destiny’s family. Henry, her father, talked with Archer a lot. Archer confided in him and Henry openly welcomed him as family.

Archer’s hand slipped into hers, rough and warm as he looked down at her with an emotionless stare.

“You okay?” she asked softly, studying his handsome face.

“Yeah, I feel better now. I’m kind of excited to meet my aunt, from the pictures she sent me of her and my mom, they look just alike.” He smiled.

They were waiting for his aunt, she was coming to meet them for lunch.

Destiny could tell it was tearing Archer up inside, the way he kept glancing toward the entrance.

His foot tapped beneath the table impatiently, and his thumb kept running rapid circles over her hand.

Archer’s anxiety was through the roof and he didn’t know how to calm himself.

Minutes later, a tall dark skin woman wearing large bamboo hoop earrings and a white sundress that swayed in the breeze stepped through the entrance.

Her hair was in thick black curls that framed her diamond-shaped face.

She walked in with a careful, nervous grace, holding her breath as she spotted Archer.

Archer stood up so quickly, the chair almost tipped over. They stared at each other. Destiny watched as something passed between them. Recognition, grief, and love that had been denied for too long.

“Archer.” His aunt whispered as she stepped close.

“Auntie.” Archer choked out.

They both moved at the same time, closing the space between them as Archer wrapped his arms around her.

He buried his face in her shoulder as she rocked him from side to side, she cradled the back of his head like a mother would.

They both cried together as Destiny’s eyes blurred from watching them.

She smiled through her own tears because in that moment, Archer wasn’t just a man with heavy secrets or a boy who had been stolen from his mother.

He had a piece of her right in front of him and felt complete. Archer turned toward Destiny and without being told, she rolled forward and joined them, already knowing that this was only the beginning. They were writing a new story now, together.

For so long, Destiny had believed her destiny was meant to be lonely. That the weight of her reality, her wheelchair, and the days when her legs refused to cooperate, the nights when her pain meds barely dulled the sharp ache in her joints, would keep love at arm’s length from her.

She had accepted the idea that the world might not see her as a woman worthy of being chosen, of being loved and held fully by a man that accepted her for her. Archer had shattered that lie with every moment he stood beside her. With every way he looked at her, touched her, and loved her.

Now, she felt hope, it all made her want to cry, laugh, and smile at the same time. Because her life wasn’t just with her parents anymore. Her life was now hers, and she was excited to build it piece by piece, moment by moment, with a man who had become her safe place.

She was going back to Blake University after break, ready to keep going, keep fighting for her future. She was going to go back pushing her wheelchair across campus with her head held high. Destiny now knew that love was real, and that she was loved.

“Baby.” Archer’s voice cut through her thoughts.

Destiny blinked, and looked up as Archer and his aunt took their seats.

“This is my Aunt Vanessa.” Archer said as he placed his hand on Destiny’s shoulder, needing to touch her like always.

“Auntie, this is Destiny.” He stated proudly.

Vanessa’s eyes took Destiny in as she reached out to shake her hand.

“Archer told me so much about you on the phone. You’re so beautiful.” Vanessa smiled warmly at Destiny.

Destiny couldn’t stop being emotional to save her life. Her bottom lip trembled as she smiled.

“Thank you, you are, too.” She complimented her back.

Archer’s hand squeezed her shoulder, and Destiny turned to look at him.

“I plan on marrying you, and when you graduate from Blake U—” his thumb brushed the tear that fell down her cheek.

“When you graduate and start your career, that I know you working so damn hard for…I’m going to build a family with you.

I’m happy that I have you, and your family.

I’m also grateful that I have family from my mom’s side as well.

I haven’t felt this good in a very long time.

” He couldn’t stop smiling at Destiny after his heartfelt words.

“I can’t believe this is my reality now…

we talk a lot about how we used to feel and what made us question ourselves…

now we know we have a bright future together.

I trust you, you trust me…whenever you make me mad, I’ll just roll bounce on you…

hopefully, in a couple of years, I’ll be able to walk and—” Destiny stopped when she noticed Archer’s face growing red.

She let silence pass between them for a couple seconds before she laughed and said that she was just playing. In front of his aunt, Archer leaned in and pressed his forehead to hers.

“I love you, crazy ass Des.” He said between them.

“I love you, too.” She kissed his lips.

The End!!!