The Last Word

Out of the blue, a "girlfriend" from my high school days caught up with me on social media to tell me she’d read my first book and was blown away that I'd more than mentioned her. The following ensued

Hey Substack Peeps,

When you’re putting a book together, there are some tough decisions. No matter how much I love them, some stories end up on the cutting room floor—not because they’re not good enough, but because the book needs to flow just right.

Today, I want to share one of those stories with you—a piece that didn’t make it into Words by Baye, Art by Miki but still holds a special place in my heart. It’s a slice of life filled with the same humor, heart, and honesty you’ve come to expect.

Consider this an exclusive bonus for being part of this incredible community. I hope it resonates with you as much as it did with me when I first wrote it.

Thank you for your continued support and for being part of this adventure. Enjoy the story!

Warmly,
Baye

And, now:

The Last Word

Out of the blue, a "girlfriend" from my high school days caught up with me on social media to tell me she’d read my first book (Hi! My Name is Loco and I am a Racist...) and was blown away that I'd more than mentioned her. Though I’d used a fictional name in the book, she and I knew damn well that she was the heart-thrashing teen I had written about.

She wanted to talk about it and insisted that we SKYPE. I said sure. I was so embarrassed. This was the last conversation I ever expected to have. I hadn’t spoken with her damn near since high school, well over 20 years, but just the muscle memory of sitting on the phone listening to her voice hit me with such a dose of what the Japanese call natsukashii (nostalgia) that I almost welled up. After a little chitchat, she insisted that I listen as she read the portion of the chapter about her aloud. I said, "Aw shit..." under my breath, but she heard it and laughed.

As she read, I couldn't help but remember many a high school night when…