lakisha thomas , daughter of a divorced snellville mother who was a crawford long pediatrics nurse ; a shy charcoal-colored girl who always wore her hair parted down the middle , with two thick braids that hung at her sides during class time but were piled atop her head and pinned down during practice ; thick lips , deep dimples , a large nose , sleepy brown eyes rimmed by dark linesnatural eyeliner ; thick-boned but slender , with strong straight legs and a long , erect torso ; now wearing the white shirt and brown shorts of the p.e .