Side Chic 2 (A Ratchet Mess) (5 page)

“Quan eat your oatmeal. You don’t have long before it’ll be time for y’all to go out to the bus stop.” I told him trying to change the subject.

It didn’t work. “Okay but you still have…”

Frustrated I slammed my palm against the table causing both boys to jump. “I said eat!” They both started sho
veling oatmeal in their mouths and I walked over to the sink and began washing the dishes that I’d used to fix breakfast.

When they were done eating, I walked with them outside. On our way out the door, I glanced at Tre sprawled out on the sofa snoring like he didn’t have a care in the world.
Lord, I don’t know how much more of this I can take.
I thought to myself as I continued out the door. Instead of walking to the end of the driveway like I normally did, I stood by the door. I didn’t want the bus driver to see my face when he stopped.

Once the boys were on the bus
, I went back inside, took a shower and got dressed. I took my time applying my make-up trying to cover the bruises that were on my face without applying too much. When I was done I took a good look at myself and had to admit that I’d done a pretty good job because none of the bruises were visible. I grabbed my keys off of the dresser. I wasn’t sure of where I was going but I knew that I had to go somewhere. I didn’t want to be around Tre. I couldn’t be around him right now. I needed some time to myself to think.

I noticed Tre sitting up on the sofa as I entered the living room. I’d hoped that he would still be asleep.

“Oh so you’re not speaking today?” Tre snapped as I walked past him on my way out the door. He had a cigarette in one hand and a can of soda in the other. “You just gone walk out the door and not say shit? Is that how we are doing it now?”

I spent around on my heels. “I don’t know you tell me? Are you whooping my ass now? Is that how we are doing it?” I shot back! He didn’t respond. He just looked away! “You damn right I don’t have shit to say to you! What I should be saying to you is kiss my ass! That’s what I should be saying! You ain’t even man enough to apologize to me for that shit you did this morning when you came in!” I looked at him in disgust and shook my head.
“You should feel like shit!”

He waved me off, smacking his lips. “Man, you started that shit! I was trying to go to sleep! You were the one who woke me up talking crazy!”

“Talking crazy?” I repeated. “Nigga, your phone was going off at almost two in the morning? I wanted to know who was texting you at that time of morning! To me that isn’t crazy at all!” He didn’t say anything. “How would you feel if my phone was going off at almost two in the morning? Would that be cool?” He didn’t have to answer for me to know the answer because I knew he would’ve been ready to body my ass and whoever it was that was texting me!

“I trust you, so yeah it would be okay.”
I sucked my teeth and attempted to walk away but he jumped to his feet and grabbed my arm. “Why are you walking away?”

“Because that is bullshit and you know it.
You are talking to me like I just met you yesterday! I know how crazy you can get if you notice a nigga staring in my direction too long!” I said poking him in the forehead with my index finger! “On some real shit, right now the only thing I want to hear from you is an apology and you telling me who in the fuck that was that was texting you this morning!”

He let out a long sigh. “You’re right, I had no business putting my hands on yo
u and I apologize for that! It should’ve never happened but it did and there isn’t anything that I can do to change it! I wish like hell that I could take it back! You have no idea how much I wish I could but you have my word that it will never happen again.”

“It better not!” I interrupted with my arms folded over my chest.
“Let that be the last time you ever try that shit!”

“You don’t have that to worry about. I was upset when I came in and I took it out on you. I feel real
fucked up for that! I got into an argument with one of the guys at the job that I was doing in Richmond and I walked off the job to keep from fuckin’ him up!” He explained. “Mr. Johnson tried calling me a few times on my way home. I assume that dude must’ve told his supervisor that I’d left and then his supervisor called Mr. Johnson. I didn’t feel like talking so I didn’t answer. I was too upset and didn’t want to end up saying the wrong thing if he said something that I didn’t like. So I decided that I’d just wait and deal with it today.”

“What does that have to do with who was texting your phone this morning?”
I asked not believing a word of the bullshit that he was spitting to me. He must’ve thought that I was just plain stupid!

“Mr. Johnson was the one who was texting me!”

I burst out laughing sarcastically! “I don’t have time for your lies!”

“I’m not lying, Kisha damn!” He took out his phone and went to his messages. Sure enough there was a text from Mr. Johnson telling Tre that they needed to talk and to call him
asap.

I looked up from the phone to him and shook my head. “Why couldn’t you just do that last night instead of acting the way that you did? Why did you have to make such a big deal out
of me looking at your phone if you had nothing to hide? Or were you afraid to let me see it because you thought that it was someone else?”

His expression went from calm to upset again! “That’s the reason right there! I didn’t let you go through my phone last night because you need to learn to trust me! You can’t jump up and go through my phone every time that it vibrates because you are suspicious! You keep preaching about wanting to get married but how in the hell are we supposed to get married when you don’t even trust me?”

He had a point but I still wasn’t about to let him off that easily. “I agree with you that I need to learn to trust you if we are going to get married but don’t try and flip all of this on me like it’s all my fault! If you’d never given me reason not to trust you then I wouldn’t be suspicious of every move that you make! Not only that but there was still a better way of handling things than the way that you chose. I understand that you were already upset when you came home but regardless that is no excuse for you putting your hands on me! I still can’t believe that you did that.” My voice cracked and I fought hard to fight back the tears that I felt about to fall. Momentarily, I couldn’t speak due to the lump that had formed in my throat. I took a few seconds to get myself together. “You really hurt me…” I began sobbing loudly.

Tre reached out and pulled me into his arms. “
Shhh…baby don’t cry. I swear, I didn’t mean to hit you.” He rubbed my hair and kissed the top of my head. “I love you, Kisha. I’m so sorry.”

I looked up at him. “I love you too but if you ever hit me again, I’m done. I mean that Tre…I mean it.”

He wiped my tears with his fingertips. “It won’t happen again…I promise.” He covered my lips with his. He took his time kissing me. I wrapped my arms around his neck and caressed the back of his head with my hand as we continued kissing. Just that quickly I didn’t care about what had happened earlier. I loved this man with everything in me and regardless of his flaws I wasn’t ready to give up on him. I’d invested too many years and too much time shaping and molding him to walk away now and allow the next bitch to have what was rightfully mines. Yes, he’d hurt me and crossed a very serious line but I felt in my heart that we could move past this.

“Make love to me, Tre.” I whispered between kisses. He picked me up and carried me down the hall to the bedroom and did as I’d asked. When we were done I fell asleep in his arms.

Tre

As I lay next to Kisha listening to her snore softly all I could think of was how glad I was
that I’d programmed Lala’s number under Mr. Johnson’s name. If I hadn’t shit would’ve been going in a totally different direction right now. I looked next to me at my babymama lying in my arms. I couldn’t believe that I’d allowed the bullshit with Lala to drive me to put my hands on her. I’d been so pissed at Lala that I’d taken it out on Kisha! I knew that I was dead wrong for that shit! She’d been right when she’d called me a coward because that is exactly what I was acting like! Here I was allowing outside bitches to pull my strings like I was some damn puppet! On one end I had Lala threatening to put me on child support if I didn’t do whatever it was that she wanted and on the other end I had Tamika threatening to tell about Lala if I didn’t fuck her whenever she wanted! These two bitches had the game fucked up! I had to regain control of the situation and fast!

I eased my
arm from beneath Kisha’s head being as careful as I could so that I wouldn’t wake her. She stirred a little in her sleep but didn’t wake up. I went into the bathroom, showered and then got dressed. While I was brushing my teeth, my phone was going off back to back. Lala was calling me nonstop. I picked up my phone and turned it off. Right then wasn’t the time to deal with her, not with Kisha a few feet away in the bedroom asleep. With my luck she’d wake up and overhear the entire conversation.

I finished brushing my teeth and then went back into the bedroom. I was careful not to make a lot of noise as I moved about. The last thing I wanted to do was wake Kisha and
have to hear her mouth about me leaving. It didn’t matter that I’d been in the house all day. She’d still find a reason to fuss about me leaving. I grabbed my keys and my phone and then made my way out the door. I was on my way to Casper’s to chill for a minute. I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about being around him and Tamika at the same time knowing that I was fucking her behind his back. I looked at it like this. I didn’t really want the bitch! I was only doing what I had to keep her from running her mouth and me losing my family, thinking of it in that way made me feel less guilty. Casper and I had been boys for years and under any other circumstances I would never fuck his woman but what other choice did I have?
              I turned on my phone once I got inside the car. As I was pulling out of the driveway it started to vibrate, Lala’s name was flashing on the screen. I let out a frustrated breath as I snatched up the phone and answered.

“What?” I barked into the phone! I was sick and tired of her calling me back to back. Her texting and calling was what had caused the altercation between Kisha and
me. She should’ve been calling the nigga that she’d been grinning at, at the hospital! “Why in the fuck do you keep calling me back to back?”

When she spoke, she sounded as if she’d been crying, which was nothing new! That only agitated me more! “Tre, the doctors found that Lola has a heart murmur. Right now they are saying that I should
n’t worry because it could be just an innocent murmur, which is commonly found in babies. They told me that they are going to keep her an extra day or two so that they can keep an eye on her but I should follow up with her pediatrician when I get home.” She paused and I heard her sniffling. “Tre…I’m scared.”

Hearing that something was wrong with the baby and hearing how scared she was caused me to back down.
I let out a sigh. “Lala, what do you want me to do? If they told you not to worry then you shouldn’t until there is a reason to.” I spoke calmly and sympathetically.

“I can’t help but worry. They don’t know if it’s an innocent murmur or not!” She sobbed. “Lord, what am I going to do if I lose my baby?”

“Stop talking like that for starters! You can’t think the worst. You have to think positive and look for a positive outcome. She will be alright.” I tried to comfort her as best I could. I felt bad now about leaving the hospital the way that I had. I hadn’t even taken the time to hold either one of my babies. I felt like I couldn’t win for losing! I banged my fist against the steering wheel. “Damn…” To be honest, I felt like every decision that I’d made in the past few days had turned out to be a bad one! I wasn’t sure if I could handle much more!

“Tre, I need you…I need you to come. I am a nervous wreck right now. I need you here with me…Lola needs you.” She continued to sniffle. She sounded so pitiful that it broke my heart
and I felt bad for the things that I’d said to her out of anger. When I thought about it I really had no right to flip on her the way that I had. How could I have been jealous when she wasn’t even my girl? When I already had a woman at home?

I heard an angry
male voice in the background ask. “Well, what is he saying? Is he going to come up here and be with his daughter or what?”

“Daddy calm down. Give me a second. He hasn’t had a chance to answer yet.” I listened as Lala tried to calm her daddy down.

“What do you mean he hasn’t had a chance to answer yet?” He exploded! “What is there for him to think about? He should’ve been here! He should’ve been here yesterday! I have watched you call that man over twenty damn times and each time he ignored you! Now when he finally does pick up and you tell him that something is wrong with one of his daughters, you have to ask him to come! A real man wouldn’t wait for an invitation to come because he’d be here or on his damn way! So no, I am not going to calm down!”

I can’t say that her daddy was wrong for being upset with me but this really wasn’t any of his business! Yes, I understood that he was Lala’s dad and the babies’ granddaddy but that didn’t give him the right to pass judgment on me and question what kind of man I was without knowing shit about me! I felt my pressure beginning to rise. I put on my signal and made a right onto Casper’s street.