by T. Styles
Then I place the phone to my ear and yell, “Oh my goodness!” I scare the hell out of a child sitting next to me.
“What’s wrong, babe?” Ryan asks turning toward me.
“I can’t get a signal! Gosh darn it!”
Now that those words left my lips, I realize ‘gosh darn it’ was a bit too much but there was no taking it back now.
“Were you in a middle of a call?”
“Yes and I need to finish it up before I board the plane, not to mention I’m thirsty.”
When he pulls his phone out of his pocket, I know my plan is working.
“Look…use mine and I’ll go grab you something to drink. What you want?”
“You sure?”
“Of course. I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t feel like going,” he says handing me his phone. For a man who has something to hide, he seems carefree. “What you want to drink?”
Thinking of something that may take some time I say, “A double espresso…and add milk but only after it’s seeped for two minutes.”
“Ooookay,” he laughs. “I’ll be right back.”
When he’s gone, I focus my attention to his phone. There are seven missed calls from Eddy and two unread texts.
Eddy?
WTF!
I thought he said Eddy was dead! Already I’m not feeling Mr. Fireman. I should’ve known that a gay man and a fireman being together was just too much of a cliché.
Curiosity was killing me. Now if I read the texts, how was I going to hide it? He has an actual cell phone unlike everybody else on earf who uses a PDA. Which means that once I read the messages, it will no longer show as UNREAD.
Before I invade his privacy, I look up to be sure he isn’t coming. He’s not so I click the button to read his messages. One reads, ‘Ryan, I need to talk to you. You said you’d be here for me and I can’t find you. What gives?’ The other reads, ‘Can you at least return my texts?’
I knew it! He’s a bum and a fraud and I wanted nothing more to do with him. I’m so mad that as I close the lid of his phone, I miss calculate my timing. Because Ryan is walking up to me and yes, he saw everything.
“It doesn’t look like you’re making phone calls to me.” He says with an attitude. “Fuck are you doin’ going through my phone?”
“I’m sorry…I was just…”
“Disrespecting me. You know what, Wayne, when I first met you, I couldn’t help but think about you after we met. I wondered what kind of person you were and if you were for me. But after this, Madam Wayne,” he says sarcastically, “I realize I should’ve turned around the moment your ass dropped on your living room floor.”
He takes his phone from me.
“You know what, it was wrong for me to look at your messages. But what about you? You said you were single and even went as far as to feed me some bullshit about Eddy bein’ dead! When for real, unless you run into Eddy’s all the time, he’s alive and well and textin’ you now!”
“First of all my lover’s name was Teddy…not Eddy! Had you turned the music down when I was talking to you in the room you would’ve heard me clearer. And Eddy is a co-worker of mine who wanted me to cover his shift but I’m not there am I? Instead I’m in LA with a lunatic who doesn’t understand the meaning of privacy! Here’s your fuckin’ espresso,” he says pushing it in my hands before walking away. “I ain’t got time for this shit! I’m out.”
I’m so embarrassed I can barely move.
“Is that man mad at you?” asks a child next to me.
“Yeah.” I say slightly irritated at his ear hustling.
“Oh…he seems nice. I saw him help the lady in the wheel chair over there when you were looking through his phone.”
Pissed this snotty-nosed-bastard is making matters worse I say, “And I saw you diggin’ for gold in your nose five minutes ago and eatin’ your boogers. But did I say anything to you?” I pause. “So mind your ugly business!”
When the child cries I stomp away in my heels and place the SIM card back in my phone. Then I lean on a wall and call home.
“Miss Wayne…we miss you!” Adrian yells after he picks up. “How are you doing?”
“I’m fine.”
“That’s good…but there’s so much going on out here.”
“Like what?”
“They arrested Queen Paul for murder. It’s all over the news. They say they’ve finally solved the case of the Drag Queen Slayer.”
“What?!” I scream a little louder than I realized. “How?”
“He killed Big Boody Brandy too. That’s how he got caught.”
“I haven’t been watching anything out here with Daffany’s funeral and all.”
“Oh…well shit is crazy in DC.”
I’m blown away. “So that means he killed Marlene too?”
“That means he’s responsible for all of the Drag Queen Slayer murders.”
I’m happy the case is solved but for some reason, I don’t believe it. I always thought in the back of my mind after speaking to Chris that Tyrone was responsible even though I never said it out loud.
“Wow…well, how is everything else goin’ there?” I say looking for Ryan in my peripheral vision. He’s nowhere to be found.
“It’s cool,” he says hesitantly, the tone of his voice changed.
“What’s wrong, Adrian? I can tell in your voice something ain’t right so just tell me what’s up.”
“I really don’t want to start stuff, Miss Wayne. I just want to stay out of it.”
“You won’t be in it if you tell me, if you don’t…well that’s another story. Is it the parties? Are they running smoothly?”
“Are you sure you won’t be mad at me for telling you?”
“Adrian…tell me what the fuck is goin’ on! I hate playin’ promise me more, or promise me not, with you!”
“Okay…well…did you tell Tyrone he could have clients over…outside of the ones you set up for Party Night?”
“Yeah…why?”
“I knew I should not have said anything. Please don’t tell Tyrone.”
Although I hear his words, I’m more interested in what’s behind them. I immediately recall how every time Tyrone name comes up, that he goes overboard to protect him. I also remember the day I came home, and heard him and Tyrone fighting supposedly over Chris. I never got a chance to ask him if what Chris said about Tyrone was true. Was he an abuser?
“Adrian…I’m gonna ask you somethin’ and I want you to be real with me.”
“Okay.”
“Has Tyrone ever hurt you?”
Silence.
“Adrian…answer the fuckin’ question! Now I need to know this shit and my plane is comin’ so you got to tell me now!”
“Yes. He has.”
I swallow hard and say, “Did he hurt you the night I came home early and heard him yelling at you?”
“Yes. He does that all the time. It’s like he’s jealous of me and whenever he finds out I’m spending time with Chris, he’ll pick a fight. And then it will turn physical.”
“So all those times you had bruises, Tyrone did them?”
“Yes.”
“What about the scars? On your body?”
“All him.”
I slide to the floor and sit down because the room feels like it’s spinning.
“So Chris has never hurt you?”
“He couldn’t. He loves me too much.”
“Then why lie to me? And why lie on him?”
“I was scared, Wayne.”
“Ain’t that much scared in the world, Aid! Has he raped you too?”
“A lot.”
“Adrian, why wouldn’t you tell me this shit?” I ask in horror. “Why wouldn’t you let somebody know somethin’ like that was goin’ on? I don’t understand.”
“You were in LA. And I wanted to tell you…really badly. I even tried that day you caught Tyrone in the bed with a man, when the other guy was on the couch. But you said he told you already and I left it like that.”
“Damn I remember that shit too.”
“The abuse started after I caught him raping me one night. He put something in my drink and when I remembered the next day, he said he wasn’t trying to hurt me. But that he was all alone and needed somebody. I just wanted it to stop. So I told Chris and he approached him the next day. Tyrone got mad and told me he’d kill him if I didn’t leave him alone. There was something in his eyes that made me believe him. So I left the apartment Chris rented for me and tried to cut him off. I lied to Tyrone and told him Chris stopped paying for the apartment so he would really think I was through with him. I didn’t want him to get hurt.”
I know what he meant when he said something in Tyrone’s eyes made him believe he was capable of murder. I thought the same thing when I saw the way he beat his wife.
“When was the last time he raped you?”
“The night of the fire.”
“What?!”
“The night Marlene died, he put something in my drink, the way he normally does. Usually I pass out and can’t remember much but this time I woke up and felt him on top of me again. I couldn’t pretend anymore so I told him I’d tell you and he got mad. He hit me in my face and I think he was going to kill me, but you came over.
“Ya’ll started cooking and you came downstairs to check on me. He was nervous the entire time and told me that if I said anything to you, he’d kill you too. He threatened to kill anybody in my life that got too close.”
I gasp.
“Are you serious?”
“Yes. Later that night, he locked my door from the outside and set fire to the house. With all of us in it.”
It felt like I was taking off without the plane. What kind of maniac was I living with all this time?
“Are you telling me that Tyrone burned that house down?”
I thought about how I paid somebody to hurt Queen Paul. What if my hit was successful? I could’ve gotten tied up in all kinds of shit. Although with Paul’s recent arrest, I may have done the world a favor.
“Yes. And I tried to bang on the walls when I smelled the smoke because he wedged a pole under the doorknob so I couldn’t get out.”
“I remember that too! Tyrone told me it was his next door neighbor making all that noise.”
“Is that why you told me on the night of the fire that you wanted to die?”
“Yes… I couldn’t take it anymore.”
“You don’t have to worry about Tyrone…not as long as I’m alive. And the parties will be over soon too because I want you to make a life with Chris and be happy. We just have to play it out for a few more weeks so I can get back at Tyrone.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t tell Day either. I don’t want anybody else involved.”
“I won’t.”
“How many clients has Tyrone invited over my house anyway? For party night?”
“Well that’s what I wanted to tell you when you first called. When I got up in the middle of the night one time, I heard extra voices in his room. So I started paying attention and found out he has two people over a night. I don’t think he’s trickin’ either. I think he is doing some kind of procedure and Garisha be with him too. They have all kind of surgical stuff in their room and I even saw gauze.”
“Surgery? With Ugly Gary in my house?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, honey. Just be easy and don’t alert anybody that I know.” I say taking the entire bullshit in. “Is there any good news?”
The attendant says the flight is boarding so I know I must hurry.
“Yes…your ball gown came! It’s so beautiful, Wayne. You’re going to love this I promise.”
“For real? How does it look?”
“It’s a pink sequin bra top with long pink beads dangling from it. And the bottom is a sequin bikini bottom with the same design. I never saw anything like it. Trust me…you’re going to look beautiful in it.” She exclaims. “Oh!! They sent a soft pink feather boa with it too. It’s hot!”
“Good! ‘Cause I have plans to bring home the money from that ball. Did you and Day’s gowns come?”
“Yep! I’m rocking a pink sequin one-piece mini dress and Day has a cute pink sequin one-piece pants suit. We are going to kill it!”
“Okay…I gotta go,” I say when I see Ryan stand in line to board. “I’ll call you later.
When I rush over to him I ask, “Can I stand in line with you? So we can talk?”
He turns to me and say, “You just don’t get it do you? You fucked up with me. Be gone.”
As I walk sadly to the back of the line I realize that he got me all the way fucked up. Don’t nobody carry me without my getting in at least one word edgewise. So I hustle back toward him.
“You know what…I was wrong for lookin’ at your little weak ass texts. In fact it was bitch like behavior and unfortunately I am not immune even though I’m a man. But have you ever stopped to think that maybe I did it because I was feelin’ you? And that maybe I wanted to make sure you were who you claimed to be before I gave you my heart? And had you around Shantay?” I pause not long enough for him to answer. “Well think about that when you wake up in the morning and realize you lost the best thing that never happened to you narrow ass. Fuck you! I’m out.” I say as I switch my little ass to the back of the line.
I decide then that he’s done!
I got ninety problems and he ain’t one.
Work The Runway
Miss Wayne
It’s party night and home for only two days, I already regained control of my house. I acted as if everything was good between Tyrone and me because I wanted my plan to work just right. If he weren’t such a selfish ass fish, one look in my eyes would tell him something was up. But he had one thing on his mind, HIMSELF.
Even though I learned that Tyrone burned the house down instead of Paul, who was my biggest competition, I still wanted to win the ball that was going down in two days. My reasons are personal. So, to win, I consulted the lovely B Scott, a transgender woman, to help prepare us for the night. She’s the best of the best and since we are judged on our walk, costume, and attitude, I knew she’d be great. She worked with us on proper hairstyles, offered makeup suggestions and even gave tips on our performance. I truly felt after talking with her that I was ready.
When the meeting with her was over, I placed an important call to LA that would prove beneficial for me later. It would be the most hateful thing I did in my life and I didn’t even care.
“Miss Wayne, I have a client comin’ over today. Are we still cool with our agreement?”
“Sure,” I say. “I told you, you can have two clients over the night of the party. Remember?”
“I know. I just want to make sure everything still stands,” he smiles.
“Why wouldn’t it?” I imply. “You been real with me, I’m bein’ real with you.”
“Oh…thanks, girl.”
“No problem,” I say slightly touching him on his shoulder. “Nice watch,” I continue spotting a black Toy Watch on his arm that runs in the upper one hundreds. “When did you get it?”
“Oh…this?” he says pointing at it. “I’ve had it for a while now.”
“Well I hope you’re savin’ your money, Tyrone. Remember that was part of the agreement too. You were to save up so you’d have enough money to get a place of your own.”
“I am, Wayne. Don’t worry about me…I’m set up real good.”
I laugh, “Glad to hear that.”
“And Wayne, Garisha is helpin’ me out with my clients tonight. Is that okay?”
“Now wait one fuckin’ minute! What human in their right mind would pay ugly Gary’s ass for anything?”
“Our clients. We found a niche market.”
“A niche market huh?” I laugh. “And what is the market? Men who want to fuck men who look like shit? Literally?”
“You know what they say, there’s somebody out here for everybody,” he says dismissively, “well…let me get ready
for work. Thanks again, girl!”
He dipped off into his room and I was really curious about the scheme he was running now. But I also knew everything would be revealed in time and I had to be patient.
Twenty minutes into the party, my phone rang. The number is blocked.
“Hello?”
“Wayne, can we talk about what happened at the airport the other day? I mean, I been by the house and you don’t answer the door, despite your car being out front. I call all the time and you send me to voicemail, what’s up?” Says, Ryan.
“Nothin’s up,” I say, happy he’s been calling me everyday since we split. “I told you I’m done with you and don’t appreciate how you tried to come for a bitch in public. You don’t grandstand on me in front of people. I don’t play that shit.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. But if we can just go out, and grab something to eat, maybe you’ll change your mind about me. I want a chance to show you I can be the one. Just like you made a mistake by going through my phone, I made a mistake by talking to you the way that I did.”
“I doubt going out with you will change my mind. Take care, sweetheart.”
After I hang up the phone with him, a thin young boy knocks on the door. And since he looks to be about seventeen, I figure he was in the wrong place and definitely at the wrong time. He was cute and dainty but looked scared.
“Honey…I believe you wandered on the wrong side of town.”
“No, I think I have the right place.” He says pulling a piece paper from his pocket. “Is Tyrone here?”
“What do you want with Tyrone?”
“I’m not supposed to say.”
“Well I can’t let you in.” I say preparing to close the door.
“Please don’t turn me away,” he says holding it open. “I really need to see him.”
“What is an ugly ass man like that going to offer a cute little thing like you?”
“Like I said, mam, I really can’t say,” he says digging into his pocket again, pulling out cash. “But I have one hundred dollars for you like he said to bring.”
I take the money and look at him again.
“Listen, I don’t proclaim to run a legal operation in here, but I’m still gonna need to see some ID from you. Just for my own personal sake.”
