Rent Money

by Natavia

  “Y’all know each other?” I asked.

  “Yeah, that muthafucka locked me up four times! Drive off!” Baby Head Poo said, and Ian chuckled.

  “I was just doin’ my job,” he said.

  “Me, too, but you didn’t understand that,” she replied.

  “Stealin’ is not a job,” Ian said.

  “It is if I’m gettin’ paid for it. Why are you over here anyway?” she replied.

  “I wanted to speak to Abreesha. How have you been holdin’ up?” he asked.

  “I’ve been better. And yourself?”

  “I’m cool but I keep thinkin’ about this girl I used to go to school with and was wonderin’ if she’d let me take her out,” Ian said.

  “I’m so bored with this. I’m not even gettin’ wet,” Baby Head Poo said.

  “Shut the hell up, Rakiesha, before I have one of my buddies lock you up,” Ian replied. Baby Head Poo didn’t say anything afterwards.

  “Well, did you ask her?”

  “I’m ready to. Can I take you out this week? We can do breakfast since I have an evening shift,” Ian said.

  “Okay, we can do that, but this isn’t a date. We’re just meetin’ up to eat at the same spot,” I replied, and he smirked.

  “Anything you want it to be. Can I have your number?” he asked. Ian pulled out his iPhone and I rambled off my number. He told me he was going to text me shortly and for us to have a safe night. Baby Head Poo was fussing at me on my way out the garage.

  “I don’t like him,” she said.

  “Why, cause he’s a cop? Don’t you think we need to date different types of niggas? All street dudes are good for is breakin’ your heart and knockin’ you up. I’m sick of it. You can keep gettin’ shitted on if you want to but I’m not!”

  “Whatever you say, but I’d rather fuck a street dude than a cop. I hate them crocket assholes. What do they do for the community besides harass people? Now, Ian might be different but I’m sure he watched his police buddies break the law and didn’t say anything about it,” she said.

  “Girl, just sit back and shut up. Talk to me about a man when you actually get one.”

  “I might be fuckin’ yah daddy,” she teased.

  “And I might flush your head down the toilet! Shut up, Poo!” She mumbled something under her breath and I wanted to pull over and fight her. Maybe I was overreacting and in my feelings because of Mayor. He seemed to get under my skin. He knew damn well he didn’t miss me. Mayor only missed treating me bad.

  Thirty minutes later…

  I dropped Tinka off at her apartment building and Baby Head Poo got out with her. I waited until they were inside before I pulled off and headed home. Dade was sitting on my father’s step smoking a cigarette and drinking a beer. The fool actually looked clean. My father told his mother that the only way Dade could come inside his house was if he took a shower. I got out of my car and slammed the door.

  “I was waitin’ for you, stepsister. You know I was thinkin’ maybe we should do a contract with Pornhub, headlinin’ ‘Stepbrother bangs out sister’s juicy virgin pussy.’ What you think about that, Catwoman?”

  “I think you should drown in the bath tub while I throw a blow dryer in there wit’ you. And why are you sittin’ on my father’s step?”

  “Because my mother lives here now,” he said.

  “But you don’t!”

  “I have the basement. Me and your father talked about it today, and guess what? I’m gonna work witchu at the car wash,” he said. I stormed up the steps to the porch then into the house. It was late, so I knew my father was in bed. I stomped up the stairs then knocked on the master bedroom door.

  “DADDY!” I yelled.

  The door opened a few seconds later and my father stuck his head out with sweat dripping down his face. The smell of sex poured into the hallway and I was ready to be sick.

  “Ewwww, Daddy! Why she smell like that? What is that?” I asked, waving the funk in front of my face.

  “It’s her new organic feminine wash she uses. What do you want, Kitty? I’m busy!” he said. They were playing LL Cool J’s song, “Doin It.”

  “Dade is gonna be stayin’ here? Why is his funky ass gonna be livin’ with us? But yet you gave me a hard time for wantin’ to move back home?”

  “Dade doesn’t get into trouble! You on the other hand had the police knockin’ on my door and comin’ to my job almost every week. Listen, sweet pea. I’m gonna make sure he gets on the right track, too. If he starts fuckin’ up, he’ll have to get out of my house, but in the meantime, we’re a big happy family,” he said. He closed the door in my face and locked it. Dade was in the hallway with a smirk on his ashy face.

  “Did you tell your father about this?” Dade asked, holding up my sonogram picture from the hospital. I hid the picture in my nightstand which only meant the bastard went into my bedroom.

  “Your dirty funky ass went into my bedroom?”

  “I needed to use your deodorant, oh and borrow a pair of your socks. Listen, I can keep this on the hush if you give me five hundred dollas. I need to buy my daughter some new clothes,” Dade said.

  “I don’t have five hundred dollas!” I screamed.

  “HENNRRYYYYYYYYY, KITTY IS HAVING A KITTEN!” Dade screamed. I balled up my fist and struck him in the nose. He rolled down the stairs and knocked the pictures off the wall. I kicked off my heels and took my earrings out my ears.

  “I’m beatin’ your ass!” I screamed and ran down the stairs. My father came out of his bedroom with a robe on. Dade’s mother, Roberta, followed. The living room was a mess while I slung Dade around, giving him the ass whipping he deserved. My father pulled me away from him and Roberta ran to her son to see if he was breathing. That hoe knew I didn’t kill his ass, he was still screaming.

  “Look at my house!” my father said.

  “He went into my bedroom!”

  “Did he take anything?” Roberta asked.

  “Bitch, I was speakin’ to my father! Matter of fact, why are you and your son here? Dade is a grown-ass man!”

  “And you’re a grown woman!” Roberta yelled back.

  “This is my grandmother’s house and it belongs to my family. Hoe, you and your piece of shit son aren’t family! Put them out, Daddy,” I said. My father massaged his head and sat down on the couch. I could tell he was stressed and me coming back home put a dent in Roberta’s plans. My father knew I wouldn’t approve which was why he didn’t want me to come back home. It was all making sense now. The reason he was paying me more money to work at his car wash was so I could move out while him, Roberta and Dade lived happily ever after.

  “You have to leave the nest!” Dade yelled out to me, reciting the words from Baby Boy.

  “Shut the hell up, punk!” I yelled back.

  “That’s why you don’t know who your baby daddy is,” Dade said. I tried to charge him again, but my father caught me.

  “Get off of me!” I said.

  “I love your father,” Roberta said.

  “No, you don’t! You’re usin’ him because you couldn’t afford your house anymore. Hoe, you just wanted somewhere to live rent-free but it’s cool. I’m out of here. Let me just pack a few bags and I’ll get out of y’all way. Fuck every single last one of y’all! This house is startin’ to stink anyway.” I went upstairs to my bedroom and grabbed a few things. My life was in shambles. I couldn’t keep a roof over my head and the men in my life seemed to let me down. My father came into my bedroom to talk me into staying.

  “You’re overreacting, Kitty. We all should just sit down and talk. You don’t have to be a spoiled brat. I’ll talk to Dade about comin’ in your room but I’m not leavin’ Roberta because you think she’s usin’ me. And why you didn’t tell me about the baby? Who is the father? See, this is why your life is all over the place because you don’t talk to anyone!” he said.

  “Don’t worry about me. I’ll still work for you because I need my job. That’s all you need to know about
me. And as far as keepin’ secrets, I get that from you. You didn’t tell me about Roberta and was plannin’ on hidin’ it from me. So, I don’t want to hear anything about secrets.” I left out of the room after I finished stuffing my duffel bags. Roberta waved at me and blew me a kiss on the sneak tip as I walked out the door.

  “I’m gonna beat your ass one day. Trust me,” I warned her. She crossed her legs and lit a cigarette. Dade was sitting on the couch with an ice-pack on his head. I took one last look at my father when he came downstairs before I left out.

  I’m not crashing at Tinka’s one-bedroom apartment and Essa’s apartment is out of the question because I can’t deal with Ricardo’s antics. I don’t have enough money for a hotel room because I’m tryna save. Where can I go for a few months?

  “I’m gonna regret this but I’ll sleep in the water with sharks before I stay in a house with Dade,” I said aloud. When I got inside my car, I dialed Mayor’s number. I wasn’t expecting him to answer the unfamiliar number, but thankfully he did.

  “Yoooo,” he answered.

  The background was quiet which was unusal for him. I figured he would still be at the casino or laid up with another woman.

  “This is Kitty.”

  “What’s up, shorty? You ready to stop actin’ dumb?” he asked.

  “Listen, I need somewhere to crash for a little bit,” I said.

  This fool betta not bluff me out. I swear I’ll find him and cause a scene.

  “I knew you was gonna come home. I’m ready to text you the address, and hurry up,” he said and hung up. When the text came through, I put the address in my GPS. Mayor lived an hour away in Towson, Maryland, so I had to get back on the highway and drive towards Baltimore.

  ***********

  I figured Mayor lived in a luxurious home, but I wasn’t expecting a mini mansion. He came outside when he heard me pull up in his driveway. I was too ashamed to get out. I’d been dealing with him for a little over a year and never seen what his home looked like, yet he stayed at my cramped studio-sized apartment. Mayor opened the driver’s side door and told me to get out. He grabbed my bags out the backseat and told me I didn’t have to bring anything.

  “You forgive me?” he asked.

  “No, you were just talkin’ to a bitch hours ago at the casino.”

  “That wasn’t about much, damn. Why you trippin’? I’m tryin’ to do better and you still bringin’ up the past. We argue all the time and you ain’t never leave me before, so why start?” he asked.

  “We can talk about this tomorrow.”

  Mayor shrugged his shoulders and I followed him into the house. His home was spotless, but it didn’t have much, not even a picture on the wall. The home reeked of weed.

  “I just moved in about a month ago so it’s still empty,” he said.

  The master bedroom was twice the size of my apartment, but it was sort of empty, too. I took my tennis shoes off and sat on his bed.

  At least the sheets smell clean.

  Mayor sat next to me and rested his hand on my thigh. You know a relationship is dysfunctional when you’re used to arguing. I couldn’t find it in my heart to accept his sincerity.

  “This seems weird,” I said, scooting away.

  “Mannnn, here you go! This is that bullshit all over again. Yo, why can’t you let all that shit go, bruh? You keep talkin’ to me like you’re over me or sumthin. Leave if you don’t want to be here, Kitty. I’m not forcin’ shit on you! I’m not gonna keep kissin’ your ass neither! I apologized for the things I’ve said like a hunnid times!” Mayor fussed.

  “Did you apologize for the women? Makin’ me lose my job and gettin’ evicted? Did you apologize for those other times you disrespected me? One fuckin’ time you apologized and think you did sumthin!” Mayor mushed my head back and I fell back onto the bed.

  “Stupid-ass nigga!” I yelled while he was leaving the bedroom. Mayor was like a grown-ass kid. I was starting to wonder if a baby would humble him, but the thought quickly left my mind. He came back into the room while I was undressing with fresh towels and washcloths. All I wanted to do was take a shower and go to bed.

  “I wanna take a shower with you. Is that cool?” he asked. I rolled my eyes and headed towards his bathroom. Mayor’s walk-in shower had a soaking tub inside. I’ve never seen it done like that before, but I liked it. Behind the tub was a marble and stone water fountain. His bathroom gave me spa vibes. He took off his clothes then stepped inside. Mayor’s dick was lovely; everything about the man oozed sex appeal but his mouth ruined his image most times and made him ugly.

  “You gained weight,” he stated while eyeing my mid-section.

  “And your dick shrunk. Your point?”

  “That’s cause your pussy loose,” he said, smiling. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pushed me against the wall. I closed my eyes and told myself to push him away but I couldn’t. Mayor lifted my chin, forcing me to look at him. He kissed my lips while gripping my ass cheeks. His traced the outline of my neck with his tongue. He knew that was my spot. A moan escaped my lips and his dick hardened against my leg. My hormones had me all over the place. I wanted him to skip the fourplay and penetrate my walls. Mayor laid me down on the bench then laid on top of me. He stuffed a mouthful of breast into his mouth while his free hand groped the other.

  Watch this fool gonna stroke for two minutes then bust a nut, leavin’ me unsatisfied.

  Mayor groaned in my ear when he entered me. I wrapped my legs around him. The strokes were slower than the norm, but I still didn’t want to get my hopes up, so I laid there and let him do all the work. He pushed my leg up and draped it over his shoulder, pushing deeper into me.

  “Fuccckkkkk, Kitty! This is my pussy?” he asked, going deeper. My body started to relax. If Mayor was going to come early, he would’ve already. He toyed with my clit while nibbling on my sensitive nipples. My moans grew louder while he fucked my G-spot. The steam inside the shower made it so foggy I could barely see him, but I definitely felt him. Mayor pushed both of my legs up and drilled my spot, making my toes curl. The strokes were too deep, it was cramping my pelvis.

  “This is what you wanted, huh? You wanted me to fuck you like this?” he asked, speeding up. My pussy clenched like a fist and he moaned my name. He pressed his hand down on my chest and went faster. I didn’t think he could fit more inside me, but he had every inch in my body. A warm liquid burst out of my pussy. It was the first time he made me squirt.

  “SHIITTTTT, SHORTY!” he groaned when he jerked inside me. He fell on top of me after releasing his seeds.

  What just happened?

  Mayor pulled out of me and helped me off the bench, so we could finish our shower. I was lost for words and so was he because we took our shower in silence before we got in bed.

  Nine hours later…

  When I woke up, I picked up my phone from off the nightstand. It was two o’clock in the afternoon. I had missed calls from Essa, Tinka and my father. There were also text messages from an unfamiliar number. I opened the messages and realized it was Ian. I called Essa back first.

  “Hoe, you pregnant?” she asked and I almost dropped the phone.

  “How do you know?”

  “Uncle Henry called me this mornin.’ He’s worried about you. See, I knew you was up to sumthin. You are always hidin’ shit from people. Who you pregnant by, Kitty?” she asked.

  “You don’t know him. He’s just a random but I’m not keepin’ it.”

  I felt bad for lying to Essa, but I wasn’t ready to announce my involvement with Mayor until I knew for sure what I wanted. Something was telling me to remain single but the other part of me was saying forgive him to see if he was really trying to change. Then there was that dumb-ass side of me who didn’t want to adjust to Mayor’s attitude because I was more comfortable with the arguing which is what I was used to. I was confused; therefore, I didn’t want to let anyone know anything yet.

  “Are you sure you want to get an abortion? Maybe
you should think about it more. You never know, the baby might change you for the better. I know Ke’Ari matured me because before I had him I was running around without a care in the world,” she said.

  “I’m still undecided but can you go wit’ me if I decide to get one?”

  “Yeah, but let me call you back. I hear Governor walking down the hall,” she said then hung up.

  “MAYOR!” I called out but he didn’t answer. I climbed out of bed and walked down the hallway to the room where I heard his voice coming from. When I pushed the door open, he hung up the phone.