Once Upon a Liar

by Elbie Dee

  Close your eyes,

  Make a wish,

  And blow out the candle light,

  The song, I’ll make love to you by Boyz 2 Men began to play through the Bluetooth speaker she connected to her phone. That was my cue that my offer was accepted. She looked my way as she lip sang the lyrics to the words, causing the energy of the room to be filled with love. I stripped from my navy blue basketball shorts and wife beater. She laid on her back and slid her underwear off. I dove my face into her pussy while I listened to her long, soft moans.

  * * *

  The next morning.

  “This is a breakfast of champions right here!” Zirko comically said after he noticed me entering the kitchen.

  “Oh yeah?” I asked him.

  “Yeah! We should stay home every weekend!” he implied. Since it was Saturday, him and his sister were supposed to be in White Oak, but Brilese decided to keep them home. She was off for the weekend, and chose to give their grandmother a break. The old woman’s health was beginning to decline, and Brilese thought it was the best she could do in order for the lady to get some rest. If she had to work, they could stay with me. Afterall, they were about to become my stepkids.

  “Well hey handsome! Long night?” Brilese asked sarcastically. I stretched my arms above me, and gave her a smirk followed by a wink.

  “Somebody’s still sleepy,” Karleiyah rolled her eyes.

  “Shut up!” I said. I playfully nudged her shoulder with my hand as I walked past. I joined Brilese at the sink, grabbed her around the waist, and kissed her cheek to tell her good morning.

  “Ewww,” both Karleiyah and Zirko voiced their opinions at the same time.

  “Aren’t you two finished?” I asked after looking over my shoulder.

  “Actually, we are,” Karleiyah said in a sassy ass tone. She walked up beside her mother to hand over the dishes, before both of them ran to the bathroom to wash their hands and face. Brilese and I both laughed, before picking my plate of eggs, french toast, and patted out turkey sausage from on top of the stove.

  The time passed with Merrisah could never compare to the family I built with Brilese. Although Brilese and I didn’t have biological children together yet, Karleiyah and Zirko filled the home with enough of the energy. They loved me, and looked to me as a father figure. Their biological piece of shit never claimed them even after a positive DNA test through the child support office. As a male role model, they had me and I didn’t have it in my heart to let them down again. I been with them since they were babies.

  “Where are you going?” Brilese asked. I finished my breakfast and was getting ready to leave after my shower.

  “I gotta go check on the car,” I lied. I knew my car wasn’t ready for pick up, but I didn’t want her thinking I was cheating again.

  “Okay,” she said before pouting her lip out.

  “I’ll be back, baby,” I said. “We all could go out for dinner tonight,” I said. Her fake frown turned into a smile. Since it was the first day we could spend together as a family without responsibilities, she wanted to keep me with her at every moment. As we were in the room together and after I was dressed casually, I welcomed Brilese into my arms to hug her goodbye.

  * * *

  “Welcome! How may I assist you?” the young, light skinned woman behind the glass counter asked as I walked into Norman Hege Jewelers.

  “Yes. Where is the style range for engagement rings located?” I asked across the store. They had just opened the doors when I walked in, so there weren’t any other customers to service.

  “Come over here with me and take a look!” the jeweler motioned for me to join her. I walked up to the other side of the counter, and looked down into the glass where three rows of rings sparkled. Smack in the center of all of the other rings, there was the one that sparked my eye. Its heart shaped rhinestone had to be filled with at least eight small diamond studs.

  “What size is this?” I asked. I knew what size Brilese was but as a man, I had no idea how to look for the size of the thing.

  “An eight,” she replied after looking where I pointed through the glass.

  “Perfect,” I smirked. Twenty-five hundred dollars later off of my Capital One Credit Card and I was about to become an engaged man.

  * * *

  “Have a nice day!” the jeweler, Riya waved goodbye.

  “You too!” I yelled across the store as I left.

  I couldn’t help but to grin from ear to ear as I walked to the curb, and unlocked the Lexus with the key fob I pulled from my jean pocket. I took a seat on the driver’s side, and placed the small plastic bag onto the passenger’s seat. After shutting the door and starting the car, I stared out the windshield as I thought about how I was going to pull off the proposal.

  There wasn’t a way I could wait another day without Brilese noticing the ring, which led to the only option of proposing to her at dinner. I reached over to the passengers seat and took the ring box and receipt from the bag. After placing them both in my jean pocket, I opened the door and walked a few feet away to a trash can. I tossed the bag, and turned around to make my way back toward the vehicle.

  “Hey Bradson,” I jumped back.

  “What the fuck are you doing bitch?” I screamed back at her without giving a damn who heard me yell. I hated embarrassment, but the bitch was going overboard.

  “Please. I don’t want conflict,” she stated, as her chin scrunched like she was going to cry. “My car is dead and if you could give me a ride to my parents, I’ll give you gas money,” she continued and pointed a few cars down.

  “Oh hell no! You better call Mommy and Daddy,” I said before brushing past her. I put my hand on top of the opened car door, and attempted to get in without further conversation.

  “I’ll leave Brilese alone,” she echoed from behind me. Never did I think she would say anything that brought music to my ears. Since I was about to propose, leaving my lady alone sounded more than good… especially since I knew she wanted to fuck her.

  “You better not say shit,” I replied before proceeding onto the seat. I closed the door, and hit the unlock button on the panel.

  “Thank you so much!” she said after she opened the front passenger's side door.

  “Uh. Uh. Get your ass in the back. That’s Brilese’s seat,” I demanded. She looked at me in confusion, but then did as I said after she saw the seriousness in my eyes.

  After I clicked my seatbelt, I turned the Hip Hop station at its maximum as an attempt to make her feel uncomfortable. Even if she didn’t mind the loud bass bumping through the speakers, at least it covered her voice if she were to try and begin a conversation.

  “L-O-V-E dot, dot, dot!” I screamed along the lyrics to the Wale and Bryson Tiller song, Love…(Her fault), as it blared through the speakers. I sped down the country roads toward Brilese’s when I remembered I had to drop dumb ass off.

  “Where’s your parents live?” I asked after I reduced the volume to the stereo. I knew her parents house wasn’t far from Brilese’s from what I’ve been told, but I had no desire to learn the location. She immediately told me to turn right on the next street.

  “What the fuck is this?” I turned my head over my shoulder at her when I noticed we were parked on a dead end street, next to a foreclosed house.

  “Your lucky day,” she whispered, and before I had a chance to react, her lips were on mine. My dick began to pulse when she squeezed it through the top of my jeans.

  12

  Matt

  Bang! Bang! Bang!

  I heard thumps coming from the other side of my front door. I jumped up from my rustic, deer printed cushions which laid on top of my handcrafted log sofa. I walked over to the bay window, and glanced out to see a Lexus sitting in my gravel driveway. I had never seen the vehicle before, but the South Carolina plates could only be one person.

  Bang! Ba-

  “I’m coming Brad!” I yelled as the knocking continued.

  “Yo, I need a huge fa
vor!” Bradson said after I opened the door to him standing on my wooden, wrap around porch.

  “Come in. What’s going on, man? Are you okay?” I asked after I noticed he was damn near sweating bullets.

  “Yeah. I fucked up, bro. Can I use your washer and dryer?” he asked.

  “Of course,” I replied as he exhaled deeply. “As soon as you tell me what’s going on. You don’t look good, man,” I continued. With the type of behavior he was presenting, something had to have gone seriously wrong.

  “Alright,” he agreed, before insisting he’d throw his clothes in the washer and take a bitch bath in my bathroom first.

  Instead of replying directly, I held my arm beside me to motion his plea in acceptance. He had been to my house on numerous occasions, so there was no need for me to direct the way. I shook my head in worry after I bowed my chin to my chest. I didn’t know what he got himself into, but it didn’t look like it was good. I walked back over to my couch, and continued watching the History Channel after I hit the unmute button on my remote. I sighed as I listened to the water run from the sink’s faucet in the bathroom. I hoped he wasn’t in deep shit. He wasn’t the type of person to run into it with the law from what I remember. With it being a while since we hung out together, there was no telling what was going on in his new life.

  * * *

  “You’re dead, dude,” I said after Bradson explained that he fucked Brilese’s ex best friend. There was no way she was going to forgive him. After his confession, he made the statement that hopefully she wouldn’t find out about it. From the sounds of the way it went down and Brilese’s issues with the girl, the intention was for Brilese to find out.

  “I don’t know man,” he replied, as he kept his elbows to his knees while he sat on the other end of my couch. “I hope she’s too afraid. Brilese will fuck her up, and so will I!” he confessed.

  “Trust me. If she’s obsessed with your girlfriend, then your girlfriend is going to find out,” I gave my honest opinion. I knew a little about mental health issues thanks to my first, and last marriage.

  My ex-wife struggled with mental health for the majority of our marriage, and I knew it wasn’t going to end pretty. During our relationship, she was kind and loving. She was beautiful outside, and even more on the inside. Our love was an unbreakable one. Humor was her expertise, and her confidence sang as loud as her pride. With her being the most amazing person I had met in my lifetime, I decided to tie the knot. But only a few months in, things took a turn way out in the left field.

  During the Fall, I would have to stay a little later than usual at work. Every year in the same season, orders were at an extremely high volume since it was close to holiday season. That didn’t change just because I became recently married. Just two months into our marriage and after she moved into my home, the long hours of working came to its time. She only bitched about it at first, but then her curiosity got the best of her.

  Are you cheating? She would ask often, but the more I honestly told her no, the more her suspicions grew. She went from asking everyday, to showing at my jobs parking lot in different vehicles to try and camouflage herself. Without mentioning I was aware of her actions, I allowed her to continue for a few weeks. Two weeks and three days later, I noticed she wasn’t stalking me in person anymore… but it was far from over.

  My ex-wife, Lizelle, hacked into my cell phone at some point while we were asleep at night. She managed to take all of the contact information every one of the contacts saved in my phone. All of the ones she expected to be a possible mistress, she dialed and allowed my past back into my life. She aroused so many problems which were already solved, and old feelings I didn’t wish to relive. I became stressed, depressed, and had sprouts of anger releasing from me which had no reason at all. I dealt with the mental health she caused for three months, until one day my supervisor paid me a visit while I was on the floor working.

  I only saw Bill when it was time for monthly meetings. As a matter of a fact, nobody other than the supervisors working under him ever saw him. The first time everyone laid eyes on him was because my work declined drastically. He met me in the middle of a shift, and asked me to follow him into the break room for a chat. He explained my orders weren’t coming out as fast as he needed them to. As a person with exceptional punctuality, he told me how disappointed he was of me. By the time our personal meeting ended, I knew I had to change things at home before I would be demoted… or maybe even terminated.

  I had much success in the company I was employed with for years before my marriage to Lizelle. There wasn’t an option to choose between the two. One day, I opened up with Bill about the issue at home. I asked if I could have an off day during the week so I can take care of the problem that was draining me from my life. Surprisingly, the big man completely understood. Hell! He told me if I needed two days, it was all mine! But luckily, one was all I needed.

  Just as a normal day, I got up on a Wednesday morning at five. I fixed my coffee, brushed my teeth, and got dressed in my work uniform before kissing Lizelle goodbye as she laid in the bed. Once I was out of the house and in my Dodge truck by six thirty, I made my way toward my workplace just in case Lizelle planned to follow me. After pulling into the employee parking lot ten minutes after seven, I drove to the back of the building.

  I waited over an hour for Lizelle to pull into the parking lot. At almost nine in the morning and no sign of her Dodge Durango in sight, I started Big Red and exited from my workplace. In less than twenty minutes, I was in front of my lawyers office. Since Mr. James was a former coworker of mine from the warehouse, I had his number listed in my contacts. With him being one of the people Lizelle decided to contact, he was aware of what I was up against. I didn’t need to explain too much when I dialed his number the day prior to arriving at his office.

  “All here, Matt,” Mr. James informed me the moment I walked into his office. He knew I had to act fast, in order to refrain from Lizelle trying to convince me otherwise. I scanned through the paperwork so fast that I barely could confirm the information was correct, but I trusted him.

  “Thank you,” I shook my lawyer's hand after he confirmed he’d send the document into the Sheriff's department, and have her served at her mother’s address.

  I exited the glass doors with the first sign of relief grazing my heart. Through all of the love I had for Lizelle, I learned that the love for myself was much greater. After I opened the door to my truck and hopped in, I started the ignition and began part two to the ending journey. As I drove for thirty minutes until I reached home, a slight wind of regret began to scroll my mind but I knew it was too late to stop. I backed my truck down the half of a mile long driveway until the bed laid above the first step to my porch. I opened the door once I was parked, hopped down to the rocks from my seat, and inhaled deeply before entering my home.

  Lizelle was at work, and wouldn’t be getting off until five in the afternoon. Since our marriage was new, the only things to pack were her clothes, and a few pots and pans. I rushed into the kitchen, pulled a couple of trash bags from the box under the sink, and quickly ran into the bedroom we shared to get the process started. Drawer by drawer, I pulled her folded clothes from the handcrafted dresser and threw them into the bag. After double checking each one, I tied the drawstring on the full bag and tossed it to the side.

  After grabbing the other unused trash bag from where I threw it on the bed, I sprinted into the master bathroom. Without double checking to see if all of the bottles were shut tightly, I tossed shampoo, conditioner, lotions and anything else I could find of Lizelle’s. The hair dryer and straightener also got tossed in the same bag. After I was certain to have all of her things from the bathroom, I tied the bag and went back into the bedroom.

  With the bathroom item bag in my hand, I stopped at the bag full of clothes and picked it up with my spare hand. I rushed out of the bedroom until I reached the front door after both of the heavy bags were gripped around my knuckles. I used my right elbow to
open the handle of the screen door, and pushed it open with my shoulder. Without caring to handle the bags fragilely, I tossed one after the other onto the bed of my pickup.

  I ran back into the house, and into the kitchen to grab the pot and pan set Lizelle purchased from Walmart after moving in. Thankfully, all of the items that came in the set were a burnt red color, so it made it easier for me to gather. I pulled the broiler drawer open on the stove, and collected the two pots, a skillet, and a deep saute pan from inside. I placed them on the counter and kicked the broiler shut before opening the cupboard. I lifted the ladle, slotted spoon, spatula, and solid spoon from where they were hanging on the hook attached to the inside of the cabinet door. I placed them inside of the pot that was at the top of the stacked hardware which ranged from largest to smallest.

  Anxiously and without double checking the home, I grabbed the set before running out of the door. I stopped at the end of my truck’s bed, and sat them down before sliding them until they were stopped by the trash bags at the furthest end. After slamming the door bed shut, I turned around on the porch while reaching into the front pocket of my black Dickie work pants to make sure I had the key. I felt the key, and opened the screen door to reach for the handle on the wooden door. I twisted the knob to be sure the door was locked, and pulled it toward me until it was latched onto the piece on the doorway panel.

  The screen door screeched while it closed behind me, as I jumped from the porch without using the steps. I pulled the handle to my truck, and hopped up into the seat once the door was cracked open enough for me to squeeze my body inside. I reached into the cup holder to grab my phone. I pressed the home button to the iPhone and was informed with the time. It was barely eleven in the morning, so I had plenty of time to drop things off at Lizelle’s mother’s house who lived thirty minutes away. I put the phone back in its place in the cup holder, and reached for the key that kept still in the ignition. I peeled out of my driveway leaving a cloud of dust behind, and sped all of the way to my future ex mother-in-laws.