Heaven and Earth

by J. M. Benjamin

  As they continued with Sonya leading the way, Heaven noticed out of her side peripherals a body approaching to her right. Before she could even turn fully, Mia was on the job.

  “What’s good, playboy?” she asked with a stiff arm.

  Heaven turned to see the Cheshire-cat smile appear on the man’s face.

  “Easy, baby girl, I’m family,” the dressed-to-impress man said, throwing his hands up in the air.

  Heaven couldn’t help but grin to herself for the man’s theatrics.

  “He’s good,” she told Mia.

  Cautiously, Mia removed her hand from the man’s chest, and he sidestepped her and gave Heaven a hug.

  “Damn, it’s like that, cuz? Your security tight than a mu’fucka!” he chimed.

  “You already know. What’s up, Rome?” she returned the hug addressing her cousin Jerome by his nickname.

  “True. Surprised to see you here,” he then said. “I just came over to pay my respects and let you know it’s good seeing you. I’m glad you’re okay. That was some bullshit that went down. Earth was good peoples.” He shook his head.

  “Thanks, cuz,” she replied. The sound of Earth’s name made her feel uneasy inside. She scanned the room for a second time. She could see all eyes still remained on them.

  “You know if you need me, I’m just a phone call away,” Jerome offered, bringing her back.

  “I’m good,” she nodded.

  Jerome threw his hands back up and smiled as he stepped back around Mia. “I don’t want no problems,” he chimed in a joking manner. Mia found no humor in his words.

  “Mia, relax,” Heaven advised.

  “I’m good, boss,” she retorted, breaking her eye match with Heaven’s cousin.

  Heaven shook her head. She knew it was no use; Mia would be on guard for the rest of the evening like a Doberman protecting its master. Everyone’s attention was suddenly directed to the loud scream over the music.

  “Oh my God,” Le Le wailed, rising up from her seat next to Monty at the sight of her old crime partners. She literally flew into Sonya and wrapped her arms around her neck in a tight bear hug.

  “Hey, sis!” Le Le kissed Sonya on the cheek, then drew Shell in and repeated the same actions.

  “I miss y’all bitches,” she admitted.

  “We miss you too,” they both agreed. Time seemed to stop for a moment as the three females stood embraced.

  “Thank y’all for comin’,” Le Le said, then unlocked the vice-grip hold she had around their necks.

  “We wouldn’t have missed it for the world,” Sonya was the first to say.

  “No doubt,” Shell followed up with. “Look who else came out for you,” she then said, but Le Le had already seen her.

  Tears began to build up in Le Le’s eyes at the sight of Heaven. This was the first time she had seen her since her release from the hospital. So many mixed emotions lightning bolted through Le Le’s mind at the moment, but she managed to fight back her tears preventing them from breaking forth and pouring down her face. Le Le realized just how much she had missed the person who had put her on when she was down and out. She wasn’t sure whether she should hug Heaven or not. She didn’t know how well she had recovered and didn’t want to inflict any unnecessary pain on her old boss. Le Le tried to muster up some words to say but was too overwhelmed at the sight of Heaven and couldn’t get them out. As if reading her mind, Heaven leaned in and gave her a firm hug.

  “Happy birthday, Le.” Her words were all it took to break the water dam. Heaven could feel her shirt moisten as Le Le’s body jerked in her embrace.

  “I’m sorry, Heaven,” she cried.

  “You didn’t do anything, baby girl. I’m happy for you,” Heaven spoke into her ear in an understanding tone. “Live your life.”

  Le Le began wiping her face and smiled.

  “Look at me. I’m a hot drunken mess,” she laughed, trying to pull herself back together. It was no secret to anybody in the VIP room that an emotional reunion was taking place. For the most part, everyone knew the history of the parties involved in the scene, including Monty, which is why he remained seated and let the reunion play out on its own.

  “It’s your birthday, miss,” Sonya broke the ice. All the women shared a brief chuckle at Le Le’s expense, everyone but Mia. What had just taken place was before Mia, so she was not privy to the reunion. She had heard about Le Le through Sonya and Shell during their reminiscing times on the block or if they were just hanging out smoking. Aside from that, Le Le meant nothing to her. Le Le caught Mia eyeing her and wondered who the girl was. One thing was for sure; her appearance reminded her of Earth.

  “Hello,” Le Le spoke.

  “Hey, wussup?” Mia offered a short reply.

  Heaven smiled for the first time. “Le, meet Mia. She with us. Mia, this is our homegirl, Le Le,” Heaven introduced them letting it be known to both of them that they were on the same team. Mia extended her hand, but Le Le declined. “Nah, we family,” she said instead, giving Mia a hug. “If you’re on the team, then you must be a thorough-ass ma’fucka,” Le Le said in her ear.

  “Absolutely,” Mia replied, loosening up for the first time since entering the VIP room.

  Just then, the Hispanic hostess Ingrid appeared with two ice buckets containing the four bottles of Rosé. Trailing behind her was a short Hispanic male with a table.

  “Where would you guys like to be placed?” Ingrid asked.

  “Put them in my section, right there,” Le Le pointed over by where her boyfriend and his crew sat.

  “No problem, miss,” the hostess replied.

  Again everyone laughed, this time even Mia.

  “Whatever. ANYway,” Le Le laughed, “I want y’all to meet my boo.”

  Le Le waved them on to follow her as she made her way back over to where she had been sitting.

  She found her seat next to Monty and kissed him on the side of his face. “Boo, this who I’m always talking about,” she announced giddy. “That’s my girl Sonya, Shell, and Mia,” she went down the line, and then paused. “And that’s Heaven,” she introduced last, putting Heaven in a class by herself. “Everybody, this is my fiancé Monty,” she smiled excitedly, extending her right hand, revealing the three-karat platinum band ring on her ring finger.

  “We just got engaged,” she chimed, now grabbing hold of Monty’s face and kissing him on the lips. He returned her kiss and then stood. “Pleasure,” he greeted. One by one, he shook their hands.

  “I heard a lot about you,” he then said as he leaned over to shake Heaven’s hand.

  “I appreciate you holdin’ my lady down while I was away, and my condolences,” he added sincerely. His handshake was firm. Heaven returned his shake in the same manner and nodded as the two of them made direct eye contact for the first time. Heaven noticed how Monty’s eyes possessed a certain type of hardness to them. The same type of hardness she and Earth had possessed in theirs. She knew it was the set of eyes one acquired from doing time in prison. Aside from that, Heaven could see that Monty was not someone to be taken lightly. His face told a story that only ended in death. There was no doubt in Heaven’s mind that he was a cold-blooded killer.

  “These here are my people.” Monty began to introduce, breaking Heaven’s eye contact.

  “This my dude Pee, my manz Self, Shorty, the twins Ray and E, Fats, my dude Whip, and my cousin Murda.”

  Everyone exchanged head nods and what’s ups. The one introduced as Monty’s cousin Murda saluted them as his introductory greeting. The trophy pieces on the eight-crew members’ arms all watched the scene in envy. Though they knew at the end of the night they’d be the lucky ones to bed the ballers they’d been playing close to all night, none of them had received nowhere near the amount of love the four females who stood before them were getting.

  “I see y’all got your drinks already. It’s food back there and more over there. Help yourself and enjoy yourselves,” Monty then said.

  “Thanks, we w
ill,” Heaven replied.

  “I’m going to come over there and have a drink with y’all,” Le Le bellowed.

  “Well, you better hurry up ’cause me and Shell goin’ to the dance floor out there,” Sonya stated.

  “I see ain’t nothin’ change,” Le Le smiled.

  “Monty, can I go over there for a while?” she turned and asked. Heaven happened to be staring in their direction when the question was asked.

  “Sure, baby,” he replied, but his eyes gave a different answer thought Heaven. The two of them made eye contact for the second time. Not wanting to read more into the meeting of their eyes, it was Heaven this time who broke the stare. She tapped Mia on the arm and started making her way over to where their table and bottles awaited.

  The sounds of Drake filled the club as Heaven slid through the crowd of dancers that stood in the way of her and the restroom. As she made her way, she saw a small opening and sidestepped her way to the left. “Damn, pardon me,” she heard a baritone voice bellow just as she felt the ice-cold liquid splash her arm. When she looked up, her eyes met with a caramel-complicated brother with light brown eyes and a well-groomed goatee. He was holding two drinks, now partially empty. “I’m sorry,” she murmured apologetically.

  “Nah, that was my fault. I should’ve been paying attention.” He flashed a smile revealing pearl-white piano keys. Heaven leaned in to go around the six-footer, careful not to bump him again and spill anymore of his drink. She couldn’t help but to take in a whiff of his scent as close as he was. The fragrance was foreign, but the freshness of it was breathtaking. Heaven shook the incident off and made her way to her intended destination. Moments later, she was making her way back through the crowd of partygoers, only to be stopped in her tracks by the familiar baritone voice.

  “Excuse me,” he cupped her elbow slightly.

  Heaven paused.

  “I know this sounds type lame, but have we met before?”

  Heaven couldn’t help but chuckle because his question did sound lame. She expected something more original from someone who looked and smelled the way this brother had.

  “No, I don’t think so,” she replied before attempting to continue her navigation through the club.

  “Jersey Gardens,” he blurted out.

  His words caught her attention. Jersey Gardens Mall in Elizabeth was once like a second home to her. She couldn’t recall any guys trying to push up on her while she was out shopping because she wouldn’t have given them the time of day, and if Earth was with her, it was even worse. But, apparently, the two of them had crossed paths at her favorite shopping spot before. She was curious to know when and how.

  Heaven spun around and moved in closer to the bar where the caramel brother stood. She took a long hard look at him. He definitely fit the description of the type of men she was attracted to . . . tall, nice skin, well groomed, well built, and neatly dressed. He wore a white short-sleeved linen button-up shirt with peach checks, with peach linen pants, and a pair of caramel loafers that matched his skin. He sported a conservative platinum chain with a medium-size iced-out pendant of the letter “C” that hung down to his mid. He rocked what seemed to be a basic stainless steel watch, but Heaven knew it was one of the expensive brands in the Swiss or Cartier family. Despite him being her type, still, his appearance did not register. He stood there grinning as Heaven made her evaluation of him. Seeing that she could not place where they had seen each other before, he decided to jog her memory.

  “The parking lot,” he announced. Still, Heaven stood there clueless.

  “You let me get your parking space,” he continued further. Then, like magic, the day appeared in Heaven’s mind. She smiled, remembering the flirtatious incident. Even then, the caramel brother caught her eye as she pulled out of the parking space and drove off. There was something vaguely familiar about him Heaven now remembered as she watched him through her rearview mirror standing there as she rode off. She hadn’t given the encounter any more thought after that day and hadn’t seen him since until now.

  “Now you remember,” he said reading her facial expression.

  “Yes, I do,” she held her smile. It had been awhile since a man had put a smile on her face the way she knew it was plastered at that moment. Overall, Heaven liked the vibe she was getting from the caramel brother.

  “That’s what’s up,” he matched her smile. “Well, since we never properly or formally introduced ourselves, I’m Calvin.” He extended his hand. “But people call me Chill,” he added. Heaven shook the extended hand.

  “Heaven,” she offered.

  “Wow, that fits too,” he complimented, earning another smile. Very smooth, thought Heaven.

  “Is that your real name?” Chill asked.

  “Kinda, it’s Heavenly.”

  “Now, that’s deep. Whoever named you was on point,” Chill took the compliment a step further. He was instantly attracted to Heaven on what he thought to be their first encounter when he had accidentally spilled one of his drinks on her and their eyes had met. The first thing he noticed was her natural beauty. He didn’t detect any major usage of makeup, and her short cut indicated it was all hers. What really stood out was the fact that she had sex appeal written all over her without being dressed provocatively or over the top. She definitely had style and class about herself, he thought.

  “Thank you,” she replied gracefully. “It was my mother.”

  Chill nodded. “Oh, where’s my manners,” Chill then bellowed. “Would you like a drink?”

  “No, thanks,” Heaven refused thinking about the drinks she had barely touched in the VIP room. “I have something already,” she added not wanting him to think she was flat-out turning him down for some other reason. She was actually enjoying his company.

  “Oh, okay,” he replied understandingly. “Where are you sitting?”

  “I’m back there,” she pointed to the VIP room.

  Chill knew what was taking place in the A-Rod VIP room because it was the reason he had come down to Atlantic City. Although he didn’t really know or deal with the dude Monty for personal reasons, he and his boy Troy had come down to show face and see if they could come up on a nice female or two. He wondered where Heaven fit into the equation. He hoped she wasn’t coupled up or with one of Monty’s goons, because he hated to have to cancel one of their lifelines over a female. He had been learning about how Monty’s crew had been running wild throughout Middlesex and Somerset counties, laying down the muscle and murder game. Chill was hoping they tried to come around his way with nonsense so he could make an example out of them but was glad they hadn’t because an unexpected heavy cash flow began pouring into their block, and everyone knew that war and getting money didn’t mix. “Are you here with someone?” he asked, hoping for the right answer.

  “Someone’s here with me,” Heaven answered.

  The look of disappointment on his face told her she had got him. “My homegirls are with me,” she quickly stated ending the charade.

  “You’re funny,” he smirked, knowing her response was made to make him believe she was with a man. Then, as if on cue, one of her homegirls appeared. It was Mia. “Yo, what’s good? We been waitin’ on you,” Mia spat a little bit too aggressive for Heaven’s taste. Heaven also noticed the visual daggers Mia was shooting at Chill.

  “Who are you talking to like that?” Heaven’s tone returned back to its normal authoritative manner. Chill didn’t want to believe it but wondered if it was too good to be true. He thought Heaven’s homegirl might have been her lover judging by the intruder’s tone and ice grill toward him. It was one thing to beef over a female with a dude, but to beef over a female with another female was against his policy. He maintained his eye contact with the boyish-looking female as he wondered about Heaven’s sexuality. Could she be bisexual? he thought, confident there was some chemistry between him and her prior to the intrusion.

  “I didn’t mean to sound like that,” Mia retracted her words apologetically. Her ego was
somewhat bruised from the way Heaven had just checked her in front of Chill, but she knew she had brought it on herself. She told herself to keep cool when she first spotted Heaven at the bar talking to the stranger, but her youthful mind, overprotective behavior, not to mention the fact that she secretly had a thing for Heaven, all contributed to her emotional outburst that caused her to be reprimanded. Seeing the confused look on Chill’s face, Heaven could just about read his thoughts. “Why y’all waitin’ on me?” she questioned, now agitated by Mia’s interruption.

  “Everyone’s about to sing Happy Birthday to Le Le, and she asked for you,” Mia replied in a more subtle tone. Any other reason and Heaven would have dismissed her. She would have resumed her conversation with Chill, but the fact that Le Le requested her presence, and it was her birthday, was a good enough reason for her to discontinue the conversation she was enjoying. After all, Le Le was still family and actually one of the two reasons why she had chosen to come to the club in the first place. “I’m right behind you,” Heaven nodded. Mia turned around and vanished back into the crowd without as much as a blink of acknowledgment of Chill’s presence. “I have to go,” Heaven explained.

  “I understand.”

  “Nice meeting you, though,” she said.

  “Yeah, definitely a pleasure,” Chill agreed.

  “Take my number before you go,” he quickly added, right before Heaven was about to walk off. He was hoping she would initiate the exchanging of information, but she hadn’t. If the female who had just interrupted their flow was her lover, he was sure she would have let him know, so he was definitely trying to see her or at least speak to her again. There was something about her that made her stand out above all, he thought, and he liked that. Heaven contemplated for a second. She did not come to the club to meet anybody, but she couldn’t deny the vibe between her and Chill. Siding against the norm, she pulled out her BlackBerry.