5ive Star Bitch

by Tremayne Johnson

  “Cherish…” his voice was groggy and faint, “Help me…” he said.

  I pulled the check out of my bag. “Are you ready to sign this, because if you’re not, my next offer is ten million… try me,” I looked at him. He was pathetic; lying in his own feces, miserable, scared and in desperate need of assistance.

  “Yes…” his voice was low, barely audible, but I heard him. I just wanted to make him say it again.

  “I can’t hear you, Marlon, speak up!”

  “I said yes, Cherish! Yes, I’ll sign the fucking check. Please take these cuffs off me,” he begged.

  “And you better not try any funny business either,” I reached into my purse and pulled out my twenty two automatic. It was a birthday present from my grandmother. I hadn’t used it since the time Marlon took me to the gun range a few months back, but I knew it worked well, and I was ready to use it.

  I sat Marlon up in the chair and unlocked the handcuffs. I had my gun pointed at his head the entire time. To my surprise, he didn’t fight.

  “Five million dollars, Cherish? What are you going to do with five million dollars?”

  “Don’t worry about it. Just sign the muthafucking check so I can be on my way,” I told him.

  He grabbed the pen and put his John Hancock on the hefty check. I smiled wide. I had done it. I had defeated Marlon the monster and I felt good. I felt relieved. I was also five million dollars richer.

  “So, what now?” he asked.

  I rolled my eyes at his stupid ass question. “Now, I go and spend your money.”

  “What about us?”

  “There is no us, Marlon. You should’ve thought about that when you were fucking that nasty ass bitch!” I grabbed my purse and walked to the front door. “And if you try to stop the check you might as well say goodbye to your career, because I will end you,” I walked out the door.

  ________

  A MONTH LATER

  “Raquel, you ready?” I asked, looking at myself in my full-length mirror. It had been a month since the incident with Marlon and I hadn’t heard a peep from him, but I was cool with that. It didn’t bother me that we no longer spoke, what bothered me was the fact that I still hadn’t found out who the bitch was that he was fucking. But my bank account; my bank account was great.

  I pushed the negative shit out of my thoughts; tonight was ladies night out. It was actually our first ladies night of the New Year and I was too excited. We were getting older and everyone had their own agenda. Raquel had her seven year old daughter and had recently gotten married, and Jillian was in a fulltime relationship, getting ready to tie the knot. Time was limited, but through it all we found a way to get together once in a while to be the bitches that we are; and that’s a Five Star Bitch.

  “Yes honey, I am ready to go,” Raquel started twerking in the mirror.

  “You a fool,” I laughed. “What did Jill say?”

  “She said call when we get close to her house.”

  We jumped in my truck and drove to the Bronx to pick up Jillian. When we got there she was ready to go. She hopped in the backseat and we hit the highway; just me and my girls. I was the driver, Raq was ridin’ shotgun and Jill was in the backseat, making us drinks. Turn down for what!

  “So, Cherish, what happened with that Marlon situation?” Jill asked.

  “Yeah,” Raquel jumped in. “You never really said too much about it. What, you ain’t gon’ put your girls on?”

  I knew the questions were coming. I had stalled long enough. I kept my eyes on the road and turned the music down. “Well, y’all already know what he did, so I can skip that part. But I did his ass dirty…

  I told Jillian and Raquel every detail of what took place in Marlon’s apartment without leaving anything out.

  “Five million dollars, Cherish?” Raq couldn’t believe it.

  “Yup, five million,”

  “I can’t believe you really cut that muthafucka. Was it deep?” Jill asked.

  “Nah, I just grazed him. I only wanted him to know that I wasn’t playing with his ass. He got the point,” I said.

  “I know he was going crazy in there overnight,” Jill laughed. “Good for his ass… dirty dick muthafucka!”

  To some, maybe what I did was wrong, but to me, everything about it felt right. Marlon got what he deserved, and I got a big ass payout. What more could I ask for?

  We pulled up to Greenhouse at One Fifty Four Varick Street and the line was crazy.

  “Oh, hell naw, Cherish, we not waiting on that long ass line are we?” Raquel asked.

  “I have to see who’s at the door. I’m pretty sure we’re good. I know damn near every bouncer that works down here.”

  “I hope y’all got on comfortable shoes, because I might have to bust one of these hoe’s in the head tonight,” Jill said.

  Jillian was a short fuse waiting to be lit. At any moment she could go off, and the outcome usually wasn’t a good one. Add a few drinks to that equation, and all hell was breaking loose.

  “Not tonight, Jill,” Raquel told her. “We don’t need to be fighting the whole damn club.”

  “Ain’t that what happened the last time we went to the club?” I asked.

  “Yup, and it was all her fault!” Raquel pointed to Jill.

  We all laughed.

  “Whatevea bitch! You better tell these hoes to leave me alone,” Jill was dead serious.

  Luckily a parking space right in front of the club opened up and I pulled into it. We got out and maneuvered our way through the crowded sidewalk. When we made it to the entrance, I didn’t notice who the bouncer was until he turned around.

  “Hey Thor,” I said.

  “Cherish, wassup, how many you got?”

  “It’s three of us.”

  Thor raised the rope that held the line back and let us in. Bitches were tight! They saw us pull up, park, cut the line and then get right in. All you heard were whispers, and all you saw was screwed up faces. We just laughed and kept it moving. I slipped Thor a crispy one hundred dollar bill and kissed his cheek.

  “Thanks love, you always take care of me.”

  “No problem, Cherish. If you need anything just let me know,” he said. “Who’s your friend?” he had his eyes on Jill the whole time.

  “Don’t even worry about it,” Jill shut him down quick, “I am not interested; your big ass will not be getting this pussy tonight.”

  “Damn, it’s like that?”

  “Yes, nigga,” she rolled her eyes and spun off. “C’mon y’all…”

  We followed her into the club and went straight to the V.I.P. I told the bottle girl to bring us three bottles of Ace of Spades and gave her a hundred dollar tip.

  “We ballin’ in this bitch tonight! What bitch; what!” The music was loud and Jill was on ten! She was drinking, dancing and having the time of her life. A few guys tried to invade our pussy party, but Jillian was on their ass. “Fuck outta here, nigga, we don’t want your company,” she said.

  “Why you so hostile, beautiful?”

  “Because I wanna be, and you’re not wanted here.”

  “I’m saying; I wanna get to know you.”

  Jill bust out laughing in the dude’s face and he just walked away.

  “Be nice, Jill…” Raq said.

  “Fuck niggas, get money!” she sang, throwing her hands up in the air.

  We partied like rock stars for an hour and a half and I was ready to go home. Jill was still a livewire and Raquel was on her usual cool out shit. The bottle girl came over to our section with three more bottles of Ace.

  “We didn’t order those,” I told her.

  “Compliments of those gentlemen over there,” she pointed to the far end of the V.I.P where four dudes and two females were sitting.

  I tried to make out their faces, but I didn’t recognize any of them, the females either. I tapped Raquel. “You know them, Raq?” she looked and shook her head no.

  “Y’all bitches got more bottles?” Jill stopped dancing an
d sat down next to us.

  “It’s from them,” Raquel pointed.

  “Who’s that?” Jill questioned. “Let’s go and introduce ourselves. They look like they got it.”

  “I’m not going over there, Jill. You don’t know them,” I replied.

  “So what,” she grabbed my arm, I snatched Raquel’s arm and the three of us walked over to meet the guys who sent the bottles.

  The four guys were lounging on the sofa, drinking and talking to each other. All four of them were brown skinned, but there was one super dark chocolate nigga sitting in the middle with a pair of dark shades on. He looked like the boss. He was fine as fuck! They were all dressed in nice fitting suits and shiny shoes. They were sharp, well groomed and very handsome.

  “Who sent the bottles?” Jill asked.

  The chocolate one smiled and I think my pussy tingled. “I did,” he said, standing up. “Simeon Hall,” he extended his arm to shake Jill’s hand, but she just looked at it.

  “Excuse my friend,” I moved her out the way and shook his hand. “Nice to meet you Simeon, I’m Cherish, this is Jill and that’s Raq. Thank you for the bottles, but we were leaving.”

  “Oh shoot, hey Ree-Ree!” Raquel recognized one of the females sitting next to Simeon.

  “I thought that was you, Raquel, wassup?” the girl got up and gave Raquel a hug. “I haven’t saw you in a minute, where you been?”

  Raquel flashed her wedding ring. “Family life,” she said.

  “I hear that.”

  “Why y’all leaving so early?” Simeon asked me.

  “It’s getting late and I gotta get up early in the morning,” I answered.

  He smiled again. Goddamn he was fine!

  “But I brought y’all bottles so we could keep the party going,” he said.

  “We don’t need you to buy us no bottles, thank you… we can buy our own,” Jill told him.

  “Okay lil’ mama, I was just trying to show my appreciation to y’all for being the baddest bitches up in here, but maybe I was wrong…”

  “Oh, please believe, you are not wrong. We are the baddest bitches up in here; we know that… and thank you,” she said.

  “Excuse me, let me introduce y’all to my crew,” he pointed to the far end of the sofa. “That’s Banks, Bucky and this is my little brother Will,” and then he pointed to the two females. “This is my little sister Ree-Ree and that’s my homegirl Stacey.”

  “Nice to meet you ladies,” they said in unison.

  “Don’t she look just like Kay, Simeon?” Ree-Ree said, referring to me.

  Simeon removed his dark shades and looked me up and down. He smirked. “A little bit,” he said.

  “Who’s Kay?” I asked.

  “Kay’s my homegirl, his fiancé,” Ree-Ree said. “I’m telling you, you look just like her. That shit is crazy. She didn’t come out tonight, but here’s a picture of her,” Ree-Ree passed me her phone and I looked at the picture.

  “There is a slight resemblance there,” I said, handing the phone to Jill so she could see.

  “Oh shit! That’s kinda creepy. Y’all do look alike, Cherish.”

  “So, y’all gonna stay and party with us?” Simeon asked.

  I looked at my watch. “I’m sorry, not tonight, maybe some other time. Thanks again for the bottles. I’ll see you around,” I told him. He smiled and I smiled back.

  “Ree-Ree, call me!” Raquel yelled while we were walking out of V.I.P.

  5

  I was in a deep sleep, dreaming about that nigga from The Wire. What’s his name? Oh, Idris Elba, damn that nigga is fine. In the middle of my fantasy, I kept hearing a phone ringing. I was waiting for somebody to pick it up, but it just continued to ring. I popped my eyes open and the ringing got louder. It was my IPhone.

  I pushed the covers of me and reached over to the nightstand. “Hello?”

  “Sis, you still gonna take me shoppin’?”

  “Yes, Dorian, I’ll be there by one,” I told him.

  “Aight… can we go to the Palisade’s, I wanna go to the True store?”

  “Yes, Dorian, where’s grandma?”

  “She’s in the kitchen making some breakfast, when you comin’?”

  “I just told you I’ll be there by one, Dorian. Don’t piss me off today, boy.”

  He laughed. “Okay, sis… chill, I’ll see you when you get here.”

  “Bye, boy…” I hung up.

  My little brother was a pain in the ass, but I loved him with all my heart. It didn’t matter what he did, right or wrong, I stood by his side. If he was wrong, I would definitely tell him about himself, but that never hindered me from being there for him. We had your typical big sister, little brother relationship, but we hadn’t grown up in the same household. Dorian was raised by my grandmother on my father’s side and I was practically raised by wolves in the street.

  Our parents passed away five years ago and since then we’ve been dealing with that loss. They were on vacation in the Middle East, and one day a suicide bomber blew up the museum they were visiting. In total, eight people got killed and two of them were our mother and father. It was a shock, but that’s life, and sometimes God deals you a fucked up hand and you have no choice but to play it to the best of your ability. I questioned the heavens plenty of times about why, but now I understand that it’s all part of the process; it’s life’s cycle. Our time we have between being born and dying is precious. We have to cherish each moment because you never know when your day will arrive. One of the few things I remember my mother telling me was that sacrifice is needed in order to achieve your ultimate goal. She would say those words to me all the time, but I was young and didn’t fully grasp it. It wasn’t until I got older that I understood what she was saying. It was a jewel I would pass on to my little brother.

  I jumped up, showered, got dressed and was on my way to my grandmother’s house in Mount Vernon. She lived on South Columbus Avenue. I pulled up in front of the house, parked and went inside.

  “Wassup, sis,” Dorian came down the steps and gave me a hug.

  “Damn boy, it’s like you get taller every time I see you.”

  “You should come around more often,” he smiled and walked off.

  He was right. Since Marlon and I started dating, our relationship consumed most of my time. Before then I came around at least twice a week; nowadays I hardly showed up, in fact, this was my first visit since the New Year.

  I walked through the foyer, pass the dining room and into the kitchen where my grandmother stood at the sink, washing dishes.

  “That’s supposed to be Dorian’s job, grandma.”

  My voice surprised her and she turned around. “Oh my… don’t you be scaring me like that, Cherish, you know I’m gettin’ old,” she said.

  “Oh please, grandma… you ain’t gettin’ old,” I walked over to her and gave her a hug. I loved my grandmother. She was the rock of our family, the nucleus. When things didn’t seem right, grandma always found a way to make it correct.

  “Well, happy New Year to you too, I ain’t seen ya’ since December, you alright?”

  “Yes, I’m good grandma, happy New Year,” I said.

  “You taking that boy shopping today, ‘cause he’s a pain in my ass. He been up all goddamn morning, playing that loud ass music like he retarded or somethin’.” Grandma turned the water off and dried her hands on her apron. “Cherish,” she looked me right in my eyes. “You better have a talk wit’ that boy. I don’t know what he out there doin’… but he’s doin’ somethin’… and it ain’t right. I jus’ know it ain’t. You hear me?”

  “Yes, grandma. Any food left?”

  “It’s homefries, eggs and bacon over there on that stove. Help yourself, I’m done in here,” she walked out the kitchen.

  I made a plate, sat at the table to eat and Dorian walked in from the backyard.

  “Sis, you ready?” he was anxious.

  “Dorian, don’t you see me eating, have some respect, please. And what
you been doing out there?”

  “Out where? What grandma told you?”

  “She didn’t tell me anything. I asked you a question.”

  “I ain’t doin’ nothin’… what you mean?” he shrugged his shoulders like he didn’t know what I was talking about. I knew he was lying.

  “How’s school?”

  “School is good,” he said.

  “Good like what? What are your grades like?”

  He shrugged his shoulders again. “They descent,”

  “What’s descent,” I asked. “My descent is A’s and B’s.”

  He sucked his teeth. “C’mon sis, that ain’t descent, that’s great. My descent is like… C’s and D’s…”

  “C’s and D’s? Dorian, you better be lying to me.”

  “I’m trying, sis.”

  “You’re not trying hard enough, Dorian. But you want me to take you to the True Religion store and spend thousands? We gotta meet somewhere, where’s your report card?”

  “We didn’t get it yet,” he said.

  “The last one you got, Dorian.”

  “I don’t know where it is, sis,” he shrugged his shoulders.

  “I hope you’re not lying to me, Dorian…”

  “I’m not, sis… for real.”

  “For real nothing… here,” I tossed him my cars keys. “You know, you’re seventeen years old now, Dorian… it’s time to man up and take care of your responsibility, and right now your responsibility is to get in those books, you hear me?”

  “I hear you, sis.”

  “Alright… go start the car,” I told him.

  I know Dorian didn’t like when I asked him a bunch of questions, but I didn’t care. I needed to know what he was into. Even though he hadn’t told me much, he knew I would be on his ass.

  We hit the highway and headed north to the Palisade’s Mall for a fun filled day of shopping. The first store we went in was Armani. I dropped fourteen hundred on a calf skin handbag with crocodile print and another four thousand on three pairs of shoes. I was a shoe fanatic. I loved shoes. I had over five hundred pair and counting. The next store we went to was Sephora. I spent fifteen hundred on my girly needs. As women we know we can never have enough of that. I looked at Dorian and he had the long, sad face.