As soon as the doors opened, I heard her screaming. I knew that gut-wrenching scream from anywhere. I’ve heard that sound far too many times. I walked into the room with the big #2 on it.
People were everywhere. Everyone had on the same outfit as I did. A man walked up to me and pulled a cap on my head, and then he put gloves on my hands. I looked over to the table. Elle was spread out with her legs very wide open. Four people were looking down inside of her, and two were standing looking at a monitor. Elle’s mom waved me over to the head of the table. Elle was out of it. Her eyes were glossy and hazed over. She looked horrible, and she was sweating all over.
“Elle, honey, he’s here,” Elle looked over at me then and gave me a wide smile, and then she was out. The monitors started going crazy. All of the doctors stared at Elle and then her body started jerking. She looked like she was having a seizure. Elle’s mother Nona and I got pushed out of the way and they started working on her. The three doctors that were looking inside of Elle were now focused on her completely. They didn’t even communicate with each other. One would look inside of her and then stick his hand inside of her, once he was done checking her then another would do the same, and then the other one. After all of them sticking their hands inside of her, I wondered if she would ever be the same down there. One of the doctors had his arm inside of her, all the way up to his elbow. I cringed at the sight; it brought back so many horrible flashes in my head. I gave Elle all of my attention then, trying to push the images away. I felt someone placing their hands into mine, and I turned to look next to me. Nona’s hand was intertwined into mine. I squeezed and pulled her close. Her eyes were open wide like she didn’t want to miss a thing.
“She’s going to be alright,” I told her.
“I know.” Nona said back to me while chewing the inside of her cheek and tapping her foot.
“What about the baby?”
“Not sure.” She had switched cheeks now. She started in on the opposite side just as hard as she did with the other.
“What’s wrong with him?”
“Her little body can’t handle him. Plus, he has a heart condition.”
“But she’s not due yet.” I took a deep breath and rolled my shoulders back. I tried my best to relax but there was no use.
“Stress,” she told me.
I shut my eyes. I hated myself for this. Yes, Elle was cheating on me with that rat bastard, but who could blame her. I have this beast in between my legs; a beast that put her through so much fucking pain. I hate my body and I hate what’s happening to Elle.
“It’s not your fault, Lil Samson. That Albertson boy treats her like shit. Elle knows she messed up with you. Trust me, I’ve heard her crying over you many a night. I wish we could turn back the time, but we can’t. I know you guys have had your difficulties, but this was not called for. She went too far.”
“No, she didn’t. She didn’t have a choice. I couldn’t give her what she needed.”
“See, that’s it…he couldn’t either. I don’t mean to get all personal and stuff, but she told me he was tiny and that she couldn’t feel anything.”
“I’d trade places with him in a heartbeat,” I admitted.
All of the doctors started moving over to the small table. One doctor was still working inside of Elle and there was a nurse standing behind him. He barked out some orders, and the nurse picked up a syringed and pushed it into the IV in Elle’s arm. The monitors started going crazy again, and then they started beating a steady, slow beep. There was a squealing sound and then the crying started. The sound was coming from where the doctors stood, and it was familiar but different at the same time. Two nurses gathered the noise up and took it to the sink. I knew deep down what the sound was, but my brain wouldn’t let me register it. Nona stayed glued to me; she kept looking from Elle and then back at the noise.
“She’ll be fine. She’s just resting now and she needs lots of it,” the doctor told us.
“It’s a boy; and he’s a fighter,” one of the nurses said, turning around with the noise wrapped up in the blue blanket. The blue blanket was quiet as the nurse put the noise into Nona’s hand. Nona goo gooed and ga gaed at the blanket, and then she turned it so I could see it. The noise was a baby. He was pale white; a tiny frail little thing.
“Do you want to hold him, Dad?” The nurse said to me. Something in me stirred then. I took a step back. This wasn’t my baby and it never would be. Elle had made this child with someone else. Elle and I would never have a child, and I may never find someone who can ever handle the beast in my pants. I turned around and started for the door.
“Lil Samson, don’t go,” Nona said.
“I have to. I don’t belong here. If she needs anything, and I mean anything, let me know,” I said and went out the door. I yanked the foamy shit off of me and walked back through the doors. Mom jumped up as soon as she saw me.
“Let’s go,” I said, still peeling the paper jumpsuit off. When I finally made it outside, I yanked the hair net off. We got into the truck and drove out of the hospital parking lot.
“Is she okay?” Mom asked in a whisper.
I nodded.
“And the baby?”
“He’s fine.” The truck was quiet. All I could hear was the humming engine.
“Lil Samson, no one would judge you if you wanted…”
“No,” I interrupted her. She nodded, and then the truck turned quiet again. When I walked in the door at the house, Sheen and Kanoke were sitting on my couch eating sandwiches.
“You assholes don’t have food,” I joked.
“Yeah, but shit…your mom stocks your fridge. You always have good shit over here,” Kanoke said with his mouth crammed full of food. I went to the fridge and grabbed a grape soda and then went back to the couch with the guys. They were watching Ice Road Truckers. We all love this show. They were having a marathon, and we probably could have sat there all day watching it. The house phone rang and I cursed it out loud.
“Hello,” I said a little too loudly.
“You just left; you didn’t even say goodbye,” her voice cracked.
“Oh hey, how are you guys?” I asked.
“Are coming back?”
“Is everything alright?” I asked again. The baby started crying and I knew they were okay.
“Why don’t you come and see if we’re alright?”
“Elle, I can’t.”
When the guys heard her name, the TV went mute in the other room.
“Please? We can start over. I know I messed up, but you know I love you. You have to know that.”
“Elle, don’t do this.”
“Why not? Why can’t I beg you? I don’t have anyone, and no one loves me.”
“Elle, your parents adore you; and now you have one of the best gifts in the world and he will love you unconditionally.”
“You know what I mean,” she cried out. I stood there with the phone to my ear. I listened to her cry a little and then I couldn’t take it anymore.
“Elle, if you need anything, just let me know.”
“I’m telling you I need you. I need you right now.”
The baby started crying again and someone in the background was soothing him.
“Elle, I’m sorry I can’t. Go bond with your baby,” I told her softly.
“Do you hate me?”
“No.”
“Do you want me?”
“Don’t do this.”
“Tell me.”
I couldn’t lie to her. Something happened to me when the nurse thought I was Elle’s baby daddy. I didn’t want to be someone’s baby daddy. If I was going to be someone’s father, that’s exactly what the fuck I was going to be. I would be there for my child every single day. If I had a son, he would be joined to my hip. I wouldn’t be like the father I had. I would be a real father; someone who talked and knew his child. So I couldn’t lie to her; I had to tell her the truth.
“No,” I said.
The phone clicked. I tried
going back to the front room like nothing had just happened, but the TV was off. I sat back down, and the guys were watching me.
“What?” I snapped in the silence.
“Is it over?” Sheen asked.
“It’s been over,” I told him.
“But this time it’s really over; right?” Kanoke asked.
“Man, what the fuck did I just say?”
They both jumped up, collecting their shit.
“Where the hell are you guys going?” I asked.
“The 3 S’s,” Kanoke responded.
“What?” I asked confused.
“Shit, shave, and shower.”
“Why?”
“Because we’re going mother fucking prowling tonight!” Sheen yelled.
“Prowling?”
“Yes, I’ve never known you single, and now it’s time to see the Cat Daddy in action. Meow,” he said, making hissing noises. Kanoke joined in making whipping sounds like cat woman’s whip. They both left.
“You have one hour,” Sheen called out behind him. I got up and stretched. I had no idea what someone would wear to go prowling. I knew the one person who would. I picked up the house phone and made the call.
“Hello.”
“Hey, I’m going out looking for girls with Sheen and Kanoke. What should I wear?” There was nothing but silence. “Hello?” There was no one there. I hung the phone up and was about to redial when the door swung open. She ran past me into my room. She flipped on the light and screamed.
“FINALLY!” She went deep into the narrow closet all the way in the back to the clothes wrapped in plastic.
“Patty, let’s not go too crazy, alright?”’
She came out the closet holding one of the see-through garment bags. She laid it flat on the bed, unzipped it, and pulled out a black, long-sleeve shirt with shiny stuff on the front pockets. She pulled out a pair of jeans with studs embedded on the butt pockets.
“I’m not wearing that shit.”
“This shit is hot and you’ll be hot in it.”
The pants and shirt looked new, pressed and ready to go. Patty had given them to me as a gift a while back. She works at a boutique in Port Angeles and they have all kinds of shit like this in their store. She had given me over a dozen outfits from there that I’ll never wear. Well, not until now.
“I’m going to look stupid,” I told her when I buttoned the last button on the shirt.
“No, you’re not,” she promised. I was about to pull my hair back when she stopped me.
“No, no, no. Wear it down.”
I was about to go and step into my black polo boots when Patty stopped me again.
“No, wear these,” she handed me a pair of black boots.
“Where did these come from?” I asked.
“Umm, Christmas.”
“I wasn’t here for Christmas. I was on a boat in the middle of the damn ocean.”
I went over and looked at the closet. A horn honked outside.
“Time to go,” Patty rushed me out. I gave her a sidelong glance and she pretended not to see me. I would have to take a look at all the shit she put in my closet while I was gone.
When I stepped outside, Sheen and Kanoke started whistling and making cat noises. I shook my head and got in Kanoke’s truck; a red Avalanche with blacked-out rims. Sheen called it the pussy magnet. Kanoke drove toward the ferry.
“Where are we going?” I asked them.
“To the city.” Sheen replied back to me
“Port got plenty of clubs.” Kanoke announced.
“And you’ve never stepped foot in any of them either.” I told Kanoke.
“We’re going to the city to a nice club with nice girls.” Sheen explained.
“What club?” I asked.
“It’s called Agenda.” Sheen told me.
“Club Agenda?” I asked.
“Yeah.”
“What kind of girls are there?” I asked confused by the name of the club.
“Shit, I don’t know, man. Girls!” Sheen said. We drove on the ferry and parked. Sheen laid down in the back seat and said he needed to get a nap in. Kanoke and I got out and walked the ferry.
“You good?” Kanoke asked.
“I’m good,” I told him truthfully.
“You know what? I believe you. I don’t know why, but you have this calmness; I’ve never seen you like this before. Sheen said its freedom; but I think it’s something else.”
“Growth.” I told him.
When we reached the club, the line was wrapped around the damn building. Guys were everywhere. Any girls that walked up got straight in and they didn’t even have to pay. We were in line maybe five minutes when Loon headed toward the front of the line.
“Let’s go.”
We followed him, passing all the guys in line. Loon went straight to the front door and shook the bouncer’s hand. He opened the velvet ropes and let us pass through. Once we got in, we were searched and escorted to a table behind some glass. The lady who showed us to our table opened the curtains. We could see the entire club from our room. I watched the people dancing on the floor. There were so many girls in little bitty dresses.
“What’s your flavor?” Loon asked. I shrugged, and I really thought about it then. I honestly didn’t know what I liked. I’d never really thought about it. I’d noticed girls, but I was all about Elle and other girls didn’t faze me. Elle was the only girl I could see.
“Blonde, brunette, red head?” Loon suggested. I shrugged again.
“Or maybe Hispanic, Latino…Kanoke pointed to a group of girls in a circle. I stared, and then I looked past them.
“No, he’s scoping. Let’s see where he lands,” Sheen said. I stopped at a group of girls; some had on short dresses, some long tight dresses, but there was one girl in a tight pants jumper. Her breasts were small, but her ass was ginormous. I watched her dance with different guys for a long time.
“Wait, wait. When I said flavor I didn’t know you really liked the flavor.”
I frowned, and then I understood what he was saying. The group of girls I was looking at were all black. I studied each and every one of them and they were all beautiful in their very own way. One girl wore a short silver dress and she had hips for days. Another girl wore a long red dress, and it was skin tight; showing every curve of her body. One of the shorter girls was fuller with an amazing rack. Those were the ones who stood out to me, but the one in the super stretchy jumper was the showstopper. Her jumper was all black, and the shirt part had a slit from her neck to naval. I could see her skin through the slits and then that ass needed its very own stage. She knew she looked good too. She had a cockiness about her. All the guys that danced with her grabbed or touched her ass some kind of way. Each and every time this happened, she moved away or pry the guy’s hands from her. She obviously didn’t like to be touched there.
“Let’s go down there,” Kanoke flopped down beside me. I didn’t move a muscle.
“Come on,” Sheen whined. I stood and really paid attention to what section of the room the girls were near. I knew once we got down into that crowd, we wouldn’t be able to find any of them. They were close to a bright pink glowing pole that would be my landmark. We all made our drink orders with the hostess and then headed down to the dance floor. The majority of the club was draped or iced out in silver and platinum colors. The waitresses wore silver skirts with black tees. The hostesses wore silver dresses. Everything looked ice cold and brand new. Kanoke was leading us onto the floor, Sheen was behind him, and I was bringing up the rear. Loon stayed in the back observing as usual.
“Where are they?” Kanoke belted out.
“Keep going,” I yelled, pointing forward. After about four minutes of pushing and shoving through the thick crowd, I saw the glowing pink pole. I saw the girl in the silver dress, and then the red dress came into view. I looked to the left and then the right of them, but I didn’t see her anywhere. We were now close enough to hear them talk.
“I ne
ed another drink,” Perfect Rack said.
“Where did J go?” the girl in the silver dress asked the red dress girl.
“She got a phone call,” Perfect Rack told them.
“Oh God,” they all moaned.
“She’s never going to get over him if she keeps taking his calls,” Silver Dress said.
“I need another dirty martini,” Perfect Rack said.
“Me too…me three,” the other girls chimed in on after the other. A waitress bumped into me and squeezed my ass as she went by. I turned around and looked at her. She was giving me a seductive stare and I gave her a smile. I’d never had a girl grab my ass like that before. Loon pulled her gently toward him, stopping her in her tracks.
“Excuse me, my friends and I are in that room there,” Loon pointed up to our box. We were the third box out of the six up there. “Those ladies right there…close to the pink pole…wearing the silver, red, and well, um…that group over there,” he put both of his hands on his chest and then he raised them showing the girl his impression of big breasts.
“The black chicks,” she said, popping gum nonstop.
“Yeah, the black chicks,” he said with a smile.
“Could you please get them all martinis and tell them we’re extending our invitation to our box?”
I reached into my pocket and pulled out my money clip. I slid a hundred in the waitress’s palm and she gave me a wicked smile.
“So, you’re into black chicks? What a shame,” the edgy, tall, leggy Asian waitress sighed. “Alright, I’ll send them up,” she walked off toward the bar. Loon nodded and then he yelled at the guys to tell them we were going back upstairs. Sheen was dancing with an Asian girl, and Kanoke was scoping someone out. They waved us off, and we went back up to the room. Our drinks were there when we got back.
“Which one?” Loon asked me.
“She wasn’t down there. I heard them talking, and apparently she had a phone call.”
About three minutes later, Loon and Kanoke showed up.
“You get them digits?” Sheen asked me. I shook my head back at him.
“What happened?” Kanoke asked.
The Enclave of Jyme (G Street Chronicles Presents) Page 4
