All That and a Bag of Chips

by Darrien Lee

  The men continued to talk while Venice went up into her room to return Jarvis’ page.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey, J. What’s up?”

  “When did you get in?”

  “Late last night. I wanted to come home and see how Daddy was doing.”

  “So how’s he doing?”

  “He seems fine. How are you, Mr. Anderson?”

  “Besides missing you, I’m doing okay. Did Galen come with you?”

  “No, Craig came with me.”

  For a moment, Venice thought Jarvis had hung up because she couldn’t even hear him breathing.

  “I see. Well, I’d better let you get back to Pops. I hadn’t talked to you in a few days, so I was checking in on you.”

  “Jarvis?”

  “Yes?”

  “I miss you.”

  He replied sarcastically, “Yeah, I bet.”

  Venice burst into tears. The situation was beginning to take its toll.

  “Niecy, please don’t cry. You know I can’t stand for you to cry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I know you’re worried about your dad. I’m sorry.”

  Venice continued to sniff and wipe her tears in an attempt to get a hold of herself, but she couldn’t stop them.

  “Niecy, do you hear me? Please stop crying.”

  “I’m-I’m sorry Jarvis. I didn’t mean to do that.”

  “You don’t have to apologize to me. It’s my fault.”

  “I do miss you, Jarvis.”

  “I believe you, baby. Look, go take care of your dad and call me when you get back to school. Okay?”

  “Okay and thanks for calling.”

  “Hey! We are going to make it, Niecy. You’ll see. I love you.”

  “I love you, too.”

  When Venice hung up, she sat there for a moment trying to put herself back together. Hearing Jarvis’ voice always did things to her that no other man had been able to do. Until then. Venice grabbed her purse and headed back downstairs.

  Craig stood up when he saw Venice and her mom.

  “Craig you don’t have to go if you don’t want to. You can stay here and watch the game with Daddy.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, I’m sure. I’ll swing by and pick up Crimson so she can go with me.”

  Mr. Taylor said, “Craig, I’d love the company.”

  Craig agreed since he really did want to see the game. Mrs. Taylor walked Venice out on the porch. “Venice, Craig seems to be a nice young man.”

  “He is, Momma.”

  “Jarvis called me last week.”

  “What did he want?”

  “Nothing. He was just calling to say hello.”

  Venice stared out into the yard for a moment, feeling it coming.

  “Venice, you know that boy’s still in love with you.”

  “I know, Momma. I still love him, too.”

  “So, what’s going on with you and Craig?”

  “Momma, leave it alone. Okay?”

  “Watch your tone with me, girl.”

  “I’m sorry. I don’t feel up to talking about it right now.”

  Her mom accepted her plea and told Venice to be careful as she walked toward Craig’s truck.

  Twenty-Eight

  With Venice out of town, Monique was enjoying having the room to herself once again. Chanelle came down to the room a few times to hide out from her sorors. She hoped they would cross over that weekend. Monique heard a knock at the door. When she opened it, Chanelle rushed in.

  “Girl, hurry up and close the door!”

  “Chill, Chanelle! Those hoes better not come up to my room starting no shit.”

  “You’re crazy, Monique. That’s a trip about that girl having that baby in the room. Have you heard any news?”

  “I heard from a girl on that floor that the baby’s doing fine. It’s a little girl. The chick that had the baby was able to hide the pregnancy. She was a P.E. major and wore sweats all the time. She was pregnant when she got here. She never told anybody that they know of. I would’ve been scared to death.”

  “Me, too. Have you heard from Venice?”

  “She left a message that she arrived safely. I expect her to call today to say how her dad is doing. You know Craig drove her?”

  Chanelle lay on Venice’s bed and said, “For real! I thought he might be too busy.”

  Monique went over to the mirror to smooth her fresh hairstyle. “I guess not. I think Mr. Craig has his nose wide open for Miss Thang. She must’ve really put something on that man and I ain’t talking about voodoo.”

  “Yeah, Monique, but he’s not totally in the driver’s seat. Jarvis still has his name written all over Venice.”

  “I know that’s right! Every time he calls, she’s shook up when she gets off the phone. Sometimes, I catch her crying. I can’t imagine what she’s going through.”

  “Monique, between you and me, Venice and Jarvis used to be married.”

  Monique turned away from the mirror and glared at Chanelle. “Married! What happened? Does Craig know?”

  “Yes, Craig knows. I don’t want to completely tell her business, but I will say it wasn’t their choice to separate. I also know they’re still very much in love. That’s why you see her crying so much. She’s in love with both of them and she’s torn.”

  Monique sat on her bed in bewilderment. “No wonder. Venice must be going through hell.”

  “Don’t say anything to her or anyone else. Be patient with her if she seems short with you.”

  “No problem. Thanks for telling me.”

  Chanelle changed the subject. “I’m so tired of all this pledging crap! Those fools are making me hate their asses. One of them thought she was going to kick my tail the other day, but my line sisters and I stood up to her.”

  Monique asked, “If I decide to pledge, are you going to hook a sista up?”

  “Hell no! I’m going let your tail suffer just like I have.”

  “That’s low down, Chanelle. I ought to open this door and call some of those fools and let them know where you’re hiding out.”

  Chanelle laughed and asked, “You wouldn’t do a sista like that, would you?”

  “Hell yeah!”

  They laughed together and continued to chat a while longer.

  Crimson came running downstairs with her jacket, jumping the last three steps and startling Venice. Venice thought Crimson had fallen and knocked herself senseless.

  Sinclair said, “Child, you’re going to kill yourself one of these days.” Sinclair helped her with her jacket. “You’d better behave yourself. Remember your aunt has a license to spank.”

  Crimson gave Sinclair a hug, promised she would behave, and ran out the door. Sinclair left and told Venice to make sure that she locked up. Before she left, she called Bryan on his cell and told him she had Crimson and that Sinclair was headed back to the shop. Venice set the alarm, locked up the house, and was off to the grocery store.

  Hours later, Venice came back with the items that her mother requested. Since she’d been gone, her mother had cooked pork chops, sweet potatoes, turnip greens, and hot water cornbread. The smell hit her as they walked up on the porch. Crimson ran through the door and jumped in her granddaddy’s lap.

  Mr. Taylor said, “Hey, shorty! Where did you come from?”

  Craig entered the room from the kitchen to continue to watch TV and started tickling Crimson.

  Craig said, “Galen called and said his game will be on TV tonight.”

  Crimson tried to tickle Craig.

  Venice was walking toward the kitchen and said, “I know. Bryan told me. He’s having some friends over to watch the game.”

  Mr. Taylor said, “I know that ain’t nobody but Tate and Gator. It’ll be fun. Those guys are crazy. They played in the NFL with Bryan.”

  Venice returned to the kitchen to have dinner with her Mother.

  “Venice, I’m glad you came to see your daddy. He was so happy to see you. He and Craig seem to get along
fine. I’m really happy that you found someone to spend time with.”

  Venice took in a mouthful of greens. “Thanks, Momma.”

  Mrs. Taylor got up to add some more food to her plate, then boldly said, “But he’s no Jarvis, huh?”

  Venice didn’t even blink or respond. She just continued to eat. They shared the quality time together without interruptions. Craig was nice enough to wait on her father and Crimson while Venice talked with her mother.

  When he came into the kitchen for refills, Mrs. Taylor said, “Craig, make yourself at home. I have plenty of food so eat up.”

  Craig thanked her as he refilled the cups and got the pepper for Venice’s dad. They finished their dinner and dessert.

  Venice and Craig cleaned up the kitchen while Crimson went out back to play on the swing set. Bryan had purchased it so that Crimson would have somewhere to play over her grandparents’ house. It wasn’t long before Mr. Taylor had unzipped his pants and was snoring in his recliner. Venice’s mother decided to take a little nap also. She reclined in her chair and joined in with the snoring. Venice and Craig decided to play a pick up game of basketball. Crimson eventually grew bored and played with them. Venice and Crimson were on the same team but they lost anyway. After Craig’s victory, Venice and Craig sat out in the swing while Crimson swung from the tree limbs. Craig drifted off to sleep.

  Venice went over to play with Crimson and they went down to the creek in back. Venice took Crimson’s shoes and socks off so she could wade in the water. She did the same.

  “So, muskrat, how’s school?”

  “It’s okay, but there’s this nasty little boy who keeps on pulling my hair.”

  Venice kicked some water toward her. “You tell that knuckle-head that if he pulls your hair again, he’s going to start to turn into a donkey.”

  Crimson laughed. “Okay, thanks Auntie. Where’s Craig?”

  “He’s asleep.”

  Crimson said, “We ought to find a frog and put it in his shirt.”

  “Crimson! That wouldn’t be very nice. But… let’s see if we can find one.”

  They giggled together and looked for a frog. Finally, Venice found one and gave it to Crimson. As they went back up to the swing where Craig was sleeping, they found it difficult not to laugh. Craig was really getting his sleep on when Crimson gently laid the frog on his stomach. They stood there snickering as the frog just sat there.

  A few minutes later, the frog began to reposition himself. Craig woke up, saw the frog, jumped up, and hollered. He chased Venice and Crimson around the yard and it wasn’t hard for him to catch them. He caught Crimson first, held her down, and tickled her silly.

  Venice was trying to get her shoes back on when he caught up with her. He sat on her and tickled her until she was almost in tears. Crimson tried to help Venice out by jumping on Craig’s back. Instead, he held them both down.

  They finally screamed, “We give up!”

  He let them up and told Venice, “That was cold blooded, girl. I’ll get you back later.”

  Venice just laughed. “I’m really scared.”

  It was getting close to game time so they went back inside. Venice’s dad was awake, but her mother was still asleep.

  Venice hugged her dad and said, “We’re getting ready to head back over to Bryan’s, daddy. I don’t want to wake Momma up. Tell her that I’ll call her later or see her tomorrow for church. Can I get you anything before we go?”

  Mr. Taylor said, “No, baby. Your Momma and I are just fine. Make sure you call when you get there so I’ll know you made it safely.”

  “We will.”

  He got up to see them out. Crimson was holding her granddaddy around his waist as they walked. “I love you, Granddaddy. Tell Grandmomma I love her, too. Okay?”

  “Okay, shorty. Here’s a dollar for your piggy bank.”

  “Thank you, Granddaddy!”

  Craig thanked Mr. Taylor again for his hospitality, shook hands, and went to buckle Crimson in the truck.

  Venice said, “Daddy, are you sure you’re feeling okay? I can stay over here tonight, if you want me to.”

  “I’m fine. Go on and enjoy yourself. I’ll see you tomorrow, and Venice?”

  “Yes, sir?”

  “I like him. I like him very much.”

  “I love you, Daddy. Tell Momma also.”

  Venice made him go inside the house before they drove off and before they’d made it two streets away, Crimson was sound asleep.

  Craig said, “I had a good time and your mom can really cook. I really miss that mother’s touch. Bernice can cook okay, but it’s not like Momma’s was.”

  “I don’t think any daughter can cook just like her mom. I don’t care how many times I’ve tried; I just can’t get my dressing like my mom’s. I don’t expect anyone to ever figure that one out.”

  Craig laughed and made his way around town until they made it back to Bryan’s neighborhood.

  When they arrived, Craig pulled into the garage as instructed by Bryan. He was home and so was Sinclair. Craig carried the sleeping Crimson into the house because she was too heavy for Venice. Bryan met them in the den and took her upstairs. He told them that his friends should be over shortly and to help themselves to the snacks and drinks.

  Venice said, “I’m going to take a shower and if those fools get here before I get out of the shower, don’t pay them any attention. They don’t have any sense. I’m going to call Daddy and let him know we made it.”

  Craig jokingly asked, “Can I come?”

  “Sure.”

  He laughed, sat down, and started scanning the channels. Bryan came back down and joined him on the sofa and they popped opened their beers.

  Bryan asked, “Where’s Venice?”

  “Taking a shower.”

  Bryan held his beer up and said, “Let the games begin.”

  Venice laid out her clothes, which consisted of a T-shirt and some jeans. She remembered she had forgotten to call Monique. She laid across the bed to call her and as the phone rang, her mind wandered back to the poor girl who had that baby in the dorm. “Hello?”

  Venice said, “Hey, Miss Thang! Do you miss me?”

  “It’s about time your tail called me. Chanelle has been down here asking if I’d heard from you. How’s your Dad?”

  “He’s doing really good. He doesn’t even look like he’s been sick.”

  “Is Craig holding up all right?”

  “He’s doing fine. He’s sitting in the other room with my brother waiting on the game. My niece put a frog on him today. It was hilarious. We’re going to church with my mom in the morning. Tell Chanelle to hang in there. Hopefully she’ll cross tomorrow.”

  “I hope so. I’m tired of her sneaking around. Oh! The girl who had the baby is okay and so is the baby. It was a little girl. They said she’d kept it hidden from her roommate and her parents.”

  Venice said, “That’s so sad. I hope whatever issues she has will get worked out. What else has been going on?”

  “Well, we went to this house party last night and some fool pulled out a gun. You know we started stampeding. I knocked a few people down myself trying to get out.”

  “Who did you go with?”

  “This guy I met the other day.”

  Venice said, “Monique, you’d better quit hooking up with those street thugs. Next thing you know, you’re gonna catch a bullet or something.”

  Monique laughed and said, “You’re a party pooper, Venice, but I hear you. I’ll be more careful. Thanks.”

  Venice yawned and said, “Well, chick, I’m getting ready to hit the showers before Bryan’s buddies get over here to watch the game. You’d better behave yourself.”

  Monique answered, “You know me.”

  “That’s why I said it. Don’t be down there tripping. Do you hear me?”

  “Yes, Momma, and next time, take me home with you.”

  “If you weren’t going home for Thanksgiving, I would have invited you.”

&n
bsp; “I know, girl. Anyway… Next time. I’ll let you go. Tell everyone hello and I’ll see you when you get back.”

  Venice said, “Peace out!!”

  Venice took her shower and changed into her jeans. She could hear that Bryan’s friends had arrived.

  When she entered the room, Gator said, “There’s my girl!”

  He came over and gave her a big hug, picking her up off her feet. Craig was watching out of the corner of his eyes while he took a sip of beer.

  Venice said, “Hey, Gator. You can put me down now.”

  As he put her down, he asked, “Oh, what’s wrong? You’re too big for me to pick up since you’re a college woman now?”

  “I guess so.”

  “I bet if your boy wasn’t sitting over there, you wouldn’t care.”

  Bryan and his other friend, Tate, laughed and looked at Craig.

  Tate also came and gave Venice a hug and kiss. “Nice to see you, Venice.”

  Bryan laughed and said, “Craig, you’re going to let them kiss on your woman like that?”

  Gator asked, “What happened to Jarvis, Venice? Ya’ll was kicking it big time.”

  The room grew silent for a moment before Bryan said, “Damn, Gator!”

  “What? I just asked what happened between them.”

  Craig was cool, but watched Venice squirm in her seat.

  She said, “Chill, Gator.”

  Gator went over to Craig at the bar and said, “I didn’t mean any harm. It’s just that we didn’t expect to ever see Venice with anybody except for Jarvis. I was beginning to think that fool had some type of voodoo spell on her. I should’ve kicked his little ass when I found out he was hitting it. “

  Venice screamed, “Gator!”

  Craig didn’t appreciate Venice’s private life being exposed, but wanted to avoid drama in her brother’s house so he said, “No offense taken. Thanks.”

  Venice put her hands over her face in disgust and listened as they continued to discuss her business in front of Craig.

  Gator said, “Craig, you have to excuse us. We’ve been around Venice since she was Crimson’s age.”