Never Again, No More 3

by Untamed

  “Papa! Calm down.” I heard my brother, Jose, yelling as Aldris and I ran inside.

  I had to take a step back. Jose had Papa pinned down on the sofa, while my sister, Lucy, and my mama struggled to hold Raul. My mama’s living room looked like hurricane season in the tropics. Furniture was overturned, glass was everywhere, and there were scuff marks and holes in the walls.

  “Lucinda, thank God,” my mama yelled when she saw us.

  Immediately, Aldris ran over and pinned Raul up against the wall.

  “Get your fucking hands off of me,” Raul yelled. “I’ma beat your ass first and then that muthafucka over there,” he screamed, nodding his head toward my papa.

  “Don’t even set yourself up for failure,” Aldris hissed at him.

  “I’m gonna kill his fucking ass. You fucking puto,” my dad screamed.

  “Where are the kids?” I asked frantically.

  “In the back, in the twins’ room,” my mama answered.

  I ran to the back and opened the door. My siblings and Nadia were all back there, crying their eyes out.

  “Mama,” Nadia exclaimed and ran up and hugged me tight. “Daddy and Papa are fighting. Why?”

  I held her tight. “It’s going to be fine. You’re all gonna be fine. I’m going to get you guys away from here for a little bit, okay?” I said to all of them as they nodded. “Stay right here and do not move, none of you,” I ordered and ran back out.

  I grabbed my mama’s van keys. “Lucy!” I yelled out my sister’s name as she ran into the kitchen where I was.

  “Yes, Lu,” she said nervously.

  “Are you okay to drive?” I asked, looking at her intently.

  She nodded and swallowed the lump in her throat. “Yeah, I think . . . I mean . . . yeah.”

  “I need for you to get it together, please,” I said calmly, placing my hands on her shoulders to soothe her.

  She nodded and sighed. “Okay, yes, I’m good.”

  “Good. Take the kids to the park up the road. Make sure you take your cell phone with you. Go now,” I instructed, and she gathered the kids up and left out the back door.

  When I walked back in the living room, Aldris had taken Raul to the laundry room, and my papa was still screaming at Jose to let him get to Raul.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you?” I screamed at my papa. “You coming over here, tearing up Mama’s house and scaring your kids and grandchild. Act like you have some muthafucking sense before I call the police.”

  “Lucinda, that’s not even necessary—” my mama began.

  Confusion etched across my face. “What the hell is wrong with you? What is not necessary is for you to be standing up here trying to downplay this situation. They are in here endangering everyone around and traumatizing the kids.”

  “Don’t talk to your mother like that,” my papa yelled at me.

  “You don’t talk to me like that,” I yelled. “We need to talk outside.” I grabbed him by the arm and yanked him out of the door.

  “What the hell is wrong with you?” I laid into him as soon as we were outside.

  “I was fine until your bastard-ass baby daddy showed up. How dare he show his face around this family with all he’s done to you and me?” my papa exclaimed angrily.

  Wait a minute. Was this the same man who had refused to have my back when it came to Raul when I needed it? The same man who left my mama to fend for eight children while giving the world to Maria and her stepdaughter? The same man who worshipped the water my half-sister, Eva, toddled on and the poopie Pampers Emilio Jr. shitted in, yet treated his eight children by Mama—me, included—like crap? Yep, this was the same man.

  “You are not even concerned about what Raul did to me or Nadia. Nor are you concerned about him being around this family. Don’t even play those damn cards with me. You’re pissed because the joke’s on you. The ho you were hoeing around with on my mama hoed around on you. That’s why she didn’t want you to bother Raul for me. You got made a fool of, and you know what, Dad? You deserve every fucking bit of it. So, spare me the ‘we are family’ routine. I’m allergic to bullshit.”

  “I don’t have to listen to this. You’re always in somebody’s face as if you’re perfect.”

  “I never said I was perfect, but don’t get mad because I’m right. That’s your problem. You can’t take the heat. Every time something gets a little difficult, you run. I may have gotten my temper from you, but I’m so glad I took Mama’s everything else because God only knows what type of situation Nadia would be in with two good-for-nothing parents. You made your bed, Papa. Sleep in it. Don’t come around here scaring my brothers and sisters, and hell will freeze over before I let you traumatize Nadia any further,” I said sternly.

  He just glared at me and paced back and forth. I knew a part of him wanted to argue, but how could he? I was right.

  “Just stay here until I can get Raul away,” I instructed him, and I walked back in the house.

  By this time, Aldris had brought Raul back into the living room. “We’ve been having a nice talk about how he’s going to help your mother pay for the damages, which will not interfere with his child support payments,” Aldris said as my mama and Jose glared at Raul.

  “Yeah, whatever. I promised your mom I’d help pay. I ain’t worried about child support because as soon as I can add on Rosemary and Emilio, I know it’s getting reduced,” Raul said snidely.

  “You are such an asshole. My dad’s wife? How fucking lowdown and nasty are you?” I asked, shaking my head.

  “I had Maria first. When you broke up with me, Maria and I started kicking it. She thought this dope dude was gonna marry her, so she left me for him, and he tossed her to the side. She started dating your dad later after that,” Raul confessed. “I just came by to see my fucking daughter—”

  “Bullshit, Raul!” I yelled, interrupting him.

  “Ay chico, por favor. I have had enough fighting and cussing in my house to last for an eternity. I don’t care what your reason is for coming, Raul, but I need for you to leave,” my mama commanded.

  He shrugged. “Fine.” He straightened his clothes and left.

  Once Raul was gone, my papa came back in the house, and Aldris, Jose, and he began trying to straighten up what they could of the living room. I wanted to help, but I needed to speak to my mama, so I asked her to talk to me in private.

  She walked with me to the kitchen. “Really, can you believe that damn Raul?” she asked as we sat the table, looking at each other.

  “Yes, I can. That’s his M.O.” I eyed her closely. “Okay, spill it, Mama. Why is Papa here?”

  She exhaled nervously. “I’m helping your father get through this. He’s facing a lot on him—”

  I cut her off. “Wait a minute. Are you telling me that Papa is staying . . . here . . . with you?”

  “You make it seem so—”

  “Madre.”

  “Yes,” she confessed with an attitude. “Yes, he is. Your papa needs me, and I’m going to be there for him,” she admitted.

  “By letting him stay here? He has a house. Why isn’t he there? He kicked Maria out,” I questioned my mama with a scowl.

  “He says the house reminds him of Maria, and he can’t handle that right now. He’s just trying to find his way, Lucinda. He needs someone he can trust and depend on. I know you and your siblings don’t like it, and you all refuse to be there for him so right now, I’m all he’s got,” she said with a sense of finality to the discussion.

  It didn’t matter, though, because I couldn’t say a word. Not one single word. I was too shocked and appalled to say anything. I may have loved Aldris, but I wasn’t stupid. If he ever treated me how my papa treated my mama, he had better not ever ask me to help him with nothing. I knew that my mama still loved my papa, but was there that much love in the world? I guess so . . . for her.

  Chapter Fifteen

  LaMeka

  “I can’t believe I have to sit beside you the entire game,” Gavi
n said, shaking his head as we sat down in Philips Arena to watch the Hawks play the Lakers.

  He was fresh to death in his Polo jean shorts, all black Nikes, and his T-shirt and throwback Al Horford jersey. He was just pissed that I had on my mid-thigh jean shorts with my purple-and-gold Lakers Legends jersey, complete with my LA Lakers baseball cap.

  I was actually impressed when Gavin popped up with tickets. That game had been sold out for about a week. Gavin said he had some good friends he was able to get some tickets from at the last minute, which proved that he would go the extra mile to please me. I really did want to go to the game, and I felt like it would be the perfect outing for a first date. The only thing was that I was a die-hard Lakers fan, and he was a die-hard Hawks fan. I probably should have told him that first, but I honestly didn’t know he was a true Hawks fan. He said he thought I was too, since I asked to go to the game, but that was because I wanted to see my Lakers play, since I may never get to California to see them. It was pretty hilarious to me. He’d been fussing about it since he picked me up.

  “Oh, be quiet, Gavin. You just mad because my Lakers are the truth, and by end of the second quarter, they gonna be spankin’ that ass!” I laughed.

  “Whatever, man. If it wasn’t for—”

  I started pretending to rub my ear. “I’m sorry. Were you saying something? I couldn’t understand you. It sounded a lot like wonk-wa-wonk-wonk,” I giggled, interrupting him.

  “I got a question. How can you be from Georgia and be going against your home team? That’s so disloyal. I’m appalled,” he joked.

  “I am loyal to my home team. The Falcons don’t play until football season starts again.”

  He laughed at me then we settled down. After a few minutes, the music came over the arena, signifying they were announcing the starting lineups. It’s just something about hearing that music that comes over the arena. It makes you feel like you can go out there and knock down a couple of 3-pointers yourself. I nearly lost it when I saw my favorite Lakers players strut across the floor. Gavin thought it was hilarious to see me screaming my head off while everyone around us just looked at me foolishly. I didn’t give a good damn. It was my first time going to a Lakers game, and I was going to enjoy every minute of it.

  Gavin and I talked crap to each other the entire first half, and just like I predicted, the Lakers were in the lead at the halftime buzzer. During halftime, we managed to grab some drinks and a couple of T-shirts. Of course, I wanted all Lakers stuff, so Gavin snagged me two T-shirts—one with the Lakers logo, and another one with a picture of the entire team. For good measure, I also agreed to get a Hawks T-shirt. He also got Tony Jr. a Lakers basketball and LaMichael a T-shirt. By the time we got back to our seats, the third quarter was under way, and Gavin was out of more than a hundred bucks between shirts, the ball, and the drinks, but we were having a ball, made better by the Lakers beating the Hawks, 103 to 89!

  “I don’t want to hear a word about your Lakers,” Gavin fumed as we got in his car.

  “Why are you even acting shocked? You already knew what time it was. Boy, please.”

  “Okay. You got that one.” He laughed. “Well, did you have a good time?” he asked, looking over at me.

  “Yes, I did. I want to thank you for a great time,” I answered, beaming from ear to ear.

  “You don’t have to thank me. It was my pleasure, Meka. I really enjoyed myself with you too. Do we have to end it now, though?”

  His request left me intrigued. “No, my mom is cool with keeping the kids for me. What do you have in mind?”

  “I want to go grab a bite to eat and get to know each other a little better.”

  Impressed, I slowly nodded. “We can do that.”

  I felt amazingly comfortable with Gavin. It wasn’t like I hadn’t been approached while I was with or even after Tony, but I wasn’t interested in the men that asked. I felt that I had to take some time getting LaMeka together first. Coming out of such a hellacious relationship with Tony was not an easy feat to overcome. I felt men would be a distraction from my goals in life, and I also needed time to find out what I really needed in a man so that I could ask God to bless me with that.

  I had two boys to look out for, so not only did I need a stand-up gent for myself, but I needed someone who was going to step in and be a father to my boys. It was too many damn pedophiles and shiftless niggas out there just to date any and everybody. Nowadays, you had to do a damn background check, medical history check, credit check, interview, and reference check before you could agree to go on a date. It was sad but true, and if I had to do all of that to ensure my safety and the safety of my boys, then that was what I’d do. Tony had proved that it doesn’t matter how long you’ve known a person; you can still end up not knowing them at all.

  So far, I’d been doing rather well for myself. Just like I said, I made the money for me. I ended up not paying Pooch. It had nothing to do with me dipping and dodging him, and everything to do with him getting locked up. Before I could cash the check good, the feds had brought him and the entire organization down. I wasn’t crazy. I knew that Dreads had something to do with that, but I kept my mouth closed. All I knew was that Trinity ran off with his ass, and that’s all I needed to know.

  Hell, even that was way too much information. The less I knew, the better for me. That bitch, Sonja, or rather Chocolate Flava, had cornered me in the grocery store once, questioning me about Trinity, talking ’bout she was just asking. Yeah, right. Everybody who knew Pooch knew that bitch was riding for him. Hell, it was a known fact that she had wanted to get at Pooch ever since she started stripping at Moet like three years ago. Now, she wanted me to believe she was just “asking” like I didn’t know she was going back and feeding Pooch any piece of information she could find.

  But anyway, the point was I ended up not having to pay for the truck, which was a blessing. My mom and Misha moved in with me, and my mom took care of the monthly expenses so that Misha and I could concentrate on our studies. So, I just continued to deposit Tony Jr.’s monthly disability checks in my interest-bearing checking account and savings account. The only bill I paid was out-of-pocket expenses for health insurance so that Misha and Tony Jr. could get the best care. At any rate, I only had a month left in the transitional house, and I had found a nice four-bedroom, three and a half–bathroom home in a nice middle-class neighborhood. This was the dream of a lifetime; my dream deferred. I was praying it was going to become my reality. I had accrued so much money due to the lump sum disability payment and the investments made from that money that I could pay cash for it, so I made an offer on it and hoped that the owners took it.

  It was the perfect place for us. The absolute first thing I noticed about the home was the back yard. I’d never had a back yard growing up in the hood. It was one of those things I always wanted growing up: you know, a swing set, a treehouse, and maybe even a pool in my back yard. With this yard, I could do all three if I wanted to for my boys. There were so many other pluses to this home, like a bonus room and my master bedroom was to die for. I was going to use the bonus room as a playroom for the boys, and my master bedroom had a little sitting area and my own stand-up shower and Jacuzzi tub. Lastly, there was no more gawd damn Laundromats for me. I not only would have my own washer and dryer, but my own room for it, too. Hell, I was just in love with everything about this home.

  Some people might not see that as being special, but what may seem small to others means the world to someone else, especially someone who has never had it. Like me. So, right now, life was good. Real good. Perhaps Gavin could be the icing to top it all off.

  “Enjoying your food?” Gavin asked.

  “I’m stuffed. It was great.”

  “Yeah, me too,” he said, patting his stomach. “I’m just glad I’m off tomorrow. I just wanna chill out, watch some sports, and listen to some old school. Put on a little Al, a little Teddy. Shit, all the drawls fall,” he joked.

  “You’re so crazy, Gavin. I can’t w
ith you. I swear you’re a black man trapped in a white man’s body,” I howled, throwing my hand over my face at his antics.

  “Well, I guess what’s on the inside of me matters more, since they say the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice.” He winked at me, and instantly, there was a fire between my thighs.

  My blush could not be contained. “Boy, what is your obsession with black women?”

  He looked at me as if I were foolish. “Are you kidding me? I admire your strength. I see black women hold down the kids, the house, and the job as if it ain’t shit. Even the ones that are married hold it down and still make their man feel like a man. Don’t get me wrong, it’s some strong women in every culture. It’s just that I grew up around a lot of black kids coming from single mothers, and ever since I was little, I’ve always admired that. I guess more so because my mom was in the same boat with me. Not to mention, black women are the finest things on this Earth. Every shade of you. That sway in those hips and those round backsides . . . man, please. I don’t mean no disrespect, but I feel sorry for any man who hasn’t had the pleasure of getting with a black woman, especially from the back, if you know what I mean,” he explained in awe.

  “You started out so beautifully and ended up on ass. Yep, there is definitely a black man trapped inside of there,” I joked.

  “Well, I’ve got news for you, Miss LaMeka—that’s any man. Hell, black, white, or Cablanasian, we all like to get ass,” he kidded. “You can’t point out one man who don’t like it. Even gay men like ass. That’s what they do. Hell, they’re probably getting more ass than any straight man.”

  My stomach was cramping up from laughing at him. Gavin was a certified fool. “Something is wrong with you.” Tears rolled out of my eyes at this foolery.

  “It feels good to see you enjoying yourself, though. I’m glad I could make that happen.”