by Styles, T.
Slade was caught off guard. “Why you say that?”
Farah felt stupid for opening up to him so quickly. Instead of being shy around him, she decided to do the opposite, and now felt as if it were an epic failure. “No reason. Just drop it.”
“A’ight, well, let me go.” He stood up and walked into the living room, with Farah on his heels.
“You sure I can’t get you something to drink before you leave?”
At that exact moment, Lady crawled out of Lesa’s room and into the hallway on all fours. “I hate you, Farah Cotton, and you gonna get everything you deserve, too!” Lady stood herself up using the counter, grabbed a bowl, and put some ice cubes into it. Then she looked at Slade and said, “If I were you, I’d stay the fuck away from her.”
When she ambled back to Lesa’s bedroom and closed the door, he said, “Naw, I’m good. I don’t need nothing to drink.”
“No, really, it’s water.” Slade didn’t feel comforted. “Bottled water.” She didn’t want him to leave, and was trying her hardest to get him to stay. She couldn’t fix her lips to say the words, so she used every other trick in the book. “It’s not open.”
“Bottled water will be cool.”
Farah rushed into the kitchen and handed him the water. But when her finger brushed over his, the bottle dropped out of his hands, and bounced to the floor. She quickly picked it up and said, “I’m sorry, Slade. I must be clumsy today.” She wiped off the bottle and handed it to him. “It was me not you.” She swallowed. “Look ... you sure you don’t wanna go back into my room? So we can have some privacy? And maybe talk?”
When Chloe and Audio came out, she was blown. “Chloe, what do you want now?” Audio was right behind her.
“I wanted to see how everything was rolling. With our plan?”
She rolled her eyes and said, “Good, now go back in your room.”
“Audio, you not over here getting into shit, are you? Slade asked.
Audio rolled his eyes. “I told you we should’ve stayed in the room,” he said to Chloe. “I knew I heard my brother’s rough-ass voice out here. Now he trying to treat me like I’m a fucking kid again.” He looked at Chloe and said, “Can we go back now? Even though I can’t get no pussy, because your sister won’t take her ass to sleep.”
When they were gone, Slade stepped closer to Farah. She loved his scent. It was natural, and not intrusive. Everything about him made her pussy water. “Like I was saying, you wanna go in my room and chill?”
“I got a few minutes. Somebody in the house waiting on my brother’s call, so for now I’ll be fine.”
“One of the brothers I met the other day?”
“No. It’s a long story.”
She could tell he didn’t want to talk about it, so she wouldn’t press the issue. On the way to her room, they bypassed several evil stares from Lesa, Courtney, and Lady, as they sat on her floor and bed. When they made it to her room she closed and locked the door. “You sure everything cool here? Your roommate friends don’t look so good.”
“They’re not my friends and it’s a long story.” She sat on her bed and tried to think of something witty to say; it was no haps. “Thank you for keeping your promise ... with my money. I love when somebody says they’re gonna do something, and do it.” She looked into his eyes. “That shit’s real attractive to me.”
“It wasn’t easy. I’m fucked up out here now, but I’m working on changing my game. You can’t do too much of nothing without cash in your pockets. You know?”
“Yes, and if I can do anything to help, let me know.” She smiled. “Maybe I can help you look for a job or something.”
He laughed. “Naw, sweetheart, I’m never working for anybody.” Then he sat next to her. “So I finally did something you were attracted to?” He searched her eyes. “Because you had me feeling all I could do was wrong when it came to you.”
“Well, you not good with reading women.” She sat closer to him and he moved away. “What is it with you? Every time I go to touch you, you pull away. Yet you get mad at me when I’m quiet.”
“I know ... it’s not you.”
“Don’t lie.” She looked at his eyes but he looked away. “I’m not pretty to you? Is that it? What kind of girls you like? Maybe I can learn to be better.”
“You got to be fucking kidding me. There ain’t shit about you I don’t like.”
“Then what is it?” She moved to touch his leg and he jumped up again. “What am I doing wrong? Am I too rough? Too ugly? Too dumb? Talk to me!”
“No! Why you acting all weird?”
“Then why won’t you connect with me?”
“Look, I came to bring you your money. I gotta go now.”
“Please don’t go, Slade. Don’t leave me. I don’t want you to.” He stopped. His back faced her. “Please don’t leave without telling me what I can do. To make you like me. Or to make you mine.”
“You got a man.” He turned around. “What you want with me? I don’t have shit to offer.” He looked around her room. “Everything in here probably cost more than I made all month.”
“That’s why I want you. You’re not like the rest. You a real nigga. Who gonna do what he gotta to take care of his woman.” She was so close, if he moved an inch she’d be touching him and she wanted it so badly. “What if I’m the right one, and you’re pushing me away?”
“Listen, you don’t know the kind of nigga I am. If you really care about that dude, you would leave me alone. I can seriously hurt him, Farah, if I even thought you were still dealing with him and me at the same time.”
“What if I tell you that I’m ready to let him go? Would he even matter?”
Chapter 49
“That ain’t enough for me. Not anymore.”
—Farah
Farah pulled the warm covers over her head. She wasn’t feeling well and realized she needed to get some medicine. She needed to kill. Her only problem was that her body was so weak, she could barely move out of bed. When Slade left last night, she was disappointed that they still didn’t make a connection. Because of it, she was suffering from a broken heart of the worst kind.
Realizing sleep would not come anytime soon, she decided to jump into the shower. Before getting inside, she allowed the water to run for a while, so the bathroom could be steamy. Normally steam would cause havoc on her hair, but since she was going to wash it anyway, it didn’t matter. Dropping the robe to the floor, she wiped the mirror with her hand, and examined her yellow skin in its reflection. She was both beautiful and sexy, and yet she couldn’t see it. When she felt a heat rush come over her, she moved toward the toilet, and threw up an empty stomach.
When she was done, she stepped into the shower, grabbed her soap and washcloth and formed a thick lather. Wiping the vomit off of her mouth, she scrubbed her neck and upper body. She washed her body several times before realizing her back needed some love too, so she grabbed the long wooden back brush hanging off the showerhead. She lathered the bristles and cleaned her back thoroughly. For some reason she was horny and decided to pleasure herself. Easing down onto the shower floor, she allowed the warm water to spray against her face. She spread her legs, and used the opposite end of the brush to push it into her pussy. Thinking about Slade caused her to feel hornier than she ever did in her entire life.
“Slade,” she moaned. The sloppy sound of the handle entering and exiting her pussy got louder. Her body was shivering and she felt she was about to cum. “Slade.” She continued saying his name again. “Fuck me, Slade. Please.”
“Bitch, Slade not in here!” Chloe moaned.
Farah hopped up and threw the brush down. From behind the blue curtain she said, “Chloe, what the fuck you doing in here?” She remained hidden and waited for her response. She was tired of her morphing abilities.
“Shitting.” Farah could hear large plops hitting the toilet water. “I had to go bad.”
“Bitch, how come you not in your own room?” She wiped soap out of her eyes. �
�I’m tired of not having no fucking privacy around here!”
“I can’t go in my room because Mia shitting in there.”
“Why you ain’t use the guest room?”
“Because Shadow shitting in there.”
Farah felt like screaming on everybody. She wanted privacy, but now she had anything but. To make matters worse, her first orgasm on Slade was thwarted thanks to her baby sister.
“What were you doing playing with your pussy? That’s what I want to know.” She giggled.
Farah was overcome with embarrassment, as she thought about all the people she would probably tell. “You don’t know what the fuck you talking about.” She could smell shit in the air, and was five seconds from slapping Chloe in the face with her wet foot. “Just hurry the fuck up and get out. Damn!”
The toilet flushed and for a moment the water turned cold. “Girl, you so ridiculous. Instead of playing with your old-ass pussy, you need to go see about that nigga.” She washed her hands. “Because if his fuck game anything like Audio’s, you’re in for a treat.”
When Chloe walked out, Farah hopped out of the shower with the water still running. The cold air smacked her body and she closed the door. Easing back into the shower she decided to wash her hair and forget about busting a nut. Turning the top off of her shampoo, she shut her eyes and poured it over her head. For some reason, she felt things crawling over her face. At first they felt like leaves, but they seemed to have feet. Whatever was on her, she was sure it wasn’t shampoo. When she put the bottle down, and opened her eyes, she saw that her body was covered in roaches. One of her greatest fears was taking place, and there was nothing she could do. Although they were just bugs, she couldn’t shake the feeling of impending doom. Her chest hardened and despite the water being hot, she felt chills all over her body.
“What the fuck is that?” she screamed, hopping around. “Oh, my God! Help me!” They were on her arms, lips, hair, and feet. A few of them were even moving rapidly toward her vagina, in an attempt to get away. Unable to fight a phobia that plagued her all her life, she fell into the shower curtain, and it smacked against the floor.
When Farah opened her eyes, she was on the bed. She looked at the white ceilings before looking down. She blinked several times when she saw Chloe, Mia, Shadow, and Audio staring in her direction. She smiled at first, thinking it was all a dream. But when she looked at the bathroom floor, the curtain was still down. Remembering everything, she hopped wildly out of the bed. Everyone moved out of her way to prevent getting hit. Farah shook her head and arms, thinking the bugs were still on her body. She continued to flail like a madwoman, until she got so tired she could only sit down. With her hair all over her head, she breathed heavily and looked at everyone.
“Where is that bitch?” Farah asked, huffing and puffing. She clenched her fists. “I want her now.”
“She not here.” Chloe sat in between Audio’s legs on the floor. “She rolled out after you fell down. Mia was trying to beat the brakes off of that ass, and she got scared. Maybe she won’t come back now.”
“That ain’t enough for me. Not anymore. I gotta do something else to that bitch now. She took shit to another level.” Farah stood up and paced the floor.
“You might not be able to get your chance, sis,” Shadow said, popping pizza-flavored Combos into his mouth. “Earlier, before she left, I saw boxes in her room. I think she really may be leaving this time.”
Farah was thinking of more ways to seek revenge, whether she lived there or not, when all of a sudden she felt a piercing pain inside her stomach. “Ahh!” she yelled, falling to the floor. “Oh, my God! Help me!”
Her siblings jumped up, and surrounded her as worry dressed their faces. “What’s wrong?” Chloe said on the verge of tears.
“Talk to me, Farah!” Shadow yelled.
“Call 911!” she cried. “Call 911!”
Chapter 50
“That bitch is gonna really get it now!”
—Lesa
Lesa was over at Courtney’s house, and they were in the kitchen eating Oreos and milk. Lady stepped out to get some ice cream and was on her way back. Placing roaches in Farah’s shampoo bottle, when she knew she had entomophobia, made her feel guilty at first. Part of her wanted Farah to pay for the martini poison, but the other part didn’t know if she did more damage, considering Farah had porphyria. After all that time, Lesa still hadn’t told her friends about Farah’s condition, because she wasn’t sure if they’d even believe her. She even thought about the night of their party, when the officers took Kirk out yelling that she bit him. It all seemed so weird now. The night they were poisoned, she only told them that she was very dangerous and to be careful. Her warning worked, because the three of them avoided her the entire night. But now, she wondered if the truth wouldn’t be better.
“I still can’t believe that bitch did that shit to us,” Courtney said. “My stomach and ass are still sore to this day.”
“I feel you. My throat sore, too.” Lesa rubbed it. “She went too hard.”
“I don’t know why you don’t just leave, girl. They probably fucking with your shit right now.”
“Naw ... I got locks on the door.” Lesa popped off one side of the cookie, and licked the icing. “Plus I’m leaving, just not right now. I told you I packed.”
“You and I both know they can break that lock if they want to.” She laughed. “Why don’t you move back with your mother? At least until you get your own place.”
“Like I said, I’m not leaving right now, because I’m not gonna give her what she wants.” She sipped some milk. “Plus you know I’m not fucking with my mother right now. What I look like moving with her? She hates me and the feeling is mutual.”
“You know she loves you, Lesa. It ain’t like she gonna be mad at you forever.” Courtney pushed the cookies away, and grabbed a half-cut lemon cake from the refrigerator that she bought from Cakes Plus in Maryland. “Maybe you shouldn’t alter your body anymore. Since that’s what she’s mad about anyway.”
“So you taking her side now?” Lesa threw the naked cookie on her plate. “Because when I first told you why she was mad, you acted like you were on my side. So what changed?”
“Lesa, don’t try to put this shit on me! You the one who left your mother’s house in the middle of the night without letting her know where you were. When she called me what was I supposed to do? Lie? The next thing I know, you living with some chick in Platinum Lofts apartments. You just don’t do people like that you love!”
“She was trying to control me! That’s why I left.”
“Lesa, you almost died from that last plastic surgery you had. She got every right to be angry and, if nothing else, concerned.”
Lesa frowned. “I wish people just do them, and stay the fuck out of my business. Damn!”
Courtney put her hands on her hips and said, “Who the fuck you talking to?”
Lesa stood up and got in her face. “Who answered?”
They were five seconds from getting into a fistfight when Lady came back with the ice cream. She put it on the kitchen counter, and looked at their face-off.“Everything cool?” She took the ice cream out of the brown paper bag, and placed it on the counter. “Because I know y’all not about to fight in here. Please tell me this bitch ain’t cause us to start beefing again. Because if she did, this time I’m not talking to both of y’all bitches for a whole year!”
Lesa looked at Lady and then Courtney. She sat down and said, “Can you give me some ice cream please?” Courtney took a seat, even though her face was still distorted in anger.
“Instead of us fighting each other, we need to find away to get her ass back,” Lady offered. “And we should do it before you leave, Lesa. That shit she pulled could’ve killed us.”
Courtney seemed to be deep in thought before she said, “I got an idea!” She went to the black phone on the wall, and dialed a number. Lesa and Lady waited for whatever she was about to do. “Hey, Juice! This Courtne
y. You got a second?” She paused. “I’ma need Randy’s number from you. It’s very important.”
Lesa snuck home to pack a bag so she could stay over at Courtney’s for the night. When Markee saw them, he told her that Farah was taken away in the ambulance, and that her family followed. Now things were taken too far, and guilt plagued her even more. The only benefit to her revenge scheme was that the house was empty, and she’d be able to grab a few things without confrontation. When she got to her room door, she saw it was open, and a heavy odor permeated the walls.
“Oh, my God, what is that?” Courtney said, holding her nose. “What is that smell?”
Lesa turned the knob and couldn’t believe what she saw inside. Human feces were smeared all over the walls, dresser, and her bed. “That bitch is gonna really get it now!”
Chapter 51
“You need to know that I plan on doing anything I can to make my sister get better.”
—Chloe
Chloe stood in the hospital room with her sister and brother, wondering if Farah was going to make it. She was worried sick, and for the first few hours was virtually inconsolable. “Y’all don’t think we gonna lose her, do you?” Chloe asked. “Because I’ma die if I lose my sister.”
Mia wiped the tears from her own face before she smacked her so hard, her lip cracked and bled. “Bitch, you betta never say no dumb shit like that again.” She pointed in her face. “I’m sick of you talking about people dying around me and shit!”
Chloe accepted that smack like a gangster, and licked the blood from her lips. “I’m sorry. I’m just fucked up by all of this.”
“Why do you think it always hit Farah the hardest? Shadow asked softly. “It’s like all our lives, she had it rougher than us.”
“I don’t know,” Mia responded. “Maybe it’s because she wants it to be gone badder than we do. Whenever you want something so hard, you never get it.”
