16 Isn't Always Sweet

by Cassandra Carter

  Once Jadian entered the room, his presence demanded her attention, along with everyone else’s. With a single dap, he’d stolen the main rapper’s shine effortlessly. She felt foolish for gasping when Jadian appeared, but she couldn’t help it. He was unlike anyone she had ever seen, and he was certainly more handsome in person. Everything about him looked perfectly put together and coordinated. The latest jeans hung loosely from his phenomenal physique, and his dazzling jewelry was obviously custom-made. His swagger was graceful. He walked as though the world was his, and he seemed larger than life.

  Jordan caught herself staring, and ripped her eyes away from his when he finally shook her hand and greeted her with a friendly hello. She was caught in a whirlwind of emotion, and scolded herself for not speaking. The butterflies in her stomach wouldn’t allow her to say a word, and she couldn’t think of anything except remembering the exact spot on her hand he’d touched her.

  As the director started to shout orders from his chair, Jordan scooted closer to Jadian. She had gotten the same generic reception as all the other girls onstage, but she wanted all of his attention by the end of the day.

  As the countdown began, Jordan looked into the distance to calm down. She tried to keep her hands at her sides instead of in front of her exposed stomach, and cringed under the gaze of an unfamiliar man nearby. She unintentionally made eye contact with him, and his grin made her immediately tell herself not to look at him again.

  The melody to “Fast Life” flooded the room, and several onlookers bobbed their heads with the rhythm. As Jadian and Yung Fatal stormed the camera, Jordan felt inspired to perform. Her pounding heart was almost too much to bear. It was showtime.

  The crew was well into shooting their last set after countless changes in lighting and what felt like endless takes. Jordan nodded off in her chair as she looked on from the sidelines. She wasn’t featured in many shots of the video, but she was tired from dancing, and her feet were sore. She’d long since changed back into her everyday clothes, but she couldn’t tear herself away from Jadian. He hadn’t said anything else to her during the low-budget shoot, but the longer he hung around and mingled, the more it kept her hope alive.

  She sat up in her chair, and her applause blended with the hoots and hollers that followed the wrap-up announcement. They checked off their final location and would now edit for the video’s premiere.

  Jordan didn’t falter as the man who had conveyed his interest before filming closed in on her.

  “You a big fan of Jay’s?” he whispered in her ear from behind, and flashed his diamond-studded grill. For some odd reason, his smooth, raspy voice sent chills down her spine, and her muscles relaxed.

  “Maybe.”

  “Hey, J.B.! J.B.! Wad up?” the mysterious stranger called out to Jadian as a team of assistants surrounded the star.

  “Shit, man, I’m just happy it’s done. I’m tired as hell, but you know I had to stick around and see my man Fatal do his thing.” Jadian ignored the constant nagging of his manager to reply.

  Jadian’s eyes traveled over to Jordan, but it took her a minute to process reality. She was overwhelmed all over again. The opportunity she’d been craving all day was finally staring her in the face.

  “Oh, my bad. Let me introduce you to a friend of mine real quick…” the stranger jumped in, prompting Jordan to speak.

  “Jordan. N-nice job today…You were great,” she stammered.

  “Thanks.” Jadian had an emptiness in his eyes that showed he barely remembered her face, but his tone was friendly all the same. Jordan told herself his reaction wasn’t anything personal. Things must often have been a blur during his hectic days.

  “Jadian! Come on, you were supposed to be at the radio station by eight.” The balding manager was now looming over his shoulder and losing his patience.

  “What time is it?”

  “Eight-thirty.” His face was flushed as he pointed at the pricey Bulgari watch on his wrist.

  “A’ight then, my nigga. Stay up.” Jadian turned his handshake into a pat on the back before being hurried along on business.

  “Hmm…that’s a nice name. Jordan. I like that.” He was cool and collected as he stuffed his hands deep in his crisp Red Monkey jeans.

  “Thank you. I don’t think I caught yours?”

  “Lorenzo.”

  “Okay then, Lorenzo, you really didn’t have to do that.”

  “I’m sorry. I thought I was doing you a favor. I saw you go dumb every time someone even said Jadian’s name from all the way down here.”

  “Uh-uh!” She laughed at his joke and took a special liking to his animated eyes and his lively conversation. He was no Jadian, but he was a hundred times more attractive than any boy at school.

  “So, Jordan, how old are you?”

  “Eighteen.” She had been lying about her age from the start, and in makeup, she easily passed as legal.

  “Damn, girl, you look twenty,” he said with a swift lick of his lips.

  “Really? I don’t get that a lot.”

  “Yeah, you got a real pretty face, and your eyes! What color are they?” He bent his knees to be level with her.

  “Gray.” She batted her eyelashes at the compliment.

  “Now, that’s some shit for you.”

  “And how old are you?” she questioned with sass.

  “Twenty-one. What you got up for tonight?”

  “Uh…nothing…Why?” She was beginning to second-guess her lie. However, her increasing curiosity fueled her deceit.

  “What if I told you I might be able to get you some one-on-one time with Jadian later on tonight?”

  “Don’t play. You can do that?” She was giddy as she grabbed ahold of his forearm.

  “Yeah, that’s my cousin.”

  “For real? Get out of here!”

  “What I got to lie for?”

  “I don’t know…He seems so busy.” She glanced around the studio at the crew disassembling the equipment.

  “Nah, it’s cool. Don’t even worry about all that. He’s having a wrap party at the Grand Hyatt Hotel. I can get you the room number.”

  “Wait! I don’t want him to think I’m a…you know…groupie or nothing.”

  “Naw, naw, it ain’t even like that.” Lorenzo chuckled. “He just asked some of his niggas to invite a few females to fall through and keep us company tonight—like on some straight chill-type shit. You didn’t even hear that from me though. Keep it on the low.”

  “What time do you think the party will be over?”

  “Probably around two, but there’s really no tellin’.”

  “Two?” Her eyes popped at the hour well past her ten o’clock curfew.

  “Is that too late? Am I infringing on your beauty sleep?” he teased.

  “Not at all.” Jordan put her hand on her hip with attitude. She had made her decision, and there was no changing her mind. She knew her parents would wonder where she was and hoped they wouldn’t worry. This was just something she couldn’t pass up. She was making the rules for once, and breaking those put in place by her parents gave her such a feeling of empowerment she never wanted to forget it.

  “You want to roll with me? I’m about to head over there in a minute.” While retrieving his car keys from his pocket, he flaunted a thick stack of hundred-dollar bills to lure her in. He had just pulled more money from his pocket than she’d seen in her lifetime.

  “I don’t know…” She bit her lip and made sure not to gawk at his bankroll. She couldn’t deny that she was fighting temptation. A taste of the glamorous life she saw on TV couldn’t be so bad.

  “Come on. You hungry? We can drive through somewhere. I’ll get you anything you want.”

  “Anything?”

  “Anything.” He draped his arm around her waist, staking his claim as he led her out of the studio and into the darkness of the night.

  Jordan sat with her legs crossed on the couch in the elegant hotel suite. Lorenzo had served her a generous drink, a
nd after downing half of her glass in seconds, her face twisted in reaction to the strong alcohol. She knew she had to fit in, so she swallowed the liquor straight, and her lips puckered as she unknowingly sipped sin from her glass: a mixture of gin and Hennessy.

  Lorenzo cuddled close to her when he took his seat, but Jordan continued to scan her surroundings for any sign of her favorite musician. It had been more than an hour already and he was still nowhere to be seen.

  “I thought you said Jadian was going to be here.” She craned her neck to see over the crowd, which was comprised mostly of women.

  “Yeah, he will later. I just got a text from him and he said he’s getting ready right now,” Lorenzo said. “But until then, why don’t you talk to me? How’d you like your drink?”

  “It was a little strong.” She cleared her throat in an attempt to rid it of the tingling sensation the alcohol left behind.

  “Was it too much for you to handle?”

  “No.”

  “I was about to say, I don’t know what you’re going to do. ’Cause if you can’t handle that, you definitely can’t handle me.”

  “What?” Jordan looked away from the party and at Lorenzo, who now had his hand on her thigh.

  She could feel the pressure for some sort of sexual encounter mounting, and she didn’t like it.

  “What? Did I say something wrong?” He smiled and squeezed her leg softly, slowly beginning to slide his hand north between her legs. The stretch material made it feel as though his hand had direct contact with her skin. She squirmed in her seat, obviously uncomfortable, and in an instant realized his intentions. He’d used his connection to Jadian—whatever it truly was—to lure her into leaving with him. She would have her chance to vie for his attention, but once the socializing was over, she was to spend the night with him.

  Jordan felt as if her back was against the wall, and she began to panic. She was worried she had led him on, and she suddenly wanted to go home. The liquor had dulled her excitement, leaving nothing more than the nagging feeling in the back of her mind that said she was in for one hell of a welcome once she got there.

  She had to find a way to escape. “Uh…no, not at all. But you know what, I’d really love another one of these,” Jordan said coyly, handing Lorenzo her empty glass.

  “Oh, fasho. I’ll be right back.” Lorenzo stood and kept his eyes on Jordan as long as possible while heading to the bar.

  Jordan watched Lorenzo’s back as she slithered off the couch and slipped through the door. As soon as she heard the lock click in place, she took off running down the hall to an elevator. She pressed the button and, lucky for her, the doors opened right away. She rushed inside and turned just in time to see the door to the suite open. Sure enough, Lorenzo poked his head out of the room and peered down the hall, causing her to almost break the Close Door button from pushing it so hard and so fast.

  Leaning against the wall, Jordan tried to catch her breath, but her stomach dropped when the elevator began its descent. She was going down—and fast.

  CHAPTER 5

  “What the hell has gotten into you?” Jordan’s father made the walls rattle with his yelling. His mouth was taut, and the muscles in his face were strained. Several veins bulged from his forehead.

  “I don’t know.” Jordan twiddled her thumbs and kept her eyes lowered to avoid her parents’ heated stares. She glanced up only enough to see that it was almost two o’clock in the morning. Her parents had been grilling her for what felt like hours once she’d finally gotten home after a nauseating thirty-minute taxi ride.

  As her mother and father took turns chastising her, Jordan zoned out, remembering how she’d had to use two weeks’ worth of allowance just to pay the driver. Her buzz was wearing off, her nerves were getting the best of her, and she could feel an intense migraine coming on.

  “Well, you better think of something! Where were you?” Jordan felt like curling up into a ball as her father’s growls seemed to morph into ferocious roars. His words cut through the stale air and seemed to weigh her down as she struggled to hold herself upright on the uncomfortable dining room chair. She searched his manner for any hint of love or forgiveness. At this point, she would have considered herself lucky to walk away with either.

  “You had us worried to death, Jordan!” Her mother’s shrill words greatly contrasted with her father’s booming voice. “Do you have any idea what time it is? We drove all around town looking for you for hours! We were about to call the cops if you didn’t walk through that door in the next hour!” Her mother was livid, her hands clenched at her sides as she circled the table. She looked as though she was going to jump on Jordan at any second.

  “I’m sorry.” Jordan sniffled as warm tears left streaks down her face.

  “You better be sorry! Damn right you’re sorry.” Her mother was on fire with anger, and Jordan flinched when she invaded her personal space. “Where were you? And I know that’s not alcohol I smell. Jordan, so help me!”

  “Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!” Tariq darted into the center of the conflict with a Spider-Man action figure clutched in his tiny hands. He impatiently tugged at his mother’s shirt. As their mother bent over to address him, Jordan exhaled a sigh of relief. She was desperate for at least an intermission.

  “What are you doing up, Tariq? Go back to bed,” David said.

  “But I’m hungry,” Tariq whined.

  “I’ll fix you something to eat in a minute, baby. Just let me talk to your sister, okay?”

  “But, Mommy!”

  Olivia shot her husband a look, seeking advice on what to do. He nodded, and to Tariq’s delight, his mother kindly led him by hand to the kitchen to prepare him a late-night snack.

  Jordan’s eyes found her father’s as soon as her mother rounded the corner. He didn’t even blink, and his arms were folded across his puffed-out chest. She could feel herself shrinking as she swallowed the lump in her throat.

  “Go to your room. You’re grounded. One month. And don’t you think for one minute, Jordan, that we’re going to tolerate this kind of behavior now that you’re sixteen.”

  His words came from behind clenched teeth and were barely audible. Nevertheless, Jordan leaped up the flight of stairs. She even skipped more than one step. He didn’t have to tell her twice.

  Jordan looked over her shoulder as she pressed the receiver to her ear. The ringing tortured her as she crossed her fingers and hoped Adrienne hadn’t turned her cell phone off to charge it overnight. She slid deeper under her covers as muffled noises generated static on the line.

  “Hello?” Adrienne yawned into the phone.

  “Adrienne, wake up,” Jordan whispered.

  “Jordan?”

  “Get up.”

  “Where are you? Your parents called over here looking for you earlier. They sounded mad as hell!”

  “Yeah, I know. I’m home now, though.”

  “Speak up. I can’t hear you.”

  “I said I’m at home. If I hang up on you out of nowhere, don’t be mad at me.”

  “Okay, but where the hell did you go? Did the shoot really take that long? I thought you were supposed to have been back.”

  “Ugh, you don’t even want to know. I don’t even think you’d believe me if I told you.”

  “Now, this sounds worth waking up for in the middle of the night. Hold on, let me grab a Prime.”

  “Those things are going to kill you, I swear.”

  “Uh-huh, tell me about it.” Jordan could hear her friend inhale the tobacco and pictured her tossing her pack on her nightstand and carelessly dropping her lighter on the carpeted floor, as she usually did.

  “I’m grounded for a month. That means no phone, no TV, no MySpace, no nothing.”

  “Damn.”

  “It could’ve been worse.”

  “A lot worse. My mom would’ve put her foot all up in my ass if I got caught doing some shit like that.” She exhaled heavily. “So how’d it go, Ms. Diva?”

  “I don’t k
now…I mean, the set was all right, but the guys in his entourage were getting on my nerves, always trying to grab at somebody, and I was there forever. The whole experience is overrated, if you ask me.”

  “Did you talk to the man, at least?”

  “Not really. All he said was hi, and my dumb ass was so googly-eyed I couldn’t think of anything to say. For as many times as I rehearsed what I’d say to him if I ever met him, my mind went completely blank.”

  “Well, what the hell were you doing?”

  “He was really busy and I didn’t want to interrupt him! I wasn’t about to bother him while he was working.”

  “Yeah right, I would’ve walked right up to his ass and laid some serious game on him. But at least you got to finally meet him up close.”

  “Yeah. We even got to do a scene together.”

  “See! That’s my girl! Man, I know you were losing it.”

  “No, I did good! I held it together.”

  “As long as you didn’t cry or nothing stupid.”

  Jordan opened her window and peered at the moon shining down on the street below. She watched the wind rustling the few trees lining the sidewalk and enjoyed the sweet scent that settled on the earth after a brief shower.

  “So, tell me more,” Adrienne urged. “I want to know everything. As a matter of fact, what exactly took so long? Is it supposed to be that hot? Did they use all kinds of special effects or anything?”

  “It did take a while, but then I went to this after-party trying to get a chance to really sit and talk with Jadian. Not that that worked, though.”

  “Damn groupies.”

  “You’re silly.” She chuckled. “But naw, it was actually this guy Lorenzo’s fault. He was trying to push up on me a little too hard.”

  “Lorenzo?”

  “Yeah. I guess he thought I was going to give him some, but too bad for him. I was sitting there waiting for Jadian to show up, and it just kept getting later and later, so I said forget it and I decided to leave. He was on some sneaky stuff.”

  “Oh! Now that I think about it, wasn’t Jadian on the radio earlier?”