“Welcome to Olive Garden,” greeted the young, brown-haired, Caucasian waiter, who had a mole the size of a Milk Dud on his upper lip.
“I need a table for two, please. My guest will be arriving shortly,” I replied politely.
The waiter graciously led me to a quaint and quiet table in the restaurant. I ordered a Sprite as I waited for Gaby. I was anxious to see her. I had given myself a pep talk before I walked inside the restaurant to keep my cool because, after all, she did stab me in the back.
After about ten minutes, I looked up and saw Gabriela walking in my direction with our waiter. She looked great as she wore some light blue, hip-hugging, ripped skinny jeans with a black spaghetti strapped shirt. Her breasts looked like two big melons. I guessed they were filled with her breast milk. She finished off her outfit with some basic black stilettos. Her long tresses were in candy curls, and she was rocking Cupid’s bow red lipstick. I stood up and greeted her by giving her a hug. She accepted the embrace and we sat down.
“How have you been doing? You look amazing,” I asked sympathetically.
“Thanks. I certainly don’t feel that way, but I’ve been better. Every day is a struggle,” she said being blunt.
“I’m really sorry about you and Neron’s loss. I can’t imagine what you two are going through, but I really wanted to reach out personally, regardless of our differences,” I said grabbing her hand across the table. I could feel her flinch, so I gently squeezed her hand.
“Thanks. Look, um, can we not talk about Mia? I’m dealing with it in my own way. No, offense. Uh, the way things went down with Neron and I wasn’t planned. Shit happens,” she said, pulling back her hand so we could grab our menus.
“I’m sorry,” she said, glancing at me.
“It’s water under the bridge. I didn’t come here to talk about Neron,” I said trying to keep my cool. The nerve of her to give me some half-ass apology.
“So, what’s been going on with you?” asked Gabriela, looking down at her menu and changing the subject.
“Well, um …” my voice trailed off. Before I could respond, the waiter returned. Gabriela and I ordered our favorite – the unlimited soup, salad, and breadsticks. We lived for Olive Garden’s Zuppa Toscana Soup.
“As you were saying,” said Gaby as she pulled apart a piece of a hot and a fresh breadstick.
“My mom had surgery and is a coma,” I said, blowing on my soup and avoiding eye contact.
“Wow, I’m so sorry to hear that. When? How?” Gaby had a thousand questions.
“Cervical cancer, and a few days ago. That’s why I’m here, actually. We flew in to say our goodbyes in case something went wrong with the surgery. She apologized for being a crappy mom after her and my dad divorced. Kennard took it hard seeing our mom laid up in the hospital bed. I’ve been praying that she pulls through and we can revive our relationship,” I said, taking a spoonful of the hot soup into my mouth.
“Wow, I don’t know what to say. I’m really sorry to hear that,” she offered apologetically.
“Thanks. Let’s change the subject. Now this soup,” I said using my spoon to point to my bowl, “is too damn good,” I smirked as I took another spoonful into my mouth.
Gabriela laughed and shook her head, “Yes.” For over an hour, we caught up. Eventually, the awkward tension melted away, and it felt like old times again. As promised, I didn’t bring up Mia, and she didn’t bring up Neron. It was only a matter of time before we addressed the betrayal, but, right now, I wanted to keep it light.
Chapter 18
Gabriela
I was literally faking the funk to sit next to this bitch. It was crazy how you could be best friends with someone, and then hate their guts. She made me feel like she was superior to me. It felt as if she was looking down at me, bragging about her father giving her a job at his prestigious company and how she was living like a princess in Miami.
Even though we didn’t mention Neron, it pissed me off knowing that once we departed, that bitch was going back to his place. I was still a mother! I was still Neron’s first baby mama! Just the thought of him and her fucking literally made me feel sick to my stomach. A few times, I almost threw up the soup we were eating when thoughts of Neron and Kimora invaded my mind.
I rolled my eyes when Kimora offered to walk me to my car as we walked out of the restaurant since it was dark outside. I felt like she was taking pity on me. I was a grown ass woman. I could walk my damn self.
“Thanks for walking me to my car,” I lied.
“No problem, Gaby. Well, it was good seeing you. I’ll see you in a few days for our outing at Skyline, right?”
“Yes, Mami,” I said, pulling out my keys from my knock off Louis Vuitton purse.
Kimora pulled me into her arms and we hugged. During our embrace, I rolled my eyes once more. The bitch really thought shit was cool after she stole my nigga.
After I had sat on the driver’s side of my car, Kimora walked off as I waved to her. I shook my head as I started up my car. This shit was going to be a breeze fucking her over.
*
Over the next few days, Kimora actually thought we were becoming close again. I should receive an Oscar because I was playing the hell out of Kimora and she couldn’t even sense it. She really thought shit was sweet. I played the role of a good friend. I was her shoulder to lean on when she would vent about her mother. Not once did I feel bad for playing with Kimora’s feelings. We still didn’t talk about Neron and I hadn’t seen him since he picked me up from the hospital, but my heart yearned for him. I missed him. I was going to fake the funk with this bitch, Kimora. We were out shopping, and she was just rambling about her life in Miami, and how she was thinking of staying here and moving back home.
“I’m really thinking about moving back here. I could have my dad ship everything to me and I get a new place here,” she mentioned as she pulled a dress from off of a rack and admired it.
“Oh, yeah? Are you and Neron thinking of shacking up?” I asked sarcastically, with my back turned to her, pretending to look at some items that were on sale.
“Uh, well we are,” she answered hesitantly.
I swung my body around so fast that I felt dizzy. “So, y’all are moving in together?” I probed, looking like a crazy maniac.
“Gaby, I really don’t feel comfortable talking to you about him and me,” she said uneasily.
I ignored her as I walked towards the checkout counter with a few items I had chosen to purchase. I felt her eyes stare a hole through me and knew she was watching me. After a few seconds, she stood next to me. We paid for our items and made our way to the food court.
“What’s on your mind, Gaby? We need to address this Neron issue, and we’ve been putting it off for way too long,” said Kimora as she bit down on a slice of pepperoni and cheese pizza.
“What’s to talk about? I’m past all of that,” I lied while eating the toppings off of my pizza.
Kimora eyed me intently and shrugged her shoulders as we ate in silence. It took everything in me not to jump across that table and beat her ass. I never had anyone love and treat me the way Neron did. Yeah, that nigga said he wasn’t in love with me, but he never expressed that to me until Kimora came back into the picture. She was the problem, and I was going to solve that ass.
For the remainder of our outing, I faked the funk as we chatted. This bitch really thought we were cool again. Nah, we would never be good again because the bitch stole my man. If I couldn’t have him, then she wasn’t going to have him either.
“You want to come back to my mom’s house, so we can head to Skyline later?” I offered as I tossed a used napkin onto my pizza tray.
“Yeah, we can do that. Tonight is going to be so much fun,” Kimora beamed, not knowing what I had in store for that ass.
We left the mall. Instead of dropping her home, we drove to my mother’s shack of an apartment. I had a little plan up my sleeve.
Chapter 19
Kimora
&nbs
p; Upon arriving at Gaby’s apartment, I was surprised to see how filthy it was. When she flicked on the light, roaches scattered for cover like a vampire does before the sunrise. I tried to hide the disdain on my face before she noticed how I was feeling. One look at my facial expression and she would have known. I quickly straightened up my face as I stood in the middle of the living room, afraid to sit my ass down on her sofa after I saw two roaches run across the leather and disappear through the cushions.
The furniture looked nasty and dirty with covered in stains, both new and old. The cushions on the sofa were ripped open and the stuffing played peek-a-boo. There were so many stains on the carpet that it made my stomach turn. One stain even resembled blood. I turned up my nose as a roach trailed across the discolored carpet.
“Girl, sit down. A roach ain’t never hurt no damn body, Mami,” said Gaby in her thick Spanish accent. I chuckled but still stood my ass up, placing my shopping bags on the floor.
“Whatever. Ain’t shit changed about me. I was, and still am, afraid of roaches,” I said, looking around and seeing a fat water bug slide into a vent. The hairs on the back of my neck shot up.
I looked around at this unfamiliar place because, growing up, I was never invited to her house. Her mom was funny about people coming over, but Gaby never said why. Judging from the condition of this place, I guessed that this was the reason. Gabriela was probably embarrassed.
Gabriela emerged from the kitchen with two shot glasses of Fireball. I was hesitant to drink the shit because of how her house looked. You know black people aren’t going to eat or drink a damn thing a person offered them if their house was filled with critters. I hated roaches. I was secretly terrified of them, so for me to even be standing in the same spot after seeing how many roaches took cover was a breakthrough for me.
I reluctantly grabbed the shot and quickly down its contents. As we started getting ready, I took two more shots with Gabriela. We were feeling good as hell as I curled the long hair that flowed to the middle of her back. We were giggling like schoolgirls as we cracked jokes and twerked to some Nicki Minaj music. It felt just like old times.
We were finally ready for our outing, looking like royalty as we stood before one another. I was rocking a black Bebe bandage dress with a crisscross neckline. On my pretty toes were black Layney Mesh Sandals. I threw a silver bangle on my right wrist and finished my look off with my signature clear lip-gloss. I was definitely looking good as fuck. My hair was growing, and I had the natural look on lock as my curly thick afro looked amazing.
“You look great, Kimora,” complimented Gaby as she applied some mascara onto her eyelashes in her bathroom mirror.
“Thanks. So do you, boo,” I replied as I eyed her attire.
Gaby was looking real good in a pink Ottoman wrapped Bebe dress, courtesy of me treating her at the mall earlier. On her feet were Daphne cut off booties, another treat from Moi. I was really trying to be there for Gaby and lift her spirits. In some weird way, I did miss my best friend. It was hard trying to get past the betrayal and whatnot, but I was willing to give her a second chance, despite my newfound relationship with Neron, her baby father.
On the way to the club, Gabriela smoked a fat ass Jay while I smoked a Black and Mild. We were all the way turned up! Gaby had a plug on fake identification cards so we definitely had the hookup and would be able to get into the club.
We made it to Skyline in record time and we were seated in our reserved seats. The place was packed. I felt like a mouse trapped in a maze because everywhere I turned there was a sea of people eating, laughing, talking, or dancing. We were having a ball as we ordered and ate chicken wings, fries, and shrimp. We had endless alcoholic drinks as the latest rap music played.
“This shit is tight,” said my tipsy ass as I moved my shoulders along to the beat of Jeremiah’s hit song, “Don’t Tell ‘em.”
Occasionally, I would catch Gabriela just staring at me. I wish I could read her mind. “You okay, girl?” I questioned, scrunching up my forehead as I slurped on a Pina Colada through a straw.
“Yeah, I’m good, Mami,” said Gaby as she dipped her shrimp into some cocktail sauce. “I’m just watching chu drink like a fish. You still got the stamina of a horse, huh?”
“Hell yeah. I’m going to the restroom. I’ll be right back,” I announced, standing up and wobbling my way to the restroom.
Chapter 20
Gabriela
Little did her uppity ass know that I knew the bartender through my mama and had his ass add some special shit into her drinks. I secretly smirked every time she sipped on her beverages, thinking to myself how easy this plan was coming into play. I looked up and saw her returning, so I straightened myself up and bit into a crispy piece of fried fish.
“Woo, girl. I’m fucked…fucked up,” yelled Kimora, trying to talk over the music.
“Are you ready to go?” I asked.
“Yessssss,” she slurred. I grabbed her clutch and tossed out more than enough money to cover our tab. She was too fucked up to even notice. I guess the Roofies were starting to take effect. I had to hurry and get her out of the club before someone suspected something. I grabbed my own clutch, pulled Kimora from off of her stool, and wrapped her arm around the back of my neck.
We safely made it to the parking lot, even though she could barely walk in her heels and almost fell over numerous times. I helped ease her body into the backseat, and she completely blacked out and nodded off. She was way too gone. I smiled. Call it what you want, but I was determined to get my man back. I was determined to have him see that I was better than Kimora.
We pulled up to Neron’s apartment. I could tell he was more than likely sleeping because the lights were off. I turned on the roof light and pulled down my sun visor. I grabbed my makeup bag and touched up my lipstick. I quickly sprayed on some inexpensive perfume and dabbed some extra deodorant under my armpits. I left Kimora’s ass in the car while I hopped out and made my way towards Neron’s front door. I rang the doorbell and patiently waited.
When I saw him open the door shirtless, I was immediately turned on. His chest tattoos, which consisted of skulls on each side of his chest, glimmered as the porch light bounced off his skin.
“What are you doing here? Where is Kimora?” he inquired, looking out into the parking lot.
“That’s why I’m here. She had too much to drink, and she passed out,” I said seductively as I inched closer to him.
I looked down and eyed his package that was visible through his boxers. I felt myself getting wet as my eyes roamed the V shape of his pelvis that was exposed. His chiseled abs looked like a finely carved work of art. Just staring at his body had me imagining placing kisses all over his six pack. He was turning me on and didn’t even know it.
“Can you help me get her into the house?” I asked with lust in my eyes.
“Yeah. Gimme a minute to throw on some clothes,” he said with an attitude.
I didn’t know why he was acting like he wasn’t surprised and happy to see me. He closed the door and, less than sixty seconds later, I quietly turned the knob and walked right inside his house. I started to undress as I made my way towards his bedroom. My dress fell to the floor as I stepped out of the article of clothing. I took off my heels, careful not to make any sudden noise.
I unclasped my bra and pulled down my panties when, suddenly, I got the idea to hide them somewhere. Maybe Kimora might find my thong, causing them to break up and Neron to come back to me. My heart started beating extremely fast when I tiptoed towards his couch, placing my thong behind a throw pillow. Then, I turned back towards his bedroom. I was inches from his bedroom door in nothing but my birthday suit when he emerged.
“Gabriela, mannnnn, what in the hell is wrong with you, gurl?” Neron enquired, running towards my dress to retrieve it and toss it at me.
I threw my dress back on the floor and walked towards him licking my lips.
“I know you miss me, Neron. I miss you. We lost our daughter,
and you just tossed me to the side like I meant nothing to you.” Tears clouded my vision, as Neron stood frozen in place.
“Put your clothes on, Gabriela. I hate that we lost our daughter, I really do, but I’ve moved on with Kimora. Respect that. By the time I get back, you better have your shit on. If Kimora catches you like this, you know it’ll be your ass. Kimora loves you. All she’s been talking about is y’all getting cool again, and you play this card. Fuck you!” Neron brushed passed me quickly as I stood there stuck to the floor. I couldn’t believe that he rejected me once again. Why was he playing so damn hard to get?
I started to redress, but I felt low. I silently cried. Everyone in my life had rejected me. Why should Kimora have Neron if I couldn’t have him? She left. She moved to Miami, left Neron and me, and didn’t even give a damn about her man or her best friend. She and I promised that we would always be best friends, but she left me. She left me when I had so much going on at my house, too. We were supposed to lean on one another and move out of the city together. We made plans to travel and be in each other’s lives through everything, and she broke that promise.
I turned around when I heard Neron enter the house with a sleeping, passed out Kimora in his arms. He delicately placed her on the sofa, right next to the throw pillow that had my thong behind it. A minor grin plastered across my face like The Grinch.
“Get out now,” he simply said as he stood with his arms folded across his chest. He wouldn’t even look at me, but I knew it was only because Kimora was in the room. Had she not been in our presence, I was sure he would have taken me to ecstasy. He was just difficult.
I didn’t say another word as I quietly walked out of his house, smirking about the thong I’d left behind.
Chapter 21
Kimora
Baby Mama From Hell Page 8
