The Score

by Demetrius Sewell

  “Yes—”

  “No. It was an opportunity to further your career. My feelings and our friendship be damned.”

  “What about Seth? He offered me the deal.”

  “You took it. You didn’t care about our friendship or me. You’re the worst person in this situation.”

  “You’re not blaming Seth because you love him. He can do no wrong.”

  “I blame you because you didn’t have to take the deal. He was a total stranger to me. You are the best friend I’ve ever had.”

  Tears streamed down Karla’s face. “You don’t understand. I was thinking about you. I did it for you.”

  “Please Karla, be honest. You did it for yourself.”

  “For you.”

  Tatum wasn’t listening. She walked away.

  “I’m going to sue you. And you know what? I’m going to win and own everything you have.”

  Seth shook his head. He didn’t need this right now. He was exhausted. Everyone was coming at him at the same time and he needed a break. Obviously, he had chosen the wrong course of action. Now, he was trying to make it right.

  “Gabby, I’m sorry if you think I’m treating you wrongly. I’m not trying to. I just need space.”

  “Space?” Gabby softened her tone.

  “Yeah. Listen, I have everyone gunning for my head. I don’t need you trying to take it too. I trust you with everything I have.”

  “Trust?”

  “Just go back to Water and wait.” Until hell freezes over.

  “Really?”

  He couldn’t say anything. It was hard to lie to his trusted employee, so he forced a nod.

  Gabby screamed in excitement, hugged him. “I knew it. I knew it. You love me.”

  “Do you love her?”

  Seth closed his eyes and counted to ten. Maybe after that, he’d wake up from this looming nightmare, but it wouldn’t go away. He could still hear Tatum’s questioning voice.

  When he opened his eyes, he didn’t face her right away. He just waited to be put out of his misery.

  “I will leave you two alone,” Gabby told them. She kissed him before leaving, then bumped Tatum on her way out.

  Disgusted, Seth wiped his mouth.

  Tatum started pacing. “All this time you’ve been sleeping with her?”

  “No.”

  “You’ve been seeing her?” She stopped pacing to stare at him.

  “No. Babe, the last time I had anything to do with her was before we started dating.”

  “What changed your mind?”

  “I haven’t. I love you.”

  “Don’t lie. I heard you. You told her—”

  “Nothing,” he interrupted. “I…”

  “Please Seth, this isn’t something I need to clarify. I heard for myself. You still love her.”

  “I never loved her. It was sex. That’s it.”

  “I can’t fucking believe this. I thought I was a pretty good judge of character, but obviously I’m wrong. Everyone I trust has made a fool of me.”

  “Tatum, nothing has changed between us. I love you.”

  “Don’t,” Tatum warned. “Seth, don’t lie. You said you weren’t going to experiment, but obviously that was a lie.”

  “What are you talking about?” Seth asked, stunned. “I was telling the truth. Your race doesn’t matter to me.”

  “If you weren’t experimenting, then was I just a piece of ass for you to conquer?”

  “What are you talking about?” Then he quickly realized she’d heard more than his conversation with Gabby.

  “How stupid am I? I thought you were going to prove everyone wrong. All those people who told me white men just want to have sex with me. I believed you were actually interested in me.”

  “Babe, you have no idea what you mean to me. From the moment we met, I knew you were the one for me.”

  “How many times have you said that to Gabby?” she asked, sarcastic.

  “Fuck Gabby. I don’t give a shit about her. I love you.”

  “I can’t believe I was this stupid. I trusted you.”

  “Then keep trusting me.”

  “You’d just go back to Gabby because she’s closer to what you really want.”

  “Tatum listen…”

  “I’ve heard all I want to.”

  “Tatum!” he yelled as she raced out of his office.

  Chapter 15

  Tatum was back in a familiar place. It was the only secure place she’d ever known, her therapist’s office. She needed help. She needed to feel like her life was progressing.

  The safe, familiar voice broke the silence. “How do you feel about the deal Seth and Karla made?”

  “I feel betrayed. They only thought about themselves.”

  “Karla wanted the account. What did Seth want?”

  “Me.”

  “How does that make you feel?”

  “I know they were right, all those voices from my past that kept warning me about white men. Everything negative I was ever told is right.”

  Dr. Bev paused. “You repeatedly turned him down. He made a deal with your best friend to convince you to date him and you did.”

  “Yes.” Tatum didn’t want to rehash the situation.

  “He hasn’t broken up with you?”

  “No.”

  “However, they told you white men would date you, have sex with you, and leave you.”

  “Yes.”

  “Did that happen?”

  “Yes!” Tatum nearly screamed.

  “How?”

  Obviously, Dr. Bev wasn’t listening. Her whole sordid story told how he did it. She wondered if she was wasting her time, but she answered, her tone revealing her anger. “He used me, then he threw me away. He wants Gabby now.”

  “Did he break up with you?”

  “Yes.” Tatum knew she was lying, but she had a theory to prove.

  “When?”

  Tatum sighed, wondering if she was speaking another language.

  “When did Seth break up with you?”

  She struggled to remember a situation that could be perceived as Seth breaking up with her. The best she could do was to reiterate the scene she’d witnessed. “When he told Gabby he loved her.”

  “Did he say that?”

  Tatum didn’t like this game they were playing. She needed direction, not an interrogation. She wasn’t going to admit she’d heard the tail-end of the conversation. She’d walked in when Gabby asked the question. She didn’t hear him actually say the words or anything else. However, she knew he did. She knew him too well.

  “Tatum, sometimes when we feel betrayed, we want to cut ourselves off from the possibilities of truth.”

  “What truth?” she challenged. “The truth is that Seth is a racist. He only wants me in his bed.”

  “Our time is almost up, but I want you to do some homework. I want you to confront Karla and Seth.”

  “Am I ready for that?” Tatum didn’t believe so, and her tone was complete incredulity at the assignment. How could she confront either one of them? Especially Seth.

  Dr. Bev nodded. “You are very ready.”

  Seth walked into his house looking for some old comfort. He needed some time to rejuvenate. He had to plan his next move. Karla. He hadn’t suspected she’d be such a wild card. He’d expected her to confront him by now. While he’d fully expected her to tell Tatum about their deal, he was positive he’d done enough damage to their friendship to make anything she said worthless.

  Tatum. He wished he could do this whole thing all over again, from the moment he met her up to the scene that had sent things spiraling out of control. For one thing, he would have kicked Gabby out of his office. He hadn’t expected her visit and had been caught off guard. He also wondered what had made Tatum come by.

  There was a knock on the front door. He was surprised, yet again, and pulled from his daydream. He wasn’t expecting anyone. There was a possibility Gabby was coming to annoy him. Or it could be Karla. If it wa
s either one of them, he was ready.

  Seth opened the door, not recognizing the female stranger in front of him. He considered someone had hired her to kill him by her expressionless look. The woman was dressed in a suit with her hands behind her back.

  “Are you Seth Carter?”

  He thought about denying it. He didn’t trust the woman. However, he confirmed his identity, almost as a reflex.

  The woman whipped out an envelope. “You’ve been served.”

  “I’ve been…wait.” He tried to stop the woman from leaving, but she turned abruptly and kept walking.

  “That bitch.” Gabby had sued him anyway. He couldn’t believe it. He’d tried everything to make her get off his back, but nothing had worked.

  Seth opened the envelope, expecting a harassment suit, but he couldn’t believe what he saw instead. Ralph was suing him for discrimination.

  Tatum knocked on the door. She had a lot to say and knew where she was going to begin. Karla’s apartment was on the west side of Cincinnati, and she rarely ventured on that side of the city. She didn’t like the holier-than-thou attitudes everyone who lived there seemed to carry around like a loaded gun. She didn’t understand how those residents always thought they were the only citizens who worked hard for what they had. It made her ill.

  Waiting was making her ill right now as well. She almost thought Karla wasn’t at home and thought about waiting as long as it took. She was prepared to camp out in front Karla’s apartment door until she returned.

  James opened the door. “Hey, I thought I heard someone knocking.”

  Tatum forced a smile. She walked inside and waited for her moment to begin. Karla rushed out of the kitchen, Tatum guessed, to catch up with her boyfriend and was wiping off her hands with a towel when she saw Tatum. Her happy expression disappeared.

  “Honey, I’ll put the money in your account tonight,” he said as he looked from Karla to Tatum, “unless you need it now.”

  “I don’t need it,” Karla stuttered. “Thanks for paying it for me.”

  He nodded. The friends waited until the door shut before either of them spoke. Tatum went first.

  “Did I interrupt something?”

  “He was just paying a bill for me. I’m broke for another week. You know me. I spend my paycheck before I get it.”

  The comment hit a sore spot within Tatum. It was at the heart of her reason for being here.

  Forget being polite. Do your homework.

  She folded her arms across her chest and began her assault. “This won’t take long. I just want some answers.”

  “Go ahead,” Karla told her, then remembered her manners. “Do you want to sit down?”

  “No.” Frustration seeped from Tatum’s voice. “I said this won’t take long.”

  Karla frowned.

  “I just wanted to know what you were going to do if Seth hadn’t offered you the deal, me for the account.”

  “I know I shouldn’t have listened to that bastard Seth—”

  “Don’t bring him into this conversation. I want to know what you were going to do.”

  Karla didn’t answer for a long time. She shifted her stance and looked everywhere but at Tatum, searching for some new lie, Tatum figured.

  “I don’t know,” she answered.

  “Did you ever think about my feelings?”

  “Of course. I saw you wasting your life away and wanted to help.”

  “There are blind dates for that,” Tatum told her friend sarcastically. “Do you feel betrayed you didn’t get the account?”

  Karla looked down. “Yes, that son-of-a-bitch deceived me.”

  “Now you know how I feel. Only, he wasn’t your friend.”

  “It wasn’t my fault. It was his. I wanted what was best for you.”

  Tatum laughed, but she wasn’t amused. “You wanted what was best for me? This was the same man you warned me not to get involved with. How was this looking out for me?”

  “Like I told you before, I was basing my judgment on rumors then, and of course I changed my mind after I met him.”

  “Was this change of heart before or after he offered you the deal of a lifetime?”

  Karla didn’t say anything, but Tatum had her answer. The silence indicated Karla had made up her mind about Seth’s qualities only after Tatum was made part of the deal. Tatum was pissed.

  “You don’t understand,” Karla finally said. “I thought we could both have what we wanted. You’d have a life. I’d have the account.”

  “Do you hear yourself? Do you understand what you’re saying?”

  “Girl, of course I do. I know that, for good or ill, you had to know that what you feared wasn’t true. I’ve never been with a white guy, but I know they aren’t blue-eyed devils.”

  Karla shook her head, and Tatum shook with anger. “Who are you to tell me how to get over my fears?”

  “I’m your friend.”

  “Correct that. You used to be my friend.”

  “Come on, Tatum. Think about how long we’ve been friends.”

  “That’s why I don’t want anything to do with you. You’re like all the rest of them.”

  “I’m nowhere near—”

  “You don’t see it. Everyone thought they knew what was good for me. You did the same thing.”

  “You would rather be old, gray, and alone than do what you really wanted?”

  “It was my choice!” Tatum screamed. “It is my decision, not yours. If I regretted never following my heart on my deathbed, it would be me dying with regret, not you.”

  “I know that, but—”

  “Most of us have to work twice as hard to get where we’re going because we’re black. You have to do it because you’re the worst ad exec there is.”

  Tatum left, slamming door behind her. Damn, that felt good.

  Gabby finally got him on the phone. She’d been calling him for the last week. At first, she thought he was busy, and then she thought he was avoiding her.

  “Jay Light, Inquirer.”

  “This is Gabby. I have some news for you.”

  Jay didn’t respond.

  “I’m back with Seth.”

  Several seconds of silence passed before he said anything. “How did it happen?”

  “Seth told me he’d needed space. He told me he still loved me.”

  “What about,” he paused, “Ms. Fox?”

  “Who the hell cares? He broke up with her. Now we’re back together.”

  “That’s it? He just decided he wanted you back?”

  Gabby giggled, happy. “Yep, so you can print it in the Sunday edition of the Entertainment Light.” More silence followed. “And I’ll let you know when I become Mrs. Seth Cater.”

  The phone rang for the seventh time that night. Tatum was convinced that, if she had one more phone call, she would go insane. Each time she looked at the caller ID, she saw the same name: Seth Carter. She remembered her homework. She’d completed half of it. Her therapist would be proud. Now she’d have to talk to Seth, but she wasn’t ready.

  The phone stopped ringing. She sighed with relief.

  Sweetening her green tea, Tatum walked to her bedroom. She’d changed into her nightclothes and was ready to cry herself to sleep. She was alone. She had no lover and no friend. All she wanted to do was wallow in her own pain.

  The phone rang again. She nearly dropped her mug. Tatum looked at her bedroom telephone and was relieved when she saw another number. It didn’t have a name, but the person was calling from Cincinnati, Ohio. Tatum guessed it was probably someone calling the wrong number and answered it.

  “Listen to me, I love you and I want to work through everything. I have no idea what went wrong, but I’ll fix it. I promise.”

  Tatum’s breath caught in her throat. She couldn’t speak. She had no idea what to say. However, this was the perfect opportunity to confront him.

  “I know you’re there, Tatum. Say something. Even if you’re going to curse me out.”

  Tel
l him. Tell him how you feel—that you hate him and never want to see him again. Say it.

  She worked herself into an emotional frenzy.

  Say it.

  Tatum opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out. She could do this another time. Maybe when she was face-to-face with Seth, she’d be ready. She had to see him to do this, to complete her homework. She had stood in front of Karla, delivered her message of rage face-to-face. It was better than ending their friendship on the phone.

  Tatum slammed the phone down on the nightstand.

  “Shit!” She realized she had to push the “end” button to hang up.

  “So how was your homework?”

  “It was great.” Tatum’s voice was a little too high-pitched, even for her. She hoped Dr. Bev didn’t notice.

  “Did you think the homework was hard?”

  She could lie or tell the truth. But how could someone lie about doing only half of an assignment?

  “Tatum?”

  She was paying too much money to lie. “I did half.”

  “So you talked to Seth and not Karla.”

  Tatum tried to act cheerful when she answered. “I went to Karla’s apartment. We had a…good conversation. I ended our friendship on a good note.”

  Dr. Bev wrote something on the notepad. “Was Seth out of town?”

  “No. He called.”

  “And you didn’t tell him what you wanted to say to him?”

  “No.”

  “What did you tell him?”

  “I said nothing.”

  “He did all the talking?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  Tatum hesitated. “I hung up.”

  Dr. Bev said nothing for few seconds. “So, you ended your friendship with Karla, someone you’ve known for years. However, you didn’t confront Seth. Why did you hang up?”

  “I thought it would be better to talk him in person.”

  “Why didn’t you tell him that? Do you love him?”

  “Yes.”

  “Do you still want to be with him?”