Creepin': A New Orleans Love Story

by Chenell Parker

  “Brandis!” Tre yelled while motioning her over to him. She looked at Mia to get the okay before she just walked off and left her. When Mia nodded her head saying that it was cool, Brandis walked off and headed in Tre’s direction.

  “What’s up Tank?” Brandis asked when she walked up to him.

  “What kind of fucking games is your friend playing?” he asked angrily.

  “Please don’t put me in the middle of y’all mess. I don’t have anything to do with this,” Brandis answered.

  “You got a lot to do with it since that’s your girl. She calls herself being funny by talking to that nigga in my face.”

  “But you were just talking to London in her face too,” Brandis reminded him.

  “I thought you just said that you didn’t have anything to do with this.”

  “Well, you put me in it. Don’t get mad with her when you were just doing the same thing. And where is that bitch London at anyway?” Brandis asked.

  “I don’t give a fuck about London, I’m not keeping tabs on that hoe,” Tre barked. “You tell that bitch, Lamia that she got five minutes to meet me out back or I’m coming in here and drag her ass out. I’m tired of her always playing with me like I’m some lil ass boy.”

  “Tank, just wait and talk to her later. Don’t cause a scene at Jabari’s party,” Brandis begged.

  “Fuck it, I’m going to get her ass myself,” he replied as he headed in Mia’s direction.

  “No!” Brandis yelled grabbing his arm. “Okay, I’ll tell her to meet you out back.”

  Tre looked at her skeptically, but he eventually gave in and stopped walking.

  “Five minutes and I’m not playing,” he said right before he disappeared towards the back doors of the building. Brandis rushed over to where Mia and her new friend were and interrupted their conversation.

  “Excuse me, but I need to speak to Mia for a second,” she said leading her friend away from Ricky.

  “What’s wrong?” Mia asked.

  “Tank is trippin’ and he wants you to meet him out back,” Brandis replied.

  “Girl, to hell with Tre. I’m done playing with his stupid ass.”

  “No Mia, I’m serious. He was coming over here to get you until I stopped him. He said if you’re not out back in five minutes that he’s coming in to drag you out. You know he’s not playing, so you better dismiss your friend and go see what he wants.”

  “Okay, let me go tell Ricky that I’m leaving. Are you gonna be alright until I come back?” Mia asked.

  “Yeah I’m good. I’m going to stand by Von until you’re done. Just come get me,” Brandis said walking away.

  ****

  “You just keep taking me to play with, huh Mia?” Tre asked angrily. He and Mia had been arguing for the past five minutes and he was ready to knock her ass out at the moment. Her nonchalant attitude was really starting to piss him off.

  “How am I playing with you? I figured that since you were smiling all up in London’s face it was cool for me to mingle with other people too,” Mia shrugged.

  “So you thought it was cool for you to be all up in that nigga’s face while I was standing not too far away from y’all?” Tre yelled.

  “Yeah, just like you thought it was cool to be all up in London’s face while I wasn’t too far away from you. Then you looked right at me and kept talking to the bitch as if it was nothing. Do you, but don’t think that I’m gonna be sitting around waiting until you’re done.”

  “Man, fuck London! You talking like I want that bitch,” Tre shouted.

  “I really don’t know who or what you want. Obviously, she was whispering something good in your ear the way you were smiling and shit.”

  “So you’re mad that somebody else wants to be seen with me in public? Obviously you don’t,” Tre snapped.

  “I’m so tired of having this same conversation with you Tre. You already know how I feel about that and I’m not going to keep repeating myself. I get that you want to have a relationship that can be out in the open and I don’t blame you for that. I can’t offer you that right now, so feel free to move on with somebody else who can. It’s cool; you can be with London or whoever else you want to be with. I won’t have any hard feelings and I promise that I won’t interfere,” Mia said as she attempted to walk away.

  “So it’s that easy for you to throw away a whole year of us being together Mia?” Tre asked sounding hurt. He pulled her back and turned her around to face him.

  “I don’t know what else you want from me Trevon. You knew what the deal was from the beginning, but you keep throwing the shit in my face every day. I’m tired of you always trying to make me mad by entertaining the next bitch. I can’t even get mad with London no more because you’re playing the game right along with her.”

  “I’ll admit that I was wrong for doing that, but you were wrong too Mia. And you’re right; I did know how you felt from the beginning and I’m sorry for trippin’. I just don’t want you to end what we have,” Tre said honestly. He grabbed Mia around her waist and leaned down to kiss her lips. She hugged him back tightly, happy that they were able to resolve their minor issue.

  “Okay, but I have a new rule and you need to follow it or we’re going to have some problems,” Mia announced. Tre pulled away and looked down at her like she was speaking a foreign language.

  “I know you’re not serious,” he replied.

  “Yes I am. I’m very serious.”

  “Okay, what’s the rule?” He asked.

  “As long as we’re together, you can’t talk or speak to London or Cheryl anymore. I don’t care if they’re at Von’s house or in the streets. You’re not allowed to speak to either of those bitches.”

  “I’m not allowed Mia?” Tre asked with raised brows.

  “That’s what I said. If I see you talking or speaking to them, we’re going to have a problem,” Mia promised.

  “Okay, I won’t say nothing to them anymore,” Tre agreed. He couldn’t believe that he was taking orders from a seventeen year old, but he would do anything to make Mia happy. It didn’t matter whose feelings got hurt in the process.

  Chapter 7

  “Hey Jabari,” Mia said when she answered the phone for her brother.

  “What you doing Mia?” he asked.

  “Nothing, I just got out of the shower and I’m getting dressed. Why, what’s up?”

  “I wanted you to take a ride with me. I’m going to take Tiara some lunch at work and I wanted you to come.”

  “Okay, just call me when you get downstairs,” Mia said disconnecting the call. She hurried along and found something cute and comfortable to throw on, before Jabari came to get her. As soon as she was done, she walked out of her bedroom and found her brothers and sisters standing there waiting for her.

  “Mia we’re hungry and Moonie is still sleep,” Anika spoke up.

  “Tootie, you’re the oldest, why didn’t you fix them some cereal?” Mia asked her twelve-year-old sister.

  “They didn’t want any cereal. They want grits and eggs, but I can’t cook hot food for them. Moonie said for us not to mess with her stove,” Tootie replied. Mia was pissed as she stormed into Moonie’s room and turned on the lights. She was hoping to catch Dalvin’s stupid ass in the bed with her so she could go off on both of them at the same time. Since her mother was in bed alone, that would have to wait for another time.

  “Moonie wake up!” Mia yelled while shaking her mother hard. Moonie groaned a little, but she still didn’t budge. Mia wasn’t leaving her room until she was wide awake, so she continued to shake her and yell her name until she said something.

  “What Mia, I can’t even get no sleep in this damn house!” Moonie exclaimed sleepily.

  “That’s all the hell you do is sleep. Your kids are hungry and I’m getting ready to go. I’m getting tired of doing everything while you lay up in this bed and sleep all day. We have a house full of food, but it’s not going to cook itself. I’m about five minutes away from packing a
ll of my shit and leaving!” Mia yelled. She walked out and slammed the door before her mother even had a chance to respond. Without another word being said, she went straight to the kitchen and started fixing her siblings a hot breakfast.

  “You fixing us some grits and eggs Mia?” Anika asked.

  “Yeah, I’m fixing it. Go sit down until it’s ready,” Lamia replied.

  “We want sausage too,” Anika said.

  “Okay, I got you. Go watch TV until I’m done.” Mia got everything that she needed from the fridge and put a pot of water on to boil the grits. As soon as she started cracking the eggs in a bowl, Moonie walked in with her hair tied up and a pair of wrinkled pajamas on.

  “Sorry Mia, I’ll take it from here,” she said as she gently took the cooking spoon from Lamia’s hand.

  “Did you even know that Mitch got them some tickets to the circus for next weekend?” Mia asked her mother. They’d been on her dresser for almost two weeks, but she had yet to say anything about them.

  “No,” Moonie replied in a low tone, as if she was talking to her mother instead of her daughter.

  “They’ve been on your dresser for over a week now. If it’s not too much, do you think you can skip the club Friday to make sure you take them next Saturday?”

  “Okay, I will,” Moonie yawned right as Jabari called Mia’s phone.

  “I’m leaving, call me if you need me,” Mia said right before she walked out. Moonie never asked where she was going and it’s been like that since she got old enough to dress herself. In Louisiana, you were considered an adult at seventeen years old, but Mia became a woman years ago, by no choice of her own. With a mother like Moonie, you had to learn to fend for yourself at an early age. She provided food, clothing and shelter, but you were on your own after that. “I’m coming out now,” Mia said, answering the phone for her brother.

  “What’s up?” Jabari asked Mia when she got into his car.

  “Same shit different day,” she shrugged as he pulled off. “But about that party last week.”

  “That shit was the truth, huh?” Jabari asked.

  “Hell yeah it was,” Mia replied laughing. After her and Tre had their little talk outside, she was really able to have fun and enjoy the party. She and Brandis hung out with Tre and Duke for the rest of the night and had a blast. Tre avoided London all night until she finally got the hint and left him alone.

  “I heard that nigga Ricky was trying to get at you, huh?”

  “Yeah, but why you said it like that?” Mia asked.

  “Like what? That’s LJ’s people, so I really don’t know him like that. He’s been cool the few times we hung out, but that’s about all I can tell you,” Jabari replied.

  “Oh, we talked on the phone a few times and he seems cool,” Mia said.

  “Bet, but uh, back to the real reason for my visit. Do you have anything that you want to tell me?” Jabari asked out of the blue.

  “About Ricky?” Mia questioned.

  “About anything at all. You know we don’t keep shit from each other Mia. You’re one of my best friends and you can tell me anything,” Jabari said while looking over at her.

  “I know that and when I have something to say you’ll be the first one to know,” Mia insisted.

  “So were you ever planning on telling me about you and Tank?” Jabari asked taking her by surprise. Mia just knew that she was hearing things, so she needed her brother to repeat what he’d just said.

  “Huh?” she asked trying her best to play dumb.

  “If you say huh that means you can hear me,” Jabari said calling her out.

  “Who told you?” Mia asked deciding to just come clean about everything. Only a few people knew and she was going to check whoever took it upon themselves to tell her brother her business.

  “Nobody told me, I saw the shit with my own eyes the night of my party. I should have put it together a long time ago, but y’all did a damn good job of hiding it.”

  “What do you mean you saw it with your own eyes?” Mia wondered.

  “I was in the back behind the dumpster smoking, when I saw you and Tank come out. I was about to come ask you what y’all were arguing about until I saw y’all start kissing. At first I thought the weed was playing tricks on me, but when it happened again I knew I wasn’t trippin’,” Jabari said.

  “I told him that I smelled weed out there, but he told me I was being paranoid,” Mia snickered.

  “So how long have y’all been creepin’?”

  “It’s been like a year now.”

  “A whole year and you never thought to tell me about it Mia? I don’t have to ask if Von knows since I’m almost positive that he doesn’t.”

  “No, he doesn’t know and please don’t tell anybody Jabari, not even Tiara,” Mia begged.

  “I won’t tell anybody, but I’m in my feelings that you didn’t trust me enough to tell me yourself.”

  “I’m sorry Jabari, but I was scared to let anybody find out. I don’t want it to get back to Von. He’s going to be pissed if it does.”

  “I don’t know why. It’s not like you and Tank are related. Honestly, I think the nigga is too old for you, but you’re grown. Even if I tell you to stay away from him, I know you won’t. This is something else that I fault Moonie for. If she was paying more attention to you none of this would have happened.”

  “You can’t blame Moonie for everything Jabari. I knew what I was doing when I laid down with Tre.”

  “You can kill all that noise about your sex life. I really ain’t trying to hear it,” Jabari said making Lamia laugh.

  “But seriously Jabari, you don’t like me being with Tre?” Mia asked.

  “Tank is cool and I know for a fact that he’s good to you. Even though it’s only like a three or four year age difference between y’all, I just feel like he’s too old for you. Louisiana law says you’re grown, so what I say really doesn’t matter. As long as you’re good then all is right with the world as far as I’m concerned. Getting hurt is a part of life, but I still don’t want to see it happen to you.”

  They continued their ride with Mia filling him in about everything that happened with her and Tre up until the night of the party. She could tell that he wasn’t feeling the relationship, but there was really nothing that he could do. He didn’t have a problem with Tre, but he was having a hard time getting past the age difference. Jabari’s reaction to the situation really made her not want to tell Von. If her own brother wasn’t feeling it then Von would probably be ten times worse. That was what scared Mia the most.

  ***

  The following weekend, Mia and Brandis got a ride to Von’s house with Duke. Brandis couldn’t spend the night because her mama was in one of her moods, but she was able to get away for a little while. Rainey said she was coming over, but she was still at home packing clothes when Mia called her. Von told them to leave some things at his house for when they came over and Mia did just that. Tre took her shopping and she had everything she needed at Von’s house. Rainey always thought somebody was trying to take her shit, so she declined the offer.

  “Damn, what’s going on in there?” Duke said looking over at Mia.

  As soon as the three of them walked up to the door, they heard Von yelling at somebody, but none of them knew whom he was talking to. Mia took her key from her purse and opened the door just so she could see. Von’s voiced boomed even louder when they entered the house and Mia wondered what was going on.

  “How can you be so fucking stupid?” Von yelled at Tre while he sat at the kitchen table with his head hung low. “I bust my ass to make sure you’re straight and this is the fucking thanks I get? I lost eight years of my life to prison behind this same stupid shit. Even though I tried to give you whatever you wanted, you still couldn’t keep your dumb ass out of jail. If this is the life that you want to live, let me know now so I can be done with your ass. I’m not doing the jail thing with you no more Tank, and I mean that shit.”

  Mia was shocked to hear Vo
n going off on Tre like that. She’d heard Von fuss at him more times than she could count, but never to that extent. He was damn near foaming from the mouth he was so mad. He had beads of sweat forming on his forehead and his fists were pounding the table with every word he spoke.

  “Sorry Von,” Mia said lowly as she and Brandis walked through the kitchen followed closely by Duke. They all went into the spare bedroom and waited while Von continued his verbal assassination. About ten minutes passed before they heard the front door slam. Tre walked into the bedroom and flopped down on the bed next to Mia. They all sat around in silence for a while, all seemingly lost in their own thoughts. When Tre pulled Mia close to him and hugged her from behind, Duke and Brandis got the picture and left them alone.

  “What happened?” Mia asked as soon as they were alone.

  “Stupid ass Ro gave Von some money that he owed me for fronting him some weed. Von found out that I’m selling again and you know how he feels about that,” Tre responded.

  “What do you mean selling again? You never stopped,” Mia replied.

  “You know that, but Von doesn’t have to.”

  “I really don’t understand why you’re still hustling though. Von makes sure you have more money than you’ll ever need with all the rental property he got for you. You own an entire apartment building Tre.”

  “But that’s just it Mia, Von got that for me. I didn’t work for that shit, it was handed to me. I feel like a child depending on his daddy to take care of him. At least when I hustle I know that’s money that I worked hard to get.”

  “You are so stupid. All of the shit is in your name Tre. It doesn’t matter how you got, it’s yours. You sound so selfish right now. You know how many twenty-one year olds would be happy to take your place?” Mia said.

  “I know and I’m chillin’ out after I get rid of this last stash. I just want to make sure we’re straight Mia. I don’t want you to want for anything and I don’t want you asking nobody else for nothing either.”