TTW 3 ( Thicker Than Water 3 )

by Takerra, Allen

  “But that don’t mean another good thing can’t begin.” She spoke the words as she reached around him and fondled his package through his pants.

  “Whoa! You type aggressive, baby. It ain’t even that type of party.”

  “But you cute as shit,” she confessed noticing the holes in his cheeks she was sure were dimples when he chose to smile. He had smooth brown skin, a calm gentleman quality, and undeniable boyish good looks. “And I know who you are…you Chauncey boy…I know you got what I need.”

  Besides the fact that they were at a wedding, Bleek didn’t do hand to hands, and never had anything on him.

  “Nah, I ain’t got that… girl.” He spoke, coding the word for coke.

  “What about that boy?” Bleek knew then that she was into everything. A true fiend.

  He whistled and moved past her, heading for the door. He took a good look at the chocolate little thing and knew she could be gorgeous if she wasn’t strung out, even somebody’s arm candy.

  “You take care of yourself, shawty. You might make a man real happy one day.”

  Nikki rolled her eyes and began cleaning herself in the mirror, disappointment all over her.

  “Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Don’t nobody want me…” She didn’t realize Bleek was already gone and she was talking to herself. The reality caused her to utter the words again as tears came to her eyes.

  “Don’t nobody want me.”

  “Lord, what is that woman doing coming out of the men’s room?” Terri questioned to herself as she headed into the adjoining door for the ladies stalls. “Just trifling, trifling…even at this beautiful wedding. Ghetto folk for you.” Pulling out her lipstick she applied a fresh coat because Terri knew that a true lady never applied makeup in public. Even if it were obvious that you did not naturally have stained lips and blackened eyelashes, you should never let a man see you ‘fixing’ yourself up.

  “These young girls these days,” she whispered, reflecting on one who had just applied lip gloss at the banquet table and the other who had just been in the men’s bathroom. Someone coming through the door caught her attention. She looked to see who it was and was appalled.

  “Excuse me! But this is a woman’s bath…” Her last word was left hanging in the air as her bottom lip hit the floor along with the tube of lipstick that had slipped out of her hand.

  He smiled.

  “Hello, Terri. You look amazing.”

  Her heart pounded out of her chest. He was supposed to be dead. It couldn’t…it just couldn’t be…

  “Mi…Mick…Mickel,” she whispered. And before she could get another word out, her body felt heavy and she up and fainted. Good thing Mickel reacted quickly…he never let her head hit the floor.

  “You were crying? Fuck was you crying for?”

  “Just leave me alone, Chauncey.”

  “Leave you alone? What’s wrong with you, Sash?”

  When Sasha had returned, Chauncey had found a way to swap out her lobster for the chicken she said she wished she had. He knew he had been putting her through a lot with his street dedication and he figured this vacation would be used best on showing her how important she actually was to him. He was trying to do every little thing to make her happy, but she was making it difficult.

  “Nothing’s wrong…”

  “Then eat your food.”

  “I don’t want the food! I don’t want the stupid chicken, Chauncey!” Sasha had to look away from him because she imagined his beautiful face buried between Tatum’s thighs, even though the probability of their young teenaged selves doing much beyond the basics was very low.

  Chauncey on the other end had no idea what was wrong with her, and for her to be screaming at him in a room full of people caused him to breathe deep in an attempt to tide his known rampant temper.

  “Yo…you need to calm…the fuck…down,” he warned through clenched teeth.

  “Then leave me alone!” she spat, on the verge of tears.

  Bleek tried to eat his food and stay out of it, but it was hard to do being that everyone else but him had left their table.

  “Yo…” Chauncey felt a rage coming on. He couldn’t believe Sasha’s antics at the wrong times. “You so fucking spoiled! For real yo, I can’t even believe you sometimes.”

  Sasha looked at him with her jaw dropped in disbelief.

  “Are you serious?”

  “Yeah, I’m serious! I’m not even gonna ask you what’s wrong because I already know. Shit ain’t all about you! It ain’t all about Sasha! It ain’t ya wedding day and Tatum ain’t chasing you around catering to your every need like she always do! It’s the other way around and you can’t handle it!”

  Bleek looked up and could see the tears in Sasha’s eyes and he felt for her at that moment.

  “Fuck you, Chauncey! You are such a piece of shit! I wish I never even got back with ya ass! You think you can talk to me like that ‘cause your shit don’t stink? Well it stinks! What you got your fancy cars, big house, you the man again, and I’m the trophy chick who just supposed to keep taking and taking your shit and all you put me through!” She was crying full fledge now. “I mean, how much more am I supposed to take Chauncey? You’re no saint! You put your family second to drugs and this stupid master plan! You sell drugs, Chauncey!”

  Chauncey ran his tongue along the inside of his jawline and glanced around. Most were oblivious but a few had eyes on them. Ree, who was not too far away at he and Tatum’s table, shot Chauncey a warning look. Control Sasha, because now she was getting too vocal about the wrong shit, his shit.

  “Bitch, are you fucking crazy?” Chauncey grabbed Sasha’s arm angrily, almost yanking her out of her seat, and she was in shock. But why, why would she be? He loved her, so that’s what she got when he was mad. He hadn’t loved Neli, and she had gotten a lot worse.

  “Get off of me!”

  “Yo C, chill!” Bleek spoke up.

  “Bleek…this ain’t yours, homie. I got this,” Chauncey told him even though he already regretted his actions. Sasha snatched her arm away with her mouth agape in pure pain. Her body trembled and her tears were frozen. She couldn’t believe Chauncey had spoken to her like that. She jumped up and ran back to the restrooms, where Tatum was now coming out.

  ‘Sasha!” Tatum called, truly worried. She loved her friend like a sister, more than a sister. They weren’t blood, but they weren’t water either.

  “Leave me alone!” Sasha could barely get out as she pushed by her.

  “Sasha, I’m sooo sorry,” Tatum pleaded with pain in her voice. “Please, talk to me mama.”

  “Get ya hoe ass away from me!” Sasha screamed, storming to the bathroom.

  Tatum took a deep breath and it took everything in her not to follow her and wipe the floor with her, mostly because she was truly sorry about what happened.

  “Just…just leave her alone, Tatum. I’ll talk to her,” Jayde soothed, rubbing Tatum on the back. “Go enjoy your wedding day. Stevie’s about to sing again for you guys, don’t ruin it.”

  Tatum debated, hard. She wanted to chase behind Sasha but that’s what she had always done. Always chased behind Sasha and couldn’t truly be happy unless she was sure that Sasha was happy first. Not today though, not on the single most important day of her life. Tatum nodded.

  “You’re right. I will.” She stepped toward her table and noticed Nikki sliding an extra favor in her purse. She knew it was extra because Nikki was already wearing one. The favors were simple, classic, his and her Audemars watches positioned at each place setting, one for each guest. The inscription read ‘love passes time’. Tatum wondered which guest was getting ripped off. She made a note to address it later as she then spun around to Jayde. “Hey…you’re gonna talk to her right? Make sure she’s okay?” Tatum tried not to care but the nurturer in her had to make sure that the people she loved were fine. Jayde nodded assuringly and Tatum felt a little better, but she didn’t catch the wicked grin Jayde gave when she turned back around. Things were un
raveling just the way Jayde wanted them to and she had no plans on mending them. Just then, Jayde looked outside and swore she caught a glimpse of her father carrying someone toward the direction of the beach. She had an idea of who it was and it turned her smile upside down.

  “Oh my god! Just leave me alone!”

  Sasha had her head down nestled in her hands as she sat on the lid of the toilet in the stall. She saw the black pants and designer men’s shoes and she knew Chauncey had come to check on her, yell at her, apologize, something.

  He knocked, not so aggressively and she figured apologize was the answer.

  She jumped up, ready to just go off and tell him exactly why she was mad. Snatching the door open with her tear streaked face, Sasha got the surprise of her life.

  “What the…? What are you do-”

  Bleek grabbed her by the back of her head and brought his face to hers, pressing his lips firmly against the soft ones of her own. Sasha’s natural reaction was to resist, so she did. She pushed him hard, with anger and her body went rigid with resistance. But he was strong, and his kiss was so passionate, it was impossible to fight. So after a few seconds, she gave up, and it was like the perfect remedy. Sasha then found herself hesitantly allowing her mouth to open and his tongue to have access. She was kissing him back, she was holding his much needed strength tightly, and she was losing herself in him. His hand moved from the back of her head and found his other one at the nape of her neck, as he kissed her tenderly, carefully, but with enough yearning to let her know he knew exactly what he was doing and he wanted to do it. Her perfume tickled his nostrils, her fancy style and undeniable beauty appealed to him. Yeah, she was high maintenance but he knew there was depth to her, she had been hinting at it when they had moments alone. He wanted to know what was troubling her.

  The kiss finally broke, and he was the breaker. Sasha’s lips, although knowing they were wrong for doing so, remained puckered and ready for more.

  “Wha…What…happened?” She asked breathily. “Why’d you stop? I mean…why’d you start?”

  Bleek pressed his forehead to hers and closed his eyes. Sasha realized the severity then of what they had done.

  “Chauncey…” She whispered sadly. Although he was a jerk, he was her jerk.

  “That’s my man,” Bleek finally spoke. “But…” There was a small pause and then...

  “…What about your girlfriend? Why didn’t you bring her?” Sasha asked, wanting to know this since he had boarded the plane solo.

  Bleek stepped back and stared at her intensely.

  “…I didn’t want to. We ain’t like… I mean she ain’t like…”

  “She ain’t like what?” Sasha chuckled through her despair.

  “She ain’t like you.”

  Inhaling a shaky breath, Sasha leaned her head back against the stall. If she could rewind this whole weekend and do it over again she would.

  “Bleek…” She spoke sweetly. “When…when did this happen? I mean we’ve been…”

  “What? Spending mad time…eating, laughing, talking…,” he reminded her with a smirk. “How could it not? You know you’re beautiful. You know you can make a nigga weak, Sasha.”

  Sasha swallowed hard. Her mouth was dry.

  “I didn’t know,” she confessed softly in a voice that drove Bleek crazy.

  “You knew…” he told her, looking at her with adoring eyes. He stepped close to her again and put his hands up against the stall walls, leaning into her.

  “You knew.” And then he kissed her again.

  “This is it right…No more street stuff?”

  – Tatum, Still Thicker than Water

  -8-

  Act II

  The rain poured profusely, so much so that even with the wipers on full speed, a blanket of water completely sheeted the windshield of Tatum’s Range Rover at all times. She thanked God that she was parked.

  “So…,” she started, shifting in her seat. “I guess this is it, huh? You sure you gotta do this?”

  Ree reached over and gently took her hand.

  “You know I do, Tatum. But you know I’m coming right back as well.” He brought his hand to her face and cupped her chin. “In and out…we talked about it, Miss Lady.”

  Tatum sighed and nodded when she really wanted to shake her head in protest. He had talked about it, and it didn’t matter how many times he had talked about this moment, actually having it here was nothing like those talks. She didn’t care how much he had gone over every detail to make sure that Jayde was efficient with the process, she didn’t completely trust her with his freedom.

  “How long again?” She asked, already knowing but just wanting to be reassured.

  “A week, maybe two. I promise.”

  Tatum bit her lip and blinked back tears. She was stronger than this.

  “I’m gonna miss you…especially at night,” she confessed.

  Ree sighed and looked out of the window, up at the building that was barely visible through the thunderstorm and gray skies.

  “I know,” he said lowly. “Me too…but it’ll be that much sweeter when I come home to you.”

  “In a week,” Tatum repeated.

  “Or two…” He reminded.

  “Well… go by the supermarket and bring home some paper towels on your way home because I’m sure we’ll be out by then.” Tatum faced forward and her tough exterior hid the pain and fear inside of her.

  Ree chuckled.

  “Paper towels?” He questioned in confusion. “Why don’t you go and pick some up now? The supermarket is right around the-”

  “No!” Tatum interrupted him. “I want you to bring the paper towels home. And I better not be waiting more than two weeks for them.” He could hear the tremor in her cracking voice, see the tears forming, and he now understood. It wasn’t about paper towels. It was her insurance that he was coming back to her. He stared at her with honest eyes.

  “Okay. I’ll bring home the paper towels…so don’t buy any.”

  Tatum swallowed hard and nodded, feeling for some reason a good amount of relief.

  “Alright, good. So…I’ll see you soon.” She wouldn’t dare say goodbye.

  “Yup,” he confirmed.

  Ree took another long look at her and then shot her one of his confident winks, opening up the passenger door. They wouldn’t make the departure any harder than it was.

  “Hey!” Tatum called as she grabbed his arm before he could get out. “You…you come home to us, Mr. Knights.”

  Us? Ree had a feeling. But hearing her confirmation blew his mind. His seed, his real seed… with his wife. It changed everything. He was more anxious than ever to get this over with.

  He nodded and with no more words between them, he shut the door.

  As much as Ree wanted to bask in the elatedness of hearing the news of his first child being created, he knew that his focus needed to be elsewhere. So with the strength of only a man of his stature, he mentally pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. Dodging raindrops with a cool, confident walk, Ree made his way up the ten stone steps to the building with only one thought in his mind, executing the first step to this plan with expertise. This was it.

  He reached the top of the steps and just before approaching the entrance, he went into his pocket and pulled out a rolled blunt and lighter. Placing the cigar to his lips and using his hand to assist in his firing against the raindrops, Ree took a long and deep pull, inhaling and allowing the smoke to caress his insides and set a calm over him. After another two pulls, Ree opened up the heavy glass door while still balancing the blunt between his lips and stepped inside.

  Everything was exactly as he had expected.

  One officer sat behind a heavy glass partition munching on a donut while another poured a cup of coffee from a Dunkin Donuts Box of Joe. The cops’ jokes and laughs came to a gradual halt as the dominant man with the dreads approached them with confidence. There was a heavy silence as they anticipated what he would say. Ree smirked, wal
king up to the first officer and leaning into the glass.

  “Good Afternoon. My name is Sean Knights,” he introduced politely. “And I hear you boys are looking for me.”