COMPLICATED

by Chenell Parker

  “Here you go. Sorry, it took so long,” Angel said as she handed the bucket and bottle over to Zyra.

  “Thanks,” Zyra said noticing the change in her demeanor.

  “Sorry about earlier Rylee. I was just having a bad day,” Angel said lowly so that only Rylee could hear her.

  “It’s cool Angel. We all have bad days, but I hope you feel better,” Rylee smiled.

  “Thanks, I do,” she replied feeling bad for how she behaved earlier. Rylee was so sweet that she made it hard for anyone to dislike her. She had a bit of a mean streak in her, but a person would never know unless they provoked her. She had a dog for a husband, but she was clueless to that as were so many others.

  “Y’all come on so I can cut this cake before I go,” Glenda said to Rylee and Zyra. She knew that they would be partying all night, and she was ready to get home. Her husband would have been in the bed by now, and she was getting sleepy herself.

  Zyra and everyone else followed her parents to the other side of the room where Zyrian and the rest of his guests were seated. Glenda could tell that her son was drunk or very close to it. She didn’t want to put a damper on his fun, but she wanted him to be careful as well. After losing her oldest son to gun violence, she was kind of overprotective with Zyrian and Zyra.

  “Don’t y’all let my baby drive himself home,” Glenda whispered to Rylee and Zyra.

  “We’ll make sure he gets home in one piece,” Rylee promised.

  Zyrian had been staying with Zyra since he got home, so his sister would make sure he got home safe. He still hadn’t taken the time to furnish his own house, and it didn’t seem like he wanted to.

  “You want us to take your gifts home Zyrian?” His father asked referring to the cards and gift bags that lined the table.

  “He never even opened them yet,” Zyra fussed.

  “I’ll open them later. Well, all except for this one,” he smiled referring to the bag that Rylee had given him.

  The gift said that it was from both Mekhi and Rylee, but Mekhi didn’t even know what his wife had picked out. Rylee had great taste, so he wasn’t too worried about what was in the bag. Truth be told, he was just as curious as everyone else was to see what it was.

  “That’s what’s up. Thanks, Ma,” Zyrian smiled as he examined the gift that Rylee had given him.

  “You’re welcome,” Mekhi replied before his wife could say anything.

  Zyrian cut his eyes at him with a knowing smirk on his face. He knew that his gift was all Rylee’s doing, but he let her husband have his little spotlight moment. Mekhi’s jaw clenched in anger, but he tried hard to keep a nonchalant look on his face. There was no way in hell that he would have given Zyrian the gift that Rylee had chosen to give him. A card with a few dollars in it would have been good, but she did way too much for a nigga that they barely knew.

  “Please don’t open mine. I don’t want nobody, but you to see that,” Brandy said flirtatiously referring to the explicit items that she had wrapped up in a box. She had purchased everything from condoms to edible massage oils, and she couldn’t wait for the day to use it all on Zyrian.

  “We’ll take the rest of this home with us, and you can pick it up tomorrow,” Glenda told her son. After cutting a few pieces of cake, her husband, and his nephews helped her carry everything to the car.

  “You and Snake better not start no shit boy,” Zachery told Grim as he and Buck loaded his truck up with Zyrian’s gifts.

  Buck, Grim, and Snake were his oldest sister Donna’s sons, and he was surprised that they hadn’t given her a heart attack yet. China was her only daughter, but she was just as crazy as the boys. Buck wasn’t too bad, but the oldest two were walking, talking disasters. He was always helping his sister bail them out of jail for one thing or another, and he was tired of it. He already had to bury his first born son and namesake, but he didn’t want his sister to have to go through that. Not to mention they almost lost Zyra to cancer and Zyrian to a terrible car accident when he was younger. He wasn’t trying to grieve the loss of another family member.

  “Nobody not trying to start nothing out here. We’re celebrating Zyrain’s birthday and then we’re going home,” Grim promised.

  “Ok and y’all take care of my baby,” Glenda said for the hundredth time that night.

  “He’s in good hands Auntie,” Buck said before he kissed her cheek and watched as they pulled off.

  Buck hoped and prayed that nothing popped off that night. Mekhi tried to play it off, but he could tell that he wasn’t feeling the gift that Rylee had given to Zyrian. He saw the look of anger on his face and Zyrian wasn’t making it any better by rubbing it in his face. Then the fact that his cousin couldn’t keep his eyes off of Rylee was something else that he was worried about. He saw that Brandy was trying to get his attention, and he hoped that her advances worked since Zyrian obviously wasn’t feeling his girl’s cousin. Any little distraction would do just to get his cousin’s mind and eyes off of his best friend’s wife.

  Chapter 6

  Rylee moved around her huge kitchen preparing breakfast while doing her last load of laundry. It was the weekend, and that’s when she did most of her errands and house work. Saturdays and Sundays were also the only days that she had time to cook breakfast for her husband since she had to be at work so early on the weekdays. She usually cooked dinner every night unless Mekhi took her out to eat somewhere. An entire week had passed since Zyrian had his party at MJ’s and everyone seemed to have had a good time. Even Mekhi seemed to enjoy himself, but things between him and Rylee seemed off after that. He was his normal attentive self as long as they were around other people, but he seemed angry and distant when they were home alone. Rylee kept asking him if he was okay and he swore to her that he was. After a few days of getting nowhere with her husband, Rylee gave up and decided to let it go. She figured that Mekhi would come to her whenever he was ready to talk.

  “Hey Carolyn,” Rylee said answering the phone for her mother-in-law.

  “Hey baby,” Carolyn replied. “Is my son around?”

  “He’s still sleeping. You want me to tell him to call you when he gets up?”

  “No, I was just calling to tell him that y’all have some mail here,” Carolyn replied.

  “Okay, I’ll swing by there to get it before I go to my grandma’s house,” Rylee offered since she already knew what kind of mail it was. She was already dressed to run some errands, so she would add stopping by Carolyn’s house to her to-do list.

  The only mail that she and Mekhi received at that house were the bills that they still paid faithfully every month. The house was still in both of their names, and so were the bills. Carolyn, her two daughters, and their kids lived there, but they didn’t pay for anything other than food and household items. She and Mekhi paid all of the bills including the homeowners’ insurance. Rylee didn’t mind because she would have done the same thing for her parents if they were still alive and needed her help. Rylee’s grandmother was on a fixed income, so she helped her out all the time.

  “Thanks, baby, I’ll see you later,” Carolyn said breaking Rylee from her thoughts.

  “Okay,” Rylee replied right before she hung up.

  She had just taken Mekhi’s omelet off of the stove when he walked into the kitchen. The breakfast potatoes and sausages were warming in the oven, so his timing was perfect.

  “Good Morning,” Rylee said right as he opened the refrigerator and pulled out the orange juice.

  “Good Morning,” he replied in his newfound nonchalant tone.

  “Breakfast is ready. Sit down so you can eat something.”

  “Nah, I’m good on that. I’ll eat some cereal,” Mekhi said pissing her off.

  “So I slaved over a hot stove to fix you breakfast, and you would rather eat cereal instead?”

  “You talking like I asked you to do that shit.”

  “You didn’t have to ask me. Cooking breakfast is what a wife does for her husband. You never asked before, but you
never had a problem eating it once it was cooked either.”

  “Alright, but I don’t want a heavy breakfast today. I’m good with just cereal.”

  “Fuck you Mekhi!” Rylee yelled as she started dumping the perfectly good breakfast down the garbage disposal.

  “What’s all that for?” Mekhi questioned.

  “I know I bleed every month, but you’ve been walking around here like you’re the one with the period. I’m not about to pacify a grown ass twenty-eight-year-old man. I’m tired of asking what’s wrong with you only for you to turn around and say nothing. Right, about now my attitude is like fuck you and whatever the problem is.”

  “Who the fuck are you talking to like that?” Mekhi yelled as he towered over his wife as he washed the dirty dishes.

  “And you’re standing over me for what? Nigga, I wish you even look like you’re trying to raise your hand to me. This knife will be in your chest faster than you can blink your eyes,” Rylee threatened.

  “You better stop talking to me like I’m a fucking child Rylee.”

  “Well stop acting like a fucking child Mekhi. I’m really over your stupid ass attitude. I got shit to do and arguing with you is not on the list,” Rylee said as she grabbed her keys and purse before heading for the door.

  “Where you going, Rylee?” Mekhi asked.

  “None of your damn business. Go back to not speaking like you’ve been doing for the past few days.”

  “So I guess you’re going to your bisexual, bipolar friend and her brother that you’re crushing on,” Mekhi said stopping Rylee in her tracks.

  “Oh, so that’s what the attitude is for? You think I’m crushing on Zyrian? Are you fucking serious right now Mekhi?” Rylee asked firing off questions one after the other.

  “I’m dead ass serious. You think I don’t see how that nigga be watching you all the time?”

  “Probably the same way that other bitches watch you. None of us can control how another person looks at us Mekhi. I’ve never cheated on you even before we were married and I’ve never done anything to indicate that I ever would. You sound insecure and stupid as hell right now.”

  “How do you expect me to feel Rylee? You bought this nigga a fucking thousand dollar gift!” Mekhi yelled angrily.

  “Oh okay, so now we’re getting down to the real reason that you’re angry. Now it’s all starting to make sense. You’ve been having this funky ass attitude ever since the night of Zyrian’s party, and now I know why.”

  “You damn right that’s why. How would you feel if I did some shit like that with another female?” Mekhi questioned. “Me and that nigga don’t even get along, and you do some dumb shit like that.”

  “But did I not ask you what you wanted me to get him for his birthday gift? I even asked you how much you wanted me to spend. You were the one who said for me to get a gift that would top what everybody else was getting. If you stop trying to outdo everybody all the time we wouldn’t have had this problem to begin with,” Rylee said arguing her point.

  “But Gucci though Rylee? You got that nigga a pair of high tops with the matching belt. I would have never spent that kind of money on a nigga that I don’t even fuck with. I could see if it was Buck, but I don’t fuck with that nigga Zyrian like that.”

  “You should be happy. At least, you got what you wanted. The spotlight was on you. Isn’t that what you live for? You were the biggest baller in the room that night. That’s what you were going for right?” Rylee asked pissing him off.

  “You call yourself trying to be funny Rylee?”

  “No, I’m actually being very serious right now. You always want to be the center of attention, but the shit backfired on your ass this time. It killed you for people to think that you got Zyrian such an expensive gift knowing that y’all don’t get along. That’s what you get for always showing off for everybody.”

  “So you spend my hard earned money on another nigga, and it’s my fault?” Mekhi asked pointing to himself.

  “It sure is. You should have gone with me or told me how much to spend, and we wouldn’t even be having this conversation.”

  “I assumed that you were going to put a few dollars in a card or something,” Mekhi yelled.

  “I bet you won’t make that mistake again will you?” Rylee said smugly.

  “But tell me something Rylee, since you always poppin’ off at the mouth. How do you even know what size that nigga wears? You been talking to him behind my back or what?”

  “Wow,” Rylee chuckled sarcastically. “I could have sworn I married a grown ass man and not some insecure little boy. Are you sure it’s not your guilty conscience that’s making you accuse me? It seems like you’re trying to shift the blame on me when clearly I’ve done nothing wrong. Zyrian’s sister is my best friend so finding out his size wasn’t that hard.”

  “Whatever Rylee,” Mekhi said waving her off.

  “You’re right, it is whatever. I have some errands to run. I’ll be back later,” Rylee said as she turned and walked out of their front door.

  ***

  Kendra and her brother Kendrick sat on the front porch of the house passing a blunt back and forth between the two of them. Their other sister Mena was inside with their mother Carolyn and the kids. Carolyn hated when they smoked in the house, so they took it to the front porch whenever Kendrick came over.

  “Oh shit, here comes Rylee. Let me call mama and tell her to make sure Mekhya stays in the room,” Kendra said as she dialed her mother’s number.

  “That’s really fucked up how y’all be hiding that lil girl like she’s a puppy and shit. That nigga Mekhi is foul for real,” Kendrick frowned.

  “He’s not foul, that bitch Shay is foul for trapping him with a baby,” Kendra replied.

  “You can’t be serious. That nigga shouldn’t have cheated, and none of this would be happening. Y’all know he’s wrong, but since he’s paying all the bills and shit everybody is cool with it. Rylee is too good for his selfish ass.”

  “How can you be jealous of your own little brother? Right or wrong he’s still family. If it wasn’t for him all of us would still be living in that dirty ass three bedroom project,” Kendra fussed.

  “No, y’all would be living in the projects, not me. And that’s only because y’all lazy asses don’t want to work. You, mama and Mena, have never held down a job long enough to even get an income tax. Y’all would rather depend on Mekhi to come around and throw y’all him and Rylee’s scraps. Then the nigga act like he’s God or something because he’s keeping a roof over y’all heads.”

  “You talking all that shit, but you be knocking on this same door when that bitch you mess with put your ass out. And shut up talking about this until Rylee leaves,” Kendra said right as Rylee got out of her car and walked over to them.

  “Hey y’all,” Rylee spoke to her brother and sister-in-law.

  “What’s up sis?” Kendrick smiled.

  “Hey boo,” Kendra said right before Rylee walked inside of the house.

  Rylee walked into the house and found Carolyn stretched out on the sofa watching television. She looked around the house and noticed that not much had changed since she and Mekhi moved out three years ago. The only difference now was that the furniture that they left behind was now worn and dirty. The carpet was also filthy, and the place was never clean to say that so many adults lived there. Rylee was used to both of her parents working, so seeing how lazy Carolyn and her daughters were, was something new to her. Even though Mekhi begged her to stop working, she could never see herself sitting home all day depending on somebody else to take care of her. Mekhi paid all of the bills, so Rylee let her bi-weekly paychecks got straight to the savings account that he didn’t know about. It was a joint account that she had with her grandmother right after the death of her parents. Her grandmother insisted that she put some money up for a rainy day, so Rylee obeyed her orders. Her grandmother, Sara, was from the old school and believed that a woman shouldn’t let her man know everything about
her finances. Rylee remembered hearing her tell her mother the exact same thing. Sara didn’t care that Leela was married to her son. She needed her own stash of cash, and she made sure she had one.

  “My crazy ass son just called here looking for you,” Carolyn said as she handed Rylee a stack of mail consisting of mostly bills. Mekhi really called to make sure they didn’t let Rylee see Mekhya, but Carolyn wouldn’t dare tell her that.

  “I’m not worrying about your son. I’ve been ignoring his calls, and I suggest you do the same.”

  “You know that boy loves you to death. He’ll go crazy if he doesn’t hear from you soon.”

  “Where’s Mena?” Rylee asked changing the subject and inquiring about her other sister-in-law at the same time.

  “She’s in the bedroom trying to take a nap. You know her bad ass kids be driving her crazy. Them and their stupid ass daddy,” Carolyn replied.

  She was hoping that Rylee didn’t try to go speak to her daughter because that was the room that Mekhya was in. She would lay down and die before she let Rylee come face to face with her son’s secret. Mekhi was dead wrong for cheating on his wife, but Carolyn had her son’s back no matter what. Mekhi was her golden child, or at least that how she referred to him. She was the only one of her four kids to make something of himself. He was financially stable, and he took very good care of her. Carolyn didn’t have a job, and she really didn’t want one. Thanks to Mekhi, she had no worries, and she wasn’t hurting for anything. Although she hated Shay for trapping her son with a baby, she tried to keep her happy by taking Mekhya off of her hands every once in a while. It also allowed Mekhi to see his daughter without actually having to be in Shay’s presence. Carolyn knew that her son wanted kids more than anything, but he wanted them to be with his wife. He made a mistake with Shay, but she refused to let that end his marriage. Rylee was heaven sent, and Carolyn knew that her son wouldn’t have half of what he had if it wasn’t for her. She had a mind for business, and she knew how to make it work. Plus, she was a beautiful girl that she loved to show off.