“Yes, I’m Opal and this is Debbie.”
“How are you, Jake? I’m glad we’re finally getting to meet you, too.”
“Damn, Pearl, he is fine. Your description didn’t do him justice at all.”
He looked at Pearl and smiled again. “Thanks, Opal. So she’s told you about me huh?”
“Oh yeah, Jake. We know all about all you. All your freaky little likes and habits. We know everything.”
“Wha-?”
“Yeah, Jake, we’re twins. You know twins tell each other everything.” She looked into his stunned face. “You ain’t know?”
He looked at Pearl, who nodded agreement, and back to Opal and his smile began to fade.
Debbie busted into fits of laughter. “Relax, Jake, they’re just kidding.”
The twins laughed with their friend.
“For real, baby, we’re kidding. Opal likes doing that to people.”
She grabbed his face and kissed him. Only then did he let out a relieved laugh.
“Oh, ok, good. Come on, I got a table across the room if you want to sit.”
“Ok. So, Jake, do you think you’ll have any trouble telling us apart?”
He looked between the twins and chuckled. “No, I think I’ll be ok.”
“Do you think Doug and Rakim will be able to find us?” Debbie asked.
“Well, they know we’re here, let’s hope they’ll at least take a good look around before they leave.”
At the table they drank, talked and gave Jake a grilling Q&A session.
“Come on, honey. I think they’ve bothered you long enough. Let’s go dance.”
“I’m having a blast, Pearl. Your sister and Debbie are great. They’re funny as hell, too,” he said excitedly.
“Yeah, yeah, they’re a barrel of laughs, let’s go.”
He laughed, letting her pull him to the dance floor.
“Girl, I think I stand corrected. I really like this Jake. He’s really into Pearl, too. What do you think, Deb?” she asked, picking up her drink.
Debbie didn’t answer, she just stared pass her.
“What?” She turned in the direction of her gaze and almost choked on her drink.
“Ohmigosh!” Opal jumped up, slamming down her glass and laughing. “Doug, look at you! You look great!”
“You look pretty damn good yourself. I didn’t have a tux, so I…”
“No, no, this is good. Everybody in here is wearing a tux. I like this white suit on you and the black satin shirt and tie really sets it off. You thought outside the box, I like that. You deserve a kiss for that.”
She kissed him and felt his arms slide around her waist and his passion push her backwards.
“Mmm, will your kisses always do that to me?” He looked down at himself and then quickly back at her, red faced.
She looked down and smiled. “Hmm, I hope so. Doug, are you blushing?” she asked teasingly.
He blushed more and opened his mouth to speak, but she touched his lips to stop him. “Don’t, I like it.” She put her hands on her hips and turned to Rakim.
“And look at you, Rakim. You clean up good. The double breasted pinstripe really brings out the gangster in you,” she said with a laugh. “And here I was thinking you only wore FUBU,” she said knowingly and winked at Debbie.
“Thanks, Opal. You looking pretty hot in that little ass black and white dress, too. As far as the suit goes…” he showed her the FUBU label on his cuff. “They can make any gangster look good…even us retired ones.” He laughed, winking at her, and then sat at the table in front of Debbie.
“Debbie, Debbie, Debbie. You look good, girl. Real good.”
“Thanks, Rakim. You look…I mean, wow…”
He shrugged. “Man can’t live by jeans alone, right?” He thumbed the dance
floor. “You wanna dance?”
She smiled. “Yeah, I do,” she said, taking his hand.
“You know, I think I’m going to like this blushing thing that you do,” Opal said, pulling Doug to the table. “I can talk nasty to you and I can literally see if you like it.” She chuckled.
He smoothed his goatee, trying to wipe the red off his face, and smiled again.
“You plan on talking nasty to me a lot?”
She shrugged and leaned toward him. “Don’t know, depends on the topic at hand. It’s in my nature not to hold back what I think. Can you handle that?”
“Sure, I can handle that. I like a woman who speaks her mind.”
“Uh-huh. Well, I’ve got lots of male friends, you know.”
He shrugged. “Most beautiful women do.”
She sat up with her lips twisted. “And that doesn’t bother you?”
“Opal, I’m not a jealous man. If you tell me you’re my girl, then you’re my girl. Why would I doubt you without reason?”
“Hmm, you sound way too confident. Why?”
He shrugged again. “I was always told in order to make a woman happy you first have to find out what she needs and then give it to her. If she’s happy in and out of the bedroom, she has no reason to leave you.”
“Uh-huh, but I’m not your girl.” She leaned toward him, again and smiled.
He smiled and leaned toward her. “Not yet.”
“Now, is that more confidence or cockiness?”
“I don’t know. Maybe a little bit of both.”
She nodded. “Ok, but let’s just take it one day at a time.”
He scooted his chair closer grabbing her hand. “One day at a time is fine with me.”
They moved in for a kiss.
“Mmm, I think…” She paused, looking past him. “Uh, I think something’s going on over on the dance floor.”
He stood up looking over the crowd. “Come on, I think it’s your sister.”
He pulled her to the dance floor, pushing past the people until he saw Rakim.
“Dude, what the hell…”
He held his hand up to silence him and pointed in front of him.
“Get the fuck out of here, Frank,” Jake yelled, pushing Pearl behind him.
“You’re drunk and you’re making an ass of yourself.”
“I just don’t understand, Jake? Did you really think black and white ball meant bring some black chick with you?” he slurred.
“Frank…” He took a slow, deep breath. “You’re drunk…and you’re an idiot. Don’t fuck this party up being both. I’m sure somebody called security by now, so just go home.”
“Frank, come on,” a small, wispy blonde said, pulling at his arm.
He yanked his arm away from her, slinging beer from the bottle he was holding. “What’s wrong with you, Jake?” He clutched his beer to his chest. “How can you do this to me? After everything thing that they’ve done to me.” His voice was tight and his expression pained.
He sighed. “Frank…”
“No! Jake, tell me you’re just fucking her to get back at them…all of them, for stealing all of our women.”
A collective shocked sound that went through the crowd like a ripple in a pond.
Debbie pulled Pearl closer to her.
“Frank…” Jake said in a warning tone.
Frank shook his head, taking a long drink from the bottle and then pointed it at him.
“You know, Denise told me you were dating a black girl. She told me that you’d be here tonight meeting her family, too and that I should go and meet her. We’ll all just be one big happy family.” He took another long drink from his bottle. “I couldn’t believe it. After everything I’ve told you!” He took another drink and shoved the bottle at the little blonde. “So I came…to see for myself. Jake, please, please, just tell me you’re not falling in love with this black bitch,” he said with another slur, his voice full of contempt as, he pointed pass him at Pearl. “I…”
But before he could utter another word Jake punched him and the crowd parted like the Red Sea, allowing him to fall flat on his back at the feet of the little blonde.
“Oh, shi
t!” Rakim pulled Debbie away and she pulled Pearl with her. “Time to go, man. The cops will be here soon for sure and we don’t need to be anywhere they are. You feel me?”
Doug about faced, nodding, and followed him, pulling Opal with him. “I’m right behind you.”
Rakim pushed his way outside and along the canal. Debbie walked Pearl to the closest bench with Opal close behind them.
“Ok, what the hell is going on? What happened in there?” her sister asked.
“Are you ok? Who was that guy?”
Pearl just shook her head, stunned.
“What happened on that damn dance floor?”
“I don’t know, Chica. One minute we’re dancing, having a good time, the next thing we knew that guy, Frank, grabbed Jake by the arm and snatched him away from Pearl.”
Debbie looked around for Rakim who was leaning against the wall of the building with Doug and sighed.
“This Frank guy sounded like he has some real issues with black people. He was saying stuff that was way out of line and things that would earn him brownie points with those people.”
“People? What people?”
“You know what people. The people who wear the white, pointy, pillowcases on their heads.” She sat next to Pearl.
Pearl nodded silently.
“What? No way.”
“Yeah, and I hate to say it, but he sounded like he was surprised that Jake wasn’t agreeing with him.”
Pearl still nodded, tears falling one by one down her cheeks.
“Shit.” Opal breathed out.
“Pearl!”
They looked up to see Jake as he pushed pass Rakim and Doug. He came toward them and Debbie and Opal blocked his way to her.
“No, Jake. I don’t like the way this is playing out.”
“Opal, please. I need to explain things to her. My brother was drunk. He…”
“Your brother? He was your brother? So you do agree with him.”
“No, Debbie, I don’t. Please, let me talk to her.”
“Do you want to talk to him?” her sister asked.
She still shook her head. “You lied to me,” her voice was barely over a whisper.
“No! Baby, please, let me explain,” he said in a panicked voice. “My brother hasn’t always felt this way. An ex-girlfriend of his, well, she was actually his fiancée at the time, but she left him because he wasn’t treating her right. The guy she left him for was black and he ain’t been right since. He’s stuck now on white men are supposed to be with white girls and some other crazy bullshit. But that’s him, I don’t feel like that. You know that,” his voice cracked with emotion.
She wiped her face. “Then what about you, Jake? How do you feel?”
“I told you how I feel. I meant it then and I mean it now. I love you. You have to believe that.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know what to believe. Please go,” she squeaked out.
“Pearl, baby, don’t do this. Please…” he squeezed the words out, fighting back the tears.
She turned away from him, unable to bear the look on his face.
“I’m sorry, Jake, but she wants you to go,” Opal said sadly.
“Let’s go, man,” Rakim said coming to his left side.
He looked at him, then to his right at Doug and sighed. “I love you, Pearl and I want to be with you. Don’t let my family mess us up.” He turned away from her and let the tears fall freely.
Pearl buried her face in her hands, letting her own tears fall.
Opal sighed and walked to Doug. “I think we should call it a night, under the circumstances. I really was having a good time with you, you know, before all this jumped off.”
He gave her a small smile. “I was too. Maybe we…”
“We’ll see,” she said quickly, cutting him off and turned to walk away.
He grabbed her arm. “Wait, Opal. This didn’t have anything to do with us. You know I don’t think like that. The thought never…”
“No, no, Doug, I know. I just think, well…” She sighed. “I should be with my sister, right now. You understand, don’t you?”
He dropped her arm. “Oh. Yeah, I understand.” He leaned in to kiss her, but she turned her face so it would land firmly on her cheek.
Rakim hugged Debbie. “I wish we could have had more time tonight. You look so damn good, I wanted to enjoy seeing you a little longer.”
She giggled. “Thanks, Rakim. You aren’t as bad as I thought. I guess you have changed some since high school.”
“Thanks. So, is this a good time for ‘I told you so?’”
She chuckled. “No, it’s not.”
“Ok. Can I have a kiss, then?”
She smiled and slid her hand across his face. “Nope, but you can have another hug and a promise that I’ll call you.”
He laughed. “Ok, fair enough.”
Doug and Rakim watched the twins and Debbie walk down the canal to the bridge before heading back to their car.
“What’s up, man? You ain’t said a word since we left the canal,” Rakim asked as they drove away.
“Man, Jake’s stupid ass brother didn’t just fuck him, he fucked me, too.”
“Yeah, man, I noticed.”
“Did he really say that shit?”
“Yeah, dog, he did. He even said ‘white men should date white women and have white babies.’”
“Get the fuck out of here.”
“Yup, came right out of his mouth while the rest of us stood there with our mouths hanging open.”
“What did Jake say?”
“I don’t know man, he didn’t sound like he agreed with Frank at all to me. If anything, he sounded just as shocked and surprised as the rest of us. Actually, he sounded down right pissed, if you ask me.”
He sighed and leaned his head back. “Damn man. He looked all fucked up when Pearl dismissed him, too. I’m feeling him on that one, man. Me and Opal were this close to being cool,” he said squeezing his pointer and thumb together.
“I think we should go talk to the man and make sure they stay together. I mean, if Pearl loves him we’re going to see lots of him.”
“You mean, we’d like to anyway.”
“Hey, man…” he looked down the street and turned the corner to Doug’s house, smiling, “…remain optimistic. Just remember that old Negro spiritual…we shall overcome,” he sang as his laughter spilled over.
“Shut up, fool.” He laughed with him.
“You know, he did mention that he owned that shop on 38th and Illinois.”
“Hmm, you know what? I think my jeep just developed some brake trouble.”
Rakim laughed, again. “That’s why you’re my boy. You come up with the good plans. See you tomorrow.”
***
For the next week Pearl kept to her room, only leaving to go to work and to eat dinner with Opal and Debbie. Opal spoke to Doug almost daily, but refused to see him. Rakim stopped by the shop everyday on his way home so he could see Debbie.
Sunday started cool, having rained the night before. Opal and Debbie took advantage of the soft ground, working in their garden in the back yard.
“I don’t know, Deb. I think she should at least hear the man out. He sounds so damn pitiful on the machine.”
“Well, she’s hurt, Chica, and even though you guys are twins, you handle your pain differently.”
She stopped digging her hole. “What’s that suppose to mean?”
She sighed and stop digging, too. “Pearl keeps to herself and licks her wounds privately, but you…” she gave her a quick look and continued digging, “…well, you like to rant and rave and let everybody around you know you’re angry and hurt.”
She let out a shocked breath. “I do not.”
“Oh yeah, you do. Even when we were kids you guys were like that.”
“Oh, whatever. All I’m saying is it’s been over a week. She should at least talk to him before we leave. Friday at Miss Betty’s funeral, I got the impression she was crying for
a lot more than Miss Betty.”
“Yeah, I noticed that, too.” She stuffed a potted violet into the hole.
“So, what are you going to do about Rakim?” she said, helping her fill in the hole.
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t play stupid with me.”
“Well, what are going to do with Doug?”
“I asked you first,” she said with a smug smile.
She chuckled. “Ok. I’m trying to get to know the grown up Rakim, instead of the girl hopping creep I knew back in high school.” She shrugged. “He‘s ok.”
She chuckled. “One would hope that after seven years he would have grow up some.”
She looked up from the violet she was working on. “You know, Doug seems ok, too.”
“Debbie…”
“Now, Chica, wait, let me finish. All I’m saying is don’t cut the man down for something someone else did.”
She sighed and sat back on her knees. “I’m not trying to, really, it’s just…” She sighed again. “Girl, did you see Jake’s face? I could almost see his heart breaking when Pearl sent him away. I don’t want to go through that with Doug.” She continued digging. “We’re cool just being friends.”
“Hmm, I guess twins do share the same fears.”
She opened her mouth to protest, but shut it just as quickly.
“And what about Doug? Is it fair to him that you make a decision that affects him without his input?”
She shrugged, but didn’t answer.
“He might even think you’re worth any fight he has to be in, just like Jake thinks Pearl is worth it.”
The phone in the house rang and seconds later the portable phone on the patio table rang.
“Gee, I’m so sorry we can’t finish this conversation, but I might have an urgent phone call here.” She stuck her tongue out at her and snatched the phone off the table. “Hello.”
Debbie smiled shaking her head.
“Hi, this is Doug. Is this Opal?”
“Yeah, Doug, it’s me. What’s up?”
“Hmm, speak of the devil,” Debbie mumbled.
She smiled and waved her away.
“Hey, I was just calling to see what you were doing?”
“Debbie and I are working in the garden.”
“Really? That’s cool, tell her I said hi. How’s your sister?”
The Yin Yang Effect Page 7
