Side Chic 2 (A Ratchet Mess)

by West, La'Tonya

“What’s good wit’cha Mrs. Jefferson?” Tyson spoke. He always called me Mrs. Jefferson. Normally, I found it to be cute but today I found it to be annoying.

  “My name is Kisha!” I snapped rolling my eyes. I swung the door open and went inside the store.

  “My bad Kisha!” I heard him yell after me.

  I went to the back of the store to the alcohol freezer. I got a 12 pack of Mike’s Hard Lemonade and took it to the counter.

  “Will this be all for you ma’am?” The cashier, a young Caucasian male, asked.

  Nah, I’ll take all of this imaginary shit that you see here as well! I wanted to say but I didn’t. Instead I replied. “Yes, that’ll be all.”

  He rung up my purchase, I paid him and he put my 12 pack in a bag and handed it to me. “Here you go, ma’am. Have a great day and enjoy.” He smiled. I rolled my eyes and snatched my bag.

  On my way out of the store, Skeet asked. “What are you doing out so early?” His question annoyed me. He acted like I had a set time to come out in public! Shit, wasn’t he out?

  “Why?” I answered his question with a question not bothering to stop walking.

  I heard him tell Tyson that he would be right back and then I heard him following me. I opened up my car door and got inside. I placed my bag in the passenger seat and then opened the box and took a bottle out. By this time Skeet was at the window.

  “Hey, what’s up with you? You act like you got a chip on your shoulder or something.” I didn’t say anything. I popped the top and turned the bottle up to my head. I didn’t take it down until it was almost empty. “Damn, it’s like that? You are going to just sit there and ignore me like I’m not talking to you?”

  “What? What do you want?” I asked smacking my lips. I turned the bottle back up to my head and finished the remainder of what was in it. I put the empty bottle in the bag and took out another one and opened it.

  “What’s your problem? I haven’t done shit to you!” He asked reaching through the window grabbing my arm causing me to spill some of my drink.

  I looked down at the wet spot on my capris from where my drink had spilled. “Damn it! Look at what you made me do!” I yelled reaching over in the glove box and grabbing some napkins. I wiped the wet spot on my pants and my hands.

  “I didn’t make you do anything! If you would get the stick out of your ass it wouldn’t have happened!” He was still leaning over holding onto my arm. “Now, I’m going to ask you again. What’s your problem? You and Tre beefing? That’s the only time that you walk around like you are mad at the world, snapping on everybody.”

  Without warning tears formed in my eyes. “Nah, we ain’t beefing. We’re good ain’t nothing wrong.” I replied shaking my head. A tear rolled down my cheek and I quickly wiped it away.

  “If ain’t nothing wrong then why are you crying?” He continued to pry.

  By now, I had tears meeting beneath my chin. “I told you, we’re good. Let go of my arm so that I can leave.”

  “I’m not letting you leave while you are upset like this.” He said sympathetically reaching his other hand through the window and wiping my tears away. “Tell me what’s wrong. Why are you crying?”

  “Because I’m stupid.” I answered because that was truthfully how I felt. “I’m crying because I am stupid. I’m stupid for trying to hold onto a man who obviously doesn’t want to be held onto! I’m stupid for forgiving him for the same mistake over and over again and believing that he would change for me after I’d allowed him to do the same thing so many times and kept taking him back. I’m stupid for wanting to marry a man who couldn’t even be a good boyfriend! How in the hell could I have possibly thought that he would make a good husband?” I looked at him. “How?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know Kish. What I do know is you need to pull yourself together and stop this drinking. This ain’t even you. You ain’t no drinker! Go home and get some rest and then call me later. We can get together and finish talking if you want but right now it’s hot standing here in this sun.” He explained. He let go of my arm. “Not only that but I’m out here trying to make this money right now. You feel me?”

  “Yeah…I feel you” I wiped my face with the back of my hand. “Alright, I’ll hit you up later.”

  He leaned in through the window and gave me a hug. “Stop that crying. You’re way too beautiful for that. Everybody has been telling you forever that you deserve better. Maybe whatever he did this time will finally make you realize that too.”

  I gave him a forced smile as I snapped the top back on my bottle and then put it in the cup holder. “I’ll hit you up later.” I repeated.

  “Alright, do that okay.” He winked. “I’ll be waiting on your call.”

  I backed out of the parking lot and went in the opposite direction of my mama’s house. I rode around for a while aimlessly. I wasn’t sure where I wanted to go but I knew that I didn’t want to go home and sit in the house all day like I’d done the previous three days. I’d sat in the house crying and feeling sorry for myself.

  Before I knew it I was riding through Roanoke Rapids, NC which was a city forty-five minutes from where I lived. I rode up and down the streets and through the parking lots of the different stores. Being that I had nowhere in particular to go I decided to ride over to the Walmart and look around.

  I walked around Walmart and picked up a few things for myself and the boys. As I was on my way out of the store, I saw a girl with a cute haircut. It was short all over except for her bangs. Her bangs were long and swept to the side. I’d thought about cutting my hair for a while to try something different but Tre loved my hair long so I never did. Fuck Tre! I thought to myself. I made a U-turn and headed back the other way to the salon that I’d just passed. I walked in and spoke to the receptionist.

  “Hello, how are you today?” I asked.

  “Hello and welcome to Super Cutz.” She was a chubby Caucasian girl with a small gap between her two front teeth. “How can we help you today?”

  “I was wondering if there was anyone available to cut my hair.”

  “Sure.” She smiled. She turned and called to a slim black girl wearing a black smock that was sitting in one of the styling chairs reading a magazine. “Chase, this young lady here would like to have her hair cut.

  Chase stood and waved me over. “Okay, no problem. You can have a seat right here.” I sat my bags down beside the chair and sat down. “Do you know how you want it cut?” She asked fingering my hair. “You have really beautiful thick hair.”

  “Thanks.” I told her. “Ummm… I was thinking of getting it all cut really short all over and having my bangs kind of long and swept to one side. Do you have an idea of what I’m talking about?”

  “Yeah, I believe so.” She stepped away from the chair and walked over to the magazine stand. She picked up one of the magazines and started flipping through it. When she found what she was looking for she walked back over to where I was sitting. “Like, this?” She asked holding the magazine down so that I could see.

  “Yes, exactly like that.” I smiled excited about getting my hair cut.

  “Okay then let’s get started.” She was really friendly. We laughed and talked the entire time that she worked on my hair.

  When she was done, she handed me the mirror so that I could see it. I was a little bit nervous because I hadn’t cut my hair since high school. I lifted the mirror up and peeked at it at first but once I got the first glimpse of it I liked what I saw. I turned my head from side to side and got a good look at it. I fell in love with my new do!

  “Do you like it?” Chase asked.

  “I love it!” I said touching my hair and still looking at it in the mirror. “Goodness girl you did the damn thing on this!” I couldn’t stop looking at my hair!

  “I’m glad you like it.” Chase giggled. “You can look at it in the big mirror behind you if you want. That way you can look at the back.”

  I got up from the seat and looked in the mirror. I held the littl
e mirror in front and turned so I could see the back. She had done a bangin’ ass job on my hair. “Girl, you got skills!” I continued to compliment her work. The other stylist that was working and the receptionist told me that the style really looked great on me.

  After paying Chase and giving her a twenty dollar tip, I walked out of the salon feeling like a brand new woman. When I got to my car, I took out my phone and checked the time. It was a little after three. I still wasn’t ready to go home. I knew that the boys would be fine there with my mama. I needed a little me time.

  I hadn’t eaten anything so I drove over to Apple Bee’s. When I got there I sat up at the bar. Along with my food I ordered a Patron and cranberry. That one drink turned into four. I sat there sipping on my forth drink looking at the different people come in and out, which was what I’d been doing the entire time I’d been there. I looked at how the couples interacted with one another, how loving and affectionate they all seemed to be. I wanted that. I wanted to be loved and showed some affection. A feeling of loneliness swept over me. I reached in my pocketbook and took out my cell. I saw that I had two text messages. They were both from Tre. In the first one, he was saying hello and asking how I was doing. In the second one, he was saying that he missed me.

  I messaged him back. How in the hell do you think I’m doing? What kind of stupid ass question is that? I’m sure that LaQuela messaged you too or called or however y’all contact each other! Seems to me like she’s not just some crazy bitch trying to ruin your life after all! Why don’t you just be a man and keep it real with me? Can you even do that? Or are you going to continue to lie up until the blood test results come back proving that you are the father?

  A few seconds later my phone vibrated. Tre: Kisha, I’m not lying. Yes, she messaged me on Facebook and told me that she’d scheduled an appointment for June 16th at 11:00am. That’s four weeks from now! So are you telling me that I have to be away from you and my boys for four more weeks? These past four days have been killing me!

  Me: No you can’t see my children! I don’t want them around your triflin’ no good ass! Go see the two that you have with LaQuela’s fat ass! I can’t believe that you would even look at her fat ass! Damn you will fuck anything!

  Tre: Now you are being childish. I can understand that you are upset with me but that has nothing to do with the kids.

  Me: I’ll be childish but you still won’t be seeing my kids!

  Tre: Why are you doing this?

  I shook my head and laughed at his dumbass question. Why did he think I was doing it? I was hurt and I wanted him to hurt too and I knew that the one thing that would hurt him most was him not being able to see the boys. I knew that it was childish on my behalf but to be honest I didn’t care.

  Instead of messaging Tre back, I did what I’d been planning to do when I’d first taken out my phone. I dialed Skeet’s number. I sat there tapping my fingers against the bar as I waited for him to pick up. It rung several times before going to voicemail, I left him a message telling him to call me back when he got my message. I hung up and waved the bartender over.

  “Yes ma’am. What can I do for you?” He asked.

  “Can I get the check and a glass of water please with no lemon?”

  “Yes, you may.” He eyed me flirtatiously. He was tall, slim, light skinned, with a short curly afro, and a really cute smile but he wasn’t my type. I preferred my men dark like Hersey’s chocolate. He brought me my water and the check. “Here you are beautiful.”

  “Thank you.” I took out my debit card and handed it to him.

  He swiped my car and then handed me the receipt to sign. I signed it and gave it back to him and he handed me my copy. “Thank you. Did you enjoy everything?”

  “Yep, I sure did.” I replied sipping my water.

  “I’m glad. You know, you are really beautiful and I love your eyes. Girl, you could hypnotize a man with those things.”

  I laughed at his corny ass! I hoped that he didn’t think he impressed me with that bullshit! “Really?”

  “Yeah…really.” He licked his lips and leaned over the bar looking into my eyes. “So do you have a man?”

  “Nah, I’m single.”

  I wide smile covered his lips. “Damn, today must be my lucky day!”

  “And why is that?” I looked at him wearing a blank expression.

  “Because you’re single, it’s not every day that I meet a beautiful woman like yourself that’s single. Majority of the time, some dude has already snatched them up!” He licked his lips again giving me his best bedroom eyes. “This must mean that you and I were meant to be. I mean, normally I don’t even work on Thursday and yet, I’m here and so are you.”

  I couldn’t take it anymore. I burst out laughing in his face. The mouthful of water that I had went everywhere, some even getting on him. “Lord have mercy, boy bye!” I laughed grabbing a handful of napkins and cleaning up the water. He helped.

  “What do you mean?” He looked dumbfounded. “What you think that I am just running game or something?”

  “Ummm…to be quite honest, I don’t care if you are or not! I’m just sick of hearing that whack ass shit that you are spitting out of your mouth!” I began mocking him. “This must mean that you and I were meant to be. I mean, normally I don’t even work on Thursday and yet, I’m here and so are you.”

  “I don’t normally work on Thursdays!” He raised his voice a little.

  “Uh-uhh, don’t do that boo…don’t be getting loud with me!” I checked his whack ass real quick as I slipped down off of the barstool. “I’m going to leave now before you embarrass yourself any further.” I laughed.

  “Man, whatever! You ain’t all of that on some real shit!”

  I didn’t bother replying, I just walked out. I went over to the Comfort Inn and got a room. When I got in the room the first thing I did was run me a hot bath. A grabbed one of the Mike’s from my box and popped the top. I took a swallow and then sat it down so that I could undress. I undressed and sat down on side of the tub while I waited for it to finish feeling. I had a nice buzz from the four Patron and cranberry’s I’d had at Apple Bee’s. I started to hum Woman to Woman and my mind went to LaQuela. If it was the last thing that I did before I left the earth, I was going to beat the breaks off of that hoe! I turned the bottle up to my head and emptied it.

  Just as I was about to step into the water, my cell phone rang. I picked it up and saw Skeet’s number flashing on the screen. I pressed send to answer.

  “Hello.” I slurred into the phone.

  “Hey, I’m just now seeing where I missed your call. Can you talk?” He asked.

  “Duh, if I couldn’t talk I wouldn’t have answered.” I giggled. “What are you doing?”

  “I just finished handling some business and now I’m about to slide to the crib and take a shower. I’m not sure what I am going to get into after that? Why what’s up with you? To be honest, I was shocked to see that you’d called.”

  “I want to see you tonight.” I blurted. “I need to see you tonight.”

  “Where are you at?”

  “I’m in Roanoke, Rapids at the Comfort Inn. I got a room for tonight because I didn’t feel like going back to my mom’s crib.”

  “Go back to your mom’s crib?” He sounded confused. “Whoa shorty…why is you at your mom’s crib?”

  I walked back into the bedroom area of the room and got another Mike’s from the box. I opened it and took a sip. “Come out here and see me and I’ll tell you why.” I told him.

  “Aight let me take a bath and then I will ride up there.”

  “Alright, I’m going to take my bath. I will be waiting for you.” I hung up and went into the bathroom and got into the tub. I laid back and closed my eyes.

  I was awakened by the sound of my cell ringing. I jumped slashing water everywhere! I’d fallen asleep in the bathtub! I got out of the tub grabbing a towel and wrapping it around my body. I grabbed my cell off of the sink but it had already stopped
ringing. I saw that I had several missed calls, all from Skeet. I was about to call him back when my phone started to ring again. It was him.

  “Hey.” I answered yawning and stretching.

  “Damn, what were you doing?” He snapped.

  “Boy hush, I’d fallen asleep. Where are you at?”

  “I’m outside parked beside your car.”

  I peeked out the window. “Okay, I’m upstairs in room 217.” I watched as he got of the car. He had two bags in his hand and his phone was pressed up against his ear. Watching his tall muscular frame climb the stairs made my pussy throb. He was a little bit taller than Tre and bigger too. He worked out a lot and possessed the body of a God. He’d just started growing dreads and had a full beard like Rick Ross. What I loved most about him was his midnight chocolate skin. I cursed myself for wasting so much time being Tre’s fool instead of telling him to go to hell and fucking with Skeet, a sexy ass nigga who actually gave a fuck about me!

  I rushed to the door and unlocked it. I opened the door and stepped back out of the way so that he could come in. Instead of coming in, he stopped in the doorway staring at me strangely.

  “What?” I asked wondering why he was just standing there instead of coming on in the room. I was standing in the doorway wearing nothing but a towel!

  “Yo, you cut your hair?” He asked sounding surprised. “What in the hell is going on?”

  My hand went up to my hair. I’d forgotten all about having my hair cut. “What? You don’t like it?” I started to feel uncomfortable.

  He finally came inside, walking over to the small dresser he put down the stuff that he was carrying in his hands and walked back over to me. “Of course I like it. You know that I love anything on your fine ass.” He pulled me into his arms and gave me a hug. “Damn you feel good in my arms.” He whispered in my ear and kissed me on my cheek. “You smell good too.”

  “Thanks.” I hugged him back holding him extra tight. I didn’t want him to let go. I felt safe in his arms like nothing or no one else could hurt me again. Without warning the tears started to fall and I broke down sobbing in his arms like a baby. He didn’t ask any questions. He just held me until I was done crying.