Bonnie & Shine: An Epic Love Tale

by Nicety

  Five

  Friday, September 9, 2011

  Close Encounter

  Bonnie

  “I can’t believe that lawyer had the audacity to send cops over there to make sure we couldn’t take anything that belonged to him. Major was your husband for Christ’s sake. It wasn’t like this was some tumultuous divorce. You’re a widow.” My mom rambled on and on. “He died and he left you.”

  I leaned back on her beige La-Z-Boy sofa. It was so comfortable that it almost swallowed me whole. I shut my eyes for just a minute, picturing visions of me being anywhere else but back at my parent’s house. Since my dad died, my mother hadn’t done much with herself, except watch TV and collect money from the three stores she had left open. Due to the down economy, she had to close eleven out of fourteen stores in order to stay afloat. It devastated her but she knew she could always fall back on me for help. So much for that now. I don’t have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of.

  “There’s nothing that I can do about it, mom. Can we just quit talking about it? I snuck some of his jewelry out of there and pawned it. That should hold me for a few months while I try to find another teaching job.” My eyes rolled in disgust.

  “Yeah, but you know it’s been hard for anyone to find a job these days. Hell, they’re laying off teachers left and right.” Mom was never one to encourage and be supportive. It wasn’t in her nature. She just didn’t have the skill.

  “I’m going to a job interview later today actually.” I lied.

  “You are? Wow that was fast.”

  “Uh huh. It’s at an elementary school just a few blocks from here.”

  “Oh wow. That’s great, Honey B. And, you save money on carfare. You need that since you no longer have a car anymore.”

  “Yep,” I wanted to bash my fucking head into the wall after her remark. “Well, I’d better get dressed.”

  I bounced up from the sofa quick enough to leave her mouth hanging from her last words. She loved to have the last word. I knew she would certainly say something that would piss me off though. It only further reminded me why I hated being up under her for so long. Ever since I moved out of my beautiful luxurious home, I had acquired a bad attitude about life. It sucked. It was like someone had come into my life and ripped it apart piece by piece, then sat back to have a good laugh about it. Come to think of it, I wondered what Major was doing right then wherever his ass was in death. I bet he was burning in hell; sitting back thinking the shit I was going through was funny as fuck. Well, one thing was for sure. I would come back out on top and then I would be the one with the last laugh.

  My clothes were all laid out on the floor of my old bedroom. They were basically the only things that I got to keep the most of. It covered every inch of the floor, and even though it was a lot, it still wasn’t all of the clothes I had in the closet of my stolen home. I didn’t even bother straightening them in the closet here. I just didn’t see the point. It was impossible for me to get everything out of my old house, especially within twenty-four hours and only with the help of my mom’s modest sized minivan. I stared down at all of them, wondering if I’d ever get the strength to hang them all up.

  Walking through the rubble, I snatched up a pair of dusty blue skinny jeans slipping them on before my magenta open knit sweater. I ruffled my hair with both my hands as it curled still a tad damp from the shower I took an hour earlier. Starting the blow dryer, I blew through it for a few minutes to get it nice and dry. Afterwards, I zipped up my black bootie heels and grabbed my matching crop fur jacket and Birkin bag, before rushing out the door heading back downstairs. Mom looked up at me, stunned that I had gotten fabulous so fast.

  “You sure don’t look like you’re going to no job interview. Especially not dressed like that. Don’t you think you should be wearing some sort of appropriate business attire?” She side eyed me, as she lit another Newport.

  "Mom, if they are more worried about my clothes than my credentials, I don't want the job."

  "At this point, you've got to do what you've got to do, Bonnie. Play by the rules to get what you need." Mom sucked on her cancer stick with every word.

  "Sick of that shit," I grumbled under my breath.

  "Huh?"

  "Nothing. I'll see you later, mom."

  "Okay. Good luck, Honey B.," she yelled with enthusiasm as I shut the door behind me.

  She had no idea what I needed and for that matter, neither did I. I walked down the street and around the corner, scurrying quickly to get out of view of my mom's house. I hated having to lie to her like that but she would never have let the argument go if I hadn't. Luckily for me, the house was five blocks from Evergreen Plaza Mall and Applebee's. I could hide out there treating myself to brunch and a few drinks, until it was time to go home and lie some more. At least by then I'd be filled with a few drinks to keep me mellow.

  Walking down the side streets, I gazed at all of the tall beautiful houses. Major never liked that area but I loved it. I would have loved to have had a quaint mid-sized house like one of these, rather than the overly expensive mini mansion we had in the suburbs. It was just so pointless to have all of that for two people who barely used it for anything but fighting.

  It was cold but not unbearable. I could see the cars speeding down Western Avenue in the distance, as I got closer. All I could think about was wrapping my lips around a couple of apple martinis, three or four to be exact. Mom wasn't a drinker, she was a smoker, and therefore no liquor was allowed in the house. The drawbacks of living with someone else rent-free, was that no matter how much you begged and pleaded you could never do what you wanted to do. It was their shit and they made the rules.

  "Aye, bitch," a tall dark man barked, coming up behind me; he threw me against the sidewall of one of the glorious houses. "Take out your wallet." He demanded as spit flew from his mouth.

  It took a few minutes for me to realize he had a knife to my throat. I looked up into his crazed dark eyes, peeking out from behind a scully that was wrapped securely around his head. He reeked of weed, which kind I had no idea. Dressed in all black from his boots to his workman’s overcoat, I tried to see if I could find any other distinctive attributes about him. If he left me bleeding in the alley right here, then at least I could call my mom and describe him before I died. I wasn’t the least bit scared, though. It was going to take a hell of a lot more than some old long kitchen knife to scare the piss out of me.

  “You don’t even have to do all that. If you let my collar go, I will give you anything you want,” I assured him in the calmest voice possible. “It’s not like I have anything left to my name anyway.”

  “Alright, alright. Just hand it over bitch,” His voice was raspy and his poor effort to disguise it was laughable.

  “You sound like you just ate a frog.” My laughter confused him, I noticed. “Listen hun, you don’t have to do all that and you don’t have to call me names either.”

  “What the fuck? Why are you talking? Just hand me the damn money before I cut your ass.” The man began to panic, looking around to see if someone was watching.

  “Calm down, calm down. I’m digging for it.”

  He was becoming antsy. The money was in my grasp but for some reason, I was stalling. Besides the five thousand sitting in the bank, the three thousand in my hand was all the cash I had. It was supposed to stretch and last me at least another two months. And, here this loser was trying to take it all away from me. I shook my head as my breathing turned into panting. I was not sure if I began to hyperventilate due to anxiety or anger. Here I am recovering from the most hurtful and horrific episode of my life, going from being up to flat on my face. Then, here comes this motherfucker trying to take the last of what I had, the last of me. The last of my due from being a faithful yet miserable ass wife, to a man who planted his seed in not only the heart of another woman, but inside her womb too. My mind was siking my body up for one hell of a battle. I knew it was not going to be pretty. The rage built up inside of me
would have this nigga feeling like he fucked with the wrong one today. Every bit of hurt, disappointment, and ounce of despair I felt would be left on this punk in the form of a well-whooped ass. Oh yeah, it was on for damn sure. If this nigga wanted this money, he was definitely going to have to put in time and a half for it. Win or lose, at least I know that I didn’t give up. I had nothing to lose. I lifted my head up, hurt but with fight in my eyes, trying to feel him out one last time.

  “Shit, forget it,” The man breathed as he turned to walk away, leaving me with the most confused look on my face.

  “Huh? Wait where you going?”

  “Don’t worry about the shit, girl. I’m cool,” He yelled back, stuffing the knife in his coat.

  WOOT. WOOT.

  I should have known that walking in this neighborhood, those motherfuckas would be everywhere. A black and white car whipped around the corner with the words Evergreen Park Police, written on the side of it. It was over for him. He lowered his head, and then looked up into my face. I knew he was going to run. The cops had pulled alongside of us, parking their car at a distance in between he and I. The man removed his scully, revealing to me the chocolate Greek God that he was underneath. He was juicy sexy and as he licked his lips, it only made me want him more. The sexy smirk on his face, alerted me to his plan as two male Caucasian cops popped out of the squad car, headed up to me.

  “Ma’am, is there a problem here?” One of the cops asked, with his hands on his hips like he was fucking Superman or some other kind of odd superhero.

  “No, officer. My husband and I were just having a little lover's quarrel. That’s all.” I lied as I quickly clicked my heels towards the man.

  "Uh, yeah, my wife and I are good, sir. Thank you for stopping officers." He waved them off, as he wrapped his bulky arm around my shoulders and escorted me off.

  "Are you sure everything is okay over there?" One of the officers bellowed from behind.

  We seemed to both be on the same page, lifting our free arms to wave them off as turned the corner. Out of their sight, I unwrapped my arm from his torso. He lowered his arm from my shoulder then stopped to stare at me. I stuck my hands down in my pockets, gazing up into his dreamy eyes. I almost smiled but I caught myself, not wanting him to think I was a lame or something. His eyes twinkled as the snow gently fell from the midafternoon sky.

  "No stranger's ever looked out for me in that order before." He moistened his full succulent lips lightly with his tongue. "Thanks."

  "A stranger still hasn't," I flirted, wishing I had made an effort to at least put on my fiery red lipstick earlier.

  "Excuse me?"

  "This wasn't about you. It was about me. I don't have time to sit and pussyfoot around with those cops and their mountains of paperwork. Good thing for you that you played along, though." I smirked and walked ahead of him down the street.

  “Wait shorty, what’s your name?”

  “Bonnie…and don’t call me shorty.” I turned around continuing on down the street.

  He was a determined man I could tell; never letting anything or anyone stand in the way of the things he wanted. He was a bit taller than me at about 5’9” and wore his hair in a low cut. He had a large build appearing as if he came in at about 200lbs of solid muscle. I wasn’t the type of female to chase a man. I loved being the one to have them drooling over me, wanting to catch up with me. Of course, I was digging him but he needed to work for me, figure me out. The closer I came to the end of the block, the more I realized he must not have been that intrigued by me. There were no footsteps behind me and no yelling for me to wait for him. The cold was starting to chip away at my nose as I turned the corner continuing my route to the restaurant.

  “Hey, Bonnie, you just gon’ leave me like that though? Just gon’ pimp off without a goodbye?” The man patted my shoulder as he caught up to me, seemingly out of breath.

  “Hmm. What is your name, sir?”

  “Shine.”

  “No, I mean your government name.”

  “That’s it. Shine. You got a problem with that?”

  “No, not at all.” I smiled. “Where’s your trusty knife, Shine?”

  “Don’t worry about that. I’m not gon’ stick you.” He smiled, giving me a good-humored tap on my arm.

  “That’s nice; now throw it away so we can go have lunch.”

  “Damn, you sure are bold aren’t you? You like to be in control, I see,” Shine groaned pulling the knife from his inside coat pocket, lowering it down to his side.

  “Not really. So are you going to toss it or what?”

  Shine stared into my eyes, trying to feel me out. He looked around for those lurking ass cops then took a few steps back, stabbing the dirt forcefully. He stomped the knife into the dirt a few times making sure it was not visible for anyone to find. My heart thumped hard in my chest as he walked back over to me, standing so close I could smell the faint scent of cognac on his breath. His goatee was well tapered and his skin was a creamy shade of mocha. I removed one of my hands from my coat pocket, reaching up to caress his cheek.

  Apart of me wanted to inch up on my tiptoes to press my lips with his. His charm had me dancing in a trance that I wasn’t sure if I wanted to get out of or not. I kept thinking that I could see myself spending my life with someone like him. He was respectable and a gentleman, regardless of his hardcore exterior. He needed someone to love him as I yearned for the same. Our instant attraction was dramatic, intense and overwhelming to say the least. But I loved every minute of it. Our bodies became electrified with heat, as our skin touched melting into one. He seemed to appear in my life exactly when I needed him. I was down, way down deep in the abyss of being lost but seeing him made my eyes light up and my heart flutter. It was a feeling I hadn’t felt in so very long.

  “You have beautiful skin. Has anyone ever told you that?” I inquired, adrift in his dreamy dark eyes.

  “Yeah, I get that a lot.” He replied, rubbing his chin with a playfully smug look upon his face.

  “Oh you are just so full of your sexy self, huh?” My hand tapped his arm.

  “Well you know, what can I say? When you’ve got it, you can’t front.” Shine cackled.

  “Yeah, you sure got it baby,” Mumbled from my lips before I could stop it.

  “Huh? What was that?” He leaned in closer placing his hand up to his ear.

  “Oh, what? Nothing, nothing.” I meekly turned away, shuffling my hands through my hair.

  “Hmm. So where’s lunch?” Shine whispered in a deep, sultry voice licking his lips just as seductive.

  I had lunch for him alright, I thought. “Let’s go.” I tucked my arm around his, as we walked towards the Western Avenue.

  Six

  Thursday, September 22, 2011

  Two Tears in A Bucket

  Shine

  All I could think about was shorty. She was like love at first sight to me. I felt comfortable with no hesitation around her. There wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t think about the way she swayed her hips, wrapped her arms around my neck when I kissed her lips, or ran her fingers gently across my facial stubble. She was like a fantasy, which felt like sleepwalking only I was fully awake. Her words had me lost in translation. My nose was wide open for this girl. The funny part was that I hadn’t even laid her down yet.

  “No, Aries. No. That nigga has been living here nearly rent-free for almost a month now. If he can’t give up no money for this room and board he’s been getting then he’s got to go,” Eva snapped, tossing a pot in the sink.

  I sat on the couch glaring off into the kitchen, peeping, as Aries didn’t even bother to put up a fight for me. After meeting Bonnie two weeks ago, I haven’t been able to do anything else but lay up under her. She had been like a right on time angel, putting me in a different frame of mind. Being with her put me at ease for the first time since the night my baby was snatched away from me. I told her everything like I told Aries everything. Some niggas might have called it pillow talki
ng but I didn’t give a fuck. She was quickly becoming someone that I adored and couldn’t be without. But because of that, my thoughts of robbing motherfuckas so I could throw money at Eva for a place to stay dissipated.

  It was inevitable. Eva wanted me gone. She was the type of bitch that if it wasn’t benefiting her, she didn’t give a fuck about it. Surely she had reason to, since she looked like a booger-wolf and nobody wanted her ass but the dumb ass nigga she was married to. She would lie, cheat, steal, and kill to just simply get her way and I was tired of having to deal with her shit day in and day out. I had gotten too complacent with this situation and it was time to fucking go.

  “Aye man, I’m gon’ get up outta here,” I yelled over her loud ass voice.

  “Look Shine, I told you how this shit was gonna roll. I’m sorry about the shit that’s happened to you but you ain’t been producing.” Aries spoke with his hands.

  “The fuck? What about all those times I watched them bad ass kids for her while she went out with her beagle faced friends? Don’t worry about it though. It’s cool,” I roared as I pointed back to her.

  “Shine—“

  “Naw, Aries. If nobody had my back I thought you did. I told you about my daughter and you won’t even talk to me about it. I see where your allegiance lies. Inside of stankin’ ass pussy.” My feelings were hurt but my words knew how to cut through brick.

  “Hol’ up one got damn minute. You got the nerve to come up in here and talk about my shit like you’re sitting on some kind of pedestal. Your shit is fucked! That’s your problem, not mine. I’ve got a family to take care of,” Aries walked right up to me, squaring off, toe to toe. “And, since we’re being honest, you keep talking about this daughter like I’ve ever laid an eye on her. No one has ever seen you with her and you never brought her around. So how am I to know that she ever really existed? Or, that you didn’t kidnap some little girl, then after killing and raping her, buried her in some shallow grave?”