The Reunion Show

by Brenda Hampton

  “All of y’all need to leave. Why in the hell would y’all mess up this place like this, knowin’ that ain’t none of y’all gon’ stay and help me clean up?”

  Portia stood and grabbed her purse from the chair. “You’re so right about that, so come on, Tracy, let’s go. Besides, y’all took too long. We had to do somethin’ to keep ourselves busy.”

  Tracy and Portia made their way to the door. Kenny, Poorboy, and Lavel did too. I expressed my concerns to all of them about drinking and driving.

  “I’m the designer driver,” Tracy said. “I only had a few drinks, so Portia and me are good.”

  “Ugh,” I said, getting Tracy’s dumb self back from earlier. “You ain’t no designer driver, you mean designated driver, don’t you?”

  Tracy cut her eyes and smirked. “You know what I meant. I’ve been drinking too much, that’s all.”

  “Yeah, whatever, but all of y’all need to be careful.”

  “I’m good,” Kenny slurred. “After that you know what, I’m real good. I’ve been way mo’ fucked up than this, so you don’t need to worry about me. Just hit me up in about an hour. I can promise you that I’ll be home. In the meantime, you need to hurry up and get there too. We need to finish what we started in the bedroom.”

  As long as I could bring my jaybird with me, we’d definitely finish up. I walked everyone to the door to say goodbye. I gave Kenny a kiss, but turned his keys over to Lavel who looked more stable than he was. After they were all gone, I locked the door. I made my way down the hallway and glanced at the clock on the wall. It was after four in the morning. I was too tired to clean up. On my way to the bedroom, I spotted Roc who was now sitting up on the couch with a mean mug washed across his face. The cold look in his eyes said one thing—I was in deep trouble. Or, at least, that was what he thought. He was the one in trouble, and I was preparing myself to cook his last supper.

  Turn a woman down and what does she do? Go crazy, call you names, and act a goddamn fool. Men, on the other hand, we get turned down and have to deal with it. On a for real tip, Jada pissed me off, but I was too tired to deal with her last night. The last thing on my mind was fucking Jada. She was out of control. I wondered why Jeff hadn’t busted up in here to shut that shit down. That was kind of odd, but maybe the motherfucker was trying to get some sleep like I was. I was definitely going to make it my business to let him know what was up. Jada had set herself up for a big downfall. It was now just a matter of time before this would be over.

  I guess she thought I was a fool. I had heard her on the phone while in the bathroom, talking to Chase. For now, I decided to play right along with her, but this challenge was a wrap. She had broken the rules. Sometime today, I was going to call her out on what she’d done and tell her to vacate the premises on her free will. If not, Jeff was going to be called to do his so-called investigation. After that, I would be able to get back to my woman, my kids, and to my shop that I’m sure was suffering because I wasn’t there to run it. I would have some extra cash in my pockets and bragging rights would belong to me.

  I got so uncomfortable on the couch that I returned to the bedroom around six in the morning. I went back to sleep, but when I got up, I struggled to get out of bed. Jada was already up. I suspected she was either high from sex last night or she was still tripping about what had gone down with us. Either way, I changed into my workout gear, and while in the bedroom, I looked around to see if I could find the cell phone she had been using. I searched around the bed she’d slept in and looked through her clothes in the closet. I found nothing until I picked up a pair of her tennis shoes and found the phone hidden inside one of them. Bingo. I turned the phone on and kept it with me.

  My workout lasted for about an hour. Once I was done, I passed through the kitchen to make my way to the shower. I saw Jada cooking. She didn’t say one word to me; I didn’t say nothing to her. I got busy in the shower and then changed into a wife beater and hanging B-ball shorts. Before putting the cell phone in my pocket, I checked to see if any text messages had been sent to her. There were none, but there were several outgoing phone calls to the same number, and a few incoming calls from a different number. I figured the number was Chase’s. I wasn’t sure what she and Jada had to holler about, and it surprised me that they’d been keeping in touch. Regardless, Jada had possession of a phone she wasn’t supposed to have. That alone was enough to end this today, in addition to the party she’d had.

  I was ready to get my grub on, so I made my way to the kitchen. Jada was already sitting at the kitchen table eating. What was supposed to be my food was still on the stove. The bacon was burnt, the scrambled eggs were soaked in grease and gobs of black pepper were sprinkled on top. In the toaster were two pieces of bread, burnt to a crisp. When I lifted the spoon that was stuck in the grits, I saw that the grits were full of lumps. It was apparent that Jada fucked up breakfast on purpose, but I didn’t trip. I piled the food on my plate and sat right next to her at the kitchen table. She should’ve been done eating her food, but she hadn’t eaten much because she wanted me to see how her food looked nothing like mine. Her food was hooked up. She smacked while licking her fingers.

  “What happened to my food?” I asked as I scraped the burnt toast with a knife. I spread jelly on top and bit into the toast.

  “I don’t know what you mean,” she said.

  “You know what I mean. Look at my food. You ain’t never served me nothin’ like this.”

  “And you ain’t ever served me period. Just be grateful and shut your mouth.”

  I sucked in my bottom lip; my blood was definitely boiling. “Who the fuck do you think you keep talkin’ to? I put up with yo bullshit last night, but today is a new day. Watch yourself or else.”

  She dropped her fork on the table and swiped her hands together. “Or else what? What you gon’ do? Hit me?”

  “I’m sure you would like that; after all, you seem to be used to niggas kickin’ yo ass. Take that aggression you got elsewhere or save it for those fools who be bumpin’ you upside yo head, like the one who was here with you last night.”

  I got up from the table and went into the living room to eat. It was messed up that we had gotten to this point. I thought she was good people, but something about her had changed.

  Minutes later, she came into the living room and put her plate on the table.

  “I’m not tryin’ to be mean to you, Roc, but puttin’ Kenny aside from all of this, you did play me last night.”

  I finished chewing the bacon, but left the eggs alone because they were too greasy. “How did I play you? All I said was I didn’t want to have sex.”

  “But you said earlier that you would be gentle with me. I took that as we would hook up. I never would’ve put myself out there like that had I known you weren’t serious.”

  I wiped my mouth and rubbed my hands together. Maybe I shouldn’t have led her to believe that something would go down.

  “My bad for sayin’ that to you, all right? I thought you were playin’. I didn’t know you were serious about gettin’ your freak on with me.”

  “I had been playin’ up until last night. But we both know that you ain’t attracted to nobody like me. Women like Chase can get it. But down to earth, witty, and thick girls ain’t yo cup of tea. Let’s be real.”

  “On a for real tip, that ain’t true. You need to build up confidence and stop comparin’ yourself to Chase. It sounds like this has more to do with your self-esteem than it does about me.”

  She shrugged. “Maybe, it does. But you still rejected me. That kind of hurt my feelings. That’s why I called Kenny, but that li’l thing between us last night wasn’t about nothin’. A bitch like me still horny, so you know somethin’ wasn’t right with him.”

  “I couldn’t tell by the way you were hollerin’ and screamin’.”

  “I was fakin’ it. Don’t you know what a woman sounds like when she’s fakin’ it?”

  “No, I really don’t, but that’s yo business,
not mine. And, FYI, I didn’t reject you. I just made a decision not to cause no more harm to myself.”

  “So, you were willin’ to do harm and take a risk with Chase.”

  I nodded, trying to leave it there, but Jada pushed.

  “Then how can you take a risk with her, but then decide not to take a risk with other people? I’m just askin’, because the way y’all men process things is kind of fucked up.”

  “I’mma throw that right back at you, ’cause y’all women got issues too. I can’t believe how upset y’all get when things don’t go y’all way.”

  She giggled and laughed as she clapped her hands. “We can be somethin’ else, but I’m that way because I believe in playin’ fair. That’s all.”

  Jada didn’t have me convinced. She knew damn well that she wasn’t playing fair with the cell phone or with the party she’d had. I don’t know why she thought I wasn’t going to hold that against her. Thing is, she hadn’t even played fair with breakfast. I decided to call her out on it.

  “My mouth tastes like I’ve been eatin’ tar. I don’t call what you cooked for me as playin’ fair, especially when yo breakfast lookin’ like it came straight from IHOP.”

  Jada looked at my plate that still had most of the food on it. She shook her head and busted out laughing. “I did do you wrong, didn’t I?”

  “No doubt, but I’ll find me somethin’ else to eat later.”

  “You don’t have to. I’ll hook you up in a minute, but in return…” Jada paused and smiled. I knew what her smile was all about.

  “In return,” I said, clearing my throat, “you would like for us to have sex, right? Even though you got down with Kenny, you still think we should go there.”

  “I told you Kenny wasn’t about nothin’, so why not?”

  “Sounds like Chase done rubbed off on you. Don’t let her get into yo head like that because she’s a bad influence. You seem like you got somethin’ to prove, but I think you’re much better than that.”

  I could always tell whenever a woman was being real with me or not. Truthfully, I did not think Jada wanted to go there with me sexually. If anything, she wanted to brag about it to Chase or she wanted to make herself feel accomplished. She didn’t come off as the kind of chick who would fuck any man just because. I saw her as a dick-teaser with a whole lot of mouth. Still, she went on and on about why we should get our fuck on, so I went with my gut and decided to put her to the test. I stood right in front of her and removed my shorts. I tossed them on the couch along with my wife beater. A serious look was on my face.

  “Come on. Take your clothes off.”

  Jada’s eyes dropped to my package that wasn’t hard yet.

  “Stop lookin’ at it,” I said. “It’ll get hard as soon as you take off your clothes and open your legs, so I can get a peek at the goodies.”

  Jada sat speechless. She reached out to touch my six-pack and then she rubbed the smooth hair above my shaft.

  “You is hella sexy, but ain’t no way I’m gettin’ naked in front of you. We gon’ have to be in the dark or somethin’. I don’t want you to witness all this cellulite I’m representin’ on my thighs and ass.”

  “Cellulite is no problem for me. If you want to cover up, let’s go to the bedroom where there are plenty of sheets for you to cover up like you did last night.”

  I walked off, knowing damn well that Jada wouldn’t follow me. If she did, she would come up with another excuse. Surprisingly, she did follow me, but when I lay back on the bed with my hands behind my head, she didn’t budge.

  “What’s the hold up, ma? You scared or what? Come on and hook a nigga up.”

  Her eyes scanned me while lying on the bed. She stood, biting her nails. “I’m not scared at all. I just don’t think you really want to do this.”

  I sat up on my elbows and looked down at my goods. “We really want to do this, so take off your clothes and start ridin’ this mutha. I want some of that action you gave ol’ boy last night.”

  She hesitated, so I started to stroke myself. As my dick grew, Jada shielded her eyes and then swung around. “Okay, stop it, would you?” She turned back around to face me and peeked through her fingers. “I really don’t want to do this, unless I get to know you on a certain level. Realistically, I don’t get down like that with dudes I don’t know much about. And even though Kenny didn’t satisfy me last night, he still my boo.”

  “I respect that. From now on, I don’t want to hear yo mouth about us havin’ sex again, all right?”

  She nodded and smiled. I got up from the bed to hug her, but she quickly jumped away from me. “No, siree. Back it up, back the fuck up. I don’t want that thing nowhere near me. It’s nice to look at, nice to dream about, but that’s it!”

  I backed away with my hands in the air. Jada’s eyes searched me again from head to toe.

  “I’m gon’ put on some clothes,” I said. “But would you please go redo my breakfast? If you don’t want to, let me know so I can go make some kind of magic happen for myself.”

  “I’ve seen your magic and it ain’t pretty. I got you. Just give me thirty minutes or so to hook you up.”

  I thanked her. She had no idea how much respect I had for her, but unfortunately, that respect wasn’t going to stop me from doing what I had to do.

  I was known for talking a bunch of mess, but when it came down to sex, I was a big ol’ wuss, especially if I didn’t really know who I was dealing with. If I did know him, it would be on. I meant every word that I’d said to Roc, even though seeing him naked like that made it so hard for me to walk away. It was best that I did. I could never see myself letting all that he had inside of me. Unfortunately, my little hopes and dreams about what could have been had to remain a fantasy.

  I left the bedroom feeling much better. Roc was sweet. There was a part of me that wanted to tell him about what Chase had been up to. Maybe he and I could somehow work this out. Maybe I could get him into the bathroom where nobody would see us and tell him how I thought the remainder of this challenge should play out. The only problem with that was I didn’t have a plan. I didn’t know if he would be willing to split anything with me or if he would be upset about all the backstabbing that had gone on. Then there was the trust thing. Could I trust him and would he trust me? I struggled with what to do, and I still didn’t have any answers when I finished cooking his food.

  “Roc,” I yelled out. “Yo food is ready.”

  This time, I made him some waffles, sausages, and eggs. I poured him a tall glass of orange juice and put his food on the table. Couldn’t nobody tell me that Jada Mahoney didn’t know how to take care of a man. I had messed up with Kiley, but I had promised myself that I would do better.

  Roc came into the kitchen without a stitch of clothing on. He glanced at the food and then planted a kiss on my cheek.

  “Thanks, ma. When I win this challenge, I’mma do somethin’ real sweet for you.”

  “You can do something sweet for me now and go put on some clothes. I don’t understand how you can walk around like that. Baby, you are brave.”

  “Brave and confident. You should try this too. I promise I won’t bite.”

  “I don’t want to spoil your appetite, so stop talkin’ crazy and eat your food.”

  I playfully slapped his back and watched him eat. I kept thinking that there wasn’t a chance in hell he would win, unless I changed things up a bit. I thought about it all day, and as we sat outside playing cards, I tried to get a feel for where his head was with all of this.

  “I’m ready to go home, ain’t you?” I asked.

  He observed the cards in his hand and nodded. “You ain’t said nothin’ that I ain’t been thinkin’.”

  “Then, let’s just call a truce and be done with it. Let’s call Jeff up in here and tell him that we both win and this mess is over.”

  He laid a spade on the table, taking my spade. “I don’t think he would be down for anything like that and neither would I. You and me like each othe
r, no doubt, but it’s every man for themselves.”

  “I know that, but I don’t think it would be a bad idea for us to end this right now. Ain’t no tellin’ how many more days and nights we’ll have to stay here. You don’t seem like you’re givin’ up, and I don’t want to either. But we both can walk away with fifty grand in our pockets. What’s so wrong with that?”

  “That’s not how you play the game, ma. It’s either you win or you lose. Besides, I’m confident that I can win this thing. I prefer to have a hundred g’s in my pocket, instead of fifty.”

  He was pissing me off. I was trying my best to save this fool, but his ass was being greedy. “I don’t get why you’re so confident. Do you need the money that doggone bad where you’re not willin’ to end this and share? I think it’s the right thing to do. This is the last time I’mma put my offer on the table.”

  He looked at his cards and then scratched his head before responding. “I’m not goin’ to accept your offer, so don’t bother to swing it my way again. This will be over with soon enough. Then you can pack your bags and get back to whatever you were doin’ before you came here.”

  My brows rose. I was shocked to hear him say what he did, but I should’ve known that a street Negro would be in it for self. All of my thoughts from today went out the window. This wasn’t about us coming together to win anymore. It was back to me and that crazy heifer, Chase, who was behind the scenes calling the shots.

  My slight attitude was back. I tried not to let it show. I continued to play cards with Roc, and after he won the game, I asked if he would show me some tips in the workout room on how to shed pounds. I had asked Jaylin to help me, but all he did was yell and insult me. I was serious about losing weight. Although I loved my curves, I still wanted to be in better shape. Some people believed that eating the right foods was key. Since I wasn’t going to change up anything in the kitchen, I had to seek other options.

  “I don’t mind helpin’ you, but you gotta stick with it,” Roc said. “You can’t expect to be in the gym once a month and see results.”