It's a Curl Thing

by Jacquelin Thomas

  I hear her gasp of surprise. “What are you talking about, Rhyann?”

  “I step up into the Crowning Glory Hair Salon with fifty dollars thinking I can get my hair done for that. It came to one hundred seventy-five.”

  She sounds amazed. “I didn’t know it would cost that much, Rhyann, since it wasn’t a weave. Sorry.”

  “You better be glad I was able to talk Miss Marilee into letting me work off the rest of the money I owe her.”

  “I’m so sorry,” Mimi says, and I know she means it. “Rhyann, you know I don’t ever check prices. We pay much more than that for my extensions, so I figured a shampoo, cut, and color would be loads cheaper.”

  “Well, everybody doesn’t have rich parents like you, Mimi. In my world, we actually have to count our pennies,” I snap. “Anyway, I worked it out.”

  I really shouldn’t put all of the blame on her. The truth is that I should have checked the price for myself, but right now she’s the recipient of my anger.

  Mimi being Mimi, my attitude doesn’t faze her in the least. She lives in her own world most of the time.

  “Rhyann, do you like the way she did your hair?” she asks after a moment.

  “It’s okay.”

  “That doesn’t sound good.”

  “That’s all I can say about it, Mimi. It’s okay. Tameka jacked up my hair big time and Miss Marilee had to cut it. It’s so short now.”

  “Take a picture and send it to me. I want to see how Miss Marilee styled it.”

  “I already took one. I’ll send it over right now.”

  A few minutes later, Mimi says, “Rhyann, I like your hair. Girl, you need to stop tripping. That cut is too cute on you.”

  “I didn’t say it was ugly.” I release a soft sigh of frustration. “I wanted my hair long. That’s why I was growing it out. Like duuhh.”

  “After the prom, you can put braids back in or get some hair extensions—that’ll help until it grows back.”

  Mimi always wears weaves. Matter of fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen her without one, so she has no clue how devastated I am about my own hair. I was so proud of how healthy and long it had gotten, and now I have to start over. I can’t help it. This whole deal depresses me.

  “There’s no point in talking about it anymore,” I go on. “I’m not really feeling the prom like I was before.”

  “What do you mean by that? Rhyann, you’re still going, right?”

  “Yeah,” I say. “I’m just not as excited about it anymore. I don’t like my hair, and that’s ruined it for me.”

  “Rhyann, you look so nice with your hair cut like that. You just have to get used to it, that’s all.”

  “If it was you, you’d feel the same way I do.”

  “Girl, your hair is still longer than mine,” Mimi tells me. “You know I messed up my hair when I had braids. That’s why I’m wearing a weave. My hair came out on the sides and I had a lot of breakage from letting a friend braid it. Remember how she braided it too tight? I’ve been wearing a net weave, so it’s growing good now.”

  I lay down across my bed as the subject of our conversation shifts to boys.

  “You know Traven wants to be your boo,” Mimi tells me. “That boy is crazy about you.”

  “Whatever,” I mutter. “Traven Connor thinks he’s a playa. I don’t have time for games.”

  I’m so not about to get played. Been there. Didn’t like it one bit.

  “He seems like a nice boy to me.”

  “Traven is nice,” I confirm. “But even nice guys will try to play you when all girls got them thinking they’re God’s gift to women. Traven is fine, but he ain’t all that.”

  “Rhyann, I think you like Traven a little more than you’re letting on.”

  Mimi has some nerve telling me that. “You’ve already dropped fifty points with the hair drama, but now you’ve just gone down another five on the B.F.F. chart. I don’t like that boy.”

  She disagrees. “Your guard’s up big time, so that must mean that you really really like him.”

  “Of course I like Traven,” I state. “He’s my friend.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “Can we talk about something else, Mimi?” I’m not about to admit that she’s right in her assumption. The truth is that I’m not sure I want to admit it to myself. The last couple of relationships took a toll on my heart, and personally I don’t think a boyfriend is worth all the pain.

  “Rhyann, it sounds like you’ve been taking too many bitterness pills. You need to cancel that prescription.”

  “Whatever…,” I mutter. “People get tired of being dogged, Mimi. I haven’t had good luck in the boyfriend department, so I’m quitting before I hurt somebody. Namely me.”

  “Rhyann, you should go into the relationship just to have fun. Don’t take it so seriously.”

  I can’t believe this chick! She’s actually trying to give me relationship advice. Every boyfriend Mimi gets, she’s planning her wedding after a couple of weeks. She gets too serious way too quick.

  “Rhyann, did you talk to your aunt again?” Mimi asks, wisely changing the subject. “I really want you to stay at the hotel with us. It’s not going to be the same without you.”

  I don’t like this subject. “Mimi, I told you that she’s not gonna change her mind. You don’t know my aunt like I do.”

  “Did you tell her that my mom is the one reserving the room? You don’t have to pay for anything.”

  “She’s not worried about that, Mimi. Auntie Mo is concerned more about me getting with a boy.”

  “We’re just going to go from room to room hanging out and partying. Nobody’s trying to have sex. Why do they think all teens want to do is to have sex?”

  “Mimi, you don’t have to tell me—I know all that. It’s my aunt who’s tripping over this.”

  “Please, just ask her one more time. If I keep nagging at Mother, she will usually give in.”

  “Stuff like that won’t work with my aunt. You end up with some really hurt feelings if you keep bothering her.”

  “You can still come by the hotel, though,” Mimi suggests. “You don’t have to spend the night.”

  “That’s an idea,” I say.

  Auntie Mo is not home ten minutes before I bring up the subject of staying at the hotel again. We’ve talked about this almost every day for the past week.

  “Please reconsider letting me stay at the Viceroy,” I plead. “I’ll clean the whole house for a whole month by myself if you let me do this. Please.”

  “Rhyann, I’m not going to change my mind. You don’t have any reason to be staying in a hotel. I’m sorry, but the answer is still no.”

  I sigh with exasperation. “I just don’t see why I can’t stay with Mimi and the other girls at the Viceroy hotel,” I complain. “You know them, Auntie Mo. It’s the Viceroy. I’ll never get to stay in a place like that. Ever.”

  “I’m sure it’s a nice hotel. I can’t imagine why on earth Dean Reuben would pay that kind of money for her teenage daughter to stay in a place like that unsupervised. A lot of stuff goes on at those hotels on prom night. Dean should really keep a tighter rein on Mimi as far as I’m concerned.” Auntie Mo shakes her head in disapproval. “She lets that girl do way too much.”

  “But I’m not trying to do nothing stupid,” I argue. “Auntie Mo, I know how to say no. I’m not trying to go there with Traven or any other boy. I thought you knew that about me.”

  “Going to a hotel ain’t gonna cause nothing but trouble, sweetheart.”

  I fight the urge to have a major temper tantrum. My aunt gets on my last nerve sometimes. After everything I have been through, she should at least let me stay in the suite with my friends. We’re not planning to have sex with our dates. They’re not our boyfriends, for one thing. Mostly, everybody just wants to hang out, since it’s such a special night. What’s the big deal?

  “Why don’t you trust me, Auntie Mo?” I ask.

  She cups my chin ten
derly. “It’s not a question of trust, Rhyann. I can see the potential danger that lies ahead.”

  “But—”

  “Look, Rhyann, I’m not going to change my mind about this.” Patting the empty space beside her, she says, “Come sit here with me.”

  I drop down on the sofa, pouting. I’ve tried everything else—this can’t hurt.

  My lips stuck out don’t affect Auntie Mo one bit.

  “Do you know how many times I’ve heard teenagers say, ‘I slipped up’?” She points toward the door. “Remember when your little friend from down the street found out she was pregnant? What did she tell you when we saw her at the church?”

  I bow my head. “That she hadn’t planned on having sex—it just happened. She said they just slipped up.”

  “Exactly,” Auntie Mo utters. “Now tell me something—how in the world do you slip up and end up naked?”

  I think about Auntie Mo’s question but don’t have an answer for her, so I stare down at my hands, which are clenched together in my lap.

  “Do you think that maybe it was because she got caught up with emotion?”

  I shrug. “I guess.”

  “She told you that she hadn’t planned on doing anything. But they were alone in that boy’s house and somehow the clothes just slipped off, huh.”

  Squirming in my chair, I respond, “Yeah, I guess they got caught up in the moment.” I hate when she does stuff like this to me. Auntie Mo is always saying that she never asks a question that she doesn’t already know the answer to.

  “Exactly. Now, what makes you think that you’re immune to moments like that?”

  “I don’t have a boyfriend, Auntie Mo. It does take two, remember?”

  “Sweetie, I’m not stupid! I know how you feel about Traven, and I know how he feels about you.”

  I open my mouth to speak, but Auntie Mo stops me by saying, “Don’t bother denying it, Rhyann.”

  “So I can’t stay at the hotel because I’m going to the prom with Traven?”

  “Rhyann, it doesn’t have anything to do with Traven. You can’t stay because I don’t think it’s a good idea. I didn’t do it with my own children, and I’m not going to let you spend the night at a hotel with other teens. It just don’t feel right.”

  I fold my arms across my chest. “Auntie Mo, you’re no fun at all.”

  She smiles. “I love you anyway.”

  “A car would make me feel so much better, you know.”

  “Then I’m afraid you’re not going to have such a good evening.”

  I laugh. “Auntie Mo, you are so mean to me.”

  “Oh, really? Well, tell me this. Would a mean person offer you some ice cream?”

  “Butter pecan?” I ask.

  She rises to her feet. “I just bought some this afternoon.”

  I stand up and loop my arm through hers. “I forgive you for being so overprotective.”

  “And I forgive you for whining,” she responds as we stroll toward the kitchen. This is how we resolve our issues—over bowls of ice cream.

  Slowing my pace, I react to what she just said. “Auntie Mo, I don’t whine.”

  “Since when?” she asks with a chuckle.

  A few minutes later, we’re seated across from each other at the kitchen table, eating our ice cream.

  “Why are you so quiet?” I ask Auntie Mo. “What are you thinking about?”

  “What I was like at your age.” She smiles. “I was thinking about my prom and how upset I was with my mother for not letting me wear a strapless gown. I almost changed my mind about going.”

  “For real? You couldn’t wear a dress if it didn’t have straps?”

  She raises her eyebrows at me. “You know that my daddy was a minister. Both of my parents were very religious and very strict. When your mom told them that she was pregnant the first time, they were devastated. She ended up marrying Robert because it was what they wanted, but that marriage didn’t last long at all. They separated shortly after she had Tameka. Monica met your father, but she never told us anything about him except that he was a musician and his nickname was C Love. She was extremely private when it came to the men in her life. When he left, Monica followed him to New York, and that’s where you and Brady were born.”

  “I guess my mom was a rolling stone.”

  “No, it wasn’t like that, Rhyann. Your mama, when she loved she loved hard. She loved your father. She was so brokenhearted when she came back to Los Angeles. That’s when she met Phillip’s daddy. He helped her get over C Love.”

  “I hate not knowing anything about my father,” I confess. “It’s like there’s a whole half of me missing.”

  “I wish there was more I could tell you.”

  “She didn’t have anything in her stuff? No pictures or anything?”

  “Nothing that tells me the identity of C Love.”

  “Was he married?” I ask.

  Auntie Mo meets my gaze. “I don’t know for sure, but I think he might have been. Back then I asked Monica that same question, and she never gave me a straight answer.”

  “One day I’m going to find out who he is,” I tell my aunt. “I don’t want anything from him. I just want to know what he looks like and if he’s a nice person.”

  “Honey, that’s entirely up to you, but I want you to know that I’ll do what I can to help. I love you like my own child and I don’t want you to ever forget it.”

  That makes me feel a lot better. “I know, Auntie Mo. That’s why I forgive you.”

  Chapter 4

  I wake up early Saturday morning and climb out of bed to get dressed immediately so that I can start my chores. Now that I’ve decided to attend the prom after all, I don’t want anything to mess me up. Auntie Mo don’t play when it comes to keeping our rooms clean, and she don’t have a problem putting a stop to my plans in a hurry.

  “I didn’t expect you up so soon,” she tells me when I stroll out of my bedroom. “I thought you’d want to sleep in today.” I accompany her to the small laundry room located near the back of the house. “I need to get all of my work out of the way before we leave to get our manicures and pedicures. I’m even gonna let them wax my eyebrows.” I normally just let Tameka pluck the stray hairs with tweezers, but since all the drama, I’m not letting her touch anything on me anymore.

  “Are you excited about tonight?”

  “I am but not as much as I was,” I confess. “I can’t wear the hairstyle I wanted and I can’t stay at the hotel with my friends. This is not the way I thought my prom would turn out.”

  “You can still have fun,” Auntie Mo says evenly. “It’s up to you. Life is all about choices.”

  I don’t bother responding because there’s really no point. Nothing I say will make my aunt change her mind about letting me stay at the hotel.

  Auntie Mo drops a load of laundry in the washing machine. “Traven and you are gonna take some cute pictures together.”

  I can tell by the grin on her face that she’s trying to play matchmaker. “We’re just friends,” I say. “Just friends.”

  “That boy don’t just want to leave it at friendship, Rhyann. He has a huge crush on you.”

  “That’s his problem,” I reply, trying to act nonchalant.

  Apparently, I’m not doing a great job of it, because she responds, “I know you, Rhyann Hamilton, and you have feelings for Traven. Girl, just own up to it, ’cause you ain’t fooling nobody but yourself.”

  I wisely keep my mouth shut.

  Divine calls me an hour later. “What’s up?”

  “I’m about to get up outta here in a few minutes to get my nails and feet done. What’s up with you?”

  “Just got home from my tae kwan do class and wanted to call to see how you’re feeling. Alyssa and I are going to Atlanta. We’re spending the night with my mom.”

  “How are the wedding plans coming?”

  “Okay, I guess,” Divine responds. “She and Kevin are always flying to this place and that place gett
ing stuff. They keep saying they want to keep it nice and simple, but from what I can tell, this wedding is going to be the ceremony of the century.”

  “I’m just glad I’m invited. I don’t want to miss this,” I say, excited. “Have you heard anything else about the baby and Ava?”

  “Just that she’s home resting. She has a friend staying with her, so it must be pretty serious.”

  “I’ll put her on the prayer list,” I say.

  “It sounds like you’re in a better mood. Since you’re getting your nails done, you must be going to the prom, right?”

  “I’m going,” I confirm. “You talked me into it. Besides, it would’ve been foul to cancel on Traven at the last minute.”

  “Girl, you’re gonna have so much fun. I wish I could be there with y’all. The three divas in the house…”

  I laugh with her. “Dee, they wouldn’t be able to handle it.”

  “It’s too bad that you’re not able to stay at the Viceroy with Mimi and the rest of them. Aunt Phoebe and Uncle Reed didn’t let us stay at any of the hotels either, but they hosted a midnight breakfast with Aunt Shirley after the prom.”

  “One of the parents is doing that here, too,” I say.

  “Are you going to be able to go to that?” Divine asks.

  “Yeah,” I reply. “Auntie Mo didn’t have a problem with that. She just doesn’t want me anywhere near a hotel. The thing is that if I really wanted to do something, there’s nothing she could do to stop me.”

  “Don’t say that too loud,” she says in a fake whisper. “You might not ever leave the house again.”

  We laugh.

  “My mom just got here,” Divine announces. “Call me tomorrow. I want to hear all about your prom.”

  After I get off the phone, I sit down at my desk and log onto my journal.

  May 3rd

  I was way too upset yesterday to upload the picture of my prom hairdo. Talk about drama! First Tameka screws up my color and then she chops off my hair instead of giving me soft layers. But a huge thanks to Miss Marilee at Crowning Glory Hair Salon for saving the day and especially my sister’s life.