All in a Day

by Alexis Nicole

  “Then,” Millie continued, “Henry showed up and they had this big argument in the backyard and he stormed off.”

  My heart dropped at the mention of Henry’s name. Why were they still doing the Morgan-Henry tango? I was hoping that he had gotten past that stage already.

  “Where is he?” I finally spoke.

  “Nobody knows. They said Beau has been calling him and looking for him, but hasn’t had any luck.”

  I took a moment to think about all the places he would go after a scene like that. His office and house had probably already been checked. I got up from my bed and grabbed my shoes when it hit me.

  “Uh, hello? I’m still here.”

  “I’m gonna call you back.” I could only imagine the shock and disappointment on her face. I knew she wanted me to be more reactive, but I had a different plan in mind. I hung up the phone without saying another word and rushed out the house. I was surprised I even managed to grab my wallet and my keys before I hit the door.

  I took a drive about twenty miles outside of town to where I thought Henry would be. There was a bar he frequented when he didn’t want to run into anyone he knew. It was the place we drank at the first night we hooked up. I spotted him from the front door sucking down what looked like Hennessy and then motioned to order another.

  “Make that two,” I said to the bartender as I sat down next to Henry.

  “Fancy meeting you here,” he said through a drunken chuckle. “You a detective now?”

  “Trust me, honey, I could’ve found Osama bin Laden if I wanted it bad enough.” The bartender brought us our drinks and I quickly threw it back like a shot and ordered another one.

  “I’m guessing you heard the truth about Ahvi.” He took a sip of his drink and I could see him swallowing his pain.

  “Yeah, I did.” I wanted to comfort him without seeming pushy so I didn’t say too much. “Are you okay?”

  “Oh, that was good.” He chuckled again. “That almost sounded like you genuinely care.”

  I was a little taken aback by his comment. I knew he was hurting but I wasn’t going to be his punching bag. I didn’t see Morgan out looking for him, hoping he was okay.

  “I do genuinely care.” I tried to touch his hand and he picked up his drink. I tried not to trip and followed suit with the fresh drink that was placed in front of me.

  “You are elated that there is no possible way Morgan would want to get back with me and you are here to capitalize.”

  “That is not true.” I really was being sincere. It was beginning to piss me off that he couldn’t see that.

  “Then why are you here, Janette?”

  “I felt like you needed a drinking partner with the week you have had. Between your business venture kind of falling through and Morgan being a lesbian, I—”

  “Wait, what did you just say?” He cut me off in mid-sentence and I scrambled to try to remember what just came out of my mouth. “How do you even know about my business venture?”

  My stomach quickly fell to my feet and I immediately knew I messed up. How did I just put my foot in my mouth trying to be genuine?

  “You know how people talk. I heard it around.” I tried to clean it up as much as I could, but even in his intoxicated state, I could tell, he wasn’t buying it.

  “No one knew about that deal so I’m going to ask you again. How did you know?”

  I could see his anger building inside of him and it was a bit intimidating. I made that move to help my chances with Henry, not to sabotage them. I tried to think of a lie to cover my tracks but the two drinks were kicking in and I could feel the truth seeping out.

  “I may have run into Don earlier this week.” It was almost like I couldn’t stop it from coming out. I looked straight in Henry’s face and it seemed like I could see steam coming out his ears.

  “What the hell did you do?”

  The way he looked at me was something I had never seen before. It was almost like pure disgust and hatred and I had no idea what to say to diffuse the situation. I hated resorting to the truth if I had no clue if it was going to be in my favor.

  “I simply made a suggestion and—”

  He jumped off the barstool before I could finish telling him what happened. He looked at me like I was a ghost who was haunting him. “I knew something interfered and I couldn’t figure out what. It was you.”

  “Henry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” I got up from my seat and tried to go to him but he swatted me away.

  “All the women in your family are toxic. I don’t know what I did to have you try to ruin my life, but I want you and your carpet-munching cousin to stay far away from me.” He dug in his pocket and pulled out money and threw it on the bar.

  I had never seen Henry like this and I felt bad that I contributed to his outburst. He stumbled out of the door and I was left standing there trying to comprehend what just happened. I really wished my daddy was here at this moment to tell me what to do because I didn’t have a plan B.

  Chapter 24

  Morgan

  If I had to delete any day out of my entire life, yesterday would have definitely been that day. I was glad everything was out in the open but I could have done without the drama. My family was on the best possible behavior they could’ve been on but the vibe was awkward and uncomfortable. My cousins wouldn’t stop asking Ahvi lesbian questions as if they were researching her for a school project. My mom was quiet the entire time, and that conversation with Henry was the most difficult one I ever had in my life. I worried about him the entire night and tried to find out where he stormed off to.

  The worst part of the night was the continuation of the discussion my parents and I started in their room. This time they wanted to include Ahvi and get to the bottom of how this union even happened. I felt like we murdered someone and they were trying to get a confession out of us. They didn’t even allow Ahvi to sleep in my room. She was banished to the basement. My father made it a point to express just how uncomfortable he was with me sharing a bed with another woman under his roof. At this point I was counting down the days until we returned to our peaceful home in London. If I was lucky my parents would forget the whole thing and we could be out of here quicker.

  My mother was still adamant about going to meet with her pastor this morning. I didn’t know what today was going to bring but I definitely knew it wasn’t going to be good. A black Southern preacher talking to two lesbians about their wedding plans? You can’t even make that up in a Tyler Perry movie.

  I tiptoed around my room and the bathroom, trying to make the least amount of noise possible so I wouldn’t have to have an early-morning conversation with my parents. I didn’t know how much more lecturing and questions I could take from them.

  I walked into the kitchen and to my surprise everyone was dressed and eating breakfast silently. I could tell my parents were completely out of their element and didn’t know what else to do or say. It was never this quiet at our breakfast table. I could only imagine how Ahvi was feeling right now. Maybe I should have just ignored my mother’s request to come out here and stayed where we were safe and comfortable.

  “Morning.” I tried to sound enthusiastic but nobody even made an attempt. I got no response. I grabbed a piece of toast off the counter and tried to stuff my face before anyone changed their mind about staying silent.

  “Well, I gotta go check on the shop.” My father got up from the table and placed his dishes in the sink without even looking at me. It was the first time he had given me the silent treatment and it was a crushing blow. We had always been close and he always had my back in most of the decisions I had made, so for him to be completely disappointed in me really hurt.

  “See you later, baby,” he said as he kissed my mother on her forehead. He headed out the door without even looking back or saying good-bye to me and I could feel the tears coming. I turned toward the sink so that no one could see them fall, and tried my best to straighten up my face. I didn’t know what I expected their reac
tion to be but I definitely didn’t think that my dad would actually stop talking to me. I knew he would be disappointed, but I had hoped that he loved me enough to move past it and be there for me.

  My mother followed my father’s lead and got up from the table to place her dishes in the sink. I wiped my face and sniffled so that she couldn’t see me crying.

  “I’m going to be ready to go in about ten minutes. Will you be ready by then?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” were the only words that I could respond with. If I had said anything else I felt like I would be a puddle on the floor.

  She walked out of the kitchen and I almost fell to my knees. I felt Ahvi quickly come behind me to catch me before I hit the floor. I turned toward her and buried my face in her chest. I couldn’t control my emotions anymore and I began to weep.

  “It’s okay. Coming out is hard, especially in these circumstances. I’m sure they’ll come around sooner or later.”

  “And if they don’t?” I said with my head still laid on her. She lifted my head and kissed my tears on my cheek, which made me smile.

  “Then I will whisk you away to a lovely chateau in Paris and we can do this the right way.”

  Ahvi’s comment made me grin from ear to ear and it reminded me that I was one-hundred percent happy with my decision to be with her. She was my other half and I was grateful for her. I kissed the inside of her hands and took a deep breath to calm myself.

  “Let’s go finish getting ready.” I let go of her hands and walked back to my room to gather my things. The last thing I wanted was my mother to be mad about not leaving on time on top of everything else.

  As soon as we got to church I immediately felt a pain in my chest. The last time I was in church was the week before I graduated high school. As much as I went to church growing up, I was never extremely religious. Maybe it was the fact that I knew me and God couldn’t see eye to eye about who I was supposed to love. Now I was bringing my female fiancé into a place that condemned what we had. I felt like we were going to melt the moment that we stepped foot in the door. I wanted to grab Ahvi’s hand but I knew that would make it worse.

  Stepping into the church was like going back in time. Nothing had changed in the eight years I’d been gone. The pews still looked like they were missing screws, the Bibles were still holding on for dear life, and they still had that ugly red carpet that I always hated. All those building fund offerings, where exactly did that money go to?

  “Sister Willis. It’s good to see you this morning.” Pastor came from one of the back doors and hugged my mother tightly. It took me a minute to remember how he looked. He was this tall, slender man, with chocolate skin, and gray hairs peeking out of the side of his head and beard. I didn’t know why I thought he was short and fat.

  “Morgan, it’s good to see you again after all these years.” He gave me the same hug he gave my mama and then quickly turned to Ahvi. “And you must be?”

  “This is Ahvi, Morgan’s fiancé,” my mother answered before Ahvi could open her mouth.

  The pastor’s eyes opened wide like he just saw a ghost. “Well, why don’t we go back to my office to talk.”

  We followed him through the church to the back of the building. Seeing his office I finally realized where all the money went. It was almost as big as the sanctuary and, with the modern architecture, I could tell that it was recently remodeled. Preachers never ceased to amaze me.

  When he entered his office, a small-framed woman sat in the corner with a tape recorder and a notepad on her lap. I didn’t know how these consultations worked but it seemed a little odd to have her in the room.

  “This is my secretary, Mavis. She’s here to take notes because I like to be completely engaged with the couple.”

  I took a second look at the secretary and recognized where I knew her from. We competed in a pageant together when we were in junior high. She looked so different without the makeup and the big hair. I smiled at her and she returned the gesture.

  “Now I usually just talk to the couple together and what they want during their ceremony, but since this is a different union, I think I just want to talk to Morgan first.”

  Ahvi and I both looked at each other with confusion. I was a little uncomfortable with what was going on and I didn’t want Ahvi to leave the room. She obliged and walked out of the room to sit in his waiting area. I thought my mother would follow suit but when she sat down on the couch, I was a little thrown off.

  “Morgan, I wanted to talk to you a little bit before we get into the ceremony aspect.”

  “Okay.” I was so confused about where this was going.

  “At what point do you think you strayed from the Lord?” He crossed his legs and folded his hands on his lap.

  “Excuse me?” It took all I had to not jump off the couch and punch him in his eye.

  “Well, with meeting your fiancé, I feel in my spirit and I’m sure your mother agrees that this whole homosexual relationship is just a cry for help.”

  I couldn’t believe my mother. I understood she was still trying to deal with the fact that I was gay, but for them to turn this into a homosexual intervention was way out of line. I gave her a long glance, waiting for her to look at me. She kept her head down and shifted in her seat. I sat back in my seat and folded my arms.

  “Why don’t you just talk to me and maybe we can put you back on the path to righteousness.”

  I couldn’t believe this was my life right now. Was this dude really going to try to pray me straight? If this was the game these people wanted to play, they were about to get coached.

  “Pastor, I don’t know what you and my mother are feeling in your spirit or what God is telling you, but this isn’t a cry for help. I’m not with Ahvi to piss anybody off. This is not a fad I will grow out of. I love being with women.”

  The look I received from both him and my mama looked like I just said I slaughtered baby cows and buried the heads in the backyard. If shocking them was what it was going to take to get me and Ahvi back to London, never to return here again, then I was about to go out with a bang. I respected my mama and the church but I wasn’t going to trade my happiness so that they could feel comfortable.

  “Morgan, you do know what the Bible says about homosexuality?” He began to reach for his Bible and all I could do was roll my eyes.

  “Of course she does,” my mother chimed in.

  “Do you know what the Bible says about judgment?” I can play this game too, sir. “Listen, I couldn’t care less what anybody thinks about who I choose to spend the rest of my life with. I am going to be with her regardless and if you don’t want to preside over the unofficial ceremony, than I will be more than happy to go back to Europe where several countries would be more than happy to marry us.”

  I gathered my stuff and got up from the couch. I wasn’t going to stay in that room any longer and get bashed for being me. I was so over this whole thing and I had every intention of booking Ahvi and me tickets back home immediately.

  I stormed out the room and Ahvi popped up out of her seat as soon as she saw me. I grabbed her arm and pulled her back through the church.

  “What happened?” she asked as she trotted in her high heels behind me.

  “We’re going home.”

  “Without your mum?” I could hear the confusion in her voice as her breath began to become shallow. I stopped as soon as we reached the parking lot to explain what was going on.

  “We’re going to our home in London. I’m done dealing with these people.”

  “Excuse me.” A small voice came from behind us. I turned to see Mavis. “I’m sorry to be nosey, but I couldn’t help but to get involved.”

  I was so focused on making my point to my mother and the pastor that I completely forgot that she was in the room taking notes.

  “We really appreciate it, Mavis, but it doesn’t matter. Gay marriage isn’t recognized in the state of Georgia anyway.”

  “True, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still ha
ve some sort of ceremony. I know your family may not be supportive, but since you’re already here you might as well go through with your plans.”

  She handed me a piece of paper with a name and number on it.

  “What’s that?” Ahvi grabbed the paper out of my hand.

  “That is my brother’s information. He is a licensed officiate, he has a house big enough for a wedding, and he is very open-minded. Give him a call.” She turned and proceeded back into the building.

  “Hey.” I tried to stop her in her tracks. “Why are you doing this?”

  It took her a minute before she turned back around to face us. “Because everybody deserves to have their happiness.” She walked back into the building.

  I felt a smile cross my face. It was the first time that I looked at this town in a different light. I still wasn’t sure if I was going to stay, but I was glad to know that there was an option here for us.

  Chapter 25

  Janette

  Hurting Henry was not in my plans at all and it is way overdue for me to correct my mistake. The last thing I wanted was for him to hate me for the rest of my life. My pacing back and forth was beginning to burn a hole through my floor as I continued to figure out what I was going to do. I had to make sure he got his job back.

  I stopped pacing and ran to my computer, which was sitting on my dining room table. I feverishly typed Don’s name into Google, praying that something would come up. Don Perkins was a very popular name, but his general information happened to be on the first page of my search engine. None of this stuff was anything I could use to my advantage. It was only information about his businesses and where he was from. If I was going to help Henry, and ultimately myself, I needed something that was beneficial. I was beginning to feel my patience fading and I resorted to my last option. I grabbed my phone and dialed Millie’s number. It was a stab in the dark, but it didn’t hurt to try.