“Now, what, bitch?” Desirae said. “Huh? Now what? You gettin’ that ass beat, bitch! You gettin’ that ass beat!”
A car rolled by, swerving around Desirae’s parked car at the stoplight. Desirae knew that she needed to hurry up and get her point across. The last thing she needed was some nigga deciding to be a good citizen by calling the police on her. What she was doing was completely justified, at least in her mind. Within a matter of seconds, Reese was down on the ground, in the snow. And Desirae was not letting her up. She did not give two fucks about the red dots that were popping up here and there in the snow. For all she cared, Reese could leak until she fucking died out there in the cold.
Reese swung back, but couldn’t make contact. Desirae laughed at her as she grabbed another handful of Reese’s hair with one hand. She used her other hand to really give it to Reese, punching her in her face until her hand hurt. After a good long while, Desirae stood up and looked around. She then looked down at Reese, who was struggling to get back up on her feet, and saw that her phone had fallen out of her pocket. She could see the end of it sticking out of the snow. Quickly, knowing that this was just what she wanted, Desirae reached down and picked it up.
“I swear to God,” Desirae said. “I don’t ever wanna see your ugly, no body havin’ ass again in life. I fuckin’ hate you, bitch. I fuckin’ hate you.”
Reese wiped the blood away from her face as she watched Desirae walk back around the front of her car and get back inside. All while she walked to her side of the car, eye contact was never broken. Within seconds, Reese realized what Desirae pulling off and leaving her outside in the middle of a winter night would mean. Quickly, she stumbled back over to the curb and reached at the car door handle. Just as she did, she heard the car locks go down in one big thump. Desirae pulled off.
“Fuck you, bitch!” Reese yelled, as Desirae’s car got further and further away. “Fuck you ,bitch! He said he liked my shit more than yours anyway.”
Reese, frustrated at having suffered at the rage of Desirae out on the sidewalk, brushed the clumpy snow off of her coat and turned around. She headed home, alternating between grabbing each side of her face. They stung so bad as she walked the five or six blocks in the snow to get back home. Just as she got a good block away from the corner where Desirae had forced her out of the car, she noticed that she did not her phone on her. Immediately, she looked back, not even knowing where to begin looking to see if she could find where she had dropped it.
***
“Yes!” Desirae yelled as she drove away from Reese. “Yes! I beat that bitch’s ass like it was nothin’.”
Desirae was in such a celebratory mood that she went ahead and headed to the nearest White Castles. She had told herself that she was going to watch what she ate so that she would not have as much weight to lose after giving birth to the babies. However, when she thought about all of the calories she had just burned beating Reese’s ass, she told herself that it would be perfectly okay to have something that she really wanted to eat.
As Desirae got some food and headed home, she prided herself in how slick she was. She could remember, very clearly, the look on Reese’s face just before she grabbed that hair and started to get in that ass. To say the least, it was priceless – just priceless. Desirae pulled up outside of her apartment building and headed inside, daring Reese to get in her car tonight and head over to her place. If Reese was stupid enough to do that, then she would be stupid enough to need another ass whooping. However, if she got in that ass out in the parking lot, she would be liable to go on for longer than she did at the corner. That was some bold, brave shit that Desirae did. And she would never forget it either
When Desirae was walking through the front door of her apartment, she could not for the life of her wipe the smile away from her face. It was practically cemented into her face at this point. Just the thought that Reese had gotten exactly what she deserved – exactly what she had coming to her—thrilled Desirae to the core. She headed to her dining room table, pulled a chair out, and sat down to eat her food. When she finished, she pulled Reese’s phone out of her pocket. Her plan had been to get Reese’s phone so that she would not be able to call Tron and tell him what had happened until – if ever – after Tron had met her father tomorrow. Desirae just didn’t think that it would have been so damn easy.
“That shit just fell right out of her pocket,” Desirae said, aloud. “I beat that ass. Fuckin’ lyin’ ass bitch. That’s what she get, too. Oh, that look on her face. That shit was fuckin’ priceless.”
Desirae opened her living room window, which looked down over quite a few things – houses, wooded area, and a little bit of the parking lot. She smiled as she shook her head and hurled Reese’s phone into the distance. Before it could even land, wherever it landed, Desirae had already shut the window and was headed back over to the couch. Now, she just had to think about tomorrow. She thought about how in just a little more than twelve hours, Tron would be over here to help her move. It was now up to Desirae to figure out just what she would say to Tron to get him going, and what kind of things she would need to say to get him to react in a way that would make her father jump out of his usual coolness. Desirae felt so evil, but so good at the same time. All of this betrayal was just too much for her. If she was going to be hurting, so were the people who had done her wrong – so were Tron and Reese.
Chapter 10
Tron woke up Friday morning in a bad mood. Last night, the club had been pretty busy, which was good. However, the last thing he wanted to do first thing when he got up was get ready to go help Desirae move to her mama’s house. The more he thought about it, the more he was determined to get a paternity test done. Sure, he would go ahead and help her move out of her apartment and into her mama’s house. However, he was going to find a way to bring up a paternity test, whether Desirae liked it or not.
Tron slid out of bed, resisting the urge to do a wake and bake. He kind of felt like he would need it, especially since he already knew that Desirae was surely going to start something. He accepted that and went on with his morning, taking a shower then sliding into some old jeans and a long-sleeved white shirt. When Tron was ready, he headed downstairs. Just as he was walking into the kitchen, he could hear Tyrese. He was waking up, on the couch, and already getting to making wisecracks.
“You gon’ die today, nigga,” Tyrese said. “Somebody gon’ die today.”
“Nigga, fuck you,” Tron said. “I told your ass that shit ain’t on’ happen. She don’t even know that me and Reese fucked around.”
“Man, it’s been like what?” Tyrese asked. “Like two days or some shit? You really think that Desirae ain’t heard that you fucked her old best friend. Trust me, nigga. She know. She know, she know, she know. I don’t even know why you settin’ yourself up.”
“Nigga, you always try’na give relationship advice when you don’t even have a relationship to give advice from,” Tron said.
“Yeah, well,” Tyrese said, getting up off of the couch. “I also ain’t been on the news for gettin’ stabbed with no fork. But I ain’t gon’ say nothin’ bout that. You know how sensitive your ass get when a nigga keep it real with you.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Tron said.
“Yeah, yeah, my ass,” Tyrese said. “Just watch your ass when you go over there. And make sure that she don’t slip nothin’ in your drink.”
“Nigga,” Tron said. “I’mma just go over there and help her move. That’s all.”
“Ha!” Tyrese said, his voice fading away as he was headed to the bathroom. “That’s what you think.”
Once Tron got himself some orange juice and ate a couple of cereal bars, he slid into his coat and headed out the door. As he walked down to his car, he wondered why he had not heard from Reese. He was not falling in love with her or anything like that. And, now, he felt like he was probably just feeling a little paranoid from some of the stuff that Tyrese had been saying to him. He shook it all off, saying that Reese would prob
ably text him later on today or something, as he got into his car and pulled off. Last night, when he had a moment to himself at the club, he had gone to the back and arranged to pick up a moving truck for today. All he wanted to do was make sure that everything went as smoothly as possible. No fighting, no arguing. He did not even want to meet her mother. He just wanted to help her carry her stuff so she would not be over there crying about him neglecting her or anything.
Tron rolled over to the moving company not too far from his townhouse and picked up the truck that he had reserved last night. Once he paid and hopped in, he felt a little weird driving something so big, but he managed. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and called Desirae, to let her know that he was on his way.
“Hello?” Desirae answered.
“Hey, wassup,” Tron said. “It’s me. I was just callin’ to tell you that I got the truck and am on my way with it right now. Is your shit packed already or do I gotta help you with that too?”
Desirae took a moment to think, as she looked around her apartment. “Mostly everything is packed,” she told him. “I just didn’t take down the entertainment system or move the bed cause they both too heavy for me.”
“Okay, I’ll be over there in a minute,” Tron said. He then hung up, without even saying goodbye or anything.
***
Desirae snickered to herself as she put her phone back down onto the kitchen countertop. She found it so hilarious how Tron could not even respect her enough to say bye to her when they hung up the phone. He just hung up on her, as if she was nothing and not even worth his time. She could also hear it in his voice. There was no doubt in Desirae’s mind that Tron was not all that thrilled about coming over to help her move.
Desirae then remembered that she needed to call her father and see where he was. How close to Indianapolis was he? Desirae did not want him to show up way after she and Tron had moved her stuff. She grabbed her phone and called her father.
“Daddy?” Desirae said when her father answered his phone. “Where you at, Daddy? Are you close?”
“Uh,” George said. Desirae figured that her father was probably looking around. “Yeah, I’m close, baby. I think I’ll be coming into the city in like fifteen minutes. Then, I’mma be over to you. You still over on the south side, right?”
“Yeah,” Desirae said, smiling. “Still the same place.”
“Okay, baby,” George said. “Well, let me get off this phone. It’s startin’ to snow a little bit out here. I’ll be over there in a minute, I’ll be there in a minute.”
“Okay, Daddy,” Desirae said. The two hung up after saying bye to one another quickly.
Desirae leaned back on the counter. She had practically woken up feeling high. Over and over, she played the scene at the corner last night over in her mind. It was priceless – just too damn priceless. Ever since giving it to Tron’s chick Shawna, right there in front of her register at Clarkes up at Lafayette Square, Desirae had definitely felt like she had a little bit more of a fight inside of her. Last night, however, she told herself would be the last time she would use her hands. Today, though, she would use her words – words that she knew would cause Tron to get riled up and really show what kind of a nigga he was. She wanted to see him say some of the things he said to her the other day and just a couple of weeks ago. Telling her that she was just something to fuck was something that Tron just should not have said.
***
When Tron pulled up in front of Desirae’s apartment, he could feel a difference in his presence. And no, the difference he was feeling was not just from driving a big moving truck instead of his car. It was from why he was there to begin with. For months, this had been the place he came to when he had a little time away from Shawna to bust a nut. If he knew that Desirae was going to trap him like this, he would have just cut it off after the first time they fucked. He hated himself for falling for a big butt and a nice smile – the oldest trick in the book.
Tron backed the truck up to the building doorway and turned the engine off. Practically dragging his feet, Tron headed inside of the building and up the stairs. Normally, he would just try the door to see if it was open. However, even if it was open, he did not want to send the wrong message to Desirae – he did not want to do anything that would tell her that things were getting back to comfortable between the two of them. On the contrary, for much of the drive down to the south side, Tron was thinking about how and when he was going to tell Desirae that he wanted a paternity test. He just had to know if Desirae was really pregnant by him or not. Some of the things that Reese had said to him the other day really got him thinking. Deep down, Tron wished that Desirae was not pregnant by him. And it wasn’t that he wouldn’t love the kids if they were his. However, his life would be a hell of a lot easier if Desirae actually had fucked around with some other nigga and gotten pregnant by him.
Tron knocked on the door and waited for Desirae to open it.
“It’s open,” Desirae announced.
Tron shook his head and knocked again – an action that was letting Desirae know that she actually needed to come to the door and let him inside. Within a few seconds, Desirae yanked the door open. Tron avoided eye contact with her as he stepped inside and looked around.
“I said that the door was open,” Desirae said. “Why you ain’t just come in?”
“Oh, my bad,” Tron said. “I ain’t hear you say that. I ain’t. I mean, I heard you say somethin’ but I didn’t know what it was.”
“Hmm, hmm,” Desirae said. She could smell Tron’s shit from a mile away. And he was so full of it that he stunk. “Well,” she said, pointing to the packed boxes around the room. “This is my stuff, packed up. You said you got the truck, right?”
Tron nodded, barely opening his mouth to tell her that he did.
“Okay,” Desirae said. “I didn’t know what to do about the bed and entertainment system, so they the only two things that might be kinda hard to get outta here. I picked the dining room table up a little bit and it ain’t so bad. We prolly just gon’ have to maneuver it out of the door.”
“That’s coo,” Tron said, nodding. “You got the shit in here, so we can get it back out. Won’t be no problem.”
On that note, Tron simply began to pick boxes up and carry them out into the hallway then downstairs. Desirae could pick up on how quiet Tron was being – his silence was something that she just could not ignore. Once Tron had made a third trip down to the truck and back, Desirae knew this was the time to get things rolling.
“What’s wrong with you, Tron?” Desirae asked. “Ever since you got here, you been givin’ me the cold shoulder and shit. It’s like you don’t even wanna talk to me or nothin’, let alone look at me or nothin’.”
“I don’t,” Tron admitted. “Sorry.”
Just then, Desirae’s neck snapped back. Even though Tron had only said a few words to Desirae since getting to her place, there was something about his tone that was just a little too disrespectful. This was especially so, considering that he had been fucking her former best friend within the last two days. Desirae’s top lipped curled up when she thought about it.
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Desirae asked.
“It means just what I said, Desirae,” Tron said. “Girl, I ain’t come here to argue with your ass or no shit like that, okay? I just came here to help you move this shit so we can get the fuck on with our day.”
Before Desirae could even say anything back to Tron’s comment, Tron had headed back downstairs with a box. When he returned, he immediately saw that her nostrils were flared up, as if she was really upset about something. Tron looked at her. “What?” he asked in very short tone.
Desirae squinted at Tron. “You really do hate me, don’t you?” she asked. “Huh, Tron? Is that what it is? You really do hate me that much, don’t you?”
Tron shrugged. “I ain’t say that,” he said. “So, I don’t know why you thinkin’ that shit. I ain’t say that I hate you or no shit l
ike that at all, Desirae.”
“Then tell me this,” Desirae said. “Why won’t you look me in my eyes, Tron? Tell me that. Why won’t you look me in my eyes?”
Tron turned and looked at Desirae. It did not take Desirae long to see the cold look in Tron’s eyes. He looked as if he was disgusted with her in every way that he could possibly be. And Desirae did not like that. She was not the one who fucked around even though she belonged to someone, like Tron did. She was not the one who fucked around with the best friend of a chick who was pregnant with his children, that was Tron. Desirae shook her head.
“I swear to God, nigga,” Desirae said. “You somethin’ else, I swear. First you was talkin’ bout bein’ with me and leavin’ your chick, now I’m just…” Desirae’s words trailed off, from her being so angry.
“I want a paternity test,” Tron came out and said it. He looked Desirae up and down, not even trying to hide the look of disgust in his face. He had come over here to help her move. And, sure enough, just like he had thought, Desirae was trying to turn all of this into an argument. No matter what he did, this chick just had to go making something out of nothing.
“You want a what, nigga?” Desirae asked, wondering why the fuck something like that would be on his mind at this point.
“Bitch, you heard me,” Tron said. His voice was getting a little louder. “I want a fuckin’ paternity test.”
“Why you even bringin’ that shit up again?” Desirae asked. “Huh, Tron? You really just want to believe that these twins that I’m pregnant with ain’t yours, don’t you? You really is one no good nigga, ain’t you, Tron?”
“Bitch,” Tron said. “Whatever. I been thinkin’ bout this shit for days, and you ain’t nothin’ but a hoe like I told you. All you wanna do is argue and shit. So, no, if you want the truth, I do not think that I’m the only possible father of whoever, and whatever, you pregnant with.”
Desirae looked at Tron, seeing a boy who just had never grown into a man. She could not help but pity him.
The Diary of a Side Chick 4: A Naptown Hood Drama (Side Chick Diaries) Page 13
