by Tiana Laveen
“Fuh God’s sake, Ma! He could take the tie off! It’s not like he was born with the shit around his neck!” He waved his hand about, tired of it all. “That’s it… I’ve taken her down there to that club over five times now and she’s the only one that still refuses to even give these guys the time of day! She calls me, ‘Giovanni, I want to go to the club!’ ‘Okay, Nonna, I’m coming.’ We go… same ol’ shit, different day. Nonna is playin’ with these guys’ emotions. She’s a tease!”
Chuckling, Giovanni plopped down on his parents’ couch and shook his head. Ma’s eyes danced with tears of mirth as she suppressed a fit of giggles. It was obvious she was only keeping it all in so that she wouldn’t mess up her paintwork.
“She said he had too much hair in his ears, too.”
“He’s a ninety-year-old Italian guy from Queens! Who tha hell did she expect to see? Antonio Sabato? Jesus Christ!”
Ma burst out laughing and shook her head, unable to control herself that time around.
“You know she has high standards, Gio. She had it all with Dad, okay? That’s a tough act to follow. He was a sharp dresser, good looking, hardworking and tall. That’s where ya got your height from… my side of the family. My dad, specifically,” Ma said proudly.
“Speakin’ of Nonna, is she cookin’ tonight?” His stomach growled just thinking about it. “I’m starvin’. I see you don’t have anything on the stove.” He shot her a look of disapproval. Maybe he could guilt her into whipping something up.
“Don’t you have a wife now, Gio?” Ma teased. “Go home and eat!” She made a motion as if shooing him away. “And your grandmother didn’t cook today. She was tired. Besides, Vanessa may not know how to cook Italian food all that great, but she’s an amazing cook. I’ve had some of her food. You should be happy.”
“Vanessa isn’t home though, Ma. She’s at the warehouse for a meeting about her lipsticks.”
“Oh yeah, that’s right. She told me she was going to Manhattan today. Well then, cook for yourself. You know how to cook!”
“Eggs and bacon, smoothies, salads and cereal, Ma! That’s all I’m good at. All these women around me and not one fuckin’ meal!”
Ma burst out laughing, not giving a damn about his angst.
“Tell your wife that the Bahama Mama lipstick is uh-maze-zing! I need more! Give me more! How does she get it to smell like that without using anything artificial?”
She wrinkled her nose in wonder. Perhaps she wanted in on some top held secret. Gio shrugged his shoulders.
“I have no idea… she’s always in the kitchen whipping up stuff. I told ya she was good. She’s even got Nonna and Roberto’s wife wearing it.”
They were quiet for a spell as the television played on low.
“Your Aunt Emma is in the hospital, Gio.” Ma paused, her brush in hand, a somber expression on her face.
“So tha fuck what.”
“Giovanni! Show some respect, Jesus! I know she’s a bitch but I’m serious, she’s in trouble.”
“What?” He threw up his arms. “She refused a transplant organ from a Black donor and now she’s only got seventy-two hours to live.”
“Don’t get fresh!” Ma waved her hand in his direction, now noisily smacking on her gum. “Nah, but something is going on with her liver.”
“Booze… that’s what the hell is going on with her liver.”
Ma made a face of disapproval at his curt words, then nodded in agreement.
“Anyway, I called Dominic and told him about his mother bein’ at death’s door and do you know that he fucking laughed, Gio?! He burst out on the goddamn phone and laughed! I think your cousin Dom has lost his mind!”
Giovanni shrugged, leaned forward, and paid close attention to the Lifetime movie playing across the screen.
“Did ya hear me? Your cousin has gone psychotic!”
“No, he hasn’t. He’s just being honest. Look at all the shit she did to him, Ma? I never got why we cry and moan and complain about fuckers kickin’ the bucket when they were rotten fuckin’ people? That’s so fake, Ma! I mean, seriously. She fucked up Dom’s childhood, she used to beat you up when you two were kids, she was always stealing from Nonna, she kicked both of my uncles’ in the balls for no reason. She’s nuts! A racist, drug addicted lunatic who’s now in the hospital with a bum liver, and I’m supposed to be all like, ‘Ohhhh, poor Aunt Emma.’ Yo, fuck Emma. She disrespected my then girlfriend at Nonna’s birthday party—that was the final fuckin’ straw. Dom did what we all want to do… laugh and keep watchin’ Lifetime. The crazy part is that watching Lifetime is far less dramatic. Anyway, I gotta go, Ma.”
He stood up and grabbed his jacket. His mother just looked at him and shook her head before he leaned over and kissed the lovely woman on the cheek.
“I love ya,” he said.
“I love you, too. Tell Vanessa I said hi! And I want more lipstick!” she yelled as he turned his back and waved.
“I gotcha, Ma! She’ll hook ya up.”
“Gio…”
“Yeah, Ma?” He turned and faced her before heading out the door.
“Your father and I are real proud of ya. You’ve come a long way, kid…” And then, she blew him a kiss…
Two years later…
The gravestone at Pinelawn Cemetery in Long Island looked pretty much the same. Giovanni leaned down and placed the bouquet of hydrangeas against the bluish-gray stone. Standing erect, he crossed his hands over his stomach and stared down at the tomb. It was a nice day—the breeze was blowing, the air was sweet, and yet, his mood remained somber. He glanced from side to side, taking note of the deceased all around him. Some of the graves had flowers, one had a stuffed teddy bear. Others were large and elaborate—a testimony of just how much money was shelled out to put the bones of a loved one away to pasture… ride them out in style. He looked back down at the gravestone before him and read the name once again, letting it sink in.
Brandy Robinson
He cleared his throat and smiled.
“Hi Brandy… it’s me, Giovanni. I’m hopin’ that even though you’re up in Heaven, if I stand here it’s like a magical connection or something, and that, uh, ya know, you can hear me. We haven’t spoken since you came up to the Correctional Facility to visit me.”
He slid his hand in his pocket and took a deep breath. “I wanna tell ya that if I let cha down, I’m sorry. We were kids, ya know? Young. Life wasn’t always easy, was it? I think that, uh, ya got a raw deal. But I hope you’re out of pain now. You were runnin’ from something, baby, something big, and I couldn’t see it to fix it, and I couldn’t fix it because it wasn’t mine to fix I guess. I just want ya to know that I miss you. You were my first love, Brandy… you taught me so much in our short time together.
“A long time has passed, hasn’t it? Guess what? I’m a fitness expert now and I just accepted a television deal where I come on once a week and give fitness tips. Prime time, too! I’m excited, ya know?” He smiled sadly. “I never dreamed that this is the life I’d live. I also have a fitness clothing line coming out. You woulda liked that… you were into stuff like that.”
He sniffed and ran his finger along the side of his nose. “I met someone long after you passed away, Brandy. I think you’d be happy for me, and you’d like ’er. My wife’s name is Vanessa. Pretty name, right? She’s uh… she’s great.” His eyes watered. “She’s got a real popular makeup line called Nile River. It’s everywhere, Brandy. You’d love it! We’re talkin’ Nieman Marcus, Saks, Sephora, Ulta, you name it. She works her ass off, too… real hard worker and she supports me 150%. We cheer each other on… just like you and I used to do…
“We live in Long Island, but both of us are always in the city for work, family, things like that. The drive isn’t too bad… I just wanted somethin’ a bit quieter for the kids, ya know?” He swiped at a tear trailing his cheek. “Yeah… I’ve got kids, can ya believe it? I got married a couple years ago, and soon after the honeymoon Vanessa and I found out she was a couple
months pregnant. We didn’t even know.”
He laughed lightly and threw up his hands. “It’s funny though, cause my Nonna, I’m sure you remember her… she told my mother that she felt like my wife was pregnant right before we got married and then my mother-in-law told Vanessa that she had the fuckin’ fish dream. I guess that’s like something Black people have, ya know, when someone is pregnant… called a fish dream. Isn’t that a riot?” He rolled his eyes and smiled. “I guess they were both right. Uh, let’s see… Well, our son’s name is Caspian. He’s great, Brandy. A ball of energy,” he said. “He looks just like me, but a tanner version. And he’s so smart… so, so, smart…” He looked up at the sky and took note of a few storm clouds moving about.
“Kids… yeah… Vanessa is pregnant again. We just found out its another boy. She’s due in two months. We’re real excited, ya know? Everyone is, actually. I know you and I used to talk about havin’ kids.” He shrugged. “But, to be honest, I wasn’t sure I really wanted that until I got married. I definitely want more children, at least one more… a daughter would be nice. Don’t worry.” He chuckled. “I’ll have my shotgun ready. Ya know, my parents love being grandparents. In fact, they’ve got my son right now. My ma is watching him. Roberto and his wife have a daughter, and she’s gorgeous.
“I couldn’t even imagine not being married and a father now. It’s so much a part of my happiness—it defines who I am. And uh, that gets me to thinkin’.” He ran his finger along his chin. “I am so different from when we were together… I imagine, had you had the chance, you’d be different too, Brandy. You had a lot goin’ for you. It wasn’t right how all of that potential was snuffed. I saw a lot in you, things you were good at, but it’s funny, ya know?
“Sometimes, without that support system, some of us… we just fall through the cracks. I’m not perfect, just tryna be the best husband and father I can be. Like the parents I had… I was blessed and didn’t even know how much so till I met you, Brandy. You made me appreciate my parents so much more. ’Cause you’d lost your mom, and you two were close, and then… all ya had was… him…”
He lowered his head for a spell. “You was livin’ right there with the Devil. I know it was hard, honey… I know it was. I tried to make it better, you know I did, but it’s done now. Anyway…” He lifted his head and wiped the tears from his eyes with the back of his hand. “I just wanna thank you, again, for making me smile so many times. I didn’t think I’d ever fall in love again after you were gone, Brandy… but I did, and I think in some way, maybe some cosmic way that I don’t understand, you gave me signs that it was time to move on and try again. I was always open to tryin’ new things and getting up off the ground and starting over. But when it came to love?” He shook his head. “I refused. I was versatile, ya know? You and my Nonna always said that. I was bendable, able to change up when needed but with love… that broken heart I feared so badly, I stayed put. I didn’t budge; that was until I just couldn’t resist what I truly desired anymore.
“The night I met my wife, I was running up and down some steps in my apartment building. I always did that, right before I would go jogging out onto the street almost every night. It was a ritual. I did it to blow off steam, keep in shape, but also to chase away all thoughts of you… I was runnin’ down those steps, and up those steps, and down and up again and you know what? I wouldn’t slow down to just stop and think, to reflect on life. But then, I went out onto the street and this old lady was there, asking for change. Something about her smile, Brandy, reminded me of you. I didn’t want to acknowledge it right then, but it’s true. I gave her some money, more than she probably thought she’d get. I went on about my way and met my wife less than twenty minutes later after seeing that woman. The next day, I saw that old lady again, Brandy. She was standing at the same spot. I thought she was going to ask me for money again, but she didn’t… she grabbed me by the arm and simply said, ‘Thank you.’
“I never saw her again after that, Brandy. It’s like she served her purpose in some way and then was just gone.”
He heard a car door open and close. Soon, the sweet perfume from Vanessa surrounded him as she placed her hand on his shoulder and kissed his cheek. Her firm, round belly cast a shadow on the neatly trimmed grass. She said nothing, but she did reach over and wipe his budding tears with her knuckle.
“I barely cry… and I’ve cried more in the past two years than I have my entire life. Some of it was tears of pain, some tears of joy. Right now I cry, Brandy, not ’cause I’m feelin’ sorry for ya, but because I know you’re free… and I know, no matter what, we gotta appreciate life. We gotta look at our circumstances and say, ‘I’m going to make the most of this.’”
He drew quiet for several minutes. Vanessa hooked her arm around his and squeezed, giving him comfort.
“Well, I’ll get goin’ now, Brandy. I hope ya like the flowers…” He began to walk backwards, his eye still on the grave as raindrops began to fall. “I gave you flowers when you were living, too, but ya know what, Brandy? You’re still alive, because you will always live in my heart.”
He took Vanessa’s hand, drew her in, and laid a kiss on her. Wrapping his arm around her back, he brought her impossibly closer as he tasted her mouth, feeding off of her love. When he pulled away, his sweetheart was smiling at him. He rubbed his nose against hers and smiled back.
“Come on.” He motioned towards the car. “Let’s go home.”
Vanessa nodded and trailed behind him. As he reached the car, the raindrops suddenly stopped. The storm clouds tarried along, and rays of sun poked out from the sky.
It was a new day, a new dawn, and he was going to live it to the fullest.
He got in the car and ran his hand along his wife’s stomach.
This is my future right here… and it begins and ends with love…
~ THE END ~
Gemini – Mr. Versatile
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About the Author
Tiana Laveen is a USA Today Best Selling author. She was born in Cincinnati, Ohio though her soul resides in New York.
Tiana Laveen is a uniquely creative and innovative author whose fiction novels are geared towards those who not only want to temporarily escape from the daily routines of life, but also become pleasantly caught up in the well-developed journeys of her unique characters. As the author of over 35 novels, Tiana creates a painting with words as she guides her reader into the lives of each and every main character. Her dedication to detail and staying true to her characters is evident in each novel that she writes.
Tiana Laveen lives inside her mind, but her heart is occupied with her family and twisted imagination. She enjoys a fulfilling and enriching life that includes writing books, public speaking, drawing, painting, listening to music, cooking, and spending time with loved ones.
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