Ashes to Ashes, Dust to Side Chicks

by N'Dia Rae

  Me: I don’t want you to leave your wife. She and those kids need you. I can’t do this anymore.

  I had broken up with him the day Chop told me to, but X wasn’t handing it well. This nigga had lost his mind, talking about how he would leave his wife for me. I don’t want him on a full time basis. And I damn sure don’t want to be stepmom to his legion of brats.

  I slipped my phone back into my Dior bag after blocking his number. There was no point in letting him have access to me any further.

  Tonight I was meeting Tyriq at a club on H Street called Red Room. I was surprised at his boldness for meeting his soon to be sidepiece in public. Before heading out to meet him, I took one more glimpse at myself in the mirror. I had blown out my hair so that it was bone straight, cascading down my back. My lips were a sinful shade of red, complimented by a smoky eye.

  Once I was ready, I stepped out of my house and headed to my whip. I drove to H Street and luckily found a parking spot right in front of the club. I considered this a good omen. When I stepped out of my ride, I saw Ty waiting by the entrance.

  “Damn, you look good,” he complimented as I stepped closer to him.

  “Thank you. You don’t look bad yourself,” I replied. He had a pair of Balmain jeans and Guiseppe sneakers on. The pants and shoes went well with his crisp black V-neck, which exposed his muscles. I also noticed he wasn’t wearing his wedding ring. This man was too damn fine for his wife to have ever thought that he would be faithful.

  He paid my way into the club and we rushed our way to the bar.

  “What you drinking?” he asked, whipping out some cash in a platinum money clip.

  “Cuervo and sprite with lime please.” I was a simple girl who didn’t need any fancy drinks.

  He ordered my drink and a Heineken for himself before walking me into a dark corner in the club. The area was secluded since most of the club goers were in the center of the dance floor.

  “How are you able to come out here tonight? You aren’t worried someone would see you and tell your wife?”

  “She knows I’m at the club. If anyone sees me with you, it’s easy to deny it. People are drunk and its rowdy in here. You can’t trust your own eyes,” he responded.

  I found him disgusting. These niggas have zero regard for their wives.

  “Why do you cheat?” I asked him over the blaring of the speakers.

  “That’s not important. Why are you single?” He tried to change the subject.

  “That’s not important either,” I replied.

  We both laughed it off. I turned around and backed up onto him, twerking on his dick, hoping to feel something. As I backed my ass up on him even more, he brought his hands to my waist, gripping me hard.

  I licked my lips as I continued grinding to the Rae Sremmurd and finally, I could feel him getting hard. The girth of his dick pressed against my shorts caused my pussy to get wet. He was packing. I wonder if he knew how to lay it right, though.

  I tilted my head back and rested it on his shoulder while he kissed my neck. His masculine hands glided all over my body, causing me to feel tingly inside. I wanted to fuck him. It had been too long since I had gotten some dick. Just as I was about to suggest that we leave, I looked up and saw a familiar face at the bar…

  15

  Skye

  W hat Quan said about Aoki was true. She was a negative bitch who couldn’t stand to see anyone else happy. I can’t believe the way she acted at the nail salon. Thankfully, Quan had been gracious enough to give me a ride home.

  “I hope I didn’t interrupt your afternoon too much.” I interrupted our silence.

  “Nah, I had just wrapped up work. Your nails look nice.” He smiled at me as he cruised down the street.

  “Thank you. And I forgot to tell you that I got the scholarship check and paid my tuition. I had to cancel the loan first. I started classes last Monday.”

  “Congratulations. I’m glad my company could help you out.”

  “Yeah, this is a big help. So, where are you taking me tonight?”

  “It’s a surprise,” he flatly replied.

  “I was wondering if I could choose the place. You always surprise me and I wanted to know if I could pick a place tonight.” What Aoki had said to me had struck a nerve. Why was he opposed to allowing me to decide where we went out?

  “If you want, you can choose it. But what’s the big deal?”

  “Nothing, Aoki brought up a good point…”

  “Are you serious right now? You are telling me that thot who just blew your whole afternoon had a good point? A good point about what?”

  Immediately I felt stupid for bringing her up.

  “It’s not important. It’s just, I really want to check out this club on H Street,” I announced.

  Sighing, he replied, “We can go there.”

  “Are you mad at me?”

  “Nah, shorty. But you gotta think for yourself. Your friend doesn’t have your best interest at heart. You can’t listen to that hoe. And I told you last time that you need to stop hanging with that bitch.”

  “I know and you were right. I’m done with Aoki.”

  “Good,” he said as he pulled in front of my building.

  “I’ll come pick you back up around 11. Wear something sexy and pack an overnight bag.” He winked at me before pulling off.

  Frustrated, I climbed the stairs to my apartment. I had to get Aoki’s voice out of my head. She turned out be wrong anyway. He allowed me to pick a place, thus he’s not trying to hide me.

  When I went into my apartment, I noticed I had several text messages from my friend Trish. She was a cousin of my ex, Chad.

  Trish: Chad was murdered last night!

  Me: Wow. I’m sorry to hear to that.

  Trish: Come through, his mother would really like to see you.

  Me: I can’t do that right now. I’ll stop by tomorrow.

  The truth is, I had no intentions of stopping by. Hearing that Chad had been killed was a relief. After all that he put me through, it felt good to know that he would no longer be around to stalk me or hurt me. A part of me felt sad, because at one point, I did love him. And I know that his mother cared about him deeply. I’d keep her in my prayers.

  As for now, I was going to live my life and go on my date with Quan.

  * * *

  A t 11 :00 pm on the dot, he was outside waiting for me. I checked my reflection one more time and was impressed with what I saw. Despite rocking a cheap outfit, I looked cute. I was wearing a zebra print mini-dress and a pair of knock-off Loubous. They had a red bottom, and in the dimness of a nightclub, I doubted anyone would be able to see the difference.

  My wavy hair was freshly washed and tossed over my shoulder. My make-up was minimal except for eyeliner, realistic eyelashes, and neutral lip gloss. I preferred to look as natural as possible because I never wanted to be one of those women that men make jokes about taking swimming on the first date.

  If you took me swimming right now, I’d look generally the same once I emerged from the water.

  I grabbed my overnight bag, packed with toiletries, tomorrow’s clothing, and some lingerie. I even had my own condoms because I knew exactly what was going to happen.

  “You look good,” he complimented when I approached his car. Like a gentleman, he got out and opened my door for me.

  “Thank you,” I replied when he hopped back in the driver’s side.

  “Remember I told you about my ex?”

  “Yeah, why?”

  “His cousin just texted me and told me he was murdered last night. That shit is crazy.”

  “You said he was a dealer, right? Getting shot is par for the course,” he flatly said without an ounce of compassion.

  “Damn, that was cold.”

  “Why does it matter? He made your life a living hell. And why are you even in communication with his family members?” he questioned.

  “She’s a friend of mine. And it doesn’t matter, it’s just that a life was lo
st. You sound indifferent.”

  “I am indifferent about niggas I don’t know and niggas that hurt women I care about. Why would I give a fuck about him? It only means that you are safer now, right?”

  “True. Which was a big relief, because I fully suspected that he would made this school year hard as well.”

  “Well, there you go. There’s nothing to worry about,” he quipped while driving to H Street.

  We had a challenging time finding parking since it was so late in the night. We parked around the corner from the club on a poorly lit street. Although the area was being revitalized there was still a lot of crime that went down. But I could tell Quan could hold his own.

  He wrapped his arm around my waist as we walked towards the club. When we got there, I saw a silver Mercedes that looked like it was Aoki’s car sitting in the front. I secretly prayed that it wasn’t Aoki’s ride. She was the last person I wanted to see.

  Apparently Quan knew the bouncer because when we stepped to the front door, he let us in without paying the cover or sending us through a security check.

  “Let me guess, you have a friend that owns this place too?” I questioned when I whispered in his ear. My lip lightly touched the rim of his ear.

  “Yeah, I do. And if you do that again, I’m going to make him let me use his office,” he joked before playfully slapping my ass.

  He walked me up to the bar, where he whispered something in the bartender’s ear. Before I knew it, we were carted away to a VIP section above the club. I had never been in VIP before. Typically I was thrust in the center of a club with the rest of the partiers but tonight, we were in an area above the entire place, looking down at the dance floor.

  “It’s crazy that I suggested this place and you knew the owner.” I laughed while dancing close to him.

  “There aren’t too many urban spots you can go to where I don’t know the owner. What do you want to drink?” he asked me, pulling me in close.

  “Moscato,” I yelled over Rihanna’s “Work.”

  He let me go and walked to the corridor of the VIP area, where a security guard stood. The security guard motioned for a waitress, who quickly brought us drinks. Instead of just one glass of moscato, she brought two bottles with sparklers inside as if it were my birthday.

  After blowing out the pyrotechnics, Quan poured me a drink.

  “You’re not drinking with me?”

  “Nah, bae. I like to keep a level head. I gotta know what’s going on. Alcohol makes me react slowly and I need to make sure you’re safe.”

  “Am I in danger?” I asked after taking a sip of the sweet wine.

  “Nah, but you never know. Niggas act wild in clubs. You can never let your guard down. I got you. Have fun on me,” he assured me.

  About four glasses and a slew of trap songs later, I had to pee badly.

  “Where’s the bathroom?” I asked, breaking our sensual trance.

  “It’s downstairs. I’ll get the guard to walk with you.”

  “That’s not necessary,” I said, turning away.

  “Yes it is. You’re not walking around this motherfucker as sexy as you are without security.” In my tipsiness, I shrugged it off. Quan was overprotective and I couldn’t fake like I didn’t like it. I loved it.

  I could tell that he cared, unlike some of these other niggas.

  I allowed the guard to walk me down the stairs and through the crowd to the restroom. He waited for me outside of the room while I handled my business.

  But as I stepped out of the stall, I saw Aoki standing in front of the mirror re-applying her lipstick. When she caught me looking at her in the mirror, she smirked. My entire mood shifted from light and giddy to anger.

  The wine had numbed my face but not my anger towards her. Slowly, I stepped to the sink beside her to wash my hands.

  “Are you working on a new trick?” I spitefully asked.

  “Funny.” She giggled sinisterly while slipping the tube of lipstick back into her purse.

  “There’s nothing funny about prostitution,” I quipped.

  “There’s nothing funny about walking around in cheap shoes, but you’re doing it anyway.”

  “Not all of us can sell our pussy for clothes.”

  “Right. Some of us just give our pussies away to niggas who claim they like us but don’t do anything but cheat on us. Or worse, stalk us so bad that we fail all of our classes.”

  “At least I’m not a hoe.”

  “Let’s see how long you’ll be singing that tune. Oh, and by the way I want my Chanel bag back,” she snapped when she walked towards the door.

  “If you have as much money as you claim from all the dicks you suck then why does it matter whether you get the bag back,” I shouted from behind her, forcing her to turn around. She marched up to me with a look in her eye that I had never seen before. It looked as if she was going to hit me, but I wasn’t afraid. I stood my ground and looked her straight in the face.

  “This is the only time I will ever give you a pass. After this moment, if something else like that comes out your fuckin mouth to me, your own mother won’t be able to recognize you. That pretty face of yours that got whatever simp that is in the balcony paying your way will be a distant memory. Watch yourself, bitch. Up until just now, I considered you my friend, but now you’re on my shit list,” she spat before turning around and walking back out the door. My fist were tightly clutched, ready to throw a punch at any time, but it wasn’t necessary. She didn’t even raise her hand. But before she opened the door, she stopped again.

  “And lastly, I’d rather know that I’m a hoe than be in denial about it. That nigga paid your tuition, trust and believe that ass is on a leash now.”

  “It was a scholarship!” I protested. Immediately I regretted telling her about the generous thing Quan did for me.

  “Keep telling yourself that.” She smirked before dashing out of the bathroom. I left out behind her only to be even more stunned.

  Aoki’s new trick was Tyriq! She was fuckin’ with my sister’s husband.

  Rage welled within me as I approached them. This was crossing the line. Aoki had gone too far to fuck with family.

  “Are you serious, bitch?!” I screamed at her when I finally reached her.

  “Oh shit!” Tyriq hollered.

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” Aoki asked.

  “You’re going to fake like you don’t know what I’m talking about. You stank ass bitch! This is my sister’s husband,” I thrashed before punching her in the face, causing her to topple to the sticky club floor.

  I attempted to run to her to beat her ass but Tyriq grabbed me by my waist and lifted me away.

  “Get your fuckin’ hands off of me!” I screamed while scratching at his arm. Unable to withstand the slicing of my nails, he dropped me, where I ran to back to Aoki who was gathering herself off of the ground.

  Her lip was busted, bleeding down her chin. We charged at each other, throwing punches.

  “You stupid hoe!” I screamed as I attempted to punch her in the head, but she kneed me in my stomach, causing me to crash to the same disgusting ground she just stood from.

  “Have you lost your fucking mind? Did you not heed the advice I gave you in the bathroom. Bitch! I don’t give a fuck if that is your sister’s man!” she yelled as she kicked me in my side before kneeling down to punch me in the face, repeatedly. Ty grabbed at her and struggled to tame her while I laid on the ground, shielding my face for fear that she would come back.

  “What the fuck is going on?” I heard Quan’s voice bark. My eyes still closed, I could feel him scoop me up and carry me away while bouncers ushered Tyriq and Aoki out of the club.

  As Quan walked me to a back area, I could feel that I was limping. Fuck! My knock off red bottomed heel had broken when I fell. That was an insult to the injuries that occurred when Aoki beat my ass. I was sad to say that was a fight I had lost, but at least I could say I stood up for my sister.

  “What was that
?” Quan asked once we were inside of an office in the club.

  “That bitch Aoki is trying to fuck my sister’s husband,” I cried while rummaging through my purse for my phone. But then I realized when I fell the entire contents of purse had emptied out. There was nothing left in my bag but some make-up and a few dollar bills. My wallet and phone were somewhere out there in the club.

  Without thinking, I started towards the door before Quan stopped me.

  “Sit your ass down. Where are you even going?”

  “My phone and wallet are out there. I need to call my sister.”

  “Hell no. I’ll get someone to find it for you. And if that shit is gone, then we’ll have to get you another one. But what the fuck? How are you going to come up in this spot and like a hoodrat bitch!?

  “Don’t call me that! That bitch is fucking with my sister!”

  “Who gives a shit. Save that shit for the streets. You don’t fight in clubs. That trifling bitch could have had a weapon on her.”

  He was right about that. Aoki was known for carrying around a knife. I’m sure the only reason she didn’t cut me was because she was caught off guard.

  “I’m sorry but that shit is foul. How could Ty do that to her! I have to tell her now.”

  “No you need to chill the fuck out and calm down before you create drama where there isn’t any. First of all, did you see them kiss?”

  “No. They were just dancing and talking.”

  “Exactly. So you’re going to tell your sister what then? That you saw her husband at a club dancing and talking. You’ll fuck up a relationship over some petty ass accusations that you can’t even prove?” he asked me, causing me to rethink what I did see.

  He was right, I had no hard-core proof that he was sleeping with her. However, Aoki did say she was going out with one of her new men tonight. But if I ran back and told Nova, would she believe me?

  “I just know Aoki. I know how she operates.”

  “I thought you were classier and smarter than this. If you weren’t hanging out with a thot like Aoki you wouldn’t know how they operate. If you were smart you would make sure that you had real proof that your sister’s husband was cheating. But you don’t. So you need to keep your mouth shut.”