The Broken Canvas

by Tai Barnett

  Taking the last sip of my drink, Michael turned around and suddenly looked at me. From that bodacious look, I knew that he had some gossip that he had to share right away.

  “What?”

  “What’s going between you and Andrew?” Michael said.

  Lauren sat up immediately and started to give me the same silly stare.

  I was completely oblivious to their insinuations. I took another sip of what was left of my drink while looking, first at Michael, then Lauren, then back at Michael.

  Lauren stared at Michael as though using her eyes to instruct him. She shook her head and sighed, “Isn’t it obvious, Natasha? Andrew has a thing for you, it was so obvious. Did you not hear his speech? He doesn’t know if he could live without you and he loves you.” Lauren said while smiling broadly and swaying from side to side, like a teenage fantasizing about Prince Charming.

  “Well, you’re mouthy…and I thought you had a headache? This is ridiculous, guys,” I looked at them bug-eyed and with a hunted look.

  “Not to mention, the man was completely unaware of what he was saying, right next to his date who he was completely ignoring and obviously just accompanying him, by the way,” exclaimed Michael.

  “Guys, that is a daring claim. I mean Andrew…liking me more than a friend?”

  “Honey, he did say that he loved you in front of everybody,” Michael said.

  “Well, I love him too. I mean we love each other as friends, I mean.”

  Michael sighed and folded his arms as he and Lauren looked at each other…again. They had an uncanny eye communication tonight and I was not included.

  “Natasha, he doesn’t just love you, he is in love with you. It is so obvious, everyone could tell, Mom, Dad, Nicholas and even that date of his, whatever her name was,” Lauren said.

  My surprise and disbelief about what my cousins were telling me suddenly transformed into a shamefaced expression.

  I place one hand over my mouth while staring at the back terrace in the distance and a sudden realization and possibility overcame my thoughts.

  “Well…Andrew, in love with me, that’s the most ridiculous thing I ever heard!”

  ***

  On their way home, Andrew hardly said a word to Christina. She looked at him as he drove calmly, it was obvious that he was thinking deeply.

  “So, that was very fun. I didn’t know Natasha would be so down to earth.” Christina said. She got his attention now.

  “Yes, well, Natasha is a free spirit you know. She loves everybody!”

  Christina shook her head in agreement.

  “Yes…yes I can tell she is very kind.”

  They arrived at the hotel they were staying 15 minutes later. Christina immediately went and had a shower. Not bothering to dry off, she walked outside wet and naked while posing at the bathroom door.

  Andrew, by now, had removed most of his clothing except for his boxers and socks.

  He lay on his back with his legs crossed at the ankle and smiled when he saw Christina standing by the door. He turned to his side with his elbow at his head. He sighed.

  “I have to say I love what you’re wearing,” he said.

  She smiled seductively, walked towards him, kneeled her svelte body onto the bed, and then started kissing him. Her long legs were gesturing the need to be wrapped around him—her tender lips teasing and tempting his tongue. They started making out passionately. Christina was ready and waiting for him to make love to her. She was ready for him to prove to her that his mind was not somewhere else.

  He turned her onto the bed and went on top of her while pausing for a few seconds. He stared at her and his eyes bore deeply into hers. She smiled and gleamed radiantly looking at him breathing heavily, but after a few seconds her seductive beam melted away and an unsaid realization of what she dreaded at that moment suddenly dawned on her. She slowly moved from under his body and sat in the middle of the bed while Andrew looked at her in silence and very aware of what was taking place. Yet, in his head he too was trying to dismiss possibilities or coming to terms with his true feelings.

  “What’s the matter, are you OK?” Andrew said while leaning on the gray quilted cushioned bedpost.

  Christina turned and looked at him.

  “It so obvious, Andrew, you’re in love with Natasha Bishop!”

  Gone Shopping

  “Well, either he is a damn fool or a saint. I can’t understand how he got over it so quickly. After his obvious display of affection at her birthday party and now she is eight and a half months pregnant with Brody Bannister’s child and he is driving nearly 30 miles just to get her Rico’s Pulled Pork Tacos. I swear I don’t know what that young guy is up to,” said Michael.

  He sorted through the rack of name brand shirts. He grabbed one out of the collection while putting it onto his chest and looked in the mirror. Lauren was seated on the mustard colored satin sofa of the Aphrodite’s Dream Boutique while their cousin Nicholas was searching for boxers not too far from them.

  Aphrodite’ Dream was a stylish men’s boutique in downtown Atlanta. It was adorned in elegant glass fixtures with dark brown and mustard accents. It was Michael’s favorite place to shop and he had promised Nicholas to take him shopping for his grad school ceremony.

  Nicholas was average height, but handsome with delicate features. He was 34 years old and had just finished his PhD in Archaeology.

  He loved me and supported me a lot. He was urbane and smart. But he could be thrifty and standoffish, very reserved and only spoke when needed or when it came to matters of relationship with Lauren and me. In fact, he was so overprotective of us that he hated any subjects of emotions in regard to us girls. And lest I forget, my brother was very funny too.

  Lauren decided to spend the day hanging out with the guys. Now Lauren, she was the real painter in the family. She also had a bachelor’s degree in fine arts and wanted to pursue art like I had in the past, except she was so very good at it. Lauren and Michael lived together about 20 minutes away, but Nicholas a9nd our parents lived literally five minutes away. I was surrounded by everybody that I knew and loved, and this made me very happy.

  The day of shopping was turning out fun, but Nicholas was not too fond of shopping and was also getting annoyed by the conversation. He brought over his shopping cart which was half-full and parked it in front of Lauren.

  “Well, I am ready,” said Nicholas.

  “Well, I think Andrew is sweet. He loves Natasha, she just has a problem with his age,” said Lauren.

  “Honey, we are living in modern times. Andrew is a 30-year-old mature man, I just don’t know why he would be wanting to date an older woman!” said Michael, still looking at another shirt in the mirror.

  Nicholas sighed and put his elbow unto the handle of the cart, looking at them both and broodingly listening to the conversation.

  Michael walked over to Lauren while holding two shirts that he had picked out.

  “Now, you know she is gorgeous, especially when she lost all that weight again! I like Andrew, I just don’t know if he really loves Tasha you know. And can he truly be faithful to her? I mean have you seen the boy? I tell her all the time I would gladly take him home for her one night,” Michael exclaimed while chuckling.

  Nicholas sighed and shook his head while watching Michael with a quizzical look on his face.

  “Ohh my god…anyway, you’re so crazy. I mean he loves Rose and is still here during her pregnancy; that’s a man in love Michael,” Lauren exclaimed.

  Michael shook his head, “Yet, she still thinks they are just friends. Now I don’t know about that entire love thing that you’re talking about. What I think he wants is to improve his self-image—now that’s what I really think.”

  Michael twirled to the club music in the background while admiring himself in the mirror. He quite enjoyed complimenting himself

  “Michael, Andrew has no need to he is just as successful as Natasha. Tasha just has more experience than he does,” said Lauren.
>
  “Well, I think all men are dogs and what about that little skinny thing he brought to the party…ahh Christina! What she just up and left?” Michael said. He grabbed another shirt from the rack.

  Lauren hung down her head.

  Michael walked toward her and placed his hand on his hip while staring her down,

  “Don’t try to stare away Miss Thing. You’re hiding something, what is it?” said Michael.

  “He and Christina broke up way before he found out that Tasha was pregnant, actually on the night of the party!” Lauren said with a close-lipped smirk suggesting I told you so.

  Michael sighed and gave a ‘Mona Lisa smile’, trying to decide if this was good or bad and not too sure how he was feeling about all of this.

  “Hmm…seems that boy really does have a thing for dear old Tasha, but she is just too damn blind to see that age is as relative as time,” Michael said.

  Nicholas, exhausted of seeing too much of Michael’s showy fashion display, ambiguous facial expressions and even more infuriated by hearing about his big sister, decided that he was done with all this and was ready to leave.

  “Why doesn’t Natasha just forget all those men? She goes away for several months and then comes back pregnant for this…Brody Fagister…of all the persons she could become pregnant for—”

  Lauren shook her head and giggled.

  “Oh Nick, you’re terrible,” Lauren said.

  Michael held his stomach and started laughing hysterically.

  “Wait…wait a minute, what you call him, Nick? Brody Fagister? Nick, believe me, if that sweet ass Brody Banister was gay, I would be the first one to know about it!” Michael exclaimed.

  “Yeah…yeah, the smug asshole has got all you women fooled…yeah even you Mike!”

  Michael put his hand on his hips, tightlipped and with his eyes wide open and staring at Nicholas but still smiling,

  “And as for that one with the British accent and baby face, he just wants to make headlines too,” Nicholas said with his eye brows furrowed.

  “What Tasha should be doing is focusing on Rose and the baby and forget all those dicks!” exclaimed Nicholas.

  He pushed his trolley toward the front of the store aggressively while Lauren and Michael looked at him. They knew my brother well. He had had enough of all this talking about his big sister’s relationships.

  Rico’s Pulled Pork Tacos

  Rico’s Tacos was the best. I had to have it at least once a month, it was my guilty pleasure.

  “Hmm, that is so good, you’re so good to me Andrew. What would I do without you?” My mouth was full of pulled pork gravy covering my lips.

  I was in the middle of my bed with my legs opened and the three servings of piled taco with tons of cheese on top of each other in the center.

  Andrew had a green drink in his hands as he took his shoes off and sat on the rocking chair that was directly beside my bed.

  He was rocking back and forth and looking at me stuffing my face with my huge belly in front of me and a gallon bottle of water on my bedside table. For some reason, I craved gallons of water.

  He smiled admiringly and with a dreamy look on his face.

  “Remember how you furnished my entire house while I was in California, ah now you’re forgetting that gesture was as an equally kind, was it not?” Andrew said.

  “Well I had to, my gift for my birthday was my best friend buying a house a few minutes away from me. I wanted to at least, give you a nice house warming gift.”

  “A portrait would have sufficed—furnishing the entire house was…a tad bit too much though, was it not?” Andrew said while smiling.

  “Perhaps, but that’s just how I am. I wanted to surprise you anyway. You and Christina. Only to find out that you broke up with her, which you still have not explained to me even now.”

  “Well, we just didn’t see eye to eye that’s all,” Andrew said.

  “OK, burp!” I had belched unexpectedly in front of him, he held down his head and laughed.

  “Hey, you’re not the only one that can give an arduous belch you know. I will prove it to you one day, once you have that baby. Anyhow, I am leaving tomorrow for a few days. Dann wants me to meet with the casting director for a new series.”

  “Which?” I asked. I was moaning and groaning while licking my fingers.

  “Derelicts.”

  “Oh, that’s Carol McKinney. We worked together before a few years ago. Which character do they have in mind?”

  “Milton.” Andrew replied.

  “Ohh Milton, hmm, quite a stretch from your usual roles. I read the script for the pilot, Milton is a tough guy, a horrible hardened criminal. So, you have to evoke that side—if you can.”

  Andrew sat up and looked at me.

  “You doubt that I have a darker side to me,” he inquired.

  “Well, not a darker side, that sounds creepy; but a more aggressive, unforgiving, ‘take what you want’ side. You’re a sweetheart, too sweet sometimes, very macho but you better make sure you choose the right woman that deserves you because you’re not like other men.”

  Andrew looked at me and smiled—considering possibilities he would dare not say.

  He put his sneakers back on, stood up and took one of the empty plates from the bed while standing and looking at me still filling my face.

  “I am taking Rose to get ice cream before I leave, bring you back anything?”

  I smiled and pressed my lips against each other while squinting my eyes bashfully.

  “OK, the usual then, cookies and cream,” said Andrew smiling.

  “You must think I am a pig, oh my God!”

  “Ohh, shut up! You’re almost nine months pregnant. Did you still expect to keep starving yourself? And yes, I know you do that to keep your weight down, which I completely do not agree with by the way.”

  “Hmmm, you know too much it seems. Wonder what else you know about me Mr. Kingston?”

  “I will never tell dear, anyhow, give me a hug!” We hugged each other as he looked at my belly.

  “Now, Charles, promise me you won’t come out for the next four days?” he kissed my forehead and went to get Rose.

  Hello, Charles Russell Banister

  “I can’t believe I missed it. Ohh my God look at him,” Andrew whispered.

  Andrew was two days late for the arrival of Charles. It was 10:30 pm and the house was packed with family and relatives. Charles and I were fast asleep in the room upstairs with Rose on one side, of course.

  “So, how did she do?” said Andrew to Nicholas, who was in the room staring at me, his niece and nephew.

  Nicholas’ eyes widened.

  “All I know is the before and after, that’s all I wanted to know anyhow. But she seems okay, and everything went well. Her pain from the C-section is kinda wearing off,” said Nicholas while they both stood there looking at the three of us sleeping beside each other on the king-sized bed.

  Andrew looked at the empty blue basinet in a corner of the room.

  “Isn’t he supposed to be in his own thing…his bed, the basinet thing? Do you know how long it took her to decide on the perfect one?” Andrew asked.

  Nicholas looked at him curiously and was thinking how much he was sounding more like a father to Charles than just a friend to his mother.

  “Not Natasha, she did the same thing with Rose until she turned seven. She said she wanted her baby right beside her that she could protect her better that way. Not surprised. She still sleeps with her most of the time.”

  “Good luck to the next dude she dates, because it will be the three of them in the bed for the next five to six years…it seems,” Nicholas said.

  “Really?” Andrew said smiling.

  Nicholas continued observing Andrew, observing his every movement and trying to evoke an ‘honest’ conventional response.

  “Yeah, so ahh…everyone is about to leave. Aren’t you coming down?” said Nicholas.

  “Ahh…I think I may stay until she get
s up. I kinda feel guilty not being there. I still can’t believe I missed it!” Andrew whispered.

  “Dude, she is drugged out. She ain’t getting up until it’s time to feed Charles which could be another two hours.”

  “Ahh yes, I appreciate the consideration, but I will be fine. I have my phone, you take care now, Nicholas.”

  Nicholas looked at him, bewildered and slightly liking him a bit more for appearing to truly care for his sister.

  “OK, see you tomorrow then!” Nicholas said. He looked at Andrew then looked back at me and the kids and smiled.

  “Good night, Nicholas!” Andrew said.

  Charles woke me up about 2 hours after Andrew arrived, he was screaming for his breast milk.

  I was still exhausted as I slowly opened my eyes and saw Andrew’s pink lips and cherubic blue eyes looking at us. He hadn’t shaved for a while it seemed.

  “You finally made it and why do you look like lumberjack?”

  “Hahaha! Yes, I am back. I rushed out to the airport before I could get a shave!” he replied while brushing back my hair.

  “Would you like me to get Vernon?” he said.

  “Oh no, it’s alright hun. Just sit down, I am quite fine.”

  I slowly sat up and moved gradually towards Charles, picked him up and started removing my bra.

  I could tell that Andrew was becoming frightened and jumbled as I was about to take out one breast from my white maternity bra.

  “Ahh, I am just gonna wait until you’re finished here—” he said while looking away.

  “Oh Andrew, it’s quite alright. You won’t see a thing. Look, I covered up.”

  I laughed and used a shawl to cover my very swollen breasts.

  “You’re acting like you have never seen nipples before.”

  Yes, but I had never seen yours before. Andrew thought to himself.

  “Well, as long as you’re comfortable,” he said as he smiled.

  “You’re always such a gentleman, and I am even more relaxed now that you’re here! But this is my second remember, I would breastfeed in a crowded ballroom, if I had to.”