To Boston, With Love

by Chenell Parker

  “Don’t worry about it baby. Your man got you, always,” Boss assured her.

  “All that behind some fucking hair,” Indigo fumed.

  “It’s all good love. Dogs don’t bark at parked cars. If you weren’t doing shit, they wouldn’t have a reason to hate on you. All that shit can be replaced though. That meeting up with people shit is dead. We have to find you a spot, so they can come to you. They thought they couldn’t take you before. They really won’t be able to take you now. I’m bout to make sure you sit on these hoes’ chest and apply pressure. They fucked with the wrong one,” Boss said as he pulled her into a hug.

  His heart dropped when Indigo called him and he couldn’t even respond. His first thought was to get to her as soon as possible and make sure that she was straight. When he pulled up and saw that her window was busted out, his anxiety went through the roof.

  After a few minutes of talking, the front door to the shop opened and Hank, the owner, walked in. He looked pissed but Boss didn’t give a fuck. Shine came in a few minutes later and she looked confused.

  “Hey Indigo. What’s going on?” Shine asked.

  “That’s what the fuck I wanna know,” Boss snapped as he walked up on her. Indigo was holding him back because he was unstable at times.

  “Whoa. No need for all that fam. We’re trying to see what’s going on just like you. What happened?” Hank questioned. He and Shine listened, as Indigo ran the entire story down to them.

  “Indigo, I swear, I didn’t give anyone your number or tell anyone to call you. I haven’t even been working for the past few days. I have two sick babies at home,” Shine said.

  “Did you try calling the number back?” Hank asked.

  “The shit keeps going straight to voicemail,” Indigo replied. She tried calling the number back a few times before Boston got there but it was a waste.

  “Let me run these cameras back and see what’s up,” Hank said as everybody followed him back to his office.

  It took a few minutes for him to log into the computer and pull up the cameras. Then, he had to rewind it back to the time of the incident.

  “That’s the car right there. That big tall bitch was the one who came at me first. I cut that big horse built bitch in her face,” Indigo raged.

  “Cut her? With what?” Boss asked.

  “Yep, with this,” she smirked as she held up her lipstick knife. He shook his head but he was happy that she had it.

  “I don’t know any of them. I’ve never seen them before in my life,” Shine swore.

  “Before tonight, neither have I,” Indigo replied as they watched the tape.

  “They obviously know how y’all operate in order for them to bring Shine’s name into it,” Hank pointed out.

  The veins in Boston’s forehead bulged as he watched everything unfold. He believed that Shine was innocent but somebody had to pay. Just then, Boss thought about his altercation with West. He didn’t put anything past his former friend. The fact that he mentioned Indigo’s hair business was a red flag. West could be petty like a bitch at times and he knew that better than anyone. Everyone knew that Indigo was his weakness and fucking with her was the equivalent of doing it to him.

  “Damn. Dirty bitches took all the hair,” Shine said as she watched them removing all the bins from Indigo’s trunk.

  “That’s fucked up, but somebody you know sent them at you,” Hank noted.

  “It’s over for them hoes when I find out,” Boss fumed.

  “Riding around with all that shit in your car is not a good look,” Hank said while looking at Indigo.

  “That’s over with too. I gotta find her a spot to do that shit,” Boss replied.

  “I might be able to help you out with that,” Hank said.

  “How so?” Boss asked, sounding like Dr. Everette.

  “I got a room in the back that was for the hair products that we used to sell. If y’all are interested, I’ll give y’all a good rental rate. We haven’t used it in over a year. You can decorate and do whatever you want to do with it,” Hank said as he walked them back there and unlocked the door.

  Indigo had been to the shop more times than she could count, but she never knew that there was another room back there. The furthest she’d ever gone was to the bathroom, so she didn’t have a reason to go beyond that point. Hank already had shelves, display cases and even a cash register back there. With a little paint and a few pictures, the room would be as good as new. It was big and Indigo was already thinking about what else she could use it for besides hair.

  “What’s up baby? You feeling this or what?” Boss asked as Indigo looked around.

  “Yeah, it’s straight,” she replied.

  “Let’s talk numbers,” Boss said as he walked out of the room with Hank following behind him.

  Indigo looked around the room and smiled. It might not have been much to some, but it was everything to her. She was going to be her own boss and that was one of the best feelings in the world. She knew that it was gonna be hard trying to be there and work at two bars. Indigo was trying to secure a bag and she was willing to sacrifice sleep in order to do it.

  B oss blew smoke from his nose and mouth before he took another long pull from his blunt. He was parked outside of his father’s place, waiting for Indigo to get off. Since getting jumped a few days ago, he was always lurking in the shadows, making sure that she was straight. Boss had been looking for West high and low but he hadn’t found him yet. Boss had gone to his mother’s house more than once but he hadn’t had any luck. Ari was always there, but her brother never was. More than likely, he was laid up with some bitch just like always. As pissed as he was, Boss was happy that Indigo was okay.

  He spent over five grand ordering more hair and some other stuff that she wanted to sell. Hank showed love with the price on the room that she was going to be using and Boss paid him up for the entire year. He and Draco touched up the paint and Indigo was ordering items to decorate. She was happy and that was all that he cared about. After taking another pull from his weed, Boss put it out in the astray and opened the door to get out. He usually waited for Indigo outside, but he was about to do something that he’d never done before.

  Boss had gone to see Dr. Everette earlier that day and she felt that he was stalling his own progress. He had never done anything that she asked him to and that wasn’t helping. He still hadn’t slept alone and he wasn’t sure that he could. Lacey was like his nightlight and, when morning came, he had no more use for her. Sex with her wasn’t happening because Indigo had him covered on that. Truthfully, sex with anybody but Indigo wasn’t happening since they came back from Miami. Quita didn’t press him too much, but Keema acted like she was losing her mind. She called him multiple times a day and him not answering didn’t stop her.

  After stalling long enough, Boss slowly made his way over to the building and walked inside. Some nigga was leaned over the bar smiling in Indigo’s face and he was ready to start shooting.

  “Your drink is on the bar nigga. The fuck you all up in her face for?” Boss snapped, wiping the smile off the man’s face. He was an older man and he didn’t do drama. He grabbed his beer off the bar and quickly walked away.

  “What are you doing here?” Indigo asked him.

  “About to catch a murder charge if you don’t stop playing with me.” Boss frowned.

  “Boy bye. I’m not trying to fuck with none of these old ass men and get worms. I flirt a little and they tip a lot.” Indigo shrugged.

  “Fuck them tips. I got whatever you need,” he growled.

  “What are you doing here Boston? We got about another hour before we close,” she noted. Indigo was tired as hell, but she still had to work a few hours at Dixie’s.

  Justice was working a double until morning and she was staying the night with Boss at his house. Her car was parked there already and he was acting as her personal chauffer. He got her window fixed the day after it was broken but he still didn’t feel comfortable with her driving i
t. Too many people knew their cars and he was ready for them to trade up again.

  “Is he here?” Boss asked, speaking of his father.

  “Who? Bear?” Indigo countered.

  “Yeah,” he replied.

  “Aww, I’m so proud of you baby,” Indigo squealed as she leaned over the bar and kissed him.

  “Proud of me for what? I didn’t even do shit,” Boss blushed.

  “The fact that you even came in here says a lot. He’s gonna be so happy. See, I told you that therapy works.” Indigo smiled.

  “Fix me something to drink baby. Something strong,” Boss requested.

  Indigo fixed him a shot of D’Usse and he downed it in no time. She fixed him another and his nerves had finally calmed down a little. Dr. Everette thought it was a good idea for him to talk to his father, but Boston declined. Once Indigo got in his ear about it, he finally started to give it some thought. After his session earlier, he promised to give it his best effort and that’s what he was doing. Boss wanted a family of his own one day but he couldn’t continue down the same road that he’d been traveling. He couldn’t raise kids when the demons of his past were still haunting him. He couldn’t help a child if he couldn’t even help himself.

  “Ready?” Indigo asked him with a satisfied smile.

  “I guess so. Let me hold on to that bottle,” Boss requested.

  “No need boo. He got a few bottles in his office already,” Indigo said.

  She came from behind the bar and grabbed his hand. She damn near had to drag him because he was moving so slow. Boss stood back, as Indigo knocked on Bear’s office door. Once he granted her entry, she peeked her head inside.

  “I’ll be out there to announce last call in a minute,” Bear said when he saw her.

  “No need, I got it. Besides, you have something much more important to do.” Indigo smiled.

  “Like what?” Bear asked.

  When she stepped to the side and he saw Boston standing there, his eyes filled with unshed tears. Bear wasn’t an overly religious man but he had been praying for that day to come for years. His son was a handsome replica of himself and he missed him more than he knew. Indigo told him that she was working on Boss and she wasn’t lying. He appreciated her and words could never convey how much.

  “I’ll be in the front if you need me,” Indigo said as she walked away.

  Bear wanted to get up and hug his only son but he refrained. He had to take baby steps with Boss and he was okay with that. The fact that he was even there was like a dream come true.

  “Come in son. Do you want a drink? Help yourself to whatever you want,” Bear offered as he motioned to the bottles that sat on his desk. Having a drink with his only son was something that he often fantasized about.

  “Preciate it,” Boss said as he fixed himself something else to sip on. He sat in the chair in front of his father’s desk and looked around. The moment was awkward but he was trying.

  “We have a lot to talk about Boston. I know that you had it rough when I was locked up and I take the blame for that. It’s just a lot that you don’t know. You were really too young to understand,” Bear said.

  “Yeah, well, I’m a grown ass man now,” Boss noted.

  “I guess I don’t have to ask where your stubborn ways come from. Just know that explaining myself to anybody has never been my thing. But, you’re my son and I owe you that and more,” Bear replied.

  “I’m listening,” Boss said.

  “First off, I just want to apologize for all the shit that you had to go through. You didn’t deserve that and I feel responsible for all of it. Carla was such a good mother in the beginning. I would have never imagined that she would do some shit like that to you,” Bear said while shaking his head somberly.

  “I guess you didn’t know her as well as you thought.” Boss shrugged.

  “I obviously didn’t know her at all. We were only seventeen when we had you but that was no excuse. You made me want to do better and, for a while, I did. I used to run with this nigga named Tony a while ago when I was still in the streets. The nigga was like my brother and we used to get a lot of money together. One day, we were supposed to meet up with our connect to get right but you took sick at school that day. Your mama was at home sick with the flu, so I had to be the one to pick you up. I told Tony what was up and he was cool with it. Well, he was until he got to the meeting spot and got arrested. People were saying that our connect got caught up and he was snitching on people trying to get himself a good deal. Well, Tony wasn’t trying to hear that. He thought that I was on some funny shit and he blamed me for him getting locked up. The police confiscated all of the money that he had in his trunk and he said that I owed him for what he lost. Half of my damn money got confiscated too but I was always good at saving. But anyway, I went on with business as usual and found me another connect a few weeks later. I was out there getting money and Tony was broke and salty. The nigga started coming at me sideways, telling people that he was gonna kill me and all that other bullshit. I never took the nigga serious until he crossed the line,” Bear rambled.

  “Crossed the line how?” Boss asked.

  “I came home one day and your mama was in there crying and I didn’t know what was going on. She told me that somebody dropped off an envelope with my name on it and she opened it to see what was inside. They had pictures of you at school and at the park and a few other places that we took you to. The nigga Tony told me that I had forty-eight hours to get him his money or I could keep it and use it to bury my only child. All common sense left me at that point. I went out and handled that nigga the very same night and got locked up the next morning. I’m not proud of what I did Boston, but I love you enough to do it all over again if I had to. I did the wrong thing for the right reason but I’m sorry that you had to suffer for it,” Bear replied.

  Boss sat there, stunned to silence. He felt like shit for never taking the time to at least hear his father out. Grant always told him that one conversation with Bear would change his mind about how he felt. Boss wasn’t ashamed to admit that he was right.

  “Damn man,” Boss sighed as he ran his hand over his bearded face.

  “A lot of things broke my heart but repaired my vision when I was locked up. All the love that I showed to people when I was out and nobody gave a fuck about me enough to make sure that my only son was good. As big as my family is, ain’t no way in hell you should have ended up in a group home or with nobody else that wasn’t blood. I paid for the house that my mama was living in and she didn’t even open up her door for you. Hell, I paid for the house that your mama is still living in. Bitch moved my fucking child out just to move another nigga in,” Bear said while shaking his head in anger.

  He didn’t even deal with anyone in his family anymore. It was one thing for them to fuck over him, but his son was innocent. Not having legal income at the time did more harm than good. Although Bear was the one who paid for everything, none of it was in his name. When he purchased the house for Carla, he did so with his son in mind. It’s sad that Boss didn’t even get a chance to enjoy it.

  “I don’t even know none of your people and I don’t want to.” Boss shrugged.

  “I just hate that I missed out on so many years of your life. I knew you as a child but I want to get you know you as an adult. I’m not rushing anything and you can take all the time you need. I just want us to work on a relationship as father and son,” Bear said as he looked at him.

  “We can do that.” Boss nodded, making his father smile. He hadn’t seen Bear in years and he didn’t realize just how much he favored him.

  “Man, you just don’t know how I feel right now. I didn’t think that this day would ever come but I’m grateful,” Bear beamed.

  “Yeah, my wife has been in my ear for a while now,” Boss replied.

  “Wife? You’re married?” Bear asked, feeling like he was talking to a familiar stranger.

  “Nah, not yet but I will be soon,” Boss answered.

  �
�Anybody I know?” Bear inquired.

  “Yeah, she works for you.” Boss smirked.

  “Indigo? Wait, I thought she was already fucking with somebody.”

  “She is. I’m boyfriend number two,” Boss laughed, even though he was dead ass serious.

  “I’m leaving that one alone,” Bear said while laughing with him.

  “You got a pen or something?” Boss asked.

  “Uh, yeah,” Bear replied as he pulled one out from his desk drawer and handed it to him.

  “That’s my number. Use it anytime,” Boss said as he wrote his number on the calendar that was on the desk.

  He stood to his feet, preparing to leave. Admittedly, he felt better than he’d felt in a long time and he was grateful for Indigo. Boss hated when she pushed too hard but, sometimes, it was necessary. He was stubborn but she didn’t let up.

  “Wait a minute. I need to give you something,” Bear said as he stood up. He removed a picture from the wall and opened the safe that was behind it.

  “Nah bruh, I appreciate it but I’m good on money,” Boss assured him.

  “And now, you’ll be even better,” Bear said while handing him a small gold envelope. Boss opened it, expecting to find cash inside but there was none. Instead, he found a checkbook and some paperwork.

  “What is this?” Boss inquired in confusion.

  “A bank account that I started for you a month after you were born. Half of the money that I made when I was in the streets was deposited into it. I’ve been adding to it every month since I got released. Add all the interest that it collected when it sat up all those years and you’re sitting on a nice lil stash,” Bear pointed out.

  “Damn,” Boss mumbled when he looked at the balance.

  “I know that money can’t take away the pain or make up for lost times. I just want to make life a little easier for you if I can,” Bear said. He opened his arms for a hug, hoping that his son didn’t reject him.

  “Thank you,” Boss said as he walked over and embraced him. He was a grown ass man but he didn’t realize just how much he needed a hug from his father.