by Darrien Lee
Craig was looking at the floor, visibly hurt and pissed off. He angrily asked, “Why couldn’t you just talk to me, Venice? We’ve been able to talk about everything else. Did you tell him how you felt about me?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know. I guess I was afraid I’d lose him. I’ve never had to deal with anything like this before.”
“So he does know I exist?”
“Yes, I told him about you weeks ago.”
“And he’s cool about it?”
“Not really. He knows we decided to chill on our relationship. He said I should tell you everything before you found out.”
The fury finally came. “When did he give you the expert advice? When he was screwing you? Why are you even telling me this? Why are you even here? It’s obvious you went where you wanted to be. Venice, you have a goddamn husband!”
“Ex-husband! Craig, I didn’t want you to find out the wrong way.”
Craig looked at her, crazed. “Who else knows?”
“Just my family and Chanelle.”
He asked solemnly, “Are you going to see him again?”
“I can’t answer that right now. This entire situation is complicated because I’m in love with you, too. I hope you’ll bear with me until I can sort this out.”
“It would’ve been nice to hear you tell me that you loved me under different circumstances. It really doesn’t matter now.”
“I’m sorry.”
“So am I, Venice.”
Craig stood up and walked over to the window. He dropped his head and said, “Venice, I don’t know what I wanna do right now. I think you need to leave. I need some time to think.”
She went over to him and put her hand on his arm. “Craig, I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I do love you.”
She closed the door behind her and left the house. Craig watched her from the window as she got into her car and drove away. He wanted to hold her and tell her that no matter what, he still loved her. He just couldn’t. A man’s got his pride. Anyway, she was only a woman. Unfortunately, he loved this one.
Eighteen
Craig was having a hard time dealing with the situation with Venice. Skeeter came over a few weeks later to hang out and watch TV. Craig had already told him what went down with Venice and Skeeter could tell that Craig was still down in the dumps.
“Man, you’re still trippin’ over girl? You need to move on, dog. Ain’t no way I would let some chick mess with my head like that.”
“She’s not just ‘some chick’ okay?”
Skeeter took a sip of his drink. “Man, she’s got your nose wide open. There’s too many women around here for you to be worrying about her. If I were you, I’d just let it go. It’s obvious that she’s not ready for you.”
“I don’t know about that. I love this one. I just wasn’t expecting her to get with her old man like that. I knew she wasn’t over him, but I didn’t expect this.”
“What’s up with them?”
“They used to be married.”
Skeeter sat up and hollered, “Married!”
Craig got up and poured him some juice. “Yeah, married. She got pregnant in high school, but ended up losing the baby. They stayed married up until last spring before leaving for college.”
“Damn! She’s kind of hot, isn’t she?”
“Uh-uh, man, she’s just been in some unusual situations. She can’t help it that she still has feelings for dude. They’ve been together for about four years.”
Skeeter asked, “So where do you fit into all that?”
“She said they decided to chill since they were going to be so far apart. I just don’t know if I can handle her hooking up with him whenever she feels like it.”
“Well, if you want to still be with her, you need to put some loving on her so good, it’ll make her forget about him. The rod is a powerful tool. You just need to make sure you use it the right way.”
“It’s not about the sex, Skeeter. I’m digging her just as hard without the sex. If I lose her, I’ll probably lose my damn mind.”
“Maybe she is ‘the one.’ Especially if you’re jones’n that bad for her.”
“I guess. I haven’t talked to her in weeks. I don’t even know if she’ll speak to me again after the things I said.”
“Well, you’ll never know if you don’t go see the girl. Look, believe it or not, I like her. I think she’s good for you. I’ve never seen you this messed up over a chick before so she must be the one.”
Craig didn’t respond. He just stared at the TV watching the game.
Since two weeks had passed, Venice was facing the fact that Craig didn’t want to continue a relationship with her. He hadn’t called or come by since they’d had their talk. Venice threw herself into her classes. Jarvis called to check on her, but she really didn’t feel like discussing it with him. Galen called to tell Venice that she did the right thing.
“Don’t stress out over this, girl. Let the chips fall where they may. If he wants to be with you, he’ll call. I saw him the other day. He asked how you were. I just told him that I hadn’t had a chance to talk to you and I didn’t want to get involved.”
“I think I did the wrong thing by telling him, Galen.”
“No, you didn’t. He had a right to know. You may not believe it right now but eventually, you will. You and Jarvis shared an unusual situation.”
“Whatever! Look, I need to get out of here. I’m going for a walk.”
“All right, give me a holler if you need me.”
Venice agreed and hung up the phone. She grabbed her coat and left the room. As she got onto the elevator, her heart begin to ache and tears started rolling down her face. Even though she still loved Jarvis, she didn’t want to lose her relationship with Craig. She loved him, too. When she reached the lobby, she walked toward the front door, but stopped for a moment to button her jacket. When she did that, she felt someone embrace her from behind. It startled her when she turned to find Craig standing there.
He smiled, took the tissue from her hand, and wiped her tears. “I hope those tears are for me. Where are you headed? I was just trying to call you.”
Venice was speechless. He reached for her hand. “Come with me, Taylor.”
Craig led her out the door. Venice shyly followed as the cold air hit her face. Craig didn’t say anything else. He just led her to the parking lot.
When they reached his truck, he turned to face her. “Venice, I’m mad as hell at you. But, it’s not all your fault.”
Venice dropped her head. “Yes, it is.”
He held her in the cold air for a moment and then opened the door for her to get in. Once they got inside, he said, “Venice, everything happens for a reason. All I want is for us to be happy. I don’t know where to go from here, but I’m willing to deal with it for now.” He paused for a moment, then looked down at his hands and continued, “Look I’m sorry you lost your baby. That had to have been terrible for both of you.”
“Thanks. It was terrible.”
He turned her to face him and gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek. Venice was still too shaken to respond. He asked if she wanted to go for a ride and talk. She nodded in agreement and he started up the truck and pulled out the parking lot.
Craig drove to the city park where he found a spot by the lake.
He turned off the truck and said, “Venice, I’ve had two long weeks to think about what happened between us. I’m still pissed that you lied to me. But, I admire you for coming to me when you got back. It hurt, but at least I know the deal. So, where do we go from here? Huh?”
“I don’t know. I guess it depends on what you’re willing to deal with. I honestly can’t tell you that I won’t see him again. I thought when I got here and met new people, things would be different. But, after being away from him so long, seeing him again sort of rekindled things.
“So, do you still love me?”
“Yes, Craig, I do. But knowi
ng the situation I’ve put you in, I couldn’t blame you if you wanted to date other women. I don’t know where this is going to lead us. I want to be with you and I also want to be able to maintain a relationship with Jarvis. If you don’t want to be with me, I’ll understand.”
“Venice LaShawn Taylor, the last thing I ever wanted to do was to share someone I love with another man. That’s not my style. I do believe you when you say that you love me and I can understand why you still have feelings for him. And no, I don’t want to see any other women. I wish you felt the same way. I don’t want you to think I’m less of a man if I decide to walk away. I also don’t want you to think I’m a punk if I decide to stick around. You’re asking a hell of a lot from me. I can’t promise you anything. I just have to take it one day at a time.”
Venice said, “I understand and I’m sorry.”
They sat there in silence for a moment, watching the ducks in the pond.
“Are you hungry, Venice?”
“Not really.”
“I think I could eat a bite or two. Do you want to hang out for a while?”
Venice smiled. “Sure.”
He started the truck and headed to one of the fast food restaurants in the area. Venice was glad they were able to talk about it. At least it was a start.
Three days passed and it was time for Homecoming Week at Dawson. Venice decided that she was going to try and have a great time with Craig and their friends. Craig invited Venice to spend the week at his house. Bernice was going to Vegas on vacation with her fiancee, J.T. They never liked to be in town when all the festivities were going on so they always headed to Vegas.
That allowed Craig to have the house to himself for parties or whatever. Venice was a little reluctant. She knew that Jarvis would be looking for her. She also knew he would page her if he couldn’t catch her in her room. It would be hard for her to return his call from Craig’s house. It would also be disrespectful to try. She was just going to have to call him first.
Jarvis was a late night caller. That’s when they held most of their conversations. Venice knew that Jarvis would be pissed if he found out how close she’d become to Craig. He’d also be upset to know she was spending the week at his house. Venice decided she couldn’t worry about it. She loved him but he wasn’t able to be with her and besides, she did enjoy Craig’s company.
Each night, there was going to be something going on. There would be a Greek step-show, a fashion show, or some type of concert or party. Venice wanted to see everything if her body would hold up. Joshua and Bryan wouldn’t be arriving until later in the week. On Monday evening, Craig told Venice to go on over whenever she got out of class. He’d given her a key to the house the day before because he’d be out of town on his work-study job and wouldn’t get in until late. He’d have campus classes the rest of the week so he could enjoy the homecoming events and Venice’s company.
As Venice arrived at the Bennett home, she settled in with her bags. She paged Craig to let him know that she was at his house and asked if he wanted her to start dinner. He told her to help herself to whatever she wanted.
He explained, “I’ll be at the house around six o’clock”
“I’ll see you then.”
Venice had retired to Craig’s bedroom to watch TV when his phone rang. As she sat there, his answering machine picked up. Venice felt like she was invading his privacy but she also felt a need to hear who was calling.
The answering machine finally picked up and a woman’s voice said, “Hey, baby! It’s been a long time since I heard that sweet voice of yours. I know you know who this is. I’m coming down for homecoming this weekend and I thought maybe we could get together. Anyway, call me when you get in at 555-2323. Hope to hear from you soon, baby. Bye.”
Venice was shocked and felt like the drama was going to be her payback. Could she be someone from Craig’s past or present?
Realizing that she was alone in the house, Venice hollered, “I can’t believe this shit! Who in the hell is this? I guess it’s true when they say ‘What goes around, comes around.’”
Venice was suddenly feeling depressed. She wondered how she was going to be able to play off hearing the message once Craig got home. She was just going to have to act as if she hadn’t been in his room, so she got her suitcase out of the bedroom and put it in the den. She returned to the kitchen to finish up dinner.
It wasn’t long before she heard the garage door open and Craig entered the kitchen. He greeted her with a kiss on the cheek and bragged about dinner smelling so good.
He said, “Do you mind if I take a shower before dinner? I want to get out of these clothes.”
Venice told him that it was fine and he went into the bedroom. Venice was curious to know if Craig was checking his messages. If so, would he fess up? This was going to be a test. Venice set the table for dinner. In a few minutes, Craig came back into the kitchen. He hadn’t showered yet but he had this confused look on his face.
Venice asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong. I had a message from my old girl on the answering machine. She’s coming to town for homecoming and for some reason, she thinks we can hook up.”
“Oh really?”
“Venice, Miranda is in the past,” Craig stated reassuringly. “She’s not the nicest person and she can’t show up thinking she’s going to get with me. You don’t have to worry about that.”
Venice responded with, “After what I did to you, I couldn’t really blame you if you wanted to.”
Craig jumped up from his seat, pulled her to him, and said, “Look, Venice, I thought we said we’d let that go. I don’t want to hear anything else about that. Okay? I’m not a revengeful person and I wouldn’t dare do anything like that just to get back at you. Do you hear me?”
“Whatever you say. I just don’t want to be mixed up in any drama this week, that’s all.”
Craig pulled Venice closer to him and told her not to worry. He gave her a kiss on the forehead and said he was going to hit the showers.
Venice felt a little better, but she remembered what Galen had told her about this chick. He said she was a control freak. Venice decided to stay calm and occupy her mind with homecoming. Craig got out of the shower and told Venice he was going to call Miranda back and let her know that he already had plans. He called the number back as Venice sat at the kitchen table. Venice asked if he would like some privacy and he told her she didn’t have to leave the room.
The woman on the other line answered the telephone. Craig told her that he’d received her message. He went on to tell her that it was nice she was going to get to come for homecoming. However, he already had plans with someone else and wouldn’t be able to hook up with her. From the look on his face, Miranda didn’t take the news too well.
Craig said, “Why are you tripping like that? I thought you would’ve matured a little by now. I guess I was wrong.”
Venice could tell Craig was beginning to get pissed off.
“Well, Miranda, I see we still can’t be cordial with each other, even after all this time, but I’m not surprised.” Craig paused, then continued, “Miranda, I don’t want to argue with you anymore. This just proves that we were never meant to be and the best thing we ever did was calling it quits. Look, I hope you have a great time for homecoming.”
After that statement, Craig held the telephone down and shook his head. He put it back up to his ear and said, “Well, she hung up. Now maybe she’s finally gotten the message.” He hung up the phone. “Miranda is crazy. She’s spoiled and she’s selfish. Venice, I don’t want to talk about her anymore. Let’s eat.”
Venice and Craig sat down and forgot all about the previous scene. Actually, they went on as if the telephone call never happened. Venice felt slightly better and less threatened by Miranda. Craig was apparently no longer under Miranda’s control.
After dinner was over and the kitchen was clean, Craig asked Venice what was on the homecoming agenda for the night.
&nb
sp; Venice said, “I think tonight is the frat and sorority auction.”
“Want to go watch it, Venice?”
“Not particularly. Those auctions are okay but I heard they get wild after a while. Some of the boyfriends and girlfriends just can’t handle their significant others going out with other people. But, if you want to go, we can check it out.”
“No, we don’t have to. I’d rather wait for the concert tomorrow night.”
“That’s fine with me. By the way, I’ve already bought the tickets to the show. It’s my treat!”
“Now, why’d you do that? I wanted to treat you to the show.”
“Well, next time it’s your treat.”
They continued to talk as they watched TV. Craig asked Venice if she played backgammon. She told him she was an average player, so they went down into the rec room and played a few games. It was beginning to get late and they both had classes the next morning so they decided to call it a night. Venice showered, then went to bed. Craig told her goodnight. He was going to be up a while studying. He went downstairs so he wouldn’t disturb her. Venice turned in for the night and fell asleep before her head hit the pillow.
As morning came, Venice realized that Craig had been up all night working on some drawings. Or, was he avoiding her. Venice wondered if Craig still wasn’t ready to get with her; especially after she had been with Jarvis.
It was seven a.m. and Venice’s first class was at eight. She told Craig good morning and hurried into the shower. Craig had one class, which wasn’t until one o’clock.
As Venice dressed, she told him to try and get some rest before his class. She gave him a kiss and told him she would see him around four o’clock. Venice wanted to go to her room to call Galen, but she didn’t have time.
Craig said, “I’m going to lie down for a few hours before class. I’ll see you this evening.”
Once Venice left, Craig said, “Damn, I’ve got to get over this Jarvis situation.”
Venice’s classes that day seemed short. Everyone, even the professors, were caught up in the homecoming spirit. The campus was decorated throughout with the school colors. Everybody was buzzing about the concert that night featuring Tamia, Levert, and the O’Jays. It was a cool day and the game Saturday night would probably be very cold. Venice had to decide what she was going to wear. Chanelle had left a message on her answering machine about going shopping. Venice called her back and told her to meet her in the lobby at two o’clock so they could go to the mall. When Chanelle entered the lobby, she had a funny look on her face.