by Darrien Lee
On the drive over to Craig’s, Venice couldn’t help but think about what happened to Monique. She’d heard about girls getting date raped, but never thought it would happen to anyone close to her. She found herself getting angry all over again. She wished Monique would do something about it. It would only be a matter of time before they did it to someone else.
When Venice pulled into Craig’s driveway, she spotted an unfamiliar car parked in front of the house with D.C. license plates. Since Craig had given her a key to the house, she used it to enter the house through the open garage. When she walked in, she could hear voices coming from the den.
As she walked through the kitchen, she heard him say, “What do you mean, whose child have I been molesting? You’re crazy and you need to mind your business and stop listening to all those chickenhead friends of yours.”
Venice knew her presence was not known, but was she right to ease drop? She didn’t care. She was trying to find out who Craig was arguing with. Could it be? No! Maybe!
A voice then said, “I‘ve barely been gone six months and you’ve set up house with a baby. Where is she?”
Craig’s voice was noticeably tense. “I told you that is none your business. What do you want, Miranda? Why are you here?”
Damn it! It was her!
The female voice said, “You know what I want. I thought maybe I could stay here with you for old times’ sake. I know Bernice goes out of town every year at this time, so what do you say?”
“Miranda, you must be out of your damn mind! Do you remember that you walked out on me? A person only does that to me one time. Now I’ve moved on. We weren’t meant to be together anyway. We have nothing in common and I don’t like your attitude. You’re selfish and deceitful.”
Venice felt weird so she went back out the door and decided to go around to the front door and ring the doorbell. Craig came to door and opened it. He must’ve been highly agitated because he turned to go back into the den without even saying hello. Venice walked inside and followed behind him. When she entered the room, she saw this preppie looking woman wearing a lavender linen pantsuit. Her nails and hair were professionally done and she had her nose in the air.
She stood up and walked toward Venice, putting her hand out to shake Venice’s. “So you must be Craig’s little friend. Now, don’t you look sweet.”
“Have we met?”
Craig grumbled and said, “Venice, this is Miranda. Miranda, Venice.”
Venice, not wanting to show she didn’t like the meeting, sat her bag down and extended her hand to Miranda’s. “Nice to meet you.”
“Yes, me and Craig go a ways back. Don’t we, baby?”
Miranda eyed Craig like he was her favorite dessert.
Craig said, “Miranda, I’m not your baby and it’s time for you to leave.”
Venice was getting angry. “Are you visiting for homecoming, Miranda?”
“As a matter of fact, I am.”
“Well, I hope you enjoy your visit. Craig, I’m going to start dinner. Miranda, it was nice meeting you.”
Miranda reached for her Coach purse and walked toward the front door. “Likewise! Craig, baby, we’ll talk later.”
Venice was in the kitchen, but she could still hear the conversation.
“Miranda, we don’t have anything else to talk about. I wish you’d go on with your life. I don’t want any drama this weekend so don’t start any shit! Do you hear me?”
Miranda smiled as she walked to her car. “You know I wouldn’t do anything like that.”
Craig mumbled, “Like hell you wouldn’t.”
Miranda got in her car and drove off. Thank goodness she was gone.
Venice was setting the table when Craig entered the kitchen. She didn’t want to talk about what had just happened. She was still too sick to her stomach and upset about Monique to worry about it. She was silent and avoided eye contact with Craig. Craig probably assumed that she wanted to question him, but she wasn’t up to it. She just wanted to lie down. Venice was content with the way Craig handled the situation, but nevertheless upset that Miranda had the nerve to come over there.
Venice finally said, “Craig, I still don’t feel well. I’m going to lie down.”
“Are you all right?”
“Not really.” Venice paused and then blurted it out. “Look, Craig. Monique told me she was raped last night.”
“What? Where? By who?”
“She said she gave these two so-called friends a ride. They stopped to get something to eat and they invited her up to their room to eat. That’s when it happened. They told her that if she didn’t do what they wanted, they were going to run a train on her.”
“Did she report it?”
“No, I tried to get her to, but she said it’ll be her word against theirs. Plus, she went to their room willingly. Craig, it’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have left her last night.”
“It’s not your fault and it’s not her fault either. I don’t care! She still needs to report it! I’ll talk to her tomorrow. I’m gonna make her show me who they are.”
“She’s really upset. I offered to stay with her tonight, but she said she wanted to be alone.”
Craig shook his head and hissed under his breath. “I’ll take care of their asses.”
Venice went into the room, changed, and crawled into bed.
Craig was beginning to feel even more serious about their relationship and he didn’t want anything to mess that up. He cleaned the kitchen and put away the food. As Venice lay in the other room, she still felt a little uneasy by Miranda’s presence. By the time he came into his room, she was in bed. Craig came in and asked if she needed anything. Venice told him that she was fine, then apologized for being drunk the night before. Craig told her it was in the past and he hadn’t given it another thought.
It was about nine o’clock and Venice was trying to study a little. Friday was the big pep rally day. Venice’s last class ended at twelve o’clock and the pep rally was going to be at noon. Craig’s classes were going to be lab, so he could basically set his own hours as long as he finished his projects.
Craig asked, “Are you going to the pep rally with your partners?”
“I don’t know yet. I think Chanelle is meeting Spoonie. Why?”
“I just asked. If you want to, I can meet you.”
“I’ll try to find you, if I can.”
The mood was still out of sync. Miranda’s presence definitely had an effect on Venice’s attitude. This was the first time since Venice met Craig that she’d felt jealous. After what she did with Jarvis, she knew she didn’t have a right to be upset, but she was. Her feelings for him had grown stronger over the past weeks. She was also still worried about Monique.
Craig still could tell the air was thick so he asked Venice if she felt well enough to ride to the store with him. He hoped this would be an opportunity for them to talk.
Venice said, “I’ll do anything to keep from looking at this book.”
They pulled out onto the street headed to the area supermarket. When they finally reached the store, Venice told him that she’d wait in the truck. He was only in the store for a few minutes. As he got in the truck, he handed her the sack. He told her to go ahead and look in the sack. Venice reluctantly peeked in the sack and was elated that he’d bought her favorite: peach cobbler pie and ice cream. She realized that it was some type of peace offering.
She looked at him as he pulled out of the parking lot and said, “Thanks.”
There was more silence on the ride home. Craig finally said, “Venice, I’m sorry about today. I don’t like what’s going on between us.”
“Me either, Craig. I thought I could handle coming face to face with her, but I was wrong.”
“Venice, I don’t want Miranda.”
“You did once, so why not again?”
Craig slightly chuckled. “Because I’m with the woman I want.”
Venice blushed. “Thanks, baby. I’m sorry. I’m still sick and
I’m worried about Monique.”
He smiled and said, “I know.”
As Craig pulled into the driveway and activated the garage door, he told Venice that he wouldn’t string her along for the hell of it. “Momma taught me to respect women. I wouldn’t dog you out so will you please cheer up?”
They sat in the truck as the door lowered. She turned to him and said, “I’ll try.”
He smiled and said, “Cool. Do you want to try and eat some ice cream?”
“I’ll pass, thanks.”
They made their way back to the bedroom. Craig said he was going to study a while. About an hour later, he crawled back into bed next to her with his pie and ice cream. Venice was staring at him as he ate it. He looked at her and said, “You want a taste?”
“Maybe a little.”
He scooped up some ice cream and pie and she took a bite, seductively. Craig almost dropped the spoon and said, “Don’t do that.”
“Don’t do what?”
He laughed. “You know what you’re doing.”
He got up to return his bowl to the kitchen and when he came back, Venice was sitting up in the bed smiling.
He said, “You’re silly.”
He got into bed and she scooted over close to him. He started scanning the channels with the remote while she decided to let her hands wander a little. He looked down at her and closed his eyes to enjoy the massage. Venice looked up at him, then crawled on top of his body and kissed his neck and chest. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her to him. He sat up and pulled her nightie over her head. He smiled, then kissed her greedily. She opened a foil package and prepared him for her, then eased himself inside her warm body. Craig was taken with her forwardness and laid back to allow Venice to have her way with him. She kissed him provocatively as he held her body tightly against his.
She continued to pleasure him and he moaned as Venice whispered, “Oh, Craig.”
This enflamed his body and he kissed her harder on the mouth, tasting her.
“Damn, Taylor!”
Venice began to move her body over his with deep affection and, within minutes, she collapsed on his chest. He smiled up at her and held her securely in his arms as she laid on his chest breathing heavily. A few minutes later, her pager went off. After picking it up, she saw it was Jarvis. Without saying a word, she laid it back on the nightstand. Venice didn’t want to move and Craig wasn’t about to let her. He didn’t need to confirm it for himself. He knew it could only be Jarvis paging her that time of night. Craig didn’t let it bother him though, because at that moment, she was in his bed, making love to him. She held onto him the rest of the night. As expected, it flashed through her mind that Jarvis was going to be pissed off when she talked to him. She decided to worry about that tomorrow.
Twenty-Three
It was Friday and the weekend, baby! Venice was extremely excited to have her first college homecoming. She received a call from Joshua when he got in. He’d told Venice that he would page her when he got up on the campus. Venice couldn’t wait to see her best friend and finally introduce him to Craig. Galen was supposed to pick Joshua up, so there no telling where they were. Venice figured she would wait a while before she paged them. In the mean time, she was going to hang out with her girls.
This year was going to be a little different. Bryan was also bringing some of his partners to homecoming. Thank God Sinclair wasn’t coming! Venice was a little disappointed that she wouldn’t get to see Crimson though. Regardless, she was still planning on having a great time. The band was tuning up for the huge pep rally planned in the student center courtyard. Many students were already there to claim their spots for the rally.
As Venice walked up the steps into the courtyard, she heard Monique call out to her.
“Woo, woo, woo, woo!”
“Girl, you sure are crazy. How are you doing?”
“I’ll make it.”
“If you see them, you point them out to me. Okay?”
“Venice, leave it alone. Please?”
“I can’t, Monique. How long have you been here?”
“I just got here and I saved your spot. Where’s Chanelle?”
“She said she was coming with Mr. Spoonie.”
“All right now. They sure have gotten close over the past few weeks.”
“He’s a nice guy. He’ll be good for Chanelle.”
“So where is your friend Joshua?”
“He’s around here somewhere with Galen.”
About then, the girls heard the drums of the band echoing in the air. This always meant the band was on their way. The courtyard was full of students and their families, alumni, and visitors in town for the game. The majorettes appeared first as they rounded the corner. Venice thought the guys standing next to them were going to pass out. All you could hear was, “Lord, have mercy! Look at the legs on that one!”
Monique and Venice were standing upon an upper platform, which gave them a great view of the courtyard. The crowd was going wild, dancing to the beat of the band. After a short speech, the student body president introduced the starting lineup on the football team, Galen included. The cheerleaders led a cheer. The band went directly into another popular dance number. The majorettes showed their skills by dancing and kicking with the ability to still hold a perfect smile. Venice and Monique, along with hundreds of others, were really enjoying the pumped up pep rally.
It wasn’t long before Venice felt someone’s arms embrace her from behind. It sort of startled her but when she turned, she saw it was her boo and some of his friends. Craig hugged and kissed her neck, then said, “Monique, let me holler at you for a second.”
Monique followed Craig off to the side and asked, “What’s up?”
“Venice told me what happened to you and I’m sorry. But, Monique, you need to report it.”
She folded her arms and said, “Craig, leave it alone. It was my fault.”
“You better show them to me!”
“Okay!”
About that time, two guys pushed through the crowd past her. She heard one of them say, “Hey Monique, baby. Girl, you sure know how to party.”
Monique scooted away from the guy, then another one looked her up and down and said, “Just like candy.”
They burst out laughing as they continued to walk through the crowd.
Craig asked, “Is that them?”
“Yeah.”
“Cool. Don’t worry, Monique. They won’t bother you or anybody else again.”
“I hope not.”
“Tell my girl I’ll catch up with her later. I see some old friends I want to holler at.”
“Okay.”
Monique went back and joined Venice. She said, “Craig said he’ll catch up with you later.”
“Where did he go?”
“He saw some old friends or something.”
Venice smiled and said, “Okay.”
“Venice, I noticed that you don’t try to keep up with Craig. Why is that?” “Why should I? I mean a man’s going to do what he wants to do regardless. That’s added stress I don’t need. I don’t have time to try and track a man down.”
“As fine as Craig is, I would be worried as hell to let him out of my sight. I see girls all the time trying to push up on him. He’s friendly with them, but they try to take his friendliness for flirting.”
“If Craig’s going to hook up with somebody, I can’t stop him. It’s all about how far he’s willing to go. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t want to think about him messing around. But if he does, I’d rather he told me than find out from someone else. I told him a long time ago that if he wanted to date other women, he could. Especially since I still visit Jarvis some times. He didn’t want to and now that I’ve gotten closer to him, I don’t want him to either.”
Monique smiled and said, “Girl, that was deep as hell! You need to teach that shit in the lounge at night or something. These foolish girls I hang with are always paging their men and tracking the hell out of them.�
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“They just don’t know, that’s partly what makes them cheat. No man wants to feel like he’s on lockdown or constantly under surveillance. If you give them their space, they ain’t going no where. But, if you crowd their asses, they can’t wait to get away from you. I’ve always given my men their space. Hell, I had them tracking me down and I was being a good girl.”
They laughed together and Monique saw that Venice really did have her head on straight. But, she still was torn between two wonderful men.
“Girl, Jarvis paged me about two this morning, but I couldn’t call him back, if you know what I mean. Craig knew it was him, but he didn’t say anything. I know Jarvis is going to be tripping when I finally talk to him.”
“I figured he would page you. He called the room first. I just told him you were out.”
Venice grew silent and admired the females on the homecoming court in their matching outfits who really looked nice. Venice and Monique agreed that it seemed like the person who spends the most money campaigning usually ends up winning homecoming queen.
When the pep rally was over, Venice and Monique started walking toward their dorm. Craig had disappeared into the crowd. Venice figured he’d eventually catch up with her sooner or later. As they walked and talked, they saw alumni, old and young, wearing homecoming, frat and sorority T-shirts, representing.
Venice said, “I’m thinking about pledging next year. What about you?”
“I don’t know, girl. If one of those skanks put her hands on me, I might have to give her a beatdown.”
The two gave each other a high-five and laughed loudly as they entered their dorm lobby.
When they walked in, there stood Galen and Joshua talking to some girls.
Monique hollered out, “Ooooh! I’m telling Sidney!”
He turned and said, “Girl, go on somewhere!”
Venice went over and gave Joshua a big hug, which they held for quite some time.
He said, “Niecy, you’re looking good! Galen has been taking me everywhere. There’s so many fine women up here, I’m going to lose my mind.”
“Slow down, Joshua. I want you to meet my roommate.” Venice introduced them and then asked, “What are you guys getting ready to do?”