We Both Can't Be Bae
Page 9
“It took you four hours to go to Wal-Mart?” Sonya asked.
“Well, he thought I went to Wal-Mart, but I snuck and went to Keith’s house,” Cameron answered.
“With me right?” Toya said while taking a sip of water and cutting her eyes at Cameron. Cameron filled them in on everything that had been going on; from Malcolm’s wanna be inspector gadget ass, to Keith wanting her to leave Malcolm, to Phebe’s constant threats. Shay was the one asking all of the questions today. “Lord, what are you gonna do? I figured Keith would get tired of hiding. Malcolm ass is coo coo for cocoa puffs. Are Keith and Phebe still getting married? What are you gonna do?” Shay said all in one breath. Cameron really didn’t know what to do. She felt as if her life was spinning out of control and had no clue how to fix it. She told them she didn’t know what to do so she probably wasn’t gonna do anything. “Malcolm started this,” she said again.
I told you, I can’t judge you because I’m not perfect myself. Love is a hell of a drug, but I’m not tryna get killed behind your drama. You know Malcolm ass will come looking for me when anything goes down because he’s gonna feel like I was in on it. You’re gonna have to make some decisions sooner or later, preferably sooner. What would you do if Malcolm was cheating on you?” Toya said.
“I really wouldn’t care at all. I wish he would just leave and we can go our separate ways,” Cameron said while rolling her eyes.
“You better start being extra careful because not only is Malcolm watching you, Phebe is too,” Sonya said.
“On another note, don’t y’all forget about my birthday in a few weeks. If y’all bringing anyone just let me know the day before so I can give the restaurant an accurate count,” Toya said. Cameron’s phone rang and we all knew it was Malcolm by the ringtone. She ignored it. A few seconds later, she received a text from Malcolm stating there was something was wrong with Kingston. Cameron told them what the message said and hopped up gathering her things in a hurry. “Go ahead, I’ll take care of your check,” Toya said.
“Let us know how Kingston is,” Shay told her as she was walking off.
“Girl, ain’t nothing wrong with Kingston. I bet money he’s just trying to get her home,” Toya said.
“He wouldn’t do that would he?” Sonya asked.
“Nothing that fool does surprises me,” Toya said. The three of them talked a little more while finishing up their meals and headed home.
***
Chapter 15
Cameron was worried sick on the way home. What could be wrong with her baby? The question as to why Malcolm hadn’t called from the emergency room never popped into her mind. She sped home and hopped out of the car without grabbing her purse or anything. She ran into the house and before she could get a word out she saw Kingston laughing and playing on the floor. When he spotted her, he ran to her and jumped into her arms while still laughing. “What’s wrong with him?” Cameron asked confused.
“He just wanted to see you,” Malcolm replied smiling.
“Are you fucking serious?” Cameron asked.
“Oooh mommy said fucking,” Kingston said. Cameron ignored him and walked up to Malcolm. “What kinda games are you playing? What the hell is wrong with you?” She asked. Malcolm ignored her and continued smiling like he was the happiest man in the world wearing a white apron and a stupid looking chef hat. “I cooked dinner, let’s sit down and eat as a family,” he said.
“I’m not hungry. I was actually eating with my girls before you called and interrupted with your childish ass games,” she replied.
“Sit down PLEASE.” Malcolm said with a little force. This motherfucker might be tryna poison me, Cameron thought to herself. She noticed a strange look in his eyes and tried her best to remain calm while trying to figure out how to get out of this shit. And by shit she meant everything. She sat down at the table and put Kingston in the chair beside her. Malcolm fixed their plates and when he got back up to get the drinks, she switched his plate with hers. Just in case, she thought. Malcolm asked about her day as if everything was perfectly fine. Cameron was fuming on the inside. Even though she had switched plates, she still only played over the food. “You can eat. I wouldn’t poison you to kill you, I would shoot you in the stomach then shoot myself,” Malcolm said.
“WHAT?” Cameron screamed. Kingston looked up puzzled.
“I’m just playing, eat up,” Malcolm said. She knew right then and there that he would kill her. She had to figure out a way to end this madness.
Cameron called into work sick the next day. She hated to miss work, especially on a Friday because it would only make the beginning of the next week very hectic, but her head was pounding. She had taken some medication to put her to sleep and figured she must have taken too much. More pills were taken than her normal dosage while Malcolm was in the shower because she hoped to be asleep before he finished. She didn’t see anything wrong with it until now. It worked, but now she couldn’t move. Her head was pounding and she felt nauseous.
Malcolm got Kingston ready for school and had dropped him off but hadn’t returned home yet. Cameron wondered when he was going back to work because he sure seemed fine to her. As soon as she got up and put her feet on the floor, a wave of nausea hit her and she ran for the bathroom. She made it just in time to empty everything she had eaten the day before in the toilet. Did this nigga try to poison me for real? When she got ready to wash her face and brush her teeth it hit her that she hadn’t taken a birth control pill in a few weeks. Oh my God, I can’t be pregnant, she thought to herself. She did a mental calculation and realized that her cycle was about two weeks late. It’s probably just stress, she thought to herself. She was having sex with Keith way more than she was with Malcolm, but she honestly didn’t have a clue as to who the father would be if she really was pregnant.
Just as she was finishing up in the bathroom Malcolm ran into the house waving a piece of paper and screaming, “KINGSTON IS MY SON!! KINGSTON IS MY SON!!” Cameron just stared at him with hate in her eyes as she thought about the embarrassment he had caused her the day of that DNA test. How he conveniently called and said he would be late the day before all that drama. She was silently relieved at the results because she could let Keith know to drop his suspicions since he had been talking more and more about Kingston being his son. She was also about to make Malcolm pay big time for making her have to go through this.
On the outside she couldn’t help it; her anger erupted like a roaring lion. She went into a rage, yelling, fussing, screaming, and crying about how he made her feel on that day. She picked up a shoe and threw it, hitting him in the head. They argued and argued until Cameron finally pulled away when she heard her cell phone ringing. She grabbed it and looked at the caller ID and noticed that it was her neighbor calling. “Hello,” she answered. “Girl, how about Malcolm was downtown not long ago telling everyone he saw that Kingston was his son and showed them the results on a paper he had,” her neighbor said. Cameron glared at Malcolm with so much hate. He must have sensed it because he went back outside, hopped in his car and left. Cameron was furious at the news her neighbor had just given her and tried to end the call by saying that she had something she needed to take care of. Her neighbor told her to be sure to call her back because she had something else she wanted to tell her. Curiosity got the best of Cameron so she asked her what was up. Her neighbor began to tell that her that people around town had been talking about the black car that is sometimes parked in her yard. Cameron lied and said that was her cousin’s car and she really needed to go but she would call back later. She didn’t want to get into that conversation so she ended the call and threw her phone back on the bed, then fell back onto the bed herself. What kinda life is this? She thought to herself.
Cameron’s phone rang again and she smiled when her brother’s picture popped up because he didn’t get to call often. It had been about a month since she last talked to him so she was anxious to hear his voice. “Heeyyy brother,” she sang into the phone.
“Everything, but how are you? It feels so good to hear your voice,” she said with excitement, her mood changing instantly.
“I’ll be better when I see you, come open the front door,” he told her.
“Huh?” She asked as she got off the bed thinking there was no way he could be outside. She opened the front door and threw her phone on the couch when she saw her brother. Running into his arms, she gave him the biggest hug that her body would allow “Oh my God what are you doing here?” She asked while starting to cry.
Tears of joy streamed down her face. She was beyond elated to see her brother and didn’t even notice Keith standing behind him. When she finally noticed Keith, he smiled and winked at her. Even though Fred and Keith use to hang out back in the day, Fred would flip if he would’ve known that his homeboy was sleeping with his baby sister. “I hope you don’t mind me bringing Keith by, we got a run to make in a few but I wanted to see you first. I know mom and dad are at work so I’m gonna surprise them later. Why aren’t you at work yourself?” Fred asked.
“It’s fine. Oh and I wasn’t feeling too well this morning but I’m so happy to see you,” Cameron managed to say while silently praying that Malcolm would stay gone while they were there visiting. The last thing she needed was for her Malcolm and Keith to be in the same place.
They all went into the house and Cameron asked if they wanted something to eat, hoping they would say no. She really wanted to spend some time with her brother but she had a feeling that Malcolm would be back soon. Keith spoke up first and said he was starving. Cameron cut her eyes at him wondering what the hell he was up to. He just smirked at her. She reached into the cabinet and took out pots and pans and ingredients to make some eggs, sausage, toast, and grits. She figured that should be pretty quick and they could eat and leave in a hurry.
While they were eating and talking, Cameron froze when she heard a car pull up outside. “Oh shit,” Cameron said under her breath but Fred heard her.
“What’s going on? You having problems with this nigga or something? We only eating breakfast and talking,” Fred said while standing up.
“We have a lot going on but I’ll fill you in later. I just wasn’t expecting him to return so soon. Sit back down and relax please,” Cameron said to Fred then she glanced at Keith who seemed to be amused. “WHOSE CAR IS THAT OUTSIDE?” Malcolm yelled as he walked through the door. “Why you yelling? Let me find out this how you talk to my baby sister on the regular,” Fred said while getting back up.
“Oh what’s up Fred? When you get here?” Malcolm asked while giving him dap.
“Just got in. This my partner Keith. Keith, this the chump that married my baby sister while I was gone,” Fred said.
“What’s up partner?” Malcolm said to Keith.
Keith said, “What’s up? You have a lovely house and a lovely wife; she just whipped us up some breakfast real quick without exchanging words.” Cameron was about to piss on herself. “I’ll be right back you guys,” Cameron said. As soon as she made it to the hall, she heard Keith asking where is the bathroom. I know this nigga ain’t bout to…before she finished her thought; Keith was behind her grabbing her ass. “What are you doing? Are you tryna get us both killed?’ She whispered through gritted teeth. Keith kissed her and she tried to fight him off but it was no use, her body was like a magnet to his. She couldn’t resist him no matter how hard she tried. He knew it too. They could hear Malcolm and Fred still talking in the distance but they were both too caught up in each other to gather their senses at the moment. Keith pushed her into Kingston’s room and closed and locked the door. “We can’t do this right now,” Cameron whispered but Keith wasn’t paying her any attention. He bent her over and pulled her dress up, pushed her pink lace panties to the side and entered her in one motion. “Hot and ready like always,” he said as he pumped in and out. Cameron knew that they both would be dead if they got caught so she knew she had to take control to end this quickly. She bent all the way over and touched the floor and worked her ass while grinding into him, trying to make him cum. She knew that he wouldn’t be able to last long in this position so she kept her rhythm and sure enough he came shortly after.
“Get to the bathroom across the hall, NOW!” Cameron whispered to Keith. She opened the door slowly; making sure the coast was clear and pushed him out. Once he was in the bathroom, she made her way to the master bathroom and closed and locked the door. What in the hell did I just do? She asked herself as she looked at her reflection in the mirror. She couldn’t help but to smile a little. The sneakiness made it so exhilarating. After she cleaned up a little she made her way back to the front and Keith was just sitting back down at the table. “For a minute there I was beginning to think that ol Keith here was back there with my wife,” Malcolm said and laughed it off. Fred looked back and forth at Cameron and Keith and knew the deal. He decided it would be best if they went ahead and left after looking at the two of them. “Come on Keith, let’s bounce. I’ll holla at you later lil sis,” Fred said while kissing her on the cheek. “I’m gonna kick y’all asses,” he whispered in her ear while hugging her. Cameron didn’t even respond to him. She just kissed him on the cheek.
***
Chapter 16
Cameron made it through the weekend and was glad it was over. They took Kingston to Chucky Cheese on Saturday and he had a ball so that took the edge off things a little. Actually, Malcolm seemed to enjoy himself more than Kingston which made Cameron wonder if she had one or two kids. She decided she definitely had two instead of one. Watching the two of them carrying on made her wonder what Malcolm’s childhood was like. The one time she asked he shut her down quickly with a one word answer “fine”. Monday morning at work wasn’t as hectic as she had anticipated. As busy as Sonya was, she still had helped Cameron out tremendously. Cameron would have to thank her later. Since the day was going so smooth, she was able to leave for lunch thirty minutes early to get to an appointment she had scheduled as soon as she had made it to work earlier that morning. She grabbed her things and left.
Cameron pulled into the parking lot of the Department of Human Services in her Camaro at 11:28. She pulled her three carat wedding ring off and put in the ash tray, took her wallet out of her Coach bag, and walked inside. She was glad she was dressed down in black slacks and a cute top she had gotten from a local boutique. She didn’t want to look too out of place. Cameron got the clip board from the receptionist and filled out the application, turning back in within five minutes. She took a seat then waited to be called to the back.
Once she heard her name being called she got up and made her way to the back. The case worker was asking all kinds of questions and she had to lie about over half of them. I don’t know how I’m gonna keep up with these lies, she thought to herself. She told them that she and Malcolm were separated and he was not helping her financially care for their son. The caseworker asked how long they had been separated and Cameron told him almost a year. She was asked why it took so long for her to request child support and trying to remain thorough with her act, Cameron started crying, stating that she was embarrassed to even be there. The case worker apologized but she also had to ask if there had ever been a paternity test done on the child or if she would need one now. She said that most men deny paternity when you put them on child support and it delays the case. Cameron cried harder while telling the case worker the story about how paternity was established. Her tears stopped the case worker from asking many more questions. She gave them all of the necessary information to Malcolm’s job, his social security number, the post office box he uses, and even a copy of a check stub. She was well prepared. Everything went as planned and she would be receiving child support payments within a month, including back time payments. He gon learn not to fuck with me, Cameron smiled and said to herself as she shook the case workers hand and left.
Cameron was heading back to work as her cell phone started ringing. The call connected
to blue tooth automatically before she could see who it was. She reluctantly said hello and it was her neighbor again. “What happened to you calling me back?” Her neighbor asked.
“Girl I got busy and forgot,” Cameron said.
“Well, I thought you would like to know that your husband is always at the car wash with Callie, you know the white girl that works at the electric company? I just saw them together myself all hugged up skinning and grinning,” the neighbor said.
“Is that right?” Cameron said more to herself than to the caller.
“Yep, I just wanted you to know because I would want someone to let me know these types of things,” she said while smacking on some kind of potato chip.
“Well thank you for that information, I’ll be sure to check into it and let you know,” Cameron said.
“Yeah be sure you let me know honey,” her neighbor said while still smacking loudly. Cameron disconnected the call and thought about how much she used to underestimate Malcolm. Toya use to always tell her that Malcolm wasn’t as dumb as she was thinking. She always said he was crazy as hell, but not dumb as Cameron thought because she didn’t give him credit for anything. She was starting to believe that Toya was right.
Cameron grabbed her something to eat from Panda Express and made it back to work with enough time to eat her food in the car before going back inside. As she sat there, she downloaded an app on her phone that would allow her to text Malcolm from an anonymous number. She also made a mental note to check the detailed billing for his phone line later. On her way back she had decided that she was going to see just how dumb he really was. She struck up a conversation with him and he replied instantly: