Daddy Taught Me Better

by Ebony

  “Daddy your right, everything you said is nothing but the truth. You have taught me better than to be a doormat for any man. I knew that man was cheating the whole time and I turned a blind eye thinking that one day he would grow up and change, that it was just a faze. I wanted my boys to grow up with both parents in the home. You know from the mouth of a drunk speaks a sober mind. I had allowed that man to become before anything on this earth, his happiness meant more to me than my own. You know the elders always said raise a child up in the ways and they will never depart. I admit I did stray, but my roots grow deep and I will pull it together. Tomorrow is a new day, new possibilities and a chance to start over. I’m taking my life back daddy. I am going to start by loving myself, because I know if I love myself I will never let any man or woman for that matter bring harm to me physically, mentally, and emotionally.”

  “Kasey I’m going to need for you to sleep that liquor off because I knew you had to be drunk calling me with that dumb shit about losing yourself. You know me and your mom got your back. Pray about it and leave it there. Everything will work out for your good. By the way, where the hell was my grandchildren when all these shenanigans were going on?”

  “They are staying at Nic house for the weekend.”

  “Un huh, I bet Nic was riding shotgun with your ass the whole time with that damn pistol in her purse. I swear that there is really a Madea somewhere in the world and she is related to Nic.”

  I couldn’t help but chuckle at the comment my Dad said. He was a hot mess, but he was the truth.

  “Okay Daddy, I’ll call you tomorrow, thanks for talking to me.”

  “I know I was little hard on you Kasey, but I only want what’s best for you. Always remember that a person that doesn’t know their worth will never know yours. Therefore, the longer you hang onto hope that they will finally see your worth is the moment you to start to depreciate in value. Love you baby girl, say your prayers and get you a good night’s rest because I expect you and the boys over for Sunday dinner like always. It’s not the end; it’s just the beginning to a new chapter in your life.”

  I told my Dad goodnight and did as I was told. As soon as my head hit that pillow I was out for the count. After tonight, there won’t be any more tears. I know I’m in for a long emotional battle within myself. Being with Jaden is equivalent to me waking up and brushing my teeth. I didn’t just make him my whole life, Jaden was my way of life. I’ve heard that old habits die hard, so I guess you can consider me in Jaden Rehabilitation because that chapter will be closing.

  Chapter 7 - JADEN

  Man, this has to be the worse day in history. Why the fuck would Keisha blow-up a nigga spot like that? Yeah, that baby may look like me, but I thought the babies looked like the man most of the time on The Maury Show and you see how that shit plays out. I wasn’t stressing too much over Kasey’s little performance because honestly that’s all it was. I need to have her nominated to win a damn Oscar or, at least, a Grammy award. If she didn’t have that damn Nic with her boosting her head up her ass would not have had the heart to come at a nigga like that. Kasey could never leave me; I made sure of that a long time ago. I was her first hug, first kiss, first boyfriend and the one that took what was most pure from her which was her virginity. I knew that she would be the one that I married because of how submissive she was. I adored her, lifted her up, and then broke her ass down from within her soul just so that I would be able to build her back up so that I became her all. She was no longer Kasey, but more so my Stepford Wife. I was living the perfect life; I had a beautiful and loving wife. There was a hot meal ready for me every day I came home; I have never even had to run my own shower water or roll my own blunts. All I had to do was wake up in the morning and she took care of the rest. I was thinking to myself that I would just allow her some time to get out of her feelings because baby girl did take a slap in the face and a punch in the gut with the bullshit I had just put her through tonight. When I was snapped out of my thoughts, this damn baby was screaming at the top of her lungs and Tina talking to me at the same damn time.

  “Damn Tina, why you just sitting there running your dick suckers, get that damn baby and shut her ass up. Let me get my stuff so we can get up out of here.” Tina picked up Jade and she began to rock her while placing a bottle in her mouth attempting to soothe her crying. Jade began screaming louder as if something was wrong or maybe she just knew the same thing that we all knew and that was Tina was a T.H.O.T and she didn’t like her. As I made my way out of the trap house followed by Tina carrying Jade I gave my cousin a menacing look as I passed him by.

  “Nigga from now on it’s strictly business between us two, stay the fuck out of my home life. You acting real bitch made right now shutting down a whole trap just because my bitch mad.” I spat to Apollo.

  “Nigga if it wasn’t for me you wouldn’t even be able to take care of your home financially, fuck you mean. I help you put those Franklins in your pocket to take care of the materialistic shit that makes you think you taking care of your so-called home. You a disrespectful nigga that’s going to have learn the hard way. Now get the fuck out my face. I’ll let you know when your presence is wanted or needed in the trap.”

  I sat there and watched my cousin jump into his car and pull off after his little righteous speech. I think he pissed me off just as bad as Kasey did with all the shit he had to say. I then fast walked to my car as Tina did her best to keep up with me. I hit the unlock button on my Mercedes C class and hit the push to start button to get ready to get the hell out up of the trap house. I watched as Tina put Jade in her car seat and buckled her down and proceeded to get in front seat buckling her seat beat also.

  I look over to Tina and stated “Me and my baby just going to camp out at your place tonight so I can give my wife some time to calm down before I go back to my house to make things right. Then I need to find Keisha ass so she can get Jade back. I don’t know what the hell got in her head to come to my house and drop this baby

  “Oh no Hun you can’t come stay at my house, I live with my mother and she doesn’t even play that shit. Why don’t we just go get a room for the night?”

  “So you mean to tell me that you don’t have a car, which I know this because you had somebody drop you off and you don’t even have your own spot. What the fuck you do with all your money because the way you suck and fuck your mouth should have been trademarked?” I can’t believe I got caught up fucking a bitch that don’t have anything going on for herself but Gucci and Diamonds. “Man where the fuck you stay so I can drop your ass off.”

  “You can drop me off at The Stoney Brook projects on 8th, I stay in the front.”

  “Hold up you live in The Brooks with your mama. Isn’t the rent like $25 and they give yawl a check for your lights and you don’t even have a bucket to drive? Man, that’s trifling as hell with the all dick you suck.”

  “Nigga fuck you, I done had all I can take from you, your cousin, your wife and her disrespectful as friend. It’s not how your shit look on the outside but how you living in the inside. Who the fuck are you to judge me, nigga I had your ass blowing up my text message and in boxing me on Facebook for some of this head. Maybe you need to be more selective of who the fuck mouth you stick your dick in and better yet who you let slide on that whack ass dick of yours. You got a lot of nerve to be saying something about where I lay my head at. At least, I can walk up in my shit tonight and don’t have to worry about nobody saying shit to me.”

  “Hoe you better shut those dick suckers up before I pull over and put your ass out my car and make you walk home.”

  “Nigga you haven’t said anything but a thing to me, with or without a car I walk nowhere. While you are trying to put me down about my situation, I know a couple of niggas that like it. Niggas that can make this pussy talk, not purr. You pretended to be the man, but you a fucking do-boy. You’re not the man out here but the worker that takes orders from his cousin. Oh and don’t try to lie because if you were that man th
at you proclaim to be there is no way your cousin should have been able to put you out the trap house that is supposed to be yours. Yeah nigga that part, fuck outta here with all that extra shit you talking. Hell, I should be the one mad in this bitch. Your dick whack, I done got my ass handed to me by your crazy wife’s friend and then had to bounce your hollering ass damn baby on my hip. That’s not even me because I don’t fight over dick and I damn sure don’t do babies, then to top it all off I bounced on your dick for over 15 minutes and you couldn’t make a bitch like me nut.”

  “Hoe just shut up, you just mad because Nic beat your ass; you weren’t talking all that shit when my dick was up in you beating your stomach up. Your voice is irritating me right now. I got enough shit on my mind.”

  “Cool with me, if I never see you again it would be too soon. It’s not the first time that I got my ass beat because a bitch can’t handle her man stepping out on them with me. My problem is I don’t owe your wife shit and the way you sling dick around South Florida who would have even known that you have an actual wife. Give her a bit of advice for me, she need to start tagging your ass first for the bullshit. I or the other bitches you fuck with don’t owe her a damn thing. Her dumb ass said I Do to you, not me.”

  I see this is punk Jaden day. I wish I had got the memo that these crazy ass women would be sticking up for themselves today. I would have taken a day off and just relaxed with my boys. I pulled up to the front of The Stony Book Projects to drop Tina off. I attempted to pull off $500 to give to her. Home girl did have some fire head, plus I kind of felt bad for the way Nic had knocked her ass out.

  “Nigga I don’t even want your money. I think you going to need that money more than me. You so into yourself that you don’t even know what is going on around you. You’ll probably be my neighbor in these same projects you just dropped me off to because I would put my life on it that your cousin is done with your ass after tonight. A hint to the wise is sufficient and you better take heed. It’s to more to it than your cousin trying to school you about your relationship with your wife. That nigga in love with her the way you should have been.”

  “Man Nic must have knocked a screw loose in your head when she hit you. You are talking out the side of your neck right now.”

  “Nawl if you weren’t so into yourself you would have noticed the look in his eyes when your wife came into the trap showing her ass. He appeared more hurt and bothered about what she had to say then you. No man lets his money stop his flow when it comes to a woman unless she has his heart or she bringing heat to the establishment and since she wasn’t calling troll your bitch has your cousin heart. I’m giving your stupid ass this part of the game for free.”

  Tina got out the car and slammed my car door, never looking back. I was engrossed in my thoughts as I went to pull off. Could there be some truth to what she said? I did feel as though Apollo was taking shit too far. I’m not the first one that got caught up in some shit in the trap house by their lady. We always laughed about it and then would clown the nigga that got caught up but tonight Apollo took that shit to a whole different level. One thing I would know for sure, Kasey wasn’t going nowhere. I heard everything she had to say, but I knew I had her mind so fucked up she wouldn’t be able to function without me being in her life, fuck who was feeling her. I jumped on I-95 south headed to Wellington to make it over to my mama house. Now that’s who shit I didn’t want to hear. I’m sure once I brought Jade in her house and let her know what all had transpired today in my world we would be up most of the night. Sad part about it is the conversation would not be about her helping me to be a better man, husband, and father. She would be so much more interested into the tea that’s what she referred to it as when she was getting some gossip that I would leave just as fucked up as I came.

  Chapter 8 – Eleanor

  Boom!! Boom!! Boom!!

  I heard someone knocking at my door, I didn’t sleep that hard, I begin to think that I couldn’t be sleeping that hard to where I felt like it was a dream. I’m the mother of Jaden, Eleanor was the name given to me at birth however I am affectionately known as Ellie by my friends and family. To say my character was unusual was a bit of an understatement, to say the least. I stood at 5’4” and was always rocking some Malaysian weave in different colors. I looked just like the women that were still in their prime partying. You couldn’t tell me that I wasn’t still that babe. I looked the part, dressed the part and still acted the part. Maybe if I had grown up to be a responsible adult, been a better mother to my child instead of his bestie then he would be better a person in life. I had Jaden at a young age and I promised myself that I would not treat him the way my parents treated me growing up. So instead of raising him I co-signed all his bullshit and became his friend.

  I rolled over in my bed to take a look at what time the clock on the cable box said and it was well after 11 pm. I threw my cover off of me and to the other side of my bed wondering who the hell would be at my door this time of night. Everybody knew I was an early bird and you don’t call me, come by house unless it was an extreme emergency. If somebody wasn’t dying tonight, then that meant it could wait for tomorrow. Instantly my mind went to my son. He has never lived a righteous life so my chest began to tighten, my left arm begin to get stiff, hurting under my armpits. I knew I wasn’t having a heart attack, but my anxiety was for sure kicking in as I made my way down the stairs to open the door. I didn’t even ask who it was; I just swung the door open thinking it was the police coming to give me some disturbing news about my baby boy. Jaden was my only child so I always referenced to him as my Babyboy. I always told him and anybody else that had something to say about him, right, wrong or indifferent that I had his back and would go to hell and back about him. I can recall when he was growing up that when he would get it into with the other neighborhood kids I would go down to the neighborhood park or the school house and let those kids know that my son don’t have to fight, I would fight for him and be ready for their mammy’s to come too so I could beat they ass to as well. You could have knocked me over with a feather when I saw my Babyboy standing their looking like the weight of the world was on his shoulders standing their holding a baby in a car seat with a diaper bag on his shoulder.

  “Boy, why are you beating on my door like that. Where the hell is your key, who the hell baby that is?”

  “Well hello to you too mom, I don’t have your key on this key ring, but are you going to move so I can come in. Today has been rough a day and right now I need your advice and more than anything I just need the comfort of the words from my mother.”

  I stepped to the side and allowed him to enter my home. Jaden went straight to the kitchen because; knowing him he was in need of a home cooked meal after the day it looked like he had. I was always told that soul food soothes the souls and it looked like his soul was in need of some Tender Loving Care and I cooked like it was Sunday every day. I watched as Jaden proceeded to the kitchen and placed the car seat on top of my table. I entered the kitchen behind Jaden as I let out a long sigh. I know Jaden was wondering what I was sighing for as I had only me to worry about, I didn’t have any other responsibilities because Jaden made sure to take care of me. I never had to open my mouth and say I want, because if it is something I thought I would want Jaden would already have it for me before the thought could ever formulate in my head.

  “Boy, what are you doing out this time of night when you have a family to attend to? Who the hell baby that is? What the hell you doing with somebody else baby this time of night when you need to be home with your own boys.”

  Jaden didn’t even answer me; he just began to take the Tupperware containers out of the refrigerator to make himself a plate to soothe the growling that was going on in his stomach. As he was fixing himself a hefty plate, he watched as I un-wrapped the covers from Jades car seat exposing her face.

  “Jaden, please do not tell me this is your baby. Laaaaawd Jesus, please take the wheel right now because this baby is a splitting image of
you. I know you have not been hiding a whole baby from me, my own flesh and blood. I always prayed that you would not carry the sins of your father, but you showing up here with her out the clear blue sky confirms that you have been inflicted with that same demonic generational curse that plagued your father’s side of the family. Yawl couldn’t do right by a woman if you tried. Your father was the biggest man whore I ever laid eyes on. You might be the only child I have, but I’m pretty sure you got plenty of siblings running around here. How old is this child? Who is her mother? What did your wife say about this sweet little precious bundle of joy?

  “Mom I don’t know if she is mines or not.”

  “What the hell you mean you don’t know if she is yours or not? She looks more like you than the twins you have from that uppity ass wife of yours.”

  “You know what they say, you feed them long enough and they start to look just like you.”

  “Now if that’s not the dumbest shit I ever heard coming from a human mouth. Look at her, she looks just like you. Look at her hands and feet that is all you. The fingers and toes don’t lie, fuck what you talking about. You couldn’t deny her if you tried. Everyone would know that you were full of shit if you try to say this baby, not yours. So let me take a wild guess and say that you’re wife found out about her and now you at your momma house to make it all better. Who is this child’s mother and how the hell you ended up with her this time of night?” I rambled off.