Drama Queen Saga

by La Jill Hunt

  Kayla’s silence was good enough for him because he knew he had caused her to think. He would call her later and they would talk some more and by the end of the week, they would be having lunch together like old times. Maybe she can help me figure out this Arianna dilemma that’s been haunting me, he thought as he sorted through the pile of work that he was supposed to have completed by the end of the day.

  He was in the middle of working on a report when he heard a knock at the door. He looked at the clock and saw that it was after 5:00. Kayla must be stopping by before she leaves. He was surprised when it wasn’t Kayla but CJ who walked in and took a seat on the edge of his desk. Her skirt began rising on her thick thighs, and he saw that a garter belt was holding up her black silk stockings.

  “Are you busy?” She smiled, not even pulling the skirt down. He could’ve sworn that she maneuvered her body so that it rose up even more.

  “Finishing up this report for the meeting tomorrow. You on your way out?”

  “Yep, I’m all finished. I just stopped by to see if I could interest you in a bite to eat.” She leaned over his desk and picked up a picture of him, Jermaine and Toby from his desk. It was one of his favorite pictures of the three of them, taken one summer after he had graduated from high school. They were posed on a set of rocks on the beach and looked like they had it going on, dressed in denim overalls, Cross Colors shirts, and black Doc Martens. She giggled as she looked at it.

  “Okay, what’s with the sunglasses? You all look like body doubles for Jodeci.”

  “Boyz 2 Men,” he corrected. “And back then, you couldn’t tell us that we weren’t.”

  “Don’t tell me you all were a group.”

  “Triple Threat. We won the talent shows every year. Shoot, you’re laughing, but we were the bomb. We had backup dancers and everything.”

  “Is that a curl, Terrell? Did you have a curl?” she shrieked.

  He snatched the picture out of her hands. “No, I didn’t have a

  curl. Those are dreads.”

  “Let me see. That is a curl! I can’t believe you had a curl.” CJ reached for the frame, but he held it out of her reach and she wound up nearly falling off the desk. He reached out and she landed in his arms. They both ended up across the desk. He found himself staring at her cleavage then back into her dark eyes. CJ licked her lips at him and at that moment, the door opened.

  “I brought you a picture of Day—oh, shit. Sorry.”

  Terrell quickly stood up, knowing what this must’ve looked like to Kayla when she walked in.

  “Have you ever hear of knocking?” CJ barked as she readjusted her clothes.

  Kayla looked at Terrell and shook her head at him. He tried to catch her before she got out of his office, but she was out the door before he knew it. Rushing into the hallway, he called out to her.

  “Kayla, Kayla!”

  He made it to the end of the corridor just as the elevator chimed. He pressed the button in an effort to stop the doors from closing, but saw that Kayla was pressing just as hard on the inside to make them close. He looked over at the door leading to the steps and was tempted to beat her to the parking lot, but he knew that it wouldn’t matter. There was no way she would believe anything he said at this point. He sulked back to his office.

  “So, where shall we dine?”

  “Huh?”

  “Hello, dinner? Where do you want to eat? We were deciding when we were so rudely interrupted.” CJ stood up and strolled over to him. She began playing with the knot of his tie. “Let’s see if we can’t straighten this a little. Now, that’s better.”

  “Uh, thanks,” he said, quickly moving from within her reach. He took his seat behind his desk and leaned back, groaning as he exhaled. His life was falling apart at the seams and there was nothing he could do about it.

  “Maybe a massage would help. You seem a little stressed,” CJ suggested. “I give a pretty mean one. Want me to demonstrate?”

  “That’s okay. I don’t think that would be a good idea. I don’t think our going to dinner would be a good idea either,” Terrell told her.

  “So, what do you think is a good idea, Mr. Sims?” she asked suggestively.

  “I think my going home would be a good idea, Ms. Ware. That’s a good idea.”

  “Does our sudden eagerness to run off have anything to do with that hussy rudely interrupting us? She’s nothing but trouble anyway. She thinks she knows everything.”

  Terrell ignored her comments regarding Kayla and grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair. “No, that doesn’t have anything to do with it at all. I just think that picking up some Mexican food and going home to rub my pregnant fiancée’s feet is the best idea for me right now. I’ll see you tomorrow, CJ.” He left her sitting stunned in his office, closing the door behind him.

  57

  Toby pushed the button on his answering machine. He kept his hand on the delete button, knowing that most of the messages weren’t worth saving anyway. Just as he thought, they were mostly sales calls, but a few were requests for him to deejay at weddings or parties. He even had an offer from a woman who wanted him at her family reunion.

  “Money is no object. Just let me know how much,” she said into the machine. This one was definitely worth keeping. He skipped to the next message.

  “Toby, it’s me. I know you said that you needed time to deal with this, but I need you to at least call me and tell me you’re dealing with it. I love you so much and I—” He hit delete at the sound of Roni’s voice. She probably thought he would have called by now, but he hadn’t, although he was tempted. It was especially hard late at night when he rolled over to pull her warm body close to his and it wasn’t there beside him.

  The day had been long, but enjoyable. Working with Jermaine had provided just the diversion he needed. Not only did he learn a lot about the business, but his friend kept him amused, all the while putting a few extra bucks in his pocket. Out of all the jobs they had done that week, working at Stanley’s had been the most strenuous. Not because of the manual labor, but because of the mental capacity it took for Toby to do it. The entire time they were working, he continually had flashbacks of Roni in Sean’s arms by the pool. He paused to look at pictures Stanley had throughout the house of family members, especially the ones containing Sean.

  “I see you checking out the horrible family photos,” Stanley commented.

  “Yeah,” Toby answered, embarrassed that he had been caught looking.

  “My brother keeps telling me to take them down, but I won’t. These pictures of us are my prized possessions. Besides, I may need them one day to blackmail him,” Stan laughed.

  “I swear I think I know him from somewhere,” Toby lied. “Does he live here in town?”

  “No, he moved to Atlanta after he finished school. He comes to town every now and then to visit and spend time with his on again/off again girlfriend.”

  “Oh, yeah, the girl he was with the other day. So, she lives here and he comes to see her. Must be serious.”

  “With those two, you never can tell. Like I said, it’s an on again/off again thing that’s been going on for years. Well, I’m outta here. You guys are doing an awesome job and I really appreciate it.”

  “Thanks, Stan. You stay cool, man.” Toby pounded his fist on Stan’s and went back to work, still thinking about Sean, Roni, and the insight that Stan had given him. It took some effort, but they completed the job and Jermaine told him he had mad respect for him.

  It had been a while since he had worked out at the gym, but he was full of energy and it seemed like a good idea. Grabbing his duffle bag out of the closet, he changed into some sweats and set out to get his workout on. He noticed that the regular crowd was there in full effect as he walked to the locker room. Vinny, the manager, greeted him with a smile.

  “Hey, Toby. Where you been? We missed you.” The short, young guy gave him a handshake.

  “What’s up, Vinny? I know it’s been a minute, huh?”

&nbs
p; “Well, I know you got engaged and I figured that had something to do with it. Where is your beautiful wife-to-be, anyway?”

  It was the first time anyone had asked him about Roni, and Toby felt a twinge of discomfort. He thought about telling Vinny that they had broken up, but technically that wasn’t true because Roni still had his ring. He didn’t ask for it back and she didn’t offer to give it. They really hadn’t said that the wedding was off; he just took his key back.

  “She’s not here. I’m rolling solo today, Vin,” Toby told him.

  “Well, tell her I said hello.” Vinny smiled. “Good to see you, Toby.”

  Toby began stretching, trying to decide whether to start with free weights or the exercise machines. The machines were almost all taken by other fitness gurus, so he opted for the free weights. He lifted, bench pressed, pushed and pulled for an hour, until his black We Secure U T-shirt was soaked and clinging to his body.

  He was tired, but somehow convinced himself that thirty minutes on the elliptical machine was the perfect finish for his workout. By now, people had gotten off from work and the gym was packed. Somehow, he located and empty machine and rushed over to it before someone else snagged it. He was so busy trying to find some Janet Jackson on his mp3 player that he didn’t notice the woman smiling at him on the machine next to his.

  “So, how long are you gonna ignore me, Toby?” she asked. He looked up and saw that it was Isis. Her arms and legs were moving rhythmically like she was cross-country skiing. She made the machine look like a breeze, which he knew it wasn’t.

  “What’s going on, Ms. Adams? I see how you stay looking fine; you work at it.”

  “And I thought those rippling muscles you have came from spinning and mixing records. I see I was wrong.”

  “Since when did you start coming here? I’ve never seen you here before,” he said, getting on and setting the timer.

  “Hmph. I’ve been here every day almost since I joined a month ago. What does that tell you? I think someone has been slacking on their workouts.” She grinned.

  “Well, I have to admit it’s been a minute since I’ve been in here. So, you joined the gym. Does that mean you’ll be here for a while?” he asked, trying to convince himself that the only reason he asked was to make general conversation. But he knew he really wanted to know the answer. He didn’t even bother putting his headphones on.

  “For a while. How are things going with you?”

  “All right, I guess. You going back to your old job?”

  “No way. You know I hated it when I was working there. I’m not cut out for that kind of work. I was on my feet all day, every day, dealing with dumb customers that think they have ten dollars in their accounts so they can talk to me any kind of way. I don’t think so. Besides, nothing good ever came to me at that job.” She huffed as she talked, her arms and legs moving faster and faster.

  “That’s not true,” he said, smiling at her. “What about me? I came to you there.”

  She shook her head, blushing, which surprised him.

  He remembered the first time he saw her. He had just gotten his first check from the club, and he went into the bank. He wasn’t really paying attention. He was busy two-waying this girl he had been trying to get with for a week, and she had finally agreed to go out with him. He moved up in line and walked to the window with no one standing in front of it.

  “Excuse me, but I’m closed,” she had said.

  “Huh? Oh, my bad. I didn’t even see the sign.” He smiled.

  “Well, it’s right there in front. See.” She pointed at the small sign that indeed read CLOSED, SEE NEXT AVAILABLE TELLER.

  He looked around and saw that all of the other tellers had customers and by now, the line was longer than when he first walked through the door. There was no way he was going to stand in it again. “I’m saying, you can’t just help me out? I just need to cash this check right quick. It won’t even take that long. Come on. Please?”

  “Sorry. I’m closed,” she said icily. She looked down at his check. “Besides, you have to have an account here to cash a check from another institution. Do you even have an account?”

  “No, but I’m saying, can’t you just open one up for me real quick?” he asked.

  “Like I said, I’m closed. See the manager,” she said abruptly then turned and walked away. He was livid. He was about to call her out about her nasty attitude when he noticed the sign on a nearby door directing him to new accounts. He figured he would go ahead and open the new account since he was there. There was a small white man in the glass office, and Toby softly knocked on the door.

  “Can I help you?” the man asked, looking up from the newspaper he was reading.

  “Yes, sir. Are you the person I see about opening a new account?”

  “Yes, I am. Come on in and we can take care of you.” He welcomed Toby and told him to have a seat. Fifteen minutes later, Toby was the newest member of their financial institution, complete with checking and savings accounts and the Christmas club. “Welcome, Mr. Sims. If you step right over here, Ms. Adams will be happy to take care of your accounts for you.”

  Toby looked at the window where the sign still sat. “I think she’s still closed.”

  “Closed? She shouldn’t be. I can get her for you and she can get you squared away.” He pushed a few buttons and walked through a large wooden door, coming out on the other side of the teller windows. “Here she is. Miss Adams, this is Mr. Sims, our newest customer. I’m putting him in your hands, and I’ve assured him that you’ll take good care of him. Nice meeting you, Mr. Sims.” He nodded to Toby.

  “It’s a pleasure doing business with you, sir,” Toby told him. He smiled at Ms. Adams, who did not seem so pleased to see him. “I guess you’re open now, Ms. Adams?”

  “How can I help you?” she asked, her face and voice void of any emotion.

  “I need to make a deposit into my checking and savings accounts, but I want to get two hundred back in cash.” Toby signed the back of his check and passed it to her. His two-way began beeping, and he reached into his pocket and took it out. He quickly scanned the message and began typing a response. His date was acting like she was going to cancel on him, and he was pissed.

  “I need a deposit slip and a photo ID.” She sighed.

  He looked at her like she was crazy. “I just opened my account. The branch manager just introduced me to you. You know who I am.”

  “Can I see a photo ID, please? And a deposit slip.”

  Toby reached into his back pocket and pulled out his new checkbook along with his wallet. He snatched out a deposit slip and flashed his driver’s license in front of her. She peered closely at it and thanked him. He watched her as she quickly took care of his transaction, meticulously counting his money. Her nails were neatly groomed, and he could tell they were real, not those acrylic things women usually wore. His gaze drifted to her face. Her eyes were frowned with intensity, yet she was gently biting her bottom lip as she flipped through the bills. She paused and looked up at him.

  “Damn, you’re beautiful.” The words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop them. She went back to counting and he smiled. She’s funny. A straight, first class—

  She interrupted him before he could complete the thought. “Here you are. Twenty, forty, sixty, eighty, one. Twenty, forty, sixty, eighty, two. Here’s your receipt. Have a nice day,” she said. He tried to search her face for any signs of kindness, but there were none.

  “You too, Ms. Adams. See you next week,” he made sure to tell her. He looked at her once more before turning to leave. Indeed, she was gorgeous, and for some reason, her stank attitude made her even more attractive to him.

  For weeks, Toby continued coming in to the bank, refusing to go to anyone’s window but hers. On the days he would walk in and see that she was working the drive-through, he would go back and get into his truck. He knew he irritated her, and it became a game to him.

  Then one night, she strolled into Dominic�
��s with her girlfriend. Terry, who happened to be in the booth with him, pointed the two women out as they sat at a table near the back of the club.

  “Man, look at the two hotties over there. They are fine,” Terrell announced. Toby looked over at them and shook his head.

  “That’s shorty from the bank, the mean one I pick with. She thinks she’s all that.”

  “Which one? The redbone one or the other one in the skirt? She looks mixed. Is she mixed?” Terrell was stretching his neck to get a better view. “They both look good.”

  “The other one. And I don’t know if she’s mixed or not. I think she is,” Toby told him. He often wondered that about her. She had thick, wavy hair and keen eyes along with her satin toffee skin, which led him to believe that she was not one hundred percent African American. Her looks were what he considered a combination of Janet Jackson and Amiel Lareaux, with a touch of Kimora Lee. He said her name aloud to no one. “Ms. Adams.”

  “If it’s the other one, then she is all that. And since you got dibs on her, I’m about to go holler at the red-bone. I’ll tell her you said hello,” Terrell said as he headed down the steps.

  “I ain’t got dibs on nobody. I told you I just mess with her because she always has an attitude. And you’d better hope and pray that she doesn’t cuss you out when you tell her you know me.” Toby laughed.

  The crowd was kind of thin since it was a rainy Thursday in March, but he tried his best to entertain them. It took some coaxing, but soon a few people were actually on the dance floor, including Terry and the female who was with Ms. Adams. Noticing his prey standing at the bar alone, he popped in a slow mix CD and took it upon himself to join her.