by Cydney Rax
“It’s not the size that matters. It’s the thought.”
“That’s my point. Did he really think about it? I would hate to believe that he just got anything just to appease you.”
Nicole wanted to hide her hand. When she compared her jewelry to Shyla’s it was like pitting the queen of England against some ghetto fabulous crack hoe living on the street. The more she thought about it, the madder she became.
“Shyla, you of all people should be happy for me. You know all of what I’ve been through and how hard it’s been for me. So can you please stopping throwing shade at the size of my ring?”
“All right, okay. I’m just trying to look out for your best interests.”
“I know, but the way you’re doing it is truly getting on my damned nerves.”
The lunch suddenly tasted like it had no seasoning. Nicole felt the tension between herself and her friend. And it was in that moment that she wondered if karma would ever leave her alone. She felt that each time she took one step forward, she had to take another step backward. Could she ever get ahead in life? Would everything she desired come with a struggle?
Nicole completely lost her appetite. She didn’t even want to engage in conversation with Shyla any longer. So she left three twenties on the table and told her friend she wasn’t feeling well. She advised her to call a taxi. Then she picked up her purse and hurried out of the restaurant.
Blinded by tears, she ran to the vehicle that she was so happy to get not too long ago. She jumped in and started the engine. Nicole drove and drove, not really knowing where she was going. The thrill of riding in a Jeep felt empty and pointless.
Shyla kept dialing her number, but Nicole wasn’t in the mood to talk and ignored the calls.
Feeling fraught with worry, she drove around without paying strict attention to where she was headed.
She ended up getting on a major street and driving wildly. She ran a couple red lights and switched lanes without signaling. It was like a cry for attention. Nicole wanted to get caught. She felt she needed to be punished for her sins. For getting involved again with Ajalon. For not being very respectful to Kiara and Alexis. And for not consistently being the best woman that she could have been to Rashad. She wanted to get pulled over. But no cop car was around.
“Just like the fucking HPD. They are never around when you need them.”
Nicole impulsively decided to turn into the parking lot of a Home Depot. She felt she could find a vacant parking space and just think.
She was zipping through the spacious lot on an afternoon in which a lot of people were shopping at the store. Her music was banging and she was distracted as she fiddled around with the controls to try to lower the volume. For a split second, Nicole took her eyes off the road. When she looked up, her eyes enlarged in horror.
A young woman was directly in the path of Nicole’s Jeep.
The girl stopped, looked at the oncoming car, and froze.
Nicole screamed, pumped her brakes, and the car’s tires began to screech as she grabbed the steering wheel and tried to maneuver past the woman without hitting her.
The Jeep came within a half an inch of the chick without hitting her.
But she stood there trembling like she was freezing to death and kept staring at the driver that almost hit her. Unable to imagine what just could have happened, Nicole flew out of the car and went to see if she was all right.
“I’m so sorry. I got a little distracted. Thank God I didn’t hit you.”
The girl stared at her, nodded, then opened up her mouth. “You stupid old-ass bitch. You need to watch where you going and keep your fucking eyes on the road. I’m sick of you non-driving bitches always texting, or stuffing your mouth with a hamburger, or applying mascara when you supposed to be concentrating and looking where you at. I swear to God, bitch, if you would have hit me, my man would have fucked you the hell up. Do you understand what I’m saying? Slow your old ass down, this fucked-up world ain’t going nowhere, so ain’t no need to rush.”
The girl regained her composure and walked into Home Depot. Nicole stared at the woman and noticed a lightweight jacket she wore with the word “REMY” applied on the back in large letters.
As Nicole looked at the young woman, she realized she was the same girl that she swore she saw hiding in Rashad’s sedan last night. Nicole felt like she had to look for the girl again and this time she’d find her. She briskly walked through the entrance of the large store. And she kept going until she crossed paths with the chick again. She was in the hardware department looking at mechanical tool sets.
Nicole quietly approached her and tapped her on the shoulder. “Excuse me? Is your name Remy?”
The girl looked at her. “Who wants to know?”
“I’m sorry, but I wanted to say I didn’t mean to almost hit you. I’m very sorry about that.”
“Apology accepted.”
“And I had another question.”
“What is it?”
“You look like a girl I saw a while ago. Do you know a man named Rashad Eason?”
Remy’s eyes enlarged.
“Oh, you. I thought I recognized you. You his crazy-ass woman that he had me hiding from like I was a bank robber. He saw you somehow and thought you was following his ass, so he asked me to lie down when we pulled up to that gas station.”
“But who are you?”
“I sure ain’t kicking it with that old-ass man. He’s like, what, almost thirty-two or something. I’m still in high school. My boyfriend would kick my ass if he thought I was cheating on him.”
Nicole wanted to smile. And then shout.
“So, lady, I don’t know what your problem is, but you better trust your man. He’s just my mentor. He does things like tutor me and my classmates after school and teaches us stuff about the construction industry. That’s it. Now can I please be left alone? Or do you have another question for me?”
“I will leave you alone, Remy. And thanks so much for telling me—”
“Bye, lady. Ugh!”
Nicole humbly walked back to her vehicle. She revved up the engine and returned to the campus of Texas South West University. She took a deep breath, quietly parked her car at the far end of the employee lot, and made her way into the building. Alexis didn’t give her any odd stares as she passed by. That meant that Shyla had kept her mouth shut. And when she went into her office, Shyla was sitting in a guest chair right next to her desk. Nicole sighed in relief, closed the office door, and the two women quietly hugged each other. Nicole rocked back and forth and told Shyla, “I had a moment. I’m so, so sorry. Forgive me, please girl.”
“You know I do. Don’t even sweat it.”
And that day, Nicole knew she’d gained much more than the hope of a wedding, new transportation, and a peace of mind.
She knew she’d regained a true friend.
* * *
In the week leading up to Halloween, Rashad and Jerry went to pick up Henry and Cornell to help out with some renovation work. But before dropping them off at the day labor parking lot, Rashad told the men, “Hey, I got to make a quick stop. Something’s going on at my crib that I gotta check on.”
Ajalon froze up. He knew he shouldn’t have agreed to get picked up at the day labor lot. He was on the verge of quitting but wanted to stay on another week or so before joining another company. Things between him and Nicole had cooled down and he wasn’t feeling the Eason & Son work any longer.
When Rashad pulled the van up in front of his driveway, he got out of the vehicle and started walking toward the front door. He turned around and said, “Hey, y’all. Come on in. This won’t take but a second. If you need to use my bathroom or get a drink from the fridge, make yourself at home.”
Ajalon was the last one to exit the van. His legs felt like steel as he walked inside. It had been awhile since he’d been inside this house. He stood off to the side. Jerry, though, walked around and started looking at anything that appeared interesting. He picked up a s
tuffed animal that was sitting on a table.
“Cute, huh?” he said with a grin. “This reminds me of my grandson’s teddy bears.”
Ajalon said nothing.
Moments later, Nicole walked out. She stopped when she saw the men. She exchanged a worried glance with Ajalon but he refused to say a word.
“Hey, guys,” she said. “How are you doing? What’s going on?”
“We wondered the same thing,” Jerry said. “Rashad indicated you have a problem going on here?”
“Oh, yeah, the washing machine won’t stop leaking. There’s water all over the floor. It’s dangerous. I thought that it might harm the flooring and wasn’t sure how to stop the water from rising. Rashad is handling it, though. He’ll be done soon.”
She excused herself. Ajalon and Henry went into the kitchen. Ajalon took a chance and opened the refrigerator.
Henry muttered, “You shouldn’t get that familiar with the boss’s things, man. Be respectful.”
“I am respectful.”
“You should ask before you go in the man’s fridge, Cornell.”
“He already said it would be okay.”
“Just because he said it don’t mean he means it.”
“Have you ever been over here before?” Ajalon asked.
“No. Have you?”
“Nah, man. But it’s cool. He already gave his okay.”
Henry looked pissed that Ajalon was doing something first again. He didn’t like that the much younger guy wore confidence on his sleeve. Though Henry talked more shit, he still acted timid.
“Watch what I’m telling you! I’ve been in this situation before, young man. It’s a test. The boss is always testing. The walls have eyes.”
“You’re paranoid.”
“No, I like to know things.” He paused. “Have you heard that something may go down with our company? Like, our jobs might be in jeopardy?”
“Yours may be, but mine sure isn’t,” he replied, just to mess with Henry.
“Oh, that is because you are a brown-noser if I ever saw one. I could never kiss ass. Got too much pride.”
“You’re one stupid old man. I’ve been dying to say that.” And Ajalon left Henry in the kitchen all by himself.
As Ajalon returned to the living room, he saw Jerry still fiddling with the stuffed animals.
He laughed at him. “You two are some weirdos, man.”
Jerry only smiled.
Nicole then returned to the living room. “Hey, sorry, guys, I forgot something in here.” She began searching. Suddenly Henry was at her side. “Is that an engagement ring?”
Nicole blushed. She had never told Ajalon what happened between her and Rashad. She wished Henry would keep his mouth shut.
“It’s just a ring.”
“But it’s on the ring finger,” Henry argued. “Is the boss getting married again and he didn’t tell us?”
“There will be a lot of things that the boss won’t tell you,” Nicole snapped. Henry grabbed her hand, looked and laughed.
“It must be true what they’re saying on the streets.”
“What are you talking about, Henry?” Nicole asked.
“They say that Eason and Son is going bankrupt. Soon we’ll all be out of a job.” He grabbed Nicole’s hand again. “Tell us the truth. I have a family to feed and he has been giving me a lot of work.”
“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about. I haven’t heard any such thing about the company going bankrupt.”
“Someone is lying,” Henry said accusingly.
“Man, shut the fuck up,” Ajalon told him. “If that rumor was true, our boss would tell us himself. He wouldn’t leave us out of something as important as that.”
Nicole wanted to pat Ajalon on the back.
But she said, “Ajalon is right.”
“What?” Henry demanded.
“I mean, Cornell.”
“Why’d you call him that name?” Henry asked.
“Why don’t you go and wait in the van for Rashad. All of you. We are having a family emergency right now and it’s best that we handle it privately.”
They all filed out back to the van.
And Nicole could have kicked herself for calling her lover by his real name.
* * *
Nicole decided to go to the park anyway. It had gotten darker by the time she reached it. But there was plenty of lighting on the wide paths. She was stressed out and felt going on a walk would do her some good. She had been walking about ten minutes when she felt a presence join her.
“Hello, Bella.”
“Ajalon.”
“Don’t be mad. It’s a free country.”
“I thought you were mad at me. It’s like you didn’t want to talk to me anymore.”
“No, that would be you who couldn’t talk.”
“Hey, I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to tell you that Rashad and I are going to be married. But I wanted to tell you now, to your face.”
“Congratulations.”
“I know it’s not what you want to hear, Ajalon. I’m sorry for hurting you.”
“I will survive. I have survived much worse things than losing the only woman that I’ve ever loved.”
She touched his shoulder and wasn’t worried about anyone seeing them. It was so dark outside she was sure any observers could only see murky shadows. And who could actually say for sure what they’d seen?
“Ajalon, did you have anything you want to say to me before I go?”
“I will be quitting that job you got me. I’m going to strike out on my own.”
“Oh, I see. Well, good luck with that.”
“One last thing. I still love you, Bella.”
She bit her bottom lip. “I still love you, too, Ajalon Cornell Cantu. But in a different type of way.”
He looked so sad that she decided to give him one last sensuous kiss on his lips.
It was her last hurrah, and the streets of Houston would never be the same.
Chapter 21
The Last Betrayal
Alexis was poking around on her computer when she decided to review some video footage. It was the day before Halloween, a Friday. She was at her workstation in the open area of the department’s main corridor. The day was quiet and she was bored. She selected the icon to start the playback of the film; at first she didn’t see anything. Images of the house presented nothing significant. But then she noticed Nicole enter the living room. Alexis saw an unfamiliar man and a pretty woman in the room with them. The three spoke briefly and the woman disappeared. Then Nicole and the man were alone.
Alexis whispered, “What the hell?” as her eyes remained glued to her computer monitor.
She continued to watch Nicole and the man and she wondered who he was and what he was doing in Nicole’s house; then the screen went dark. Alexis saw nothing. She knew the camera was still rolling because the device that was recording was battery operated. But it also was motion-activated. So it would make sense that the playback stopped.
“Oh, well. I have no idea what happened, but it doesn’t look good.” Alexis picked up her office phone and called Kiara.
“Um, if you aren’t busy, could you come by my office? Like, right now? I have something interesting to show you.”
It took several minutes before Kiara arrived.
Alexis’s face was serious. She pointed at a chair near her.
“Pull up a seat and try to remain calm.”
“Sure.”
As soon as Kiara sat down she knew what she was watching. “You finally found something?” she gasped.
“At first I wasn’t sure. But now I got the real spill.”
Both women intently watched the screen in front of them. They saw the dark shadows, the man, the woman, their subsequent disrobing, their nakedness, their lying down on the floor, and them having sex outside during the rain.
“I simply do not believe this,” Kiara said. She could barely watch.
“Keep looking,” Alexis said.<
br />
Right then Nicole and Shyla Perry-Fallender walked past them. Alexis and Kiara kept their heads down. Nicole noticed the two women huddled close together but she didn’t have time to worry about it. She had a wedding to plan. Nicole waved at the ladies as she passed by. They barely spoke to her.
As soon as Nicole disappeared from sight, Alexis started snickering. “Damn, now I know what that woman looks like with no clothes on. I want to throw up.”
“You? I should call CPS on her. I am quite sure that her baby had to be in the house that night. Who else could she call to babysit? She is such a skank.”
Kiara stopped the playback. “I’ve seen enough.”
“So what are you going to do?”
“I am not doing anything. He made his decision. He got who he wanted. Let him suffer the consequences.”
“Oh, Kiara, that ain’t right. He’s not such a bad guy.”
“How can you defend my ex? Are you still fucking him, too?”
“Now you know good and well that ain’t happening. I thought you had more faith in me than that.”
“I apologize. You’ve been better than most women who are in your position.”
“I’m no hero, that’s for sure. And even if you are upset about Rashad and hate his guts, he’s the father of two of your kids. Two beautiful kids. They deserve better than Nicole. I think he seriously trusts her, too, which is a shame.”
“I don’t hate the man, but men like Rashad get everything they deserve. If a husband wants to leave his wife for the other woman, let him. It may take him getting treated like trash by Nicole to finally learn how to honor a decent woman.”
“I guess.” Alexis thought it over. “I think we should meet with him, especially since he’s given her a ring. Then we can figure out how to handle this.”
“Okay,” Kiara said, “but I really don’t know what good it’ll do.”
Kiara invited Rashad over to her house that evening. She told him it was important and it had to do with Jazzy’s latest milestone.
But when Rashad came over and saw Alexis sitting next to Kiara, he knew there was more to it than what his ex-wife told him. They had Rashad sit down at the dining room table and Alexis started the playback of the video footage.