The Countdown to Thirty

by Nefertiti Faraj

  “It’s not what you think. I didn’t sleep with him, I swear.”

  “You’re lying.” He said continuing to pace, “I should have just kept my mouth shut about my feelings for you. To think…you played me. Wow. I never saw it going down like this.” He grunted in anger.

  “Christian, listen to me!” I shouted. I was definitely learning to find my voice through this entire boyfriend crisis thing.

  I stood in his path and blocked his pacing.

  “He popped up at my house in the middle of the night when I was trying get in my apartment. He snuck up on me so fast I thought he was a damn burglar.” I paused, “I didn’t just let him in. He took matters into his own hands and forced himself in. He was begging me saying he wanted me back and he was sorry but I didn’t believe him, I couldn’t believe him. I just let him spend the night –“

  “In your bed?” Christian interjected with skepticism written all over his face.

  I felt ashamed to admit it and afraid this would be it if I told him the truth. Had I really drove this relationship down Dead End Blvd before it even had a chance to get started? God I wanted to lie but I couldn’t. He deserved nothing but the truth.

  Now with sudden sweaty palms from nervousness I responded, “Yes in my bed, but!” I said quickly throwing in the ‘but’ for some form of cushion, “I was fully clothed and we didn’t do a thing. I promise you. I swear to you we didn’t do a thing.”

  “So I’m just supposed to believe your ex spent the night in your bed and he didn’t try to touch you.”

  “Nothing happened Christian I promise. I didn’t invite him over. I didn’t want anything from him. He Bo guarded his way in my house when he snuck up on me. And in fact,” I said struggling to get my point across to him, “I kicked him out. That must have been when you saw him leaving that morning. When I woke up I knew I made a stupid, stupid decision and I threw him out first thing. It’s done, for good. I can see everything so clearly now.”

  He studied my face. I prayed that I’d see some softness in their but his features were still icy cold. This whole scene was surreal, having a lovers quarrel with the only man I’ve known my entire life.

  “Say something, please.” I said stroking his arms.

  His glare turned to softness as he leaned in closely placing a single gentle kiss on my lips. The feeling of his lips pressed against mine was missed and a feeling of relief came over my body.

  He placed his hands on my shoulders and massaged them gently. When he opened his mouth to speak the words that came out were different than what I had imagined, “You can let yourself out.”

  v

  When I left his apartment I felt as brain dead as a zombie. Now walking into my apartment with a tear stained face I collapsed on my bed feeling horrible. I was so upset I’d lost my appetite.

  “0 and two Kaia, you’re on a roll.” I said curling up in my blanket wishing I was never born. “I can manage my career and manage my finances but I can’t seem to manage my men.” I said to myself releasing a disgusted grunt.

  “You’re so pathetic.”

  Before closing my eyes to shut out the misery I confirmed my house hunting appointment with Joanna for tomorrow at ten then sent Sonya a text.

  Me: Love is a war I’ve officially lost. I quit.

  Me: #epicfail

  I powered off my phone blocking all contact from the outside world. The migraine I was experiencing at work began to gently pound against my forehead again. I closed my eyes and tried to forget how much of a mess I’ve made of things. I didn’t even bother taking off my work clothes.

  Twenty Three

  Sonya

  I woke up next to Kyle with a smile on my face. The feeling of love and appreciation overwhelmed me as I lay wrapped in his arms and embraced this once familiar action, a man’s love.

  With time and patience he’d manage to break down my damaged yet penetrable emotional walls and gain a spot in my heart. As we lay here peacefully in my bed (and yes he’d earned the right to know where I live), I thought about the past few weeks spent with him and smiled again. From the joys of holiday shopping together to confidently introducing him to Nina and Kaia only a few nights ago, I was pleased with my decision to call him boyfriend (Or the spell breaker as Nina nicknamed him.) To say the least, they were both speechless when I sat them down with a delectable meat and cheese platter from Sam’s Club over a glass of chardonnay at my place then served them with the latest tea. Then they were tickled pink when he arrived an hour later – crashing our girl’s night in at my request – and smoothly won them over with his charm.

  My big secret was finally out in the open – at least to my friends it was - and I was floating on cloud nine. It was a nice change after all these years. Nina was nearly shocked into speechlessness and Kaia admitted that she was skeptical due to all of my sudden late night errands.

  As much as I enjoy an afternoon nap with Kyle after sweet lovemaking, tonight was a big night for me. Corrine’s bachelorette party was five hours away and I’d be making the official debut of the jewelry pieces from “The Sonya Kemp Collection”.

  I’d taken my mother up on an offer she made and accepted seven-thousand dollars to get my line started. I made sure she knew this was an investment, not a freebie. With that, I purchased a business license, equipment, and supplies and was in the process of having Kaia design my logo. The company name I decided to go with: “Eskay Unlimited.” (Eskay sounds like my initials S.K.…get it?)

  After opening my big mouth and confiding in Gwen about my ideas she said once I get up and running she’d be happy to have the store buyer take a look at my pieces.

  “Due to Madison’s being a local chain and the fact that I’m pretty chummy with the owner, you’ll have certain kinds of…advantages with me.” Gwen insinuated.

  Those words were all the motivation I needed to go home and sketch and create until the wee hours of the morning.

  I pranced to my closet and retrieved the red hot lace dress I was wearing for the night. I spotted it at work during an inventory audit then set it aside to purchase at lunch using my much appreciated discount. With tax my $80 dress magically became my $60 dress. Then that night at my workstation I spent an hour and a half creating my dramatic red drop earrings trimmed in Swarovski diamonds with a matching ring.

  I stood in front my full length mirror and posed with the dress against my body. I was going to look bad tonight when I walked into the Palms and strutted my stuff straight to the Penthouse suite. Tonight was going to be such an exciting night.

  “Be good tonight beautiful.”

  I turned to see Kyle awake and propped up in bed watching me. That was becoming a habit of is, but he fessed it was more of an incurable addiction.

  “Did I wake you?” I asked hanging the dress against the mirror and jumping back in bed with him.

  “No.” he replied pulling me in closely. “You know if you want I can stop by the party. I can do a little DJ cameo on the turn tables then top it off with a strip tease for you guys. I’ll throw on my work boots and my tool belt and do a little…” He teased as his words trailed off.

  I laughed non-stop because the thought of him gyrating in his beige construction boots and matching tool belt was hilarious. But when I pictured his abs oiled up as his dreads swung in unison with his movements I started to think it wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

  “We’ll keep you on stand-by just in case one of the strippers doesn’t come through.” I kidded before planting a succulent kiss on his lips then one on each of his dark chocolate abs.

  “Hmmm, that feels good.”

  I fully submerged myself back under the covers with him and enjoyed the rest of our peaceful moment. We only had about an hour left to spend together before I needed to get up and prepare for the party. I care for Kyle but I’d learned my lesson before about putting someone else above my priorities. The best thing however is that with him being an entrepreneur himself he respects me for that not condemn me.
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  An hour later, after getting dressed then loading the backseat of my Mitsubishi with the box that contained the perfectly packaged jewelry, he wished me good luck, kissed me good-bye and drove off towards home.

  v

  Less than an hour before the party started, caterers were setting up the burners for the trays of food, the decorator was running about putting finishing touches on the bachelorette party décor, the DJ was setting up her equipment and the Sorority Housewives were in the penthouse bathroom applying more make-up and gossiping as I set up my display table. I decided to go with a pyramid style design that ended up with ten rows of my elegantly manufactured jewelry boxes and Corrine’s exclusive design which was packaged in a glittery white box and gold lettering that sat at the top of the pyramid.

  When it was all said and done, I took a step back admiring my creative work and gave myself a pat on the back…literally.

  “You did good girl.” I said congratulating myself.

  As I continued to admire my work I whipped out my phone and began taking pictures of the display. Saundra managed to break away from the chit chat and met me at my side.

  “It looks amazing little sis.” She said putting an arm around my shoulder.

  “Thank you. You didn’t do too bad yourself.” I said looking around the penthouse.

  “I know, Corrine’s going to love it.”

  “Definitely, it’s just her style. Do me a favor?” I asked.

  “Yes, of course. What is it?”

  “Take a few pictures of me in front of the display? I want to send them to mom and some of my friends.”

  “Of course.”

  I took my place as Saundra began snapping away while I posed like a true professional showing off her work. Then she had me transition to the giant wall sized windows of the penthouse and I posed like a fashion model in the latest issue of Vogue magazine with the Las Vegas strip as my backdrop.

  By the time Corrine’s guest started arriving in small groups of three-to-four women at a time the DJ was blasting the latest by T.I., Beyonce & Jay-Z, Usher and Nicki Minaj. The sexy brown bartender dressed like a Chippendale smiled and flirted with us all as he mixed the drinks and made a point not to skim on the liquor.

  When Saundra and her friends escorted the bride-to-be into the penthouse everyone screamed and the party really took off. As for male entertainment for the night, it was complete with a firefighter, police officer…and coincidentally a construction worker with the matching wheat colored boots and tool belt.

  I couldn’t withhold my laughter as I snapped a picture and sent it to Kyle.

  His reply: “Aah hell no!”

  v

  “So how are you holding up?”

  “I’m upset but with time I think I’ll be okay. For the record I feel like an idiot though.”

  It was the morning after the bachelorette party and Kaia and I were having a ham and cheese omelet and toast breakfast on her patio. When I came a knocking at seven-thirty this morning with hopes of finding ingredients for a Bloody Mary she insisted I eat and tell her about the party. So I sat there in my black shades shielding my pupils from the inviting fall sunshine as I took a forkful of omelet into my mouth.

  “God I screwed up.” She said running her fingers through her hair neglecting her plate of food.

  “Take a bite of your omelet. It’s good.” I said not wanting to address the mistake she made by letting Malcolm in. She’d clearly taken responsibility and I was sorry it cost her a relationship with Christian. I didn’t want her to dwell on it this morning. The weather was too beautiful and there were other things to celebrate.

  She took a bite of the yellow omelet garnished with bright red squares of tomato and green onion but didn’t come to life until she shared her good news.

  “So…I finally made an offer on a house.”

  “You did!” I exclaimed excitedly, “Which one?”

  She giggled, “Yep the one on Mountain Glitter. It’s sooo me. It’s big, it’s inviting, it’s open and the view is exactly what I wanted.”

  Standing up I walked around to her side of the table and gave her a tight congratulatory hug followed with a high five.

  “Oh my God that’s so exciting. I can’t wait to buy a house. Ooh you should let me help you decorate! Can I help you decorate?” I begged like a kid in a candy store.

  “Well hold on, hold on.” She said putting her hands up, “They haven’t accepted the offer yet. Joanna says they may be trying to hold out for a higher offer, so much for wrapping up their divorce.”

  “Oh,” I moaned, “Well don’t worry I know you’ll get it. And if for some reason you don’t, remember God has already prepared the right home for you.”

  “Look at you getting all spiritual on me.”

  “Hey, I’m a spiritual person. I’m just not a perfect person. That’s my disclaimer.” I joked as I devoured my omelet and sipped on my Bloody Mary…the perfect cure for a mini hangover.

  After breakfast we took our plates inside. I volunteered to take care of the breakfast dishes since she cooked but she insisted I go back to bed and catch up on my beauty sleep for the wedding.

  She’s so thoughtful.

  “Well what do you have planned for the day?” I asked before heading across the porch to my apartment, “I don’t want to picture you sitting in this little apartment all day with an upside down smile.”

  “Well, since you’re ditching me for some silly little wedding I’ll just sit here and stare at the wall until you come back home.” She teased.

  “Stop you’re making me feel bad! Promise me you’ll get out and do something today. Go take a long drive or go get a massage, Lord knows you deserve it. Catch up on some z’s from your crazy job.”

  “But I’m not tired.”

  “Well if you’re restless just call up Nina, she can talk for hours without taking a breath, she’ll be sure to put you to sleep.”

  We both laughed, “I’m going to tell her you said that to.”

  I laughed again, “She knows it’s true. All jokes aside though Kaia try not to think about you know who. And if you find yourself thinking about you know who, then maybe you should give him a call. I still have faith in you two.”

  A faint smile appeared across her face. I couldn’t tell if it meant she was hopeful or perhaps just daydreaming the thought but I left her alone to have her moment.

  v

  The bride and groom’s quickly organized black tie wedding came together cohesively as if it had been in the planning stages for the last twelve months.

  It takes a lot for me to cry and admittedly I despise when I do it, but as they finalized their nuptials there wasn’t a dry eye in the place including mine. Corrine was a spectacular bride and the groom, who I found out, was a successful businessman from California couldn’t be more proud.

  I stood in the bathroom of the reception hall as I studied my face in the mirror.

  “I look happy. I am happy.” I thought as I admired myself in my soft pink formal gown that fit snuggly around my body. It was a long off-the-shoulder piece that split at the knee and provided a short and elegant train.

  “I think I’d be a beautiful bride one day.” I said confirming my beliefs as I marveled at my wedding attire. My eye shadow tastefully matched the shade of my dress and the gentle strokes of gold that lined my lower eyelid brought out the glowing bronzer on my cheekbones and gold drop earrings.

  My mother who was washing her hands at the sink dried them then stood over my shoulder as she gazed up on my reflection in the mirror.

  “That, you would be.” She said kissing my cheek then heading for the door to join the rest of the party, “Are you coming?”

  I thought it over for a second longer and decided I’d wait until Kaia and Nina jumped the broom before I decided to take that leap.

  “I’m coming.” I said doing a little twirl in the mirror then heading towards the door.

  We walked through the vibrant reception hall which was fi
lled to capacity with at least two-hundred guests. There was a mix of all nationality types – Black, white, Asian, Hispanic, Indian – a lot of whom were the business associates and partners of the groom. But the bulk of the guests, myself included, were African American family and friends of the bride and groom themselves.

  “Baby you should mingle with some of these prominent people while we’re here. Maybe you can spark up a business connection…maybe even a love connection.” She pressed while nudging me in the arm.

  “Hmm…maybe,” I shrugged knowing very well I wasn’t going to take her up on either option. Not that I’m opposed to business connections but I’m still working out the details of mine, I’m not quite ready to throw a sales pitch at anyone yet. However, my jewelry was a big hit at the party last night and I handed out dozens of business cards and answered a million questions at least. And as for the love connection, little did my mother know I had a surprise up my sleeve.

  We rejoined our table where the sorority housewives and their families were seated. Imani, Xavier and Shanice and Trina’s children were on the dance floor shamelessly breaking down the latest dance moves and could care less if they were being watched or not. All except Corrine were laughing and enjoying the wine and conversation at our table. She and the new hubby were busy mingling with guests. We noticed her wander over to her table full of gifts several times keeping a tight inventory.

  “Ugh she’s such a snob.” Trina exclaimed, “Like who’s going to steal wedding gifts at the wedding reception?”

  “I don’t think she’s worried about them being stolen. I just think the little diva’s ready to find out what’s inside. She’s just very, very…excited about it that’s all.” Shanice commented trying to throw in a buffer for Corrine. But we all knew this woman we’ve learned to love and call friend better than anyone else. She was tracking those gifts.

  “She’s the queen for the day and I say if she wants to track her gifts then she has every right to. It may be a little tacky now, but her charisma makes up for it.”