“Honestly, as black people we shouldn’t even be celebrating this shit because the reality of it is… we weren’t free then and we’re still not free now.”
Tyrell nodded in agreement. “You right about that.”
“Fuck the fourth of July. Lemme get a light.” Six lit the blunt and took a deep pull. “So, wassup? It’s slow out here today?”
“Nah, it’s moving. I ran through half a pack already.”
“Okay yo, I jus’ seen that funny lookin’ nigga Gahbe on the block. He stuntin’ hard too.”
“Fuck Gahbe!” Tyrell got tight and screwed his face up. “Old ass nigga, I’m tellin’ you son, if I catch one of them niggas in here makin’ a chop, I’m poppin’ on ‘em. I ain’t got no words for niggas.”
“Damn son, it’s like that?”
“Yo,” Tyrell hopped of the bench and stood directly in front of Six. “Look at me my nigga.” he flashed the two weapons on his waist. “I don’t fuck wit’ that nigga Gahbe at all. That bitchassnigga is the reason my moms is fucked up on this crack shit now. I’m tellin’ you Six,” he clenched his jaws. “If any one of them niggas step foot in here, my shit going off.”
Six stared at him. “Yo, you wildin’ my nigga.”
“Nah, I ain’t wildin’. We bout to get rich nigga.” Tyrell eyed Six. “I don’t know, Six, you was talking alotta G’ shit when you was locked up. It’s time nigga.”
“Time for what?”
Tyrell smiled, pulled a gun from his waistline and tossed it to Six. “Time to put that work in nigga.”
CHAPTER SIX
An entire month had gone by, and Priscilla was beginning to settle into the shelter. On the count of this being the only place she had to go, she put aside her pride and focused on getting her life together.
At all costs, she avoided any type of drama that would deter her from completing her goals. A few times, she even had to hold her tongue.
After three weeks of job searching, Priscilla was ready to give up on the hunt and figure out an alternative to appease her financial woes. It was stressful, and the irksome interviewing process was starting to wear on her conscience and deplete her self-esteem. But just when she was ready to throw the towel in, a call came from an employer.
__________
“Priscilla, hurry up.” Ms. Kathy was holding the phone. “I think it’s a job.”
Priscilla rushed out of the dorm and grabbed the cordless. “Hello?”
“Hello, Ms. Davis. This is Catherine Welch, hiring manager at Stop & Shop supermarket. How are you doing today?”
“Fine, thank you.” She replied.
“Well, I’m calling because we’ve looked over your application and I’ve also spoken with Jim, who you did the interview with, and we would like to know if you’re still interested in working here. If so, when can you start?”
Priscilla’s eyes lit up and a smile widened her face for the first time in a while. “Ughh…” she was so excited she couldn’t speak. “Ummm… yeah, I’m very much interested. I can start tomorrow if you want me to.”
Ms. Welch loved Priscilla’s enthusiasm. “Great, but since tomorrow is Sunday, how about you come in at nine am on Monday? We can take care of the paperwork then.”
“Monday sounds great. See you at nine, and thank you.”
Ms. Welch said bye and hung the phone up on her end. Priscilla was caught in a befuddled shock, she didn’t realize that she was still holding the phone to her ear, but no one was on the other end.
“Well,” Ms. Kathy held out her hands, waiting for a response. “What happened?”
Priscilla stayed silent for a few seconds, blinked her eyes and then placed the phone on the front desk. “I got the job.” She still couldn’t believe it. “I got the job, Ms. Kathy!” she yelled.
“Yey!” Ms. Kathy hugged her. She was proud of her accomplishment.
She had witnessed the strain and struggle Priscilla had been through, and coming from a similar place, she could sympathize with why she would sometimes act out the way she did.
__________
So, for the past week, Priscilla had been getting out of bed at 6:30 am, taking a shower, eating breakfast and heading out to Mount Vernon so she could punch the clock by 7:30.
For the first time in her life, she had a job. It may not have been the job she wanted, but she was definitely grateful and accepting of the blessing.
Even on the mornings that she didn’t want to get up, God gave her the strength to spring from the bed, put a smile on her face and make the best of the day.
She was determined.
She was eager.
For eight hours a day, Priscilla watched as the cashiers scanned barcodes, requested price checks and handled money. In a way, it reminded her of the days when she was hustling drugs, but she immediately washed those thoughts from her mental and maintained focus. Once she learned the ins and outs of the checkout area, she quickly devised a plan to make things run faster. The results of a faster moving line would be more tips.
For two days straight, she watched the cashiers at each checkout line to see who was processing the customer’s items the fastest. When she figured out who it was, she approached him.
“Hey Randy,” Priscilla closed her line and made her way toward the frail white kid working at the register next to her. “Did you take your break yet?”
Randy thought about it. “Nope, this line been crazy today. I’m ready to.”
“Well, c’mon. I need to talk to you about something.” Priscilla threw the charm on thick. “I got this sandwich too…” she held up a bag. “I know I’m not gonna eat the whole thing, so you can save your money and take the other half of this.”
“What kind is it?”
“Ham and cheese.”
Randy licked his lips and smiled. “Oh yeah, that’s my favorite.”
He may have believed it was just a coincidence, but Priscilla knew otherwise. She had been doing her scouting work, and overheard him mention his love for ham sandwiches while they stood out front on break.
Randy took care of the last two customers on his line, flicked the ‘closed’ switch and hurried out to the front.
“So, what is it that you wanna talk about?” he said, holding the half sandwich in his hand. He took a bite and some mayonnaise got stuck on the side of his mouth.
“I know I only been here a few days, but I been watching you on that register and you be moving.” Priscilla tapped him on the side of his arm.
He tried to reply, but he had a mouth full of food. “Excuse me, I don’t mean to toot my own horn,” he took another bite. “But, I am the fastest cashier on the day shift.” Particles of bread, meat, and cheese flew from his mouth.
“I know; that’s what I’m sayin’.” She was stroking his ego, but at the same time, he was the fastest cashier. “So, how does that work, do you get to choose your baggers?”
Randy stopped eating for a minute. “Well, since I am top dog, I get to choose who I want on my line.”
“Is that right?”
He grinned. “Yup.”
“So why is it that you have the slowest bagger in the store at your register?”
“Oh, Tara?” He cheesed. “I know she’s slow, but she’s pretty and I like her.”
“But if you had a faster bagger you could make more in tips; how much are y’all gettin’ now?”
Randy scratched his head. “On a good weekday, maybe twenty dollars; on the weekend, twenty-five or thirty.”
“That’s it? Man, we over here pullin’ in at least fifty dollars a night, and that’s a regular night. Let’s not even discuss the weekend.”
“Fifty dollars!? Stop lying.” he couldn’t believe it.
Priscilla made a cross on her chest with her fingers, kissed her palm and raised her right hand to the sky. “All truth.”
“Okay cool, but let me ask you something?” he said.
“I’m listenin’.”
Randy finished the half sandwich and tossed the b
ag in the garbage. “You shared your delicious lunch with me and brought me out here to tell me that I’m the fastest cashier, or is there something else?”
“Actually, there is,” her voice got low. “If me and you were a team in there, we could make a lot of extra money. Think about it, a whole twenty-five extra dollars a day in your pocket, sometimes even more.”
Randy contemplated. “I don’t know Priscilla, what about Tara?”
“What about her?” Priscilla moved in closer. “Randy; you and Tara been working here together for how long?”
“Almost six months.”
“In that time has she ever greeted you, smiled at you, or even looked your way?”
He thought about it. “Ummm, not really.”
“See, that’s what I mean. Tara’s not worthy of you Randy, you’re handsome, smart and independent. I’m sure there’s plenty of girls out here waiting for a guy like you to come scoop them off their feet.”
He blushed. “You think I’m handsome?”
“Of course I do. Now, I want you to go in there and tell Tara that she’s no longer bagging at register eleven. Show her you’re the man, Randy.” Priscilla was trying her best not to laugh.
“On one condition.” He pointed to the bag in her hand.
“This?” she held up the bag. “But what will I eat for lunch?”
Randy shrugged his shoulders. “Hey, you wanna bag at my register, hand over the sandwich.”
Priscilla threw on a fake expression of sadness and passed the bag to Randy. Truthfully, she had never eaten pork in her life.
When they went back inside, Randy walked right up to Tara and made it clear that she would no longer be bagging at his register. She got upset and threw a slight tantrum until Priscilla checked her.
“Listen bitch, take yo’ lil’ skinny ass down there somewhere and bag groceries. I got this now.”
Her first move had been made.
Priscilla worked strenuously every day and raked in hundreds of dollars in tips throughout the week that she tucked away in her stash. The only way she could make anything happen was to have some money.
On the job, she never bothered to make any new friends. She kept quiet, and extracted herself from the daily doings of her fellow employees.
She was in her own world.
At 4:30 every afternoon, she would punch out, grab something to eat and hop on the number 42 bus back to New Rochelle. Every day on her stroll back to the shelter, Priscilla would wince at the grim site of the hospital that housed her love, but on this day that little voice in her head would get the best of her.
When the bus doors came open, the splatter of the torrential rains sprinkled Priscilla’s cheeks before she could lift her umbrella.
“Be safe Ms. Davis. Have a good night.” Tom the bus driver said.
She stepped into the wet streets and looked up at the overclouded, dark grey skies and that’s when she heard it.
Priscilla…
She looked around, but the only things moving were the cars traveling up and down the roads.
Priscilla…
She heard it again. This time, she thought she recognized the voice. It sounded like Mox.
Priscilla turned her head and her eyes fell on the hospital.
She hadn’t seen Mox since the day she returned home, and her last visual recollection of him was not a pleasant one. It had been a frightening situation that continuously replayed in her brain every time she thought about him.
It was time for her to make a decision.
It was time for her to face the fear.
Without a second thought, she made her move. In the blink of an eye, Priscilla was walking through the automatic doors to the entrance of the hospital.
The cool air sent a chill through her body as soon as she stepped into the lobby entrance. She shook the excess rain from her umbrella, wrapped it up, and brushed her wet shoes on the carpet. When she got to the information desk, a young, short haired, brown eyed blonde girl with a pair of specs sat behind the glass.
She smiled and said. “Welcome to Sound Shore, how can I help you today?”
Priscilla looked around. She never really cared for hospitals. They made her feel sick. “Yes, I’m trying to visit my friend. His name is Mox Daniels.”
The blonde nodded her head and proceeded to tap the keys on the keyboard in front of her. “Yes, Mr. Daniels has been moved from the third floor to the second floor, which is a good thing.” She said, as she continued typing. “Oh, I see it right here. He’s in room 207. That’s the second floor. When you get off the elevator, you make the right.” She slid Priscilla a nametag and a pen. “Write your name on that and keep it with you.”
When the elevator door opened, Priscilla slowly stepped out and made the first right as directed. After a brief thought about what she was doing, she felt a slight shift in the pit of her stomach. Perspiration began to build on her brow and under her armpits.
She used the back of her hand to wipe her forehead, and when she looked up, room 207 was directly in front of her.
If she hesitated, there was a chance for her to turn on her heels and walk away, so she grabbed the knob and gently pushed the door open.
“Oh, excuse me. I’m just finishing up here. I should be done in a sec.”
The first thing Priscilla noticed was that the woman standing next to Mox’s bed wearing nurse scrubs, was pretty as hell.
She was short, maybe 5 feet 4 inches with brown shoulder length hair, a golden bronzed complexion, and a nice petite shaped body.
“Is he awake?” Priscilla took a step closer.
The nurse removed her gloves. “I’m sorry, Ms.??”
“Ms. Davis.” Priscilla extended her hand.
“How are you? I’m Jasmine. I’ve been Mr. Daniels’ nurse for the past few weeks. Ummm… Miss Davis… Mr. Daniels hasn’t been awake since he was admitted.”
Priscilla stared at Mox lying on the hospital bed. It was an unpleasant sight. In all her days of knowing him, he had never looked so overthrown, so worn out, and so powerless.
She struggled to repress the tears, but the weight of her emotions was too much to bear and her eyes could no longer contain the waterfall.
Jasmine could see the grief plastered all over Priscilla’s face; she could sense the love in the room. “I’ll leave you two alone for a minute.” she fixed the sheet that was covering Mox and left.
Besides the beeping of the machines and the slight sound of his breathing, the room held an awkward quietness that sent a chill through Priscilla’s spine.
She eyed the motionless figure lying before her. “Mox.” she whispered.
His skin looked dry and discolored from lack of vitamins and moisturizer. It was obvious he had lost a few pounds over the weeks. “Baby I’m here,” droplets spewed from her eyes.
She placed her hand on top of his.
His skin was dry and rough.
He made no indication of response.
He just lay there, eyes closed, taking short breaths.
Priscilla squeezed his hand. “Baby wake up.” she sobbed. “Mox don’t do this, I need you, Brandi needs you.”
Vivid images of past memories flashed before Priscilla’s eyes.
The first time they met.
Their first kiss.
The first time they made love.
And then Brandi’s bright smile appeared and Priscilla felt her spirit being whisked away.
The pouring rains tapped against the second floor windows and Priscilla’s cries grew louder, causing her tears to fall faster. “Pleeeeeaaase don’t leave me Mox!” She bent down, pulled her shoes off, and got into the hospital bed beside him. “Mox,” She brushed his face with her hand. “Baby, you gotta be strong, you gotta fight Mox.” She laid her head on his chest and for a second it reminded her of the past times they’d shared.
Priscilla closed her eyes, got in as close as she could, and wrapped her arm around his torso. “You gotta fight, baby.”
Lying in that bed next to the only man who had ever cared for her, enabled Priscilla to realize how beloved life really is and how much she had taken the small things for granted.
She thought about her mother.
Her daughter.
The Union II Page 5