by Kiki Swinson
Karen took another look at Seth’s picture and then she shook her head. “I swear this guy looks just like your friend.”
“You think so?” I asked.
Karen put the photo aside. “Well, kind of,” she replied in a way that said she was unsure. Then she pressed a couple of keys and used the mouse to shut down my computer.
I stood there in amazement and wondered how I was able to persuade her to believe that Seth was not the man in my picture back at my place. That was truly a close call, and I would never put myself in that predicament again. From that point on, I was gonna have to keep all my personal shit at home and keep Karen’s ass from out of there. Simple as that!
Karen killed herself to shut down my computer and put Seth’s file back in my file cabinet. She grabbed his photo and attached a sticky note to it, to remind herself to make a copy of it and leave it on Carolyn’s desk. I wasn’t too happy about her decision to do that, but there was absolutely nothing I could do about it. If Carolyn ever got wind of what was going on between Seth and me, I knew that I was going to be in for it. I even thought about slipping into Carolyn’s office and snatching the picture off her desk before she saw it. But as thorough as Karen was, she would definitely make it her business to check back with Carolyn to make sure she got it. Now I had to come up with a plan B.
It had been a week since I had last spoken to Seth. I had left him messages on his voicemail and sent him text messages, but he refused to respond. I even sat in my car and watched him run in and out of Melody’s apartment to service the different drug addicts. Melody came outside a couple of times herself, so I got a really good look at her. She was definitely Seth’s type, which made me wonder what they could be doing behind those closed doors. For her sake, she’d better keep her pussy to herself because if I ever got a feeling that shit wasn’t looking right between those two, I was going to go the fuck off and she was going to lose her little-ass project house. I meant that shit from the bottom of my heart.
SETH
Never Mix Business With Pleasure
Melody had been trying to get me to fuck her on an everyday basis. I kept telling that ho that it wasn’t like that between us, but she wasn’t trying to hear me. First off, her pussy was on zero and her mouth game wasn’t much better. The only thing I got pleasure from was when I was fucking her in her ass. I loved that shit! It got addicting at times, and I found myself wanting it every time my dick got hard. I believed she knew that shit too, and tried to use it to her advantage. I wasn’t stupid. I was hip to her game and I think she knew that, too. What really got me was when she tried to walk around there like we were a couple. She fucked my head up yesterday when she asked me if I could take her ass shopping. I looked at that bitch like she was crazy, handed her ass twenty dollars and told her she’d better call Mike, because I was not the one. She got mad as hell with me when I told her that shit, but that shit didn’t bother me. I had other shit to worry about, and I intended to handle it.
Everything was running smoothly; the boys were outside watching out for the Narcs and keeping the money coming steady with the dopefiends, and I was chilling in the kitchen, tearing into a plate of oxtails and white rice with a side of plantains I picked up from M.P.’s Island Café on the way there. The food was good as a motherfucker and I was into it, too. Then my cell phone rang. When I saw that it was my baby Samantha trying to get through, I answered it on the spot.
“What’s good, baby!” I said through a mouthful of food.
“Nothing much. Whatchu doing?” she asked.
“Just chilling at the spot, eating these big-ass oxtails.”
“Awwww man, I ain’t had none of them joints in years. Damn, I bet they are good!”
“They are,” I replied between chews.
“Where did you get them from?”
“From this spot off Virginia Beach Boulevard in Norfolk, called M.P.’s Island Café.”
“How long have you been at the spot?”
As I was about to answer Samantha’s question, Melody brought her silly ass in the kitchen and asked me if I was on the phone talking to Mike. Now, I knew that bitch knew I wasn’t talking to Mike. She just wanted Samantha to hear her voice in the background so I’d have to explain to Samantha who she was. See, that’s what these sideline hoes do. They had to keep unnecessary shit going so they could make your main girl feel a little insecure. It worked every single time. In fact, Samantha fed right into it. “Who the hell is that bitch?” she screamed.
“It’s my people’s girl.”
“What’s her name?”
“Her name is Melody.”
“Seth, don’t lie to me! That bitch in the background sounds just like the chick that answered your phone last week and popped all that shit to me.”
Hearing the rage in Samantha’s voice, I knew she was about to blow her top. That conversation she had with Maxine last week took her over the edge. Maxine really had Sam believing that she was pregnant and that we lived together. I broke it down to Samantha and told her who Maxine really was, and that what she told her was a lie. She had a fit when I told her that Maxine was my P.O. and that I’d fucked her. In the same sentence, I lied and told her that when I fucked her, it was a one-night stand and I ain’t fucked with her since. Unfortunately, Samantha didn’t go for it. She wanted to know why Maxine had my cell phone and why she would make up all that shit if it wasn’t true. I kicked it to her like Maxine was on some fatal attraction type of shit but I shut her down, once and for all. Samantha wasn’t too happy at all about everything I had just laid down on the table, but the damage was already done. What could she say?
“Sam, Melody is not the same chick you talked to; that was Maxine,” I tried to explain.
“Maxine, Melody. Both of those bitches’ names sound just alike.”
“Yeah, you’re right, but that’s not her.”
“Well, why is Melody all in your face?” she asked me, still heated.
“Mommie, she just walked in the spot and asked me if I was talking to her man on the phone.”
“Well, tell her ass nah, so she can keep it moving.”
“I just did,” I lied.
“Well, did she carry her ass?”
“Yes, she did,” I said, simultaneously waving Melody out of the kitchen so I could have some privacy. When she left, I was able to calm Samantha a little more. After I told her that I loved her about five consecutive times, she felt a lot better. If you want to know my honest opinion, telling your girl you loved her over the phone while you were in the company of another woman was some powerful shit. Chicks fed off stuff like that. It made them feel superior because they figured that if you came out your mouth and expressed your feelings to them while you were standing next to another chick, then that chick didn’t mean shit to you. In this case, Samantha happened to be right.
“Can I ask you a question?” she asked. “Why is that chick hanging out with you while her man is somewhere else?”
“She’s not hanging out with me. This is her crib and I make moves for her man.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Samantha said. “What kind of man would let another nigga come up in his girl’s spot to work?”
“Samantha, trust me. It ain’t even that type of party.”
“Whatchu mean by that?”
“Believe me, that nigga don’t give a fuck about this shit around here. He’s got a wife and a baby on the way, so this is only a temporary arrangement.”
“So, what you are saying is that he’s basically using her?”
“Exactly,” I agreed.
Sam laughed. “Yo, y’all niggas got plenty of shit with y’all!”
“Not me,” I denied.
“Oh yes, you do.” She started laughing again. “’Cause if you didn’t, you would not have fucked your probation officer and led her on believing that y’all were going to be together.”
“Come on, Sam, I already told you that it wasn’t like that.”
“I know what you
told me, but what would possess you to fuck your P.O? I mean, what were you thinking about?”
“Do we have to go through this again?”
“You damn right! Because you got out of answering me the last time.”
I sighed heavily. “Look, Sam, it was a bad judgment call and it won’t happen again.”
“I know that much,” she said, cutting me off. “I want to know why you did it? Because there has to be a reason.”
“I don’t know why I did it. It just happened.”
“Now I know it didn’t just happen. You probably got it in your head that if you gave her some dick, she’d go easy on you with your time on paper. But let me tell you something right now; she knows that I’m about to come home, so I know some shit is going to go down. Now, I don’t know how you are going to do it, but you better step to her and tell her that I ain’t for no drama, so she better stay away from me.”
“I gotcha! Trust me, she ain’t gonna fuck with you.”
“Come on now, Seth. Who do you think you’re talking to? That bitch has it out for me already. I know she’s gonna want to get me violated.”
“She could only do it if she was your P.O., and I know that ain’t gonna happen because she’s already mine and that would be a conflict of interest.”
“Not being my P.O. isn’t gonna stop her. I am quite sure she has friends who work with her that could do as much damage as she would.”
“Yeah, you’re probably right, but why are you racking your brain behind this shit? She isn’t gonna do shit to you. I told you I was going to take care of it.”
“You better, because if I get any flack behind your wandering dick, I am gonna cut the shit off myself. You understand?”
I laughed, even though I knew Samantha was serious. “Mommie, don’t act like that,” I said in a subtle tone. “You know I am going to take care of you, right?”
“You better, because remember—I’m doing this bid for your ass!”
“I know, Ma. That’s why you ain’t gonna have to worry about shit when you come home,” I assured her.
Our conversation lasted for another three or four minutes and then we were cut off. Before we got disconnected, I reassured Samantha that everything would be taken care of and she would not have any problems. I sealed my promise with a kiss, and from where I was sitting, I think she bought it.
After I hung up with Samantha, I called Melody back into the kitchen and cursed her ass out behind that stunt she had just pulled. She acted as if it was just a misunderstanding, but I knew how cunning bitches could be, so I wasn’t trying to hear that bullshit.
“Look, Melody, don’t run up on me like that anymore. When you see me on the phone, I want you to turn around and leave so I can have some privacy. You understand?”
“Yeah, I understand, but it’s not my fault you’re fucking with someone who is insecure!” she replied sarcastically and stormed back out of the kitchen.
“You would know something about that, wouldn’t you?” I yelled, but she didn’t respond. I was glad because I had a headache and I wasn’t trying to add any more pressure to it.
As the day went on, Melody stayed out of my way. She acted like she had an attitude, but I didn’t give a damn. I preferred her to be this way so she could keep her ass out of my face. I could handle my business better that way, which was always a good thing.
At the end of the day, me and my street team raked in eighteen grand. It was a little less than normal, but it was only because the police kept riding through and scaring the fiends off. I had to end up taking the rest of the dope with me. I normally wouldn’t ride home dirty, but I figured since heroin mixed with baby laxative goes bad after a day or two, it would be a waste of time for me to give the shit back to Mike. I could just get up early in the morning and come back out and get rid of it then. Mike agreed with me when I met him and gave him his dough, so it was a done deal.
SAMANTHA
Sideline Chick
I walked straight to my room after I got off the phone with Seth. And even though we didn’t end our conversation on a bad note, I was still a bit ticked off. My intuition was fucking with me , and I needed somebody to vent to so I was glad my roommate Ms. Blair was in the room when I got there.
“Girl, that nigga is about to drive me fucking crazy!” I screamed.
“Who?” she wanted to know.
“Seth.”
Ms. Blair sat up on her bunk and sighed. “What did he do now?”
See Ms. Blair was not only my roommate, but also my homegirl. And even though she was West Indian and ten years older than I was, she knew what time it was when it came to men. She was full of wisdom, so I always looked to her for advice. “Besides talking me into taking his gun charge, I think he’s cheating on me again.”
Ms. Blair cracked a smile. “What gave you that impression, honey?”
“Because when I was just on the phone with him, I heard a woman’s voice come out of nowhere. And do you know she questioned him and asked him if he was talking to some guy named Mike? But, I’m not stupid. I knew she did that so I could hear her voice and then start questioning him about who she was. And guess what? It worked.”
“What did he say about it?”
“He told her to chill and sent her on her way. But he said it in a way like he was trying to hide something.”
“Well, did you ask him who she was?”
“Yeah. But, he lied and told me she was his homeboy’s girlfriend. So, my thing was why is she there with you and not with him? And that’s when he told me that he was at her house waiting on the guy Mike to get there.”
“Did you believe him?”
“Not really.”
“Well, let me say this,” Ms. Blair began, “because you are here you have no way of finding out whether or not he’s telling you the truth. So, take his word for it until you find out otherwise.”
“But, what if he is cheating on me with her?”
“Sweetheart, he’s a man. And men cheat all the time. So, that’s why it’s important for a woman to get everything she possibly can from them while you have ’em. Because as soon as they think they’ve found someone else better, they will leave you at the drop of a dime. So, take my advice and live for today and save for tomorrow.”
“All that sounds good, Ms. Blair, but what I really want to do is kill him sometimes.”
“Nah, love! The best way to get a man back is by taking him for everything he’s got. I mean, take him for all he’s worth. And if you feel like that’s still not enough, then go ahead and kill ’em! But, just make sure you don’t leave any witnesses around or any evidence that would lead the police back to you.” She smiled. But, deep down inside I knew she was serious as hell.
See, Ms. Blair was there for attempted murder on her husband. She got a twenty-year sentence. She said her husband was a big time drug dealer from Trinidad and they had a beautiful home in south Florida but the feds confiscated it along with their construction business and all their possessions. Her husband got twenty-five years because he got caught with several kilos of cocaine in his possession while he was entertaining his mistress in an expensive hotel suite thirty miles from their home. Ms. Blair said she had no idea the feds had his hotel room under surveillance because if she did, she would not have went there to kill him. She said she wished she would’ve gotten someone else to do it because she wouldn’t be in this predicament. I told her to stop crying over spilt milk because her time was almost up. With only two years left, she could start over and find herself a new man. She laughed at me and said, “Samantha, I am fifty-three years old. Who in their right mind is going to want me?” I smiled back at her and told her that there are plenty of men looking for a beautiful woman such as herself. Too bad for her though, Immigration was sending her back home to Trinidad, so she was gonna have to go back there with nothing but the clothes on her back. Hopefully when I got out and got on my feet I’d be able to give her a nice piece of change to go back home with because she was
a good woman and she didn’t deserve that.
After our conversation, we headed down to the TV room to play a few games of bid wiz. We stayed down there until it was time to go to the dining room for chow.
MAXINE
He’s Sticking It To Me Hard
Another week had passed, and I had yet to salvage my relationship with Seth. He still refused to accept my calls or return any of my text messages. I even made a couple of trips to his mother’s house early in the morning, like around six AM, but I could never seem to catch him there. The only thing that came to mind was that he’d spent the night out and that thought turned my stomach upside down. Who could he be staying out all night with? I knew Samantha hadn’t come out of prison yet, because November 21 was eight days away. Who could it be other than that chick Melody? I mean, he did spend an awful lot time selling drugs out of her house. I knew it had been a lot because he was practically there from sunup to sundown, and I knew they had fucked each other. What kind of role she played in his life was another issue, and I intended on getting the answer to that as well. I needed to see if Seth’s car was parked outside her apartment and I would be able to make that happen as soon as I got this slow-ass car from in front of me.
Beep, beep! “Could you please move the hell out of my way?” I screamed, right after I honked my car horn.
The driver in front of me finally got the message and pulled his 1995 Toyota Corolla to the side of the road so I could get by. When I passed the car, I noticed it was an old man behind the wheel and he looked terrified. I graciously smiled at him with an apologetic expression and kept it moving. I knew he probably thought I was crazy but I also thought the same damn thing about him, especially at the speed he was moving. Once he was out of my way, I proceeded with my mission; which was less than a mile away.
As I drove, I thought of what I was going to do when I arrived in Dales Homes. I also wondered about whether or not it would be feasible for me to go up to Melody’s front door if I saw Seth’s car parked outside. I mean, would that be a smart thing on my part, or would it be very foolish? I wondered how Seth would react. Would he go off on me? Or would he just simply brush me off and close the door in my face, like he did at his mother’s house? In this situation, it would be very hard to tell but at this point, but it really didn’t matter because I didn’t care how he reacted. I wanted to see her reaction. With that attitude, I parked my car about a half a block before her apartment building and started walking in that direction.