My Mans Best Friend (9781622860241)

by Henderson, Tresser

  “What business is it of yours?”

  “I’m just asking because if you weren’t getting down with him, I was going to get with him myself because the brother was fine.”

  I wanted to push her ghetto behind down the stairs but thought better of it, knowing she was the type of person quick to file a lawsuit.

  “He’s taken,” I said callously.

  “My bad. I didn’t know you were cheating on Jaquon.”

  “I’m not. That guy was his best friend.”

  “Even better. They say good-looking people travel together. Damn, I’m jealous of you. You got the best of both worlds.”

  “It’s not like that,” I said argumentatively.

  “Don’t get your panties in a bunch. I believe you,” she said winking her eye, smiling. “Whenever you are done with either of them brothers, send them my way because I would be more than happy to sample those pieces of chocolate.”

  I walked downstairs to get away from her before I really did push her down the stairs.

  Mr. Hanks was sitting in his usual spot outside the apartment complex near the steps. He lived on the bottom level and always sat outside in his green yard chair with a pack of cigarettes and ashtray in hand. He was puffing on one when I walked up.

  “Good morning, Mr. Hanks. How are you doing this morning?”

  “I’m doing fine. I’m enjoying another day blessed to me.”

  “I brought you some coffee,” I said passing him the cup of dark liquid.

  “Well, thank you, Kea.”

  “I put two tablespoons of sugar in it just the way you like it. I’ll be cooking in a little bit too. When I get done, I’ll bring you down a plate.”

  “You need to stop spoiling me,” he said, trying to take a sip of his coffee but his cough halted him.

  His cough was terrible. It sounded like he had enough mucus in his chest to be diagnosed with emphysema. Still, he puffed on those cancer sticks, not giving his cough a second thought.

  Short with a round belly, Mr. Hanks looked like a man who had been through a lot in his time. The years had not been good to him, but he never let that stop him from enjoying another day. He had a bunch of kids and none had anything to do with him. Back in the day, he was a playa. He went through his share of women, and all his kids were confirmation of his sleeping around. I think he had more kids than he was aware of, but no one wanted to claim him as their dad.

  I didn’t know why, because Mr. Hanks was a decent old man. I felt sorry for him because he lived alone. No one ever visited him. I couldn’t imagine going through my elderly years with not one person calling or dropping by to see how I was doing.

  Living on money he won from the lottery, Mr. Hanks had some cash. He looked like he was broke, but I was told his bank account proved different. Rumor was he won over a million dollars, but you would never know it from his demeanor and the fact that he lived in an apartment complex which was not in the best of neighborhoods.

  On a few occasions when I found myself in a bind, he offered to help me. Of course, I declined, but he insisted, getting me out of a couple of jams. I always paid him back. With gratitude for helping me, I started taking him food when I cooked dinner some nights and breakfast some mornings. Mr. Hanks didn’t have anybody cooking for him. He may have had money, but he didn’t get a home cooked meal often. So I tried to bring him something. It was the least I could do and with time, both of us had become really good friends.

  “You know you don’t have to go through any trouble cooking for me, Kea.”

  “I know, but I’m going to fix me something too, so it’s not a problem. Are you going to church today, Mr. Hanks?”

  “Nawh, I don’t think so. I haven’t been feeling too good lately. This cough got my chest hurting something terrible.”

  “You know I’m going to fuss, don’t you?” I said.

  “I know. I know.”

  “Then why haven’t you been to the doctor yet, and why are you still smoking?”

  “Honey, I don’t have much longer here on this earth. I done lived the life I was supposed to, and I’m going to enjoy smoking until it kills me.”

  “And it is killing you,” I stated, sitting down on the third step of the building.

  “What are you doing up so early anyway?” he asked.

  “I got a lot on my mind.”

  “I know it has to do with that no-good man of yours. Where is he at anyway?”

  “He hasn’t gotten home yet.”

  “You see what I’m talking about? The man got a good woman at home, and he still finds the need to stay out all night. Bastard.”

  “Leave him alone,” I said defensively, knowing Mr. Hanks was right.

  “Alone he needs to be. I don’t know why you insist on wasting your life with that no-good son of a—”

  “Okay,” I stopped him. “Remember that you were trying to stop cursing. Especially on Sundays,” I said smiling.

  “Jackie, Jookie, Jomo, or whatever that punk’s name gets under my skin.”

  “His name is Jaquon, Mr. Hanks. And does he get under your skin because he reminds you of your younger self, maybe?”

  “That could be it. I do see a lot of myself in him, and if he keeps it up, he’s going to be just like me. Alone with no one who wants to deal with him. He’s lucky to have you. You’re a beautiful woman, and he’s messing up. He doesn’t even realize you can have any man out here you want.”

  “I know,” I said, not knowing how to respond to the truth which had been told to me several times already recently. “You really don’t like him, do you, Mr. Hanks? What has Jaquon ever done to you?”

  “He looked at me. I wanted to smack the bastard soon as we made eye contact.”

  I laughed.

  “That boy ain’t nothing but trouble, just like that gal living across the way from you.”

  “You mean Freak-a-Leak?”

  “You mean freak nasty. Her legs open twenty-four hours a day. I’m surprised she can walk as many men she keeps stuck up in her.”

  “Let her do her thing,” I said laughing.

  “I’m letting her do it, just as long as she doesn’t do it to me. Don’t you know she asked me if she could hook me up with some of her gushy stuff? I told her hell to the nawh. That gushy stuff probably has some type of infection aching to get out of her.”

  “You are so nasty, Mr. Hanks.”

  “Why would she want to sleep with somebody as old as me anyway?”

  “She’s probably heard about your lottery winnings.”

  “Kea, I’m sixty-two years old. She told me she got some Viagra for me. Trick trying to kill me. If I even look at one of them pills, my heart might stop beating.”

  “Maybe she likes you.”

  “She thinks I got money. If I would have agreed to her offer, I’d be broke now because that trick would have got me for everything I own. I don’t want her in my place, much less on my dick.”

  I laughed, enjoying his antics. He never failed in making me laugh.

  “If I never told you before, Mr. Hanks, I enjoy these talks,” I said looking at the blue sky with white fluffy clouds moving.

  “Same here, Kea. You have made these past few months worth me living another day.”

  I got up off the step, wiping the dirt particles off the back of my jogging pants and embraced him.

  “I’ll be back in a few with your breakfast.”

  “I’m looking forward to it,” he said taking another puff off his cigarette and a sip of his coffee.

  Kea

  After filling my and Mr. Hanks’s belly with bacon, eggs, and biscuits filled with grape jelly, I snuggled beneath the covers of my bed with a good book by Brandon Massey. I sipped on a cup of hot cocoa because for some reason I was cold.

  Taking the opportunity to enjoy the peaceful moment, I knew later it would change once I went to work. I was a waitress and had to go in at five o’clock. I didn’t care too much for the job, but it helped pay the bills. Plus the tips
were awesome. That was the only reason why I was still there.

  Soon as I got engrossed in the pages of the book I was reading, Jaquon walked in looking like he was worn out. He probably was, but this morning I didn’t care. I sipped my cocoa and proceeded with reading my book.

  He noticed I wasn’t paying attention to him and stood waiting for me to say something, but I ignored him. Walking into the bathroom in our room, he came out like he had seen a ghost.

  “Kea,” he called out to me.

  I didn’t say anything.

  “Kea!”

  “What, Jaquon?”

  “Why is the toilet seat up?”

  As soon as he said that, I remembered Derrick going to use the bathroom after our tryst. I thought I had everything covered. I changed the sheets. I took a shower, and I made sure the condom wrapper was put in the bottom of the trash can in the kitchen, even taking the initiative to dump food on top of it. I could have dumped the trash, but that was the one chore Jaquon did manage to do. Me doing that would have thrown red flags up for sure since I never dumped the trash. When he asked me again why the toilet seat was up, I tried to play it off like he did it.

  “You must’ve left it up.”

  “I know I put it down. It’s a habit since you used to complain so much about me leaving it up,” he said looking at me with a frown.

  “You don’t do anything around this house to help me, but you can remember you put a toilet seat down? Please,” I said smacking my lips and returning my eyes to the words on the pages, hoping he would let this go.

  “So you mean to tell me you haven’t used this bathroom since I’ve been gone?”

  Damn. He had a point there. We did have two bathrooms in the place, but I hardly used the other bathroom. I always used this one. Come to think about it, had I used the bathroom today? I had too. I always go to the bathroom when I wake up in the morning, but I went before Derrick left. The other time I did use the guest restroom. Damn, Jaquon was coming at me too fast with all these questions, and in my panic state, I felt like I couldn’t think of a good enough answer. Think, Kea, think.

  “Why are you tripping over a toilet seat, Jaquon?” I asked trying to throw his suspicion off of me. “Why are you trying to start with me? Can’t you let me read this book in peace?”

  “Something doesn’t feel right, Kea.”

  “I see you’re letting your paranoia get the best of you.”

  “Are you cheating on me?” he asked bluntly.

  The slight soreness between my legs said yes, but I told him, “No, are you?” I said smugly, knowing he was not going to confess anything.

  “Baby, you know I’m not,” he said with a straight face and everything.

  “You have said that before, and I got burned, remember? In more ways than one.”

  “I told you I wouldn’t step out on you again.”

  “And I’m supposed to believe you? Have you looked at the time lately, Jaquon? Forget about the time. Look outside and see the sun. You didn’t beat it home this time either. That makes two times in a few days. Looks like you are up to your old tricks again, and I would be a fool to believe anything coming out of your mouth,” I said, placing the book on my chest.

  He leaned against the doorway, crossing his arms, looking at me. I know he was trying to think of something and probably was wondering how this conversation got turned around so quickly.

  “The nerve of you to come in here asking me about a damn toilet seat. If I were you, I would be trying to think about how I was going to explain where the hell you been all night.”

  “I hope you know I wasn’t out cheating, Kea. I was with Derrick.”

  My eyes shot to him, and I smiled. “You were with Derrick, huh?”

  No, he didn’t step foot in another lie. If I were a land mine, I would blow up in his face right now. Look at him. He’s serious with his dishonesty. I’m supposed to believe him more because he’s swinging his hands around to explain how sincere he is in his faithfulness. Probably the same hands he used to please whoever he was with before he came home to me. Jaquon was good. Before, I was too stupid to see past the love I had for him. One look into his eyes and I would melt like butter, hoping he wouldn’t hurt me again. But now that my mind is clear and I’m sleeping with his best friend, I see right through him.

  His eyes let me know no matter how much he claimed to love me, he would still continue to be the dog he is and get a piece on the side. It’s in his nature to be a playa. As many fish as there are in the sea, I thought I had the prize catch. If I knew he was going to turn out rotten, I would have thrown his ass back and let somebody else get sick of him.

  I wished I could get words to come out of my mouth and say, “You’re a bald-faced liar.” As soon as he asked why, I would reveal, “Because your boy was over here screwing me last night. That’s why the toilet seat was up. Your boy was giving it to me like you should’ve been giving it to me, but you were too busy juggling your little whores to pay attention to the fact it’s been three weeks since you thought about touching me in an intimate way.” Oh, how I wanted to destroy him with what I had done to him. But not now. I wanted to mess with his mind a little more so I said, “What if I told you Derrick called here looking for you?”

  Essence

  I could hear Zacariah before she got to my room. Evidently she brushed past some nurse or the nurse was in her way or something because all I heard was, “Don’t be looking at me all crazy. You are in MY way.”

  “You don’t know how to say excuse me?” the nurse retorted.

  “Excuse you,” Zacariah screeched. “You shouldn’t have been in my way. You need to pick up your pace or go help some sick people. That’s your job, isn’t it?”

  Moments later, Zacariah entered my room. I did have my eyes shut before I heard her loud voice wake me. I was almost asleep. The television was showing some game show I wasn’t watching when she stood over me popping her chewing gum.

  “Why do you have it so hot in here?” Zacariah asked loudly.

  “Why do you have to be yelling all the time?”

  “I’m not yelling,” she replied, raising her voice another octave.

  “Bring your voice down, Zacariah. This is a hospital.”

  “And? If they don’t like the way I’m talking, then they need to get out of earshot of my conversation.”

  I sat up in the bed and sighed deeply.

  “What’s wrong? Are you still feeling bad?”

  “No, I’m fine. I’m getting a headache from you screaming. Plus, I’m ready to go.”

  “Well, let’s go then,” Zacariah said tossing her purse on my bed.

  “I’m waiting for the nurse to bring my paperwork for me to complete.”

  “Well, they need to hurry up.”

  “Why are you in a hurry?”

  “Girl, I got a dinner date.”

  “You don’t waste any time. I thought you would be over at Derrick’s house trying to get him back.”

  “I’m not worried about him. He’s easy. I’ll get him back later, but for now, I’m trying to get my eat on.”

  “So where did you meet this one?” I asked, getting out of the bed to stretch my legs.

  Zacariah ignored my question as she took her jean jacket off and fanned herself saying, “It feels like an oven in here. Do they think we’re turkeys since they’re trying to bake us like one? I don’t want circles under my arms from damn near sweating to death.”

  I had to laugh at her. To me the room felt good, but I was in a thin hospital gown with my back out, and it didn’t help that I was cold natured.

  “Girl, you’re crazy,” I said.

  “And, oh, I appreciate all you’re doing for me, Essence. You’re a good friend to me.”

  “Girl, you know I would do anything for you,” I said, watching her pull out a pack of cigarettes and hitting the unopened pack in the palm of her hand. I looked at her like she had lost her mind.

  “What? Why are you looking at me like that
?”

  “What do you think you’re doing?”

  “I’m getting ready to light me up a cigarette. Why?”

  “Did you forget where you were?”

  “No, and?”

  “And we are in a nonsmoking facility. This is a hospital. You know, the place people go when they get sick, have operations, and give birth. Smoking is not allowed.”

  “You can’t open a window?” she said seriously, and I really was hoping she was joking, but deep down, I knew she was for real.

  “We’re on the thirteenth floor, Zacariah. Windows don’t open.”

  “So I got to wait until I get outside?”

  I nodded, and she put the pack back in her massive purse huffing loudly.

  “Do you want me to go get somebody to release you? I’m getting tired of waiting.”

  “No, Zacariah. It’s only been a few minutes,” I said.

  At that moment, the door opened, and my nurse finally walked in with my papers.

  Zacariah smacked her lips and said, “No wonder you aren’t ready. Run you over with a cart isn’t doing her damn job,” she said looking the nurse up and down with her face frowned up.

  “Zacariah,” I called out, wanting her to act like she had some home training. Come to think about it, with a mother who was hardly around, she didn’t have anyone to really show her how to act with some dignity.

  “It’s okay, ma’am. I’m use to all kinds of rude individuals who don’t know how to conduct themselves in public. That comes with this job.”

  “Trick, I’ll show you how rude I can get when I beat that ass.”

  I jumped in front of Zacariah, who was now standing and waving her arms like she was in the streets ready to throw down.

  “Will you cool it?” I asked, trying to push her back down in her seat.

  “That ho ain’t going to disrespect me and get away with it,” she said, pointing at the nurse who didn’t budge. She just stood there smiling at Zacariah.

  Then the nurse shook her head in amazement and said, “Here are your papers, Ms. Clemmons. Sign here, here, and here,” she instructed me, pointing to the different sections releasing me.

  “I ought to beat your ass for looking at me,” Zacariah shouted with neither of us wanting to recognize her ranting.