"Hang on here! No fair, speak English!" Kayla tried to cut in.
As Lette finished rolling out quickly what had taken place Mundo turned to Kayla, "No you did not call her no wet-back, what's up with that?"
"She called me a Pollock!"
"After you called me a wet-back, puta!"
"Hey! I know that word - who you calling a bitch?!"
"If the shoe fits!" Lette shot back.
"You started it by calling me a white girl who should go and find herself a white boy! I'm sure Mr. McPherson would love to know that about you, you have a issue with white people going for black!"
Lette's eyes got big, "My issue isn't with white people, it's with you!" She bit out.
"A'ight, a'ight - ya'll need to chill on the name callin' and racial epithets - shit ain't even necessary. I thought ya'll was friends?"
"I thought she was my friend!" Kayla replied to Mundo and then to Lette, "You always knew how I felt about Mundo, now - because of what he's getting, you're all over him!" Back to Mundo, "Do you laugh at me Mundo, when I leave the room? You joke about how I feel when I turn my back?"
"Only because you are a joke, white girl!" Lette answered for him.
Mundo turned to Lette, "Ah man, that's wrong! Why you bein' mean? And cease callin' out the color thang - you ain't got to be mean."
"Trust me, she has not seen mean! Now turn and tell her," Lette grabbed his nearest ear, turning his head to Kayla.
"Ow! Hey, girl you done lost your damn mind, pulling on my ear!" Mundo brushed her hand aside, rubbing where she'd just pinched and held.
"... that didn't hurt! Turn and tell her you are no more interested in her than you are of tasting chicken shit!" And before he could do anything, say anything more, Lette grabbed hold of his ear again, "Let us get something clear here and now-..."
"Gurl you need to lay up off my ear, damn!"
Ignoring him, Lette cocked her hip to the side, one hand on it, the other hand with her finger practically jabbing Mundo in the ear, "See this fine black specimen of a man? He is mine! From the top of his head, to the bottom of his feet, mine! The sooner you get that through your head, the easier it'll be on all of us."
Kayla's eyes grew moist rolling from Lette to Mundo, "That true? You with Lette now?"
"Hang on! Hang on hang on - I ain't wit'nobody! Understand what I'm saying? I ain't claiming nobody! This here Puerto'Negro was free yesterday - and gone be free a'many tomorrows to come, understand what I'm saying? So you both need to stop trippin' up in my mama's house - aye, don't lose a friend over me - let's keep it real, let's keep it cool, and just have some fun... hell, shit - my mama say I'm still a baby. An' I ain't even gone be arguing with her too much, 'cause she always end up right, sides - my dad say - do what your mama say! So ya'll want me? Go talk to Sylvia Lucinda McPherson - she my personal PR - she sees to all such and such of what's going on and what-nots, last I hear, ain't nothin' going on."
Kayla and Lette went quiet, both of them with their eyes fixed on him, one with hope, the other pissed. He smiled looking from one, and back to the other, "See, so... ya'll can like, go'on be friends - kiss and make-up, all that female shit ya'll do after being so silly."
Lette narrowed her eyes at him, backed away, snatched herself in an about face and marched out of the basement, up the stairs and gone. Mundo and Kayla hadn't said a word in her exit. Sighing he turned back to Kayla, softly smiled at her - "I don't laugh at you behind your back."
Kayla smiled, "Would it be foolish of me if - well, I wanted to hang around, strictly as friends - nothing else?"
"Crazy white girl." He shook his head, "If I say okay, know this - it don't mean anything, we just friends, cool?"
"Cool." She murmured, and then braved another question, "You wish Lette had stayed, and I charged off pissed?"
Mundo laughed out, "No! She trippin'! I'on need all that agression and estrogen trying to lay a claim on me, I'm a single man, gone be that way a while - but I always got room for friends."
"Me too, friends are always a good thing. So, what's the plan for today?"
"Oh man, been scopping me a new ride."
"What's wrong with the blazer?"
"Nadda, it's poppin' and all, but I been eyeballing something else, gone have to dig deep, but she worth it."
"You gonna keep the blazer, or sell it?"
"I'on know... it has that sentimental value - my first an'all and it's paid off, yeah! Should'ah seen my mama face when I rolled up with the total - paid in full! Shit, I'on play - ain't even got paid from that suit yet, but I been hustling my ass off."
"I know - I've been to every set, haven't I? So I know."
"Yeah... you would know. You ain't stalkin' me is you?" He was grinning, even so, her eyes got big.
"NO! Is that what you think?" The question came shrill with a bit of panic.
"Chill out, chill - just playin' with you, don't get hysterical."
"I'm not, but I don't want you thinkin' I'm stalking you either, like - I can't go a weekend unless I see you. I mean I like seeing you, being at your sets, because you be jamming, but - maybe Lette's right - maybe I do need to back off, leave it alone."
"Here we go! You do what you wanna do, be you, not Lette, if you wanna hang, do it. If you got other things you could better spend your time at, do it." Mundo advised, both palms to the ceiling.
Kayla sighed, "Doesn't matter to you, one way or the other, does it?" It hurt to say it out loud, but she could see it and needed to accept it.
"What you tryin' to do, get me to hurt your feelings? That's what it's gone take for you to depart?"
She stood a moment thinking, searching his eyes and shaking her head she turned away, "There was some stuff my mom wanted me to see about, better take care of that. Later..." She made her way to the stairs, looked back at him, gave a soft smile, "I'm still for your gigs though if I'm gone party, gotta party right."
"Sho'you do! Later." Mundo watched her go, in truth glad to see them both off so he could breathe. He could feel a change on how he felt. Once upon a time, he couldn't wait to find Lette in a crowd, but something about her attitude towards him, left him feeling with her, she'd be trying to play him all the time and he wasn't for that. For once he was glad that he was so young and in no hurry to hook up. As for Kayla, she was cute and nice. He wasn't interested in screwing over chicks who were cute and nice - that just wasn't his bag. Shawn was riding him to get counselling, to join them, him and Crystal.
He didn't see the point.
He wasn't getting married yet.
He wasn't in a hurry to have sex yet, he was still a virgin. Not that his dad was pushing him to have sex, it was just that he wanted to fix him, he wanted to fix them all, that was the way that Shawn, his dad was - if he knew there was something wrong, it ate at him until it was made right. Mundo was so close to Shawn now he might as well be his flesh and blood son. Shawn treated him like he was his flesh and blood father. He hugged him, loved him, laughed with him, joked with him, teased him every now and then and yep, told him off if he needed telling off about something and he didn't tell him off pretty either, sugar coating it. The entire family knew this about Shawn and no one could figure out how to get him, to let them, fix him, the man of the house. Also, lately everyone saw that something was going on with him - he wasn't the same. He was tense, moody, off in another world, often. His physical body was present, but his head was off in space somewhere.
Now that the girls were gone and the house was back to only the two of them, Mundo trotted up the steps, calling out, "Dad... where you at? What you doin' man?" Even though he enquired about his location, he went directly to his office, tapping on the door - because that was Shawn's space, no one just barged into it.
At that particular moment, Shawn had been on the internet checking over banks, researching which ones would work quickly for his needs. The sooner he saw to this matter, the sooner things could get back to normal, no matter which way things turned out.
; "What's up?" He called to the door, closing Firefox down and quickly scribbling the name of a bank he would head into.
"Just checkin' in with you, see what you got planned, maybe we can hang out until later." He walked further into the office, grinning, head bobbing back and forth acting like Bill Cosby, sending Shawn into laughter.
"I know that look, you want something, what?" Shawn dreaded asking.
"Aaah man, what? What you mean I want something," Mundo returned taking a seat at his desk.
"Okay, okay... so I'm to believe, you wishing to hang with me..."
Hearing Shawn use slang tickled Mundo so that he broke into laughter, "Man that shit is funny as hell, dawg! I love when you remind me how you down and shit! That's a pretty important skill to have, I could take you anywhere dad and you'd fit yo'shit right in, that's pretty cool, useful." He showed all teeth.
It was Shawn's turn to break into laughter now, "Oh hell I knoooow, you want something now. Come on, get it out. Hey... where are the girls?"
"They stepped on me... for real. They wantin' me to lay claim, for-get-that! Ain't nothin' even happening."
"That's what I'm talking about, no hurry. You need to do about 15 more years of living before you even consider who your steady is, I mean that and certainly you must have had some form of counselling by then as well."
Mundo's head rolled back taking his body with it, slouching in the chair, legs spread wide, hand covering part of his face, "Here we go, come on dad man... chill wit'that - I'mo get it, you know. But hey dog, that shit ain't cheap - who gone pay for it, not you!" Mundo blurted the last before Shawn could reply. Sure enough Shawn started telling him why he could pay for it, with Mundo shaking his head to and fro.
"No... no... noooo - I ain't goin' out like that. For me, as far as I go, you ain't paying for nothing else, I have to stand and be my own man, know what I'm saying? You got my moms, a baby on the way, Crystal and her boys you stressing over, Mama Jojo, and Angela... your plate - is - full. I'm hopping off. So... I'm gone do, what I'm gone do - but it'll have to wait until I can pay for it myself, or if I have insurance that does it, then cool, but not you. Know what I'm saying? Thing is, I wanna turn it around so, if you need me - I can do for you, that's my goal. See what I'm saying, anyway..." Silcence hung between them as he glanced between his fingers to see the look on Shawn's face.
Who was sitting with his hazel blue gaze staring dead on him, hands cupping the front edge of his desk, watching him, thinking. It was at that moment that Shawn realized he had jealous feelings of Armundo Sr. being Mundo's father. He didn't deserve to have someone like him for his son, so there was no way in hell that he would even consider letting him just walk back into their lives. He was better off dead to them all. While the majority of what Mundo was could be laid at Sylvia's door because she is such a good mother to them, it showed in their make-up. Yet, there were things broken in him because his father was a thankless ingrate and a misogynist. Looking at his son, Shawn wished he could have met Sylvia when they were really young, as in no older than 5 or 6... he would have stepped in and God help him, he would have done all in his power to take her from Armundo, there were times he fantasized about it and he knew he would have succeeded. He shook the thought from his mind, it didn't matter really, because he was there now as their father and unlike Armundo Sr. he wasn't going anywhere.
"Dad...?... aye man what up? You hear anything I say?"
Shawn snapped out of it, focusing on Mundo, "Every word. I'm sitting here debating, giving myself advice to back off and give you room to grow - I was almost convinced, but you interrupted me, now - I'm not so-..."
Mundo sat up, "Come on dad for real... give me that time, that room - I promise, I won't let you down, for real - you gotta trust me at some point."
"What the hell is that? I trust you now, right fuckin' now! You know I trust you - but you're still a young man - who had to grow up without a real man around to show him how. Son, Mundo - I'm just saying - that - I don't expect you to walk before you've had a chance to crawl."
Mundo started shaking his head, "No, you ain't get no chance to crawl... did'ya? You turned out okay - you been through some shit - right? We all know it don't we? Don't matter how you deny it, pretending you all cool and straight. Maybe you did get to crawl a bit, but you got yo'ass snatched up quick, slapped upside the head and told, 'Now walk goddamit, crawlin days over!' Yeah, see we be checkin' you out too, readin' you too. 'Cause you mean to us, what we mean to you, that's right, so... if you can do it, I can do it too. You don't make excuses for you, I ain't making none for me. Besides..." Mundo smiled, changing the subject because it was getting heavy, "... didn't you say I came in here to ask you for something?"
Shawn was smiling again, "I was right - what?"
"Got my eye on this lil'fibre glass, chrome and rubber honey, aaaah man, she smooth as hell!"
"No!"
"No?" Mundo sat straight, surprised.
"You heard right. Half a million dollars - that's shit! You think that's some money? That's shit - if I or your mother don't monitor you carefully, that'll be gone and you'll owe out. The blazer is fine, unless you wanna trade it in and go up a FEW thousands from there, but... not much. You're not blowing your money on nonsense, not while I'm living and breathing. In fact, we need to start researching how you can wisely invest it, grow it, then go shopping for that fibre, chrome, rubber honey off the interest. Get me?"
Mundo fell back in the chair once more, face scrunched up, "Ah man, can't we just look?"
"No... because I guarantee you, you'll find the ONE - and you won't be able to control the need to have it. You're doing good, you've paid us off, your insurace is paid, the blazer is maintained and running smooth, school will be starting shortly - and you'll have no pressure, no stress. You're staying that way until you're done, capiche?"
Mundo nodded, sighing and gave in right away, "Capiche," - simply put, he was too happy in his home to argue with someone he knew was right and doing all in his power to impart a bit of wisdom to him. Currently, he saw no reason to fight it. Besides, as time went by, Shawn was turning out to be his best friend. He couldn't think of anything more cool than having a best friend who was also his father, the world immediately surrounding his space, was all good.
"Since we ain't goin' to eye no motor honey's - what's on your agenda?"
Shawn stared a moment trying to think quick, he really needed to go and open a new banking account and he definitely couldn't let Mundo in on it because he would have to explain too much and he didn't want to start lying to him.
"Wha's-up?" Mundo prodded, noticing the hesitation.
"I-I-I - need to go and take care of something... alone."
"Alone? Hmmm-..."
"Stop it!"
"What? I don't get it, thought we had no secrets between us?"
Shawn sighed rubbing his forehead, "I trust you, why don't you trust me?"
"I trust you! I trust you with my life, for real!" Mundo asserted from the heart and meant every word.
"Good - because there are going to be times, when I can't confide all to you. Just know, you - my family - all of you, are the reasons for all that I do, everything I do. Soooo, in other words, go check on your sister, see if she's okay - show her some love, cool? Make sure she's coming tonight." Shawn asked, a tiny bit of pleading in his eyes.
Mundo sighed, he would ask no more, nodding, "Yeah, I'll check on Crystal. See you later."
"Thanks."
Chapter 307
Sylvia's mind was spinning with worrying thoughts...
'Are you sorry you've gotten in this deep?'
'Have your feelings changed?'
'Are you... having an affair?'
Sylvia didn't know what to think about Shawn's change. He was not the same, he was always preoccupied now. Telling her it was work, 'Bull!' she knew it wasn't work. Benjamin had dug him out of the hole and Shawn was too careful to let things build back up around him like that again. Besides, with Benjami
n in California working for Pen-tab, the two worked together long distance. Ben did the field shots, collecting photo data for Pen-tab and Shawn worked them into their publishing needs. As for the studio, for photography and his painting it was completely done, outside and in and opened for business. Everything Shawn needed to be a full-fledged photographer and artist was in place. Since Jake and Vivian's wedding, Shawn landed 4 bookings for other weddings that summer. They were already scheduling in family portrait appointments and if that were not enough, Ben passed Shawn all of his Wisconsin Dells contacts. At this point, the way things were coming through for them, it wouldn't be long until he could be independent of Pen-tab, but Shawn would never give that up, he loved it too much. Besides, as he stated, "We can't afford to cut off any money road leading in." She had agreed.
Thus, he was hustling, filling his plate, he'd hit the school district - laying out beautiful proposal packages for school portraits with bids hard for them to ignore - also working on a high school, senior/graduation packages that offered a look most girls and guys wanted for their last school pictures. He was busy, but not so overwhelmed that he couldn't hold a conversation without drifting off into nowhere land. She made sure to book his appointments so that he had 3 work days for the studio out of the week, those days could range in time periods anywhere from 8 in the morning to 6 in the evening - he was not allowed to go beyond 6. He then had 2 work days for Pen-tab with a similar schedule depending on what he needed to get done, between the two he controlled switching from one to the other giving more of his time depending which had the higher demand.
The weekends were suppsed to be about family, period!
Thanks to Shanna's help and even Mama Jojo pitching in and Angela ever by her side, following Vivian's wedding and Mama Jojo's arrival, they'd gone full tilt in getting the bed and breakfast done, even having road signs put up starting in Jainsville, thru Wisconsin Dells until one reached Camp Daniels. For amenities, a swimming pool and deck built off the back, as well a small tennis and basketball court. Sylvia's B B had opened to book two weekends late August - and two more were coming up first two weekends in September, before school started and the Dells shut down for the season.
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