Fool, Stop Trippin'

by McKinney, Tina Brooks

  “Damn, baby, that was sweet.”

  “That’s what you get for making me wait so long.”

  “Give me ten minutes and I’ll be ready to go again.”

  I roll over on my side and promptly go to sleep.

  I had no intentions of staying the night, only wanted to catch a few winks, but daylight awakens me as well as the need to pee.

  Tarcia rolls over and snuggles against my back with her hands firmly around my waist. Spooning, we both start to drift back to sleep. I forget all about the need to pee. Tarcia’s pussy was so good, I can’t remember why I was staying away, but that is my dick talking, not my mind.

  “Kentee,” Tarcia whispers.

  “Huh?”

  “Where did you go yesterday?”

  “Huh?” Where the hell did that come from?

  “I just want to know what you did yesterday with the kids.”

  “Since when are you interested in my kids?”

  “I’ve always been interested in anything you do.”

  “Hush now and go to sleep.”

  “Do you still love me?”

  “Yeah, I still love you. Now go back to sleep.”

  “Okay. But I have one more thing to say. Promise me you won’t stay away so long next time.”

  “I promise.” I can feel her cheesy smile against my back. When I say I love her, I mean it. I do love her, but I’m not in love with her. I’ll agree to anything just to get a few more minutes of shut-eye. Hopefully I won’t regret this promise in the days to come.

  Tarcia

  I pretend to go to sleep as I hold my Kentee in my arms but I’m too excited to sleep. His promises allay my fears that we are breaking up. I release a pent-up sigh I’d been holding in my heart for months. “I got my man back,” I mouth silently.

  Kentee’s divorce is final and I know it will be a matter of days before he proposes again. I’m so anxious for us to get on with the rest of our lives. I don’t care if we just jump a broom in the backyard; I want to be Mrs. Simmons. His absence over the last few weeks scared me so much. He had me thinking that since he was a free man, he didn’t want to be bothered with me. His promise put those fears to rest.

  Millions of images run through my mind. Hell, I might even invite his children to the wedding. Naw, girl, stop trippin’, ’cause if they come to the wedding, that bitch Leah will come and I definitely don’t want to see her ass on what will be the happiest day of my life. Maybe his niece and nephew can be in it instead.

  Kentee mumbles in his sleep and even though I strain to hear him, I can’t make out his words. I drift off to sleep with those thoughts still on my mind.

  Today is my wedding day and I can’t sleep. Instead, I am up washing and folding clothes. Kentee and I are going on our honeymoon and I wantthe house to be perfect for our return. I’ve already scoured the downstairs, cleaning the bathroom, kitchen, and living room. Now all I have to do is put up the clothes and maybe grab a few hours of sleep. It wouldn’t be good for the bride to have bags under her eyes.

  Grabbing the basket of laundry, I head up the stairs, humming a tune that dies on my lips as my feet stop moving. The wooden snake that Lasonji sent me from Mardi Gras last year is sitting up instead of lying on the floor like it normally does. Kentee hates the snake and I was going to move it into the guest bedroom, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet.

  I shake my head, trying to clear that vision from my mind since there is no way the wooden snake could sit up on its own. I have to be trippin’. When I look back into the bedroom, the snake is as it should’ve been. Damn, I really do need a nap. I continue up the steps and as my foot hits the last step the snake’s head swings around, looking right at me. Its eyes glow first green and transform to red. With lightning speed the snake starts toward me. Throwing the basket at the snake, I start running back down the stairs screaming at the top of my lungs. Fear like I’ve never known causes my heart to beat like it’s trying to escape my chest. Hot tears burn my cheeks and blind me as I continue to run, but the more I run the closer the snake gets. Finally I reach the bottom of the steps with the snake right at my heels. I can feel its hot breath on the tendon of my ankle. I push against the front door as hard as I can, trying to get it open. However, I should have pulled instead of pushed. Too scared to look back, I push hard enough to break down the door. A loud crash jolts me awake.

  Kentee is on the floor. “What the hell is wrong with you?” He jumps, up grabbing his clothes.

  “Oh, Kentee, I am so sorry. I was having a bad dream.”

  “Dream my ass, you damn near punched a hole in my back.”

  “I was trying to get away from the snake.”

  “Snake, what snake?”

  “It was coming to get me.” I’m shaking uncontrollably, and my tears are blinding me.

  “Tarcia, you ain’t making no sense. I’m outta here.”

  “No, Kentee, please don’t leave me.” Kentee pauses for a moment to stare at me, but after a few seconds he continues to get dressed.

  “I got to go anyway. I got to be at work soon.”

  “Please, Kentee, don’t go. I’m scared.”

  “Shit, you scared me too. I’ll holla at you later.” He’s out the door before I can throw on clothes to follow. I hear the front door slam and the house is quiet except for my deep sobs of anguish. I feel like my heart is being ripped out for the second time. Needless to say, sleep is out of the question.

  I pad into the kitchen, the wooden floor cool against my bare feet. I put the coffee pot on and cut a slice of cheesecake to have with my coffee. Since I live on the ground floor the management didn’t require me to carpet the apartment. It is ten dollars cheaper a month to have the hardwood floors and I prefer it that way most of the time. I have large scatter rugs throughout the apartment to spruce up the place.

  Lasonji comes into the room just as the coffee pot begins to whistle. Silently, she gets out her own mug and pours water into both cups. I cut her a slice of cake and we eat.

  “Do you want to talk about it?”

  “No. Not really.” Tears are still rolling down my face. My hands are still a bit shaky, making it difficult to hold my coffee cup.

  “Did he hit you?”

  “No, it was nothing like that.”

  “Oh, I heard the crash. Scared the shit out of me.”

  “Yeah, me too.”

  “One minute ya’ll were mating like rabbits and the next…”

  “Oh, wow, we tried to be quiet.”

  “Girl, I understand. Sometimes you just have to holla.” She starts laughing and I join her. Part of me is embarrassed, but the other part of me remembers each exquisite moment.

  “I might’ve lost him for good this time.”

  “I know you said you don’t want to talk about it, but maybe it will make you feel better getting it out.” I ponder on how much or how little I want to tell her.

  “I had a bad dream and pushed Kentee out of the bed.”

  “Well, I’m sure…oh shit…” She burst out laughing so hard the table rattles.

  “Lasonji, it ain’t funny.”

  “Girl, you should see your face.” She continues to laugh.

  “Well, it was a little funny. Kentee’s eyes were wild. He was looking around the room trying to decide who he was going to hit.”

  “I’ll bet. Did he break anything?”

  “I thought he broke his back.” We give in to the laughter and it makes me feel better. The shaking stops. Now we both have tears running down our faces.

  “What the hell did you dream about?”

  “It was our wedding day. I was taking the wash upstairs.”

  “You don’t have an upstairs.”

  “It was a dream, silly.”

  “Oh, my bad.”

  “The snake was sitting up looking around the room.”

  “Snake, what snake?” Lasonji becomes very serious.

  “You know. The one you sent me a few years ago.”

  “You
still have that thing?”

  “Sure I do. It was a gift, remember?”

  She shakes her head. “Go on.”

  “I thought I was seeing things because when I looked back at it, it was lying on the floor just like it’s supposed to.” I wait for her to interrupt again, but when she doesn’t I continue. I am getting the same creepy feeling I had in the dream.

  “So I went on up the stairs. When my foot hit the last step, the snake turned on me and started chasing me. I thought I was pushing open the front door, but instead I pushed Kentee off the bed.” I laugh self-consciously. Speaking about it out loud makes it sound stupid.

  “Your door opens in, not out.”

  “Huh?”

  “Your front door. It opens in, you can’t push it out.”

  “Damn, girl, it was a dream. Don’t make it all technical.”

  “Did it leave its skin?”

  “What?”

  “The skin. Think, Tarcia, did it leave its skin!”

  “You are scaring me.”

  “And you’re scaring me. Answer the damn question.”

  “How the hell should I know? I was running.”

  “I gave you that snake for protection.”

  “You did what?” I jump up out of my seat, pissed. I pace the floor staring at Lasonji in disbelief. “I told you I didn’t want that kind of shit in my house.”

  “Hey, to you it was just a gift and if I had my way you would have never known it was anything more.” I rush from the room to get the damn snake with Lasonji quick at my back.

  “No.” Grabbing my arm, she spins me around to face her. I struggle to get my arm back. She’s hurting me and I start to hit her, but she blocks the slap.

  “Did it leave its skin? This is important, so think about it.” I slide down the wall and sit on the floor. Lasonji sinks to the floor as well.

  “I don’t know, it happened too fast.”

  “Where was it?”

  “In my bedroom.”

  “Come on.” She pulls me to my feet and leads the way into my bedroom. The snake is gone.

  “Where is it?” I whisper as the shakes return.

  “Where was it the last time you saw it when you were awake?”

  “Right there, next to the dresser in between the chair and the floor lamp.”

  “You sure you didn’t kick it under the bed?”

  “No, I would have felt it.”

  “What about Kentee? Would he have taken it?”

  “No, he hates it.”

  “Figures.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” She doesn’t answer me. She drops to the floor and looks under the bed. I back up toward the door, scared of what she might find.

  “Turn on the light.” We had been using the light from the hallway to illuminate the room. I hesitate as fear grips me.

  “Now, Tarcia. We’ve got to see if the skin is still here.” Shutting my eyes, I flip the switch. She continues looking under the bed and when that proves to be futile, she crawls around the floor. By this time, I have backed out into the hallway. She reaches the door and closes it partially. When it opens, she holds the skin between two fingers offering it up for my inspection.

  “What does this mean?”

  “The snake is gone. It has chased out the evil spirits.”

  “That’s good, ain’t it?”

  “I would feel better if it would’ve taken its skin with it.” She carries the skin out, holding it away from her as if she is afraid to let it touch her.

  “Lasonji, you are scaring the shit out of me. What does this mean?” She spins around.

  “It means it ain’t over. Finding a snake skin means a jinx is present.”

  “Then throw the shit away.”

  “I wish I could. It ain’t that simple.”

  “It’s a toy snake, for crying out loud, not a real one.” She just looks at me and shakes her head. Her face is somber and unreadable.

  “So what do we do?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve got to do some research.”

  “Research? You send some shit to my house and when it gets fucked up you don’t know how to handle it?”

  “Yelling at me is not going to change a damn thing. I did it to protect you. Hell, did you ever stop to think what would have happened if you didn’t have it?” She shut my mouth up real quick. She places the offending skin on the table. I want to protest, but I’m not thinking all that clearly.

  “How the hell does a toy snake shed its skin?”

  “Be right back.”

  “I’m right behind you. Ain’t no way in hell I am staying in here with that thing by myself.”

  Jasmine

  “Sammie, it’s time that you meet your father’s side of the family.”

  “Uh…do you think that’s a good idea?”

  “Of course it is. Daddy has two brothers and three sisters. It’s only right that you get to meet them before it’s too late. They are all up in age now.”

  “I don’t know, Jazz. I know me and your mom are cool, but what will the rest of the family say to an outside child?”

  “Well, you can be sure that they will say anything that comes to their minds. If they say something out the way, just ignore it, it comes with age. They don’t have to be politically correct. Besides, it doesn’t matter what they think about something that happened years ago. The point is you deserve to meet your family and I want them to meet my sister.”

  “Have you talked this over with your mother?”

  “Yeah, in fact, this is her idea. Sammie, you don’t have anyone left but us. Trust me on this. They will love you just like we do.”

  “If you say so, but I have to tell you I have a bad feeling about it.”

  “That’s your fear of the unknown. Just think about how different things would be if you didn’t step to me that night we met at the club. We would have sailed through life without ever getting to know each other.”

  “If I remember correctly, we stepped to each other.”

  “Same difference. You just got to take a chance and step out there, embracing life. Don’t worry about a thing. Momma is planning the whole thing. All we have to do is show up next Saturday.”

  “Next Saturday?”

  “Yes, next Saturday. This gives you over a week to prepare. I knew if I told you too far in advance you would chicken out.”

  “You ain’t even lying. I still got time.”

  “No, you don’t. Mom went through a lot of trouble to get this together. The aunts and uncles don’t get out much these days. They are anxious to meet you.”

  “I’ll bet they are.”

  “Girl, stop, I’m serious. I talked to Aunt Mavis last week and she was excited. I’ve been the only grandchild in the entire family. None of Daddy’s brothers or sisters ever had children. They need someone else to dote on.”

  “Alright, then, let me go figure out what I’m gonna wear.”

  “Sammie, don’t get all stressed out. Just wear something casual. It’s going to be in our backyard, so it won’t be formal at all.”

  “Okay, I’ll holla at you later.”

  “C-ya, sis.”

  Sammie

  It is hard for me to get excited about meeting my father’s family, especially since I don’t even know him. I have only seen pictures of him and they are twenty years old. I’m not like Jasmine. She is confident, witty, poised, and outgoing. She’s everything that I’m not and I don’t need any strangers to remind me of that.

  While I appreciate the gesture of welcoming me into the family, the thought of being on display and under scrutiny makes my knees weak. I wonder if she will let me bring my boyfriend, Buddy. He won’t let anyone hurt me, and I’ll feel more comfortable with him around. I immediately call Jasmine back.

  “Jazz, can Buddy come to the cookout?”

  “Yes, of course, sis. And why don’t you invite Leah and Craig too?”

  “That would be wonderful. I can’t help but to feel as nervous as a cat in a
living room full of rocking chairs.”

  “Interesting analogy, that’s funny.”

  “Girl, I haven’t been able to think of anything else since you told me. What if they don’t like me, Jazz? It will break my heart.”

  “See, Sammie, you are looking at this the wrong way. You are not there on display. It’s your right to be there. So what, your mother was not married to our father at the time of your birth. If it wasn’t for me, he would have been and the shoe would be on the other foot. You’ve been deprived of your roots all your life. It’s time, girl, that you knew from whence you came.”

  “You make it seem so logical and easy. I just don’t want them to compare me to you.”

  “They won’t because we are two different people. Even though we look alike, we are different and the differences are what make us so close. If we were clones we’d probably hate each other.”

  “Wow, I never thought of it that way.”

  “Then please start thinking of it that way because whatever happens, you’re my sister for life.”

  “Thanks, sis, I needed to hear that. Let me go so I can see if Buddy can make it. Oh, promise me you won’t leave me alone too long. I don’t want to get all nervous and start dropping shit.”

  “Stop worrying, I’ll be right there.”

  “Alright, let me call Buddy to see if he is gonna be able to come.” But instead of calling Buddy, I sit down to collect my thoughts. I don’t want to sound needy. I know enough about relationships to know that some men get turned off by that. So far in this relationship, I’ve been able to pretend to be confident, poised, and self-reliant. He doesn’t need to know what an emotional wreck I am inside. I’d shared some of my past with him, especially as it related to my mother, but he still doesn’t know my deepest dark secrets and I plan to keep it that way. Buddy is the best thing that has happened in my life and I don’t want to jeopardize it.