by La Jill Hunt
“Fuck Celia and her car. I don’t want that shit. She can keep it. I got my own car. And another thing: if you wanna keep living here, then you better not take that car either,” I said, leaving her standing in the middle of the living room.
Kendra
“Daddy?” I answered my phone, which rang just as I was walking to work. Although we talked on the regular, he rarely called me. We mainly communicated via text a couple of times a week.
“Hey, sweetie. How are you?” he asked.
“I’m fine. What’s wrong? Is everything okay? Is Grandma Ruby all right?” My father’s mother, Ruby, had been sick for the past few months. My mind began filling with all kinds of reasons he could be calling, all of them negative.
“Everything’s everything, and she’s fine.”
“Oh, okay.” I exhaled slightly and realized I had been holding my breath without even knowing it.
“The school called me and left a voicemail. It seems that your sister Avery hasn’t been dressing out for her PE class, and if she don’t start, she’s gonna fail for the year,” he said.
All of the anxiety that had left my body moments before returned. “Oh, I’m sorry, Daddy. I guess they still have your number on file. I’ll take care of it.”
Although my parents hadn’t been together for ten years, for some reason his number still wound up as a point of contact for the school, and every now and then, he would get a call. He acted like it was no big deal, but I knew better. Ashley and Avery were a sore subject for him, and ultimately the reason for the demise of my parents’ marriage. Not that it was even peaches and cream before, because most of my childhood memories included the two of them constantly arguing, fussing, and fighting. My mother was volatile in nature, and my father’s drinking and smoking didn’t help. How they even lasted as long as they had was beyond me.
It was days before Ashley and Avery’s fourth birthday when the shit hit the fan. My mama had planned this huge party for them and was asking my daddy for more money to pay for it. He refused, saying that he wasn’t footing the bill for her and her friends, and they weren’t getting drunk on his dime. Mama’s friend Ronda came over to the house, and they were in the kitchen talking when the words that changed my entire family dynamics came out her mouth.
“Shit, Di, he need to stop tripping before you go see them girls’ real daddy for the money.” She laughed, not realizing Daddy was right outside the door and could hear every word they were saying.
“You ain’t neva lied. That might not be a bad idea. Maybe I should pay Abraham a visit and see if he can help out.” Mama giggled.
Before they knew it, my daddy rushed in, demanding to know what they were talking about. Mama tried to say that she was joking, but the seed of doubt had already been planted. Daddy had always accused Mama of being unfaithful. Now his suspicions were confirmed, and his heart was broken when the results of a paternity test that he paid for and had done on me and my sisters came back. He didn’t waste any time packing up and moving out, despite my begging him to stay. He promised that he would always be there for me despite my mother’s attempts to force him out of our lives.
“You either take care of all of my girls or none of them. You don’t get to pick and choose,” She would scream at him when he would come to pick me up or bring me things that he had bought.
“What the fuck is wrong with you, Diane? I ain’t taking care of no kids that ain’t mine. You go get their daddy to take care of them, not me,” he told her, which was easier said than done. The results of the second DNA tests for the twins, this time ordered by Child Support, revealed that Abraham wasn’t their father either. It was then that Mama decided they didn’t need a father, and neither did I. For years, she forbid Daddy from having any contact with me, until I finally became old enough to reach out to him myself, without her knowing. He would sneak to see me, secretly give me money, and check on me. Now that I was grown, it shouldn’t have been Mama’s business that I had a relationship with my father, but after all these years, if anyone even mentioned his name, she would lose her mind. Needless to say, I had a fake name for him in my phone, and whenever we met up, it was nowhere near the house.
“You sure everything is a’ight, Kendra? The teacher mentioned that she’d tried calling your mama several times before calling my number,” he said with a concerned voice.
“Yes, Daddy,” I assured him.
“Well, I know you mentioned needing some money for books the other week. I ain’t forgot, and I’m working on shifting some stuff around to get it to you. Grandma Ruby’s medicine cost a little bit more than expected this month,” he explained.
“I know you’re working on it. It’s okay. But I gotta go to work.” I sighed.
“Okay, well, talk to your sister about that gym class. She don’t need to fail.”
“I will.” I laughed.
“Love you, baby girl.”
“Love you too, Daddy.”
I ended the call and headed toward the store. In a way, I was glad that he had gotten the call from the school instead of Mama. Lord knows if she had, she probably would’ve killed Ashley on sight. I was going to have some choice words for my little sister myself when I got home. I sent her a text, instructing her not to go outside at all when she got home from school. Then, noticing the time, I hurried.
Sierra greeted me. “I already clocked you in.”
“You did? Thanks,” I told her.
“Yeah, I saw you boo-loving on the phone outside and didn’t want you to be late. See how I look out?”
“Whatever, Sierra.” I laughed. “You know I wasn’t boo-loving. I was talking to my damn daddy.”
“Mm-hmmm. Well, heads up, because your daddy is walking through the door.”
I looked up, and sure enough, the door was buzzing as Bilal walked inside. I tried my best to seem unbothered, but when he reached the counter and smiled at me, I couldn’t help but acknowledge the slight excitement I felt.
“Hi, welcome to Cell City. How can I help you?” I said in my best customer service voice.
“Why, thank you. I’m glad to see you here today. Last time I came in to pick up my phone, you weren’t here.” He grinned.
The fact that he had missed me when he came in made me even more giddy than I was already feeling. Sierra nudged me behind the counter, and I tried to kick her but missed.
“Don’t tell me your team won again,” I said.
“Naw, the screen is still good.” He held the phone up. “But I think I wanna go ahead and take your advice and get a new phone.”
“Oh, okay,” I said. “I can definitely help you with that. Let me get your phone number again so I can see what kind of upgrade you’re eligible for.”
He gave me his number, and as I was pulling his information up, he said, “I think I wanna get the iPhone 8, and I don’t wanna do an upgrade.”
I looked up at him. “I don’t think you’re gonna get much for your trade-in.”
“I don’t wanna trade it in. I’m gonna keep it,” he said matter-of-factly.
“So, you wanna—”
“I’m gonna pay cash for it.” He shrugged, reaching into the pocket of his jeans and taking out the biggest wad of bills that I had ever seen. “I don’t want to pay a monthly bill for two years for something I can just buy outright. That’s crazy.”
Again, Sierra nudged me. This time I aimed my foot at her leg and connected, causing her to flinch and move away.
“Uh, well, alrighty then,” I told him.
“You do have one in stock, right?” he asked.
“Yeah, we do. How many gigs of storage do you need? You know the higher the gig, the higher the price,” I warned.
“I use my phone a lot for my business, so cost ain’t really a concern,” he said.
“And what color did you want?”
He stared into my eyes and said, “How about you choose for me? I’m sure you’ll make the perfect choice for me.”
Something about the way he
said it made me pause, and for a second, I forgot what I was supposed to be doing. “I, uh, I’ll be right back.”
I went into the locked room where the phones were located and tried to get myself together. Kendra, calm the fuck down. You’re acting nervous as shit, like you’ve never helped a customer before. He’s just a dude buying a phone the same way all your other customers come in and buy every day. But I knew that this wasn’t a regular dude. Everything about him seemed to draw me in: his voice, his smile, his eyes, his swag. I also knew that he was exactly the type of dude I needed to stay the hell away from. I had seen my mother deal with those types of dudes time and time again—the flashy guys who stayed fly, had plenty of money, drove the hot cars, and talked a good game. They were the so-called “business” men who ran the streets and ran women. I knew better, and I wasn’t falling for him or his games. I had future plans, and they definitely didn’t include dating a thug. I didn’t care how sexy he was.
I found a phone, took a deep breath, and went back out to finish his transaction, reminding myself to keep it professional. When I got back to the register, he was on the phone talking to someone. I tried my best not to listen as I opened the box and activated the phone, but it was hard.
“Yeah, I’m almost done, and I’ll be out in a minute. Chill, girl. I told you I was giving you my old phone, but I gotta get it switched over. And don’t touch my radio,” he mumbled.
I glanced up and saw Sierra easing over to the window. She looked back at me, and I gave her a look that said, I told you so.
“Okay, your total is $808.26,” I told him.
“Cool. Let me ask you something. You work on commission?”
“Yep,” I said coolly.
“On accessories too?”
“Uh-huh.” I nodded.
“Great. Let me get an Otter box, screen protector, and a car charger.”
“No problem.” I grabbed the items he’d asked for, and after ringing them up, I placed them into a bag and told him the new price. It was more than nine hundred dollars.
He handed me ten hundred-dollar bills and said, “Keep the change.”
“Sorry, we can’t accept tips. Company policy. But here’s your phone and your accessories. I’ve already transferred your number over.” I counted out his change and gave it to him, along with the phone and the bag.
“Thank you. Let me make sure it works. What’s your number?” He smiled at me.
I gave him a phone number, and he dialed it. The phone at the register began ringing, and I picked it up. “Thanks for calling Cell City. This is Kendra speaking. How can I help you?”
“Wow, it’s like that?” Bilal gave me a disappointed look. “I asked for your number, not the store’s number.”
“I can’t do that.” I shook my head at him.
“Company policy, or yours?”
“Mine.”
“I guess your man wouldn’t appreciate me calling you anyway. I understand. Well, thanks again for all of your help. And since I can’t have your number, feel free to use mine.” His fingers brushed along mine as he took the bag from my hand.
“Thank you for choosing Cell City. Enjoy the rest of your day,” I said.
“Nice seeing you again, Caramel Kendra.” He winked and headed out the door, making sure to say goodbye to Sierra as he passed by.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Sierra wasted no time asking as soon as he was gone.
“What are you talking about?” I shrugged as I casually walked over to the window and stood beside her. We both stared into the parking lot and watched as Bilal got into a black Yukon Denali with rims. Although the windows were tinted, I could clearly see the silhouette of a female passenger. “I know you heard him on the phone, and you can clearly see who he was talking to.”
“A’ight, I get that, and he is hella disrespectful tryna holla at you with his bitch right outside. She’s a good one, because ain’t no way I’m gonna sit outside in the car like I’m some kind of pet while my man goes into a store. But real talk, Kendra, I damn sure woulda took that tip.” Sierra looked at me out of the corner of her eye.
I thought about the three-hundred-dollar textbook I needed for my statistics class and the two other textbooks that I hadn’t even priced. Then I thought about Bilal having a girl in the car and felt a twinge of jealousy. “Nah, you can’t always take what people try and give you. Especially when you don’t know what they want in return.”
Later that evening, after the store had closed, I was waiting at the bus stop on the corner when the familiar black Denali pulled over in front of me. The window rolled down, and Bilal began speaking to me.
“Hey, pretty lady, you need a ride?” he asked.
“Nah, I’m good,” I said.
“Come on. It’s no problem, and you don’t need to be out here by yourself at night. It’s not safe. Where are you headed?”
“I catch this bus every day. I won’t be out here alone that long. Thanks for the offer, but I’m good,” I said, this time with more attitude, recalling the chick that was sitting in the passenger side just a little while ago. He had some nerve trying to pick me up.
“A’ight, well, I can sit here and wait and make sure you’re good,” he told me. “If you’d like, I can pull into the lot, and you can wait in the truck. We can talk.”
Again, I shook my head. “Nah, I’m good.”
“You are one stubborn woman.” He laughed. Then, to my surprise, he turned into the parking lot and parked his truck. He got out and walked over to me.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Waiting to make sure you’re safe.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I know I don’t have to.” He took a step closer to me, and I got a whiff of his cologne. I was almost tempted to take him up on his offer when I saw the headlights of the bus approaching.
“See, the bus is right there. So, thanks, but like I said, I’m good,” I said, taking a step back.
“Well, I’ll just make sure you get on. But maybe you’ll reconsider and give me your number now since you’re not on the clock.”
“I don’t think your girlfriend would appreciate this at all.” I shook my head at him just as the bus pulled up.
“Huh? What?” He gave me a strange look.
“Your girlfriend? The one who was waiting in the car while you were inside. The one who you’re giving your old phone to.” I laughed, thinking about how he tried to play me. I stepped on the bus and showed my student ID and paid the discounted fair.
“Hey, Kendra,” Bilal called out, and I turned around.
“What?”
“Just so you know, that was my sister. I don’t have a girlfriend,” he answered just as the doors to the bus closed and we pulled off.
I walked to the back and took a seat, wondering if I was the one who had played myself.
Bilal
I couldn’t get that chick Kendra off my mind. She was cute as hell, and even though she was kinda young, the way she carried herself let me know she was about her business and not about the bullshit. Truth be told, she was one of the few chicks in life who had ever declined to give me her number when asked. As if that weren’t surprising enough, she then turned down the offer for a ride. Rejection wasn’t something I was used to, and it was kind of refreshing. Normally, I wouldn’t have even cared, but it was something about her. The only reason I didn’t pop back up at her job was because one, I didn’t want to look super thirsty and seem like a stalker, and two, I had no free time. As much as I hated that the neighborhood crime rate was up, it meant that so was my business. I was glad that I had broken down and gotten a new phone, because it was ringing nonstop.
I had just finished up with a client when Dell called. He had sent me a text earlier that I hadn’t had a chance to respond to, so I knew his calling meant that whatever it was, it must’ve been important.
“What’s up, D?” I answered as I walked to my truck. “I got your text, but I just got out
of my meeting.”
“It’s cool, bruh. Look, I been trying to catch up with Unc the past couple of days, but he kinda been ducking me. He was supposed to see me last week and didn’t. You know I hate to even bring it to you, but that’s family, and before it’s handled on another level, I just wanted to come to you first.”
“Man, I told you to leave that alone when he came to you.”
“I know, but he was in a bad spot, so I helped him out. It was Uncle P. What was I supposed to do?” Dell asked.
“Tell his ass no the same way I do every time he comes to me when he’s in a bad spot,” I told him. “That’s my uncle, D, but you know how he is.”
“Man, I get it.”
“How much he owe you?”
“Don’t matter. If you happen to talk to him, just tell him to hit me up.”
“Man, just tell me.” I knew it had to be a fairly large amount if Dell was talking to me about it.
“B, it’s cool.”
“Dell, how much?”
“A’ight. Three stacks.”
“Three stacks! What the fuck? Why the fuck did you give him three fucking thousand dollars? Dell, have you lost your mind? You knew his ass wasn’t gonna be able to pay back that much fucking money.”
“I ain’t give it to him all at one, Bilal. Calm the fuck down,” Dell groaned.
“Man, ain’t no calming down. You gave my clown-ass uncle three thousand dollars, and now his ass is ghost. You been knowing his ass as long as me, D. You know this dude don’t even try and keep no damn job.”
“I ain’t give it to him all at once. And not all of it was in cash. Some of it was product.”
“You know what? Don’t tell me any more.” I was furious at this point. “I’ll holla at him and make sure you get your money.”
“Bilal, I’m telling you right now, this ain’t on you, it’s on him. I ain’t taking no money from you. You know how we do. This is Unc’s debt, not yours,” Dell said.
“It’s all good. I’ll holla at you later.”
I don’t know who I was more pissed at: Dell, or trifling-ass Uncle Patrick. I dialed his number, but he didn’t answer. I was in the middle of sending him a text when my phone rang. Seeing my mother’s picture flashing on the screen, I immediately answered.