Full Figured 2

by Alexis Nicole

  “We need to move to Hot-lanta,” Quintin had said.

  And Miles and I agreed.

  I’d waited until my senior year to tell my folks. And from the way my mother cried, you would have thought I’d stabbed her straight in the heart. And that’s just what she told everyone.

  “You try to raise your children right and what do they do to you? They grow up and move to Atlanta!”

  But once my moms realized that I wasn’t going to change my mind, she got over it and started calling folks to see who she could get to look out for me. As if I needed someone to take care of me. My moms didn’t get it; I was a grown man now. A broke man, but grown nonetheless.

  “Well, I’m glad you made it safely.” My uncle’s voice pulled me back into the conversation.

  “Yeah, Miles and I are ’bout to take the truck over to U-Haul, and then we’re gonna just chill from that long ride.”

  “I understand. I was hoping, though, that tomorrow you could come to church with me.”

  I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead. It’s not that I had anything against church. I was raised to love the Lord. But straight-up truth, I hadn’t been attending regular services in college. In fact, I could count on one hand the number of times I’d been to church, and still have a couple of fingers left over.

  “And then,” my uncle continued saying, “you can come by the house and have dinner with your Aunt Lily and me.”

  “Ah . . . Uncle Matt . . .”

  It must’ve been the way I stuttered that made him add, “This is not just about wanting you to go to church. Our executive board is looking for a minister of music to lead our choir. We want a fresh voice and I already told them about you. You haven’t found another job yet, have you?”

  As soon as my uncle said, “job,” I sat up straight. No, I didn’t have a job, and didn’t have many prospects. Both Quintin and Miles had been hooked up, but with their degrees in business and IT, respectively, they’d been able to find employment, even during these tough times. But with my music degree, and wanting to stay in the industry, it had been rough going for me. So this announcement by my uncle was coming at the best of times.

  “Hell, yeah.” And then, I remembered who I was talking to. “I mean, yes, sir, I’m interested.”

  My uncle was quiet for a moment. I guess he was wondering if he’d made a mistake by recommending his foul-mouthed nephew for a position as a minster of anything. But my uncle was cool and he knew I wasn’t really like that.

  “Okay, well, I just thought it might be a good idea for you to come, get a feel of our church and Reverend Davenport. We’re gonna be talking to several others, but you can come by and meet with the board on Tuesday.”

  “Really, that soon?” By now, I could see both Quintin and Miles sitting up, listening in. I knew my boys couldn’t wait for me to get off to hear my news. Anything that was good for one of us would be good for all of us, since we were in this together. “I will definitely be there.” I started to ask my uncle about the pay, but then I thought, what did it matter? Anything they were offering was more than I was making now. “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow,” I said right after my uncle gave me all the details for the church. Clicking off my phone, I leaned back, not feeling so tired after all.

  “What’s up? Quintin asked.

  “Looks like I have a lead on a job.”

  “That’s great, Miles said.

  Quintin wanted the details. But when I told him about my conversation, he frowned.

  “Why you gonna mess with that?” he asked.

  It was my turn to frown, because I thought my reason was obvious. “I need a job.”

  “Man, you don’t need no job like that. What’s church gonna do for you when we’re trying to build Tru Harmony?”

  “Ah . . . it’s gonna help me pay my way.”

  “I told you, we got you,” Quintin said.

  Yeah, that’s what my boys had said. That since we were living rent free in one of Miles’s parents homes, they would cover me for anything else so that I could be the one to focus on geting our company going. But I wasn’t like that. There was no way I was going to sit around all day while Quintin and Miles worked. I was gonna be a man about it, and if I could find a job, then I could work.

  “You don’t need to be messing with those Bible thumpers.” Quintin kept on talking like he always did.

  “Look,” I said in a tone that was meant to let Quintin know that we were not going to talk about this anymore. “It’s just a lead, not a definite. But after the interview, if it’s something I think I can work, and they like me, it’s on. I’m going for it.”

  “Man!” Quintin said, jumping up. “So how we gonna get our label started if you working all day at some church?” He didn’t even give me a chance to answer him. Just stomped out of the room like he was some kid.

  Miles sat back; he was so used to me and Quintin going at it. At least this time he didn’t have to jump into the middle.

  “So, what do you think?” I asked Miles. Not that what he said was going to change my mind.

  He shrugged. “Do you. I don’t see how working could hurt; you might even get some divine inspiration.”

  “That’s what I was thinking. You don’t have to worry; nothing’s gonna stop me from focusing on Tru Harmony. Trust that.”

  “I know. I know you can handle it. All three of us can.”

  I nodded, and leaned right back on the couch. I needed to get my butt up and take that truck down to U-Haul. But I just wanted a moment. To think about being in Atlanta, and how, with my uncl’s call, everything was coming together.

  I didn’t have the job yet. And, as my uncle had said, they were interviewing quite a few people. But I had a secret weapon: a praying mama. I knew that when I called her later about this, she’d get right on her knees. Then, it would be a wrap.

  I had a good feeling about this. I was on my way. Or really, I should say, we were on our way. The world had better get ready for me, Miles, Quintin, and Tru Harmony.

  Chapter 5

  It was more than just this stiff-collared white shirt I had on that was choking me. It was the air, too, which was thick with tension.

  As I sat at the head of the long table with six people sitting on one side, and six on the other, I had a feeling that my uncle didn’t have a clue. He said that these people wanted to see me. Man, he didn’t know what he was talking about. Not with the way the people on the left side of the room stared me down as if they wanted me to get up and get out of their precious church.

  But, then, there were the people on the right side, mostly ladies, and my uncle, who just smiled and nodded at every word I said.

  “So, young man, you’ve never had any kind of experience working inside a church?”

  I looked straight ahead at the man who was sitting at the other end of the board table: Reverend Davenport. I’d answered a ton of questions already about my experience, but his question was the first thing he’d said since I’d walked into this conference room thirty minutes ago.

  Funny, the reverend had been all laughter, full of energy and everything when he preached on Sunday. I’d actually enjoyed the sermon about Queen Vashti and Queen Esther. The way the reverend broke it down made the story something that I could relate to. But today, there was no sign of the man who had stood in the pulpit on Sunday. The man sitting all the way at the other end of this conference table wore a frown so deep, it looked like he had crevices in his forehead.

  “No, sir,” I said, finally answering Reverend Davenport’s question. “I’ve never worked in a church, even though, as I said, I am a Christian. But what I believe is that music is music and–”

  The reverend raised his hand, stopping me. He glared at me so hard, it made the collar of my shirt feel even tighter. “Music is not music, son,” he said in a tone that let me know he thought I had some lessons to learn, and that he was going to be the one to school me. “There is nothing that can compare to the music that is set aside for the Lor
d. And the people who sing that other music . . .”

  He waved his hand in the air as if anyone who sang anything besides gospel was only doing the devil’s work. Well, since I’d just told these people that my ultimate goal was to start my own R&B label, I guess this was the end of this road.

  Reverend Davenport looked at me as if he was waiting for me to speak, but I didn’t know what to say. Not that I really thought he cared about what I might say. All I wanted to do at this point was get up and get out.

  But just when I was about to rise, one of the women–a younger one–from the right side of the table said, “Well, young man, you have been the most impressive one we’ve met with so far.”

  That was a shocker!

  Slowly, I edged right back into my seat, wanting to hear more of what the blond lady had to say.

  “What I like about you,” she began, and then looked around the table, “and I’m not trying to speak for anyone else, is that you have dreams you’re passionate about. And that passion will always come out in music.”

  “Yes.” The women and my uncle who were sitting near her nodded and smiled.

  I didn’t have to look at the other side of the table to know that the opposite was going on.

  “Well,” my uncle said, standing up, “if no one has any more questions . . .”

  Now, the whole table was in accord; they shook their heads as if they all couldn’t wait to get rid of me.

  Uncle Matt nodded at me. I guessed that was my signal to stand up and get out. So I did. But before I turned to the door, I said, “Thank you all so much for your consideration. When I came to church on Sunday with Uncle Matt, I knew this was a different kind of place. A church that related to the people, and didn’t just preach messages that went over our heads.” I looked right into Reverend Davenport’s eyes when I said, “I could feel the anointing here, and would love to be a part of this ministerial team.”

  Well, the little prep talk that Miles had given me worked because even the reverend nodded. He still didn’t smile, but at least his frown wasn’t so deep.

  Slowly, I stepped to the door where my uncle shook my hand and patted me on the back. “We’ll be in touch,” he whispered.

  As soon as I stepped into that hallway and my uncle closed the door behind me, I broke into a trot. I couldn’t get away fast enough; I had walked in with such hope, but, now, it didn’t look so good. It was too bad, too, because the hours would have been perfect: meeting with the choir for rehearsals twice a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and then Sunday services. I certainly could’ve handled that. And Quintin would’ve been happy. No way could he have complained about my time being taken away from Tru Harmony.

  By the time I got to the front of the church, my tie was off and I had unfastened the top two buttons on my shirt. My mind was already on other things, like the fact that I did have to find a job since it didn’t look like this one was going to come through.

  I was deep inside my head when I heard all this laughter. In front of me, there were three kids, well, not kids really. They looked younger than me, probably college students, who were leaning on a Ford truck that was parked right next to me.

  I slowed my roll so that I could check out the group: two girls, one guy, though even from feet away, I could tell that the guy was gay. I hated to put labels on anyone, but it was the way the dude was dressed–better than the two girls and his hair was done up, too.

  I checked out the females. One looked like she should’ve been in somebody’s video, or maybe a movie, she was that fine. The other one was cute too–a big girl, who seemed to have her own style.

  As I got closer, they stopped talking.

  The guy nodded. “Whassup?” he said in a voice that was deeper than I’d expected.

  I nodded back, but it was hard to take my eyes away from the girls. Finally, I hit the remote to the BMW and slipped into Miles’s car. I tried to focus on just putting the key in the ignition and going about my business. But I couldn’t help it; I wanted one last look. And when I turned to glance out the window, I was shocked when she was looking straight at me. Through the window, I could see her light brown eyes filled with clarity and laughter. She looked at me as if she knew me, as if she could see through me.

  I was mesmerized. But only for a second.

  I hit the accelerator and the tires screeched against the gravel, leaving a trail of gray dust behind me. Now, I was really sorry that I wasn’t going to be working at Greater Faith. Because if Reverend Davenport was drawing in the honeys like that, this was where I wanted to be.

  “Dang!” I whispered to myself as soon as I had that thought. How could I be thinking about church girls like that? I felt like I needed to pull over to the side of the road and repent, but since I was in the middle of traffic and about to roll onto Interstate 20, I couldn’t. So, I just asked God to forgive me for being such a heathen. “I’m just a man, made of flesh,” I said, repeating what I’d heard some of the men in my family say. But then, I added my own spin. “But dang, Lord, why’d you have to make the honeys so fine?”

  I laughed a little, then got real serious. It was time to get back to business. Time to think about how I was gonna find a job.

  Chapter 6

  This was almost as bad as hell week. Well, maybe not–nothing was as tough as crossing and becoming a proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. No, this was more like finals, when every hour was devoted to studying. Yeah, that’s kind of the way the last week had felt. Not that it was bad, naw, this was all good. It was just a lot of good stuff.

  It started a week ago, last Tuesday. When I walked out of that church, my mind had been on nothing except finding a job; that is, if you didn’t count the few minutes I spent checking out that female who’d been standing in the parking lot. But once I jumped inside Miles’s car, my mind left the honey and turned right back to the money, which I did not have. Quintin and Miles kept telling me not to worry about it, but I wasn’t trying to hear that. A grown man had to take care of his, and that’s just what I was going to do.

  That had been my thought as I parked Miles’s car in front of the three-bedroom house that was one of the many properties that Miles’s parents owned all over the country. But I didn’t have any time to wallow in the elegant surroundings that were really too high class for three frat brothers just out of college. My phone vibrated on my hip the moment I put the key in the door.

  At first, when I saw Uncle Matt’s number flash across the screen, I wanted to ignore it. I figured if he was calling me this soon, then I had definitely embarrassed him in front of his Christian friends. But for some reason, I picked up anyway.

  “Congratulations, young man,” he said right after I said hello. “If you want it, you’ve got it. The board of directors of Greater Faith Baptist wants to offer you the position of assistant minister of music.”

  “That quick?” I asked, instead of saying thank you. I couldn’t believe they’d gotten back to me so fast. Then, my uncle explained what they’d already told me, that they didn’t want to waste any time and were ready to move forward.

  “And,” my uncle added, “you impressed so many on the board that they didn’t see why we should keep on interviewing when we’d found the one we wanted. It’s not like they had to check you out. I’m the best reference you could have.”

  I really wanted to make it on my own, but at that moment, I was so grateful for the hookup. I thanked my uncle, before he asked me to turn around and come right back to Greater Faith. From that moment, I was stone busy, running back and forth to the church, sometimes two and three times a day, meeting with individual board members, trying to get their vision. Everyone was cordial enough; even the ones who didn’t seem to want me at first seemed to be cool once I’d been selected. Even Brother Steve had me sitting in his office as he laughed and joked as if we were old buddies. At first, I wasn’t feeling that, but then he told me he was frat, and that changed everything.

  The only dark side in the last week
had been my meeting with Reverend Davenport. The reverend was the single person who didn’t seem to be too happy with my selection. It made me wonder how I’d been chosen if the man in charge didn’t want me. I hoped that I wasn’t caught up in some church politics; though, as soon as I met with the reverend, I stopped thinking that. It didn’t feel like politics at all; it felt personal.

  During our meeting, Reverend Davenport said, “There were quite a few on the board who found your ability and knowledge for music impressive,” as if he wasn’t one of the impressed people. “I just hope that you will make Greater Faith your priority.”

  “Yes, sir, I will, I’d told him. But my words didn’t change the scowl on his face.

  “I know you want to go out there in the world and make it big time with all of that secular music.” Reverend Davenport had said “secular” as if it were a curse word.

  “I will never let what I do outside of church get in the way of what’s going on in here.”

  He shook his head, and looked at me as if I didn’t know a thing. “What you do outside should be the same as what you do in here. It should all be for the Lord. Only the things that we do for Him will last. Only those things will count.”

  I nodded, because I wasn’t about to get into any kind of argument with the reverend. But what I really wanted to tell him was that just because a song didn’t tell the story of Jesus didn’t mean that it wasn’t worthy to be sung. But since I wanted–no, I needed this job–I kept my lips smacked together like I agreed with every word the reverend said.

  Then, once I made it past the reverend, I sat down with Ms. Carolyn, the church secretary. She had me sign a ton of papers before she loaded me down with everything about Greater Faith Baptist: the church doctrine, the bylaws, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.

  I made it through all of those days, and now I was standing next to the keyboard in front of the choir. My parents had raised me right, so I never spent a lot of time talking about anybody, but this choir was surely a motley crew. I mean, most churches had the choirs separated by groups. But, at Greater Faith, the youth sat right next to the seniors. From the young guy with pink-tipped spiked hair to an older lady with hair that was so blond, I needed to put on my sunglasses to stop the glare. It didn’t matter though; I was gonna rock whatever they gave me to work with.