“You are fuckin’ kiddin’ me,” Susan said, not believing the story. “Shawna, girl, is you lying or tellin’ the truth. Please tell me that you lyin’… that you makin’ this shit up.”
“I swear to God, Miss Susan,” Shawna said. “If I was not there, I would not believe it either. I watched it all go down, with my own eyes. That bitch got arrested and everything. Her own best friend was there, trying to get with Tron, too, I guess.”
Susan shook her head. “That don’t make no damn sense,” she said. “But I know how, whatever her name is, feels… the THOT.”
Shawna giggled. “Miss Susan,” she said. “What I tell you about using these words you hear on the radio and stuff, girl?”
Susan laughed. “I got ears,” she said. “I hear what is goin’ on. So, it sound like to me, that the nigga done gone and got himself a trap queen.”
Shawna lightly tapped Ms. Susan’s shoulder. “Stop,” she said, playfully. “But, yeah, basically. He done got trapped already. It sound like they made it official and stuff when I got there. I’m so done with it. I swear to God, I am.”
“And you said that her best friend was there, too?” Susan asked.
Shawna nodded her head, making eye contact with her in the mirror as she worked on the back of her head. “Yep.”
Susan shook her head. “That kinda shit don’t make no fuckin’ sense,” she said. “Excuse my language. But it is a shame how a woman always got to worry about her best friend trying to get with her man. I don’t know what the hell is up with that shit…excuse me.”
“Well, Miss Susan,” Shawna said. “I was thinkin’ bout you and why you was try’na get your hair done on Valentine’s Day. You my only client that was try’na get her hair done on Valentine’s Day. All my other clients came swoopin’ in last week and over the weekend so they could be flawless for today. What is your story, girl?”
Susan shrugged. “Well,” she said hesitantly.
Already, Shawna could tell that Ms. Susan was trying to come up with what she was going to say. “Miss Susan?” Shawna asked, again, after hearing the hesitation. “So, what is your story?”
“You know my story, girl,” Susan said. “And I don’t need you makin’ me feel guilty about it. I just don’t, Shawna.”
“I ain’t try’na make you feel guilty, Miss Susan,” Shawna said, hating that her favorite client would say something like that, let alone actually think it. “Why you say that?”
“Because,” Susan said. “I sit here and listen to you and all your Young and the Restless stuff you have going on. And I think that I’m supposed to be the role model, but I just don’t feel like I am. I am old enough to be your mother and here I am, tellin’ you about how I’m talking to some dude in Ohio who is already taken…who don’t belong to me, no way.”
“So,” Shawna said, deciding this was her chance to go in for the kill and find out the motivation behind that kind of stuff. “Why do you do that? I’m not judging; I just want to understand. While part of me is really pissed at Tron’s side chick, more-so because he kept it from me and carried on with it for however long, I can’t help but to feel…to feel…to feel sorry for her. When I see her and what all of this is doing to her, I kinda feel sorry for it. And, don’t take this the wrong way, but that makes me kinda think about you. You know that you deserve better than being some woman on the side for a man, Miss Susan. Why do you do it? Why do you go along with that and let these niggas – excuse me, men is the word I should use – think that doin’ that sorta thing is just okay?”
Susan looked down at the floor, wishing she had an answer already prepared. However, she did not. She knew, at this point, that honesty would truly have to be the best policy.
“Well,” Susan said, hesitantly. “Sometimes I want to get married again, and sometimes I don’t. Most of the time, if you want the truth, I don’t. I mean, it sounds fun, especially since I don’t have small children and stuff, but actually getting it to happen is harder than it seems. You will see as you get older. The older you get, the harder it is to meet somebody. And that is really true for this redneck-ass city. There just ain’t as many men to choose from like what I would have back in Baltimore with everything that is going on out there and it being close to Washington D.C. I done had a couple white men try to holler. Hey now! But you know how that goes. I just don’t know if I can get in bed and marry one of them. I just don’t know.”
“So, you just like it because it is no pressure on your end?” Shawna asked, wanting clarification. “Is that what I’m hearing?”
“Basically,” Susan said, nodding her head. “I mean, if he lived here in the city, I might not be involved like that, but he don’t. He live an hour away, in a whole ‘nother state, and has a whole ‘nother life going on there. I don’t have to know what is going on and what he is doing, and who he is doing it with. All I have to do is be available when he got a little time to spend with me. Plus, you know, Miss Susan gets tired of being alone, too, right? I get tired of that, too. And, from the sounds of it, it don’t sound like his wife is keeping him all that happy, if you want the truth.”
The last part of what Ms. Susan said hit a bit of a sore spot with Shawna. Sure, she did her best at hiding it so that Susan would not pick up on how she was feeling. However, with hearing that his wife must not be keeping him happy, Shawna could not help but think about how Desirae must have been thinking the very same thing when it came to Tron. When the two of them had talked, and gone over to jump on him to really give it to him, Shawna definitely saw that was the impression that Desirae had been under. It hurt a little because she really thought that she was doing everything she could to keep Tron happy. Shawna had even thought she was open enough for communication so that if he was not happy with something, he would feel comfortable talking to her about it so that they could work on it rather than him going out and keeping a chick on the side.
“I see,” Shawna said, in a cumbersome tone. “Well, if you happy with that, then so am I, I guess.”
“I’m just happy I ain’t got to be alone all the damn time like I was for so long,” Susan confessed. “It gets hard after a while, you know? But, I will tell you this, that this sister is keeping her eye open for when Mister Right comes along. I’m just playing with this nigga for right now, but I’m not going to be like some of these other women who try to keep a man that did not belong to her in the first place. I promise you, the very second the right brother comes along, Miss Susan is going to snatch him up without a second thought and drop the nigga in Dayton like a bad habit.”
Shawna snickered, loving each and every time she got to enjoy Ms. Susan’s company.
“Oh,” Shawna said. “That reminds me. I got more I gotta tell you.”
“More?” Susan asked. “Girl, y’all young people nowadays, with the Facebook and the Instagram and the THOT business really do stay busy, don’t you? What is it now? I swear, y’all could have your own reality show. You know what they say, right? Pain pays nowadays.”
“No, Miss Susan,” Shawna said. “No reality show for me. But, anyway, like I was saying, you are not gon’ believe who is getting married after only knowing the guy for six weeks…and is going to pull the wedding off by the first of April. Just guess?”
“Who?” Susan asked, wanting to know.
“My sister, Morgan,” Shawna said. “Her boo thang proposed to her this morning when the two of them went out for a Valentine’s Day breakfast.”
“Aw hell naw,” Susan said, not realizing that she had moved her head. Soon enough, she felt the heat of the hot comb touch her scalp for a split second. She winced at the painful feeling before she continued on. “Girl, you a lie,” she said. “Morgan try’na marry some nigga that she done only known for like six weeks?”
Shawna nodded. “Hmm, hmm,” she answered. “I told her that she is crazy.”
“Well,” Susan said, smirking. “Sound like the nigga musta had some good dick.”
Shawna was shocked to hear such la
nguage come out of Ms. Susan’s mouth. She stopped for a second to playfully slap Ms. Susan’s shoulder. “Miss Susan,” Shawna said. “Your language, girl. I can’t believe I just heard you say something like that. Oh my God.”
“Girl, whatever,” Ms. Susan said. “I only said it cause I know that is exactly what you was thinking. Why else would you marry a man that you have only known for six weeks? For all she know, he could have some kids or a secret wife and family or some stuff in Oklahoma or somewhere. Girl, you betta tell her that I said that she better do her research before she walk down that aisle. I don’t know about nobody marrying somebody after six weeks.”
“She says she loves him, Miss Susan,” Shawna told her. “And that he got some job in Chicago that he was not gon’ take unless his boo thang go with him, you know?”
“A betta job?” Ms. Susan asked. “In Chicago? Well, Shawna, damn. That changes everything. You ain’t say all that. He might just be makin’ some real money, then. If that’s the case, she betta go on and jump on that train until she with him at the bank and putting her name on the dotted line so that she can have access to the money and stuff. You said they try’na get married in six weeks?”
“Yep,” Shawna said. “He gotta take the job by April first, so they try’na get this done and over with quick.”
“Six weeks is long enough to get to know somebody,” Susan said. “She’ll be alright.”
Shawna shook her head, knowing that Ms. Susan was only seeing the dollar signs of Morgan’s crazy situation.
“So, Tron is still on your mind, huh?” Susan asked. “I can tell that he is.”
Shawna shook her head. “Naw,” she answered. “He ain’t.”
“Girl, stop frontin’,” Susan told Shawna. “If he wasn’t, you would not have asked me about me and mine. I ain’t stupid, girl. I know, I know. You ain’t got to lie to me.”
“Well,” Shawna said. “It’s not that he is on my mind, but, you know, it’s Valentine’s Day.”
“And you feelin’ all sappy and shit?” Susan asked. “Excuse my language, girl.”
“Sort of,” Shawna admitted. “It’s my first time being alone on Valentine’s Day in a long time.”
“Do you still love Tron, Shawna?” Susan came right on out and asked. “Tell me the truth. Don’t think about what all has happened and how you think you supposed to feel based on what society tells you that you should feel. Look deep in your heart. I know you’re hurt and all that – been there, done that. But, tell me this, and be honest with yourself: Do you still love him?”
Shawna stopped what she was doing and looked up, into the mirror. She and Susan’s eyes met as Shawna took a moment to think. “Maybe,” she said, as she looked back down into Ms. Susan’s hair. “But I can’t get back with him. Not after what he did. I would never look at him the same way again. Never.”
Chapter 3
Tron forgot how much he enjoyed spending time with his daughter Ebony. Ever since he and Andria had broken up, things had been kind of dicey. Sure, the two of them were somewhat co-parenting well at this point. However, it took quite a bit of cursing, and a few public scenes, for either of them to get to this point. On Friday, Andria had driven Ebony up from Louisville so that the little girl could spend the weekend with her father. It really was not the best time for Tron to spend time with his daughter, with being stabbed at the club a little less than two weeks ago. However, he knew that he could really smooth her over for a while if he made her birthday present on Valentine’s Day.
Tron looked in his rearview mirror at Ebony. The little brown-skinned girl, with a missing tooth in her smile, looked up at her father when she heard him speak. “So, what did you decide?” Tron asked. “You want pizza or Applebee’s.” He remembered exactly what kind of food his daughter liked, trying to make sure that she got it each day that she was staying with him.
“I don’t know, Daddy,” Ebony said.
“Well, you need to decide,” Tron told her. “Daddy is coming up on the highway and he is either gonna go left or right, so you better hurry up.”
“Applebee’s!” Ebony announced, as if it were going out of style. “Let’s go to Applebee’s. I wanna go there, Daddy.”
Tron chuckled and looked back at the road ahead of him. “Okay,” he said, smiling. “No problem.”
On the highway, Tron made sure to continue conversation with his daughter. Even if he couldn’t really think of anything to talk about, he would make her think of something. As he drove up Interstate 64, toward the northwest side of the city, all he could think about was how fast his daughter was growing up. And he could not even say that she was growing up before his eyes. He did not get to see her all that often, or at least as often as he would like. And, at this point in his life, he sometimes regretted some of his choices that led to that. Tron did not like the idea of being one of those men who had children in different cities and states. Something about that just had never appealed to him. Now, with Desirae’s crazy ass pregnant, that is exactly what Tron would be.
Since getting out of the hospital and declining to press charges against Desirae for stabbing him at the club, Tron now felt as if he had a chip on his shoulder. At certain points, as he and his daughter headed to Applebee’s, he found it incredibly difficult to focus on what she was saying. Something – be it a word or the name of a street or the information on a billboard – would always trip him up mentally and make him think about Desirae. And his thoughts were not flattering, to say the least.
Because of Desirae, his club had been royally embarrassed. Tron practically kicked himself every day for not figuring out that something was unstable about that girl. He hated that he had not picked up on all of the signs before he got in deep with her, keeping her on the side as a permanent thing to do. Now, more than ever, Tron was sure that she had purposely gotten pregnant by him. Desirae may never admit it, but at least that’s what he thought. In fact, he had no problem believing that is exactly what she did. He had actually had a peaceful couple of weeks without talking to her – a couple of weeks that he would probably not say was worth being stabbed with a fork for, though. However, Tron knew that the silence would eventually have to come to an end. That woman – whoever she is, was, or will be – is pregnant by him. Every so often, Tron would try to think up ways that he could bring up a paternity test. He was still at a loss, but knew that he had time to think about it some more.
“Daddy, you hear me?” Ebony broke through her father’s train of thought saying, “When are you gonna take me on the trip?”
Fuck, Tron thought. He remembered promising to take Ebony on a trip, but did not think that she would actually remember and hold him to it. As he thought about it for a second, trying to come up with an answer, the idea crossed his mind that Andria was probably keeping that hope alive in Ebony. She could be a sneaky little bitch. There was no doubt about that.
“Soon, Ebony,” Tron said. “Soon. When Daddy got time away from his businesses and stuff, and the weather is not so cold and icy and snowy, Daddy is gonna swoop down and pick his little girl up. Have you thought about where you wanna go? Somewhere warm, right.” Somewhere warm, Tron actually hoped.
“No,” Ebony said. “I read about some islands, but I still don’t know where I wanna go to yet. I will think about it and let you know.”
“Some islands?” Tron said, sounding surprised. “How are we going to get to islands if cars can’t drive across water?”
“Planes, Daddy,” Ebony responded. “We can take a plane. It’s easy.”
“Easy, huh?” Tron said, his voice lowering. Right then, he knew that Andria was planting stuff in Ebony’s head then watering it so it would grow.
“Daddy?” Ebony started. “Where is Shawna? Did she go out of town or something? When am I going to see Shawna?”
Fuck, Tron thought. This was the very topic I have been trying to steer her away from for the last three days.
Tron had actually thought the entire weekend would pass without
Ebony bringing Shawna back up. She had asked about Shawna when Andria first dropped her off – maybe another one of Andria’s seeds. However, just as she was asking, Tron took the opportunity of carrying her stuff upstairs then coming back down to talk to Andria about some parental stuff to make her forget about it. Since then, Tron had kept her busy enough to where by the time she got home, she went right to sleep in his bed.
“Yeah, sort of,” Tron lied, knowing how much his little girl Ebony loved Shawna.
“Oh, okay,” Ebony said. “So, when is she coming back? Will she be back before I go back home?”
Tron cringed under his breath. “I don’t know,” he answered. “I don’t know. I don’t know when she’s coming back. And she had already planned to leave on her trip before me and your mama planned for you to come up here. I talked to her though…” Tron took a moment to think about where he could take this. “And she said that she hopes she comes back before you leave.”
“Good,” Ebony said, liking what she heard. “I hope she comes back soon.”
Within ten minutes or so, Tron was pulling into the parking lot of Applebee’s. Since it was in the middle of the day, on a weekday, the restaurant was not crowded, which Tron liked. Quickly, he helped Ebony out of the car and they went inside, a hostess seating the two of them in a booth on the side. As soon as Tron had ordered drinks for the two of them, he could feel his phone vibrating in his pocket.
“So, how is your mom’s side of the family?” Tron asked, trying to keep Ebony busy as she colored on the complementary coloring sheet.
As Ebony began to talk about her grandparents and aunts and uncles, Tron pulled his phone out of his pocket. He tried to get to it before it stopped vibrating. Just as he was about to unlock the screen to answer, he saw who was calling him: Desirae.
Tron glanced up at Ebony and nodded before looking back down into his phone screen. Without seconds, the MISSED CALL alert popped up. Behind it was an UNREAD MESSAGE icon. Tron unlocked his phone and went straight to the text messages. It, just like the call he had just ignored, was Desirae. The text message read: Enough of this cold war shit, nigga. We need to talk. ASAP.
The Diary of a Side Chick 4: A Naptown Hood Drama (Side Chick Diaries) Page 4