by Earl Sewell
“Oh, God. Please don’t do that. I can’t stand tests. I just know stuff because I remember everything I hear and I sort of have this photographic-memory thing going on,” I admitted.
Placing his right index finger on his right cheek, Uncle Herman said, “I’m going to talk to Raven about it. I personally think you’re smarter than you realize.”
When Uncle Herman said that to me, I didn’t know why I became emotional. Maybe it was because it had been a long time since anyone had thought or told me I was smart. I wanted to hug him. I wanted to press my face against his chest, wrap my arms around him and wait for him to hug me back. Although I truly wanted to do this, I didn’t, because it would probably feel awkward since he and I had never had that type of sentimental relationship. Still, I felt the need to express my gratitude in some way.
I curled my fingers into a fist and extended my arm for a fist bump. “Yeah, Uncle Herman, I am probably the smartest girl on the planet,” I proudly boasted.
Uncle Herman returned the fist bump and then said, “Well, here is your money.” He handed me my fifty bucks. I quickly took it and counted it.
Laughing, Uncle Herman asked, “What? You don’t trust me?”
“Hey, when it comes to my cash, I have got to make sure,” I said as I rolled up the five ten-dollar bills he’d given to me.
“I’m going to go check on Maya,” Uncle Herman said.
I was cool with that because I’d gotten my cash. I exited the house and was about to find Anna to see what she was up to. The last time I’d seen her, she was in the backyard, blabbing on the phone with one of her girlfriends. As I walked around the house, I received a phone call of my own. I removed my phone and saw that Misalo was calling me.
“Hello?” I answered as a sinister smile spread across my face.
“Yeah, what’s up?” He didn’t sound very pleased, and I had a good idea why.
“What happened, honey? You don’t sound too happy,” I said. I wanted Misalo to let his guard down and totally trust me.
“Can you meet me somewhere? I’d like to talk to you,” he said.
“Sure. I’m not doing anything. Where you would like to hook up?” I asked.
“Do you know where the community center is?” he asked.
“Yeah. It’s near the high school, right?” I asked.
“Yeah. That’s the spot. Can you meet me there in about twenty minutes?” he asked.
“Sure. I’ll see you then,” I said and hung up. I stood still for a moment as I replayed our brief conversation in my mind and tried to analyze what it meant. Then a strange feeling came over me. I suddenly felt as if someone were watching me. I glanced over my shoulder and up at a window of the house. I saw Maya standing in the window, glaring down at me.
“That’s creepy,” I muttered to myself as I continued on my way.
* * *
When I arrived at the community center, Misalo hadn’t made it there yet. I walked toward the gym and watched some guys, who looked as if they were college age, play basketball. It was clearly shirts versus skins, and I’m not going to even lie, but they looked like gods. Their bodies were hot, and one guy in particular had a nice butt. I was so caught up with peeping in on the basketball game that I didn’t hear Misalo come up behind me. He touched my shoulder, causing me to nearly leap out of my skin.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you,” he said, apologizing.
Swallowing hard and placing my hand over my heart, I said, “It’s okay.”
“Come on. Let’s sit down,” he said and motioned for us to sit on a nearby bench. I let Misalo walk in front of me so that I could sneak a peek at his rear end. He was wearing workout shorts and a tank top. I must admit, his behind looked delicious enough to smack. I also checked out his arms, which, for some reason, seemed bigger than I remembered.
“Are you lifting weights?” I asked.
“Yeah. I’ve been working on building more muscle,” he said as he sat down. I sat next to him and boldly touched his biceps muscle.
“Nice,” I said.
“Look, I wanted to thank you for the tip you gave me,” he said.
I almost didn’t hear him, because I was thinking about what it would feel like to have his arms wrapped around me.
“Viviana, did you hear me?” Misalo snapped me out of my reverie.
“Oh, yeah. No problem, baby. When I overheard Maya talking to Carlo and making plans to meet up, I knew I had to tell you so that you could see with your own eyes how Maya is playing you.”
“You know, I didn’t want to believe that Maya was like that. I really didn’t want to fully believe that she and Carlo were dating behind my back, but after seeing them today at Pizza Hut, there is no way that I could ever believe anything she says.” Judging by the look in his eyes, I knew Misalo’s feelings were teetering between anger and sorrow.
Confidently moving closer to him, I leaned over and spoke purposefully in his ear. “If I were your girl, you’d never have to worry about me creeping around on you,” I said sweetly as I softly caressed his back.
Misalo turned and met my gaze. “Is that what you want?” he asked.
“I want to make you happy. I think you deserve a girl who is trustworthy.” I knew that I was stabbing Maya in the back, but I didn’t care. In my mind, my actions were undeniably justifiable.
“Don’t you think dating me is wrong?” he asked.
I kissed his earlobe. “You’re not married and neither am I. You broke up with Maya, didn’t you?” I asked, although I knew the answer to the question.
“Yes,” he answered.
“Then you’re just as single as I am. I don’t think there is anything wrong with us dating. Besides, all is fair in love and war.” I kissed his earlobe again, then his neck, and placed my hand on his thigh. When Misalo didn’t resist my advances, a wicked sense of victory filled my heart. I couldn’t wait to flaunt my relationship with him in front of Maya.
Ten
MAYA
Keysha hurried into my room. She was wearing a pretty yellow top, a braided brown belt and a cute white skirt with brown sandals, complete with a matching brown purse. Her hair was freshly braided, and on her ears she wore a pair of the cutest earrings I’d ever seen before.
“Girl, I got here as quickly as I could. What’s the big emergency?” Keysha was breathless as she sat and rested her purse on my bed. I’d called her in hysterics and begged her to come over to my house as soon as she got off from work.
“Why are you all dressed up?” I asked, noticing how pretty she looked.
“It’s my dad’s birthday. Everyone is going to take him out to dinner in about an hour,” Keysha said.
“I’m sorry,” I said. I felt bad for making her come visit me when she really didn’t have the time.
“Don’t be sorry. I’m here for you and I always will be,” Keysha said.
I sat down at the foot of my bed and placed my face in my hands. “It’s all messed up, Keysha. Everything has gone totally wrong, and I don’t know what to do. My mom isn’t here, and I feel like I’m going crazy.” I rose to my feet and began pacing. Keysha stood up, clutched my shoulders and forced me to stop moving.
“Maya, what got messed up?” Keysha asked, genuinely concerned about me.
“Misalo saw me eating with Carlo at Pizza Hut,” I said, feeling my words getting lodged in my throat.
“Get out! Are you serious?” Keysha didn’t believe I was telling her the truth.
“Yes. I’m very serious. I wouldn’t joke about something like this.”
“How did he find you?” Keysha asked as she covered her mouth with her hand.
Shrugging my shoulders, I said, “I don’t know. He just sort of walked in on us.”
“Well, what did you say?” Keysha a
sked.
“I froze up. I couldn’t talk. All I know is that when Misalo left, he looked at me as if he hated my guts.” I got choked up, and tears began flowing.
Keysha hugged me as I cried on her shoulder. “Okay. I think we can still fix this,” she said, trying to calm me.
“How? I can’t even get him to talk to me,” I said, pulling away from her before my tears ruined her pretty blouse.
“On my way over here, I walked past the community center and saw Misalo walking in. He looked as if he was going to work out,” Keysha said, handing me my sunglasses from the top of my dresser. “Put them on.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because I’m going to help you clear all of this up today. We’re going over to the community center, and you and Misalo are going to stop avoiding each other and talk. You guys just need to work out your problem.”
I sniffled as I put on my sunglasses. “You’re right,” I said. “It’s time to stop being so stubborn and go get my man.” I exhaled deeply as I moved toward my bedroom door. I stopped in the bathroom briefly just to clean myself up a little.
Keysha followed me. “I don’t want to look hideous when he sees me,” I said, reaching for a tissue in the bathroom cupboard.
“You look fine,” Keysha assured me as I blew my nose.
“Yeah, right.” I didn’t agree with her.
“Listen to me. Looking a bit unhinged will help you in this situation,” Keysha said as she pulled my hair away from my face.
“How?” I asked.
“Because if you look like you’re really upset, Misalo will see that you totally love him and he should at least hear your side of the story,” Keysha explained.
“What if he doesn’t listen? What if he walks away like he has been? It’s so unlike him to just turn his back on me,” I said, trying to understand his behavior.
“That’s because his heart is just as broken as yours. He’s just dealing with it differently. Besides, if he doesn’t talk to you, he’s going to have me to deal with.”
What Keysha said made sense to me. “Okay, I’m ready. Let’s do this.” I swallowed hard before walking out of the bathroom toward my unknown future with Misalo.
* * *
When Keysha and I walked through the front door of the community center, we were thankful that the air-conditioning was working, because it was still very hot outside.
“I need some water,” Keysha remarked as soon as she spotted the water fountain mounted on a nearby wall. She headed over for a long drink. I glanced around the lobby for signs of Misalo but did not see him.
“Are you sure it was him that you saw?” I asked as I walked over to Keysha.
“Of course I’m sure it was him,” Keysha said as she tucked one of her long braids behind her ear. “He’s around here someplace.”
“Let me check the basketball court.” I walked over to the gym doors and peeked inside. All I saw were some college age guys shooting hoops. I turned to Keysha and said, “He’s not in there.”
“When he works out, what does he usually do?” Keysha asked.
I thought about the last time I saw Misalo at the gym and remembered that he’d been on this kick to build muscle. Snapping my fingers, I said, “The weight room. He’s probably in there.”
Keysha and I walked up a flight of stairs to the second floor and entered the weight room. We walked around the room but did not find him.
“Where the heck could he be?” Keysha said aloud.
“Well, let’s check the indoor track. Maybe he’s there jogging around or something,” I suggested.
“I hope so, because the only place left would be the men’s locker room and I’m not going in there to look for him,” Keysha said jokingly. As we left the weight room, Keysha couldn’t help but notice a good-looking guy who was flexing his muscles in a mirror. “He’s cute.” Keysha pointed to the guy who’d caught her eye.
Slightly irritated, I said, “Can we focus on finding Misalo?”
“Don’t get mad. He was cute. And I could see myself enjoying the feel of his arms wrapped around me.” Keysha chuckled.
We walked down a corridor toward a section of the gym where there were televisions, small sofas and bar stools and people could relax and kill time. As we approached that area, I stopped. My eyes narrowed to slits as I focused on Misalo sitting on a stool, sipping a drink he’d probably gotten from one of the vending machines. Leaning over him from behind was Viviana. She had her hands inside his shirt and was rubbing his chest. Her cheek was pressed against his, and I didn’t like it one bit.
“What the hell is this?” I blurted out.
“What?” Keysha asked, startled by the change in the tone of my voice.
“Them!” I pointed in the direction of Viviana and Misalo. Keysha had to move slightly to her right in order to see them because a vending machine against the wall blocked her view.
“Oh, wow!” Keysha said as I rushed toward them to find out why my cousin was all up on my man.
“What the hell is this about, Misalo?” I said, shoving Viviana away from him.
“Oh, you’ve got some nerve! I’ve busted you three times with another guy,” Misalo yelled as he rose to his feet.
“You wouldn’t even give me a chance to explain my side of the damn story!” I screamed.
Raising his voice to an equally aggressive level, Misalo said, “You have no story to explain, Maya. I’ve seen you with my own eyes.”
“You haven’t seen anything, Misalo!” I shouted as my emotions took over.
“I’ve seen enough, Maya,” he growled as he started walking away from me.
“No. You can’t walk away from this!” I rushed around to stand in front of him.
Viviana interjected, “Maya, you just need to let him go. He’s done with you!”
Viviana ticked me off. I turned around slowly and gave her an evil glare that would have made the devil jump with fear. “First of all, you need to stay out of my damn business!” I pointed my finger at her.
“Excuse me, but in case you didn’t notice, you were in my business. Misalo and I were doing just fine until your loudmouthed butt showed up with this mutt you call a friend,” Viviana retorted.
“Oh, hell no. You need to watch who you’re calling a mutt!” Keysha stormed.
I knew Keysha wasn’t going to allow Viviana to insult her and get away with it. I momentarily glanced around at the other people in this section of the community center. They had stunned expressions on their faces. They all watched and waited to see the outcome of the argument.
“You don’t have any business with Misalo!” I exclaimed, raising my voice again at Viviana.
“Maya, you need to go find Carlo. That’s who you really want,” Misalo said.
I turned back to him. His words hurt me so badly. I felt my breath escaping me. “Is that what you think?” I said, tearing up.
“It doesn’t matter what I think, because you say one thing, Maya, and do another,” Misalo said, completely believing that I’d done something wrong.
“I’ve done nothing wrong!” I responded, pleading with him to believe me.
“You shouldn’t believe a word she’s saying. Maya has always been a sneaky liar,” Viviana boldly announced.
I stopped restraining myself and lunged for her. I tried to grab a fistful of her hair so that I could sling her to the floor and punch her until my arms got tired. Viviana quickly moved out of the way. I began swinging my arms wildly at her, hoping to land a punch. Viviana easily maneuvered around my fist windmill, grabbed my hair and punched the side of my face. I screamed and cursed her as she continually punched me in the jaw. She slung me to the floor and got on top of me.
“Damn! Move, Misalo!” I heard Keysha shout.
The next thing I knew, Viv
iana was being pulled off of me by Keysha. Keysha slammed Viviana against a wall. Viviana grabbed Keysha’s blouse and ripped it at the shoulder. Keysha nailed Viviana with a fist to the mouth. Viviana began clawing at Keysha’s face and neck. Viviana then grabbed hold of Keysha’s hair and pulled it so hard that one of her braids came out.
“Oh, no, you didn’t pull my damn hair!” Keysha barked at Viviana as she once again slammed her back and head against the wall, knocking the wind of out Viviana.
“Come on. Stop it!” Misalo finally stepped between Viviana and Keysha.
“You need to stay out of my business!” Viviana said as she released Keysha’s hair. “I’m not done with you yet, either!” Viviana pointed her finger at me as Misalo pushed her away from us. He was heading toward the door.
“Misalo, you need to realize that I love you!” I said tearfully.
I was about to chase after him but stopped when I heard Keysha say, “I can’t believe she ruined my outfit and messed up my hair.”
I turned toward my best friend, who’d gotten into a fight for me. I felt horrible. I could see red claw marks on her cheek and neck where Viviana had scratched her. Keysha’s blouse was ripped, and part of her bra was exposed.
“I’m so sorry,” I said as my legs buckled beneath me. I crumpled to the floor and began sobbing uncontrollably.
I thought for sure Keysha would be so pissed off with me for starting a fight and forcing her to get involved that she’d walk away and leave me there. Keysha said nothing. She helped me to my feet, and we walked out the door, battered and bruised, before the authorities could arrive and ask a bunch of questions that I didn’t want to answer.
Eleven
VIVIANA
Misalo offered to drive me home. I happily accepted his offer because I didn’t want to walk down the street, looking like a victim of mob violence. As soon as I sat in the passenger seat, I flipped down the sun visor and took a look at my face in the small mirror. Keysha had landed a lucky shot on my mouth and had split my bottom lip. She’d also landed a shot just below my left eye. The area was all red and swollen. I knew that it was going to turn into a nasty-looking bruise. I felt the back of my head and found a small lump from where my head had smashed into the wall. Once we were situated, Misalo fired up the car and drove away. I wanted him to say something, but he didn’t. I wanted to know what he was thinking and how he was feeling, but he wasn’t letting me in. The silence in the car became too loud for me, so I decided I should speak.