Walking down the stairs, both of them smiled back up at me hard. Mama was one smile away from popping all of her teeth out of her mouth from grinning too hard. You would have thought I was going to prom or something the way they were fussing over me.
“Please, stop,” I said. As soon as Eric heard the shouting, he came from around the living room corner and smiled up at me. He had the prettiest teeth I had ever seen. Most boys my age didn’t even brush their teeth.
His skin reminded me of Ms. Carle’s. Smooth and dark. He was wearing a white long sleeve button up shirt and black slacks. His shoes shined as if he just polished them. This boy was really dressed. His uncle, Bill, wasn’t much of a dresser. Bill mainly wore overalls and spent most of his time working on cars around his house.
But, Eric? Eric had it going on. Must’ve gotten it from his dad. Yea, this was officially a date.
The stairwell vanity. I needed to check my face one last time. Looking over my shoulder, I bent down and looked at myself. My skin is brown.
“WHAT THE HELL?!” Turning around to face everyone, they all had confused looks on their faces. I was brown. What happened to my skin?
“Mary, watch your mouth! What is going on with you?” said mama. She was standing beside papa with one hand on her hip. She always did this before she fussed someone out. It was me. I was about to get fussed out.
Turning back towards the mirror, my skin was back to its normal color. Something was wrong. Rubbing my eyes and looking into the mirror again, it was still the same me. I just saw brown. I know I did.
“Girl, what are you doing?! Get down here! Eric is waiting on you and here you are making a weird impression on him,” mama said. Papa had his hands in pockets and was tapping his foot.
“Sorry mama…papa…Eric. I saw a spider on the mirror. My bad,” I lied. I had really turned brown for all of 10 seconds. I don’t know what kind of evil mirror mama had in this house but the thing always had made me feel weird.
“Just get down here so your daddy can drop y’all off,” said mama. Rolling her eyes and hugging me, she continued. “What movie did y’all decide on?”
“Well… I was going to talk to you about that. Can we just go get something to eat instead? I don’t want to sit in a movie theater. We already asked Bill and he said he didn’t mind. I meant to tell you earlier,” I said.
“You’re always last minute. Yes, this time,” said papa. “Here’s an extra 20. Have fun,” said papa while handing Eric the money.
“It’s okay, Mr. Marks. I have enough to cover whatever Mary wants,” said Eric. He was so well mannered. He’d be my boyfriend by the end of the night. I knew he would.
Papa must’ve been impressed because he looked at mama, smirked and then put the money back into his wallet. Mama smiled back at him. Grabbing his coat and hat from the rack, he turned around towards us.
“Y’all ready?”
Before I could answer, Eric grabbed my coat from the rack and placed it over my shoulders. This boy just knew how to keep adding on cool points. Kissing me on the cheek, mama shoved us out the door. She probably felt as if I was going to change my mind but there was no way I was cutting out on Eric.
Pulling up to Baker’s, I remember mama told me this was where she had her first date. Eric got out of the car, ran around to my side and opened the door. Oh, yea. This is definitely about to be my boyfriend.
“I’ll be back in two hours. Oh, and Eric? Keep all body parts to yourself. The cook is a good friend of mind, so I have an extra set of eyes,” said papa. This moment couldn’t have been more embarrassing. Rolling my eyes and slamming the door shut, I walked off towards the door.
“Yes, sir,” said Eric turning around to catch up to me. Beating me to the door, he grabbed the handle, and stepped aside for me to walk in.
French fries. Not only did Baker’s have the best burgers but the fries were to die for. The smell filled up the restaurant and made my stomach growl. Surprisingly, there were only 2 other people in the place. Taking my hand, Eric led me into a booth. Butterflies.
“Are you comfortable? You can use my jacket if you want,” said Eric flashing those bright white teeth. His haircut looked as if he had just gotten it done and he smelled amazing. I knew he was cute but tonight, he looked even better.
“I’m okay.” Looking around, Baker’s needed to update the place bad. I’m sure it was the same inside and out when my parents were my age. It was clear Mr. Baker didn’t want to change a thing.
“Soooo…What do you like to do?” said Eric. No one had ever asked me this before. I had no idea what to say.
“Tell him that you like playing video games, reading, and watching TV,” whispered Joyce. Did she really have to do this right now?! “Tell him. I know you don’t know what to say.”
“Umm…I like playing video games, reading and watching TV,” I said. Shit. Here I go listening to her again. I like video games but I can’t even remember the last book I read.
“What was the last book you’ve read?” Really? He would ask me the one question that I had no answer to. Looking over to Joyce, she had her hand over her mouth and was laughing.
“It’s been a while since I’ve read. I can’t remember.” The truth was easier to say than I had thought it would be. Before he could ask another question, a waitress came to our table looking as if she were ready to quit her job any minute now.
“What’ll it be?” she asked. She had a notepad in one hand and a pen in the other. Tapping it on the table, her fingernails were dirty. I couldn’t resist.
“Is Mr. Baker back there?” I said while smiling. There was no way I was letting this girl touch my food. Her hair even looked dirty. She let out a sigh and turned around to walk back towards the kitchen. Minutes later, Mr. Baker came to our table.
“Heyyyy! There’s my favorite girl!” He would always say this when he saw me. Every time our family came here, he acted as if he hadn’t saw us in years.
“Hey, Mr. Baker. Do you mind taking our orders and bringing it out? Shelly over there looks like she hasn’t washed her hands in years. You know, mama would have a fit had she saw that,” I said.
“I keep telling her about her hygiene. She’s a good kid though. I’ll get on her about it. And who is this fella here?” said Mr. Baker smiling at Eric. He knew who he was. Papa told him we would be here.
“I’m Eric, sir,” he said while standing up to shake Mr. Baker’s hand. Mr. Baker smiled. He likes him. Everyone likes Eric.
“Nice to meet you, young man. What are y’all eating tonight? Oh, and it’s on the house, so eat up! Don’t walk out of here until y’all are nice and full,” said Mr. Baker. He had always been in a good mood and today was no different.
“I’ll have chili cheese fries with jalapeños and a cheeseburger with ketchup and mustard. Oh and a water, please.” Shit. I just ordered the one meal that was guaranteed to mess up my shirt. God, please don’t let any chili fall on my shirt or hit my chin. This boy is going to think I eat like a baby.
“Relax. He’ll think that the way you eat is cute,” whispered Joyce.
“Would you just shut up?” I said. Mr. Baker and Eric instantly looked at me as if I had three heads. If their eyes were any bigger, they would fall out of their faces.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to say that.”
“It’s okay,” said Eric. He still looked confused but he continued to order his food. “I’ll have 2 franks…I mean, 2 hotdogs with chili, onions, ketchup, mustard and sauerkraut with a side of fries and a vanilla milk shake.” I wouldn’t be the only one getting my clothes messy. Let’s see how white his shirt would be when we left.
“I’ll bring everything out in a few. Have fun!” said Mr. Baker and he disappeared towards the back of the restaurant.
“Sauerkraut?! Who eats that?! I’ve never even seen anyone eat that stuff,” I said.
“Whatttt?! It’s the best thing ever. It adds the extra that a frank needs. Well, hotdog. I’m still getting used to the down south tal
k. You should try some when he brings the food out. You’ll like it,” said Eric. He was so fine.
“Okay.” I was a lucky girl to have him living next door. This must be what all of the other girls and school gossiped about. I hadn’t liked anyone yet and he actually wanted to go out on a date with me.
Mr. Baker brought our food out and before I could taste my own, Eric had picked up his hot dog and pushed it towards my face.
“Here. You take the first bite.” Doing as he said, I did. Amazing. Sauerkraut is amazing. Nodding my head and smiled, he smiled back at me.
“I told you that you would like it,” he said while shoving the hot dog into his mouth. Looking down at my own food, I wish I had ordered what he had. Taking a bite of my chili cheese fries, the thought went away. It was so good.
“Ask him a question,” whispered Joyce. She was working a nerve. I’d pinch her if Eric wouldn’t think I was being weird. I had already shouted once before and I didn’t want to scare him off. Giving her the side eye, she sat back in the booth and zipped her lips.
“What do you like to do?” I asked. Even the way he chewed his food was cute. He swallowed what was left in his mouth and wiped his lips with a napkin.
“I like video games. I love working on cars with my uncle. Oh and you might laugh at this one but….gardening,” he said. I hadn’t been expecting that last one. I’ve never heard any boy our age say they like gardening. Deciding that I shouldn’t laugh, he continued.
“It gives me time to think, ya know? Plus, the ending results are pretty cool. A small seed turning into something so big is just…just wild. It’s pretty cool,” he said.
“Sounds cool. Maybe I can come over and help you one day,” I said. Instantly feeling weird, I wish I hadn’t said it.
“You should. You’d like it.” Smiling and eating some more of his food, I was convinced. He said I would like the sauerkraut and well, I did. Gardening. Watching him eat, I almost forgot that I had my own food.
********************************************************************************
“How was your date?” asked mama. She had come into my room and was now curled up in bed with me. Looking up at her, she kept talking.
“That smile lets me know it went well. Do you like him?” she asked.
“I guess. I think so. But, don’t tell papa,” I said. Even though I told her not to, I’m pretty sure that she would. “Do you mind buying me some flower seeds?”
“I saw that boy gardening outside last week. You must really like him to be asking for some flower seeds when you know nothing about gardening,” said mama while laughing. I’m sure my face was redder than her hair. She caught me.
“It’s okay to like him. It’s normal. Just make sure you keep it appropriate. Which means, you two can hang out but no grown folks business. There always has to be an adult present when you two hang out. I’m glad you had fun. Tell me more about him,” she said.
“He told me that he never knew his mother and how it was just always him and his dad. He said she left right after giving birth to him; she wasn’t ready to be a mother. That’s so sad. I can never imagine not knowing you. I wonder if he could find his mother. Maybe she is sorry for leaving,” I said.
“Well, baby. It sounds like she doesn’t want to be found. If Eric and his dad were living in the same place this entire time, she could’ve come back. Try not to dig too deep into his mother, though. You don’t want to make him sad and y’all are building a friendship.”
“Let him come to you, that’s if he wants to tell you. It’s like building trust. And, thank you. I can never imagine not knowing you too,” said mama. Kissing me on the forehead, she tucked the blankets around my arms.
“Okay. But, another thing. How can I tell if he likes me?” It was clear to her that I liked him but I didn’t know if he liked me or not.
“He’s the one who asked you out, right? He likes you. Also, what’s to not like about you? You came from me, girl. Watch out or he’ll be in love before you know it,” said mama while laughing. “Get you some sleep. I love you. Good night.”
“I love you too. Good night, mama.”
Chapter 21: You’re mine to keep.
November 30, 1988
When Lovette had delivered the news, Joseph had instantly felt excited. Not noticing her demeanor, posture and facial expression, he instantly picked her up and spun her around. They were having another baby and to him, now had been the perfect time.
“Joe, put me down, please. I’m not done talking. Plus, you’re making me nauseous,” said Lovette. It had been a couple of weeks since she had found out she was pregnant and she had gotten tired of hiding it from him. Between the new cravings, missed periods, and her becoming exhausted all of a sudden, she had to come clean.
“What is it?” he replied. Now looking Lovette in her face, he could tell that something was off.
“I don’t know else how to say it but to just say it. During our anniversary party, after that whole spill, I went over to Mike’s parent’s house. Before I say any of this, you need to know that I didn’t plan any of this. Mike and his girlfriend had been in Shawford that weekend and I had run into them at the grocery store. This is how I knew he was in town,” said Lovette.
“After finding out the truth about how we became what we are now, I was angry. When I left here, I drove straight to his parent’s house. I just wanted to get his phone number or something to let him know I was sorry for not believing him,” she continued.
Joseph hadn’t been angry. He had hurt the woman he loved the most and knew that it would take some time to heal the wounds he had cut open. Lovette hadn’t left him for the betrayal and he was forever in debt to her. She was being patient with forgiving him and trying her best to not be angry with him. If she had went to talk to Mike, he understood.
“When I got there, he was there. No one but him. I told him what I had to say, we caught up on old times and…it just happened,” whispered Lovette
“What ‘just happened’?” asked Joseph. One of his eyebrows were lifted as he looked at his wife suspiciously. The ‘just happened’ part had taken him by surprise.
“It. I didn’t mean for it to happen. I was just so hurt and angry with you and before I knew it…everything just happened so fast,” said Lovette. She had been sniffling and trying her best to hold back the tears.
“So, let me get this straight. You left here, went over there and had sex with him? Correct?” questioned Joseph. Her words had cut Joseph but for him to repeat it back to her in the exact words that needed to be said, he had hurt himself even more.
“Yes but you need to know that those weren’t my intentions when going over there. I didn’t even know he would be there,” pleaded Lovette.
“…and you came home and fucked me the exact same night?!” hollered Joseph. This had been the very first time he had raised his voice at Lovette. Lifting her head in a bit of confusion, he had never yelled at her. Joseph had always been so kind and soft spoken, so to hear him scream at her, she didn’t know exactly how to handle it.
“Joseph, I didn’t plan it. I swear, I didn’t” said Lovette. When she had imagined this conversation with him, it didn’t include her pleading. She wanted to tell the truth and move on from there. They both had done wrong.
“So, this all relates to you being pregnant in what way?” said Joseph. He needed to hear it from her mouth. At this point, he had refused to tell her story from his lips. She would say exactly what needed to be said this time. Her silence had angered him even more.
“SAY IT!” he screamed.
Lovette jumped from the bass in his voice and spoke. “The baby might not be yours,” she said. She had wiped her face and had now been staring him in the eyes. There was no more dropping her head and hiding behind her hair. He would see her every expression from now on; the way it should have been from the beginning.
Joseph instantly began to cry. He and Lovette had plans. They had plans of having another child or se
veral children. She had grown to love him. He knew that she didn’t at first and he was never her first choice but she had grown in love with him. Everything had been so…perfect. Everything had grown to be perfect…until Stephanie showed up.
He had convinced himself that this was his fault. Had he not lied about everything, there wouldn’t be an issue. The way she had now been in love with him, it could’ve been possible for her to love her on her own. He went behind her back and had been conniving. This was his fault.
“Are you still messing around with him?!” asked Joseph. It was one thing if she had slept with him once but it was another if she was continuing to see Mike. He wanted the answer to his questions but at the same time, he didn’t. He hadn’t been prepared for any of this, including her next answer.
“No. We only slept together once. The next day, I got in touch with him just to let him know that it couldn’t happen again. He agreed and we left it at that,” she said. Hurting him had hurt her as well. He had been her best friend and there for her every step of the way she had needed him…and she betrayed him.
Although, he was wrong for the way he had started their relationship, that was years ago and she had vowed to be faithful towards him. Plus, she had been on the path of forgiveness for what he had done to her.
Joseph had felt a sense of relief. The last thing he wanted to hear was that his wife had continued to see the man that was her first love. Weirdly, not knowing if the child she was carrying was his or not didn’t disturb him as much as it would’ve to know she had continued to have an affair with Mike. This would’ve been the blow he wouldn’t be able to handle.
“I don’t know what to say besides I’m sorry but…I want this baby,” said Lovette. “I didn’t know if I wanted another child just yet. Not because I don’t know which one of you the baby belongs to…it didn’t cross my mind until after I had an appointment and the doctor confirmed how far along I am. I just didn’t want to take any attention away from Joey just yet.”
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