19. Baby
BABY
Jayda and I had been out all day looking for a job and, just like I thought, a lot of them overlooked me after reading my application.
The only one that took a chance on me was a gas station across the street from her job.
She needed to fill up, so I went in to pay when I noticed the hiring sign.
It ain’t what I wanted, but it’s better than nothing.
The upside of all this was that I could start tomorrow.
After I got the job, Jayda and I came to get something to eat at P.F.
Chang’s to celebrate. As we were sitting there, I felt a presence walking up to our table.
It was the creepy dude from the probation office.
I glanced over at Jayda, wondering if they knew each other, but she was already looking at me with the same expression.
“What’s up, beautiful.” He set his eyes on me.
Throwing him a fake smile, I sized him up and down. “Do I know you?”
He wasn’t my type at all. He reminded me too much of T.K, and God knows I didn’t need those problems again.
“My name’s Tank, what’s yours, baby?” He held his hand out for me to shake. I frowned at Jayda to see her hiding a smile behind her hand. I found nothing funny.
“Baby,” I replied, ignoring his hand, putting a scoop of rice in my mouth.
“Yeah boo, what’s your name?” His smile widened like I was saying that to him, then he helped himself to a seat at our table. I felt so uncomfortable, I wanted to get up and walk away.
I moved a few inches away and said, “No. My name is Baby.”
“Oh, okay. I like that,” he smiled. “Well, lemme take you out, Baby.”
He pulled out a wad of cash he thought would impress me.
“No, thank you.” I flinched when he reached out to grab my hand. This nigga awfully touchy. He must’ve really thought he was God’s gift to women.
“Come on. Why you playing hard to get?” He licked his lips sexily, but that ain’t even dampen my panties.
I glared at him. “You tryna buy me?”
“Nah boo, just rent you,” he responded with a chuckle. I rolled my eyes hard, hopping up from my chair.
“Okay, we finna go.” I glanced at Jayda, tilting my head for her to get up. I was not even supposed to be around him no way when we were both on parole. He grabbed my arm, and his hold was so tight, I looked down to see him cutting off my circulation.
Snatching away from his grasp, I glared at him. “Look, I don’t know who money you stole to be flashing like that but, if you wanna keep breathing, don’t put them fucking hands on me again.”
“Bitch, who you think you talking to?” He grabbed me by the collar, jacking me up towards him. While I was fighting to get away, Jayda was beating her fist on his back.
“Aye, man. Get off her.” I heard a voice call out in the distance but, since we were chest to chest, I couldn’t twist around to see who it was.
When the person came to the front and grabbed Tank, I saw Derek coming to my rescue.
I ain’t seen him since my welcome home party.
Tank looked at him like he done lost his mind for stepping to him, and I was hoping pretty boy knew how to fight.
It would be a shame if he saved me just to get his ass beat himself.
“Who you rollin’ up on, homie? You must ain’t hear about me.” Tank moved towards him, coming in his face. I was surprised when Derek puffed his chest out, not backing down.
“I don’t care who you are, you don’t put your hands on a female,” he replied, taking out his phone. Jayda was awfully quiet this whole time, but she finally spoke as she pulled on my arm.
“Girl, let’s get the hell outta here. This nigga finna kill him.”
Her scary ass.
“We just supposed to leave him here alone with this psycho?” I asked, eyes widened at the scene in front of me.
“Girl, yes. The fuck!” She pulled on my arm again to get me going, but I couldn’t leave the situation like it was.
“Now, am I gonna have to call 9-1-1, or can we all just leave peacefully?” Derek gave him an ultimatum, his thumb hovering over the buttons, as if daring Tank to give him the wrong answer.
Jayda and I looked back and forth between the two men to see what was about to happen next. Instead of replying, Tank mugged him hard, then glanced at me.
“Maybe another time, Baby,” he exclaimed, touching a strand of my hair. I flinched away from him. He walked back in the direction he came from, and I exhaled a breath I didn’t even know I was holding.
I felt relieved, strolling up to Derek. “Thank you so much. You ain’t have to intervene like that.”
I was taken aback when his lip curled up in disgust.
“I ain’t do it for you, just hate niggas like him,” he spat, and tried to walk away, but I called out.
“What’s up with the attitude?” He turned on his heels, staring at me through narrowed eyes.
“You and your sister are some lowlife criminals, and you’ll get what’s coming to you,” he spoke through clenched teeth.
The hell! I launched towards him, poking my finger into his chest.
“First off, don’t ever call me a criminal again. You met me for a hot second, so don’t act like you understand my life.” I poked at him again. “And what the fuck you talking about my sister a criminal?” He glanced between me and Jayda, who stood off to the side.
“You don’t know?” he asked me, and we exchanged looks.
“Know what?” I had become irritated. I didn’t understand why he couldn’t just come out and say what he was trying to say.
“Leah robbed me.”
“What?” I chuckled humorlessly.
“I met her the day before your party at the mall. She invited me to come as her date. After we left, her and a nigga cornered me with a gun to my head. Took all the cash I had, and my credit cards.”
I swallowed deeply, trying to wrap my head around what he said. When Leah told me she just walked up to him and spoke, I knew that was a lie, but I ain’t see this coming.
He continued, “I talked to my homeboy, and he said it sounds like the same person that did it to him months ago.”
Before I got locked up, she couldn’t even speak to a dude without stuttering, so I’d known something wasn’t right. But to hear she was out here robbing niggas, I just couldn’t see that.
I touched his arm. “I swear I ain’t know. I would’ve said something if I did.”
He said she was with a nigga?
“What the dude looked like?” It had to be T.K.; I couldn’t think of anybody else my sister would be this dumb for.
“Light skinned, low cut,” he uttered, scratching his head in thought. Jayda nudged me with her arm. We both knew who he was describing, but I couldn’t tell him that.
“Doesn’t sound familiar,” I lied.
“I’m sorry again. This ain’t like my sister.” I didn’t know what she was like no more. She was beyond the point of saving.
Jayda nudged me another time, and I was gone swing on this hoe if she touched me again. “Well, we got to go. Take care of yourself.” I took one more glance at him before walking away.
The entire stroll to the car, Jayda was talking about what just happened, but I couldn’t think about shit else but Leah. Yeah, she did me dirty, but she still family and T.K. had her out here moving wrong. What the fuck are you doing, baby sister?