Chapter 3 #2
It was freezing outside, but the duo didn’t care. It had been decades since they had been able to hug one another. He felt Ellie shudder and heard the soft cries she was stifling, and he held her tighter.
“No tears, E. I’m home now,” Cassidy comforted.
She nodded and squeezed her brother tightly before pushing him hard. “For being stupid!” she shouted.
Cassidy frowned and held out his hands innocently. “You been wanting to do that for 23 years, haven’t you?”
“Yes, jackass,” she teased. Her daughters laughed, and Ellie wiped her eyes. “You’re good, though? Like, really good? Nothing happened to you in there? Your mind is good?”
“Lots of shit happened in there, but your brother a G. I ain’t fold, and I promise you, I’m good,” he said seriously and in a low tone so that his nieces didn’t overhear.
“You promise?” she asked.
“On me,” Cassidy stated, placing a hand over his heart. “Let’s get y’all to the house. Papa can’t wait to see y’all.”
“How is he?” Ellie asked.
“If you ask him, he’ll say he’s fine. He’s def missing mama, though,” Cassidy stated.
“Aren’t we all,” Ellie shot back. It had been four years since their mother had been called home. It had happened two weeks before Christmas. It was the last time Ellie had been home.
“Get in, I got the bags,” Cassidy said.
“Why do you still have this car?!” Ellie asked. “This shit is ancient! I’ma need you to take some of that lounge money and go to the dealership, because no. Nobody’s pushing old schools anymore.” She lifted the front seat so her girls could squeeze in.
“It’s kind of cool,” Brooklyn chimed in.
“It smells like gas!” Tessa added.
“It’s a classic,” Cassidy stated. “Remodeled classic. Classic shit never goes out of style.”
“Sounding just like an old head who went to jail and ain’t up on the times,” Ellie teased. “I bet you still rocking them Fubu jerseys too, ain’t you?”
“You got jokes, I see,” Cassidy said, taking them in jest. “Papa is throwing you a welcome home dinner, just a heads up.”
“Wait, what?” Sheer terror shot through her. “Why does it feel like I’m about to walk into an ambush? Who is coming, Cass?”
“You know the regulars. Auntie Lisa, probably some of the church members, a few neighbors. You know Uncle Joe and his kids coming with their kids. You know your daddy.”
“It sounds fun, Mommy,” Tessa said. “Will Daddy be there?”
“Umm, no, baby. Daddy had to work. I’m going to take you guys to him tomorrow,” Ellie said. “Okay?”
“Yeah, okay,” Tessa said.
Her tone wasn’t to be missed. “When’s the last time they saw him?” Cassidy asked.
“Don’t,” Ellie whispered.
They rode the rest of the way in silence as Ellie took in the sights outside her window.
There was just something about Christmastime in Michigan that made her feel festive.
It was the only time of the year when she didn’t mind the frigid temperatures or the mountains of snow.
Christmas lights decorated everything, from the businesses they passed, to the houses, to the highway overpasses.
It made her heart leap in excitement, even though she had no idea what was in store for her time here.
It was the season of joy, and she felt it bouncing around inside her.
Christmastime just brought the little girl out in her.
When they finally made it to her childhood home, she climbed out of the car, freeing her daughters from the back.
Her dad was out on the porch before she could even announce herself.
“My girl!” he shouted. He didn’t have on coat the first, and he didn’t care as he made his way down the porch stairs and accepted her into his arms.
“Oh, Papa, you’re going to freeze,” she said.
“I’m an ox, girl,” he said, growling in her ear as he held her close. “I missed you, Ellie. It’s good to have my baby girl home.”
His health hadn’t allowed him to make the trip to go visit her since her mother had passed.
This was his first time seeing Tessa face-to-face, but they were far from strangers.
Her father made sure to FaceTime her twice a week, and he spent an hour on the phone with each of them.
It was a ritual that he never broke. He only released her to open the circle as Brooklyn and Tessa crowded him for a hug.
“Papa!” Tessa cried out in excitement. “Can we go sledding on the hill you were telling me about? Can we please, please, please?”
“You damn right we can! Papa gon’ show y’all how to do Christmas the right way!”
“A’ight, old man, let’s get everybody in the house,” Cassidy instructed.
Ellie reached for a bag, and Papa removed it from her grasp. “You know better. Get them girls in the house and check on that spaghetti that’s in the oven,” he said. “I’ma drop the fish in the fryer in the backyard as folks come. Don’t nobody like cold fish.”
Ellie snickered and did as she was told.
The man could cook his ass off. She never remembered her mother having to lift a finger in the kitchen.
It was always her dad. His Louisiana roots had been a blessing to their family coming up.
Breakfast and dinner were always on the table, waiting for them like clockwork.
She could smell the love he put into the food as soon as she stepped through the door.
“Brook, take Tessa upstairs, and y’all get out them airplane clothes. All your cousins will be pulling up soon, so don’t take long,” Ellie said.
“Yes, ma’am,” Brooklyn responded as she disappeared with Tessa in tow.
Ellie looked at the fresh fish that had been gutted and cleaned then seasoned in the stainless-steel sink.
“Papa, your blood pressure gon’ be through the roof!” she scolded as she picked up the seasonings and looked at them.
“You preaching to the choir, Ellie; just leave it alone,” Cassidy stated as he bypassed the kitchen with her bags and headed for the stairs. “I’ma get y’all set up upstairs, then I’ma head to the liquor store. You want something back?”
“Casamigos,” Ellie said.
Cassidy nodded. “What about you, old man?”
“He don’t need no liquor plus all this salty food. His pressure!” Ellie protested.
“My pressure’s fine. The doctor’s been on it, and I don’t eat like this every day,” Papa defended. She opened the oven and saw three different types of dishes.
“Meat and pasta, seafood spaghetti, and cheese cannelloni. I know the youngest baby don’t eat meat.”
Ellie scoffed and turned to hug her old man one more time.
She never had to ask for his consideration.
He made decisions that were best for his entire family without having to be told or scolded.
She loved him dearly, and she hadn’t realized how badly she had missed this house until this very minute.
“Welcome home, baby,” he said, eyes glossing because he, too, had missed her. He sniffed away his emotion. “It’s a celebration. Let me celebrate!”
“Okay, Cass, go’n and make your liquor run.” Ellie removed her coat and pushed her sleeves up to her elbows. “Homemade garlic bread coming up,” she announced.
“Bitchhhhh, did I hear homemade garlic bread? Don’t get started without me! I been trying to learn that recipe for fifteen years!”
“Aghhhh!” Ellie couldn’t even contain the squeal that erupted from her when Shy barged into the house. She had been letting herself in since they were teenagers, and today was no different. The two old friends ran to each other, screaming and talking over each other in their excitement.
“Oh my god, it’s so good to see youuuuu!” Ellie shouted. “Girl! You look good!”
Ellie hadn’t missed the enhancements. If she knew her friend like she thought she knew her friend, the new body hadn’t come from the gym.
“You know what they say. Hoes ain’t ugly, girl, they just be broke,” Shy joked as she did a spin for Ellie.
Ellie shook her head and smiled because nobody brought energy to a room like Shy.
She was loud, bold, and unapologetic. She was all the things that Ellie was not, and it was the reason why they had become such good girlfriends.
They were yin and yang. It just worked for them. “Hey, Cass,” Shy greeted.
Cass nodded her way and made his exit.
“Mr. Whitlock! I brought wine,” Shy said as she walked into the kitchen and planted a kiss on Papa’s cheek. She reached into her Birkin bag and pulled out a small bottle of Paul Masson. “And I got a little nip for you, too,” she whispered.
“Alright now. That’s my girl. Y’all get in this kitchen and keep an old man company while I set up this food. You know how to chop vegetables for a salad, or you too pretty to get your hands dirty?”
“You’re the only man I’d get in the kitchen for, Papa. I got your back. Come on,” Shy replied.
“You gon’ kick off them heels?” he asked.
“Now, I didn’t say I was gon’ turn down my sexy while I was doing it, Papa. Come on, now, keep up.” Shy’s banter brought so much laughter and lightheartedness to the room. She had always been a good time.
Ellie shook her head as she began to prep the homemade dough. Her aunt, Lisa, walked through the door next, and behind her came cousins and family members she hadn’t seen since her mother’s funeral.
“Are the girls coming?” Ellie asked.
“Court is home with the baby and, girl, Sloan ass be…”
“Working, heffa! Sloan’s ass be working!” Sloan finished the sentence for Shy as she snuck into the kitchen.
“Best frienddddd!” Ellie shouted. Instantly, they both teared up as they hugged.
They swayed from side to side as their emotions got the best of them.
They had always been this way. The closest of the bunch.
Ellie and Sloan were more like sisters than friends, and time, life, and distance had made them miss each other terribly.
Sloan pulled a bottle of tequila from inside her coat jacket as if they were still teenage girls and Papa wasn’t supposed to see it.
She blew air kisses at Shy and then set the bottle on the kitchen island. “Is it shot o’clock or what?”