Chapter 2
I watched the woman leave my building with her son in tow. She was fine as fuck, but her attitude made her ugly…and I didn’t like her.
“You gon’ pick that up, or should I call the janitor?” Cinda asked with a smirk.
“Shut up before I make you pick it up.” I squatted to scoop up the shreds of paper.
“You like her, don’t you?”
“Who?”
“You know who I’m talking about.”
“If I knew who you were talking about, I wouldn’t have asked.”
“Fine. I’ll play along. You like Rue, Briar’s mom.”
I shook my head. “First impressions go a long way, and she didn’t make a good one, so I’ll have to say no.”
“You’re just mad she’s not scared of you.”
“She’s the mother of one of my students. Why would I want her to be afraid of me?”
“You think everyone should be afraid of you, but you may have met your match.”
“You’re not making any sense. I’m going to my office.”
I left Cinda and headed toward my office, stopping at the gym entrance for a moment to watch the kids playing. Many of them had already been picked up because the center closed in forty-five minutes.
A few minutes later, I sat behind my desk and released a deep sigh. In the year that the center had been open, I’d never had a negative interaction with a parent. What happened between me and Briar’s mother concerned me because I wanted the center to maintain a good reputation.
Word of mouth traveled fast, especially if it was negative. If you add social media to the mix, all of Onyx City would be aware of the incident, and there was no telling how the story would change.
At the moment, there wasn’t much I could do about it besides hope for the best. Luckily, the situation was pushed to the back of my mind when my one and only nephew came racing into my office.
“Uncle Rocky, can we go to OC Grill for dinner?”
Roman Jr. was seven years old and the light of my family’s life. My youngest brother, RJ’s father, died three years ago from a severe and untreated case of pneumonia. He’d gone to the emergency room several times only to be sent home and told to take over-the-counter meds and cool baths.
By the time the hospital took his symptoms seriously, it was too late. We sued them for negligence and a host of other wrongdoings and won a multimillion-dollar lawsuit. We put 75 percent of the money into a trust for RJ, and the other 25 percent was used to open the youth center.
RJ’s mother didn’t handle my brother’s death well and sunk into a deep depression. Not long after Roman died, me and my other brother, Russell, gained full custody of RJ. Collette had lost interest in being a mother and didn’t put up a fight, although when we won the settlement, she took us to court on some come up shit.
The judge knew what she was on, so it didn’t go very far. Although she was awarded visitation in the original custody agreement, she only saw RJ sporadically. He didn’t seem to care, but we knew her absence might affect him later in life.
“We need to find out if Nani cooked dinner.”
“She usually only cooks on Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays. Today is Thursday, and I don’t want leftovers again.”
I chuckled because he was right. My grandmother only cooked the first few days of the week, and after that, we were on our own.
“You’re right. Are you ready to go?”
“Yeah. I’m starving because I played three basketball games. I was on fire, too.”
“I saw you out there dribbling circles around the kids. You ain’t have to do them like that, Nephew.”
“Yes, I did because they was talking crazy, Uncle.”
His response made me laugh. “I hear you, buddy. Go wait for me in the gym, and I’ll be out in five minutes.”
“Okay.” He left as quickly as he arrived.
I logged into my desktop and went to our student database. After looking up Briar’s name, I went to the parent contact information.
“Rue Abrams,” I whispered.
Based on the address, they only lived a few blocks from the center. We were located in a middle-class neighborhood, so I assumed she did okay for herself, especially since no name was listed under father.
“She probably ran him off with her bad attitude,” I mumbled before closing out of the program and shutting down my computer.
A few minutes later, RJ and I were cruising through the city on my motorcycle. He loved riding just as much as I did and couldn’t wait until he was old enough to have his own bike.
We arrived at the restaurant about fifteen minutes later. Once inside, we went to our favorite booth and waited for the server.
“I already know I want a bacon cheeseburger, fries, and a lemonade,” he said.
“It sounds like you’ve been planning this visit all day.”
“Not all day, but some of it. Lunch at school sucked, and I’ve been hungry all day.”
I couldn’t do anything but laugh at RJ. He had no filter and said whatever was on his mind. He was a lot like his father at that age, which made me smile often.
“Did you have a snack at the center?”
“Yeah, but that wasn’t enough.”
“RJ, you know you’re part owner of the center with me and Uncle Russ, right?” He nodded. “You could’ve gotten another snack if you wanted.”
“I know, but none of my friends could have another snack, and I didn’t want to eat in front of my friends if they couldn’t have more.”
“That’s pretty cool of you, RJ. Most kids your age would only care about themselves.”
The server arrived to take our orders, and when she left, I couldn’t resist asking him about Briar.
“So, you cool with Briar?”
“Yeah, he’s my best friend, even though we only see each other at school.”
“Have you met his mom?”
“Miss A? Yeah, she volunteers in our classroom sometimes.”
“Is she nice?”
“Yeah. You like her or something?”
“No, I don’t like her. I just met her today.”
“She’s pretty. All the boys whisper about her when she comes to our class. Briar hates it.”
I bet they do, and I bet he does.
“Maybe we can set up a playdate so you and Briar can hang out on the weekends or during the summer.”
“Really? That would be cool.”
We continued to talk while waiting for our food. Once it arrived, there wasn’t as much talking. RJ damn near inhaled his burger. I couldn’t imagine what our grocery bill would be like in a few short years because the boy could eat.
About an hour later, we arrived home. RJ had completed his homework at the center, so he began to prepare for bed after greeting his great grandparents in the family room while they watched TV.
“What’s up, old people?”
I hugged and kissed them on the cheek before sitting on the loveseat on the opposite side of the room. Colten and Aveya Rush were in their seventies and, thankfully, still in great health. I could never repay them for taking me and my brothers in after our mother, their only child, was murdered by our father.
Of course, when the three of us got older, we moved out on our own. However, after Roman died, Russell and I bought a house big enough for all of us. The devastation of losing Roman caused the pain of losing our mother to resurface, not that it ever went away. Being close to each other was what we needed. Most people probably thought it was strange for a thirty-three-year-old man to live with his thirty-year-old brother, nephew, and grandparents, but I had no regrets and wouldn’t change a thing.
“I got your old, knucklehead.” My grandfather greeted me.
“How was your day, grandson?” my grandmother asked.
“It was kinda busy because we’re getting ready for summer enrollment.”
“That’s good, right?” she asked.
“It is. Next week, we start interviewing high school and college students for the group leader and counselor positions. We should have everyone in place within the next two weeks.”
“That’s good. It sounds like you’re really getting the hang of running the business side of things,” my grandfather commented.
“Slowly but surely.”
We sat quietly for a few minutes before my grandmother spoke. “What’s on your mind?”
“Who me?” I questioned.
“No, the boy next door.”
I shook my head at her sarcastic remark, and my grandfather chuckled.
“You’re sitting over there like you’re contemplating your next major move. Tell us what’s on your mind. Maybe us old people can help.”
I sighed because I couldn’t understand why Rue was still on my mind, even though she’d left my presence hours ago.
“I had a run in with a parent at the center. I’ve been replaying the incident in my mind, and I wonder if I handled it correctly.”
“Tell us what happened, and we’ll let you know.” She pressed for information.
I shared with my grandparents what happened with Rue. They listened without interrupting, but as soon as I finished, my grandmother had plenty to say.
“Rocky Colten Rush, you know damn well we raised you better than that. That was no way to talk to a lady.”
“Nani, did you hear the story? She was rude to me first and put her hands on me. How was I supposed to respond?”
“Like the gentleman we raised you to be.”
“Come on, Nani. You know I struggle with all that gentleman stuff. Tell her GP.”
My grandfather chuckled. “He’s definitely no gentleman. Have you seen how he handles women?”
“Well, he didn’t learn that from you.”
“Nani, women these days are nothing like you, so they don’t get the same respect and treatment a woman like you would.”
“That might be true, but I’m not buying that with this situation. That woman clearly has a fear of motorcycles, and seeing that her son had just been riding with a virtual stranger scared her.”
“But she signed the permission slip and?—”
“It doesn’t matter. Based on her reaction, you should have gathered that she didn’t know what she’d signed. Your response shouldn’t have been to make her feel irresponsible.”
“I didn’t try to make her feel irresponsible. I simply pointed out?—”
“No, that’s petty or whatever you young people call it. She was scared, and you didn’t make her feel any better. You know you were wrong, or you wouldn’t still be thinking about it.”
Nani was right, but Rue’s feisty attitude threw me for a loop. I didn’t like that shit, but I was also intrigued by it.
“I guess you’re right.”
“You know I am. You need to apologize the next time you see her.”
My grandfather remained silent but nodded his head in agreement. He rarely said much, but I could always tell where he stood. I wasn’t sure if I’d see Rue tomorrow, but if I did, I’d be sure to take my grandmother’s advice.