Shining My Love On You

Chapter 1

"Have you talked to your no-good ass father lately?" my mother, Camisha, asked me.

My mother never missed a beat when it came to talking about my father, even though they spoke on a daily. That was crazy to me. Then she didn't want me to disrespect him, even though I clearly got it from her.

I nodded, reaching for a fry to dip in the ketchup. "I did, but he didn't want anything."

My mother and I had gone out to eat at Dunk's Wings.

It wasn't every week thing that we got together and talked.

When we did, we'd converse for hours, and sometimes it would be about my father.

My mother and I had a close relationship.

She was someone I could share my secrets with.

She took her role as a parent seriously, too.

I'd never disrespect my mother. At my big age of twenty-seven, she'd still knock my teeth down my throat.

She lifted an eyebrow. "So, why did he call you? He told me how you got smart with him on the phone. You know I raised you better than that." She gave me a stern look.

I rolled my eyes skyward. "Of course, he'd go run and tell you something."

I hated that my parents still had a relationship after being divorced for over fifteen years.

Truth be told, I didn't know why my mother still talked to that man.

My father used to do her wrong. He cheated on her every chance he got.

I used to hate wiping my mother's tears.

It made me despise my father. I had to keep the way I felt for him to myself.

If I let my mother know how I felt about him, she'd beat my ass.

"Of course. Even if we're not together, that man is still running after me. I don't care how many wives he had after me. I'm still in his life and not about to go anywhere."

I scrunched my face up. "I don't want to know that. Y’all need to focus on having a friendship then. When he’s ready to have a relationship with me, then we can talk.

I don’t care how many wives he had or has.

He still isn’t a good father to me.” That was something I hated.

I didn’t get how he could run and tell my mother on me, but he wasn’t telling her, he was still a deadbeat ass father.

Until he was serious about wanting a relationship with me, we had nothing to talk about.

The only thing my mother could do was shake her head. I was always a cheerful person with a smile on my face, but when I talked to my father or about him, it brought my mood down. I hated when that happened since I had to go to work later tonight.

"You need to cut it out, Chy. I didn't raise you to be spiteful. What happened to my bubbly child?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

I placed a hand against my chest and stared her straight in her eyes. "Oh, trust me when I say, I'm still here. You know that whenever I talk about that man, it gets me in a sour mood. This is nothing new." I wouldn't treat it as such either.

I picked up the cup and took a sip of the Pepsi.

It was my favorite drink, and I had to have a bottle of it every day.

I glanced around the restaurant, not at all surprised by the crowd that had gathered.

Dunk's Wings was a very popular wing stop in Skyeville.

They sold the best wings, keeping their customers coming back for more.

I was one of the customers who could eat their wings daily if I wanted to.

"All I know is, Tip had better not call and tell me you disrespected him again," she stated in a warning tone.

I averted my eyes to my tray of wings and fries. "Yes, ma'am," I mumbled.

My cellphone vibrated on the table, making me push my glasses up.

My best friend, Jacey, texted me, wanting us to go get our nails and toes done.

One thing that girl did was get her nails and toes redone every three weeks.

She kept me inside the nail salon with her.

I didn't mind at all since I enjoyed self-care.

"I need to get out of here. Before I go home, I need to stop by the grocery store," my mother stated.

I gathered my trash to throw away. "Jacey texted me, wanting to get our nails done. When I leave here, I’ll be meeting her there.”

"Make sure you give her my love."

I smiled, walking out of the restaurant with her. "I sure will."

After my mother and I said our goodbyes, she went to her car, and I headed to mine.

I was glad to get into my car. The wind was blowing furiously.

October weather was no joke. Halloween would be here in four days, and I couldn't wait.

It was one of my favorite holidays. What made it even better was that my job was having a Halloween party.

I pulled out into traffic and made a right. It was a good thing traffic was light today, so that I could get to the nail salon quicker. I bobbed my head to the music that played on the radio.

I pondered what my mother and I had talked about.

I never intended to treat my father that way.

He made me do it by the way he treated me.

Every time a new lady entered his life, he stopped calling and checking on me.

I'd reach out but wouldn't hear from him for a week.

Then I'd have to hear it from my mother about why he stopped checking on me.

That hurt my feelings and made me not want to have anything to do with him. That wasn't on me, but on him.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't realize I had reached the plaza where the nail salon was located.

Jacey's car was already parked. I bet she texted while she was on the way to the nail salon.

I got out of the car and swiftly walked across the parking lot.

The wind nearly blew me away. It was a good thing that the sun was shining. If it hadn't, it would've been colder.

I jerked the door open and walked in, spying Jacey almost immediately.

With her big afro, she wasn't hard to miss.

A bright smile spread across her lips when she saw me.

The salon was packed with customers in every seat, including the pedicure seats.

I didn't know why Jacey loved this place so much.

With the business they got daily, they were popular, but to me, they were too slow.

Jacey threw her hand in the air. "Hey, sis."

I smiled back and made my way over to take a seat next to her. "Hey. How are you getting your nails done this time?"

She wasted no time, pulling up a picture of the nails she wanted. Jacey was never afraid to pay hundreds of dollars for her nail care. Hell, she had it like that with her boyfriend being a drug dealer.

Jacey showed me a Halloween-themed nail set of Ghostface, which was too cute.

"I like that, but I'm going to keep mine simple and get orange tips."

She rolled her eyes. "That's too simple, but I get it. You're not into all that."

I dropped my head and chuckled. "You're right. As long as they're done, that's all I care about."

She sighed deeply. "There's nothing wrong with that."

I frowned as I gazed at Jacey. "What's bothering you?"

Whenever Jacey sighed like that, something bothered her. Given how she and her boyfriend argued, he could be the reason. I didn't know why she wouldn't leave him alone. He was no good for her.

She stared out into space, unfocused. I didn't like the look I saw on her face.

"Girl, Stefon with his bullshit. The man had the nerve to have a woman driving his car yesterday. When I confronted him, he said his homie's girl needed to go to the store."

The way I twisted my lips, I just knew I was making an ugly face. "Now he knew he didn't have to tell that lie like that."

"I'm getting so sick of him. He never takes responsibility for his actions or for anything he does. Then, he makes me out to be the bad guy. How am I wrong for confronting him?"

I touched Jacey's arm. "You're not. It's him. You don't deserve any of what he's doing to you. Still, if you don't tell him about himself or just leave, he'll continue to do you wrong."

She sadly shook her head. "Truthfully, I want out."

I widened my eyes, not believing my ears. For Jacey to say that, she had to be fed up. "Say, what?"

Jacey slowly nodded. "Chy, Stefon's out here making me look like a fool.

It's been two years, but I'm over it. One smart thing I did while I was with him was to stack the money he gave me.

Thankfully, when I'm ready to leave, I'll have money set aside.

It's just the fact that I'll have to get a job.

I don't want that. I hate that I've become dependent on him.

Having to start over will kill me, but I have to.

I feel like I'm losing myself more the longer I'm with him, and that's gotta change. "

I felt sorry for Jacey since she only had her boyfriend and me.

Her family stopped dealing with her when she got involved with that drug dealer.

She knew Stefon wasn't for her, but he had been in her ear since they met.

She'd been having problems with him since they had met each other.

To me, Stefon was a joke. I was happy she finally saw he meant her no good.

I couldn't tell her that myself, though. She had to be the one to see it.

Jacey and I were two peas in a pod. When we met in college, that was the start of our friendship.

She'd been there to wipe my eyes when I had my first heartbreak, and I'd been there for her.

One thing I knew for certain was that she had my back, and I had hers.

I'd never do what her family did. That hurt her to her core.

When she hurt, I hurt too. We might not be blood related, but that was my sister.

Before I could say anything back to her, it was our turn to get our nails done. One thing was for certain: Jacey would be alright. Who knew when she'd finally walk away from Stefon, but one thing she'd take with her was his money, which was a plus.

I'd be spending the rest of my night at work.

I didn't get off until the bar closed at 3:30 in the morning.

One thing I hated about that was being an early riser.

My customers kept me entertained throughout the night.

I was a bartender at Tito's Crush Bar. It was a popular place to hang out.

When I wasn't at work, I'd be here getting free drinks.

The bartenders always looked out for each other.

Working at Tito's made me want to start my own mixed drink business. I enjoyed mixing drinks, and I was one of the best who worked there. The customers loved me, too. They always wanted me to try different mixers, but I told them I couldn't, but if they'd buy my mixed drinks from me, I would.

"Wassup, lil' mama. What you got for me tonight?" One of the regulars, Trevon, asked.

I beamed at him, placing my hands on my hips. His eyes roamed down my body just as I knew they would. He was a big flirt, but he never took it any further than that. That was a good thing since I felt nothing for him. He was a big tipper, too.

"What are you looking for?" I asked, biting down on my bottom lip.

He smirked. "Henny on ice. Don't bring me that fruity shit you brought me last time."

I threw my head back and giggled. "You said you wanted to try it."

He waved me off and folded his arms across his chest. "Nah, never again."

I shrugged and got busy making his drink. "It's your loss."

While I fixed his drink, I got a feeling deep in my gut.

I nearly bit down on my bottom lip from the feeling that hit me in the stomach.

My eyes bounced around the bar until they landed on a man walking to his usual seat.

Since I first saw him two months ago, he has come in and taken the same seat.

The server brought him a bottle of Hennessy with ice in a glass.

He'd sat and drank that entire bottle and vibed by himself.

I wondered what his story was. Hopefully, one day soon, I'll get up the courage to talk to him.

It was something about him that pulled at me.

Throughout the night, I kept looking over at his table. Three women went to his table, and he dismissed all of them with just a look. If I approached him, I wondered how he'd react to me.

"Do y'all have any specials going on?" Trevon questioned.

I shook my head. "Nope, not at the moment. Come back for the Halloween party. We might have something then."

He nodded. "You know I won't miss a party."

More customers came and sat at the bar. Many wanted me to make my special mixers, but I told them to pay me double.

Nobody wanted to pay me more when I talked about doubling the price.

They didn't want to drink then. One day, I'd have my own business, selling mixed drinks.

The same people who wanted me to make them their drinks and add more would be missing out.

I just needed them to trust me. Once they did that, I'd be ready to start my business.

Even if it was only two people, that was all I needed to test this out. One day soon, it would happen for me.