Epilogue #3
He walked into the section with a smile. His arm wrapped around Shanae’s waist before he kissed her temple. “What you got going on, baby?”
Shanae melted in his arms. “Nothing at all. Angie and her friends were just leaving. There’s a late night study group that she needs to be at.”
Angie was beside herself with embarrassment. The embarrassment tipped over when Travis stopped beside her, glared at her for a second, then shook his head. She kept her eyes on him while he sat next to perfect Maggie. He kissed her lips, then wrapped an arm around her waist.
With a huff, Angie turned on her heels, then stormed out of the section. All of the girls in the section watched as she and her little crew left the venue. It was comical.
“I guess this is a foreshadowing of what I have to look forward to,” Maggie said to Travis.
Ironically, that was the first time that a female had the guts to say something directly to her.
Yeah, she heard the smug comments that were said behind her back or when she walked past. This was different though.
Travis tightened his hold on her waist. “Mags, can I tell you a secret?” He waited for her to nod before he continued.
“You are about to be one of the most envied and hated on females out here. As much as people are rooting for us, there are others who want to see us crash and burn. We gonna show them something though. You wanna show them something with me?”
Maggie smiled. “Yeah, let’s show them how love can be young and real.
You still better let those heifers know that your forever is a quiet lune.
I will have my aunties help me break in those bitches cars and houses, spray it with adhesive, then fill it with glitter and fuckin’ sprinkles. I got connections and you know that.”
Travis roared with laughter. His girl said the craziest, yet cutest things. “You’re going to use your connections to put glitter and sprinkles in a bitch’s car and house? Do you think that’s the best use of your resources, Mags?”
With a turned up top lip and an arched brow, she responded, “Um, yes, it is. Could you imagine glitter and sprinkles over everything that you own? Not just sprinkled on everything but stuck on everything.”
Travis could imagine that. His and Maggie’s relationship hadn’t been perfect.
They were still teenagers that were petty.
One particular petty argument last year led to Travis becoming the owner of a single bedazzled retro J.
He almost lost his mind, and that was just one foot of a pair of sneakers.
“Yes, baby, I can imagine. You’ve given me a sneak peek on how talented you are. ”
Oh, she’d forgotten about that. Like a perfectly scripted play, a popular line dance song glared over the speakers. The women in the venue jumped up and headed to the dance floor. It was the perfect opportunity to exit the conversation.
“Oh! Mega! You know this one. Let’s do it together.” Ruth jumped up and grabbed her husband’s hand to pull him from his seat.
He allowed her to pull him up, but he stopped her before she could pull him on the dance floor. “Ruth, I’m not about to go out there with them churn and line dance. You got me messed up.”
She pouted before she wrapped her arms around his waist. “You line dance with me at the house. What’s the difference?”
He stared at her for a moment to make sure her question was a valid one.
She really had him messed up. “Ruth, the difference is that when we line dance at the house, by the second stanza, my dick is in you. I don’t feel like that’s going to happen here.
I line dance at the house because I know it ends with me visiting your happy place. ”
“I don’t like you sometimes,” Ruth said with a smirk. She kissed his lips, then rushed out to the dance floor with the rest of the girls. She didn’t have time for Mega’s foolishness. She also didn’t have time to admit that when he was right, he was right.
Mega sat back down with the rest of the men.
He watched his daughter and wife dance next to each other.
His mind went back in time to when his baby girl was a toddler before the twins were born.
Ruth and Maggie would dance around the living room for what felt like forever.
For what felt like forever, he sat there and watched them with admiration just like he was now.
Time and Big G had been good to everyone around him. Between prayer and soft threats, it seemed that he was able to keep Travis and Maggie on the straight. His pessimistic view made the narrow part debatable.
“Aye.” Ned got Mega’s attention. “You ever think you’d be sitting in a section at your daughter’s boyfriend’s graduation party? I mean, look at us. Our daughters smiling in lil niggas’ faces and we haven’t shot them in the ass. I call that growth, maturity, and the hand of Big G.”
My head snapped in his direction. “You already know I never thought I would be here. I thought I would enjoy a life where my daughter was a nun. Wait, nah, ’cause some of those priests be on some funny stuff. Bro, our kids are growing the fuck up and there ain’t shit we can do about it.”
It was a parent’s worst nightmare and biggest blessing.
Your goal as a parent was to raise productive adults.
That was hard when you secretly wanted them to be your babies forever.
Mega had to experience this heart attack two more times with Matthew and Joseph.
He knew that, but he also knew that it would be from a different angle.
Ned tittered. “Shit, I’m happy as hell that Kellie is my last one. First, I had to deal with Shanae and Warrior. Now, Akon had found his way into Kellie’s life. Those fuckin’ Davis boys were going to be the cause of my high blood pressure. My spirit just came to peace with Shanae’s lil ass.”
Mega laughed because his best friend was going through it.
Shanae’s career had just settled in his spirit.
After a threat from Shan, he attended a pole dancing competition hosted by the US Pole Sports Federation (USPSF).
The competition opened his eyes to see that what pole dancers did versus what strippers did were not the same.
It was an awkward feeling when she won first place, and he was proud.
Shanae was now in the process to become an official coach under the USPSF.
Her national championship win generated so much new business for the family pole business that they had to hire new instructors.
Mega lightly hit Ned’s chest with the back of his hand.
“Aye, look at it this way. While Warrior and Akon are giving you high blood pressure, Shanae is giving War the same issue.” Mega leaned forward.
“Aye, War, Pea said that Serenity is thinking about getting into the pole dancing industry. Shanae is such an inspiration.”
War’s expression went from a smile to a scowl. He presented me with his middle finger. “Fuck you, Mega.”
The entire section erupted with laughter.
This circle of diverse men had seen their share of craziness.
As diverse as they were, they were the same.
They were fathers, sons, brothers, friends, businessmen, and some killers.
They all wanted their children to be safe, well-rounded, successful adults, and they were willing to do anything to ensure the outcome.
Mega and Ruth’s legacy were in the hands of their children, Magdelene, Matthew, and Joseph. It was their time to shine with their cousins and friends around them. The fact was that Megatron Loric Manfield had his time. It was a very Mega time to say the least.
All Scootched In