Cario “Crow” Domingo #2
James nodded as he rested his forearms on the table.
“It’s crazy how life pulled everybody in different directions.”
“It definitely did,” I said before taking another sip of my bourbon.
As Rebel talked about one of her latest tech certifications, James listened closely, asking questions and genuinely showing interest. Every now and then he’d nod or laugh at something she said. I found myself watching him more than I should have.
A waitress stopped by to refill our drinks before disappearing just as fast as she’d come. Rebel reached for her straw, absentmindedly stirring the ice around in her glass while James asked another question.
“So, what made you wanna get into computers?” James asked.
Rebel shrugged. “I’ve always loved figuring stuff out. Now I’m trying to build a tech company.”
James smiled. “I can see you doing that.”
Before Rebel could answer, I spoke up. “She gonna do it.”
Rebel shot me a look. “Crow...”
“What?” I smirked.
“You ain’t gotta answer every question for me.” Rebel rolled her eyes.
“I know,” Crow agreed.
“So, stop,” Rebel was annoyed.
Jenay laughed into her drink. “He always like this?”
Rebel didn’t even hesitate. “Unfortunately.”
I clutched my chest. “Damn. That hurt.”
“You’ll live.”
The whole table laughed.
A few minutes later, our food finally arrived.
The smell of honey lemon pepper hit the table before the plates even touched down.
The waiter carefully passed everything out before wishing us a good meal.
Without thinking, Rebel reached over and stole one of my potato wedges. I slowly looked from my plate to hers.
“Really?” I asked.
Rebel looked back at me like she had done nothing wrong.
“What?” she smirked.
“We ordered the exact same thing,” I said.
“I know,” she shrugged.
“So why are you eating mine?” I asked.
Rebel shrugged. “’Cause yours looked better.”
“They literally came from the same fryer,” I shook my head, laughing.
“I said what I said,” Rebel pursed her lips.
James laughed so hard he nearly dropped his drink. “I ain’t never seen two people argue over food they both ordered.”
Jenay shook her head. “I don’t think they arguing.”
“Nah,” James said with a grin. “This just how they flirt.”
Rebel and I both looked at him.
“The fuck?” Rebel said loudly.
James held both hands up. “My bad.”
Jenay laughed so hard she had to wipe tears from her eyes. “I told you before we came over here...”
She pointed between me and Rebel. “We ain’t stand a chance.”
The date continued, and I found myself paying more attention to James than I ever intended.
Every time that nigga laughed at something Rebel said, I noticed.
Every time he leaned in a little closer to hear her over the music, I noticed.
Every smile he threw her way seemed to get under my skin for reasons I couldn’t explain.
The fucked-up part was, James wasn’t doing anything wrong.
He was just trying to get to know Rebel, exactly like I’d planned.
So why the hell was I getting so damn annoyed?
I took a long sip of my bourbon, hoping it’d drown whatever this feeling was, but it didn’t do a damn thing.
The more they talked, the tighter my jaw became, and I hated myself for it because this was exactly how I wanted the night to go... or at least I thought it was.
After another hour or so, I’d had enough.
Between James making Rebel laugh every five damn minutes and Jenay trying to keep a conversation going that I barely paid attention to, I was ready to call it a night.
It wasn’t that the date was bad. James and Rebel seemed to get along, and Jenay was cool as always.
So why the hell was I so ready to leave?
I couldn’t answer that. I just knew the longer I sat there watching another nigga smile at Rebel, the more annoyed I became.
A little while later, Jenay glanced down at her phone before looking over at James. “We should probably get going.”
James nodded. “Yeah, I promised Ma we’d stop by the house tonight.”
The four of us stood from the table, and Jenay pulled Rebel into a quick hug.
“It was so good seeing you again.”
“You too. We definitely gotta do this again.”
James smiled at Rebel. “It was nice catching up.”
“You too.”
The two of them hugged before James turned to me and pulled me into one of those quick one-armed hugs men always did.
“Appreciate you setting this up.”
“No doubt.”
Jenay looked between me and Rebel with a knowing smile.
“Y’all don’t stay out too late.”
Rebel laughed. “We grown.”
“I know,” Jenay teased. “That’s why I said it.”
The twins laughed before making their way toward the exit. Then Rebel and I stood there watching them leave until the front door closed behind them. The second they were out of sight, I let out a breath I didn’t even realize I’d been holding. That’s when Rebel looked over at me.
“You good?”
“Yeah.”
She narrowed her eyes. “You sure?”
I shoved my hands into my pockets. “Yeah. Why?”
She smirked. “I don’t know... you seem a whole lot happier now that they gone.”
I let out a dry laugh. “Man, shut up.”
She bumped my shoulder as we started walking toward the door together.
“Mhm. That’s what I thought.”
Rebel rolled her eyes, but I caught the corner of her mouth curling into a smile before she took another bite of her wing.
We hung out for a while to eat more wings, laughing and talking like we always did.
No matter what, Rebel and I always had a good time together.
She knew me better than anyone else. I shared everything with her, and not once did she judge me.
That’s why I always said she had a nigga’s heart for real, solid, loyal, and willing to ride through whatever life threw our way.
Once we finished eating, I tossed a few bills on the table, and we headed toward the door.
We hadn’t made it three steps when, out of nowhere, that same clown Rebel had brushed off earlier reached out from the bar and grabbed a handful of her ass.
Before I could even react, Rebel snatched the empty beer bottle sitting in front of him and swung without a second’s hesitation.
The bottle exploded against the side of his head with a sickening crack, showering the bar with glass and beer.
That bitch-ass motherfucker staggered backward, cursing as blood trickled down the side of his face.
I guess he thought he was gonna walk away without dealing with any more consequences.
When he tried to regain his balance, I caught him by the front of his shirt.
With one hard jerk, I ripped him clean off his feet and flipped his ass across the nearest table.
The table exploded beneath him, sending plates, glasses, and silverware crashing across the floor.
Gasps rippled through the lounge as people scrambled out of the way.
A waitress nearly dropped her tray while somebody pulled out their phone.
Even his boys froze for a second, looking like they couldn’t believe somebody had just folded their man across a damn table.
I walked over without saying a word, grabbed another fistful of his shirt, and yanked him halfway off the broken table until we were face-to-face.
“You got one free lesson tonight. If I ever hear you put your hands on her again...” I leaned in until only he could hear me. “They’ll be identifying your body instead of treating your injuries.”
I shoved him back onto the splintered table hard enough to make what was left of it collapse beneath him. The lounge had gone damn near silent. Ignoring every pair of eyes on us, I turned my attention to Rebel.
“You good?”
She looked me over for a second before nodding. “I’m good.”
I gently brushed a loose loc away from her face, making sure she was straight. “You sure?”
A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “I’m sure.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed two security guards finally making their way across the lounge.
I cracked my neck and rolled my shoulders, already getting ready for whatever was about to happen.
Rebel caught the look on my face. Normally, she’d be the first one adding fuel to the fire, but this time she surprised me. She reached over and gripped my arm.
“Crow,” she called my name.
I looked at her. “It ain’t worth it.”
For a second, I just stared at her. Hearing those words come from Rebel, of all people, caught me completely off guard. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and together we headed toward the exit.
“We probably ain’t allowed back in this bitch anymore.”
Rebel burst out laughing. “Damn. Those wings were good too.”
“They were,” I chuckled. “Guess we’re banned now.”
“Worth it.”
“Oh, it was definitely worth it.”
She bumped my shoulder with hers as she smirked.
“You ain’t have to jump in.”
“I know. But I’m not built to stand there and watch somebody disrespect somebody I care about.”
She held my gaze for a second longer than usual before looking away.
“Usually you’re calm,” she said quietly.
“Don’t ever think I’m gonna stand there and let somebody put their hands on you, regardless of whether you can handle it. That ain’t happening.”
Rebel looked at me for a long second before a small smile crept onto her face.
Without another word, she climbed onto her bike and fired it up.
I watched her pull out of the parking lot before twisting my throttle and following behind.
Her taillight cut through the night as she weaved through traffic with the same fearless confidence she’d always had.
I shook my head and laughed to myself. That woman rode a motorcycle the same way she lived her life, fast, reckless, and on her own damn terms. I stayed a few car lengths behind her, making sure she made it safely onto the highway before peeling off toward my own exit.
She would probably cuss me out if she ever found out I did that every chance I got, but I didn’t give a damn.
Some habits were hard to break, especially when they involved someone you cared about.