Zoya
The older I became, the more I realized that there were families who cherished Thanksgiving. I had always considered the holiday a genocide, which it was, but it was more than that to the Black community.
It was less about the murderous freaky Pilgrams and the native Americans. This holiday was about being around your family. All day you starved because you know the one and only meal that mattered was being prepared by your grandmother, Nana, or whatever you called them.
Cousins you hadn’t seen in a while came into town, and things took off like no time had passed between you both. Memaw usually had less birthdays ahead, so everyone cherished her cooking while spending what could be her last holiday with the family.
The Caselli’s didn’t do holidays.
For the first time, we all celebrated Thanksgiving because of Stevie. I had to admit, sharing food with my family and spending time with them felt foreign. Not a bad foreign, but a feeling that I wouldn’t mind experiencing again.
It was something that I took for granted and filed on a list of things I didn’t care to celebrate. That was until I witnessed Sharon’s tears while hugging both her boys. One was usually in prison while the other ran the streets, so I could understand where her emotions came from.
The power had come back on and the weather was perfect.
Considering it looked like a tornado was going to fly through the island yesterday, I welcomed the sun and warm weather.
Gams wasted no time coming to get Mommy to bring her over to the house so she could finish helping her cook.
When she left, I cleaned up the kitchen and tossed away the breakfast I made because no one touched it.
Inez literally put jungle juice in her veins, and she turned her nose up at my eggs? I reached a new low in my cooking career if she was judging my food. All three of them had been sleeping all morning, which was fair. I missed Goo, and me and Bando went to the beach.
“That attitudes a little bit different today… care to explain?” Kobe took a sip of his drink and eyed me down.
Alaia laughed. “The turkey ain’t the only thing that got stuffed.”
Capri busted out laughing. “I know that’s right… did you get stuffed, Zoya? Did you get stuffffed?” she said slower, teasing me.
I flipped her the middle finger, then did the same in Blair’s direction. “I didn’t even say anything yet.”
“You look like you were about to.”
Syn snickered. “Yeah, she did look seedy.”
“As seedy as you looked trying to figure out which room Havoc is staying in,” Blair called her out, taking a sip of her drink.
Syn covered her face with the pillow from the cabana. “Can a girl worry about where the man is? He cannot hear us if there is an emergency in the middle of the night.”
“And the award for the biggest bullshitter goes to Synnny Syn Syn.” Kobe chuckled, as moved his lounge chair more into the sun.
Bando brought me the toy he brought out here and I tossed it back out towards the water. He was having a ball running in and out of the water without having to wear a leash. The whole time I had been here, all I thought about was him being here and Goo made it possible.
“I think it’s sweet that he thought of Bando and brought him… Goon is a romantic for sure.” Erin sat down at the edge of my lounge and smiled.
Kobe nodded his head. “I remember the chicks that he used to…” Kobe stopped speaking when I shot daggers at him. “They used to read the Quran together.”
Alaia started laughing. “He was a hoe… you can admit that.”
“He better not admit that. I’m his one and only.” Especially after the way that man beat this box down this morning.
Before leaving the villa, I had half the mind to pull his briefs back and look at it once more. There wasn’t any more playing nice when it came to that man and my dick. He even as much invited a bitch to it, and I was cutting it off and putting it into my purse.
Specifically, a purse that he paid for.
“So jealous,” Alaia teased.
“As if you didn’t make that woman in the grocery store rush out because she complimented Cappy.” It was Alaia’s turn to be called out.
Alaia laughed, holding her finger up to plead her case. “That bitch saw me standing there and proceeded to compliment him on his physique. Asking which gym he goes to and all that shit.”
“For an old man, he does look amazing,” Syn complimented.
Alaia had this look in her eye. “Syn, I really like you.”
“Awe, I like you, too.” She smiled, not knowing that her ass was on thin ice and was being threatened.
“Then let’s keep it like that.” She gave her a forced smile, while the rest of us were in stitches because she was serious. Alaia had never played when it came to her husband, and he was the same way about her.
“She’s not completely wrong… Cappy did turn around and start telling her he’s a personal trainer.”
“He thinks he’s so funny.” Alaia sighed.
I smiled, because she was in deep love with that man. “What if I decided to convert?” the question was random, but something that I had been thinking about often.
“Would you really give up amaretto sours and covering your hair?” Capri questioned.
Alaia looked at her sister-in-law like she had failed her. “She doesn’t have to cover her hair. That is her choice and hers only. Cappadonna would have been fine if I never covered my hair.”
“Why did you?” Kobe questioned, with a pair of thin glasses on, and his arms put behind his head.
Alaia turned to face him. “I wore my hijab for a man who wasn’t worthy of me.
A man who didn’t honor or care for me. He demanded that I wore it, and I obeyed because I thought that was what I was supposed to do.
Then I met Roy, and he never forced any of this onto me.
He taught me about a religion I thought I already knew everything about.
He helped me understand that my hijab was never supposed to be about pleasing a man.
” She touched the fabric that framed her face.
“I wear this for Allah. I honor my husband because he helped me understand what all of this means.”
“That’s beautiful, Alaia.” Kobe smiled.
“This isn’t supposed to be weaponized. Too many people look at Muslim women and assume we’re being controlled or held hostage by our faith or the men we love.
There are Muslim men like my ex-husband who use religion as a way to control women.
I lived through that. But there are also men like Cappadonna and Goon, men who respect their women, protect them, care for them, and understand that faith was never meant to be used as a weapon against us.
This journey is for you to explore for you, not because of Goon, me, or anyone else. ”
Recommendation: Listen to “Meant To Be” by TLC
“It’s been on my mind lately because I’m about to have a baby. Goo has been stern about raising his children Muslim, and he deserves to do that.”
Capri spit her entire drink out onto Kobe and then jumped off her cabana and lunged at me. “You lying, Zoy! Tell me you’re lying right now,” she had tears in her eyes.
All this emotional shit was giving me a headache, but there I found myself crying again. “I’m pregnant.”
She swung her arms around my neck, squeezing me. Blair had jumped up and climbed over Kobe’s chair to get over to us. She joined into the hug, squeezing all of us. “I’m so happy for you, Zoya. You’re going to be somebody’s bad ass mama.”
“She is. You’re joining the mommy club, Zoy. Feel my heart,” she placed my hand onto her heart.
Capri deserved every good thing that came her way. She was one of those friends that was always there for you, and genuinely happy for your wins. She never did the jealousy shit, or shady mess when it came to her friendships. Capri Inferno wanted everyone to be happy and to win, even if she wasn’t.
Erin reached over and gave me a kiss on the cheek. “Congratulations, Mama… if you need diapers, let me know.”
“You peddling diapers?” Kobe laughed.
“I have coupons, bitch.”
He laughed. “Well, swing some for some bodywash… when did bodywash become so expensi—”
Blair looked from Kobe and then to Alaia. “Why the hell aren’t you two surprised?”
“Cause I heard the little bean’s heartbeat,” Alaia bragged.
Capri and Blair both gasped and looked offended. “We are your best friends, and you didn’t even let us know and kept our child’s heartbeat from us?” Capri playfully mushed me.
“I need you to stop hanging with your husband.” I laughed.
They both hugged me again. “I’m so excited for this journey. Have you told Goon?”
I cut my eyes at her. “He’s the reason that we know. Forced me to take a test on my birthday.”
“A hell of a birthday gift.” Syn smiled.
The love that they were showing me felt good. I knew I had to tell my family, but I was scared. I felt like a teen about to tell her father the high school’s quarterback had knocked me up in the back of a red pickup truck.
“Did you tell your sister?”
“Stevie knows.”
“Kora?”
“I haven’t told any of them about it. I’m scared to tell Menace and don’t know why. I’m grown and can take care of myself.”
“You care what he thinks. Even if you don’t want to admit it, you care about his opinion on your life.”
I shrugged. “Not really.”
“Tell that lie to yourself, Zoy. Menace is your big brother, and he had a hand in raising you. As much as you give him push back, I know deep down there’s a piece of you that wants him to be proud of you.”
“He’s my brother, but also my father at the same time.
Like, I’m not calling Menace to vent or talk shit.
I’m calling him if I have an issue that I cannot handle.
It’s easier to tell Don because he’s like my actual sibling.
Menace and Kora are like my parents… even though I’m not scared to tell Kora. She loves babies.”
“Maybe she’ll be next to have some.”
I broke out into laughter. “Kora isn’t having any kids.”