29. Doll
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
DOLL
A WEEK LATER
I t was lunchtime, so I decided to take my black ass down the street to this burger joint. It had to be new—well, not that new. Just new to me ’cause it wasn’t there before I went away to prison. I had been hearing a lot of good things ’bout Soul Burger and wanted to try ’em out and see if they were really ’bout the hype.
It was hot as hell outside. Alabama had to have been placed next to the sun with this damn heat. The shit was melting my fucking face. I literally started sweating soon as I walked out the door. I had been waiting to work my job a couple months so that I could go and get a car off someone’s lot. It may not have been some shit I wanted, but it was gon’ do for now. Anything was better than walking or waiting ’round for Stoney’s ass. She got off later than me on the days I worked, so I still had to lounge ’round the hotel ’til it was time for her to leave.
I pulled the door open on the restaurant and the air slapped me in the face, immediately drying my sweat. It was ice cream cold in there, just the way I loved it. It had this lil café vibe to it. A few tables and a long ass bar. I took a seat at the bar and picked up the menu to see exactly what I wanted. I had been browsing it for a good two minutes before I heard, “Doll?” and I looked up into Jill’s ugly ass face.
She stood behind the bar dressed in a black polo shirt and a pair of khaki pants. A name tag was on her shirt, and I instantly thought ’bout leaving and just starving, but it was gon’ be a while before I got off. If I didn’t put anything on my stomach, everyone back at the hotel was gon’ catch hell whenever they encountered me.
“What the hell do you want?”
“I haven’t seen you since Ocean Reef. How you been?”
“Please stop pretending like you give a shit ’bout how I been. Are you gon’ take my order? Matter fact, I’on even want you to. Send somebody else over here.”
“You really be walking ’round here like the whole world against you.” She rolled her eyes.
I should reach ’cross there and smack the shit out of you.
“Jill, go get somebody to take my order before you make me fucking mad.”
“I really came over here ’cause I wanted to apologize to you ’bout Rell.”
My ears perked. “What are you talking ’bout?”
Tears filled her eyes, and I immediately regretted asking her that question.
“I caught him cheating on me.” The floodgates opened. The bitch was really in here crying over a nigga that she basically stole from me and thought he was gon’ treat her like a fucking queen. Just like the old saying goes, you lose ’em how you get ’em. Jerrell may have been putting on a show for her, but soon or later his true colors was gon’ show, and that nigga had colors I’d never seen in the crayon box.
“What you expected? That nigga a dog.”
“Do you really have to be so mean ’bout it?” She sniffled. She was lucky I didn’t flat out laugh in her face like I wanted to.
“Jill, I’on know what you want me to do ’bout yo’ situation. If I’m being honest, I really don’t give a damn ’bout him cheating on you. You thought it was all giggles and laughs when it was me. Take yo’ shit with yo’ chest out just like me. Don’t let that shit cave now. Like I said, send someone over here to take my fucking order. I’m hungry.” I shooed her away and a few moments later, another chick stepped in front of me. I ordered my food and sat there in silence as I waited for it.
Jill was stupid as fuck if she thought she was ’bout to get any ounce of sympathy from me. When I tried to tell her ass ’bout him lying on that yacht, she should have fucking listened then. She placed herself in this position, and I wasn’t ’bout to help her.
The waitress brought my food back over and I got up from my seat. I intended on eating there but the way Jill kept eyeing me, she was gon’ make me lose my appetite, then we really were gon’ have a fucking problem.
I exited the restaurant and started my journey back to the hotel. I stopped at the light and waited for it to clear so I could cross the street. A black Maserati stopped in front of me. The tint was dark as fuck so I couldn’t tell who it was. The window let down and I rolled my eyes.
“Where you coming from?” Scar questioned me, and I placed my free hand on my right hip.
“Why?”
“Where you heading? To the hotel? Get in the car.” He leaned over and pushed the passenger door open for me. Normally, I probably would have protested, but the way those sweat beads were gliding down my face, I happily got my ass in that car. “That shit smells good. What you got?”
“None of yo’ fucking business.”
He reached over and tried to grab my bag, but I snatched it away from him.
“Damn, it’s like that?”
I mugged him and didn’t respond. Just ’cause he was giving me a ride didn’t mean I had to be all nice to him and shit. I was still pissed with him.
Shaking his head, he pulled off and headed in the direction of the hotel. He turned into the parking lot and stopped in front of the entrance. I went to get out the car, but he locked the doors. I hit unlock and he locked ’em again.
Sighing, I cut my eyes in his direction. The nigga sat there with his hand on the door, waiting for me to try and get out the car again. “See, what I’m not finna do is play these childish ass games with you.”
I relaxed back in the seat and opened my food. If my shit got cold, I was gon’ be mad as hell. Since he wasn’t tryna let me out the car, I’ma eat my food in here.
Soon as I opened my plate, Scar said, “That burger looks fire,” grabbed it, and took a huge bite out of it. I sat there with my mouth wide open.
“I just know you fucking didn’t.”
He took another bite from my burger and put it back on the plate. I sat there glowering at the half-eaten burger.
“Niggas know they can ruin somebody’s appetite.”
“How I ruined your appetite?”
“Look what you did to my fucking burger!” Tears blurred my vision. I didn’t have the slightest idea as to why I was crying over a got damn burger, but my feelings were hurt in the worst way.
“Doll, you crying over a burger?”
“I was hungry and you ate my shit!”
Scar put the car in drive. I sat there with my arms folded over my chest and stayed silent the entire ride back to Soul Burger. Without uttering a word, he climbed out the car and went inside. A good ten minutes later, he came out with three bags in his hands. He got back in the car and said, “Here. Now you got six burgers.”
I burst out laughing. “What I’m gon’ do with all those burgers, Scar?”
“I’on know. The way you was crying over that burger had me a lil scared.”
“I don’t need six burgers.” I snatched one of the bags away from him and opened the plate. It was a double patty melt. The shit looked better than the cheeseburger I ordered. I took a bite from it and moaned. I was in cheeseburger heaven.
“I know what to do for yo’ fat ass when you mad.” I gave him the bird finger and continued to eat my food. We sat there on the side of the street and ate quietly. When we were done eating, he took me back to the hotel. “I gotta dip off somewhere right quick, but I’ll be back in a few hours. You gon’ hang ’round ’til I come back?”
I stared at his sexy ass. My stomach was full and my pussy was screaming to be licked by him, but I wasn’t ’bout to give him that satisfaction. Nigga thinks just ’cause he bought me some food, that he was obligated to get some pussy. Nope.
“I’ll think ’bout it,” I lied and got out the car.