Chapter 23
VASIAH
Icouldn’t have heard this nigga right. Let Reina tell it, Reign was not the type of nigga to apologize.
So what changed? When I mentioned it to my Pops, he didn’t excuse his behavior, but he did offer a perspective that I didn’t necessarily consider because I’m an only child.
I didn’t know how it felt to have a sibling to look out for and protect, especially a sister.
But I meant what I said. I didn’t care if Reign never liked me, as long as his sister did.
But now, his tune was changing. A truce, of some sort.
Reina stood between us, wide-eyed and just as perplexed as me.
“Ummm. Yeah, I’ll smoke this with you,” I surprised myself by obliging.
I only ever really smoked cigars. Weed wasn’t my thing, but one time in college, I took some shrooms and had adderall maybe once or twice.
So, I wasn’t such a novice. Reina looked between us, shrugged, then climbed into the sprinter to take shots with the girls.
I watched Reign grab a lighter with Desirae’s face on it and spark the pre-roll.
I’d have to introduce him to Kari, who was opening her own dispensary soon and grew all types of exotic strains of weed.
Reign took the first pull, then passed it to me.
“I’m not a nigga of many words. My wife has admittedly made me more expressive, but my default is to let my actions speak.
I love my sister, dawg…been her protector since before we came out the womb.
Sometimes she’s my voice of reason, and other times I’m hers.
I’m sure you know the story of how our dad treated her and that one time a nigga played in her face…
I just don’t want her to feel like that ever again, you feel me? ”
I nodded. I didn’t plan to play with or about LaReina either.
“But I also recognize where I went wrong. It was fucked up of me to say that I’m the reason that she’s the woman she is…
Reina would have motion whether I was in the picture or not.
And though I tried to teach her things, she’s her own woman and capable of making her own decisions.
All in all, I shoulda gave you a chance instead of coming at you crazy. My fault for that, G.”
We passed the blunt back and forth until it was nothing but a roach, and dapped each other when it was all said and done. Climbing into the Sprinter, I settled in next to my lady, who was tipsy and looked so happy.
“Do I need to curse him out again?”
I squeezed her thigh. “Nah, Bae. We cool now.”
“Good. I’d hate to have to choose my nigga over my family.”
I laughed, then took a shot of the tequila she’d brought. This day was already shaping up to be fun.
Outside with some pretty bitches that don’t know how to act
We be acting bad off liquor, all we do is throw it back
Shaking ass on top of cars, know I’m gon’ fuck around and catch
All I hang around is baddies, you know we the biggest brats
LaReina was a certified ass shaker, and I was catching all she was throwing at this day party.
Shades on, cup of Don Julio in one hand, while the other palmed her soft ass.
She was bent straight over, heels switched out for slides, throwing ass all over me as if we were in the bedroom. Feeling good was an understatement.
“Okay, Nerd Boy! Catch ittttt!” One of the twins yelled over the music, hyping us up.
I handed off my drink so I could steady myself with both hands, but felt Domo hold me up as if we were at a juking party from back in the day.
She stopped dancing, only to drink some water, and then made us take two shots.
The combination of the blunt I smoked with Reign and the liquor had me feeling mellow, but eventually I’d reach my limit.
I looked around at everyone in our section.
The twins were entertaining some niggas, Domo and Chewy were about to buy another bottle from the bottle girl, Linx was chopping it up with some nigga, while Reign was making Rae sit down and drink some water before she popped back up and started her shaking ass on him, to which he proudly obliged.
I understood, because it was something about the love of your life putting her ass on your head while heavy beats blared through the speaker.
I never thought I’d experience something like this, to be real.
“Yoooo wassup, LaReina?” A nigga I recognized as a player from The Windy City Warriors stopped as he was walking towards his own section. I was sitting on the booth while Reina settled between my legs, a small fan in front of her face cooling her off.
“Hey, Antwan,” she greeted him casually, but made no move to get up and hug him or anything.
“Why you stop calling me girl?” his eyes drifted up and down her frame, and I felt my jaw tighten. Why the hell does this girl know NBA players, and why are they pressed that she ain’t calling them?
“I’m married.” She shrugged dismissively and laid her head on my knee. Antwan looked at me and raised his hands in mock surrender. “My fault, dawg. Respect.” I jutted my chin at him, and he backed away, going to his section.
“The fuck was that about?” I found myself blurting out.
“Who, Antwan? He tried to talk to me. It was cool at first, but he wasn’t trynna spend no paper for real and I just… he’s cool, but he ain’t really my speed, and I’m not his either, quiet as it's kept.”
I processed her words, my lips pressed together in a thin line. It’s not that I didn’t believe her; it was just…it made me wonder. If Reina had NBA players vying to get next to her, then what the hell was she doing with someone like me? I was a regular nigga with a regular job.
“Come on, baby, we gotta head to the next spot,” she said and grabbed my hand, seemingly oblivious to the thoughts roaming in my mind.
I didn’t even know if I should share them with her, outta fear of looking insecure.
I let her lead me out of the section and down to the sprinter, where she napped the entire twenty-minute drive to the hookah spot.
“You sure we gone make it to the yacht?” I asked when she woke up, and she smiled sleepily. “Mmhmm. I was just resting my eyes. Auntie ain’t got it like she used to, but I’m up now.” She turned to the group. “Now everybody take a shot!”
We took our shots and walked towards the entrance. “Big Rei, not the lil oneeee. What’s da deal, mama?” Some tall nigga in a suit and slicked-back ponytail greeted her excitedly.
“Big Julioooo, act a fooliooo!” She paused to give him a slight side hug, and my brows furrowed. Why does everyone know this damn girl? Did doing hair make you that popular?
“Haven’t seent you in a while, mama. Where you been?”
“Busy as fuckkkk, but you know I can’t stay away from my fave hookah spot. Y’all got any new flavors for me?”
Suit Man nodded. “Yeah, we got this banana pudding and strawberry kiwi flavor that boss named after you.” I frowned even more.
Who the fuck owned this place, and why the hell were they naming hookah flavors after my girl?
These questions perplexed me because I didn’t consider myself the jealous type.
Reina’s smile faltered as she glanced at me. “A flavor named after me? Oh man.. He shouldn’t have.” She squeezed my hand tighter. “Well, we finna go in here. See you later, Julio.”
My mouth brushed up against the shell of her ear. “LaReina, who owns this spot?”
“Um… Enrico.”
Pushing my glasses up, I put some space between us. I couldn’t have heard her correctly.
“Who?”
“The… the nigga you beat up,” she gulped. I blinked angrily at her, mulling over my words. This damn woman had me so fucked up.
“Ahhh. I knew you couldn’t stay away from me long, mami. I got a new flavor I named after y–” Enrico didn’t get a chance to finish his spiel because my fist connected with his nose swiftly. He staggered a bit, trying to stop himself from seeing stars, and swung blindly, missing me completely.
CRACK! CRACK!
I knocked him out again and felt myself get hemmed up by security.
“WAIT! Let him go!” I heard LaReina shriek, pleading with the security, but all they did was carry us outside. I was pissed. This girl was bad for business.
“Vasiah! Vasiah!” I had walked down the street, completely over the day. Her sandals slapped on the ground as she stomped towards me, a look of contention all over her face.
“What the fuck was that about? Why are you leaving?” I responded with silence, just pulled up my rideshare app so I could be in my home and away from her. She snatched my phone out of my hand, forcing me to bore into her.
“Vasiah!” she hissed.
I gritted my teeth. “LaReina. Give me my fuckin’ phone, man.”
“No. Not until you tell me what’s wrong.”
I paused, the intrusive thoughts ready to spill over. I didn’t want to project onto her, but if I didn’t get away from her, then surely I’d say something I regret.
“VASIAH.”
“AIGHT, MAN. YOU ARE BAD FOR BUSINESS. EVERY NIGGA IN THIS CITY KNOWS YOU, MAN, AND WHAT I’M SUPPOSED TO DO? GRIN AND BEAR IT?”
She recoiled. “What the fuck does that even mean, Vasiah?”
I laughed mirthlessly. “First, the NBA player at the day party. Next, you friendly as hell and got nicknames and shit with the bouncer. Then, you bring us to the hookah spot one of yo old hoes owns, thinking that he wouldn’t be on bullshit when he saw you?
Fuck out of my face, LaReina. I will not be doing this right now… not ever, to be honest.”
Her eyes stretched. “So what are you implying? You think I’m some kinda hoe?”
I shrugged. “I don’t care what you is. You just won’t have all that going on around me.” A look of hurt crossed her face and then rage, as she chucked the phone at me.
“Fuck you, Vasiah!” She spun around, then paused, running up on me to slap the mess outta me, rightfully so.
The sting of my cheek didn’t stop me from retrieving my phone from the ground or calling my Uber, though.
I wasn’t sure if I meant it, but LaReina seemed bad for business, accustomed to a certain caliber of life that I didn’t have access to.
As of now, I felt justified, but I knew later I’d regret what I said.
Damn, man…what have I done?