Chapter Twenty-Three
Rhythm
“What are you cooking?” Nique asked, looking over my shoulder.
She’d just gotten in from work and had made a beeline for the kitchen.
“Rice, fried pork chops, and cabbage with sausage and bacon.”
She moaned. “Oooo. That just screams southern comfort. I like L.A., but they have nothing on a good ol’ country meal.”
“Facts. It’ll be done in a little bit.”
“I’m surprised to see you here. You and Channing have been spending a lot of time together.”
I smiled. “We have.”
“I feel a little neglected, bitch.”
I turned to her to find a playful grin on her face. I wanted to make sure she wasn’t serious. The last thing I wanted her to feel was neglected, especially since she moved to be closer to me.
“I’m playing, girl,” she said, slapping my arm. “I know you been over there letting that man blow your back out. I appreciate you taking it to his house ’cause I need my beauty sleep. You know your ass gets loud.”
I laughed. “Shut up, Nique!”
“You know I’m right! We shared a suite in college, remember. I had to listen to you and Carter through those paper-thin ass walls. I love you, but I’ve never aspired to know what you sound like when you cum.”
“Oh, whatever! I know what you sound like too. You’re just as loud.”
She rolled her eyes. “Anyway! How are things with you and him?”
“Good, actually. I mean, he told me there was more to him than dick, and there is. I feel relaxed with him, Nique. There is nothing but peace when we are together.”
“I love that for you. You see ol’ girl has been wildin’ on Twitter, right?”
I rolled my eyes. “I saw that shit.”
Imani was still on one from Raheem’s album release. All week long, she’d been sharing screenshots of text messages, pictures, and videos of them to her page and calling him out. According to the messages, they’d been messing around for at least a year now.
She had pictures of him at her house and his, pictures of them in his car, gifts he’d bought her, and all types of shit. That didn’t bother me as much as the picture of the ultrasound she posted. She’d been pregnant six months ago and lost it. When I saw that, I could admit I felt hurt and anger. Part of me wanted to unblock him just so I could curse him the fuck out.
All his skeletons were coming out of the closet, and I was realizing more and more that the man I fell in love with was a fraud. He had no respect for me or our relationship. He begged me to be with him. He’d begged me to move here, only to mistreat me when I did.
I felt stupid.
“You okay?” Nique asked, breaking me out of my thoughts.
“I’m fine,” I answered quietly.
I was thankful the doorbell sounded so she wouldn’t ask me anything else. I turned back to the pot while she went to answer. A few seconds later, I heard the door open.
“Oh, hell no!” she yelled.
I sprinted around the corner to see Raheem and Ms. Cole standing at the door.
“Monique, Rhythm,” his mother said with a soft smile. “Do you mind if we come in?”
Nique shook her head. “Ms. Cole, you know I love you, but this bastard ain’t welcomed in our home.”
“Watch your mouth, Nique,” Raheem warned her.
Nique mushed his head. “Or what? My name ain’t Imani, nigga.”
“Monique, please,” Ms. Cole pleaded. She looked at me. “Baby, I just want to apologize on behalf of my son. You know he was raised to respect women—”
“Mama Cole, it’s not your place to apologize for him. Raheem is a grown man and knew what he was doing. He knew he was wrong every time he laid down with that girl. There is nothing he needs to say to me.”
“Rhythm, I’m sorry!” he said, grabbing the knob as Nique went to close the door. “I love you. I fucked up and let this music go to my head. Imani didn’t mean anything to me, baby. She’s not who I wanna be with. I asked you to move here because I wanted to build a life with you, Rhy.”
I scoffed. “You are such a liar. If you wanted to build a life with me, you would have never found yourself in bed with the next bitch. You don’t get to do this. You can’t come over here with your mother, trying to plead your case, Raheem. You did that shit. You’ve been doing that, and it’s just now coming to the light. Your little girlfriend has exposed way more than I could ever forgive you for. You got her pregnant, Raheem! You were out here fucking that girl raw and coming home to me. You sat up in my face telling me lies and making me feel like I was tripping, when really, you are just an ain’t shit ass nigga.”
“I ain’t shit? I took care of you. I put you in that car you drive. I laced you in the diamonds and expensive shit you like to wear now. I cut the check for that nice ass clinic you own, and I was generous enough to put it all in your name.”
I clapped dramatically. “Kudos to you! Do you want it back?” I asked, pulling the current jewelry from various places on me. I threw it at him then grabbed my car keys and threw those too. “You want it all back, since you wanna throw in my face what you’ve done for me? I never asked you for anything, Raheem! I was never with you for your damn money! I liked you when you didn’t have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of. If that’s how you wanna act, take it all back.”
“He’s not taking anything back,” Ms. Cole said, cutting her eyes at Raheem.
She stooped to pick up my keys and handed them to me. When I refused to take them, she placed them on the table beside the door. She grabbed my hands and squeezed them.
“I’m so sorry that my son hurt you.”
“Again, it’s not for you to apologize for, Ms. Cole. Honestly, I don’t wish any harm to him. I just want him to leave me alone. There will never be a me with him again. The sooner he accepts that, the better. He needs to move on because I sure have.”
Raheem frowned. “So you with another nigga already, Rhythm?”
“Who I’m entertaining is none of your concern just like I’m none of your concern. Go worry about your side chick continuing to air out your dirty laundry. Ms. Cole, I’m sorry, but please take your son off my doorstep.”
This time, it was me that grabbed the door and shut it in their faces. I could hear Raheem on the other side yelling obscenities like he wasn’t the one who played in my face and cheated on me.
“You better get the hell outta here before you add jailbird to your resume!” Nique yelled at the door.
I shook my head as I walked back into the kitchen to tend to my food. Nique followed me and grabbed a bottle of wine from the fridge. She popped it open and poured us both a full glass. When she handed it to me, I gulped the whole thing down.
“I need liquor,” I said, placing the glass on the counter.
“Shit, I got that, too.”
She went under the sink and grabbed the bottle of Henny to pour an additional glass for me. I took a big gulp of it, allowing the liquid to burn my chest.
“That fucking asshole!” I yelled. “How dare he bring his mama over here to try to apologize!”
Nique shook her head. “Niggas are never short on audacity, boo. I can’t believe she even agreed to come here in the first place. I know she has to be embarrassed. They have been dragging her on Twitter, too.”
“She doesn’t deserve that. I mean, yeah, she raised him, but that woman is a good mother. She can’t control what her raggedy, grown ass son does. Wait ’til I tell Channing about this shit.”
Nique snorted. “Wait ’til Raheem finds out Channing is who you are moving on with. Shit is gonna hit the fan. You ready for that?”
“At this point, Nique, I don’t care. I didn’t cheat on him. I was a single woman when we were intimate. I was single when I left the club with him. Ain’t nothing Raheem can say, but it’s messy.”
Nique shrugged her shoulders. “True. I guess we’ll just have to see how it plays out.”
“I guess we do.”
I prayed that Raheem got the hint. I’d been telling him it was over since I left the house. I made that shit very clear. Now that his dirt was coming out, he couldn’t possibly think there would ever be another us. I was embarrassed enough by him. I refused to be a clown and go back to him again.