Playing with Fire #2
Fredo had taken out his braids as I laughed at him for trying to trick me. He held the half-empty Hennessy bottle, but he’d long stopped drinking.
The girls made a beeline for us. It was four of them, and they were definitely out of high school. The two in the back were taller, while the two in the front were short and voluptuous.
And one of them was staring holes into Rico's face.
Rico and Kilo stood up to hug the girls. They went through the group, but the one staring holes into Rico was last to hug him, and kept her arms around him.
She was short, and got on her toes and puckered her lips. He leaned down and let her kiss his cheek.
A giggle burst out of me without my permission. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
Fredo reached and grabbed my drink, and with some elbow grease, he got it out of my grasp and put that and the bottle away from my arms’ distance.
“You cute! That’s your real hair?” the older girl asked me.
I shifted my gaze to her and nodded.
“That’s wassup! I’m Chyna, Kilo’s sister.” She smiled like that was supposed to mean something to me. But then, I guess it was, since he was the reason we were all here.
“Amber.”
“Asia.”
“Kisha,” the one with her arms around Rico said. She smiled kindly enough.
Fredo wrapped an arm around my shoulder and brought his lips to my ear. “Chill, Wyn. Don’t get him started,” he whispered only for me.
My lips spread as I leaned more into him. “I’m Wynter.”
“Dang, this you, Tune?” Chyna grinned harder.
“Nah,” I answered for him, shifting my eyes to Remy, who had been looking at us on and off all day. “I’m single.”
Remy averted his eyes and shook his head. “You a problem, Ice Princess."
“That’s where I know you from! MyRoom!”
They fell right in, taking shots after that. Fredo had discreetly cut me off, but it didn’t matter. Once I saw Rico and the girl Kisha go inside of the house together, I was ready to go home.
We slipped away when they all went to the pool. Thankfully, he didn’t say anything as he strapped me in the front.
Before he pulled off, Rico sauntered out of the house and slid inside the back. He smelled like perfume, and a hickey was blooming on his neck. I shook my head and turned on the radio as we pulled out of the driveway of the house.
Rico leaned up and smacked the off button of the radio. “Turn that shit off.”
“Rick,” Fredo said, but I didn’t turn it back on. I just kept my head toward the window, and watched the sun go down.
“You mad, Snow?”
“Rick–”
“Nah. If she mad, let her say something.”
I rolled my eyes at the pressure building behind them. It wasn’t like he said we were going together, but the way he acted, I didn’t think there was someone else.
And she’s older. Probably could drive. Probably doing more than the hugs and pecks on the lips we did. Not to mention, her body.
I was a stick. I didn’t even have to wear bras, and only owned one. I was still in undershirts and training bras. That girl Kisha had boobs and hips and booty and thighs.
How could I compete?
But Rico didn’t know I was a pro at handling rejection like this. This was nothing compared to what I dealt with, with Auty.
I could stop my crush on him. I could stop letting him dictate who I spend my time with, especially at school. There were plenty of guys who were in my inbox, and carrying my books to class. There were plenty of parties and sleepovers I could go to instead of waiting for Rico to pull up.
He could get back to Kisha.
“Why would I be mad? We don’t go together. You can do whatever you want.”
“See-”
“Just like I can,” I chirped, interrupting Fredo. He sighed, but I hoped that was for his brother and not me.
“The fuck does that mean, Snow?” Rico sat up and leaned into the front.
“Just what I said. Remy added me on MyRoom a few weeks back. He’s cute. Maybe I’ll hang out with him during Thanksgiving break.”
I glanced at Rico, who was smirking at me. But it didn’t reach his eyes.
In fact, his eyes were almost a different color. Still brown, but more… flat. Muted.
“Stop the car, Fred.”
“I’m–”
“Stop. The car, Fred,” he repeated.
Fredo sighed again as Rico and I warred with our glares. Fredo pulled over, and I noticed we were around the corner from my house.
“Step out the car, Snow.”
“I get out this car, I’m going home.”
Rico chuckled before getting out.
“Just do what he says, Wyn,” Fredo sighed.
“What?” I said, whirling around to him. “You’re serious?!”
“Man–”
My door opened and in a flash I was outside and pinned against the door again.
This wasn’t like earlier that day. Rico was more than serious. His eyes were wild, wilder than I’d ever seen, and he was heaving.
“The fuck you mean you finna hang with another nigga?!” he seethed.
I folded my arms to get him to take a step back, but he didn’t. He just leaned himself against my arms, his eyes dancing between my eyes.
“Is Kisha your girlfriend?”
He tilted his head, and even though I wanted to believe whatever he was about to tell me, I knew it would be a lie.
“Bye, Rico.” I tried to push him off me, but he didn’t budge.
“You come around any of my niggas, on Baby I’m bodying them.”
“Fighting over me like you don’t have a hickey on your neck? You’re a joke.”
He grinned as he adjusted his hoodie. “I ain’t say shit about fighting, Snow,” he said, before leaning in.
“I’m talkin’ I’ma put a bullet in they fuckin’ eye. Or maybe I’ll keep socking they head until it’s mush. Throw a nigga off the roof of the Towers. You try me and you gon’ see why they call a nigga Luney, and that’s on my soul.”
All of my breath left me as I stood horrified. He was dead serious, casually threatening the lives of boys he was supposed to be loyal to.
It didn’t make sense, and that, mixed with the terror I felt, made my brain mush.
“You’re crazy,” I whispered.
He finally stepped away from me, his face a picture of confusion. “I’m just telling you what it is.”
“Leave me alone, Rico. I mean it, stay away from me.”
He shrugged, almost back to normal as he backed up more so I could walk away. We were around the corner. I could have walked home.
“Snow,” he called out.
Despite what I knew, I still turned toward him.
He opened the front passenger door and rested on it. His smile was charming, but it didn’t make me feel the same. Not then. Not when I knew other girls were enjoying it.
“I know you mad, so I’ll give you some time. But don’t forget what it is.” He got inside the car without giving me time to reply, like I could even figure out what to say to that.
I just turned around and speedwalked to my house.
“Should have known he was crazy. He’s from the projects, Wynnie. You sure know how to pick ‘em,” I berated myself into the fall night.
Regardless of his warning, I still blocked his number and took him out of my Top Five as I walked up my steps. I had half a mind to give him back the phone, but I wasn’t that dumb.
This phone was amazing.
I slipped inside my house as I pocketed my phone, and collapsed onto the couch. I still had another hour and a half before the supposed family meeting, which was just enough time to get my feelings together.
Closing my eyes, I tried to center myself like how Frankie did before she cussed everyone out in her salon.
Unless Mom was apologizing to Auty and speaking to her, I didn’t care about what was to be said. This had gone on entirely too long, five years by then, and now the house was a warzone.
And now with me seeing Rico for “what it is,” as he would say, my days were about to become unbearable again.
After a few deep breaths, I wiped my face with the backs of my hands and opened my eyes.
There, in the middle of the coffee table, was a stack of money and a note.
It was thick, bigger than the size of a brick. Four smaller stacks wrapped in a thin paper, and if each stack was the same as the one on top, then it was forty-thousand dollars.
I’d never seen that much money at one time before. Even when Mom would drag me on shopping dates with her. Never that much.
My lips dried up immediately. My stomach dipped. Something was wrong. So very wrong.
I didn’t even have enough spit to lick my lips. They were cracking by the second, as I stared at the folded note by the money.
“They wouldn’t,” I whispered to myself. They wouldn’t just leave forty-thousand dollars here, for anyone to see.
I dug my phone out of my pocket and saw it was quarter to six. Auty wouldn’t come until she absolutely had to, especially since he was next door.
I could have delayed reading the note. I should have. But I had to know. I had to make sure the hope that I knew my parents, at least my Dad, wouldn’t do this to us, that it was maybe just misplaced.
I snatched the note and unfolded it. As my eyes scanned my mother’s handwriting, tears blurred them by the time I got to the last word.
Since you hate me so much, see how you do without me. Maybe then you’ll appreciate all I do for your ungrateful ass.
I stood so abruptly that the couch creaked, and rushed to the house phone in the kitchen. There was a new message on the machine that I played instantly.
“Hey, girls. It’s your dad. Your mom and I will be going away for a while, but don’t worry.
Your mom called your Nana and she’ll be there tomorrow.
I know this is sudden, but I thought our departure was next Saturday, instead of this Saturday.
I’d wanted to do this in person, but we’d already paid our deposits and everything was set.
Thank God your mother caught the mistake.
“Your mom is on her way to leave a note detailing everything and how to reach us while we’re gone, while I hold up our spots. Nana will have the same information. Please know that we love you, both of you, and when we get back, we can work on being a family. It’s not too late. I love you,
my favorite seasons.”
A shrill left me as my lungs deflated. Dad was a fucking idiot.
I grabbed the phone off the receiver and dialed Mom’s number.
Disconnected.
I dialed Dad’s number.
Straight to voicemail.