5. Alisha
ALISHA
The second Kim dropped down in my chair, something about her rubbed me the wrong way.
I couldn’t put my finger on it. She hadn’t said no slick shit and she wasn’t rude.
Hell, she hadn’t really said much of anything.
But her energy felt funny. Not enough to make me think she was on some weird shit. Just enough to make me pay attention.
I ain’t gone lie though she was pretty. Tall and slim, thick.
Long black hair hanging halfway down her back like she had just stepped out of a hair commercial.
Skin smooth as hell and dressed like money wasn’t something she had to think about.
She was one of them women that knew folks looked when she walked in a room.
You could tell by the way she carried herself.
She was real confident like she was used to getting whatever she wanted.
“What we doing today?” I asked, setting my brushes and acrylic out.
“French tips,” she said, sliding her hands across the table.
“I can do that.”
I dropped her fingers into the soaking bowl while the shop kept moving around us.
Somebody over by the dryers was laughing loud as hell.
Nia was arguing with one of her regulars about Detroit traffic.
The speakers had old-school R&B playing low enough that you could still hear everybody talking.
The smell of acrylic, polish remover, and perfume had settled into the shop like it always did. It was just another busy day.
“You own this place?” Kim asked, looking around.
I smiled a little. “Yeah.”
“Me and my business partner opened it a couple years ago.”
She nodded slowly, taking everything in. “It’s nice.”
“I appreciate it.” I started shaping her nails, but every now and then I’d catch her looking around the shop then back at me. Most clients came in to get their nails done and to talk shit, but Kim looked like she came for something else too. I just didn’t know what it was yet.
Her eyes moved around the shop slowly like she was taking everything in. The decor and the stations. The women laughing near the dryers. Then eventually her attention landed back on me.
“You got good energy,” she said casually.
I smiled politely. “Appreciate it.”
The bell over the front door chimed. I looked up and couldn’t help but smile because Deuce walked in holding a big bouquet of roses and lilies. “Boy…” I grinned. “What you over here trying to get?”
I started getting up from my station, but before I could make it around the table, Deuce stopped. His eyes went straight to Kim and hers went straight to him. Neither one of them spoke or smiled. It was like they were sizing each other up, then they snapped out of it.
Deuce walked over like nothing happened. Kim leaned back in her chair like she ain’t even know him, maybe I was tripping. Hell, folks look at each other every day. I pushed it to the back of my mind. “You brought me flowers?” I asked, taking them out his hands.
He smirked. “My wife deserves flowers without it being a holiday.”
“Mmm…” I laughed. “You must want something.”
“Nah.” He leaned down and kissed me. “I just felt like showing my woman some love.”
I smiled. “I appreciate it, baby, Oh…” I turned toward my station. “Babe, this Kim my new client.”
Deuce nodded. “How you doing?”
“I’m good,” Kim answered.
“Nice meeting you.”
“You too.”
That was all that was said. Something about the way they played it off made me remember it. Sometimes your gut catches a vibe before your mind even knows what the hell it’s looking at. I just ain’t know it yet.
Everything settled back into a regular rhythm. I filed her nails. The dryers hummed in the background while Nia argued with one of her regulars about tipping.
“You got kids?” Kim asked.
“One.” I couldn’t help smiling. “My daughter run me.”
She laughed. “I believe it.”
“You got any?” She shook her head. “Nah.”
The conversation kept rolling after that.
Deuce leaned against the wall behind me, quiet as hell.
Now that was unusual. Usually he’d be in everybody’s business, messing with Nia or trying to steal somebody candy off their workstation.
Talking so much I’d have to tell him to go find something to do. Today he barely opened his mouth.
“You ain’t got nothing smart to say?” I asked without looking up.
He chuckled. “I’m letting you work.”
I smirked. “Since when?”
Nia looked over from across the shop. “Girl, don’t get used to it. He’ll be back to getting on everybody nerves tomorrow.”
The whole shop laughed, even Deuce. Then his phone rang. He looked down at the screen and his expression changed. “I gotta make a call,” he let me know. He kissed the top of my head before heading toward the door. “I’ll see you later. I love you.”
“Love you too.” I responded.
The bell jingled behind him and Kim watched the door close before sliding her hand back across the table.
“So…you think almond shape would fit my hands better?”
I picked her hand up and turned it side to side. “Yeah, I do.”
By the time I finished Kim’s nails, I was ready to get the hell up out of there. Kim admired her nails with a smile. “I love ’em.”
“I knew you would.”
She grabbed her purse. “It was nice meeting you.”
“You too, boo drive safe.”
Soon as the door closed behind her, Nia looked over from the register.
“Friend…”
I already knew by her voice she was about to be in somebody else’s business.
“What?”
She leaned against the counter. “You ain’t catch that?”
“Catch what?” I asked.
“The way ol’ girl kept eye-fucking your husband.”
I blinked. “Girl…”
“What? I know what I saw.”
I laughed, shaking my head. “You so damn messy.”
“I might be,” she shrugged. “But I ain’t blind.”
I tossed my used files in the trash. “She probably thought he looked familiar.”
Nia let out a loud laugh. “Girl, don’t nobody look at a man like that ’cause he look familiar.”
I rolled my eyes. “You always trying to start some shit.”
“I’m trying to save you from some shit.”
I pointed my nail file at her. “And that’s why your ass stay in everybody else’s relationship instead of your own.”
She clutched her chest. “Ooh… that was low.”
“You started it.” I laughed.
She laughed. “Aight, I’m done.”
But after she walked away her words kept bouncing around in my head. She saw the same thing I saw and that bothered me. I grabbed my phone and called Shante.
She answered on the second ring. “What up, best friend?”
“Girl…” I laughed. “Tell me why Nia almost had me ready to fight her.”
Shante laughed. “What she do now?”
“Being messy as always.” I replied while walking to my truck.
“What else new?” She laughed.
I unlocked my truck. “I had this client today pretty as hell.”
Shante cut in.
“Pretty?”
“Girl, yes. Tall, brown-skinned, long black hair… body banging.”
“Damn, she sounds cute.”
“She was.” I climbed inside my truck. “Her name was Kim.”
There was the smallest pause before Shante spoke.
“Oh… okay.”
I frowned a little. “Anyway, Deuce stopped by while she was in my chair.”
“And that’s not unusual.” Shante replied.
“Nia talking about, ‘Friend, you ain’t see the way that girl kept looking at your husband’?’”
Shante let out a little laugh. “Nia stay starting shit.”
“That’s exactly what I told her, but Deuce was acting a little different.”
“Different how?”
“Quiet. You know how he comes in talking shit and disrupting people working. Today he barely said anything.”
“Maybe he just had something on his mind.”
“Maybe.” I said. I started the truck. “You know what I’m about to stop thinking about it. You trying to grab a drink?”
There was another pause.
“Nah.”
I frowned. “Nah?”
“I’m tired.”
I laughed. “Bitch since when?”
“What?” she asked.
“Since when you too tired to go grab drinks? You the same person that’ll call me on a Tuesday talking about, ‘Friend, put some clothes on. We outside.’”
She sighed. “I just ain’t feeling it today.”
I sat there for a second.
“Friend…”
“I said I’m cool.” She cut me off.
I blinked. “Damn I was just asking.”
“I know, I’m sorry I got a lot on my mind.”
“Mhm.”
“You don’t believe me?”
“I ain’t say that.”
“You ain’t have to.” She sucked her teeth. “I’ll catch up with you another day.”
“Aight if that’s what you wanna do.” I let her know.
“It is.”
I nodded even though she couldn’t see me. “Love you.”
“Love you too.”
The call ended.
I stared at my phone for a second before tossing it onto the passenger seat. Now that was weird. Shante would call me talking about happy hour before I’d even get off work. For her to turn down drinks something was wrong with her.
After leaving the shop, I remembered Brittany needed more Benadryl. Her allergies had been acting up all week and the bottle at home was almost empty.
So instead of heading straight home, I pulled into the CVS a few blocks away and hurried inside.
The store smelled like cleaning products and perfumes from people spraying to see how they smelled.
A few people wandered through the aisle.
I grabbed a basket and headed toward the medicine section first.
I stood there comparing children’s allergy medicine. Poor baby been miserable all week. I tossed the Benadryl into the basket before heading toward the front. That’s when I spotted Malik in the pregnancy test aisle looking stressed the hell out.
I laughed.
“Aht aht,” I called out while walking toward him. “I know you ain’t cheating on my best friend.”
Malik looked up and immediately started laughing.
“Nah, chill,” he said while shaking his head. “It ain’t even like that.”
“Mhm,” I replied dramatically. “Cause this aisle looking real guilty.”
He grabbed one of the Clearblue boxes before looking back at me. “I’m serious.”
I leaned against the shelf smirking.
“So why you over here shopping for pregnant test? Shante ain’t told me nothing about being pregnant.”
Malik rubbed the back of his neck before shrugging. “On some real shit I think Shante’s pregnant.”
My entire face lit up immediately. “What?!”
He laughed at my reaction.