Chapter 11
August
Two Weeks Later
As I pushed the shopping cart through the packed aisle of a store that I didn’t want to be in, but had no choice but to be inside, Azaria and I rocked our heads to Alley Boy featuring Jeezy’s “Pocket Full of Money”.
While she tapped her newly polished olive-green nails on the buggy’s red handle, she looked up at me.
Cutely, she sang, “Oooooouuu. Ooooouuuu.”
I laughed at the character who had finally gotten on the good-girl train while our household was under punishment.
She received more ass-whoopings within the first three days that should last her for the next two months.
Her usage of ‘no’ had decreased tremendously, leaving my punk ass to sneakily give her a snack before she brushed those ass chompers in her mouth.
“Do you think August Junior will like this comfort set?” Mona asked, pointing at a black, green, and red complete bedding set.
Rapidly blinking at the word polyester, I slowly said, “That boy gon’ bake off the bone underneath that shit. You see that word that starts with a P?”
“Yes.” She nodded cutely, looking at the bag.
“That’s polyester. Issa fabric. His skin bougie like mine. We’on fuck wit’ that shit. Go to sleep smellin’ good an’ wake smellin’ like raw onions. Cotton only, baby,” I voiced, causing her to howl in laughter.
“Noted. Thanks for the tip about the word.” She giggled, sliding her eyes to me.
“You welcome,” I announced, noticing that I was sick of being mad at her. “I miss you, Special Dark Chocolate.”
As I removed the earbud from my ear and placed it into Azaria’s available ear, her momma blushed. “I miss you, too. Am I off punishment?”
“Mona, no,” I replied, pushing the shopping cart past her.
“Oh. I had to ask.” She laughed, causing me to smile.
“You workin’ yo’ punishment off, but you still got a long way to go,” I admitted, looking at her over my shoulder.
“Will I be off it after we are married?” she asked cutely, walking past me while looking upward.
“Hell nawl. I said you workin’ yo’ punishment off. It ain’t gon’ be done that quickly. You fucked up, guh. Big time,” I confessed, no longer walking when I saw Ms. Dorothy and her most rowdy granddaughter at the bottom of the aisle.
Fuck, I thought as the grandmother-granddaughter duo eyed my woman nastily.
Mona didn’t see them; she was occupied with looking at bedding items. I knew once she placed her eyes on Ms. Dorothy, Mona would be ready to rumble with her ass. Our pregnancy wasn’t enough to settle her when it came down to a woman who didn’t like my dick was off the market.
If shit popped off, I knew our pregnancy would be in good hands. She loved our spineless kids. She would do everything to protect them.
“August, darling! How are you?” Ms. Dorothy shouted, waving, as her granddaughter folded her arms and glared at my woman.
Rushing her face in the direction of the messy bitches, Mona giggled. “Yep. Y’all are slow.”
Shaking my head, I yelled, “You being messy don’t suit yo’ denture wearin’ ass, Ms. Dorothy!”
“Mona, bitch, you got major beef wit’ my grandma ‘bout that dick-sellin’ ass nigga! Come hop on my wagon an’ watch me drop yo’ too-dark-to-see-at-night ass!” Syrah hissed as Mona nodded coolly.
“Step to me, if you bad, lil girl. When you step, I’m going to react.
Then, I’m gunning for your grandmother. The same bitch I whooped real good not too long ago and shoved her in a hole.
Then, I slammed her head repeatedly on your brother’s seat.
That’s all that needs to be said,” Mona voiced as I didn’t bother to tell her to come on.
Both needed to see why Mona took my dick-selling ass off the market.
The fucka tussled me right out of my drawls.
As the onlookers did what they did best, look while pulling out their phones, Syrah talked much shit while strutting toward my girl. Syrah cracked her knuckles while Mona rubbed the small of her back. That’s when I noticed her belt was on backward.
Lord, Azaria stressed us out so badly ‘bout going to a store that we ain’t noticed her belt on the wrong way, I thought as my eyebrows furrowed seeing Mona’s slender fingers undoing the belt.
Hold on, that niggette did that shit intentionally? I thought while Syrah drew in a crowd from her messiness and loudness.
“So, you really do have a lot of mouth on the phone and not in person, huh, Mona?” Syrah picked, standing three feet from my woman, who moved so swiftly that I didn’t see the belt come from the loops.
As if she were a ninja, Mona swished and swashed her belt across Syrah’s face, causing her to stumble onto the shelf.
“Shit!” the onlookers hollered as my woman whooped the bitch on the ground with bedding sets falling on her body.
Mona didn’t talk. Simply, she looked at Ms. Dorothy and whooped her grandchild, who was four years younger than Mona. Ms. Dorothy had a severe mean-mug while watching her granddaughter humiliate herself by squirming and whining for Mona to stop whooping her ass.
The messy elder hollered, “Bitch, you hear her saying stop! Do it?”
“I’ll stop hitting the fake teeth, spoiled bitch who thinks every female fears her, when you swap places with her.
I’m not scared of anybody anymore. My parents received a well-whooped ass because I stopped fearing them.
Now, come, Ms. Dorothy, the real bitch who talked so much shit but had to put somebody in her business.
That’s a bitch move. I’m done talking. Lips closed,” Mona said as she popped Syrah in the stomach with the belt buckle.
I ain’t gon’ lie, baby, I love how you get down, I thought, rubbing my beard.
Squatting over the whimpering bitch, Mona looked down and said, “Your grandmother is messy. She’s been picking with me about August, and I’ve been beating that ass.
I’ve warned her what would happen each time she fucks with me.
The punishment gets harsher each time she fucks with me.
She thought I was something to play with.
I’m collecting on all that I promised. I’m sorry you chose to ride with a bitch who I’m sure you know is messy.
Every time I see her, I’m going to do this to her.
Please believe me. I don’t speak for my health.
I speak so people know I’m a fucking walking trigger warning and about that life. ”
“Gotdamn, a walkin’ trigger warnin’. My gawd.” I laughed as Syrah waved her arms to keep Mona from dragging the belt around her neck.
“A’ight, nih! Cut that shit out!” I hollered, pushing the cart toward my woman. I wasn’t in a hurry.
“Security!” Ms. Dorothy hollered, running toward my woman who had successfully put the belt around Syrah’s neck.
“Cut it out, guh!” I yelled, walking a little faster toward my too calm woman. Meanwhile, Ms. Dorothy was close to her arm swinging granddaughter, getting choked out.
“Talk allathat shit an’ gettin’ choked out wit’ a belt. My God,” I mumbled, shaking my head and enjoying Mona informing all she’s not to be fucked with.
“Stop that shit now, Mona! You can kill her!” Ms. Dorothy hollered, pathetically.
Aggressively, Mona removed the belt from Syrah’s neck before kicking her in the chest. If it wasn’t for the many bedding bags on the ground, the back of Syrah’s head would’ve kissed the floor that had seen more dirt than a sandbox.
Still, my woman didn’t speak. Twirling the belt and eyeing Ms. Dorothy’s loudmouth ass, Mona tossed her head from left to right like Azaria did while eating fruit snacks and watching Bluey.
Close enough to smell Mona’s perfume, Ms. Dorothy fussed, “You had no business choking my grandchil—”
Fop. Fop. Fop. Fop. Fop. Fop.
“Gotdamn, she’s lethal with that belt!” an onlooker hooted as others agreed.
Still, Mona continued smacking Ms. Dorothy’s forehead with the belt the same way I popped the twins with a wet towel that I’ve rolled up. The level of shit-talking and inability to fight women made me wonder why bitches talked so much shit if they couldn’t uphold it.
“Fuck! Ouch!” Ms. Dorothy screamed after the buckle of my woman’s belt connected to her nose.
While blood seeped down Ms. Dorothy’s face, Mona walked up to the staggering woman as if she were a boxer. Tilting her head back a little, Mona nonchalantly said, “I wasn’t going to kill her. I used the dumb, pissy pussy bitch to get you before me.”
Ms. Dorothy didn’t stand a chance against a woman who loved executing boxing moves while watching a boxing fight. Knowing a good show was about to unfold, I dug into my pocket and removed a pack of purple Skittles. While I opened the bag, Azaria rushed her little hand toward my candies.
“A’ight.” I nodded, opening the candy wrapper.
While I was eager to chew and take in my woman, who could’ve gotten a deal for being a female boxer, Momma Thea shook the loose Skittles out of the bag into my hand when she grabbed my ear.
My heart galloped as she fussed, “She’s calm on the outside, but she could be fuming on the inside.
She’s doing a lot of moving. It can raise the pressure.
I’ve stood behind you for a while, wondering when you were going to get your pregnant fiancée.
I’m disappointed in you, August Senior. Go get her before I take off my belt and beat yo’ ass in this store. ”
All my candies fell on the ground as I jetted toward my woman, punching Ms. Dorothy’s ass to sleep.
The last thing I needed was to be on a live feed, getting my ass beat by Momma Thea.
No nigga in the hood would be at their houses.
They would be too busy at my crib, joking on me.
They wouldn’t let a nigga rest, just as I didn’t let them be when she tagged their asses wherever she saw fit.