Chapter 10
Tavion ‘Tank’ Briggs
Shadows Don’t Last Long
My uncle Roy hit me this morning, telling me to pull up to my grandma Maxine’s crib because they were putting on a little fish fry over there.
I had no problem with coming around, kicking it with my dad’s side of the family because I genuinely loved them, and fucked with them, but on those times when I knew that my dad would be there, I would become a little hesitant.
I knew the hurt, and the trauma that his absence had put on my mom.
Because he spent so many years being bitter, and angry with my mom, it caused him to miss out on a lot of my childhood, and he wasn’t financially helping my mom out with me, putting her in a position to struggle.
There’s this piece of me that would be hesitant to come around him because I didn’t want my mom to feel a way about it, but she was always in my ear, encouraging me to have a relationship with my dad.
Not only that, but I also had my insides with him as well because over the years, it’s like he failed to realize the bad shit that he’s done, so that’s where me, and him tended to bump heads.
He had anger in his heart towards me as well because back then, when I was moving weight, I didn’t put him on to in the way that he wanted me to.
I was in the backyard with my family, and we were deep as fuck out here.
My granny is still living in the hood. Her home was paid off, and she didn’t have any desire to move out of this area.
With all the money that I was making, I was always in her ear, trying to convince her to allow me to buy her a crib, but she wasn’t going for it.
My cousin Rico was always telling her to enjoy her last couple of years at her crib because he said that the second he signed a few million-dollar contracts for the NFL, that he was getting her a new crib.
I guess she just didn’t care for all the glitz, and the glam.
Moments like this, where she’s surrounded by nothing but love from her family is all that mattered to her.
I was sitting at the table with a couple of my uncles when the sliding door that was attached to the house opened.
It was Rico walking out, and he was carrying his baby girl Romy in his arms. From the way that he was carrying her, with her little body draped across his shoulder, I knew that she was sleeping.
He came out with her diaper bag on his shoulder, and you could tell that he had control of the situation.
I respected my little cousin as a man because his plate was full right now. He was in college, devoting a lot of time to football, but even with that, he wasn’t using it as an excuse to not be a father. Any time that he had free time, he would have Romy, and to me, that shit was commendable.
“Rico, now why you came out here with that baby? It’s windy. You need to take her in the house before she gets sick,” my grandma fussed, as she left from standing where her brother Thomas was, frying up some fish.
Her ass was supposed to be in the house, making the side dishes, but she kept coming out every five minutes to check on uncle Thomas.
That nigga would fry fish, while throwing back beers, putting him in a situation to get fucked up, and burn up the food, so I already knew that that was the reason she was micromanaging him.
“I was in the house, looking for you, and they told me that you were outside. I only stepped out here for a second, so that I could show you the baby. If I had taken her upstairs without letting you see her, you would have had a fit. You always ready to go to war about little shit,” Rico fussed at our grandmother, who just waved his ass off, and the second she reached him, she put her hands out, taking Romy away from him, cradling her in her arms, and she took the diaper bag from him.
Rico kissed our grandmother on the cheek, and then he walked outside, coming in the backyard area where we all were, going around, speaking to everyone.
When he made it to his dad, the two of them shook it up, and then pulled each other into a hug.
I admired the relationship that Rico had with his dad.
My uncle Roy was a stand-up man. Even with the marriage not working out between him, and my auntie Shawn, that nigga still did his part as a father, being there for his children.
He used to put so much time in with Rico, and football.
He didn’t miss practice, or a game. That’s the kind of men that got the upmost respect from me, and I knew that my uncle Roy being there for Rico is the reason why Rico was a standup father to Romy as well.
“What’s good with it?” I asked Rico the second he made it over to me, and he took the empty seat next to me.
I slapped it up with him, and he shook his head, while running his hand down his face.
“Man, I’m tired as a motha fucka. I had Romy with me last night, and her little ass was up all night.
She probably only slept for like two hours.
Promise hit me yesterday afternoon, asking me if I could watch her because she had to take her car to the shop.
You know if I’m not doing anything, I’ll get my baby anytime.
It was only supposed to be for a few hours, and I told her that I had something to do last night.
I was supposed to go out with the guys. I’m calling her stupid ass all last night, and she not answering the phone.
Now, here it is, a brand-new day, and she blowing me up, asking me for Romy.
I told her dumb ass that I would bring my baby back when I was ready.
I’m so sick of that fuckin girl. I be wanting to spaz out on her, put my hands on her dumb ass, but I got too much to lose, man.
I can’t give in, and snap because I know she waiting for the moment to catch me slipping, so that she can expose me to the world, and make me lose everything,” he vented, and I could hear it all in is voice that he was stressed out.
It was about four of us at the table that I was sitting at, and there was another table right in front of us, and that’s where my dad and some of my cousins were. Rico wasn’t whispering this shit, so everyone could hear him, and they were all taking in the things that he was saying.
“Why didn’t you just drop Romy off with me, or your mama? You know one of us would have watched her for you,” my uncle Roy said to him.
“I just feel like that’s not you, and mama job to be watching after Romy for me,” Rico stated, and then he ran his hand down his face.
Before Uncle Roy got the chance to respond to him, my dad laughed and cleared his throat.
There was a bottle of Don Julio sitting right in front of him, that he brought with him to the party, and he had been throwing that bottle back, taking long sips of it since he got here, so I knew that he was fucked up by now.
Whatever he was getting ready to say was about to be some bullshit. I’m sure of it.
“Before I let a bitch stress me out about a motha fuckin kid, I’m going to clear the scene, and get the fuck on. That’s one thing that I didn’t let Netta nag me about. I left her ass right the fuck there. Figure that shit out on your own,” my dad slurred, which let me know that he was drunk.
Uncle Roy was sitting right next to me, so he tapped me, shaking his head, telling me to ignore it, but I couldn’t. I wasn’t mature enough to sit here and let this nigga brag about being a deadbeat.
“You say that shit like you supposed to get some fuckin brownie points, nigga. You don’t get a trophy for being a dead-beat daddy, nigga.
Niggas look at you, and they judge you. I look at you, and I don’t want to be shit like you, homie.
My mama never nagged your black ass about shit!
She wanted you to man the fuck up and be a daddy and stop making her raise a child that she didn’t create by her fuckin self!
Minimize the usage of that drink nigga. Don’t let liquor be the reason you gotta get carried out this bitch! ” I snapped at him.
Like he was shocked that I would talk to him like this, he stood up from his seat, wobbling a little bit because he was drunk.
My cousins that were sitting next to him, they tried to grab his arm, stopping him from coming my way.
Because I didn’t know what this nigga’s next move was going to be, I stood up as well, only for my uncle Roy to grab me too, telling me to chill.
“Nigga got a little money now, grew his hair out, and got a little house now, and you think you a man! Fuck is you talking to, nigga? I’m a grown ass man.
I’m not in your age group, boy! I’ll stomp you the fuck out, lil nigga!
Liquor ain’t the reason why I’m talking my shit to you.
Anything that I just said to you, I’ll say it to you sober too.
You in your feelings because I’m sitting here, telling the truth.
Your mama tried to make my life hard, and I wasn’t about to be back and forth, going at it with a bitch, so I left her there to figure that shit out on her own! ” I was itching to get to this nigga.
Damn near trying to jump across the table to get at him. My uncle Roy, Rico, and my other uncle Leon were all holding me, so it was damn near impossible to get to him.