A Bittersweet Hood Dilemma: A Naptown Love Story Read online

  “You are too possessive,” Tokyo said yanking my hair.

  “Do that shit again. I should fuck you up for still talking to that nigga. Stay the fuck away from him,” I said.

  “Stay the fuck away from Mya then,” she spat.

  “I don’t know what you are talking about,” I said.

  “Did you screw her?” Tokyo asked me. Tassana already knows about Mya, that’s just how messed up our relationship was. But for some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to tell Tokyo I was messing around with Mya.

  “Naw,” I answered.

  “We lie to each other now nigga?” she asked me.

  “Tassana already knows about her, if you want to know if I’m messing around on your sister,” I said.

  “Dog ass nigga. Y’all niggas ain’t shit. But soon as a woman spread her legs for the next man, y’all be wanting to murk somebody. I’m glad I’m single. I can do what I want to do without ANSWERING to nobody,” she said. I knew that remark was meant for me.

  “What are you saying, Tokyo?” I asked inhaling the thick smoke from the kush I was puffing on.

  “She is fixin’ to fuck, nigga. You are not slow nigga. Tokyo is about to be getting her swerve on,” No Hands said.

  “She’ll just get knocked out then,” I laughed. After Tokyo re-twisted my hair, she sat around with us clowning around. Her eyes were low from the kush we were smoking and she slurred a little from that bullshit she was drinking.

  “I’m ready to go. I have to work tomorrow,” Tokyo said.

  “You can crash here. You got clothes and shit here,” No Hands said to Tokyo.

  “Hell no. Last time I stayed over here I couldn’t get any sleep. You had that poor girl screaming. I was getting jealous,” Tokyo said.

  “I was eating that cat up. See broads be sleeping on me because I’m deformed. I’m like one of those The Hill Have Eyes type of people. But when they open their legs that’s it. I be eating the twat like I’m starving. They don’t even be asking for the dick,” No Hands said. Tokyo started giggling.

  “I’m not eating no pussy,” I said.

  “WHATTTTTT?” they asked in unison.

  “You not eating the butt nigga? Oh, you tripping nigga. No wonder Tassana be acting like a bitch,” No Hands said to me.

  “Pussy is to fuck, bleed, and give babies. I don’t eat shit that’s not on a dinner menu. Call it what you want, but I’m not doing that shit,” I said.

  “I heard island men don’t eat pussy,” Tokyo said.

  “I can’t speak for everyone but I don’t,” I said.

  “Screw that. If you was my man, you would be sitting down at the dinner table with a napkin around your neck spreading my legs,” she said laughing.

  “Is that right?” I asked licking my lips. The thought of Tokyo’s essence on my tongue made my dick throb. I wanted Tokyo in any way I could have her. I think I needed to get some help. This shit was crazy. My eyes traveled up her legs, and I could picture her thick legs wrapped around my neck, as she pulled my dreads screaming my name. I needed to feel her. But at the end of it all, she was still Tassana’s sister.

  “Kauzie!” Tokyo shouted.

  “What gyal? Damn,” I said and they laughed at me.

  “Your accent just came out. Say girl again,” she said to me. I waved her off.

  “Nigga, what you zone out for? We’ve been calling your cell phone for twenty minutes,” No Hands joked.

  “I’m about to go to the crib. We got six cars tomorrow that need to be painted. Tokyo, you getting dropped off?” I asked her.

  “No, my car is down the street,” she said to me.

  “Alright No hands, I’ll get up with you tomorrow.” I bumped my fist against his wrist.

  “Alright, Tokyo. Call me when you get home,” I said walking off. I opened up my truck door and Tokyo walked up on me.

  “What you want?” I asked her.

  “My phone,” she spat. I went into my pocket. She snatched it from me when I gave it to her.

  “You about to call that nigga back?” I asked her.

  “Why does it matter?” she asked me.

  “I don’t want you to,” I said.

  “There are a few things I don’t want you to do either, but it’s not my place to say. I want you to treat me the same way,” she said crossing her arms.

  “What do you not want me to do?” I asked getting closer to her. She backed away from me. I grabbed her then picked her up to put her on the driver’s seat. She slapped my shoulder.

  “You play too much. Keep your hands off of me,” she popped her gum.

  “I can touch what I want,” I said as my hand brushed up against her meaty thigh. She looked at me with lust-filled eyes. Her nipples pressed against the fabric of her dress, as I stood in between her legs. She tried to push me away, but I grabbed her hand. My hard dick was pressed against her warm pussy as she lightly moaned.

  “Kauzie, stop. This is foul,” she said pushing me away.

  “Life is foul. It’s just the way it is, shorty,” I said rubbing my erection against her middle. She moaned again, and I could feel her getting warmer between the legs.

  “Is that pussy wet?” I asked her before she bit my arm.

  “AGGHHHH. SHIT!” I said. She hopped down off of my seat.

  “That’s what your ass gets. Stop smoking,” she said laughing.

  “Oh, we biting now?” I asked her. She tried getting away from me, but she couldn’t. I gently bit her nipple through the fabric then squeezed her juicy bottom.

  “OHHHHHH,” she moaned. I bit her neck then she pulled my hair. I squeezed her breasts pressing her against my truck.

  “OKAY, STOP IT!” she said pushing me off.

  “You are wrong for that shit,” Tokyo said with an attitude.

  “Shut the fuck up sometimes. You know you liked it. Call me tomorrow,” I said hopping into my truck.

  “If I catch you fucking with another nigga though it’s going to be some shit,” I said grilling her.

  “Whatever,” she waved me off walking away. My phone rang and it was Tassana.

  “What you want?” I answered.

  “You’ve been off from work since six this evening. It is now eleven at night!” she screamed into the phone.

  “I wish you’d stop screaming, damn. What the fuck is you screaming for? Who told you that shit sounded cute? You irk my nerves. Why are you clocking me anyway? I work, Tassana. Therefore I can do what the fuck I want when I get off. You know like have a drink and relax. Try it,” I said to her laughing.

  “You evil bitch. I hate you,” she said in a calm tone.

  “So, that’s why you fucking another nigga, huh? But it’s all good. Maybe he can start coming up with your portion of the rent. How I see it, we are nothing but roommates anyway,” I said to her.

  “You still tripping over that? I slipped up, Kauzie. Everyone makes mistakes,” she said.

  “Right. But just so happens I cannot forgive you, Tassana. I have been trying to, but I can’t. So, you are going to have to start looking for another crib or come up with some bill money,” I said.

  “My name is on the lease,” she said.

  “With what income? Stop lying to yourself. I’m not a petty nigga though, I wasn’t raised like that. I’m not going to just put you out, but just know you need to start looking for a job and a new crib,” I said.

  “Who is the new woman?” Tassana asked me.

  “I’m not trying to hurt your feelings, Tassana,” I said to her.

  “I’m going to save this relationship, Kauzie. We’ve been together for years. You were my first boyfriend. You took my virginity. We have history. Hell, I was even your first. We’ve been through a lot,” she said sadly.

  “I know that, Tassana, and for the life of me, I cannot figure out why you cheated. Not only did you cheat, but you had my dick leaking like a broken faucet. A fucking STD. You fucked another man raw. You should’ve thought about all of that before you spread your damn legs
,” I spat.

  “You are in love with my damn sister,” she said. I hung up on her simple ass. She blew my phone up, until I cut it off.

  I pulled up to my parents’ house. Nights I didn’t stay home, I slept in my old room. After I used my key, I tried sneaking up the stairs.

  “What you doin bwoy?” my mother asked me.

  “Hey, Ma,” I said.

  “Why are you sneaking in here like you about to rob us?” she asked in her heavy accent.

  “I didn’t want to wake y’all up,” I said.

  “Give me some suga. What is wrong with you?” my mother said with her arms stretched out. I hugged her then kissed her cheek.

  “That’s my baby bwoy,” she said smiling. My mother stood about 5’8”, heavyset and bossy even. Her thick, long dreads came down to her hips. They were sandy brown with golden tips. She was brown skin with a round face. She had a scar on her cheek under her left-eye. She said she gotten it from falling out of the tree when she was younger. She had a few grays around her edges. My parents were both in their late fifties. They had me in their mid-thirties. They owned a few Caribbean restaurants around town and a small Reggae club that was always overcrowded, especially on weekends.

  “When are you coming back home?” my mother asked me.

  “Come on Ma, I’m grown over here. I’m not coming back home,” I laughed.

  “You are never too grown. You are always going to be my baby bwoy. Now, where is my Tokyo. She hasn’t been by in two weeks. Tell her I’m not too happy about that,” she said.

  “I will tell her you asked for her,” I said.

  “I been told you years ago that you will regret Tassana. But nooooooo, you wanted to be like the other guys and have a prissy gyal. I been told you what people think doesn’t matter. Tokyo was a lil’ rough around the edges, but she reminded me of me in my younger days. I used to climb the trees with the boys to get the biggest coconut. My hair was never combed and I wasn’t attractive. But your father saw something in me just like how you saw something in Tokyo. You should’ve went with your instinct,” she scolded me.

  “Not tonight, Ma,” I said.

  “I’m being honest, Kauzie. You only wanted Tassana because of how she kept herself up. I been told you when you was a little bwoy that you picked the wrong one. You adapted too much to this country. On my island, appearance didn’t matter. Happiness does. These American men don’t care how a woman treat them. All they are worried about is what she looks like and what she wears,” she fussed.

  “Goodnight, Ma. See you in the morning,” I said kissing her cheek. I went into my room then shut the door. I stripped down naked then hopped in the shower. As soon as I got into bed, I dozed off.

  Tokyo

  I stood behind the counter at Burger King daydreaming about Kauzie and me. A smile crept upon my face, as I pictured him and me living in a nice house with a picket fence. Then my sister’s face popped up and my eyes stung with tears. I was one miserable bitch. I watched my sister fall in love with a boy I was supposed to be with. I ended up with a wannabe dope boy who sold me a dream. I fell for him and look at me now. Back to square one. But this time around was difficult because Kauzie had been becoming aggressive lately. I went home last night, wet and horny from the way he had me against his truck. I could’ve thrown my draws on the wall and it would’ve stuck to the wall.

  It was slow and there weren’t any customers in which I was pissed about. I didn’t mind being busy because the time went by fast. A woman around my age walked in. Her hair was styled into big loose-curls; she was a little taller than I was and very slim. She was curvy with a beautiful face. Her makeup was done very nicely, and her ears and wrists almost lit up the small fast-food joint. She reminded me of Latoya Luckett. She slammed her Gucci purse on the counter. I hadn’t seen her in a while, but how could I forget that she was Darrion’s fiancé? This woman had been a successful side chick. She took my man away from me.

  “Awwww, don’t you look cute. What happened to the Benz you was riding around in? Oh, I forgot, it got snatched just like your nigga did,” she said smiling.

  “May I take your order?” I asked in a calm voice. If I didn’t need this job I would snatch this bitch by her weave and beat her ass.

  “Yes, I would like a number two,” she said pulling out a roll of money. She slammed three twenties down on the counter.

  “Keep the change. I know where you live at now and I’m sure it can cover your rent,” she smiled.

  “Your order will be up in three minutes,” I said popping my gum like I wasn’t pissed. Truth is I wanted to cry. I wanted to scream. I wanted to slap her ass. I don’t care that she was pregnant. She was daring me knowing that I couldn’t lose my job. I know Darrion was talking about me to her. She knew too much about me.

  Her bag slid down the metal counter behind me. I picked it up to hand it to her. She snatched her bag from me, and her cup before proceeding to the soda fountain.

  “What the fuck is taking you so long?” Darrion walked in asking Keshawna. He froze when he saw me. He knew I worked at a Burger King, but he didn’t know which one.

  “Look boo, it’s your whack ass girlfriend,” Keshawna said loudly.

  “Come on, Keshawna, chill with that bullshit. Come the fuck on,” he said to her.

  “Go talk to your low-life bitch. Weren’t you texting and calling her all fucking night? Talk to her ass now, nigga. That bitch ain’t got shit on me. She is sloppy and she is a fucking HOODRAT!” Keshawna yelled at him.

  “What’s the problem out here?” the manager asked her because Keshawna was being extra loud.

  “I’m suing y’all. That’s what my problem is. That nasty bitch spit in my fucking food,” Keshawna lied on me.

  “Oh, bitch you taking it too fucking far now. Spit in your food? Bitch, I would rather beat that ass up and down through here,” I said taking off my headpiece.

  “What kind of customer service is this? You wait till FOX news hears about this shit,” Keshawna said.

  “Just go home, Tokyo,” my manager said to me. I wanted to grab that funky breath bitch by her old French roll and drag her through the kitchen.

  “GO HOME?” I asked her.

  “We cannot have this type of drama in here. Since you’ve been working here it’s always someone complaining about your poor customer service and attitude,” my manager said to me.

  “Are you firing me?” I asked her. Keshawna laughed and Darrion stood there as if he wanted to defend me, but he couldn’t. All of my problems came from Darrion.

  “Clock out. I will call you when it’s time to pick up your check,” she said to me. The other workers stopped and looked at me. I wanted to hide under the biggest rock. My eyes stung, but I would never let them see me shed a tear.

  “Okay cool,” I said. I went into the locker room to grab my things. I walked into the parking lot and Keshawna and Darrion were arguing about me.

  “Talk that shit now, bitch,” I said charging towards her. Darrion grabbed me by my braids pushing me onto the ground.

  “She is carrying my seed, Tokyo. What the fuck is your problem?” Darrion asked me. I got up and Keshawna hit me in the face. When I went to swing on her, Darrion started choking me.

  “Get the fuck off of me,” I screamed. I know Darrion better than what Keshawna thinks she might know about him. He was mad because of what Kauzie said to him over the phone. Keshawna thinks her man was defending her but truthfully, he was in his feelings.

  I punched him in the nose. He let go of me then I started clocking him upside the head. Keshawna was swinging on me, but I didn’t care. I had a firm grip on Darrion’s shirt as I swung hitting him in the mouth.

  All of a sudden, Keshawna was being pulled away from me. I was yanked off of Darrion as he tried to block my hits.

  “Calm down gyal. Chill the fuck out,” Jessup said to me.

  “This punk as nigga ain’t worth it, him or his bitch,” Jessup said to me picking my things up off the grou
nd.

  “What nigga?” Darrion asked Jessup.

  “You heard me mon. Fuck is you going to do about it batty bwoy?” Jessup asked in his heavy accent.

  Darrion grabbed Keshawna by her arm escorting her to their car. I was embarrassed and humiliated.

  “Are you okay?” Jessup asked me.

  “Fuck no I’m not okay. I lost my job, I live in a fucking shit hole, I’m a high school dropout and I have a drug charge. My life is ruined,” I said on the verge of breaking down. I got into my car and it wouldn’t start up. I knew that piece of shit wasn’t going to last long.

  I banged on the steering wheel in frustration. Jessup looked at me with an eyebrow raised.

  “Crazy gyal, come ride with me back to the shop. Kauzie can take you home,” Jessup said to me. I grabbed my purse then got out of my car, kicking it as hard as I could. I’m going to leave it behind and Rhonda could call and have it towed. I’ll be darn if I waste the little bit of money I have saved up on it.