Tuesday, September 29, 2009

BREAKING THE CAMEL'S BACK

Three hours later, I was driving towards his house; I see his friend’s car parked outside. Joe was his best friend, they grew up together, and they are literally brothers. I parked right behind Joe’s Nissan maxima and I went up the stairs. He must have more company than Joe because I heard a lot of laughing in the background; I paused to listen to whose voices I could pick out, his room mate Patrick was not there because his car was not even parked outside. I heard a female voice, I think it might be Joe’s girlfriend Keisha, Yes it was Keisha and then some other female was in the room. He must have company, I listened closely to the voice, it was Betty, what was she doing here? I put my head close to the door to listen, I made sure there was no one looking especially his nosy neighbors and then I leaned closer.


“She called the office today and she just made a fool of herself.” Betty said.

“ I don’t know why she keeps calling the office, why can’t you just answer the phone for once and tell her what’s going on with you” Betty continued. She probably knows so much about our relationship.

“You need to tell her” Joe said. Joe was in this too.

“Joe, I know you like Rose a lot but, I am confused, she is just all over the place right now” Stanley him.

“The only reason she is all over the place is because you are not telling her anything, why are you avoiding her anyway, she is a really nice lady and she loves you very much?” Joe asked him. I was trying to imagine the look on Stanley’s face. Who was he dating or what was he not telling me at all?

“She is beginning to get on my nerves with commitment” Stanley replied. So that’s why he has been acting like that, the other night at dinner some lady walked by with her child and I told him that someday we would have a cute child like that together and he kind of squirmed at that statement, I don’t know why but I thought it was mean, I also hinted at the fact that I wanted to know where the relationship was going after that day everything fell apart. What did Stanley think I wanted him for, why did he think I stood by him, it was because I loved him and I wanted to be with him.

Nicholas at my job had dropped flowers on my table and invited me for numerous dinners and I gave him a negative response and here I was hanging in through thick and thin with this man.

“You guys have been together for a while now and you have given her every reason to feel that way.” Joe replied.

“ I have given her no such reason she needs to quit daydreaming” Stanley replied. My heart broke into two, tears started to drop down my cheeks.

“That’s so cruel” Keisha replied

“There is nothing cruel about it, he doesn’t want her anymore let her go” Betty replied.

“What is wrong with you, I thought you liked her” Joe asked Betty.

“I don’t really like her right now, she keeps calling and leaving messages” Betty said.

“Their relationship is none of your business” Keisha told her.

“Well watch your mouth and put your mouth where your man is” Betty said.

“Excuse me” Keisha began. Joe cut them off.

“Stop this nonsense, Rose is not here and you are getting on at each other because of Rose. I wish she was here to hear you listen to this nonsense.” Joe said. I couldn’t take it anymore, I opened the door.

“I have heard your nonsense” I said amid my tears, everyone in the room looked at me.

SWEET ESCAPE

I did not hear the last of it when I got home. I served detention, that was a forbidden word in Miss Mattie’s house. She did not even want to hear it.


“You fought at school, like those ghetto people are you crazy, we are church people and I believe the Lord you just gave the devil the chance in your life” she told me.

I looked at her, she is one of those churchgoers who just go to church and be a statistic in the church offering, if I was God I don’t think I would want to listen to her prayer, she is full of crap. Church people indeed.

“She attacked me first, Miss Mattie” I tried to explain defensively.

“When you get hit, you turn the other cheek” Miss Mattie responded hitting me with her whip. Turn the other cheek, it is not that easy.

Chanelle, her oldest daughter told her about the incident, and I skipped dinner that night and also got twelve strokes of her skinny little whip. My butt hurt so bad I was too scared to sit down. Luckily for me I had to do the dishes so I didn’t have to sit immediately, I dreaded washing those greasy pots and pans but I had no choice. Chanelle had cooked dinner and burnt most of it. She could not cook anything right, the last time she made fried rice they were as good as soggy. Her culinary skills just suck, period. Ashley her younger sister is so much better, we are the same age but she is one freak I know. She has a secret boyfriend who whistles to her from outside and she goes up the stairs like she forgot something only to come back through the front door. She usually leaves the house through her bedroom window, there is a ladder placed by her window since her window is on the side of the house within the fence. Her mom has never suspected anything on any occasion but I hope she really does get caught one day, I would be so glad because she has been terrorizing me of recent and I definitely do not like that.


When I was fifteen, I ran away. I plotted my way of escape very carefully. I had started packing up my stuff little by little, when I mean stuff its most of the scrap I had in their house. One day Miss Mattie called me.

“Gina” she hollered.

“Yes, Miss Mattie” I answered running before she called me the second time.

“I need you to go to the store for me”

“Yes Miss Mattie” I responded. She handed me a grocery list, I read it, she needed some Milk, eggs and butter. She gave me a fifty dollar bill. Sweet. Part of my transport money to get on the Greyhound bus. This woman has just made my escape a little bit sweeter and so much better.