Chapter Twenty-eight

Lucinda

Sometimes you have to do what you have to do to preserve what you’ve got. I usually didn’t try to smooth shit over—or as I’d like to say, back down—when I felt I was right, but for Aldris, I went against the grain. I had every reason to go ham on him for that shit, but I had to learn to trust in my relationship and my love with Aldris. That solo fact made me pick up the phone and try to salvage our relationship. I was trying to mature and be the better person.

I must say that it actually seemed to pay off. Aldris was very apologetic about his actions when he came home, and I swear to God, the make-up sex blew my fucking mind. We talked about some things that were kind of bothering each of us, and of course, my explosive attitude was his main concern. For me, it was his failure to communicate with me when it came down to Jennifer and Jessica. I must say that the conversation allowed me to get a lot off my chest, and since then, everything had been pretty copacetic around the home front.

I could honestly say this new, reserved Lucinda had taken over in all aspects of my life. Raul was late with his child support, but instead of dialing him up and going off, I kindly sent him a certified reminder letter. Hell, he was only paying me $100 a month, and the puto couldn’t be on time for that. I did get my money five days later, but it was all right. He had to face the music on it.

Even my girl Meka tried me. Here I was, making a valid point, trying to help that chica out, and she went off on me. The old Lucinda would’ve immediately cussed her out and went off about that crackhead baby daddy she had, but no, the new me just charged it to the game. I’m not gonna pretend that I was completely sold on this transition, because going off was easier, but I tried because I realized that my way wasn’t always the best, nor was it healthy. As my abuela would say, you can catch more flies with honey. So, I was learning the essence of being sweet.

In effort to be sweet, today was deemed united family day. Aldris, Nadia, and I met up with Jennifer and Jessica at the park so we could all spend time together as a family. We made it into a big deal, where we each made a dish and brought drinks, while Aldris cooked burgers and hot dogs on the grill. We were loaded with plenty of toys and a radio for Nadia and Jessica on our fun day. Surprisingly, everything had been going well. Nadia and Jessica were having the time of their lives, playing with each other and with Aldris. Jennifer and I didn’t have much conversation for each other, but we did listen to the music and talked about current events. I even played good hostess while Aldris was on the grill and chatted it up with Jennifer instead of hanging around him and leaving her by herself.

“All right, who wants me to make them a plate?” Jennifer asked once Aldris put the last of the burgers and dogs in the tray.

“I do. I do.” The girls jumped up and down.

As I stood up to make Nadia’s plate, Jennifer stopped me. “You can go ahead and fix your own plate, Lucinda. I’ve got Nadia.”

“Thank you,” I said, stirring the baked beans I’d made. “Nadia doesn’t eat potato salad,” I said before she put it on her plate. I didn’t want her to think that Nadia was intentionally not eating the food she made.

She turned around in shock. “Are you serious?”

“You seem surprised. It’s a lot of people who don’t eat potato salad. I actually don’t eat it either, but I can tolerate it a little better than Nadia can.”

She giggled. “I guess it’s just a black thing then. We love potato salad.”

Was this bitch trying to imply that we didn’t like potato salad because we were Latina? Oh, so she thought she had a common link to Aldris, huh? I had something for that ass.

I shrugged. “Aldris doesn’t eat potato salad either.”

Jennifer frowned and instantly turned to look at Aldris, who instinctively put his head down. “Since when? I distinctly remember Aldris eating my potato salad.”

I put my hand on my hip. “Yeah, Aldris, since when do you eat potato salad? You always told me you didn’t like it either.”

Maybe he was just trying to appease this heifer, ’cause I know my man, I thought.

He coughed, looking up at me nervously. “Well, I’m not a fan of potato salad, so I usually don’t eat it. Jennifer’s potato salad was the only person’s I’ve eaten and actually liked.”

Jennifer snapped and did a little dance. “That’s right. I remember you telling me that you hated your mom’s potato salad and not to tell her.”

“And you still better not tell her that.” He pointed at her as they playfully laughed with each other about their inside information. “I love my mom’s cooking, but just not her potato salad. I don’t know what it is that you put in yours that makes it so much different than anybody else’s.”

“If I told you, I’d have to kill you. It’s a top-secret family recipe.”

“Well, you learn something new every day,” I said.

Okay, so I guess I didn’t know Aldris that well, or at least not that he loved Jennifer’s potato salad.

Jennifer turned to face me. “You should try it, Lucinda. I guarantee you’ll love it,” she said as she set the girls’ plates down in front of them.

Instead of replying, I handed her their juice drinks and then asked Aldris what he wanted. Fuck that potato salad.

“Umm, give me two burgers with the usual and everything else,” he said as he grabbed a beer out of the cooler.

I made his plate of two cheeseburgers with extra mayo, ketchup, mustard, and onions, then put a big helping of baked beans and chips with a smaller portion of potato salad. Yes, I was being a little bitchy. I had to find out that my fiancé was in love with his ex-fiancée’s potato salad all out in public, making me look like I didn’t know my man. Okay, I was gonna chill. I’m just saying, though.

I set the plate down in front of Aldris.

“Thank you, baby.” He rubbed his hands together. “This looks good. Lucinda makes the best baked beans too, Jennifer.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Oh, really?”

I smiled and nodded as I rubbed Aldris’ back. “Yep, I do. My baby just loves them.”

Take that, you potato-salad-making heifer.

He nodded. “Yep, and now that she taught my mom how to cook them like she does, I get them at home and at my mom’s house.”

Jennifer shook her head. “You can’t be giving another woman your secret cooking tips, Lucinda. Now you have no leverage because he can get the same meal at his mama’s house.”

I was glad my back was turned so she didn’t have to see me roll my eyes. So what if he could get the same damn baked bean recipe at Ms. Lily’s house? I knew damn well I had something Ms. Lily couldn’t give him: this Spanish Fly.

I made my plate, and to show I was a bigger person, I put some of Jennifer’s “world famous” potato salad on my plate. Jennifer and I ended up sitting beside each other because Aldris was sitting between the girls.

“Hmm,” Jennifer hummed, biting her burger. “You finally learned how to grill.” She laughed, looking up at Aldris.

He instantly burst out laughing. “Forget you, man.”

“What is Mommy talking about, Daddy?” Jessica asked.

He hugged her. “Mommy is just being funny.”

“I like funny stories, Daddy. Can we hear it? Please, oh please?” Nadia asked, laughing as he tickled her.

Jennifer put her hand up. “Okay, Nadia coaxed me into it. Well, when your father and I were in college, I used to cook for him all the time, so I asked him to grill for my spring break cookout at my apartment.” She began laughing again. “But here’s the thing. I asked him first, ‘Do you know how to grill?’ and he said, ‘Oh, yeah,’” she shouted exuberantly, and by this time, she and Aldris were doubled over in laughter.

Personally, I didn’t see shit funny as I drank the rest of my beer.

“So, the day of the cookout, I was getting everything prepared and having fun with my friends. I asked Aldris when he was going to throw on the burgers, so he got up and lit the grill and nearly burned his eyebrows off. He had so much daggone lighter fluid on the coals he could’ve started a forest fire. We put new coals on, and I asked him if he wanted me to take over, but he swore it was an accident and that he was good. That first batch was literally blackened burgers. Those things were burnt to a crisp. That’s when he admitted it was his first time cooking on the grill. I took over the reins to spare the rest of the food we had and made his butt stand there and learn how to grill hamburgers, barbeque chicken, and hot dogs. That’s how your daddy learned how to grill,” Jennifer said in hysterics as Nadia, Jessica, and Aldris all joined in.

“So, you taught him how to grill, huh?” I asked after they’d died down.

She nodded. “Yeah, I did.”

“I guess you shouldn’t have shown him your cooking secrets,” I said.

She looked over at me, and I stared right back at her with the straightest yet shittiest expression on my face. Yeah, bitch, you just got served, I thought as I took a bite of her potato salad—which I hated to admit was the bomb.

Aldris began coughing instantly and got up. “Gotta get another beer.”

She laughed it off. “Good one. That potato salad is good, huh?”

“Yes, it is. You deserve your props.”

“Thanks. Your baked beans are good as well. I’ll have to tell my Aunt Lorraine somebody has the same recipe as she does. She must’ve let her secret get loose.”

No, this bitch didn’t. Okay, score two points for her. I just laughed mine off too.

“Great minds just think alike, that’s all.”

“Yeah, but it’s always best to be original.” She winked at me.

“Dessert, anyone?” Aldris asked, interrupting my response to that smart-ass comment Jennifer made.

“Yes, Daddy,” the girls yelled in unison as they got up so he could give them slices of the chocolate cake I had made.

“You do have one up on me, though, Lucinda. I’m not much of a baker,” Jennifer admitted, getting up to get some cake.

This time, it was Aldris’ turn to make jokes. “I should tell the story of how you tried to bake me a birthday cake, since you want to put me on blast about grilling.”

“Hey now, I tried. So what if it fell and it was a little dry?” she joked.

“A little dry?” he asked, mocking her as he looked at me. “Baby, that thing was so dry, I had to drink a gallon of water just to swallow it, and two gallons once it hit my stomach.”

“It ain’t that funny,” she mumbled.

“Oh, you can dish it, but you can’t take it.” Aldris handed both of us some cake. “You know what they say about turnabout.”

“Whatever,” she said, before taking a bite of my cake. “This is really good, Lucinda.”

“Thank you.” Now, tell your Aunt Lorraine to top that, biotch!

We all sat there, making small talk and joking with the girls. It dawned on me that I forgot to tell Jennifer about Nadia’s birthday party.

“Before I forget again, you and Jessica are invited to Nadia’s birthday the Saturday after next at Jumpin’ Jamboree.”

“Do you mean next Saturday?” she asked me.

“No, the Saturday after the next one coming up,” I repeated.

She looked up at Aldris. “You forgot to tell her. Jessica’s birthday party is at Putt-Putt that same Saturday.”

Aldris hit his forehead. “I completely forgot to tell you, Lucinda. She told me that last week. Maybe we can move Nadia’s party to Sunday.” He looked at me apologetically.

Okay, now I was just about to get mad, because why the hell should I be the one to move my child’s party just because Jennifer told him last week? I’d been talking about Nadia’s party all month. Besides, there were no Sunday openings, and I’d already paid half down for it.

“Umm, no. Sunday is full. Besides, I’ve already put a down payment on it. What time is Jessica’s party? I’m sure they aren’t at the same time. We’ll just be some partying people that day,” I said in an attempt to make light of the situation.

“It’s from one to three p.m.,” she answered as Aldris and I looked at each other. “What?” she asked.

I exhaled, rubbing my forehead. “Nadia’s party is at one, from one to three.”

“Okay, so what are we going to do? Because I’ve already paid for the Putt-Putt party. Sunday is no good for me because I have a mandatory meeting that day for work, and I’m helping my friend cook for this dinner party she’s having,” Jennifer explained.

To me—and probably to Jennifer, too—the real question was, what was Aldris going to do, because the girls could see each other any time they wanted to. In fact, I was positive we’d have Jessica all day that Sunday, since Jennifer just put it out there that she’d be busy. So, the question became, who was going to sacrifice their child’s party, or whose party was Aldris going to miss? We both turned and looked at Aldris.

Aldris sighed and put his hands up. “Listen, let’s not get in a huff over this. This is what we’ll do. Both girls will have their party. Since it is truly my fault for not relaying the information, I will be the one to do the running around. I will just have to split my time between both parties. I will go to Jessica’s party first and spend about an hour there, and then spend the second hour at Nadia’s party. That way, I won’t miss either of my girls’ special day.” He tickled both Nadia and Jessica. “Is that fair?”

Jennifer and I looked at each other and nodded. “Fair enough,” we said in unison.

“Good. Now, I’m going to take my little ladies over here and play with the Frisbee. Come on, you guys.”

“He’s really good with the girls,” Jennifer said.

“Yes, he is,” I agreed and began to clean up. “I really hate that Nadia will miss Jessica’s party.”

“Same here, but I’m sure they will talk each other to death about it. The most important part is that Aldris gets to spend some time with each of them.”

“Exactly.”

Aldris played with the girls for a little bit as Jennifer and I packed up all the food and toys. Then, Aldris came and loaded both our cars, then we said our goodbyes to Jennifer and Jessica.

“Whew! I am worn out,” Aldris said as we drove home.

“We all are.” I turned, looking at Nadia, who was already knocked out. “Nadia beat us to the punch, though.” I laughed.

Aldris rubbed my thigh. “I thank you for doing these family days with me. I know it’s been rough having to adjust to Jennifer and Jessica, but I think we’re all coping much better.”

“Yeah,” I said, thinking to myself that it was a lot harder than rough, but life was so much easier when I wasn’t arguing with Aldris, so I kept that tidbit to myself.

Aldris ran his hand up and down my thigh. “You know I am tired, but since Nadia is asleep, I’d love to get into something when we get home.”

I licked my lips. “I’m sure we could think of something to get into.” I leaned back again and looked out my window.

“Spill it. What’s on your mind?” Aldris asked.

Damn. He was beginning to know me all too well. I looked at him and shook my head. “Don’t get upset. It’s just that I want you to keep your promise and share the day with both girls.”

“I figured that was going to come back up,” he said.

“I’m not fussing, Aldris. I’m just saying—”

“I’m not going to disappoint Jessica or Nadia,” he cut me off. “I give you my word. Nadia is just as much my daughter as Jessica is. I just wish that you would see that I feel that way,” he said a little tensely.

Staying true to my no-arguments pact, I threw my hands up in surrender. “Okay. Okay. I believe you. You asked what was on my mind, so I told you. You gave your word, so I’m cool with that.”

He looked over at me. “You sure about that?”

“Drop it, Aldris. Yes, it is what it is.”

For the rest of the ride home, there was nothing but silence between us.