EMJAY
I was happier than flies on shit when the manager from the movie theater called me for an interview. I had seen countless movies there when I was a kid and even told Mama in the car on the way home that I would work there someday when I grew up. I was so psyched about the interview that I realized that I didn’t have any job interview clothes. Most of what I had was back at Mama’s house, but was old stuff that wasn’t all that appropriate for an interview. I thought of these pair of khakis I had, but remembered I had ruined them with paint when I’d helped Mama remodel the bathroom in one of the upstairs bedrooms. The only shirts I owned were Polos and T-shirts. I still had close to two hundred dollars left to my name, money that I was holding on for food and rent. “Looks like I’ll be eating ramen noodles for breakfast, lunch and dinner this week.” If worse came to worse, I would head over to the blood bank and give plasma for a hundred bucks.
I stopped off to Marshalls to see what I could scrounge up. I hated Marshalls ’cuz the clothes looked picked over, dropped on the floor from hangers and torn out of the plastic. Burlington is where I buy most of my gear, but it was located all the way across town in Tallahassee Mall, and there was no time to take the drive over. I had to think outside the box of Coogi, Rocawear and that Sean John shit I was used to wearing. When I got to Marshalls, I rushed over to the men’s section to see what I could find, but I wasn’t getting my hopes up on finding anything that didn’t make me look like Urkle from Family Matters. There were tables of dress shirts, racks and racks of dress pants and scores of ties, most of it ugly shit old white men wear. The one shirt that I thought was cool was like thirty-nine dollars, more than what I was willing to pay for a dress shirt I would probably only wear once. I scavenged through the clearance rack to find something cool, but nothing. I eventually settled on a white dress shirt and a pair of black pants. It wasn’t like I was going to interview with Tyler Perry or somebody. “The manager is not going to care what I wear anyway.” I was used to Mama buying me clothes for special occasions. She’s the one with taste. With the shirt, the pants and a Bill Blass tie I picked out, I was content enough with what I had picked out. I was standing in line waiting to check out with my gear when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around to find Chadae standing behind me. She smiled big when she saw how surprised I was to see her.
“Hey, baby girl, what’s up?” I said, wrapping my arms around her. No lie, she still looked good. Big titties and a juicy booty holding snug in a pair of tight low riders.
“Hey, Jay, how long has it been?”
“A couple of years. I think the last time I saw you, you were at the senior party at Hilaman Golf Course.”
“Oh my God. I almost forgot about that. That was a crazy night.” Cha would know considering she spent most of it throwing up in the bushes after drinking too much punch Bobby Howard had spiked with vodka.
“So where have you been hiding?” she asked.
“Nothing, just going to school at Tallahassee Community College, trying to get this education. I’ve been crazy busy with classes. You know how that can be.”
“That’s great. I see you’re buying some new clothes.”
“It’s for this thing I got, a job interview.”
“Oh cool, where are you going to be working?”
“Capital City, the movie theater over off Thomasville Road. The manager called me today to set up an interview.”
“That’s great. I remember what a big movie fanatic you are. Remember how I used to quiz you on movies? You knew who made it, who starred in it, who wrote the script, the score, who did the sound, all that. I remember you telling me how you used to write personal letters to every manager at every movie theater in town once every other week and then follow up with a phone call.”
“Yeah, that was kind of weird, I know.”
“No, not at all,” she said, caressing my arm. I forgot how affectionate Chadae could be, how just one touch from her was enough to send shivers through me. It took me back to how she and I used to make out in her daddy’s truck.
“You were determined. I always thought you should be a movie director or something.”
“So enough about me. What have you been up to? You look great.”
Chadae glanced down shyly at the floor. “Thank you. I’m studying nursing over at Keiser University. Matter of fact, I’ll be graduating in December.”
“Wow, ma, a nurse? That’s pretty awesome. I’m proud of you. Have you decided where you want to work, like in a hospital or private practice?”
“I was thinking about being a traveling nurse.”
“You’re talking about some serious money.”
“True, but I don’t do it for the money. You know I’ve always liked helping people.”
“I remember in the mall when you gave CPR to that little girl’s mama.”
“That was pretty scary.”
“Yeah, but that little girl probably would have been without her mama, if it wasn’t for you. I had never seen someone act that brave.”
“I had to put that CPR class to use for something. Everything changed after that. I guess that was when I knew I wanted to be a nurse.”
I was next in line to be waited on. Chadae had a cart full of clothes from dresses, to blouses, to bras and perfume.
“Well, you can have it. I don’t think I could be around blood and puke all day.”
“Like everything, you get used to it.”
I laid my shirt, pants and tie on the counter to be rung up by Kai’ja, this gum-smacking redbone with fat braids that draped down her back.
“Better you than me, then. I have never liked hospitals, or being around sick people.”
“Yeah, remember that time you stepped on a nail? You didn’t even want me to pull it out. ‘Don’t touch it; don’t touch it, you kept yelling.’” Chadae laughed as we wandered down the road of memory lane.
“What? That shit hurt. I had to get like three shots that day.”
“Oh, guess who I had lunch with the other day? Dash. I ran into him at Publix the other day. He told me about what happened with him and Montez.”
“Your total is $22.36,” Kai’ja told me, as she folded my clothes and put them in a plastic bag. I took out my wallet and gave her twenty-three dollars.
I waited at the end of the counter for Chadae to make her purchases. She had enough clothes to fill three bags. We continued our conversation outside as I walked her to her car.
“I laughed my ass off when he told me he caught Montez fucking the Chinese food delivery boy.”
“He told me it was the pizza guy.”
“Oh, it probably was. Either one, I don’t know. Jay, you and I both know that Dash is no angel. We have seen him play grab ass with his share of men.”
“That’s what I thought about when he told me about Montez cheating on him. Dash had a different brother in his bed for every day of the week. Matt on Monday, Tyreese on Tuesday.”
“Will on Wednesday,” Chadae said. “And on the weekend, he would bring two guys home.”
“Damn, I forgot that ya’ll used to be roommates.”
“And honey, the stuff I used to see is enough to fill a tell-all.”
“I bet.”
Chadae was one to talk, though. She had more than a few skeletons in that walk-in closet of hers. She was far from pure.
“Dash told me that ya’ll still get up over at Black Dog to do poetry readings.”
“Well, you know that’s you, Dash and Brett’s thing. I just tag along to support my guys.”
This was true. Chadae was our one-woman pep squad when we performed on stage.
“Dash invited me to come out this upcoming Thursday to read.”
“You should,” she said, with a wide-eyed expression. “I love your poems. You should come out. I think people would love your stuff. Did Dash tell you that he’s trying to start a Tallahassee poetry slam team? Emjay, you would be great for it.”
“It’s been a hot minute since I’ve read. I might be a little rusty.”
“Man, whatever. You get up there on that stage and spit mad fire, people giving you standing ovations.”
“Well, thank you, boo, for the vote of confidence. I told Dash that I would try to make it out, but not to hold me to it. School has been kicking my butt, and if I get this job . . .”
“Well, I’ll definitely be there to cheer you on if you do decide to come.”
“It would be cool to have everybody together. Dash was on my ass at lunch about how he never sees me around anymore.”
“On your ass?” Chadae laughed.
“That’s probably the wrong choice of words.”
“Jay, I know you miss being up there, having people cheering for you.”
“I admit I miss the adrenaline rush.”
“Good, then it’s settled. You’re coming to the reading on Thursday, and you know how I am when it comes to taking no for an answer.”
“You don’t take no for an answer.”
“Exactly. I recall that it was one of the many things you loved about me when we were together.” Damn, she threw me for a loop on that one. “Do you ever think about those times?”
“Sometimes,” I lied. The truth was, our relationship had sailed, hit an iceberg and sunk, and I was the only survivor.
“So are you seeing anyone?”
“Actually, I am.”
An expression of disappointment set in when I told her I had someone.
“That’s um . . . that’s good. What’s her name?”
“Shariece.”
“Shariece. That’s a pretty name.”
“How about you?” I asked.
“Actually, yeah. He’s a Pharmacy major at Florida A&M University.” I knew Chadae was lying. She don’t give eye contact when she’s bullshitting. “His name’s Stefan.” It sounded like a name she made up, but she was trying to save face, so I didn’t have a choice but to believe her. “Well, I really need to get going. I have a class in an hour,” Chadae said.
“Okay, well, it was good to see you, Cha.”
“Yeah, it was fun, catching up. I look forward to seeing you at Black Dog on Thursday, and good luck on your interview. I hope you get the job.”
“You and me both.”
“Here, let me give you my number,” Chadae said, as she reached down in her purse to pull out a pen. “This is my new number. I had to get a new phone after I dropped mine in the kitchen sink.” She scribbled her digits on my palm. “Call me sometime. We’ll have lunch or something.”
“Cha, I have a girlfriend.”
“Okay. And? We’re still friends. What’s wrong with just hanging out and chilling?”
“Nothing, I guess.”
“Get over yourself, Jay. It’s only lunch.” I knew what was up, what game she was playing, and she doesn’t do so well with strictly platonic relationships. “Give me a call next week.”
“That’s cool.”
Cha surprised me when she gave me a kiss on the cheek.
“It’s good to see you again.”
“You too.”
“Don’t be a stranger, Jay. Come out on Thursday. We miss you.”
Cha and I went our separate ways. Due to the erection in my jeans, I was surprised my ass could walk. I sat in five o’clock bumper-to-bumper traffic pressing my boner down with my left hand as I steered the car to Dragon Room, this Chinese restaurant, with my right.
When I got to my place, I noticed Shariece’s ride parked in front of the apartment complex. Both of my hands were filled with bags stuffed with pork dumplings, General Tso’s chicken, spring rolls, Moo Goo Gai Pan and newly purchased dress clothes. My stomach was growling crazy from the hearty aroma of brown rice coming from the white-and-red plastic bags. I set the food and clothes down as I fished my keys out of my front pocket. When I opened the door, there was Shariece sitting in the living room in the dark. I set the bags on the dining room table “Hey, baby, what’s going on? Why is it so dark in here?” She didn’t answer me, but simply sat there staring blankly at the TV. “Hey, are you okay?” I switched on one of the lamps on the nightstand. The illumination rattled Shariece out of whatever daze she was in.
“I was in my office today grading papers and answering emails, and I got this.”
Shariece flipped up the monitor on her Acer laptop and typed in her email address. She strolled down to an email that read Hot for Teacher. When she opened it and it started to show a scene of us fucking, my heart dropped down into my ball sac. “What the fuck!” My first instinct was to take her laptop and hurl it across the room.
“Someone taped us, Jay. Someone fucking taped us!” Shariece got up and began to pace the floor.
“Who?”
“I don’t know who, but you can look and tell that somebody was standing outside of my office window that day.”
“But we were careful.”
“If my boss sees this, I could lose my job. My God, this could be anywhere. YouTube, Facebook.”
“Hold on. Is there an email address?”
“I sent a message, but it just bounced back to me. It doesn’t look familiar.”
“So you have no idea who could have videotaped us?”
“What, you think I’m lying?”
“Baby, no, I’m just—”
“I knew this was a mistake.”
“What are you saying?”
“This, Jay, us!” Shariece kept pacing like she was trying to burn a hole in the carpet. “How in the hell could I have been so careless?”
“Who else is there to blame? It was completely unprofessional of me to even allow this to happen.” She pointed at the video on her computer as if it were the dirtiest sin imaginable.
“If you want to blame someone, blame me. I’m the one who put your career in jeopardy.”
“I was a selfish bitch. What was I thinking? You’re a student, for God’s sake.”
I don’t know what I was pissed off about the most: the video or Shariece chalking me up as a low point in her life.
“Baby, we’ll get through this. I’ll find out who sent the video.”
“And how are you going to do that?”
“I’ll come up with something.”
“Great, that’s reassuring.”
“What is this shit about this motherfucker wanting to meet you somewhere?”
“They say if I meet them, then they’ll hand over all the copies of the video.”
“Sha, you’re not really serious about meeting whoever this is? Who knows who it could be? Could be a damn serial killer or somebody.”
“I don’t have much of a choice. They said if I don’t meet them, they’ll send a copy to my boss.”
“Okay, well, I’m going with you.”
“No you’re not. I need to do this alone.”
“No, fuck that. We don’t know who this pervert is. He could be some student stalking you, for all you know. This could be dangerous, Shariece. We can take separate cars. That way he will know that you came alone.”
“I don’t know. My career is on the line here.”
“I will make sure I stay out of the way, but close enough to where I can protect you. It says here that he wants you to meet him at the Wendy’s on Pensacola and Appleyard.”
“I still don’t think this is such a good idea.”
I took Shariece’s hand in mine in an attempt to comfort her. I had never seen her so scared and tense. “We will get through this. Together. Everything is going to be all right.”
“I so want to believe that.”
“You should and you can.”
Whoever this was, all I wanted to do was get my hands around their throat and break their neck. It was killing me to see Shariece so scared and vulnerable.