“Awe Shit! You done rolled up in the Scooby Doo Mystery Van.”
“At least I’m rollin. My girl ain’t gotta come pick me up like I’m still a teenager without my own car.”
“That’s cold Boss Man.”
Craig is a newbie that rents one of the chairs in the shop. A young stocky light skin Hawaiian brotha with long black wavy hair from Seaside, a neighboring city of Marina. He was cutting the hair of a young teenage brotha sitting in the chair with a black apron on cracking jokes as always. Reggie, another one of the brotha’s renting a chair in the shop had a young dark skin sista with a short afro top faded on the sides etching designs into her almost bald fade. Reggie is a tall dark athletic brotha who use to play ball back in high school and college. I heard he and his twin brother Ricky were pretty good as line backers on the field.
“What’s up boss? How was the weekend with lil man?”
“It was cool. Was on the way back home and just wanted to check on things.”
“We good boss man. You know, Ricky been calling up here all weekend trying to get a hold of you.”
I shook my head without saying another word. Reggie knows I don’t have anything else to say to Ricky. It was just a week ago when Ricky had his side chick Shawna up at the shop. I’d already warned him numerous times about not bringing that type of drama to my shop. Of course, he didn’t listen. So, when his wife Gina stopped by the shop some real drama jumped off. Ending in a cat fight in the parking lot in front of the shop with a few shots from a 9mm let off. And I can’t have that type of situation going on at my place of business, I had to let Ricky go.
“Boss! So, what you want me to tell him?”
“Tell him if he needs a reference, I got him. Other than that, there is nothing else to talk about.”
“Damn Mark! My brother really messed up.”
“Yeah he did!”
“I’m just saying boss. You know Ricky need this gig. Since he blew out his knee playing ball all he got to fall back on is cutting hair. He ain’t never gonna admit it, but this is the best shop he ever worked out of. You fair with us on chair fees, flexible when we need to cut out for one family disaster or another and even leave us to run the shop on the weekends you got yo lil man. I know he kickin himself in the ass for messing up?”
“Look Reg! You know I like Ricky. Aside from his personal life I ain’t got no problems with him. Hell, you know I had Ricky in here before you, but when it comes to potentially messing up my business and my money, I got to cut ties. I got a kid to feed and a business to run. I can’t let nobody mess that up for me.”
“I hear you boss. I know that situation wasn’t cool, and it could like you said mess up your business. I’m just asking you to please think about bringing him back. Not trying to tell you how to run yo business, but just think about it. And if you do, I’ll be responsible for keeping his drama away from the shop.”
“Reg! I’ll think about it, but I can’t make no promises. Now, before I leave is there anything y’all need?”
Reggie and Craig both shook their heads, so I gave them both a pound then turned around and walked out of the shop.