Cool Like That (5 page)

A
fter waiting for an hour, we finally get seated for breakfast at Sylvia’s. From the satisfied looks of the people who are leaving, I’m about to get my grub on. My stomach just growled in agreement.

Sienna’s boyfriend, Dan, showed up with a small crew of four dudes, so there are seven of us in total. I wonder if Ricky would be mad if he saw me today. Most probably, but, shoot, I’m mad at me for being seen with these thuggish-ruggish clones.

Dan actually looks pretty cool. He reminds me of that basketball player Grant Hill. He’s kinda tall and thin, with a low haircut. His clothes are only kind of thuggish. But his boys…They look like extras from a 50 Cent film.

One of Dan’s friends has been giving me the eye since he walked through the door. I’m so not in the mood to fight off his advances, but he zips his lips and says, “So, shorty, I’m digging your braids. Did you do ’em? Can you hook a brotha up?”

He definitely needs someone to hook up his braids. They look about a month old and have had fuzz and lint balls for days. I can only imagine how filthy the water will be when he finally does wash that mess. Ew.

“I don’t braid. My mother did these,” I reply curtly.

“Don’t be mean, shorty. I’m just trying to start up a convo with you.”

I force myself to smile. “It’s all good. I’m just ready to get my grub on.”

“Yeah, baby. You could use a few bowls of grits!”

Was that supposed to be funny? Yeah, I’m really impressed with him now. He clowns my petite frame and thinks that’s flirting. I’m ready to forsake all other crushes and get with him now.
Not!

I’m glad the waitress comes and takes our orders. Her presence interrupts the stupid conversation. And, see, I was about to order grits, but I can’t now!

After the order is placed, Dan’s friends stand up. My admirer says, “Eh, Dan, we ’bout to go outside for a minute. We’ll be right back.”

Dan gets a nervous look on his face. “Be easy, y’all. We don’t want any trouble while my wifey is here.”

“Man, chill. We got this.”

Three of Dan’s friends go outside the restaurant. Dan’s eyes follow them apprehensively like something is about to go down.

“You cool, Dan?” Sienna asks.

“Yeah. So what have y’all done in the city so far?”

Sienna replies, “Last night we did Times Square. It was cool, even though I’ve seen it before.”

“Times Square is always off the chain,” Dan says. “And today y’all are having breakfast at the legendary Sylvia’s. All three of y’all coming to my party tonight, right?”

Melody nods. “Can’t wait.”

“Looks like my boy is feeling you, Gia,” Dan says. “You gonna let him holla?”

“Nah. He’s not my type. I’m more into nerd-slash-jocks.”

Sienna laughs. “Or writers who sport locs.”

Now we’re all laughing. They got me. I do seem to like loc-wearing writers too.

Dan’s friends come back in right as the food is being served. They all have glazed expressions on their faces and red eyes.

“What have y’all been doing?” I ask, although I think I already know the answer.

“Grown-folks bidness,” one of them replies as he gobbles a huge mouthful of scrambled eggs.

Mmm-hmm. I know what “grown-folks bidness” means. They’ve been out there smoking something they don’t have any business smoking. I just say no to all that foolishness, and so should you. Hey, I’m known for random public-service announcements. Deal with it.

These dudes are not talking about anything worthwhile, so I focus on my food. Fried ham, scrambled eggs with cheese, home fries, and biscuits. Make you wanna slap somebody, for real.

“Slow down, shorty. You gon’ choke on them eggs.”

I look up and give him a blank stare. Thank goodness my phone rings. I glance down at the caller ID. It’s my boy Kevin.

“Excuse me, y’all. I’m gonna step outside and take this.”

I rush out of the restaurant, happy to have a reason to get away from Dan’s goons. “Hey, Kev. What’s up?”

“Gia, you haven’t called or texted me since you left. You’re foul.”

“I’ve been here for only a day and a half, Kevin. Stop spazzing out. What’s up?”

“Nothing.”

“All that huffing and puffing for nothing? I’m not buying it, Kev. Spill it!”

“I’m planning to ask Candy to go hang with me at the rec.”

“You and Candy? Alone?”

“And Hope too.”

“Something doesn’t feel right about this conversation, Kevin.”

That
something
is the fact that Kevin and Candy are not slick. They’ve been crushing since last school year, but she’s only in tenth grade.

“You do know Candy isn’t allowed to date, right? She’s only fifteen.”

Kevin replies, “We’re not dating. We’re getting acquainted.”

You may or may not already know this, but Kevin lives with his grandparents. Every now and then he’ll break with something Ricky and I call “old speak.” “Getting acquainted” equals “We’re in chill mode right now.”

“Don’t make me come home and regulate on you two,” I say.

“Anyway, Gia. No one is afraid of you. What’s the program like so far?”

“Don’t really know yet. I don’t have my first class until tomorrow. But I’ve met some really cool people so far. I’m having breakfast with some of them right now.”

“Is Ricky with you? Put him on the phone. He’s not answering his.”

“Uh…Ricky and I are not speaking at the moment. I have no idea where he is.”

“What do you mean you’re not speaking to Ricky? You’ve been there for a day and a half, Gia. How could you already be arguing?”

“You just better deal with your friend, Kevin. He’s tripping trying to tell me who I can and can’t make friends with.”

I can hear Kevin’s sigh through the phone. “He’s tripping about a guy, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Remember how he was about Romeo, and he hadn’t even admitted that he had a crush on you back then? You know how he gets.”

One of Ricky’s fellow football players tried to get at me our sophomore year in high school. It was all bad. They even got into a fight when Romeo started talking junk about me. So, yeah, I know how Ricky gets. That’s still no excuse for his current behavior.

“He’s still tripping, Kevin.”

“Well, I’m going to need y’all to make up. You know I’m living vicariously through y’all this summer.”

“Okay, Kevin. I’ll try.”

“Keep me posted.”

Kevin is right. I have to make up with Ricky. This summer will be fun. It just
has
to be.

“Are we ready to go?” I ask when I get back to the table.

“Why you in a rush, shorty?” Dan’s friend asks.

I roll my eyes. “I’ve got some stuff to do before the party tonight.”

“What kind of stuff?” Sienna asks, looking quite irritated.

“Girl stuff. Shopping.”

Sienna smiles. “Oooh, I like shopping, and I could use some new stilettos for tonight. Baby, you’re picking up the tab, right?”

Dan nods. “I’ll send a car for y’all tonight, okay?”

“Thank you, baby!” Sienna kisses Dan on the cheek as the three of us get up from the table.

When we get outside, I say, “Come on, y’all. I’ve gotta get back to campus.”

“What?” Melody asks. “I want to go shopping.”

“Yeah, Gia, you said you had to go shopping.”

“No, I’ve got to go and speak with Ricky. I don’t like us fighting.”

“So you made me leave my boo so you could run back to make up with your little crush?” Sienna asks.

“Yes.”

“You couldn’t just call him?” Sienna asks.

“I could’ve, but then I would’ve had to keep looking at Dan’s boys. Plus, I need to see Ricky’s facial expression when I check him.”

Melody clears her throat. “That was an extremely selfish thing to do, Gia. We were already there with Dan and his crew. We could’ve at least finished breakfast.”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t get back on my own. Will y’all please come with me?”

“Yeah, this time,” Sienna says, “but next time you’re having drama with one of your many boyfriends, you need to stay at the dorm.”

“Thank you.”

Sienna and Melody drop me off at the dorm, but they decide to go shopping anyway. I have no idea where Ricky could be on this campus, so I call his cell.

Ricky answers on the first ring. “Hey, Gia.”

“Ricky, where are you? I can hardly hear you. What’s all that noise?”

“Xavier, Sushil, and I are at the ESPN Zone.”

I hear a female voice in the background say, “Come on, Ricky! It’s your turn.”

“Who is that?” I ask. “Is it Sushil or Xavier?”

“Umm…that’s Tracy. We met her and her friends here. We’re having an air-hockey tournament.”

I can’t believe I rushed all the way back here to fix things with Ricky, and he’s off having fun. He’s so broken up about our argument—right! “Whatever, Ricky. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Wait, Gia. Did you want something important?”

“Nope. I’ll holla.”

I storm into Lerner Hall looking for food. When I get irritated, I need snacks. Preferably something salty. Potato chips are calling my name.

“Where are you going, Princess? You look like you’re about to hit somebody.”

“Rashad, hey. I’m looking for a snack.”

“I thought y’all were going to have breakfast at Sylvia’s.”

“Why are you all in my business?” I snap. “Do you know my whole itinerary? What am I doing in an hour?”

Rashad laughs. “Calm down, Gia. What’s the matter?”

“Nothing!” I growl as a bag of chips falls from the snack machine.

“Well, do you want to go for a walk with me? It’s probably a better way to work off your stress.”

I let out a huge sigh. “I guess you’re right. Where are we going?”

“Morningside Park. It’s right down the street.”

“Cool.”

We walk in silence for a few minutes, and it’s just fine. I guess I need a few moments to think about what’s up.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Rashad asks as we walk into the park.

“Nah, not really. Let’s talk about something else.”

Rashad laughs. “Okay, what do you want to do with your life after college?”

“Seriously, Rashad? I don’t know. I can’t even figure out high school, much less adult life.”

“You want to be some kind of writer though?”

I nod. “I do, but I don’t know exactly what I want to write yet. Novels, I think, but the genre is still kind of hazy.”

“You seem like a sci-fi kind of girl to me.”

I shake my head. “I do love sci-fi, don’t get me wrong. But I don’t see myself writing it. What made you say that about me?”

“Because you’re really laid back, pretty—but not a diva—and you have a boy for a best friend.
Sci-fi
is written all over you.”

“Pretty observant. I’m impressed.”

“That’s what I do. I observe people.”

“Sweet. Are you going to Dan’s album-release party tonight?”

“I might roll through for a while, but those parties can get kind of wild.”

“Wild how?”

“Dan’s crew likes to smoke weed and drink. Someone usually gets into a fight. Not really my scene.”

“Not really mine either,” I say.

“Then don’t go. We can chill, get some pizza, and watch a movie in the lounge.”

I smile up at Rashad’s cute face. “Sounds nice.”

My phone buzzes. Text message from Ricky:

Gia, I’m back on campus. Meet me at Lerner Hall in five minutes.

“It’s Ricky,” I say. “He wants to meet me.”

“Okay. I’ll walk you back.”

Rashad keeps on walking to the dorm when I stop at Lerner Hall. I go inside and find Ricky sitting in the game room looking perplexed.

“Gia, you sounded strange when I talked to you, so we came back. You know those girls were strangers, right? I wasn’t trying to holla at them.”

I sigh and sit down next to Ricky. “I think you were right about suspending the whole crush thing, Ricky. I mean, look how we’re acting.”

“I know. We’re gonna end up not enjoying the summer if we keep this up.”

“And that would be crazy. Why don’t you hang out with me and Rashad? We’re watching movies tonight while everybody goes to the party.”

“You’re watching movies with Rashad? I thought you were going to the party with your girls.”

“I met some of Dan’s friends this morning at breakfast. They’re…interesting.”

Ricky nods. “Gotcha. I don’t know if I want to hang out with a dude that’s digging you, Gia. That’s just weird.”

“Rashad and I are just friends. Trust me, you’ll like him.”

“Okay, Gia. I’ll try. Sorry I’ve been acting like a jerk.”

“I forgi—”

Ricky kisses me softly on the cheek before I can even get my sentence out. There’s a moist spot on my face when he pulls away. I’m utterly speechless.

Ricky gets up and leaves me sitting in Lerner Hall, stunned. Every time I think I have the upper hand, Ricky catches me off guard.

When I get back to the dorm, Melody and Sienna are in our room. They have outfits laid out over both beds. None of them look like anything I would wear—way too much sparkling going on.

“We’re picking out our party outfits, Gia,” Melody says. “What do you think?”

“Umm…yeah. Plenty of bling.”

“And that’s a good thing?” Sienna asks.

“It is if you like bling.”

“My boo likes a lot of bling!” Sienna exclaims.

“Well, then, he should really dig your outfit. Would y’all mind if I flake out and don’t go to this party?”

Melody frowns. “What? Why aren’t you coming?”

“I’m watching movies in the lounge with Rashad and Ricky.”

Sienna and Melody both look at each other with wide eyes.

“Gia, I bow at your feet,” Sienna says. “You are the epitome of a female mack, with your skinny self.”

“It’s not like that! We’re just all gonna try to be friends.”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“Oh, whatever!”

Is that what this is? Am I, Gia Stokes, a female mack?

Sweet!

S
nacks? Check. Movies? Check. Two hot boys who are perfect crushes but have now moved to the friend category? Yeah, almost check—Rashad is here, and Ricky is on his way.

“What are we watching, Princess?”

“
Mission Impossible II
. Tom Cruise, Thandie Newton.”

Rashad smiles. “Score. That’s a great movie.”

“I wanted to watch
Love & Basketball
or
Brown Sugar,
but those are both about two BFFs who have crushes, and, well, I thought it wouldn’t be appropriate.”

Rashad plops down on the couch and eats a mouthful of popcorn. “You’re right. I’m glad you picked something else. Action movies are safe.”

“Yep. I agree.”

I go to set the volume on the television and feel a light tap on my head and then another. What in the world?

“Rashad, are you throwing popcorn at my head?” I ask as I pick up three kernels from the floor.

Rashad laughs. “Yes, I am. What are you gonna do about it?”

I narrow my eyes. “Dude, you don’t want it with me.”

“Don’t I?” Rashad throws a handful of popcorn at my head, and every piece connects.

“Boy!”

I leap across the room like a cheetah and snatch the bowl of popcorn away from Rashad. I smash some of it in his face and then toss a handful down his tank top.

He yelps and flips me over onto the couch. Then he takes a huge handful of popcorn and rains it all over my head. I can’t catch my breath from laughing so hard, and Rashad is holding his stomach with tears rolling down his face.

“I’m not cleaning this up,” I say.

Ricky walks into the room. “Hey, Gia, Rashad.”

Ricky’s disapproving glare makes me feel like Rashad and I have done something wrong, even though we haven’t. Ricky’s nostrils flare as he looks at the popcorn mess all over the room.

“Seems like we’re the only people staying in tonight,” Ricky says. “Everyone’s going somewhere.”

“You don’t have to stay in on our account,” Rashad teases.

“Ha-ha. Funny,” I say. “Ricky, I did bring popcorn, but someone thought it would be better to have a food fight with it.”

This causes another involuntary round of giggles from me and Rashad. He tosses a popcorn kernel at me for good measure, and I swat it away.

Ricky eases down into a chair on one side of the room; Rashad moves over to the other chair. I guess that leaves the whole couch for me. Really cozy movie night.

“Before we watch this movie, I want y’all both to know that we can be friends and have a great time this summer.”

Rashad laughs. “Absolutely. Ricky, man, I’m sorry if I’m getting in your way. I didn’t mean to. I saw a pretty girl and, well…you know.”

“Gia and I are tight, Rashad. I’m not threatened by some guy she’s known only two days, for real.”

This is not going the way I planned.

“I never thought you were threatened,” Rashad says.

“Let’s watch the movie!” I say.

“No, let’s talk this out right now, Gia,” Ricky says. “You obviously brought us together so we can hash it out. Bottom line, I don’t do sloppy seconds. I’ve already put work into this friendship, and I am not about to sit up here and compete with a stranger.”

“But, Ricky—”

“I guess you think this is cute,” Ricky continues. “But I’m not going to get dissed so you can blow your own head up.”

Okay, now he’s got me mad. I see he came down here to set me straight in front of Rashad. No, sir. I do not think so.

“I am not trying to blow my own head up, Ricky. You’re doing a good job of it, so why do I need to join in?”

Ricky’s mouth drops like I just hit him. Okay, maybe that was a bit much. It just flew out of my mouth before I had time to stop it.

Ricky takes a long pause, and I can see his chest rise and fall in a deep breath. I don’t think I’ve seen him this mad in a long time.

“Gia, you might think this is one of those Disney sitcoms, but this is real life, where people have real feelings.”

“Ricky, I—”

“Don’t, Gia. Watch your movie with your new friend. I’m out.”

I watch Ricky rise from his seat, and I try to think of something to say to get him to stay, but I can’t. I didn’t mean to hurt him, I honestly didn’t.

But I’ll just have to try to fix this another day when Rashad isn’t in the mix. Ricky and I have survived worse, so I’m sure that once we have a chance to talk one-on-one, we can absolutely fix this.

Right?

“Do you want to go after him?” Rashad asks. “I would understand if you did. We can watch a movie another time.”

Do I want to go after Ricky? I’m not sure it would even matter right now, as angry as he is with me. I think I should just let him cool off first and then talk it out. Anything I say now will probably just make it worse.

“I’ll talk to him later,” I say. “We can still watch the movie.”

Rashad brushes the popcorn off the couch and plops down next to me. “Are you okay with sharing the couch? Or do you want me in the chair?”

“This is cool.”

Rashad wraps his arms around me and gives me an awkward hug. “I’m not that great at comforting people, but I think you and Ricky will be okay.”

I’m glad somebody thinks so.