Still Sheisty: Part 2 (Triple Crown Publications Presents) (12 page)

"I don't know, but I hope so," said Epiphany just as the phone rang again breaking her train of thought. "You better answer it this time, 'cause I'm sure it's Tucker calling you back," smiled Epiphany as she got up to leave the room.

"Hello?" Keisha answered.

"What's up girly?" said the cheery voice on the other end of the line.

"Um, who is this?"

"It's Lea girl!"

"Oh hey Lea, ain't heard from you in a while."

"I know, girl I've been so tied up with finals and all that, but I've been meaning to call you for a while now. Why haven't you been to class? You busy planning that wedding of yours?"

"No, the wedding is off," answered Keisha.

"Why, what's up with that? You guys are still going to get married, right?" Lea questioned.

"Lea, don't act like you don't know about the tape."

"What tape?"

"Come on Lea, don't you think it's a little ironic that you begged me to have that party and those strippers.
"Oh come on
Keisha, you can go to the club anytime. This might be the last
time you see some dicks slinging in your face."
Remember that?

Then all of a sudden a video tape from that night shows up on my fucking door step." Keisha's voice was getting louder.

"Keisha, I can't believe that you would think that I would do something like that." Lea was taken back by Keisha's accusation.

"Okay, so if you didn't set me up, why haven't you called me until now?"

"I told you why-school. Besides, Simone told me she spoke to you and things were cool with you."

"Whatever Lea, school has never stopped you from calling me before."

"Keisha, If you really wanna get technical, most of our conversations took place in school. I never really called you at home in the first place, except for once or twice to talk about your wedding. But you know what, it's sad that out of everybody there that night you would accuse me. What about the other girls? Simone, helped me put the whole thing together. Or how about the girl that came with you? What about your friend, Epiphany? She was the last one to leave the room.

"Well Epiphany wouldn't do that to me, neither would Shana and Simone. Come on, she doesn't even seem like the type that would something like that."

"Oh, and I would?"

"Well at first I didn't think you would, but the room was in your name therefore you had time to set up a camcorder before anybody got there."

"Oh, is that right? Well you know what Keisha, I 'm not going to sit here and try to defend myself any longer. If you think I did it, fine. But I certainly didn't forced you in the other room and make you have sex with that guy, now did I?" Keisha was speechless. "Yeah, that's what I thought," Lea said sarcastically before hanging up the phone. If that wasn't enough drama for one morning, soon after she hung up with Lea, Tucker came barging into her bedroom.

"Keish, what the fuck is that bitch doing in my house, huh?

What is it with you? You think I'm that nigga don't you--that's what it is, huh? Just some muthafucka that you could all run over, right? I guess 'cause I ain't knock some sense into you yet.

Are you testing me? Fuck me, right? You ain't got no fucking respect for me, do you?"

"What are you talking about?" Keisha said playing the stupid role, when she knew exactly why he was upset. That only made Tucker more furious, so furious that he snapped and slapped the shit out of her. She let out a horrifying cry. Tucker had never put his hands on her before nor did she ever expect him to.

"Yeah you know what I'm talking about now, don't you?

Where the fuck is my son at, huh? He was suppose to come home yesterday. I called your moms and she told me some bogus bullshit about you needing two more weeks. Two more weeks for what, Keisha? To hop your ass in and out the clubs?

Yeah, I heard. So, that's what you wanna do, huh, club hop?" Still stunned from being slapped, Keisha didn't answer. Her face was beginning to swell. She sat there massaging her cheek with one hand, soothing the stinging and wiped her tears away as with the other hand.

"All you do is cry Keisha. I don't care about those fucking tears of yours. I've been trying to be cool throughout everything, but no, you stay pushing my fucking buttons. Damn Keish, how much is a nigga suppose to take from you?" Tucker was fed up with Keisha's bull and in his heart he was beginning to feel like she really had no respect for him anymore. She didn't appreciate him, or nothing he did for her. So as far as he was concerned it was time to let her go, move on and put an end to the 'Tucker and Keisha" chapter of his life for good.

"Keish, you got to go!" Tucker realied thazt was the best and only decision to make.

"What...what do you mean?"

"I mean, I'm not taking care of you no more. My son is my responsibility-not you."

"Wait a minute, my name is on this house, too. How you just gon' put me out like that, T? I'm your son's mother, where are we suppose to go?" Keisha pleaded.

"Keisha, I told you before, I'm not trying to hear all that. This is my house, I pay all the bills. Your name don't mean shit, so stop it. It's not gonna fly and if you feel differently take me to court. Okay! Now, yes, you are my son's mother and I will take care of all my little man's needs--there's no questions about that, but you got two more weeks to yourself. I suggest you spend them looking for a place to stay." Keisha wasn't gonna fight it anymore. Time and time again, Tucker made it clear that it was over between them. She packed some of her things and as she was about to leave he asked for her keys. She removed them slowly from her key chain and threw them on the bed.

"Hold up, I'ma need the keys to the truck too," he added, taking it to the extreme. Keisha cut her eyes at him.
'I hate you'

she thought as she tossed the whole key chain onto the bed and stormed off.

"Thank you." Tucker said sarcastically.

Meanwhile, just when Tucker asked Keisha for the keys, Epiphany felt her ears had heard enough. She eased down the stairs, grabbed her bags and decided it would be best if she sat outside in her car and waited for Keisha. She didn't wanna be the next one to get slapped.

C-God was slowly fading away; getting high whenever he
could.
Money was starting to get tight. Marisa lost her job at the grocery store and made her bills become his problem. C-God wasn't supplying her with any more coke, so she jumped on the band wagon and started sucking on the glass pipe with him. In Marisa's mind it was only for a little while--just until she lost some weight--but if only she knew, dropping the weight would be the easy part. The addiction had a hell of a price to pay and her children were the first to suffer. Why, because getting high became more important to her then their needs. Most of the time she stayed locked up in her bedroom for hours with C-God smoking crack, while the kids knocks for food, help with the homework or just some quality time went ignored. Her children hated C-god and blamed him for their mother's neglect.

Reggie still communicated with C-God from time to time, to see how he was doing. Although he chose to roll with Ness for money purposes, he still had love for the nigga C. C-God understood that it wasn't about him. He knew Reggie had a lot on his plate--trying to take care of his grandmother, who he loved dearly and hustled daily, through rain, sleet and snow to get up the doe to take care of her bills and live in nurse. Reg kept C-god informed about what was going on and the moves niggas was making in the hood. He was the eyes and ears on the street that C-God no longer had, his information was priceless. C-God was surprised when Reg called and told him how his baby moms Latrice went out.

"Yo son, they played Latrice?" said Reggie.

"Who?"

"That nigga Ness, man. Out in front of the projects the other day, he had her sucking on a dog's dick for that crack. Shit, in front of everybody too, just 'cause she was short a dollar. Yo C, I tried to stop her, but she wanted them drugs bad." C-God was quite. He flashed back to how fly Latrice use to be and that smart mouth of her's. All the ballers tried to get at her back in the day, but she chose C-God when he ain't have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of and he love her for that. That is until he started getting money and the golddiggers took notice. His excuse for moving on to the next chick was Latrice's jealousy and crazed antics after giving birth to their first child.

Reminiscing made C-God think about all his baby momma's. To let him tell it, all of them where some bugged out bitches.

Latrice and Sherri had lost custody of his kids, Lori and Jasmine, because of their crack addictions. Andrea married some Wall Street cat, who adopted C-God's seven-year old daughter, Atria, and moved them out to the Hamptons. Kim has a good paying city job, but stay trying to hit him up for money for their son Corey, who's seven also. Then Yolonda's weed smoking, welfare collecting ass, did nothing but get her fuck on with different niggas and threatened C with child support orders every chance she got. Sad to say, out of all of them, she was the one that had C-God open. He made her his wifey, before finding out how who-rish she really was and until this day he still questions if he's the father of her daughters, Kameechie and Yaya. Last, but not least, there's Tanya. She's a good girl-- smart and educated, C-god never had no problems with her. She's still young, so she does what she's told and she has a strong supportive family and they all take care good of his son.

"Yo C, you there?" Reggie wasn't certain C was still on the phone. He had been silent for a minute.

"Yeah, I'm here. Anyway fuck Latrice, Tanya's the only one out all them bitches that I give a fuck about. That's why I need you to check up on her from time to time and make sure she's good, a'ight? Do that for me until I get on my feet." "Not a problem." Reggie said.

"Oh and one more thing, any word on Epiphany, you know the chick I was fucking with?" C-God asked.

"Yeah, I know who you talking about. I hear she a'ight, as a matter of fact, her pops came through the projects a couple of times looking for you."

"Word? I know what that's about, but it wasn't me. I'm glad she a'ight though. Anyway thanks, good looking out fam."

"It's nothing, I'ma holla at you later, a'ight?" said Reg.

"A'ight man."

Shana was so upset after Epiphany and Keisha called to tell her
about K.C.'s behavior at the club the other night.
Keisha had the proof but didn't have access to a computer in order to print it out.

"What's wrong with your computer, Keish?" Shana questioned.

"Nothing, I'm staying with Epiphany for a while," answered Keisha.

"Shana, you can use my computer as soon as my pops gets my stuff out of storage." Epiphany offered.

"And when is that?"

"Probably next week, once he's done fixing up the basement for me and Keisha." Epiphany answered.

"Shit, I can't wait that long."

"So, what you gonna do, huh, tell him we told you?" asked Epiphany.

"I don't know what I'm gonna do, but I know I ain't gon' be able to hold this shit in for a week," replied Shana.

"See that's some bullshit. We look out for you and you gonna tell the nigga. If it was meant to go down like that, I wouldn't have paid the camera man fifty dollars." Epiphany complained.

"Yo, I'll give you your fifty dollars back, that's not a problem." Shana said.

"You're right, the money ain't the problem, it's your fucking mouth," said Epiphany.

"Fuck you Epiphany, don't tell me shit next time," yelled Shana.

"Fuck you, too. I won't, believe that."

"Come on you guys this ain't necessary and Shana, Epiphany is right this time. It ain't cool for you to rat us out like that and have your man hating on us." Keisha explained.

"So what I'm I supposed to do, go out and buy a computer just so I can confront his ass." Shana said sarcastically.

"No, we can go to Kinko's and use their internet access." Keisha suggested.

"That'll work, but why didn't you suggest that in the first place?" Shana asked.

"Because, I just thought about it while you and Epiphany were going at it. Now can you two apologize please?" said Keisha.

"I'm sorry E," Shana said nonchalantly.

"Whatever, just get me my fifty bucks," said Epiphany still wanting to hold a grudge.

"Yo Keish, you see what I mean, fuck that bitc-" Before she could finish , Keisha took the phone off speaker and picked up the receiver while Shana continued to express how she felt about Epiphany.

"Shana, just come and get me alright; I don't have my car," said Keisha changing the subject and calming down Shana.

"A'ight, I'm on my way," said Shana.

When Shana arrived, she called Keisha on her cell to let her know she was out front.

"Hey E, I'll be back, Shana's out front." Keisha said.

"Yeah a'ight, get my money from that bitch please." Epiphany replied.

"Uh huh." Keisha walked out shaking her head not able to understand, why the two of them just couldn't get along.

Once Keisha left, Epiphany went outside and sat on the stoop of her parents' house, which was something she hadn't done since she was a kid. It had to be about 90 degrees out, the sun was blazing. As she watched the kids on the corner running in and out of the fire hydrant, laughing, playing and having a good time, while trying to stay cool, she remembered some things. This time, it was clear. She could recall taking a home pregnancy test and it being positive, the pain she felt from all his kicks and punches, but most importantly she could remember his face.
"It was C-God,"
she mumbled as her memory confirmed her father and Keisha's beliefs. Epiphany felt awful, it just didn't make sense to her at all and there was still a lot of information missing.
'Why did he try to kill me'
she though.
'Was it
because I found out I was pregnant or maybe it was Mali's baby,
but, no, Keisha said I stopped seeing Malikai months ago. So
maybe I wasn't really-'
The ring of her cell phone broke her heavy train of thought. It was someone calling from a 323 area code.