Faces of the Game (12 page)

              After church, Chelle and Ash decided to go to the nail salon and get manicures and pedicures before going home and cooking dinner.  On the way to the nail shop Chelle prayed for the guy G.J. and asked God to guide him to better decisions, she prayed that he never came off on anyone else who respected themselves that way.  Although the situation didn’t seem so obscene to others, Chelle was struggling with the idea that this may not be the last time something similar happened.  She continued to wonder if her appearance should be changed, but she never dressed sluttish, she wondered if her makeup was too much but she never wore heavy un-natural looking make up, she even wondered if her heels were too high; but then she remembered that it was the devil testing her worth.  She knew that if the incident stayed on her mind too much longer that she would give the devil exactly what he wanted so she decided to pray once more and let it go for good. 

              The girls arrived at the nail salon, Chelle popped her trunk and slipped on her flip flops.  Ash grabbed her flip flops out of the back seat and they headed into the salon.  “What color are you going to get?”  Ash asked Chelle.  “Just that pink clear color, what about you?”  Chelle asked Ash.  “Oh I don’t know yet, maybe French” Ash said contemplating on which color she would choose.  The girls signed their alias names and sat beside one another so they could get their manicures.  They both got clear on their nails, they didn’t like all of the wild colors they both liked the more conservative look usually.  “Girl, Los is going to make me kill him” Ash said remembering that she didn’t tell Chelle what had happened the night before.  “Oh lord, what did he do now?”  Chelle asked not really wanting to hear the bad things about her cousin.  “His baby mama called his phone and he almost broke his neck to go to the bathroom down the hall, not the one in the bedroom.”  “How do you know it was her?”  Chelle quizzed Ash hoping that she could defend him.  “Because I looked at the call log when he got in the shower, I am going to leave him alone for good.”  Ash said rolling her eyes.  “Yeah, yeah when?”  Chelle asked knowing that it wasn’t going to be that easy letting him go.  “Soon, real soon I am fed up; she ain’t going nowhere and if I don’t he’s never going to change she can have him.”  The girls stepped up onto the chairs in so they could get their pedicures and they continued to talk about the same things that they always ended up talking about; niggas, lies, baby mamas, and how much their boyfriends would miss them if they decided to leave.  “Girl, Kiki acts like she isn't going anywhere either but she still messes with her baby daddy.”  Chelle said as they continued their conversation.  “Girl, don’t they all still mess with their baby daddies no matter what?”  Ash said in an unenthusiastic tone.  “I hope not, Chip’s baby mama is a hot mess a straight psycho” Chelle said shaking her head in disgust.  “Ugh, what does he want with me then?”  Chelle asked confused as to why he would even like her since every other female he dealt with was so different than she was.  “I guess Kiki isn’t that bad, I mean she is like thirty and she is ghetto fabulous but I don’t think she is a bad person” Chelle said admitting that Kiki wasn’t so bad after all.  “Man forget that, she is nowhere near your level just like Los knows that his tired baby mama is nowhere near my level.”  “I know right” Chelle sighed.  They both day dreamed for a few moments wondering why they were dealing with these men who had never even dealt with someone who had the same morals and goals that they had.  “I think that’s why they love us so much, we are driven to succeed and they respect that so much.”  Chelle said realizing how much power they had over the men they loved.  The girls were almost done with their pedicures when Chip called Chelle, “Hey baby what are you doing?”  Chip asked hoping she was on her way home to cook Sunday dinner.  “I’m at the nail shop I will be home in a little while.”  She answered.  “What’s a little while?”  “Just make sure you are there when I get there.”  She said and hung up the phone.

Take it from the Pro’s

              “Do you remember when y’all young asses went to the CIAA party?”  Val asked Chelle and Neese as she poured herself a glass of Champagne.  “Heck yeah, I was like fourteen and Chelle was like sixteen, we were young as hell.”  Neese said in amazement.  “Y’all are still young as hell.”  Roz said laughing.  Val and Roz were a little older than Neese and Chelle, but they always schooled them to the game.  They kept it real with the two young girls because they knew how the guys operated, Chelle and Neese loved them, they always were there to talk to them when they didn’t want to hear it from anyone else.  “Hey let me get that Moet real quick” Chelle said as she reached for the bottle.  Val had cooked dinner, it was a Saturday night and the boys were hanging out at some big fight party so she and Roz decided to invite Chelle and Neese over for dinner.  “Girl I think that was our first big event ever.”  Chelle said remembering what it was like.  “Man I had never seen so much ice in my life, now that should have been somebody’s video shoot.”  Neese said thinking back on how flossed out every one was.  “I know right, we thought we were doing something with our black dresses.  Neese had on gold pumps and I had on Silver ones with our little bags and accessories to match our shoes.”  Chelle said laughing.  “Girl we automatically stepped our game up from then on, all we saw was minks and shit and we thought we were chilling.”  Neese said laughing even harder.  “Y’all are crazy, Val we started hanging out around that age didn’t we?”  Roz asked Val.  “Hell yeah, I don’t know what we used to tell our parents.”  Val said shaking her head.  “Girl who knows, I’m glad we got boys” Roz said. 

“Question, sorry to squash the reminiscing but I am so worried about Kiki and Chip, they have a history together and I don’t want to feel played at the end of it all what should I do?”  Chelle asked wondering if she should back off and play her position.  “Girl I told you Chip has been looking at you for years, he finally got what he wanted he is not thinking about her.”  Roz said assuring Chelle that Kiki wasn’t an issue.  “But they still communicate all of the time, and even though he likes me I think they have something deeper.”  Chelle said.  “Well if you really like him stick by his side and show him that you are true, there were plenty of times when I worried about Mike but he isn’t went nowhere yet, play your position champ.”  Val added.  “Plus Chelle, you are too damn fly for him to play you with her, she is a hood rat.”  Neese said.  Val and Roz just looked at each other and laughed, they didn’t want to be the ones to say it.  “I knew you were ready to be wifed up when you were in high school it was only a matter of time, that’s why you have always been my little sister.  You carry yourself with so much pride and you are a lot more mature than the average, don’t let her intimidate you just follow your heart.”  Roz said hoping that she had convinced Chelle to forget about any competition.

“Do y’all think that me and Ryan will eventually fall out of love and I will be looked at as his first little girlfriend?”  Neese asked the girls.  “Na, you are going to always be wifey you snagged him and your swag will always keep him.”  Val responded.  “Usually they leave their first girlfriends if they realize that they are cornballs, but you are fly and he knows that girl please.”  Roz added.  “But I know he talks to other girls, I know some of them are probably just as fly as me if not flyer.”  Neese said doubting her relationship.  “Let me tell both of y’all something, they aren’t going to be right if they don’t have something on the side; so you do the same as long as they respect you and don’t ever let any drama come your way.  As long as they never burn you, or put your health in danger and vice versa.  Don’t worry about it, make sure they always have the side line bitches in check before they ever get half way near you.”  Val said.  “But we are basically giving them permission to be dogs.”  Neese said.  “Girl they are going to do it anyway, there is absolutely nothing you can do but let nature run its course, they will come around eventually, plus if you have a little friend you will begin to understand why they like to have someone else to chill with five to ten percent of the time.”  Roz said knowing that the girls would go through a lot more than they had seen so far.  “Sometimes I would rather have a broke and faithful dude than a paid and cheating one.”  Neese said.  “Yeah right, just to find out that the broke nigga was cheating the whole time too.”  Val said as they all busted out in laughter.

The girls laughed and talked all night about everything from guys to upcoming events, from new shoes to school and work.  They drank the whole bottle of Moet and watched a couple of chick flicks before their phones were ringing and it was time for them to go their separate ways.  “I really enjoyed having y’all; I will probably talk to y’all sometimes later on this week.  Tell Chloe, Tera, Vae and Ash I said hey.  See y’all later.”  Val said as she watched the girls go to their cars.  The all waved bye and got into their cars to leave.

Funky, Fresh Dressed to Impress Ready to Party

              Chelle wanted to give Chip a taste of his own medicine, so she decided to give him an overdose of worrying.  She turned her phone off and went over to her friend Teri’s house, she and Teri had been friends since the sixth grade but Teri had moved out of town when they were going off to high school so they had missed a lot of memories that they would have had together.  Teri had recently moved back to Winston, and they had a lot of catching up to do.  Chip thought he knew where to find Chelle at all times, but he didn’t even know that Teri existed yet. 
Perfect, now he will think that I am with some guy and hopefully that will drive him crazy.  Hmm maybe I will meet a guy when we go out tonight, nah I don’t really want anyone else right now. 
Chelle drove over to Teri’s house excited to see her friend that she hadn’t seen in so long.  Chip had already began calling her phone over and over again, it was only 3 p.m.  Chelle decided to turn her phone off at that time, it was girl’s night out and she planned on having a blast, besides Chip had begun to show his true colors and little did he know she knew how to drive a guy crazy if she wanted to.  Chelle and Teri talked for at least five hours straight nonstop, they both got their tongues pierced at the same time, they both got tattoos around the same time the only difference, Teri had children and Chelle hadn’t had any yet.  They realized that no matter how far apart they were during high school, they still were best friends at heart.  “Girl we are going downtown to the Black Theatre festival tonight” Chelle said as she grabbed her phone to turn it on and check her messages.  “That’s cool, I heard it goes down since they only have it every other year.”  Teri responded.  “Yes girl and I am going to get me a whole new team of niggas” Chelle said laughing.  “I know that’s right, I need me a new boo too” Teri said.  Chelle decided to check her messages,   “Message one: Man Chelle that’s fucked up, you see how you do me, you cutting your phone off and shit but it’s all good don’t worry about me anymore.”  Chip left the first message furious that she wasn’t answering the phone.  “Message two: Look baby I just want to hear your voice so I will know that you are okay, call me back.”  Yet another message.  “Message three: Call me back man” by this time he sounded aggravated and tired of calling and Chelle was tired of listening to the messages so she pushed end and decided to listen to them later.  Chelle never liked listening to messages; if she decided not to answer then obviously she didn’t care what the person had to say.  As a matter of fact, Chip’s messages and her mother’s messages were the only ones she had listened to in months.  “He's copping please now and he is so in for a disappointment I want a new nigga and that’s exactly what I will get tonight.”  Chelle said dapping Teri up.

              The girls stepped into the bar feeling as if they had stolen the show, there were all types of people there.  Legendary actors and actresses, local entrepreneurs, and everyone else who decided to go downtown that night.  They headed straight towards the bar to order their drinks, an older man offered to buy Chelle’s drinks so she took him up on his offer and ordered Teri’s drink as well.  They migrated to the other end of the bar when they got their drinks so Chelle wouldn’t feel forced to engage in conversation with the man.  They saw many of their friends and they mingled for hours.  “Oooh, who is that?”  Chelle leaned over and whispered in Teri’s ear, she saw a handsome brown skinned guy who had a nice swagger.  “You don’t know him?  That’s Roc he is cool as hell.”  Teri told her.  “Damn, he is cute how do you know him?”  Chelle asked wishing she had the courage to approach him.  “Girl, he use to talk to Yahya but they don’t talk anymore.”  “I wonder if she would get mad if I talked to him.”  “Probably not, she said he ain’t her type.”  Chelle walked over to Yahya, and sat in a chair next to her “would you be upset if I talked to Roc?”  Chelle asked.  “Girl no, we weren’t like that go for it.”  Yahya said as she sipped her drink.  “Are you sure?”  Chelle asked feeling guilty for even liking someone her friend’s home girl once talked to.  “If I wasn’t I would tell you, trust me.”  Yahya said as she laughed and continued to drink her drink.  Chelle decided not to approach him, that wasn’t her style anyway.  “If he tries to talk to me, I'm giving him my number.”  She said confirming it with Yahya.  “Get him girl.”  Yahya said joking with Chelle.  They both laughed and sipped on their drinks while listening to the live jazz band.  Before they knew it, a fight had broken out.  Teri walked towards the fight to see who it was, Chelle grabbed Teri and went the opposite way of the fight.  “Girl come on, they might start shooting.”  Chelle said as they ran to a safe location.  The police were right outside so they cleared up the fight in no time.  Everyone continued doing what they were doing before the chaos.  Chelle and Teri decided to leave, they were tipsy and ready to go and after the fight their moods changed a little.  They said their goodbyes and talked a few moments longer before leaving.  As the two crossed the street and walked towards the parking deck, they heard a voice “hey! Wait a minute” they both turned to see who it was, and it was Roc jogging behind them to catch up.  Chelle smiled as she turned completely around to wait for him.  “Hey, what’s up?”  He said as he flashed a smile back at her.  “Hey, what’s your name?”  Chelle asked.  “Roc, what’s yours?”  “Chelle, what’s up Roc?”  She said as she turned to continue walking to the car.  She felt like kissing him the moment she laid eyes on him, he was slim, brown skinned with a nice clean haircut.  He had a cute smile with a dimple, he wore a black Polo shirt and a pair of Polo jeans not too baggy, a pair of black fresh Air Force 1’s and he smelled like Ralph Lauren Cologne.  He didn’t have on much jewelry; all he wore was a solitaire diamond earring that appeared to be a flawless cut.  He wasn’t flashy at all, but the word gangster seemed to be stamped on his forehead.  They walked and talked until they approached Chelle’s car.  “Nice car” he said as he leaned against her back door.  Chelle stood in front of him and they talked for an hour and a half straight.  They got to know one another a little and they decided to go out for breakfast at an after spot called Jimmy the Greek.  Chelle was drunker than she thought; she asked Roc all types of questions about his personal life.  He answered with no problem and asked her questions as well.  Since she technically didn’t have a boyfriend, she told him that she was single and had been for a while.  She was playing a game with Chip so she didn’t worry about it; however she did worry about someone telling him that they saw her in Jimmy the Greek with someone.  “Well, I better get going I am getting pretty sleepy.”  Chelle said to Roc as she placed her napkin on her plate to indicate that she was done eating.  They continued to talk for a while until the waitress brought them the check.  “Call me” Roc said as Chelle grabbed her bag and left the table.  “I will” Chelle said as she flashed him a smile and left.  Since it was the weekend and Chelle didn’t feel like driving all the way to Greensboro, she decided to stay at her parents’ house.