Man Enough For Me (13 page)

Jules smiled, glad that there were a few happy memories among so many bad ones. But almost as soon as it came, his smile was gone, and the tension was back again.

“I missed out on so much of her life,” he said, shaking his head.

“Is that why you came back?” Jules asked.

“Partly,” Germaine said, sucking in a deep breath and shaking off the negative recollections.

“What was the other part?”

Germaine looked at Jules, thoughtful. “I think God was telling me it was time.”

Jules raised an eyebrow. “So you still had your faith all that time?” She blew out a breath loudly. “I don’t know if I could be that strong. I would like to think I would be, but I’m not so sure.”

He shrugged. “God was the only one who hadn’t turned His back on me. Even when my mom was off doing her own thing, He was there, taking care of me. There was no one else to trust but Him.”

Jules cocked her head to one side and looked at Germaine curiously. Every time she thought she had him figured out, he threw another curveball at her. She thought of all the concerns she had had about him and the Sound Lounge before. They all seemed silly now as she sat there listening to him talk about his faith.

“What?” he asked as he caught her watching him.

Jules shook her head and smiled. “Nothing. So you and your mom are okay now?” she asked.

Germaine shrugged. “I guess. I think she’s sorry about the
way she handled things. But I’ve moved past that. She’ll always be my mom, and I’ll always love her. But she knows I’ll never set foot in her husband’s house.”

“You still don’t get along with him?”

Germaine’s face grew dark, and Jules knew instantly that there was more to the story than what he was telling.

“Let’s just say it’s probably better for everyone that we keep our distance.”

Jules shivered slightly, as she watched a hard look pass over his face. It was the same look she had seen him give Easy that evening at Triad. But almost as soon as it came, it was gone, and he was grinning at her.

“Like I said, no one has a normal relationship with his or her parents,” he said. “But if it’s any consolation, your mom probably loves me.”

“Oh, yeah,” Jules said, wrinkling her nose. “You’ve got some sort of spell over her. I think Davis has a little crush too.”

Germaine laughed. “He’s a cool kid. I’m supposed to help him juice up his engine before he heads back to school this week.”

“What? You’re already making playdates with my brother? I hope this isn’t going to cut into my boyfriend time,” Jules said with mock displeasure.

“Absolutely not,” he said, leaning down to kiss her once. And then again. It wasn’t long before Jules forgot what she was supposed to be upset about.

“Okay, I think it’s time for me to go,” Germaine said, pulling away from her a few minutes later.

“What! Why?” Jules moaned.

“Because,” Germaine said, standing up and grinning slyly, “I want to keep being the good boy your momma thinks I am.”

Jules felt her face flush, and she stood up to walk him to the door.

“Drive home safely,” she said, helping him into his jacket, her hands lingering on the lapels.

“And you make sure you talk to your mom—soon.”

“I will,” she promised. “Thanks again for coming with me. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Well, lucky for you, that’s not something you have to worry about.” He pulled her close for a quick kiss before leaving.

Jules closed the door behind him and leaned against it. She sure hoped he meant what he said, because she was really getting used to having him around.

I
t was 5:25 a.m. when Jules pulled her car into the back alley of the Dollar Bay convenience store. The dark, early morning August sky made it seem much earlier than it was, and she shivered as a draft of cold air slivered in through her cracked car window. From the driver’s seat, she gazed around at the decrepit twenty-two-story community housing buildings that sandwiched the narrow street. She hated this part of town; hated that she had to come here; hated that anyone had to live here. She wouldn’t wish this roach-infested hell on her worst enemy.

After taking a deep breath, she opened her car door and got out. Instantly the putrid smell of days-old food, burning rubber, and stale garbage invaded her nostrils. It was the smell of poverty. Real poverty.

Locking her doors securely, she pulled her jacket closer around her and hurried down a shadowy alleyway, wondering all the time why Truuth needed to have his photo shoot here, in a place where everything seemed to be covered in thin layer of grime.

It was a redundant question. She already knew why. This was where he came from. This was where he had lived, among the crackheads, drug dealers, and forgotten of society. In this place where dreams came to die, God’s vision for Truuth’s life had
survived. That’s why he needed to come back here. So his album covers, the posters, and the magazine spreads could all show the truth. Yes, this was where he came from, but it was not who he was.

As Jules hurried past it all, she wondered to herself if she could have survived this. Her problems with her own mother seemed insignificant compared to what Truuth must have gone through. It was not that she did not understand what it was to struggle. After her dad left, taking care of Jules and Davis had been a strain on Momma Jackson that Jules had been very aware of. Nonetheless, Jules knew the worst of that experience did not compare to some of the things Truuth had faced on a daily basis. If it wasn’t for God, who knows how he might have turned out.

“Hey, it’s about time you got here,” ‘Dre said when Jules rounded the corner to where Ryan Lee Chung and his photography crew were already setting up. With his sweatshirt hood pulled over his head and dark glasses covering most of his face, ‘Dre looked barely awake.

“Boy, you need to check yourself,” Jules answered. “It’s five-thirty in the morning. The only person I get up this early for is Jesus.”

“Hey! Don’t be mad at me. This was Truuth’s idea,” ‘Dre said, as Jules followed him over to the back of his van, which hosted a large metal thermos and an array of hot beverage mixes.

Over the top of the back seat Jules could see the back of a baseball cap, and Tanya’s long blond locks sticking out underneath.

“Hey, T,” Jules called to her friend slouching in the front passenger seat. Tanya muttered something unintelligible and pulled her baseball cap further down over her eyes. Jules shook her head. That girl was some kind of committed. Jules wasn’t sure, however, if that devotion was to the company or to ‘Dre. Either way it was impressive. Even Maxine had refused to get up this early, and she was all about supporting her man.

“Where’s the man of the hour?” Jules asked ‘Dre, as he filled her mug with hot chocolate.

“He’s in the van over there with the stylist and makeup artist,” ‘Dre replied, gesturing to a white van parked a few feet behind them.”

“Stylist, makeup artist, and a four-man photography crew.” Jules whistled. “I don’t even want to know how much this is costing.”

‘Dre made a huffing sound and shook his head. “Trust me, you don’t.”

Jules leaned against the van and watched as the crew finished setting up and started taking pictures of Truuth.

“So you think this will work for both of you?” Ryan asked Jules teasingly, nodding toward the first set up: a crumbling brick wall, surrounded by scatterings of broken glass that probably came from beer bottles someone had left there weeks before.

Jules wrinkled her nose at the scene. She had already spoken to Ryan about what she wanted, after Truuth had spoken to her about what he wanted, and somehow they had managed to come to some vague agreement of what the shoot would end up looking like. Or so they thought anyway. As far as Jules was concerned, it was more of a trial and error process than anything else.

“We’ll see, Ryan,” Jules said with a fair amount of apprehension. “You just do your magic and make it work.”

Ryan laughed and began taking more shots.

Just as planned, they were in time to catch the first rays of sunlight. And even though she was doubtful about how it would turn out, Jules had to admit that the light and scenery came together beautifully to create spectacular images. Somehow, Ryan managed to make even broken-down apartment buildings look amazing.

The time passed quickly as Truuth changed outfits and switched backdrops for different shots. By the time Ryan called for the last set, it was 9:30 a.m. and a steady stream of foot and
vehicle traffic was flowing through the streets and alleys around them.

As the warm summer sunshine heated up the pavement and the air above it, Jules and Tanya ditched their jackets and lounged lazily on the hood of ‘Dre’s van to watch Truuth take his final shots. As she gazed around, Jules began to wonder once more what life was like in this place.

She watched a slim black woman in a faded pantsuit try her best to control two little boys, neither of whom could be more than eight years old. From where she was Jules could tell that it wasn’t easy, for one boy wanted to run ahead of her, while the other stuck his feet in one spot and refused to move.

Across the street, a hunched-over old woman pushed a battered grocery cart slowly down the sidewalk. Even though it was still early, she looked tired and worn, like the night had not been a good one for her. With great effort she trudged along, barely raising her eyes above the cart she was pushing. It was too painful for Jules to watch, and she turned away.

Jules couldn’t help but wonder where God was for these people. Deep in her heart, she knew that even though their situations looked dire, the Lord was still there taking care of them, and if they asked, He would supply all their needs. But at the same time, she could understand why people like Easy, who had to see this suffering everyday, had a hard time believing that there was a God who cared.

As her gaze shifted, her eyes fell on a black SUV that had pulled up to the curb a few meters down the road. The doors opened, and two men stepped out, one from either side. Jules squinted against the sunlight to catch a better look at their faces. Even from a distance, something about them looked vaguely familiar. She watched the taller one walk across the sidewalk, and up the steps of one of the better looking apartment buildings. The other lit a cigarette, leaned back against the stationary vehicle, and watched his companion enter the complex.

Jules racked her brain trying to figure out where she had
seen them before. She stared so hard at the brother with the cigarette that she swore he must have felt her eyes on him. But she couldn’t help it. Something about him, from his slightly crooked cornrows, to the large ring on his pinkie finger struck a chord in her memory. She just didn’t know why.

From the corner of her eye, Jules saw a silver Toyota 4Runner pull up across the street and a tall male in baggy jeans and a Sean Jean sweatshirt step out.

“Never thought I’d see you here,” Jules said, slightly turning her head as Easy approached them.

“I was passing, and I saw ‘Dre’s car,” Easy said.

“Oh, yeah, I forgot you lived near here,” Tanya said from her position fully stretched out on the hood of the van. Jules knew that underneath her shades, her eyes were closed. She shook her head. Only Tanya could use Truuth’s photo shoot as an opportunity to get a tan.

A movement in the distance caught Jules’s eye, and she found herself again watching the familiar man as he put out the cigarette he was smoking. It was clear that he was getting a bit impatient, as he had started walking back and forth in front of the van, all the while with his eyes fixed on the apartment building. Jules leaned forward and squinted to see if there was anything going on near the building’s entrance, but a hedge of grass blocked her view.

“What you looking at, baby girl?” Easy asked curiously, as he watched Jules crane her neck to get a better view.

“Huh?”

“Why you so interested in the dude down there?” Easy asked. Jules was so preoccupied that she missed the slight edge that had crept into his voice.

“I’ve seen that guy before,” she said absently.

“That guy?” Easy asked, nodding toward where the man was still pacing. “Are you sure?”

“Positive,” Jules said. “I know I’ve seen him before, but I can’t remember where.”

Just then the first man emerged from the building with a duffel bag, which he promptly threw in the back of the vehicle.

“Him as well,” Jules added.

“Baby girl, are you sure those guys were the ones you saw?” Easy asked again.

“Yes, Easy,” Jules said, slightly annoyed that he kept asking her the same question over and over. “Don’t you think I would remember who I saw? Why do you keep asking me?”

“‘Cause those cats are pushers.”

Jules’s head snapped around. Easy’s eyes had gone dark, and there was a grave expression on his face. Out of nowhere a nervous jittery feeling began to build in the pit of Jules’s stomach.

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Look at me, Jules. Do I look like I’m kidding?”

Jules looked up at Easy for a moment, then back at the scene. The men were getting into the car. Only moments later they made a U-turn and were headed down the road. Jules wished that the dismal feeling building inside her had left with them.

Even though the sun was beating down, all of a sudden Jules felt cold and uneasy. Something was coming. She didn’t know what it was, but she had a feeling she was going to regret knowing what Easy had just told her. Sliding off the hood of ‘Dre’s van, she slipped on her jacket and went to find ‘Dre. She didn’t want to be here anymore. She just wanted to go home and lie down. Maybe if she slept for a little while her sudden paranoia would go away.

She found ‘Dre standing with Ryan, looking at digital prints of Truuth’s photos on Ryan’s laptop.

“Hey, Jules, I was just about to call you over here,” ‘Dre said, making room for her in front of the laptop. “You want to take a look at these shots?”

“Maybe later,” Jules said. “I’m gonna go, okay? I’ll talk to you guys later.”

“Jules, you okay? You don’t look too good,” Ryan said with an air of concern.