BOMAW Vol. 10-12 (30 page)

"You know what, you fuckin' up! I ain't got to tell you shit! Besides, it ain't you, its him! I'on want shit to do with him! I'on want you to have shit to do with him, understand me? Now you got one of two choices, stay in here, or hit them steps. Which is it gone be?"

She backed up to the bed, sat down, crossed her arms and legs, making her decision clear.

"Don't come out of here again, less you goin' home." He warned heading back out into the living room.

Going back before Oscar T. he went right into getting rid of him, "Look man, let's get this over with quickly-..."

"I want a copy of this picture."

Max then noticed he had it again, "Mr. Wherrington, you startin' to get on my nerves, for real man." He took the picture from him again, "As for a picture of my mother, naw - you ain't gettin' that. If you don't have one already, tough shit, you ain't gettin' it from me."

"I'll give you $10,000 dollars for a copy of it. Come on, you can use $10,000 dollars."

Staring at Oscar T. Max stood straight, squared his shoulders and spoke as he figured most familiar to Oscar T. "My mother - is not for sale! Understand? Money does not buy - everything - can you understand that, sir? Now either you leave, or - I lose patience with you. Which will it be?"

Oscar T. smiled, "So you are educated? Very well spoken, so the other guy, he's just for the hood I see." He proceeded to nod his head thinking, "Very well, I've worn out my welcome I see."

"Shit, you did that before you stepped through the door."

"I'll be back." Oscar T. warned.

"See you next year." Max went to the door opening it for him to exit.

"$20,000 for the picture..."

"Goodbye Mr. Wherrington."

Not happy, Oscar T. finally strode through door, his mind already on the next plan of attack.

"Can I come out now?" Moniqua asked smiling.

"Yeah, he gone. Look I gotta get in the shower, funky as hell." Max mumbled walking towards the bathroom.

"Want me to cook you something to eat?" She called waking across the living room, eyes on the picture of Bea Rose.

"Naw, we'll go out and get something. Pick up Lil'Kenny, he probably hungry. I know yo'ass ain't cooked nothing at home." He called back, stepping into the shower.

"Okay," She answered distracted, "He'll like that." She added, picking up Bea Rose's picture. "$20,000 dollars huh? You must'ah been one good piece'o'ass. Long dead and gone, and still the man want what he want." She smiled.

The boys had been running around the house and playing as if no emergency had ever taken place earlier. Knowing that the evening was growing late, Crystal and Angela herded them into the bathroom for their baths. The moment Crystal lifted Darren from the bath water, he took off, laughing like the carefree happy child that he was. Naked, wet and hyper wanting to play.

"Darren! Get your butt back here boy!" Crystal called to him from the upstairs bathroom. She was trying to dry Isaac off when Darren made his escape and sprinted out the door, laughing with his little feet flying down the upstairs hallway for the stairs. Angela was off after him, laughing, calling, "Darren! Get your naked butt back here little boy!"

He was heading down the stairs, hand on the rail, one step at a time, Angela behind him as he tried going faster but he was headed off by the appearance of Ben who jumped into view with a wicked laugh, growling like a bear at him. Darren stopped, mouth open wide laughing as he was scooped up from the stairs by Ben who lifted him into the air. He wiggled and laughed out of control as Ben made his way back up with him, "You're wet as a jelly fish! Get back up here and in there and get dried off, pajamas on!"

"NO!" Darren laughed after Ben put him down in the bathroom. He was trying to get back out, but Ben kept blocking him by standing in the door, jumping from one side to the other, keeping him from escaping. His giggling baby laughter was so infectious he had Ben laughing right along with him as he tried to get past his right leg, then the left, and then tried to duck down to get out through the gap between Ben's legs but Ben was ready, no chance.

"Darren! Get over here, get your jammies on, runnin' round nekkid wit' yo'willy out." Isaac fussed at his little brother.

"No! I Darren, not Willy!"

Ben rolled backwards from the door roaring with laughter, as well Angela and Crystal.

"No yo'name not Willy! Talkin' bout yo'pee-pee out." Isaac went on to explain exasperated with him as he cooperated with his mother dressing him.

"My pee-pee out?" Darren looked down at it, grabbing it. "My pee-pee?"

"Yes! You got a pee-pee, I gotta pee-pee, Ben got a pee-pee, but we ain' runnin' round wit' our pee-pee out, is we Ben?"

His words shocked Crystal so she gasped and then fell back on the floor laughing until she cried, rolling with her stomach cramped up from the look on Ben's face from Isaac's observation. Angela had her mouth covered trying not to laugh, turning red, too bashful to look up at Ben, who couldn't believe how quickly a child could embarrass you. Needless to say, he was gone from the scene in a flash.

Crystal sat up, wiping her eyes, trying to calm down, grabbing Darren to her to dress him. "Get your hand off your willy boy." She ordered, working to return to normal, but kept giggling out more when the look on Ben's face flashed in her mind again.

"No willy, my pee-pee."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah - time for bed for you. Isaac, go give Mundo his kiss goodnight."

"Okay mama, can I give Ben a kiss too?"

"Yes, you can give Ben a kiss too."

"I g'Ben kiss." Darren announced nodding his little head of wet curls, as if that was okay with him.

"Yo-o-ou, gonna give Ben a kiss? I gotta see this." Crystal smiled finishing getting him ready for bed. Angela had followed Isaac out of the room to direct him and then she would take him up to bed. Crystal came down the stairs to laughter, obviously Ben had told Mundo about what had transpired in the bathroom and this was the reason that Mundo was in tears, trying to give Isaac a kiss goodnight. This all while Ben leaned on the sofa, controller in his hand, red in the face, trying to avoid looking up at Crystal, but smiling as Isaac climbed on his lap and gave him a kiss goodnight.

"Nite nite Ben, nite nite Mundo." He was done, climbing down when Crystal approached and put Darren on the sofa between them. Standing, he leaned towards Mundo, kissing him. "Nite nite."

"See you in the morning lil'dude." Mundo returned.

He then leaned towards Ben, kissing him right on the mouth. "Nite nite."

Grinning, feeling the day couldn't end more perfect, Ben grabbed him, growling, gave him a tight squeeze and pretended to attack his neck where it was the most ticklish, receiving the desired effect. Darren screamed and shouted in laughter, scrunching his shoulders to protect his neck while wiggling out of control. "Ben do me, do me!" Isaac asked wanting in on the fun. Ben grabbed him up, doing the same. Suddenly he stood with both of them, "Time to head for bed, this way." He announced, carrying them on each arm, "Wave goodnight to everyone." He instructed leaving the room with them.

"G'night - g'night - g'night." They called over and over.

Smiling, surprised, Crystal followed him up with them. Angela sat on the sofa grabbing the game controller Ben had abandoned, "Time for me to kick your butt now." She challenged Mundo. Who at that moment, was thinking about the scene he just witnessed. He wasn't sure what his feelings were. He liked Ben, he liked Victor. However, Victor had stepped out of the game which Mundo could somewhat, understand. Fact was, he was willing to let his sister get a divorce, so in view of that, she was, in a sense, free, or almost free.

Then there was Ben.

He hadn't known Ben as long as he had known Victor but he couldn't see Ben hurting his sister; especially with Shawn and his mother standing by. Then there was his sister. It was a fact, that it had been a long time, since he'd seen her so happy, so carefree. Granted, that was partly due to Shawn's entry into their lives, but since Ben, her eyes were brighter, her smile and laughter sweet and for once, she wasn't as hardcore serious as he'd always known her to be. She seemed, younger, he liked that. He'd leave it alone. She wasn't stupid. She knew how to handle herself. And right now, for the time being, Ben was a welcomed distraction from her wrecked marriage. He could hear the boys upstairs laughing, it sounded like they were playing more than being bedded down for the night.

He was right.

Ben had gotten them riled up playing airplane landing into bed. First one, then the other, he would raise one into the air, telling them to stretch their arms straight out like wings, and their legs straight and together and then proceeded to pretend they were airplanes circling for a landing, coupled with sound effects and all, they loved it. Each wanted to do it again and again until finally Crystal halted the fun.

"That's it. Last landing, no more playing, time for sleepies." She announced.

"One mo'time mama?" Isaac pleaded standing in his car bed.

"One mo'Ben!" Darren held his arms out to Ben for another flight and then landing.

"No!" It was Crystal who called it out this time.

"Come on, let me do it once more?" Ben asked, enjoying himself.

"No! You just as bad as them. It is their bedtime, they need to calm down, chill and go to sleep. And that will not happen, if you're flying them around the room."

Ben made a face. "Ach!"

Laughing Crystal shook her head, "Oh no you did not. Out you go, I'm gonna read them a story to settle them down."

Ben stared at her strangely for a moment, then at them, wanting to be in on it, but thought he better leave well enough alone. "Okay, well - I guess I better, leave you to it then." He looked at the boys, waved to them and left the room.

Crystal stood still in disbelief. He'd wanted to stay. She could see that he did. With a soft smile, a shake of her head, she turned from the door to her boys, putting them down for the night and then sitting on Mundo's bed, she began reading to them very softly so they would quiet down. However, it wasn't easy, because Ben's face and the expression on it kept coming back to mind.

Half an hour later, she walked back down stairs to hear Ben, Mundo and Angela discussing the earlier event with the pool. The question they were trying to decide upon, was whether to tell Shawn and Sylvia what happened when they got home.

"I think we're going to have to. I mean, the neighbors saw what happened. They'll be pissed off if they hear it from someone else." Crystal reasoned.

"My dads going to drain the pool, I'm calling it." Angela stated. "He's going to be mad too that I left that door open." She worried.

"We don't know if it was you, we don't know who left it open." Mundo defended her.

"Doesn't matter, its over. Question is, would it make you feel better if he drained the pool Crystal? To me, the solution is not to drain the pool, but to teach the boys to swim. I can do that. I'm an excellent swimmer, and I've been a lifeguard in the Dells since I was 16. It was my first summer job, I've been trained on all emergency maneuvers. I've attended six consecutive courses on training others to swim, including, little ones, I'd love to teach them. Tell me what you want, that's what we'll do."

Crystal had to remember not to look him in the eyes for any length of time, it was playing havoc with her head. She turned to look at Mundo, "What do you think?"

"I think, if my man can teach them how to swim, they need to learn how to swim. That's my opinion."

Crystal looked at Angela, "You're their auntie, what do you think?"

Angela sat straighter, feeling elated that Crystal included her in that way.

"I'm with Mundo, and Ben; it's safer if they know how to swim. The problem is going to be my dad. He is going to go through the roof."

"Well, when he comes down from the roof, I'll let him know, that I don't want the pool drained. I want my sons to know how to swim. Are you sure Ben you wanna do this? Spend your time that way?"

"Absolutely. What happened today, should never happen again. However, should it, when I'm done with Darren and Isaac, they'll know how to flip over on their backs, relax and float so they can breathe. Once they get that, then comes the part of teaching them how to hold their breath in the water and swim. I want to do this."

Crystal smiled, "It's settled then. They'll learn to swim."

With one last smile, she turned heading off for the kitchen that still had to be cleaned because she hadn't finished due to Darren's going swimming alone earlier. Mundo and Angela were tired of playing video games and started watching tv, VH1, watching videos, doing the surf for something they both were interested in. Ben stood walking towards the stairs, he hesitated, fighting the urge to go into the kitchen to help Crystal. Realizing that he had to stop giving into this need to be around her, he forced himself up the stairs and into the room where the boys were sleeping to get fresh underwear, a t-shirt and loungers that he slept in. Keeping the light off, he was being as quiet as he possibly could, Isaac was out cold, but Darren was still awake. He was peering up at him from the crib, "Ben." He whispered his name smiling. Ben knelt on the floor by the crib looking in through the bars at him, whispering, "What are you still doing awake? Go to sleep little man."