Can't Stop the Shine (3 page)

“Let's take a group picture,” said Kalia, walking up. “This may be the last time we have a joint birthday blowout 'cause who knows where I'm going to be next year.”

“Mom and Daddy are outside,” said Mari, reflecting on Kalia's words. Kalia was right. This was probably their last birthday party together. Mari hadn't even started her sophomore year yet, and she was already wondering what her junior and senior years were going to be like without Kalia around. True, her sister annoyed her, but it was an annoyance that she'd gotten used to having around.

The four of them—Mari, Kalia, Elaine and Ronald—hugged up together under a big Happy Birthday banner. Flashes were popping and the summer was ending. There was a good vibe in the air, and everyone was having fun. It would be a long time before all of the Jeffersons were this happy again.

Mari walked into Greenbriar Mall in her normal gear—a denim miniskirt, white sneakers and a too-tight white baby T that screamed It's All About Me! in red across the front. Bopping down the mall, she slathered on lip gloss and pulled her ponytail tight. She was supposed to be meeting Colby for some back-to-school shopping, but her heart wasn't really in it. Peering at the latest styles in the store windows while navigating the massive number of black teenagers kicking it at the mall, Mari realized she wasn't ready to go back to school, especially since she'd just passed her driver's test. She wanted a little more time to get her skills up before she had to get back in the grind. Even though Shauntae had acted a fool at her birthday party, she'd really enjoyed her summer, hanging out with her girls.

In the beginning of the summer her mom had her in a local leadership development program for a few weeks with a bunch of nerds, and she also went to a cool summer camp for track-and-field athletes for about ten days. She'd been to like five or six hot parties with kids from public school in the past two and a half months.

Mari wished she went to Williams High with her friends. She'd hung out with the Crunk High crowd all summer, and now she was going to have to go back to boring, stuffy, mostly white East Moreland. Even Kalia got to go to the livest high school in the city, Mari thought as she spotted Colby standing in front of their favorite shoe store.

“What's with the grumpy face?” said Colby as Mari walked up.

“Hey,” said Mari. “I am so not ready to roll back to the most uppity school in the city.”

“Well, at least you get to do cool stuff at your school,” said Colby. “I wish we got to go to plays and the symphony and go out of town like y'all do.”

“Well, that's what rich people do,” said Mari, walking into the shoe store. “But y'all ain't just sitting around over there at Williams. You've got the best football and basketball teams. Our games are so boring, and we lose every time. Your parties and talent shows are tight, and everybody says your proms are off the chain. I don't know why Kalia didn't go to her junior prom, but you'll get to go this year.”

“Yeah, if somebody asks me,” said Colby, twisting her long braid extensions into a messy bun.

“Somebody will and you'll get to go. You'll probably end up being the queen of the hypest prom in the city. I don't know why my parents put me at East Boredom anyway.”

“Uh…'cause you're smart. Smart enough to get that full scholarship to go to that private school,” said Colby.

“Everybody knows that Mari's got some big brains,” said Shauntae, walking up behind Colby. “You don't need to remind us.”

Mari opened her mouth to say something, but was stunned into silence when she saw who was with Shauntae.

“Hey, look who I found,” said Shauntae, grabbing Qwon's hand.

“What's happening, ladies? What are y'all doing up in here?” said Qwon, slipping his hand from Shauntae's grasp.

Seeing that Mari still wasn't able to find her voice, Colby stepped in. “You know, trying to get some new gear for school. Catch some of these sales.”

“Me, too. Check out my new kicks,” said Qwon, stepping one foot forward.

“Those are hot, baby,” cooed Shauntae, tightening the belt on her hot pink Apple Bottoms jeans, which accentuated her Coca-Cola bottle shape. “You should get me the ladies' version and then we'll be matching. That would be
so
cute.”

“What's up with your money, chicken?” asked Qwon, eyeing her.

“You weren't calling me that a few minutes ago when you were all up on me in the movies,” spit Shauntae.

“That was different,” said Qwon, glancing around the shoe store. “Look, I'm about to be out. I just came over here to check out what they had in here.”

“Ain't nuthin' in here for you.” Shauntae smirked with her hands on her hips.

“Cool, 'cause I know everyone else been up in it anyway,” Qwon threw over his shoulder as he left the store.

“Whatever,” said Shauntae, eyeing some hot-pink stilettos.

Mari hadn't said a word through their whole exchange. She didn't know if she was more disgusted with her choice of men or how Shauntae could let herself be so insulted by a guy.

“What's wrong with you, girl?” said Shauntae, snapping her lime-green freshly painted inch-long acrylic nails in Mari's face. “I know you ain't trippin' over Qwon. He ain't even got nuthin' goin' on.”

Mari regained her voice. “How do you know?”

“Didn't you just hear me say we were in the movies? He can't kiss or nuthin'. He don't even know what to do with his hands.”

“Just shut up, Shauntae,” said Mari, raising her voice and her hand. She was more disgusted at Shauntae's behavior.

“Who are you getting loud with?” Shauntae demanded, rolling her neck. “I can't help if Qwon knows what he likes, but like I said, he ain't about nuthin' no way.”

Well, they did agree about that, thought Mari, watching Shauntae pick up the stilettos.

“Colby. Girl, I bet you couldn't even walk in these.” Shauntae laughed, holding up one shoe by the heel. “Your skinny foot would probably slip out of the front and you'd bust your butt.”

Mari had totally forgotten that Colby was even with them. She walked over to where she was sitting and plopped down beside her.

“I thought y'all were gonna throw some blows for a minute there,” said Colby.

“I ain't trippin' over that girl.”

“But you were trippin' over Qwon.”

“So,”
Mari said a little too harshly.

“I'm just saying, you should be happy that Qwon got with Shauntae. At least you know what kind of girl he likes,” said Colby.

She didn't see Shauntae behind her.

“If you've got something to say to me, Colby, you need to go on and say it,” said Shauntae. “Personally I think you're just hatin' 'cause you couldn't catch a holla if you walked through this mall butt-ass naked.

“Well, at least half the dudes in this mall haven't seen me butt-ass naked,” said Colby, shocking both Mari and Shauntae. Colby rarely stood up for herself.

“Whatevah, trick,” said Shauntae, with a wave of her hand.

“This is ridiculous. I'm tired of arguing, and I need to get some new clothes,” said Mari. “I'm going to Rainbow.”

They all had attitudes with one another as they walked out of the shoe store. Mari was thoroughly annoyed and considered ditching her friends to finish her back-to-school shopping alone. As they walked through the mall, Shauntae did get the most attention, but Mari and Colby were used to it. Shauntae had had a grown woman's body since she was thirteen and she knew how to handle it. Mari did wish she would slow up on the number of guys that she got with, but Shauntae was headstrong, and it was hard to tell her anything.

“I'ma dip into Rich's,” said Shauntae, finger-combing her curly hair and slinging her empty backpack over her shoulder. “I'll catch up with y'all.”

“Get something for me,” said Colby as Shauntae walked off. They knew the next time they saw Shauntae that her backpack would be full, but she wouldn't have spent a dime.

“Does that girl ever pay for anything?” asked Mari, already knowing the answer to her question.

“Nope,” said Colby. “She's got that thing down to a science. She racked up at the jewelry spot last week. Check out these silver hoops she got me. I hope she doesn't get caught again.”

“Don't be putting that bad energy out there, girl,” said Mari.

“Well, we won't be minors anymore in a couple of months when we turn seventeen,” said Colby, “and if she gets caught stealing as an adult, she'll probably get in some real trouble, not juvenile stuff anymore.”

“Aw, you just said Shauntae had skills,” said Mari as they walked into Rainbow. “The only reason y'all got caught before is because she forgot about the cameras in the dressing room, right?”

“Yeah. Anyway, I've boosted for the last time. I'd just rather pay for my stuff and not risk it again,” said Colby.

“That'll probably keep you out of jail, which is good,” said Mari, “but I won't front. I loved that CD player y'all got for me that one time. I still use it.”

Colby stopped at the tennis dresses, picked one up and placed it in front of her thin frame in the full-length mirror. At nearly seventeen, she still had the underdeveloped body of a twelve-year-old, and her glasses sometimes made her look just that age.

“This would be cute if I had something to fill it out with,” she said. “Shauntae would look like a Barbie doll in this.”

“Nothing's going on in here,” said Mari, ignoring Colby's comments. “Let's hit the food court. Shauntae knows we always end up over there anyway.”

A half an hour later, Shauntae flopped down at a table with Mari and Colby and dropped her bursting knapsack on the floor.

“I guess you racked up,” said Colby. “What did you get me?”

“Now you know I don't discuss the goods before I go home and check them out,” said Shauntae, grabbing one of Colby's French fries.

“You could have asked,” said Colby.

“What are you going to say? No?” dared Shauntae, taking another fry.

“Maybe,” said Colby, scooting her plate over. “Get your own food, greedy.”

“With your string bean of a body I guess I should leave your food alone. That's why I didn't get your stingy butt anything,” said Shauntae. “I had a close call up in there, but I worked it out. I think this'll be my last time for the summer. I basically got all the gear I need anyway. I'ma sell some of this stuff and get me a little dough to get some smoke, too.”

Colby looked around quickly to see if anyone was listening to their conversation. “I wish you wouldn't be so loud about what you do,” she whispered to Shauntae. “Everybody doesn't have to know that you smoke.”

“Fool, everybody in this mall is probably high right now,” said Shauntae with a sweeping gesture.

“Well, I'm glad you didn't get caught. My grandma was pissed when she had to come and get us from the police station last time,” reminded Colby.

“We probably would have gotten away if you knew how to handle the security guard, but your skinny butt doesn't give a man much to look at,” said Shauntae.

“You've got one more time to say something about me, Shauntae,” threatened Colby.

“Or what, punk? What are you gonna do?”

Colby just kept eating her fries.

“At least your grandmama came and got you,” said Shauntae. “When I got home, my mama just told me I was too stupid to even know how to shoplift without getting caught.”

“Your mama ain't the brightest color in the box, you know?” Mari snickered. “Only Mrs. Washington would name her child after some old eighties rapper, Roxanne Shauntae. Your mama really wanted to be a rapper, huh? That is
so
funny.”

“Shut up, Mari, before I have to come across this table,” said Shauntae, standing up. “Your mama ain't all that, either. She looks like a played-out old hippie with that wild hair.”

“Keep talking, Shauntae, and I'll knock you so silly that you'll feel as drunk as your mama always is,” said Mari, rising from her seat as well.

“Y'all are just ridiculous,” said Colby. “Ain't nobody's mama perfect, so cool it now.”

“What are you? The long lost member of New Edition?” teased Shauntae. She started singing the group's old school hit “Cool It Now,” and when Mari joined in the singing, they drew some applause from tables nearby.

Colby laughed at her friends, slightly embarrassed at the attention they were getting in the food court. “Y'all are so crazy, but I love ya,” she said. The mood was lifted, attitudes were gone, and all three girls laughed and joked the rest of the time they spent in the mall, shopping until they were nearly broke.

All the talk about mothers made Mari think about hers as she was standing outside the mall later, waiting for Kalia to come and pick her up. She really wondered what other people thought about her mother.

“Do you think Mama's happy?” she asked Kalia, getting into the champagne-colored 2001 Camry she hoped her sister would be willing to share with her since she was a newly licensed driver.

“I guess so. What do you mean?” Kalia questioned.

“You know how she's always acting so free-spirited and stuff, but lately she's just been kinda down.”

“Well, she and Daddy haven't been really talking. Something's going on.”

“Something is always going on between them, but this something is a little different.”

“Yeah, you're right,” Kalia admitted, “but at least they put up a good front at the party.”

“As usual. You don't think they would ever get a divorce, do you?” Mari almost whispered.