I Know I've Been Changed (12 page)

Chapter 20

I
sat in the car, waiting. Waiting and contemplating whether I should just take my chances and blow this thing off. But images of the entire Rollins clan in the parking lot of Channel 2 convinced me that I had to get out.

“Are we just going to sit here all day?” Myles asked. He had been waiting patiently, knowing I was trying to work up the nerve to deal with my family.

“I don’t want to do this.” I sighed.

“What’s the big deal? We get in, get out. It can’t be that bad.”

“You don’t know my family.”

“Come on. I’m going on up.” Myles opened the door and stepped out.

I hesitated, then grabbed my purse and followed him.

My aunt Ola was the first to spot us walking up the sidewalk to the pavilion where everyone had gathered. “Well, well, well. Look what the cat done drug in.”

“Lawd, have mercy. If it isn’t Princess Diana back from the dead,” my uncle Otis chimed in.

“Call
Ripley’s Believe It or Not
,” someone else shouted. “’Cause I can’t believe this here.”

I gave a meek wave. “Hey, everybody.”

Myles lightly coughed. I motioned toward him. “This is Myles, my fiancé.”

Uncle Otis walked over and peered at Myles’s teeth. “Hey, boy, them all yo’ teeth?”

Myles looked confused. I felt nauseous.

Uncle Otis cocked his head like it was the simplest question. “You deaf? I said, is them yo’ teeth?”

Myles looked at me, then back at my uncle. “Ummm, yeah, they’re mine.”

Then Uncle Otis took his crusty hand and tried to lift Myles’s lip. “Ola, come take a look at this boy’s teeth.”

Myles quickly jerked away and looked at Uncle Otis like he’d lost his mind.

“Otis, get out of that boy’s mouth,” Aunt Ola said.

Uncle Otis scrunched up his face, tilted his head, and peered into Myles’s mouth again. “His teeth so straight and so white. How you get them so white?”

Mama Tee walked up, wiping her hands on her apron. “It’s called brushing, Otis. Try it sometime, you might like it. Now, go’n.”

Uncle Otis walked away shaking his head. “He must use that extrastrength Colgate.”

Mama Tee extended her hand to Myles. “Don’t pay that crazy brother of mine no never mind. He has a weird fascination with teeth. I’m Mama Tee.” She turned toward me. “Glad you could join us.”

“It’s not like you gave me much of a choice,” I mumbled with a slight smile. I was surprised at how good it felt to see Mama Tee.

“Well, you here now. So you thank you can give your grandma a hug? I ain’t seen you since Jesus was a baby.”

“Is Justin here?” I asked after pulling myself from her warm embrace.

“Justin just got out the hospital. I wasn’t about to put him on the road.” I felt my heart sink. I was really hoping he’d be here. “Mrs. Mary is staying at the house with him.”

“Hmphh, if it isn’t Miss Diva.”

I turned around and glared at my big sister. “Hello, Shondella.” She was forty pounds heavier, putting her at a good 270. She had finger waves covering her entire head, and something that looked like glitter was sprinkled throughout her hair. She was wearing a pair of bright pink capri pants and a black halter top.

My smile brightened when I saw the three kids gathered around her legs.

“And this must be Lexus, Mercedes, and Porsche.”

Shondella shook her head. “No, that’s Lexus.” She pointed to the smallest one. “And that’s Mercedes. This here is Cousin Essie Mae’s daughter.”

“That’s a shame, gal don’t even know her own nieces,” Aunt Ola mumbled.

“Lawd, Lawd, Lawd, can somebody call 911!” Everyone turned toward my cousin Sugar, who was sashaying toward us.

“Why?” Aunt Ola asked.

Sugar, who had on a fluorescent green top that was unbuttoned and tied in the middle, along with a pair of black, boot-cut leggings, walked up and stood right in front of Myles. “’Cuz my heart ’bout to stop beating at the sight of this fine specimen in front of me.”

Myles’s mouth dropped open. Sugar ignored his astonished look. “Hey, sweet thang. I’m Sugar.”

Myles could barely get his words out. “Su…Sugar?”

“That’s ’cuz he got a whole lot of sugar in his tank,” Uncle Otis yelled.

Sugar dramatically rolled his eyes.

“That boy’s name is Maurice,” Mama Tee offered, shaking her head.

Sugar didn’t take his eyes off Myles. “That’s the name I was born with. My friends call me Reicy. My family calls me Sugar, but you”—Sugar leaned in seductively—“you can call me whatever you want.”

Myles stepped away from Sugar and behind me. He looked flabbergasted.

“That’s another one you can’t pay no mind,” Mama Tee said.

“My family has a hard time accepting who I am.” Sugar dramatically flung his arms out and swung around. “But this is me. I been knowing I was gay ever since I was a little girl.”

I decided it was time I stepped in. I had forgotten all about Sugar. He used to play with my dolls more than I did growing up. Even then, we all knew he was sweet.

“Sugar, can you please not scare off my fiancé?”

Sugar laughed before walking off. He mouthed, “Call me,” to Myles.

I felt Myles shudder behind me. I turned and looked at him apologetically. But before I could say anything to him, Aunt Ola’s only daughter, Nikki, had moved in next to Myles. She was rubbing Myles up and down his arm.

I quickly removed her hand. Nikki was the family freak. She didn’t have any children, but it must be because she’s barren, because she dang sure screws anything breathing. “That’s my fiancé,” I hissed.

“Dang, Cuz, you done good,” she replied without taking her eyes off Myles. “Hey, sexy, I’m Nikki, like from the Prince song…” Nikki started grinding up and down Myles’s leg while she sang, “ ‘I knew a girl named Nikki I guess u could say she was a sex fiend—’ ”

“Nikki!” Mama Tee shouted.

Nikki gave Myles a sly smile. “It’s so nice to meet you. Umm, didn’t catch your name.”

I was going to cut this heifer if she made another pass at my man. “That’s because he didn’t throw it.”

Nikki looked at me and did a fake shudder. “Ohhhhh, tough girl.” She turned back to Myles and licked her lips before finally strutting off, making sure that big booty of hers jiggled from side to side as she walked away.

I caught Myles looking at her. He quickly diverted his eyes when he noticed my glare.

“I knew I shouldn’t have come,” I muttered.

“Chill, baby. She was just playing.” I rolled my eyes at Myles. He appeared to have recovered from Sugar’s encounter and was enjoying the attention from Nikki.

“Don’t pay that fast child no never mind either,” Mama Tee said. She took both my and Myles’s hands and led us to a picnic table. “I’m just so thrilled that you decided to come.”

“I’m starting to regret it,” I mumbled again, trying to shake off the bad feeling that was building in my gut.

Mama Tee ignored me and turned to Myles. “I’d love to say I’ve heard so much about you, but I haven’t. Baby girl here don’t come around like she should, but she know she still my heart.”

I couldn’t help but smile. Mama Tee amazed me. She could beat you one minute, then shower you with love the next. She was the backbone of our family, and no matter what anyone—including me—did, she still welcomed us with open arms.

My uncle Isaiah’s deep baritone interrupted my pleasant thoughts. “Hey, Mr. Big City, you play bones?”

“Them old manicured hands probably don’t know nothing ’bout no dominoes,” one of my distant cousins interjected.

“Yeah, I’ve partaken in the game before. Probably could show you all a thing or two,” Myles boasted.

I looked at Myles. In the two years I’d known him, he’d never indicated he knew how to play, let alone liked, dominoes.

“Did you hear that, Clydie? He’s
partaken
in the game before,” Uncle Isaiah said mockingly. He was sitting across from my cousin Clyde Jr. They were playing against June and some other man I didn’t recognize. June looked up at me, scowled, then said sarcastically, “Kevin said to tell you what’s up. He got life. Hope you happy.”

I ignored June. As if I could really have made a difference. In Texas, Kevin was lucky he didn’t get the death chamber.

“Ohhh, Raedella got her an Oreo,” Clyde Jr. sang, quickly lightening the mood. I swear, to be dang near forty, he still acted like a little child.

“Or-e-or-e-oh,” Clyde Jr. sang. Several people started laughing. I glared at Clyde Jr. Why were my people so ignorant? Just because Myles was educated and spoke proper English, they wanted to say he sounded white.

“Brang it on, city boy. These here fools ’bout to get up ’cause we only need twenty-five to win,” Uncle Isaiah called out as he viciously slammed a domino on the table. “And that there’s ten!”

June and the man he was playing with groaned.

I followed Myles as he headed to the table. I just wasn’t ready to let him at it alone.

“Gimme fourteen hookers and a pimp to run them hos,” Clyde Jr. yelled as he slammed another domino on the table. “That’s game! That’s game! Get up and get to steppin’! Next!”

“How you gon’ let him score on you?” June yelled to his partner.

“Me? Why didn’t you set him up?” his partner screamed back. “Yo’ slow behind don’t know how to play no bones!”

“Don’t tell me I can’t play! Yo’ mama can’t play.”

“I’m tired of your noise-talking.”

“Sorry piece of sh—!”

“Yo’ woman seems to like it,” his partner interrupted.

Just then, June jumped across the table and grabbed the guy by the shirt. He threw him up against the wall of the pavilion as everyone scattered out of the way. Kids were screaming. Several of my uncles jumped in to pull June off the guy.

I sighed in frustration. Myles had a look of horror across his face. This was unbelievable.

“Cut it out!” Mama Tee screamed. “Y’all see we got company here and y’all showing your tails. June, get up off that boy. Who is he anyway?”

“That’s his best friend, Triggerman,” Uncle Otis said as he pulled a frantically swinging June off his friend. Triggerman struggled to get up off the floor. He stood up and was getting ready to charge June again when Mama Tee stepped in front of him.

“Boy, don’t you even think about it. Coming up here in other people’s family reunion and starting some mess,” she snapped.

“He started it,” Triggerman said meekly. Mama Tee had a way of making even grown men feel five years old.

“I did not!” June yelled. “He said my woman slept with him.”

“She probably did,” Mama Tee said matter-of-factly. “You know that gal ain’t worth a pinch of salt, so don’t be getting mad at this here boy for telling the truth.”

June pouted. Triggerman proudly stuck his chest out. Mama Tee turned and slapped Triggerman upside the head.

“And you, boy. What’s your name? Because I know yo’ mama ain’t named you no damn Triggerman.”

Triggerman lowered his eyes. “It’s Solomon.”

“Well, Solomon, who yo’ people?”

“Bettie Graves is my grandma.”

“You Bettie’s boy? You the one been in prison?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Well, you need to leave that jailbird stuff behind them bars. Civilized folks don’t act like that, especially at other folks’ functions. Your grandma would have your behind if she knew you was out here acting like that. Now, if y’all can’t play that game like somebody with some sense, I’ma make y’all put those dominoes up. Now, pick them up!”

Several people were laughing and snickering as June and Triggerman picked up the dominoes.

Mama Tee turned to me. “Rae, come on over here and tell me what you been up to.”

I looked at Myles. He had a please-don’t-leave-me look on his face. But Mama Tee wasn’t having it. She grabbed me by the arm and pulled me toward her. We headed back over to the table where she was cooking. Shondella was dumping baked beans on a little girl’s plate.

“Who’s dat?” the little girl asked, all wide-eyed and innocent.

“That’s your auntie,” Mama Tee said.

“Uh-uh. I don’t know her.”

Shondella walked over, glared at me, and said, “Neither do we, baby. Neither do we.”

I ignored Shondella and looked over my shoulder to see how Myles was doing. I spotted him ogling Nikki’s breasts.

Mama Tee saw it, too. “You’d better watch that one. He’s a snake.” She nodded toward Myles.

“You don’t even know him,” I snapped. I knew Mama Tee would have something to say about Myles. She had always been judgmental about any man in my or Shondella’s life, even if it was just a casual date. Reno was the only exception. Mama Tee loved his dirty drawers.

“Don’t have to bite me for me to know it’s a snake,” Mama Tee replied as she glanced at Myles again.

“You come bringing him round here like he’s all that. He ain’t nobody and neither are you,” Shondella interjected.

That was it. Her big behind had just worked my last nerve. “Just because your trifling behind can’t get a man, don’t degrade mine. Myles is a good man. Can you say the same about Ezekiel Baxter?” I knew I had hit a sore spot. Ezekiel was Mercedes’s and Camry’s father and about the sorriest man you ever met. He and Shondella had dated off and on since she was in the ninth grade. He’d dropped out of high school, and from what I’d heard, did nothing but sleep all day and hang out in the streets all night. He occasionally lived with Shondella, until she got mad and put him out.

“You don’t know nothing about Ezekiel,” Shondella said.

“Just like you don’t know nothing about Myles. You’re just jealous.” I flicked her off and turned away from her to let her know I was through talking.

“Hah! Honey, I’d rather be alone than have a slimy snake like that. Both of y’all go on back to your high-society world where you can pretend that you’re all that, with the perfect job and the perfect man.”

“You wish you had my life.”

“Please, I wouldn’t trade places with you for nothing, because one day your perfect house of cards will come tumbling down.”

“Stop it!” Mama Tee snapped. “You two just don’t change. Just like your mama and Ola, always fighting.”

I sighed. I really wasn’t in the mood to fight with Shondella. “Speaking of Rose, when’s the last time you talked to her?” I asked Mama Tee.