“I know that’s right!” Charmaine nods and looks at Tasha.
“Girl, you need to get out more.” Andrea’s eyes wander all over Tasha’s body. “Maybe stop dressing all in black. Maybe lose some weight. And stop it with the Afrocentric shit! You ain’t from Africa! You ain’t out there in the jungle! We’re in Amer-ree-kah, girlfriend! Stop with that jungle shit!”
“Oooh-ah-ah-ah!” Charmaine whoops like a monkey.
I press my hand over Savior’s thigh and I felt the tension emanating from him. I quickly remove my hand but he forces it back. “No,” he quietly says.
I glance over at Savior. The storm is brewing in his eyes. “It’s not about how you start, but how you finish. Tasha may be driving Lyft now but she also has dreams and inspirations bigger than that. She should be applauded for pursing other things.” He defends her.
Tasha looks like she’s about to cry and I might join her if she doesn’t dry it up. “Savior, thank you.”
“I started out as a busboy. No one cared about my family name when I did grunt work. I’m sure if you were ask any of my friends from high school, they wouldn’t think I would turn out how I did.” He nurses his bourbon. “Everyone starts out small. No one starts out big and stays there.”
“Ionno about alladat.” Andrea snickers. “I started out big and I’m still big.”
“Word!” Charmaine adds.
“Okay,” Savior challenges, “what do you do?”
“Well,” Andrea swallows and chews slowly. It’s clear she’s never had anyone actually ask her what her occupation was and expected an answer. Reality-show main bitch isn’t a legit occupation. Sure, she might get a big check now but I’m pretty damn sure she’s not going to be nominated for a SAG award or walk the Oscars red carpet. “I’m a brand.”
Savior nods. “What’s your brand?”
Andrea pauses and blinks a few times. I can tell she’s becoming irritated because now she’s being interrogated like she’s on a witness stand. You see, around black folk, if you say you have a brand, no one really asks what is and what you do. You say you’re a brand and give them your IG profile, call it a day.
A white person, however, they’ll want to know details. They want to know how much you’ve made, if you have a website they can purchase from, a YouTube channel they can stream content; T-shirts, hoodies, sweaters, and the like. They want to know everything about your brand so they can possibly steal from it and make it better.
I’m being unfair. Savior doesn’t have to steal ideas from anybody. Savior’s questioning, however, isn’t because he’s genuinely interested in my birth mother. He wants to know what the hell is she doing with her life because she damn sure ain’t giving me any attention.
“I manage King’s career,” Andrea says, almost rather defiantly. King J returns and his eyes are more alert than ever. I recognize cocaine pupils when I see them. “I’m constantly traveling, booking gigs for him, and scoring interviews. I’m constantly on the road and busy. We also have a side business of creating swimwear.”
That’s the go-to hustle for black reality stars since the waist trimmers and diet teas markets are saturated, now they’re creating swimwear. You would think they would go into the hair care and makeup markets and make a killing there but nah.
“Is your line out?” Savior asks.
“It’s being handled,” Andrea proudly says, “it should debut next year. Just in time for summer.”
“Good to know,” he nods, “I expect you’ll be around for Keisha’s graduation from community college.”
I swallow more of my drink while Junie and Tasha stop eating. Oh boy.
“She’s graduating?” Andrea’s attention goes from Savior to me. “I didn’t know that.”
“Well, with your several businesses and reality TV, I imagine it might be hard to keep up the activities of your only daughter.” Savior replies and it’s suddenly cold due to all of the shade he just threw.
Andrea’s eyes turn icy as they lock with Savior’s. He’s not daunted and embraces the challenge. “How do you know my daughter besides fucking her?”
“She works at the law firm I own,” He calmly replies.
“Ohhhh….” Andrea sucks her teeth like she’s getting out a popcorn kernel and turns towards me. “….sweet, innocent Angel Face here is fucking her way to the top, huh? No wonder she’s acting all brand new and shit. She thinks because she got some of that pink dick, she’s better than us now, huh? I wonder how your daddy will feel about Savior here once you bring him home. You think your daddy is going to accept Savior with open arms knowing what he does?”
“Oh, oh, oh!” Charmaine whoops like a dog.
My cheeks are burning with embarrassment and tears threaten my eyes. No, Andrea can’t tell Savior about my daddy. I was about to reveal it all and if she tells him before I get a chance to, it’ll be all over. Savior would want nothing to do with me.
Andrea bypasses me and stares down at Savior. “Tell me, Savior. How do you feel knowing Keisha’s daddy here is the biggest drug dealer on the west side? How does it feel knowing that he slangs from here to Newport Beach to probably your neighbors? Huh? How does it feel knowing that he might be dealing to your potential clients? You really want to go out in public knowing your girlfriend’s daddy could be arrested at any moment and your name might be connected because of her? Do you want to ruin your reputation because of her? Do you want to throw everything down the drain because of her daddy?” Andrea’s lips curve into a smarmy smile. “Tell me….how does it feel?”
Hard, angry tears fall down my face. “I fucking hate you right now.” I grit through my teeth. I start to remove my hand again from Savior’s thigh and he forces it back there. I don’t dare to look at him because I feel the anger emanating from his body.
