I Called Somebody
Chardell
“Paris, give your mama back her phone! Hel... hello?
“Paris!”
This goddamn boy.
I ended the call and tossed my phone in the passenger seat.
“They just gon’ have to eat what I get... shit.”
Pulling directly into my pops’ parking spot, I hopped out quickly.
Once I was inside the vestibule, I patted my pockets for the keys.
“Fuck.”
They were in my jacket pocket.
I hit the call box.
Twice.
“Name?” filtered into the small space.
“Open the damn door, Chrissy.”
Buzzzz.
“I swear, you and your daddy are the least patient men I have ever met,” she sassed from across the counter.
“And yet you opened the door.”
“Unfortunately.”
I pulled it open.
“Where Pop at?”
“He took off about an hour ago.”
“Food ready?”
“What food?”
I stopped.
Chrissy smiled.
“You ain’t call.”
“I called somebody.”
“Calling your wife asking what everybody wants ain’t calling us, Chardell.”
I stared at her.
“Just make me something.”
“For five people?”
“Four.”
“Your daddy ain’t eating?”
“Why the fuck would I be picking up Pop dinner from Pop’s restaurant?”
“I don’t know. Y’all weird.”
She turned toward the kitchen, then stopped.
“Oh. We ran out of corn muffins too.”
I shook my head.
Paris not gon’ understand this shit.
“Nah, man. That’s all Lil Paris eat in the mornings. That shit won’t take long. I just need a dozen of ’em.”
She smacked her teeth.
“You lucky Lil Paris is my soulmate.”
I found a seat at the bar.
“Name?” Chrissy called toward the speaker.
I patted my pockets again.
Fuck.
I left my damn phone in the car.
I got up and headed for the door.
“Blackshire.”
I kept walking.
“First name?”
“Roe.”
My hand reached for the vestibule door.
“Okay, Ms. Blackshire. One second.”
I stopped.
Not because of the name.
The voice.
BUZZZZ...
My heart did that double-beat thing.
She swung the door open with a wide grin on her face.
Sunny.
Her eyes were glassy.
Now I know damn well.
Is she high?
She had on a low-cut oxblood fitted top, jeans, and some flat crocodile pointed-toe shoes.
Tom Ford?
Litty showed me these once.
She was distracted, digging through her bag as she stepped inside.
Then she stopped short.
Looked up and saw me.
The grin disappeared.
Her fingers went still inside her bag.
“...Ch... Freeze.”
She cleared her throat and snatched her hand from her bag like something had just bit her.
Her eyes cut quickly toward the counter.
Then back to me.
“You good?”
“I’m fine.”
I looked at her eyes again.
“You sure?”
“Yes.”
“Your eyes red.”
She blinked slowly.
“New eyeliner.”
I stared at her.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
Her eyes narrowed.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“You high?”
Her mouth fell open.
“Excuse me?”
“That’s a yes.”
“That is absolutely not a yes.”
“Uh-huh.”
“It’s new eyeliner, like I said.”
She floated past me and went to the counter, smiling so politely like she didn’t just dismiss me.
