"Wise."

Book 4 of Meridian Michel’

Their Definitions:

Female: Any young woman of age, thirty-five years, or younger.

Young Lady: Any nice young female thirty years, or younger.

Young Woman: Any successful female they do not know.

Woman: Someone better; older they can respect.

Bitch: Any female they cannot control.

-his friends

“What do you mean man?”

“Exactly,” Wise said with a stiffness even he could not figure, but it was real, and he had to mean what he said.

Attus and all the other guys did not care one way or the other. Heck, their tickets were paid for whether they needed it or not.

“I don’t want them there, man. I don’t want to see them.” Attus just wanted to be sure Wise had his wits about him about, especially about one of the people and he did not want to seem messy.

Wise was right about the reaction he had to his feelings.

“I don’t blame you man,” Attus interjected with adamancy.

“I know.”

“I meant what I said. If she comes back and he starts that shit with her again, personally, I will kick his ass.” Wise knew Attus was not kidding, but Tory wondered why he was so adamant about Jonjoui.

It was unlike Attus to speak that way since he was built close to the build of a logger. His feelings were always on point, and he might have thought anyone plainly knew. Well, Tory thought, he was just imagining things. Surely he would have known if Attus had a thing for Jonjou’, Heck, a long time ago he could have made something happen, but that was not Attus’ style. Attus never cared for Teake, why he felt the way he did, and they could not care less how Wise decided to place his guest list.

If they were invited, Wise had no beef with them, nor had they any social problems. Chance and Teake they stopped liking and the moment they heard Teake was abusing his wife realizing how people had a crush on her like Attus and Tory and in case she ever returned, which of the two she choose? Attus, if persistent would have proven worthy and have more of a shot with Jonjoui than Tory. He was not her type and needed to work on himself.

No one ever knew what Tory was doing, or where his mind was, about the present or future, but he was always around. Chance took his lead from Butch, which proved not the best advice, but Tory, like Titus, Keith, and a few of Wise’s other friends were their own men.

“Yeah man. I mean, if his woman were that bad, why doesn’t he tell her to take a hike when she wanted to? Why torment the woman, make her feel useless for anyone else if he doesn’t want her?”

They looked at Attus bitching.

“Because he’s messy. He thinks he’s impressing someone, like, he’s king of the castle, or cave dweller to his woman. What a dumb ass,” he said, and both men agreed as Tory listened in. He seemed too overzealous for Jonjoui, and Wise caught that side eye Attus made at Tory.

“Right man,” Titus added. “I mean, she was pretty, not my type, but I know Butch thought she was beautiful.”

“That guy right there,” Tory pointed to Butch’s house, “Thought she was a knockout, which is why the dude went off! Teake knew Butch was smitten by his woman.” Teake’s vendetta only gave Butch power and with it, he did not care if he and Teake would remain close.

“She was,” Wise said. He raised his head for the first time in a while from studying his phone.

“She was beautiful. Truly kind, ambitious, and nice.

Some women cruised by in a nice car, and they looked.

“But of course Butch could not have a chance with her, besides, Jonjoui was not his type either. It works both ways, but Teake can’t stop Butch, or any of us from saying, or thinking she’s pretty,” Titus added.

“That’s true,” they muttered. Teake might have controlled his wife, but he could not control his friends.

Keith and everyone else wondered why, not extending an invitation to Teake, Wise should worry. He had not been a part of their crew unless he wanted something, had been a menace, blowing everyone else’s high, an embarrassment and would not accept professional help.

“Getting himself in and out of rehab would not help his personality so, fuck him,” Titus said. Attus and Tory were still single, and Titus always had a mass number of women floating around.

Titus will remain single until something finally sprouts up in his own backyard. Finding the right one could be tricky, while Keith recently got exactly what he wanted, and years since he felt right about a girl and nothing, nor anyone could mess that up for him. They stood facing all the trees off Wise’s balcony, entered from the spiral staircase in the back yard up to his patio, just taking in the sun, chatting casually, and having beers.

One-

He was happy his friend Teaken Willow of 86 Chestnut Street was finally coming home from the military. Wise had only seen him three times in eight years and those times were short stays, within 24 hours, Wise was anxious. Teake was one of Wise’s best and closest friends growing up, but unlike Teake, who was not sure what he wanted to do as an adult, introduced Wise to other kids when the le’Cere bought their home, how Wise, Teake and a group of boys became friend’s.

Now even though they are all own up; Wise was still not too keen visiting Teake with his older sister Xi’an still living at their parent’s house. One dose of her would cause Wise a form of paralysis he could not help. He always wanted to fade into a wall, a painting, a picture when Xi’an had something to say. Usually, her approach was of something Teake did, said, or was going to do, to at least go and tell their mother Mrs. Willow. Ever since they were kids, Wise shuttered in Xi’an’s presence.

If ever there were two people mostly opposite, was Teake and his older sister Xi’an. Wise never wanted to say or do any wrong around her and could barely ever let out a squeak hello. Teake and Wise were like the brothers neither one of them had. Wise had two much older sisters, and the reason he got mostly anything a kid growing up could have. When Xi’an grew into her beauty, Wise flinched. He was a simple kid you could lead off a ship’s plank, and not believe sharks circling.

He trusted everyone is why to the day, Teake Willow, Attus Evergreen, and since they were all grown up, even Butch Ellerbe and Titus Bonaparte looked after him. Tory Revell would not look after himself if everyone on earth died, yet all their major concerns are mostly about the women in Wise’s life. Although smarter than most, Wise was sometimes naive to the ways of friendship and learned that the kids on Birch Street only played with him because he had the coolest things to play with.

It was a fact Wise would not say no or get angry. Teake, Titus, Tory, Keith, Attus, or Butch since the middle school, would not let kids bully Wise, after he took hard licks and shrug them off. Pudgy, Wise had the best birthday parties in the world, nothing he would not eat and nothing Wise would not try with his friends just once. Wise was more of a scholar than athlete but great at tackling football where they lived why they picked him first to play on their street teams.

Wise did not know what a wet dream was but won science fairs since middle school and did not start looking at girls until his senior year of high school, did well in college, a different scenario altogether, but dug into business, economics, and accounting studies. Wise wanted to make the world a better place. In college was where he earned his reputation of being a heartbreaker. Wise went to college, mastered in his craft, but wanted to be something better.

He climbed the corporate ladder to lead major companies in business for economics, and finance and did quite well. Away Ivy League: Wise learned the biggest lessons life could bring. If women were concerned Wise ended up on top and in physical shape by the time Teake went into the military. Attus liked Wise best. He and his older brother Aaron went to college, Attus, interested in business while his brother liked mechanical technology and they moved to Long Island.

When they were younger, Attus and Aaron went to live with their grandfather after their parents died in a car accident. They inherited his two body shops, their house a guest house, and everything of its belongings. Keith went to college as well, he and Chance wanted to buy into Attus’ business one day. Butch, Titus and Tory were busy making lives for themselves any way they could. Wise was just as good-looking; it just took time and was strange for him of the women he met.

The prettiest and popular campus girls did not want to admit having a crush on Wise. Of most of the pretty girls demeanors, were insensitive with materialistic dreams. Wise graduated, moved on, and was currently seeing Sevyn. He has a big heart with her, and her mother who have gone through unpleasant things since her father left them years ago. Sevyn would do anything to make certain her mother is secure and cared for, having to tarry, making them feel a certain way about life.

Sevyn and her mother had no good mind for men in their lives, but Sevyn knew she had a good guy in Wise. She was pretty and he flaunted Sevyn around his family, friends, and neighbors, to help show her that love, family, and tradition still exist. Even she and Xi’an met and said hello when they saw each other, Wise living diagonally from Teaken Willow’s family so over the years, the two families were very much familiar with one another.

Sevyn was congenial and the le’ Cere’ did like her. Xi’an was one of the best-looking attractive girls in her class, but unlike her, most her peers went off to college. It was hard to guess which parent chose, they were not going to allow her to model, they had not considered it a real career and Mr. Willow said it could be dangerous to go on photo shoots and places with no one to go with his wife and daughter. Xi’an stayed closely at home because she had not yet decided what she wanted to do with her life.

She had not yet known who it was she was supposed to be. Xi’an took college courses, but it lacked the thing that would give her real ambition. With no dream unless it was someone’s nightmare, it was good she found a technical field, challenged it expertly and began to make a living before any of her friends, no doubt having the man of her dreams on her mind. The le’Cere considered the Willow’s one of the most decent families on the street they lived.

Teake thought that every other house had one strange story or another, but at least the Willow’s minded their own business. Outside of normal jealousy of their good looks, no one had qualms with them. They were fun, honest, hardworking people, who were a nice family, but Wise did not know that beautiful things can turn ugly.