As a little girl, I was told many different parodies and stories but there was one that has managed to remain in my mind. My uncle told me this
old Chinese proverb:
In China, there was a very old man who as a young man never took time out to blink because he felt that if he did, he may miss the only
thing in life that could and would make him happy. Finally, after many, many years of holding his eyes open, he had grown weak. He felt that
after all this time, he had managed to keep his eyes open and nothing had happened so there would be no harm in blinking for just a split
second. In the very moment that he blinked, he missed it. He missed the only true thing that would have made him happy.
So as I tell you my story, please don’t blink! Let this story take you to and from places that I have gone, and where you never thought you
would go. As I tell you about my life, put yourself in my shoes every step of the way. Please…don’t blink!
“Oh shit!” I thought just as the room got brighter.
“Loretta, Loretta, wake up girl.” I could hear my best friend, India, whisper softly so as not to startle me. Then, she began to gently shake
me to wake me up from my overnight sleep.
“Wake up sleepy head.” She shook me again as I lay motionless.
After a few more gentle nudges, I slowly opened my eyes. I raised my head and turned slightly to see her bending over me from behind with
her left hand on my shoulder and her right one holding her body weight on the bed to keep her balance. She had to extend her arm towards
the middle of the bed to reach me.
I sat upright on the bed and groggily asked her, “What’s up?”
I yawned and wiped away the drool sliding down the side of my mouth. I rubbed my eyes to get them adjusted to the bright light that had
flooded the room upon her opening the blinds.
“What’s wrong?” I asked excitedly.
“Nothing.” She responded to me trying to calm my growing excitement.
“What time is it?” I asked before I looked at the alarm clock next to the bed. After looking at the clock I realized it was still early.
“Girl, why are you waking me up this early?” I asked her in a puzzled tone.
“Don’t you have something to do this morning?” India asked me.
“Like what?” I yawned again and stretched.
“I’m not sure. I just thought you had something to do, that’s all.”
“Why would you think that?” I knew exactly what she was referring to. On the day before, she had been being nosey and overhead me
talking to my soon-to-be baby’s father, Born. We had been discussing his return home from his trip to Brooklyn, New York.
She just looked at me, shrugged her shoulders and rolled her eyes.
“Oh yeah, I have to take the stuff out of my car and put it in the house.” I said as if I thought she was referring to the clothes I bought for
the baby when we went shopping yesterday.
“Well, maybe that was it.” She acted as if that’s what she had been referring to, but I knew better. At that exact moment, the urge to pee
hit me hard. I jumped my pregnant ass up and tried to free myself from the sheets that I had somehow managed to be tangled in. India
jumped out of my way. Once I was free I ran straight for the bathroom, praying that none of her kids were using it since it was time for them
to get ready for school. I had to pee so bad, I had begun to unbutton the shorts I had slept in. When I reached the bathroom door, it was
closed. I knocked on the door and heard no answer so I pushed it open and bum rushed the bathroom. I managed to close the door behind
me while I felt my way around the wall trying to locate the light switch. I found it and clicked the light on. I took two steps to the toilet,
dropped my shorts to the floor, flopped down on the toilet and let out what felt like the best pee experience I had ever felt. I sat back
against the toilet, let out a sigh of relief and enjoyed the feeling. “I almost didn’t make it.” I thought to myself.
“Morning sickness, huh?” India yelled sounding slightly muffled behind the closed door. Apparently she was still in the bedroom.
“Nah, I have to use the bathroom, like always.” I yelled back as I raised my ass to wipe myself with a wad of tissue.
“Is Born coming home today?” India asked. I guess she had grown tired of beating around the bush.
“What you say? I can’t hear you.” I yelled again and hid my giggle.
“I SAID IS BORN COMING HOME TODAY?” India yelled louder. She appeared to be closer to the bathroom door now.
“What did you hear him say? You were there when I spoke to him yesterday, you nosey heffa!” I laughed loudly. I looked at the space
between the floor and the door and could see a shadow of her feet in front of the door. I stood up, pulled my shorts up and flushed the
toilet. I walked over to the sink, turned the faucet on high and began washing my hands. I opened the medicine cabinet and took out the
toothbrush and the toothpaste that I leave at India’s place. I put toothpaste on my toothbrush and walked over to the bathroom door and
swung it open.
“The kids left already?” I inquired.
“Yeah, I just walked them to the bus stop.”
“Oh okay.” I turned around and walked back over to the sink. I began brushing my teeth while looking in the mirror to ensure every tooth
was brushed. I take a lot of pride in making sure my teeth are white and my breath is fresh.
“So the big Dawg comes home today.” India said after having been silent for a few moments. She sounded a little disturbed. I paused in my
brushing and looked at her through the mirror. I decided to address this now so I cut short my normal lengthy brushing, spit the toothpaste
out of my mouth, rinsed my mouth quickly, wiped my mouth of the excess toothpaste foam around my lips and turned to answer her.
“Are you going to start with this early this morning?” I put my right hand on my hip and looked at her. She stood with her arms folded. I
turned back around and checked myself in the mirror to make sure my face was clean.
“No. I just asked you a question.” She said as I reached toward the towel rack for the face cloth she had given me the night before. I looked
in her soap dish and grabbed the natural soap she uses for her face since she has extra sensitive skin. I turned the faucet water on warm,
soaped my face cloth with the soap and water to wash my face.
“Yeah he’ll be in today.” I said as I placed the cloth on my face and began scrubbing. When I removed it, soap suds were covering my entire
face. I looked over at India and cracked a smile. I turned back around and rinsed my rag and wiped the soap from my face.
“I don’t understand you sometimes.” She said. I had placed the cloth flat to cover my face to absorb the steam of the water.
“What don’t you understand?” I asked.
“The whole damned thing!”
“Let’s try this. Don’t try to understand me. Just be happy for me! I have my first baby on the way and I have a man that is taking care of
both of us.” I smiled.
“Yeah but at what cost?”
“There will be no cost India. Stop worrying about me.”
“I just wish you would talk to him and tell him he needs to change his life around, if not for you and him, then at least for the baby. That’s all
I ask.” India had begun to worry again.
“I know and I’ve spoken to him on several occasions about it but it hasn’t changed yet.” I replied.
“Then you need to walk out on his ass. If he loves you like he says he does, he’ll leave that shit alone to get you back!”
“You’re right, but I know it’s hard for him to try and go legit. Shit we both have college degrees ‘cause we were fed the American dream
that you needed a degree in order to get a good paying job. When we graduated from college there weren’t any companies falling head
over heel to offer us high paying jobs. What we heard was that we needed experience to get a good paying job. How do you get
experience when you just graduated? What that indicated to us was that a college degree wasn’t enough, there was always a way to be
held down in America. So, Born did what he had to do.” I tried to make sense to her of the reasoning behind Born’s chosen lifestyle.
“There you go making excuses for him again. What are you going to do if that shit comes back on you, not just him?” India asked.
“I’m not making excuses for him. You don’t know how this shit is! I worry every single day of whether Born is coming home, whether he got
locked up, or whether someone murdered him! It’s hard to have to constantly wonder if my child will end up fatherless. I don’t know if I
could take on his responsibilities and take care of our child also.” I told her as I walked over to the shower, pulled the curtain back and turned
on the water. I adjusted the temperature to my desire. I began to undress by removing my shorts and the football jersey I had slept in. I
always wear this as pajamas when I stay at India’s. I thought that if I jumped in the shower, I could get away from her line of questioning.
“Who do you think you’re talking to?” India snapped. “Did you forget that my kids’ father was in the streets hustling? I told him that if he
loved me he would leave the game. That fool told me that he loved that money more so I kicked his ass to the curb. I knew that wouldn’t
affect him one bit. I knew he’d be able to find somewhere to live easily, and he did. That new bitch allowed that shit and look at his black
ass! He’s locked up and she doesn’t even visit him! At least when I was with him I held him down. I did it until I couldn’t do it any more. Now
look, he’s in prison and wants me back in his life. He wants me to hold him down now, then when he gets out, he’ll run right back to the
streets to that dangerous life. I refuse to do that and watch him get killed in these streets. Is that what you want?”
“You already told me that before.”
“So answer the question.”
“Girl let me wash my ass.” I said as I grabbed my shower sponge, opened the curtain and jumped in. I really thought she would leave the
bathroom and allow me to enjoy my private shower but that wasn’t the case. She stayed in the bathroom the entire time I was in the
shower. She acted like she was cleaning up but who in the hell cleans up a bathroom while someone is showering? I know she just wanted
to keep confronting me about the situation.
“Born can’t do this for the rest of his life!” India barked at me over the running water.
“I know he can’t.” I said to her as my voice echoed and bounced off the walls and over the water.
“So what are you going to do about it?”
“There’s nothing I can do about it.” I pressed my head against the wall underneath the running water.
“Yes there is and you know it!”
“I’ve already tried.”
“You didn’t try hard enough!”
“Listen, Born has shit on lock so I’m not worried about it.” I finally replied to India as I turned off the water. I tried to wring my sponge but
dropped it instead.
“Damn it!” I said with anger in my voice.
“I’m sorry I keep talking to you about the same shit but you have me worried.” India said because she thought that was directed towards her.
“I wasn’t talking to you when I said damn it.”
“Oh okay.”
“I dropped my sponge and now I have to bend down and pick it up. Do you know how hard that is?”
“Don’t worry about it I’ll get it for you.”
“I have to wash the tub out any way so I’ll get it.”
“What did I say? I’ll get it! I’ll wash out the tub as well. Just get your pregnant ass out.”
I reached my arm outside of the shower through the curtain and grabbed my bath towel to dry off. I wrapped the towel around me, as far
as it would go around my enlarged belly, and stepped out of the shower. India held out a fresh towel for me to dry my wet hair with. I took
it and wrapped it around my head, tucking it under in a turban style. I walked out of the bathroom and into her kitchen to get a bottle of
water out of the refrigerator.
“You say that now but Born isn’t the only real dude out there.” India said as she followed me still voicing her opinions.
“I know.” I answered her while opening my bottle of water, taking it to the head, and finishing the whole thing. Guess I had dry mouth.
“I just hope you don’t get caught up in the shit he’s into and it cost you your or the baby’s health. You know your baby is aware of things
that are happening outside the womb.”
“What are you talking about? Born and I don’t argue.” I said to her confidently.
“I’m not talking about ya’ll arguing. I’m talking about stress. The stress you experience when he’s not around, when he leaves town, or the
fact that he’s not going to be around much during the first few months of your pregnancy; which may I remind you are the most critical.”
She said forcefully driving her point home.
“Listen girl, I have to go.” I retorted, walking back towards her bedroom to get dressed. Once in her bedroom I saw she had taken out some
clothes for me to put on. She had also taken the liberty to lay out the lotion, a brush, and other toiletries so that I could get myself
together. They were lying neatly on the bed.
“Girl where is my stuff?” I asked India while staring at the outfit she had laid out for me.
“The kids accidentally wasted something on the extra clothes you had in your overnight bag, so you’ll have to wear some of my stuff.”
“Are you trying to be funny? You know damn well I can’t fit my ass in these clothes. I no longer weigh one hundred and twenty five pounds.
I easily weigh in at one thirty five now. ” I whined. India still has her good figure. She never lost it, even after having three kids. You would
think she would be a thick girl after that but she’s not. She snapped right back to her natural weight of one hundred and twenty pounds.
“Those are the clothes I wore when I was pregnant.” Indian informed me.
“Oh okay.” I said as I rubbed on lotion and put the clothes on my half dampened body. Due to the pregnancy I couldn’t dry every nook and
cranny since I couldn’t see or reach them. It also didn’t help that I was doing everything in a hurry since I was tired of hearing India trying to
be my mother. “Hell, she can do that with her own kids.” I thought as I unwrapped my head and ran a comb through my hair. I pulled my
shoulder length hair up into a pony tail with a rubber band.
“I just hope you listen to me and act before it’s too late.” She looked at me hard.
I was hoping she would get tired of talking and just shut the fuck up. I turned and stared at the clothes she had laid out for me and thought
“Who in the fuck wears floral shirts with a matching bra!” But hey, who am I to complain since I didn’t have any of my own clothes to choose
from being as though they’re wet.
“Did my panties get wet too?” I asked her.
“Yeah, I just bought a new pair that you can have.”
“I hope they’ll fit over my belly.”
“I don’t know about over it, but I know they will fit just under it.”
“That’s good. I just need them on until I get home to get a pair.” I started putting on the clothes India gave me.
I grabbed the rest of my shit and my pocketbook and headed towards the front door. I avoided hugging her as we normally do when we
depart from each other. I think she had touched a nerve with me because I knew she was right. But hey, I didn’t want to hear that shit this
early in the morning.
“Oh I can’t get my hug. I can’t rub your stomach before you leave?” India asked me trying to be funny.
“Yeah you can.” I lowered my head and walked back over to her so she could bond with her god-child growing in my stomach.
“I’m only telling you this because I love you and care about you.” India told me as she rubbed my stomach. She gave me a big hug as if it
would be the last. I guess her instincts were kicking in. I know that if she had known what would happen to me in a few hours she would
have kept me there. But she didn’t.
I made my way through her kitchen to the door that opens into the garage. I opened the door, and walked down the three little bullshit
steps to get to my car. I opened the car door, tossed my pocketbook across into the passenger seat and got into the driver’s seat. India
opened the garage door from the top of the steps. I looked up at her before pulling off as she said “I love you sis.” I smiled, reached down
and turned on the radio, and backed out of her garage.
I had been on the road less than two minutes when it happened. It never fails. It’s a pregnant woman’s worse nightmare. I had to go to the
bathroom again! There was no bathroom in sight. “Damn I have to use the bathroom!” I said out loud to myself while I sat at a red traffic
light. I had begun shaking my legs and tapping my fingers on the steering wheel all the while trying to hold back laughter while listening to my
radio. That was very difficult since my radio was tuned into one of the funniest morning radio shows.
I was listening to the syndicated Russ Parr morning show on WQOK K97.5. The radio personalities were Russ Parr, Olivia Fox, Super Ken, and
Lazy Lamont. They were making fun of everybody which they do everyday. Today they happened to be doing a few parodies to songs that
were at the top of the charts this year. The morning show was getting ready to end and Brian Dawson, a radio DJ, was getting ready to
come on. Before the change occurred, Russ Parr did their last parody which was of the song, ‘One Mic’ by Nas. They changed the title to ‘All
I Need Is One Fight’. They were referring to the former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson. One of the personalities imitated Tyson’s voice.
It sounded just like Mike Tyson. I had begun to laugh my ass off. I tried to stop laughing so I wouldn’t pee on myself. I looked around at the
scenery to try and take my mind off of it.
As soon as the traffic light turned green, I sped off towards home. I was doing 45mph in a 35mph speed zone. The water bottle I was
drinking from yesterday fell out of the passenger seat and began sloshing around on the floor, like a fish out of water. I wasn’t even worried
about the cops pulling me over for speeding. I would just tell him I’m pregnant and that I have to use the bathroom. I was about fifteen
minutes away from home. I knew I had to get there as quick as possible so I wouldn’t pee on myself. I wasn’t going to do that again, like I
did at the beginning of my pregnancy. Now that was embarrassing. No one said anything because they knew that I was pregnant. I hate
having to stay hydrated and drink all this damn water.
I got home in about seven minutes flat. I pulled right up into the driveway, turned the car off and snatched the keys out of the ignition. I
threw my car door open and struggled to get out due to this excess weight. I was treating my car like it wasn’t brand new. You could look
at it and tell it was new though. I had only had it a few months. My 2000 Silver GLE Nissan Maxima; which was my birthday gift, was looking
beautiful as hell.
I didn’t want to have to come back outside and get my stuff out of the car. I wanted to be able to take my shoes off and relax these
swollen ankles so I reached across the driver seat, grabbed my pocketbook, and started getting my shopping bags out of the back seat. I
stood up, pushed the car door shut with my hips and used the keyless entry to lock the car door. I dropped the car keys in my purse and
made a beeline entrance towards the house.
old Chinese proverb:
In China, there was a very old man who as a young man never took time out to blink because he felt that if he did, he may miss the only
thing in life that could and would make him happy. Finally, after many, many years of holding his eyes open, he had grown weak. He felt that
after all this time, he had managed to keep his eyes open and nothing had happened so there would be no harm in blinking for just a split
second. In the very moment that he blinked, he missed it. He missed the only true thing that would have made him happy.
So as I tell you my story, please don’t blink! Let this story take you to and from places that I have gone, and where you never thought you
would go. As I tell you about my life, put yourself in my shoes every step of the way. Please…don’t blink!
“Oh shit!” I thought just as the room got brighter.
“Loretta, Loretta, wake up girl.” I could hear my best friend, India, whisper softly so as not to startle me. Then, she began to gently shake
me to wake me up from my overnight sleep.
“Wake up sleepy head.” She shook me again as I lay motionless.
After a few more gentle nudges, I slowly opened my eyes. I raised my head and turned slightly to see her bending over me from behind with
her left hand on my shoulder and her right one holding her body weight on the bed to keep her balance. She had to extend her arm towards
the middle of the bed to reach me.
I sat upright on the bed and groggily asked her, “What’s up?”
I yawned and wiped away the drool sliding down the side of my mouth. I rubbed my eyes to get them adjusted to the bright light that had
flooded the room upon her opening the blinds.
“What’s wrong?” I asked excitedly.
“Nothing.” She responded to me trying to calm my growing excitement.
“What time is it?” I asked before I looked at the alarm clock next to the bed. After looking at the clock I realized it was still early.
“Girl, why are you waking me up this early?” I asked her in a puzzled tone.
“Don’t you have something to do this morning?” India asked me.
“Like what?” I yawned again and stretched.
“I’m not sure. I just thought you had something to do, that’s all.”
“Why would you think that?” I knew exactly what she was referring to. On the day before, she had been being nosey and overhead me
talking to my soon-to-be baby’s father, Born. We had been discussing his return home from his trip to Brooklyn, New York.
She just looked at me, shrugged her shoulders and rolled her eyes.
“Oh yeah, I have to take the stuff out of my car and put it in the house.” I said as if I thought she was referring to the clothes I bought for
the baby when we went shopping yesterday.
“Well, maybe that was it.” She acted as if that’s what she had been referring to, but I knew better. At that exact moment, the urge to pee
hit me hard. I jumped my pregnant ass up and tried to free myself from the sheets that I had somehow managed to be tangled in. India
jumped out of my way. Once I was free I ran straight for the bathroom, praying that none of her kids were using it since it was time for them
to get ready for school. I had to pee so bad, I had begun to unbutton the shorts I had slept in. When I reached the bathroom door, it was
closed. I knocked on the door and heard no answer so I pushed it open and bum rushed the bathroom. I managed to close the door behind
me while I felt my way around the wall trying to locate the light switch. I found it and clicked the light on. I took two steps to the toilet,
dropped my shorts to the floor, flopped down on the toilet and let out what felt like the best pee experience I had ever felt. I sat back
against the toilet, let out a sigh of relief and enjoyed the feeling. “I almost didn’t make it.” I thought to myself.
“Morning sickness, huh?” India yelled sounding slightly muffled behind the closed door. Apparently she was still in the bedroom.
“Nah, I have to use the bathroom, like always.” I yelled back as I raised my ass to wipe myself with a wad of tissue.
“Is Born coming home today?” India asked. I guess she had grown tired of beating around the bush.
“What you say? I can’t hear you.” I yelled again and hid my giggle.
“I SAID IS BORN COMING HOME TODAY?” India yelled louder. She appeared to be closer to the bathroom door now.
“What did you hear him say? You were there when I spoke to him yesterday, you nosey heffa!” I laughed loudly. I looked at the space
between the floor and the door and could see a shadow of her feet in front of the door. I stood up, pulled my shorts up and flushed the
toilet. I walked over to the sink, turned the faucet on high and began washing my hands. I opened the medicine cabinet and took out the
toothbrush and the toothpaste that I leave at India’s place. I put toothpaste on my toothbrush and walked over to the bathroom door and
swung it open.
“The kids left already?” I inquired.
“Yeah, I just walked them to the bus stop.”
“Oh okay.” I turned around and walked back over to the sink. I began brushing my teeth while looking in the mirror to ensure every tooth
was brushed. I take a lot of pride in making sure my teeth are white and my breath is fresh.
“So the big Dawg comes home today.” India said after having been silent for a few moments. She sounded a little disturbed. I paused in my
brushing and looked at her through the mirror. I decided to address this now so I cut short my normal lengthy brushing, spit the toothpaste
out of my mouth, rinsed my mouth quickly, wiped my mouth of the excess toothpaste foam around my lips and turned to answer her.
“Are you going to start with this early this morning?” I put my right hand on my hip and looked at her. She stood with her arms folded. I
turned back around and checked myself in the mirror to make sure my face was clean.
“No. I just asked you a question.” She said as I reached toward the towel rack for the face cloth she had given me the night before. I looked
in her soap dish and grabbed the natural soap she uses for her face since she has extra sensitive skin. I turned the faucet water on warm,
soaped my face cloth with the soap and water to wash my face.
“Yeah he’ll be in today.” I said as I placed the cloth on my face and began scrubbing. When I removed it, soap suds were covering my entire
face. I looked over at India and cracked a smile. I turned back around and rinsed my rag and wiped the soap from my face.
“I don’t understand you sometimes.” She said. I had placed the cloth flat to cover my face to absorb the steam of the water.
“What don’t you understand?” I asked.
“The whole damned thing!”
“Let’s try this. Don’t try to understand me. Just be happy for me! I have my first baby on the way and I have a man that is taking care of
both of us.” I smiled.
“Yeah but at what cost?”
“There will be no cost India. Stop worrying about me.”
“I just wish you would talk to him and tell him he needs to change his life around, if not for you and him, then at least for the baby. That’s all
I ask.” India had begun to worry again.
“I know and I’ve spoken to him on several occasions about it but it hasn’t changed yet.” I replied.
“Then you need to walk out on his ass. If he loves you like he says he does, he’ll leave that shit alone to get you back!”
“You’re right, but I know it’s hard for him to try and go legit. Shit we both have college degrees ‘cause we were fed the American dream
that you needed a degree in order to get a good paying job. When we graduated from college there weren’t any companies falling head
over heel to offer us high paying jobs. What we heard was that we needed experience to get a good paying job. How do you get
experience when you just graduated? What that indicated to us was that a college degree wasn’t enough, there was always a way to be
held down in America. So, Born did what he had to do.” I tried to make sense to her of the reasoning behind Born’s chosen lifestyle.
“There you go making excuses for him again. What are you going to do if that shit comes back on you, not just him?” India asked.
“I’m not making excuses for him. You don’t know how this shit is! I worry every single day of whether Born is coming home, whether he got
locked up, or whether someone murdered him! It’s hard to have to constantly wonder if my child will end up fatherless. I don’t know if I
could take on his responsibilities and take care of our child also.” I told her as I walked over to the shower, pulled the curtain back and turned
on the water. I adjusted the temperature to my desire. I began to undress by removing my shorts and the football jersey I had slept in. I
always wear this as pajamas when I stay at India’s. I thought that if I jumped in the shower, I could get away from her line of questioning.
“Who do you think you’re talking to?” India snapped. “Did you forget that my kids’ father was in the streets hustling? I told him that if he
loved me he would leave the game. That fool told me that he loved that money more so I kicked his ass to the curb. I knew that wouldn’t
affect him one bit. I knew he’d be able to find somewhere to live easily, and he did. That new bitch allowed that shit and look at his black
ass! He’s locked up and she doesn’t even visit him! At least when I was with him I held him down. I did it until I couldn’t do it any more. Now
look, he’s in prison and wants me back in his life. He wants me to hold him down now, then when he gets out, he’ll run right back to the
streets to that dangerous life. I refuse to do that and watch him get killed in these streets. Is that what you want?”
“You already told me that before.”
“So answer the question.”
“Girl let me wash my ass.” I said as I grabbed my shower sponge, opened the curtain and jumped in. I really thought she would leave the
bathroom and allow me to enjoy my private shower but that wasn’t the case. She stayed in the bathroom the entire time I was in the
shower. She acted like she was cleaning up but who in the hell cleans up a bathroom while someone is showering? I know she just wanted
to keep confronting me about the situation.
“Born can’t do this for the rest of his life!” India barked at me over the running water.
“I know he can’t.” I said to her as my voice echoed and bounced off the walls and over the water.
“So what are you going to do about it?”
“There’s nothing I can do about it.” I pressed my head against the wall underneath the running water.
“Yes there is and you know it!”
“I’ve already tried.”
“You didn’t try hard enough!”
“Listen, Born has shit on lock so I’m not worried about it.” I finally replied to India as I turned off the water. I tried to wring my sponge but
dropped it instead.
“Damn it!” I said with anger in my voice.
“I’m sorry I keep talking to you about the same shit but you have me worried.” India said because she thought that was directed towards her.
“I wasn’t talking to you when I said damn it.”
“Oh okay.”
“I dropped my sponge and now I have to bend down and pick it up. Do you know how hard that is?”
“Don’t worry about it I’ll get it for you.”
“I have to wash the tub out any way so I’ll get it.”
“What did I say? I’ll get it! I’ll wash out the tub as well. Just get your pregnant ass out.”
I reached my arm outside of the shower through the curtain and grabbed my bath towel to dry off. I wrapped the towel around me, as far
as it would go around my enlarged belly, and stepped out of the shower. India held out a fresh towel for me to dry my wet hair with. I took
it and wrapped it around my head, tucking it under in a turban style. I walked out of the bathroom and into her kitchen to get a bottle of
water out of the refrigerator.
“You say that now but Born isn’t the only real dude out there.” India said as she followed me still voicing her opinions.
“I know.” I answered her while opening my bottle of water, taking it to the head, and finishing the whole thing. Guess I had dry mouth.
“I just hope you don’t get caught up in the shit he’s into and it cost you your or the baby’s health. You know your baby is aware of things
that are happening outside the womb.”
“What are you talking about? Born and I don’t argue.” I said to her confidently.
“I’m not talking about ya’ll arguing. I’m talking about stress. The stress you experience when he’s not around, when he leaves town, or the
fact that he’s not going to be around much during the first few months of your pregnancy; which may I remind you are the most critical.”
She said forcefully driving her point home.
“Listen girl, I have to go.” I retorted, walking back towards her bedroom to get dressed. Once in her bedroom I saw she had taken out some
clothes for me to put on. She had also taken the liberty to lay out the lotion, a brush, and other toiletries so that I could get myself
together. They were lying neatly on the bed.
“Girl where is my stuff?” I asked India while staring at the outfit she had laid out for me.
“The kids accidentally wasted something on the extra clothes you had in your overnight bag, so you’ll have to wear some of my stuff.”
“Are you trying to be funny? You know damn well I can’t fit my ass in these clothes. I no longer weigh one hundred and twenty five pounds.
I easily weigh in at one thirty five now. ” I whined. India still has her good figure. She never lost it, even after having three kids. You would
think she would be a thick girl after that but she’s not. She snapped right back to her natural weight of one hundred and twenty pounds.
“Those are the clothes I wore when I was pregnant.” Indian informed me.
“Oh okay.” I said as I rubbed on lotion and put the clothes on my half dampened body. Due to the pregnancy I couldn’t dry every nook and
cranny since I couldn’t see or reach them. It also didn’t help that I was doing everything in a hurry since I was tired of hearing India trying to
be my mother. “Hell, she can do that with her own kids.” I thought as I unwrapped my head and ran a comb through my hair. I pulled my
shoulder length hair up into a pony tail with a rubber band.
“I just hope you listen to me and act before it’s too late.” She looked at me hard.
I was hoping she would get tired of talking and just shut the fuck up. I turned and stared at the clothes she had laid out for me and thought
“Who in the fuck wears floral shirts with a matching bra!” But hey, who am I to complain since I didn’t have any of my own clothes to choose
from being as though they’re wet.
“Did my panties get wet too?” I asked her.
“Yeah, I just bought a new pair that you can have.”
“I hope they’ll fit over my belly.”
“I don’t know about over it, but I know they will fit just under it.”
“That’s good. I just need them on until I get home to get a pair.” I started putting on the clothes India gave me.
I grabbed the rest of my shit and my pocketbook and headed towards the front door. I avoided hugging her as we normally do when we
depart from each other. I think she had touched a nerve with me because I knew she was right. But hey, I didn’t want to hear that shit this
early in the morning.
“Oh I can’t get my hug. I can’t rub your stomach before you leave?” India asked me trying to be funny.
“Yeah you can.” I lowered my head and walked back over to her so she could bond with her god-child growing in my stomach.
“I’m only telling you this because I love you and care about you.” India told me as she rubbed my stomach. She gave me a big hug as if it
would be the last. I guess her instincts were kicking in. I know that if she had known what would happen to me in a few hours she would
have kept me there. But she didn’t.
I made my way through her kitchen to the door that opens into the garage. I opened the door, and walked down the three little bullshit
steps to get to my car. I opened the car door, tossed my pocketbook across into the passenger seat and got into the driver’s seat. India
opened the garage door from the top of the steps. I looked up at her before pulling off as she said “I love you sis.” I smiled, reached down
and turned on the radio, and backed out of her garage.
I had been on the road less than two minutes when it happened. It never fails. It’s a pregnant woman’s worse nightmare. I had to go to the
bathroom again! There was no bathroom in sight. “Damn I have to use the bathroom!” I said out loud to myself while I sat at a red traffic
light. I had begun shaking my legs and tapping my fingers on the steering wheel all the while trying to hold back laughter while listening to my
radio. That was very difficult since my radio was tuned into one of the funniest morning radio shows.
I was listening to the syndicated Russ Parr morning show on WQOK K97.5. The radio personalities were Russ Parr, Olivia Fox, Super Ken, and
Lazy Lamont. They were making fun of everybody which they do everyday. Today they happened to be doing a few parodies to songs that
were at the top of the charts this year. The morning show was getting ready to end and Brian Dawson, a radio DJ, was getting ready to
come on. Before the change occurred, Russ Parr did their last parody which was of the song, ‘One Mic’ by Nas. They changed the title to ‘All
I Need Is One Fight’. They were referring to the former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson. One of the personalities imitated Tyson’s voice.
It sounded just like Mike Tyson. I had begun to laugh my ass off. I tried to stop laughing so I wouldn’t pee on myself. I looked around at the
scenery to try and take my mind off of it.
As soon as the traffic light turned green, I sped off towards home. I was doing 45mph in a 35mph speed zone. The water bottle I was
drinking from yesterday fell out of the passenger seat and began sloshing around on the floor, like a fish out of water. I wasn’t even worried
about the cops pulling me over for speeding. I would just tell him I’m pregnant and that I have to use the bathroom. I was about fifteen
minutes away from home. I knew I had to get there as quick as possible so I wouldn’t pee on myself. I wasn’t going to do that again, like I
did at the beginning of my pregnancy. Now that was embarrassing. No one said anything because they knew that I was pregnant. I hate
having to stay hydrated and drink all this damn water.
I got home in about seven minutes flat. I pulled right up into the driveway, turned the car off and snatched the keys out of the ignition. I
threw my car door open and struggled to get out due to this excess weight. I was treating my car like it wasn’t brand new. You could look
at it and tell it was new though. I had only had it a few months. My 2000 Silver GLE Nissan Maxima; which was my birthday gift, was looking
beautiful as hell.
I didn’t want to have to come back outside and get my stuff out of the car. I wanted to be able to take my shoes off and relax these
swollen ankles so I reached across the driver seat, grabbed my pocketbook, and started getting my shopping bags out of the back seat. I
stood up, pushed the car door shut with my hips and used the keyless entry to lock the car door. I dropped the car keys in my purse and
made a beeline entrance towards the house.
| Chapters 1- A Heart To Heart |
The Author S. C. Dickens
Didn't See This Coming
| Didn't See This Coming |
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