She’s seated at a table which is on the far end of the cafeteria, the left hand side. I start squeezing through and passing by some students as I walked towards her. A hand reaches up and grabs my shoulder as I walk past one of the tables.
“Bro! Spit that jawn you said earlier about sandwich, that jawn was hot.” Darrel said.
He was asking me to say to him again the rap that I told him earlier in the hallway. I sat down on the table next to him.
“Keep it a bean bro, I don’t even remember that jawn, it was off the top.” I said.
I was telling him that I was not able to recall the rap, because it came from the top of my mind and I wasn’t even thinking when I said it.
“Broo… how do you do it? How is it even possible to be so nice?” Darrel asked me.
I squint my eyes as I look forward.
“Idk bro… I was born this way.” I said as I got up from the table.
Darrel looks at me as I stand up. “Teach me bro!”
“Soon young grasshopper, soon. Stay in school.” I said as I walked away.
I walked to where Christy was seated, she doesn’t see me. Her legs are up where she’s seated, and her head is down on her knees as her arms are folded. A couple girls are crowded around her playing with her hair and talking to her.
I gently sit down on the table next to her. Once the girls who are crowded around her sees me they all get up and move to the other end of the table. Christy is holding her legs up on the table and her head is down. I lightly tap her shoulders as I push closer to her.
She lifts her head up and looks at me. “Jason…” She says.
“Don’t say nothing.” I tell her.
I then grab her hands and look her in the eye.
“Christy…” I said.
“Aaaaawww!” A couple girls began to say from down the end of the table.
I ignore them as I continue to gaze into Christy’s eyes.
“There’s nothing that I can say to justify my actions. I should never have taken advantage of you like that and did what I did. And for that… I. am. sorry.” I said as I held both of her hands in mines.
“Christy please… you’re my wife okay. I want us to work. Don’t be mad at me okay boo” I said.
Then I sunk my head down and kissed the back of her hands. Her fingers were tiny, she had a black band around her wrist and her fingernails were painted red and black.
“AAAWWWWW!” Said some girls in unison.
Now a lot of females in the cafeteria was crowded around us as they watched.
Then one of the security guards from the lunch room walks to the table.
“Okay! That’s enough everybody, please go back to your tables please!” He said to the students crowded around us.
They began groaning, then they got up and dispersed. The security guard then walked back. I was left at the table while holding Christy’s hand. She stared at me as her mouth slightly opened.
My hands began to sweat as I held her hands. I dropped them to my side and began to wipe them on my pants.
“Why is your hands sweating Jason?” She softly asks as she looks at me in the eye.
I started thinking of a response. I knew the reason as to why my hands precipitated, buy I didn’t quite know how to put it into words. Then I remembered Mr. Keen’s words.
Just tell her son. His words echoed in my head.
“Because… I’m scared.” I said.
“Scared… of…?” She asked.
“Scared of you being mad at me forever, scared of you not wanting to be my wife anymore, scared of… you.” I said as my head sunk down.
Christy bends her head down and she puts her hand on my chin and began to lift my head up.
“Aww Jason… don’t be scared baby… I still wanna be your wife. What would make you think…” She said.
“Didn’t you make out what I mouthed to you earlier?” She asked me.
At first I don’t know as to what she is talking about. Then I start thinking back earlier, before my little run in experience with Violet, when I was upstairs on the third floor.
“Naw I couldn’t make out… what did you say?” I asked her.
“It’s my phone. I forgot to charge it last night when you slept over. This morning it was on 8%. After I called Violet it died.” She said.
Ohhh! So that must explain why she wasn’t responding to my texts. A big smile spread across my face and I began to laugh.
“Girl I been blowing your phone up all morning!” I said.
Christy smiles back. “I know, I’m sorry.” She said.
“I was sitting here thinking that you was ignoring me purposefully and don’t wanna be with me anymore.” I said as I continued to smile.
“No no, never Jason. Yeah I was mad, I didn’t like what you did, going out early in the morning to smoke, and then making us have sex at the back of the school…” She said.
I stopped laughing and a serious look came on my face. Then I held her hand in mines again.
“Tell me… how can I make it up to you? I wanna make you happy again.” I said.
She smiled slightly then began looking at me in the eye.
“Jason just… act better. Treat me better okay. I’m not one of these hoochie mama girls that you be seeing out here okay.” She said as she looked at me in the eyes.
I stared at her back. A thought then pops into my head.
“Come over to my house today, I wanna introduce you to my family. You already met my pops, but you have yet to meet my mom, and my little sister, she’s gonna love you.” I said to her.
She gave a long pause and continued to gaze into my eyes.
“Today?” She asked me.
“Naaww! NEXT WEEK!” I say.
Christy’s head drops down and she begins to cackle in laughter.
“Please bae. I know what you’re saying and I feel you. You’re not just some random girl…you’re my wife. And I want you to meet my family.” I said.
She gives another long pause. She then smiles again.
“Okay!” She said.
A big wide smile appears on my face as my teeth begins to show.
“That’s great!” I say out loud.
“I’ll even cook for you.” I add.
She begins to giggle. “You… cook. What you gon’ cook?” She asks me.
“Bae… I’ma cook you some… Corn Flakes… or some peanut butter and jelly.” I say.
Christy erupts in laughter again as her head flies back down. Her long black pony-tail swings to the front as her head drops.
“Boy I don’t want no Corn Flakes.” She said as she continued to laugh.
“Fruity Pebbles? Cheerios? Rice Krispies? Whatever you want bae, I got a lot of them jawns.” I said.
Christy erupted in laughter again. Her legs drop down from the table as her head drops, and she starts holding her stomach. I looked at her and smiled.
When she was done she lifted her head back up, her pony-tail flies back to the front.
“That’s cute.” She said as she began to wipe tears from her eyes.
“When do you want me to come?” She asked.
“Immediately after school.” I said.
Then I remembered that me and her don’t leave school at the same time. She leaves right after lunch at 12pm. Whereas I have to go to Mr. Bulk’s class and Mr. Spica’s.
“Naw matterfact, just go home after school and then I’ma come over after I’m done.” I said.
“I’ll tell my pops to come scoop us up at your crib.” I said.
“Then we’ll go over your house?” She asked me.
“Yes. You can meet my mom and little sister. Then I can cook you some Corn Flakes, them jawns gon’ be popping bae, you gon’ love it.” I said.
Christy began laughing again and covered her mouth with her hands.
“You is so stupid!” She said as she laughed.
“Where’s your food at?” I ask her as I look on top the table.
“I’m not hungry.” She said.
I gasp and put my hand over my mouth. “You… not hungry?” I said as I placed my hand on her stomach and began to rub.
“You know you’re not only eating for yourself right?” I said to her.
“How far off are you?” I asked her as I continued to rub her stomach.
She reaches over with her hand and lightly smacks me on my forearm.
“Jason that’s not funny!” She said as she began to laugh.
I playfully draw my shoulders back, then I start getting up.
“What you want me to buy you? You want some Sun Chips?” I asked her.
“No Jason, I said I’m not hungry.” She said.
“Ima get you some Sun Chips and a chocolate chip cookie.” I said as I began walking to the snack line.
A couple kids are in the snack line. I walk over to the cookie aisle and picked out three chocolate chip cookies, two for Christy and one for me.
I then walk over to where the chips are at. I reach down and grab a red Sun Chip bag, I know that’s her favorite. I then walk over to the left hand side of the room where the fridge is at. I open it up and pull out a bottle of Apple Juice. I then walk over to the cash register to pay for my items. I have to wait for about two minutes as some kids are standing in front of me. After a couple minutes I move up to the register to pay. The cashier was an elderly woman, with short grey hair and a black shirt. She was very pretty. She smiled at me, I smiled back.
“How are you doing today?” She asked me.
“I’m fine, and you?” I asked her.
I’m doing great, thanks for asking.” She said.
“Your total will be $5.25.” She said.
I reach in my pocket and hand her a $10 bill. She takes it and reaches in the register to pull out some change and give it to me.
“Thank you very much, now you have a great day.” She said.
“Thank you, and you do the same.” I said to her as I began walking back to the table.
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I placed the juice on top of the table first. Then I put down the cookie and bag of chips.
“I want you to eat all of this okay.” I say as I sit down on the table next to her.
Christy turns her head to the side and puts her hands back in between her legs.
“I’m not hungry Jason.” She said.
I open up the bag of chips and dive my head in and pull out one chip. I then lift it up and start directing it towards her mouth.
“HERE COMES THE TRAIN! CHOO-CHOO!” I said.
Christy laughed out loud. She then reaches her hand in the bag and picks up one chip.
“I promise to eat, if you promise me as well.” She said.
“You got yourself a deal BUB!” I said.
Christy opens up her mouth and then I slowly put the chip in her mouth. She starts chewing and then she closed her mouth, I smiled as I saw her swallowing it down. Then I open up my mouth, she reaches over with her hand and puts the single chip that she’s already holding in her hands, in my mouth. I then quickly grab a hold of her fingers as they are in my mouth and then I pretend to bite it off.
Christy quickly pulls her finger out of my mouth.
“JASON! WEIRDO!” She said in between her laughter.
The bell then rings. All of the kids start to get up and walk out the front door of the cafeteria.
Christy gets up from the table and begins to pull her pants up.
“You bouta leave?” I asked her as I got up as well.
“Yes.” She said.
“I don’t want you to go.” I said as I grabbed her hands.
She begins to swing my arms lightly.
“Bae you can just come over after school.” She said.
“Or….. you can just stay here and wait for me.” I said.
Christy smiles and begins to laugh lightly.
“Boy no. I’m not doing that again. Plus I gotta go home to charge my phone.” Said Christy.
I look at her as our hands are swinging.
“Okay boo… go home and charge your phone okay.” I said.
“Can I call you after school?” I ask her.
“Uhh… yeah. You better!” She said.
I smile lightly. “I wanna kiss you but that old lunch lady is standing there watching us. So I’ma just shake your hands okay.” I said.
Christy gives a wide smile as she put her hand over her mouth. Then she nods her head.
I wrap my left hand around my back as I extend my right arm, I then grab her hand and begin to shake.
“Well it was a pleasure doing business with you good fellow. I’ll catch you on the flip side Jack!” I said in an old western country accent as I shook her hands.
Christy laughed lightly and began to smile.
“Bye Jason…” She said.
I quickly turned my neck to see if the lunch lady was still watching us. She was still standing at the same place but her back was turned, she was talking to another lunch lady.
I then turn my head back to look at Christy. I dive my head down and lightly give her a peck on the cheek.
“I love you.” I told her as I began walking out the door.
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The hallway was packed as kids headed to their fourth block class. I bumped into a few people as I began walking to the Academic Building to go into Mr. Bulk’s class. I saw Joe walking through the front door in the Academic Building. His eyes were low, it looked as if he had just woken up. He had a straight face on. Not smiling nor frowning, just a blank expression.
“Sup bruh, you just coming in.” I said to Joe as I walked up to him.
He gave a long pause and looked at me as if he had never seen me before.
“Bro… you good?” I said to him as I snapped my fingers at the front his face.
“You coming to gym?” I asked him.
He doesn’t say anything, he continues to stare forward with a blank expression on his face.
“Bro you need to start coming earlier to school, I don’t be seeing you in the morning.”
He doesn’t say anything. He continues to stare forward.
“What time do you be waking up in the morning?”
He continues to look forward. “Yes.” He said
Then Joe started walking the opposite direction to the cafeteria.