Page 11 of Differences

“Sup, Rae,” I replied, trying to contain the annoyance in my voice.

“Come on in. Ma is in the living room.”

The aroma of my mama’s pot roast filled my nose, and although it made my stomach growl, I knew it was something. She only made our favorite foods when she was trying to butter us up. She’s been doing it since we were kids. As soon as I turned the corner to head to the living room, my mother was facing the TV. I couldn’t help but notice how much weight she had lost since the last time we saw each other.

“Hey, Ma,” I voiced, making my presence known.

She turned around with a smile on her face. It was as if the wind was knocked out of me. Her once full face had sunken in, and her eyes had black circles around them. The once creamy chocolate skin she blessed my sister and me with no longer shined. It was ashen and pale.

“Hey, son.”

She slowly made her way to me, opening her arms for me to give her a hug. We hugged briefly, and I pulled away. I moved around her, and I sat on the couch. She and Raven glared at me. I was aware of what they wanted. I let out an exhausted breath and sighed.

“How much this time?” My tone filled with annoyance, yet my heart filled with pain.

“Wes—” Raven started, but I cut her off.

“Let’s make this quick. I already know what it is. Ma cooks my favorite food, gets me over with sweet talk, and asks for a lump sum of money. So, as I stated before, how much?”

Raven let out an annoyed sigh, and I could see the tears welling up. She prepared to say something, but my mother cut her off.

“It’s not that. We just wanted to invite you over for dinner. I made Raven’s favorite the other day, so I wanted to make yours. That’s it, that’s all.”

Raven looked at my mother with wide eyes.

I sneered. She was lying. She played the role of trying to make me feel bad, but it was no longer effective. A part of me regretted even wasting my time coming over, knowing what it would be. However, there was a piece of me that hoped it would be different. I stood to my feet, preparing to leave.

“Where are you going?” My mother asked.

“Home. Can you box my stuff up to go?”

“Ma!” Raven damn near screamed, eyes bouncing between the two of us.

My mother held her hand up and smiled. “Sure thing, Wes. Give me a few minutes.”

She proceeded to the kitchen, leaving Raven and me there. This time, the tears were streaming down her face. I did my best to show ’Rae that her crocodile tears did not faze me.

“Money changed you,” she uttered through her tears.

“Nah, money changed you and your mama. Just like how she said she made your favorite the other day, she didn’t invite me until she made my favorite to get something out of me.”

“That’s not true, Wes! We knew you wouldn’t have come.”

“Now y’all can read minds now.”

She rolled her eyes and wiped her tears. “Money is the root of all evil.”

“Y’all would know.”

Before she could rebut, my mother came around with a grocery bag. “Here you go. I gave you the majority of the roast.” She looked at me, and I noticed her eyes were sadder than I had ever seen. She was getting good with these puppy dog eyes because I felt an inch of sadness for her but shook it off instantly.

“Well, I got work to do. Y’all text me how much it is you need, and I’ll see what I can do.”

Neither one of them said anything as I made my way to the door. I knew I would hear from them soon. Without even a goodbye, I left, sending a text to one woman in my phone. I needed to release some frustration, and I knew just the right way to do it.

6

Taja

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