Page 99 of Sort of Seeing Someone

“What’s going on?”

Yas looks away from the camera, which tells me she is toggling to catch up online while I talk.

“Shereé flipped on me. Andunfortunately, it turns out, my entire business was hinged on her: a big, gigantic,fair-weatherinfluencer. One minute, I was her best friend. The next, kicked to the curb because her NBA husband decided to have an affair with one of the team’s cheerleaders. How is that my fault?”

“Everybody knows pro athletes cannot be trusted.”

“It doesn’t matter now, because all the people she once told to like me, she just told tounlikeme. And they’re doing just that in a very big way.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I’m getting raked through the coals on Insta because I didn’twarn her. Because I didn’tpredictthis.”

“Who does she think you are, Miss Cleo?”

“She found out something you don’t know about me, Yas. Remember when I went to see Esther and she cut the session short? Well, it wasn’t because she lost her touch. It’s that when she touched my palm, she saw nothing. Come to find out, that means I have something called—”

“Exexveei,” Yas completes the thought with a stunned look on her face.

“You know about it?”

“Abuelita Sarita had it and told me all about. I even have her secrets-and-spells book in my nightstand. But since she was just my step-grandmother, and not my biological grandmother, none of that good, strong woo-wooju-ju got passed down to me, no matter how much I tried to recreate her rituals.”

“I’m sorry I never told you,” I say.

“You know, I had a feeling you had Exexveei. But I get it. It’s a lot to have to explain to someone.”

“So you’re not mad I didn’t tell you?”

“No, not at all. A little perturbed you told this Shereé girl before me, though. I thought we were besties.”

“We are. And that’s just the thing…Ididn’ttell her. She hacked intomyspell book when I wasn’t looking. I don’t know what exactly she read, but enough to interpret that I’m some omnipotent wonder of the world who did her dirty. I feel so stupid, Yas. So, so stupid. Here I was thinking I built this incredible business. But it turns out it was just a shell of a dream being held up by someone who makes a living tagging where she bought her belt on Instagram every day. How could I have ever thought this would be sustainable? That I could keep up with a queen like that? And now that I successfully pissed her off, I’m a sinking ship.”

“How are your financials looking?”

“Not good. I mean, Iwasmaking a decent profit week over week, but I was just reinvesting that into doubling my production. I was going to start putting away more in savings soon, but at this point, I’ll be lucky to break even by the end of the month with all this fallout. What do I do?”

I can hear Yas take a deep breath.

“This is going to be hard to hear, but my advice is to close up shop today. It doesn’t matter who’s wrong or right, you can’t win against Shereé Jackson—not right now, at least. You’ve got nothing in reserves and your online presence is decaying by the minute, Moonie.Take it away. Leave no scraps for the internet vultures. After things breathe a bit, you can decide when and how you want to rebuild Moon Batch Apothecary.”

“So you’re saying there’s a future?”

“There’s always a future.”

I find the strength to smile, but just barely.

“Should I say anything on my social before I shut it down? Defend myself a bit?” I ask.

“I wouldn’t post a manifesto. But if there’s something on your heart, go ahead and get it out. After that, no more. You’ll have to hunker down and let the storm pass.”

“I was afraid you’d say that.”

“Sometimes the right thing to do is the scary thing to do. But you’ve done this before. Remember moving back to Chicago after losing your house, your job, and your semi-boyfriend all in a day? You will find something to smile about again. Starting with…”

Yasmin flips the screen of her phone so I can see where she’s walking. It’s Ocean Beach, Newport Avenue to be exact.

“Is that the old Joe n’ Flow digs?” I ask.

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