Page 9 of No Remedy for Love

“Fuck baby! Here it come!” Mav pulled out and released his unborn babies on her ass before they both collapsed in his king sized bed.

“What time is it?” Remi asked once they caught their breath.

“Why? It’s Sunday. You ain’t bout to go nowhere.” Mav sat up slightly to look down at her.

“I know what today is but I’m not trying to be inside all day either.”

“Where you trying to go?”

“I might see what Tracy got going on today,” she replied, making Mav’s heart drop in his chest.

He hated when Remi hung out in certain areas. His secrets had a chance of being revealed if she talked to the wrong people. It was bad enough that her last client lived so close to her best friend. He didn’t want her to get too comfortable hanging in certain areas.

“You just went by Tracy yesterday?”

“What’s your point?” Remi looked at him sideways.

He was always in his feelings whenever she wasn’t around him. She wasn’t trying to be all up in his face all day like he wanted her to be. She never knew him to be so clingy before but it was annoying as fuck. Mav was on some relationship shit, but Remi wasn’t feeling it. She was cool with what they had now. Mav gave her whatever she wanted and she gave him whathe wanted. Being exclusive again wasn’t happening. She wasn’t interested in rekindling none of her old flames. If anything, she wanted to start a new fire. She let him know that she was gonna talk to other men and probably date some of them too.

Mav wanted to protest when Remi got out of the bed and headed for the shower. He got up and followed her, hoping to get his dick wet again before she left.

After showering and getting dressed, Remi and Mav got into their cars and went their separate ways. She called Tracy as she drove to see what she was up to.

“Hey boo. What’s up?” Remi asked when Tracy answered the phone.

“Different day, same bullshit!” Tracy sounded annoyed, and Remi already knew why.

“Now what?” Remi held her breath, awaiting the word storm that she knew was coming. When Tracy started talking about her relationship, it was almost impossible to get her to stop.

“Girl, niggas ain’t shit and I’m so happy that I’m not living my life as one. I probably wouldn’t be shit either.”

“What are you and Vinnie into it for now?” Vincent was Tracy’s on and off again boyfriend, whenever they decided to get along.

Tracy was always the problem, but Remi would have to give her girl oxygen to breathe if she ever told her that. Vinnie was a hood nigga who was openly bisexual. He was straight up gay in Remi’s eyes since he hadn’t been with a woman since he and his ex-wife divorced about eight years ago. He had three daughters who adored Tracy just as much as their father did.Vinnie’s ex-wife loved Tracy too, and they all got along great. Vinnie was always upfront about his sexuality, and she was never in the dark about the man that she married. They hooked up with other couples all the time when they were together, so she knew how he got down. Even their divorce was amicable and they co-parented well. Both admitted that the marriage only happened because of the kids so there was no love lost.

Tracy, on the other hand, was super private and didn’t want anyone to know that they were together. In her mind, the people who needed to know already did and she didn’t care about anyone else. Vinnie didn’t agree with her keeping their relationship a secret but he rolled with it. The problem came when Vinnie felt disrespected by some of the comments that were aimed towards her in his presence. He was a man and he wanted to defend her like he was supposed to. Tracy often got pissed because he wanted to fight for a relationship that nobody even knew they were in. Remi was a good sister-friend, so she always listened when Tracy vented about the same thing over and over. She was lowkey too, so she understood her girl not putting everybody in her business. She didn’t agree with her being disrespected, but Tracy always brushed it off.

“You know how these stupid ass niggas around here always be playing. I let the shit fly but he be ready to fight. I keep telling him that everything doesn’t require a reaction. He be ready to give up too much of his time and energy to bullshit.”

“I’m sorry sis, but I disagree. You want that man to stand by and remain silent while other niggas talk under your clothes. They be going too far and the shit is mad disrespectful. Hell, I be pissed off sometimes too.”

Everybody knew who and what Tracy was, but some of them took a joke too far. Some shit just wasn’t funny; it wasdisrespectful. Tracy claimed to not be affected by any of it, but Remi knew that was a lie. She had feelings and they showed whenever they said something that she didn’t like. She played it off, but the shit was annoying. As strong as Tracy was, Remi knew that she could be just as vulnerable and passive. She avoided confrontations as much as possible, but some shit just couldn’t be overlooked.

“I know sis but you, of all people, know that I can handle myself.”

“It’s not about you being able to handle yourself Tracy. I know you and some of the things they say really do hurt.”

“It does Remi, but that’s what I signed up for when I decided to live my life as a woman. I knew what to expect.”

“That’s bullshit! I don’t give a fuck if you decided to live your life as a dog. You should be able to walk on all fours and get the same respect as all the other dogs on the street.”

“I’ll get my life together one day girl. What are you getting into today?” Tracy asked, changing the subject. She knew that everything Remi said was right but it wasn’t that easy for her. The world was a cruel place. Things had evolved over time but she knew that she would never fully be accepted by society.

“I was coming to hang with you, but it doesn’t sound like you’re in the mood.”

“I’m always in the mood to see you but I wanna get out of this house. I just put the finishing touches on a wedding dress and I need a break. I know that my books are about to be filled for a while with prom season approaching.”

“That sounds good to me. I’m on my way to the city now, bitch. You got one hour so start getting ready now. I’m gonnapass and check on my granny before I come to give you a little time.”

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