Page 78 of Absolute Fulfillment
“Um, I texted you. We’re good though and almost home.”
“The fuck you texting me for? If it’s a fucking emergency I want you to call me like I’m the fucking nine-one-one.”
“Okay. Well anyway, I’m or?—”
“Don’t okay me, Cay. I mean that shit. And if I don’t answer the phone, you call that nigga who looks like me. He’ll for sure fucking answer. I’m glad Harlem and Kinga got you, but baby, you got me, and I should have been your first call.” I walked out of the club, face screwed up.
“I hear you. I was on the phone with Harlem, which is why I didn’t call you immediately, but you’re right. You forgive me?”
“Shit I’on now. How is my Lil G?”
She laughed. “He’s asleep. How don’t you know if you forgive me?”
I smiled at her question. Nah, I wasn’t mad at her. I was lowkey just fucking with her and grateful she was alright. “’Cause I don’t.”
“Okay, remember that tonight. What time are you gonna be in? I can’t pick up anything for dinner because I don?—”
“Keys to the Wagon are on the nail.”
She sucked her teeth. “I’ll wait. I don’t want to get used to your car then get pissed when it’s time to go back to my own.”
“Drive the fucking car, Caya. Plus, I been told you that Jeep was on its last limb. I know those motherfuckers last forever, but I feel like forever has come and gone for that motherfucker.”
“Don’t say that, Rennix. Betty has been in the family since I was in school. Shit, since Adonis was a baby.” I could hear her frowning into the phone.
“Good memories, but baby, nine times out of ten Kinga’s gonna be telling you it’s time to junk that motherfucker, and when he does, I got you.” I climbed into the car with my brother whose music I immediately turned to minimum volume as soon as I was in the car. I knew he was looking at me crazy, but I didn’t acknowledge it or look his way.
“You got me like what? I don’t need you to buy me a car, Rennix. I’m perfectly capa?—”
“Capable of taking care of yourself. I get it, you have only said that shit a million times. It don’t matter to me. You being able to take care of and care for yourself doesn’t mean I’m not providing. I’m a man, Caya, let me do my shit. Fuss less and let me be the nigga you need me to be.”
She laughed. “Aight, I’ll fuss less and let you do you. Anything extra I can do to get something that matches yours.” Now I knew she was fucking with me, but little did she know she could get that outta me without even asking. Caya was hard working and about her paper. She never had her hand out for anything and that made me want to give her the fucking world.
“Nah, just wait up on a nigga tonight. I won’t be too late.”
“Bet. Be safe. I love you.”
“I love you too, thug.” We hung up seconds later and I just knew Reminisce was ready to clown my ass. About thirty seconds into waiting on it, he never said anything. So I looked over at him and his eyes were on the road. “What, yeen got no jokes?”
He shook his head. “Nah. You found love and I fuck with that. It’s about time you stopped running through bitches like Scott’s.”
I nodded, slightly taken aback that he didn’t have a joke.
“After all that shit with Pynk and it finally being over, I started moving unlike myself. Seeing this side of me makes me feel like I need to get back to me, who knows, probably see what else is to myself besides this death business.”
Now I was really put off, because who was this nigga a few inches away from me talking about life after death. Hell nah, this wasn’t my twin. “You feeling aight?”
“Yeah man, this is me. I’m just considering different avenues. Shit life is too short, and in the case of mine, I’ma go out one way or ano—” he started but I interrupted his spiel.
“Nope, we ain’t about to go there. You want to change, do that shit.” I wasn’t up for hearing him tell me about death… his death. I knew we all had a time, and at some point that time expired, but it didn’t mean I had to sit here and listen to it. “What are you thinking about getting into?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know yet. Probably something with this T-shirt line I’ve been passing time with.”
I nodded. “You sleep on yourself, but you could really eat with that.” Reminisce had a brand called Killer Apparel. It was basically an online T-shirt company that ran itself. All he did was supply the designs, all of which he drew and created himself.
“Yeah. I’ma probably fuck with that.”
I wanted to ask him what brought this on, but didn’t. Rem wasn’t the type you asked a lot of questions. He’d shut down so fucking fast the questions would be statements. Our mother had fucked us both up, but Reminisce always felt like he had to save something, maybe him more than me.
