weekend pt. 3

walking into the reggae club, i was immediately assuaged by both the smoke wafing in thick white curls around me and the blue light casting an intimacy to my surroundings. the dj was playing calypso, the beats curved off of the walls and embraced my bones as their fingers gripped my hips and forced them to sway to the music. damn, but i had forgotten just how good the music is in a reggae joint. remembering, my spirits were lifted and i made my way past the bar to a table in the corner. as candice and i sat down, i glanced around to get a better look at our surroundings. the walls were bare except for the dark blue paint on them, and the room itself wasn't all that large, filled mostly with tables and chairs. the dance floor was larger than i expected, taking up the length of the area at the far end of the club.

there was blue lighting throughout, whether to make everyone look better or to create a sense of closeness with everyone there, i'm not sure. low lighting always has a way of heightening my senses, making my skin prickle with awareness of all bodies near me. this is how i felt as i sat at the table, studying the people who walked by. one thing i noticed off of the bat was the fact that there were alot of attractive brothas there. in fact, they outnumbered the women about 2-1, which is a rarity in a city where the women outnumber the men 10-1. then you add in the fact that there is a large gay male population and then the numbers jump to 15-1. needless to say, the single sistas in atlanta have it tough.

i ordered a corona and leaned back in my chair, crossing my legs as i tried to get comfortable. my mini-skirt rode a little up my thigh and as i felt it, i looked down and grabbed the hem to pull it down.

"don't do that," a deep voice implored. "i was enjoying the view."

i looked up and noticed it was the same brotha i met outside. inwardly i sighed. outwardly i looked him in the eyes and said nothing while i tugged the hem down. after a minute of silence, he realized i wasn't going to say anything.

"would you like a drink?" he inquired as he smoothly sat down in the seat across from me. i frowned. frankly, i don't usually allow men to buy me drinks. it seems like there is some unspoken promise that goes with it, like his purchase of a drink means i'm obligated to spend time with him. fifteen minutes per cheap beer or wine, thirty minutes for premium beer or mixed drinks. god forbid someone break out the krystal or moet. that means a sista gotta fuck him AND his friends. a nasty shiver raced up my spine as i shook my head to clear it of the image.

"no. thanks for the offer though," i replied.

he sat back in his chair like he was getting comfortable. he continued staring at me as he hooked his right leg off his left knee. his gaze was rather intense, as it slide from my eyes to my chest to my legs and back up again. i decided it was time to put this thing to an end. i broke the eye contact and turned my body so that i was facing candice on my left. she and i made small talk, primarily comments about the brothas walking through the front door of the club, while the guy to my right remained silent. after ten minutes, i could still feel his gaze on me. okay, now this is just getting creepy. i turned to him.

"aren't you going to walk around and enjoy yourself?" i asked, hoping he would get up and leave.
he hesitated for a second, then answered "no. i'm enjoying myself right here." he leaned over and placed his hand on top of mine. i snatched my hand away and glared at him silently.

"no need to deny what's happening between us, luv," he said, not in the least bit discouraged. "it's fate."

i turned and looked at candice, who was looking at me with that "this brotha is creepy" look on her face.

"wassup mark," says a voice from in front of the table. candice and i look up and see a familiar face. omaretta. candice's neighbor and one of the few people in the world i know and don't like. she's an older sista, somewhere in her 40s, with shoulder-length hair and a slim frame. she's also obnoxious and arrogant and the exact opposite of the kind of sista i want to be when i reach her age. she was staring angrily at the guy sitting next to me. oh shit, i thought.

"wassup omaretta." he replied indifferently. i looked at her and murmured hello, sensing the tension that had suddenly engulfed the air around the table like flames. as omaretta continued staring at mark, i invited omaretta to sit with us. she declined. i then decided it was time for a bathroom break. i stood up and told candice i was headed to the bathroom and she quickly got up. we both told omaretta and mark we'd be back, then left the table holding our breaths. as we entered the bathroom, i let out a deep sigh and looked at candice. she looked at me and suddenly we both burst out laughing.

"what the fuck was THAT all about?" i asked in between chuckles.

"that's the guy omaretta's been telling me about!" candice answered.

"who, mark??"

"yup!" candice could hardly speak at this point as the laughter threatened to erupt within her again. "that's the guy she's been *nose open over for the last three weeks!"

"oh shit." i frowned and looked into the mirror, staring at my reflection as i tried to come up with a plan to avoid them both for the rest of the night.

"and not only that," candice continued on, obviously getting alot of joy out of the situation,"omaretta told me she had put the pussy down on a brotha so well, he was nose open, too!"

i pondered that a sec. "so she's already fucked this guy?"

"yup."

"oh well." i'm not the one to judge. i'd had a number of experiences like that in my single days. however, i wasn't sure how omaretta would act towards me once she knew mark had been persistently trying to talk to me since i got here. i turned to the mirror, ran my fingers through my locs to pull them away from my face, then turned to candice. "you ready?"

"yeah."

we walked out of the bathroom. i had already decided i wasn't going to sit back down, so as i tried to walk past the table i told omaretta i'd see her later. she placed herself in front of me.

"no," she stated quietly. "you'll see me right now."

oh shit, i thought.