Play The Game. Doug Dixon

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СКАЧАТЬ can’t decide, huh? I get that way, too. The chicken salad samich is good.”

      I covered my mouth with my right hand. Samich, I thought. Oh my God, no—he didn’t just say “samich” in this day and age. “Oh really,” I frowned.

      “Yeah, oh, uh. My name is Larry Jenkins, by the way. My peoples call me L.J.,” he said with a smile.

      I wanted to say, “I see,” looking at his teeth. “Hi. I’m Mya,” I said.

      “Mya,” he replied as his eyebrows arched. “Uh-oh, my love is like woe, my touch is like woe,” he said, snapping his fingers and laughing.

      “Huh?” I replied with a confused look.

      “You know—the song by Mya the singer.”

      “Oh, yeah, right,” I replied as I turned toward the cashier at the register.

      “Hi, ma’am. May I take your order, please?” she asked politely.

      “Yes, can I get the grilled chicken sandwich with a small lemonade?”

      L.J., or should I say Larry, walked to the next available cashier and placed his order.

      I got my sandwich and walked to the table in the middle of the food court and sat down.

      Before I began to eat, I could see Larry staring at me from the corner of my eye. I slowly turned my head away and began eating. Moments into it, Larry came to my table, still smiling and showing off his gold initials. “You mind if I sit wit ya, Mya?” he asked.

      I didn’t want to seem rude in a public place and besides, I only had a sandwich to finish and could take the lemonade with me. “Uh, no, not at all.”

      Out of all the chairs at the table he had to sit in the one closest to me. Instead of taking my time eating like I would normally do, I was stuffing my mouth with every bite. He sat down and got comfortable as he began eating what looked to be a chicken salad sandwich. I took another huge bite and began chewing faster, then took a gulp of lemonade. Larry smiled as the marinade from his chicken salad sandwich covered the “J” on the gold initials in his mouth. Uhhh, I thought. I turned my head before I threw up or lost my appetite.

      “So, what kind of work do you do?” he asked with a mouthful of food.

      “I’m a schoolteacher,” I replied with my head down.

      “Do you have a biness card or something?”

      “Huh?” I replied.

      “A biness card—you know—wit all your numbers or something on it?” he repeated.

      “Well, I’m a schoolteacher. I don’t really have any use for business cards.”

      “Okay, the reason I was asking ’cause I’d like to call you sometime, you know what I’m sayin, maybe we could—”

      “Well, look, Larry,” I interrupted.

      “No, its L.J.—call me L.J., sweetheart.”

      “Look, I don’t mean to seem rude, but I’m kind of in the middle of something with someone right now and I don’t think it would be a good idea to give you my number.”

      “I see,” he smiled. “Say no more, say no more, I understand.”

      “Thanks—well, look,” I replied as I crumpled the leftover sandwich and placed it in the bag. “It was really nice meeting you.”

      “Likewise, Mya. Uh, I do hope we meet again someday. Next time I hope you’re single,” he replied with his arm extended to shake my hand.

      I reached over to touch his hand and his fingernails were filthy. He had dirt logged deep into the nail. I slightly closed my eyes and shook his hand. Uhhh, I thought. They were rough and sticky. When our hands touched I cringed as he firmly squeezed. I then gave him a hard smile and walked off, heading straight to the nearest bathroom to wash them. While inside I beat what looked to be an empty soap dispenser to get a drop out while waiting on the water to get piping hot to scrub my hands clean. When I walked outside the bathroom I saw Larry standing with a group of guys, talking. To avoid another encounter with him I walked away in the opposite direction, cutting through the north end of the mall before making it to my car and driving off.

      When I got home, I ironed my new outfit and placed it on a hanger in my closet. I ran some hot bathwater and mixed it with scented gel beads and soaked while I listened to soft jazz. My mind drifted like it always does when I’m relaxed and thinking about being married with kids in a big house, or cuddled up on the floor near a fireplace with my toes rubbing together with my special someone.

      Later that night, Tangie and Stephanie came over as I rushed to get ready for the club. Stephanie was in the bathroom getting her makeup together when Tangie walked into my bedroom with a glass of wine.

      “I’ll be ready in a minute—I just have to put on some lipstick,” I said in a rush.

      “Take your time,” Tangie said as she took a seat on the bed. “It’s only nine-thirty. I don’t want to get there until eleven, anyway.”

      “Why so late?” Stephanie asked from the bathroom.

      “Yeah, all the good men will be taken by then,” I said.

      “Girl, trust me. If you got it, you got it. The brothers will still be there. Besides, if they want you they will leave whoever they’re with to be with you,” Tangie replied before sipping her wine.

      She did make a good point. I was just anxious to get there. “So did Todd come over last night?” I asked.

      Tangie blushed. “Yeah, you know he did, and he put it down, too. I had an incredible orgasm that had me shaking like I was in the damn electric chair, girl.”

      “Really?” I replied, laughing.

      “Then his cell phone rang—that kind of spoiled the mood. I think it was his wife or something,” she continued.

      “What’s up with him and his wife?” I asked.

      “I don’t know, and don’t care,” Tangie replied.

      “Why? I thought you two were cool like that. Don’t you two discuss his wife?” Stephanie asked.

      “No. When you’re fucking another woman’s man, rule number one is not to get caught up in family business.”

      “Why not? It doesn’t hurt to listen,” I said.

      “When I only have him for an hour, all I want to do is fuck. I don’t want to waste time listening to how bad things are at home. I know things are bad—otherwise, his ass wouldn’t be here.”

      That’s Tangie, rough and rugged. She sets her rules from the jump and doesn’t want to compromise. In my opinion that’s the reason she’s single and has had two failed marriages. She’s too stubborn.

      We left the house at around ten-thirty. When we got to Nsomnia, it was packed. We parked, put our purses СКАЧАТЬ