“Tell me, Van,” Roger say, “you got a girlfriend?”
I looks at him and laughs. “Shit, man, I gots me fo’ babies.”
Penelope look at Roger and he look at her and they bust up laughin.
“You’re kidding me,” Penelope say. “Four babies? Are you married?”
“Hell no,” I say.
“You’re not married and some woman has had four babies by you?” Roger ax.
“No,” I says. “Fo’ different womens.”
They look at each other and Roger make like he whistlin but don’t no sound come out. Then they be starin at me.
“What the fuck you lookin at,” I say.
“Oh, nothing,” Penelope say. “Four babies. Do you see them?”
“I sees my babies,” I say and I starts to eat some of that chicken. I be rippin into a thigh like it the last food on earf. Grease be all on my mouth and shit. I drink some beer and I see they ready to go. I wipes my mouth on my sleeve.
“That was good, Van,” Penelope say. “Thanks for bringing us here.”
They sits in the back seat and I be drivin them around like some kinda natral-born fool. I takes them out of my hood anyways and they don’t even notice cause they in the backseat drinkin booze out a flask. Roger offer me some but I say no and he takes a big swig and laugh at me.
I wanna pull over and drag his skinny ass out the car and kick the shit outta him. But I don’t do it and I realize they money scare me and then I feels sick.
They makes me drive them over to downtown and Roger say he know a corner where he can score some weed and Penelope say, “Oh goody.” And I just drives the car. There we is on Union and I’m leanin against the car watchin Richie Rich and Veronica buy they little bag when I see a jeep comin up. Damn, if it ain’t Jeep Man and he got one of his partners with him. He parks behind me and they hops out and I’m thinkin oh shit and here they comes.
“Looky, looky,” Jeep Man say.
“Fuck you,” I say and since I know why he stop, I just drives on his face with my fist. Bam! Blood fly out his eye like a bug and the punch feel real good to me. Real good. So good I don’t hardly feel it when Jeep Man’s partner hit me in the chest. I comes up with my knee in his fuckin balls and he double over. But I don’t want him. I want Jeep Man and so I drives on his face again and I feel it soften under my knuckles, like bread or sumpin. Bam! I gots blood on my fist and he gone. He ain’t gone be trouble to nobody for awhile. I hears a scream and I turn to see Penelope standin there. She turn and Roger catch her in his arms.
“They try to jump me,” I says.
“Let’s go,” Roger say.
We gets into the car and I tear off. My fist is bloody and my heart be beating fast and I feel good. I feel real good. “So, you get some smoke?” I ax.
“Yeah,” Roger say.
“Well, light it up, nigger,” I say. I look at Roger in the mirror and I see in his face that he ain’t never been called nigger before. “I don’t mean nothin by it. I’m a nigger, too.”
He rolls a joint while Penelope kill off the flask. She drunk as shit. We smoke and I drives.
“You ever been in a fight?” I ax Roger.
“Not really,” he say.
“Whatchew mean, not really?” I ax.
“I’ve got a black belt in Kung Fu, but I’ve never actually been in a fight.”
I hold up my fist and show him the dried blood on my knuckles. “That there be my black belt.”
Penelope lets out a high and drunk giggle.
“You get fucked up like this every day?” I ax.
But they don’t answer me. Penelope is almost passed out and Roger is feelin on her titties.
“Hey, Roger,” I say.
“What?”
“I gots to get back. I’m gone let you out here,” I say. I pull over and turn to look him in the eyes. He too fucked up to argue. He look at Penelope. “I’ll take her on home,” I says.
“Okay,” Roger say. He gets out and lets Penelope fall over on the seat. He watch as I drives off.
It be almost dark by the time I gets Penelope back to her house. There some lights on but otherwise it be quiet. Penelope is in and out, talkin shit and babblin and shit and I can’t make out what the fuck she be sayin. I gets her out of the car, but she can’t stand up by her own self. I starts to take her to the front door and my heart be beatin a mile a minute. Bam Bam Bam Bam Bam, in my chest like that, like it bout to bust out my body. Bam Bam Bam Bam Bam. Then the bitch start to singin and I tells her ass to shut up. She look at me like who the fuck I be tellin her to shut up.
“Celebrate, celebrate, dance to the music,” she sing louder.
I begs her, “Please, Penelope, please don’t make no fuss. You don’t wanna gets into no trouble, do you?”
She looks at me and then she put her finger to her lips and say, “Shhhhh.” She look at the house. “Don’t take me in there,” she say. “Take me around back to the pool house.”
“Okay,” I says. I do like she tells me and I damn near have to carry her round the side of the house and past the pool. The lights from inside the house be shinin off the water in the pool. A pump or some shit somewhere is makin a hummin noise. I open the door of the pool house and put Penelope on one of them lounge chairs. I watches her body sink down into the cushion. I’m lookin at her and my feelings is all tied up in knots. I want to be like her. I hate her. I hate her money. I hate her daddy. I hate the way she look at me me like I don’t know shit bout the world. But, damn she fine. Sumpin bout her almost white though and I hates her. Damn, she be fine as shit. Her shirt be open just a little bit and I can see her tittie almost. She look good, awright. I put my hand down there and touch that tittie. Just like fuckin silk. I squeezes her little nipple and she moan and I don’t think she know it me. Then I hear this tappin sound. I looks up and I see somebody comin.
“Penelope?” the woman call out. “Penelope? Is that you?”
A woman is standin by the pool. Shit, I thinks. I’m in here with this drunk bitch. They gone throw my ass in the jail for damn sho. Penelope make a noise. The woman hear her and come to the door of the pool house.
“Penelope?” she say.
But I put my mouth over Penelope’s so she can’t say nuffin. I’m in the shadow with Penelope and then I see the woman got this white cane. Shit, the bitch be blind. I almost laughs out loud. But my mouth is still on Penelope’s mouth and she be kissin me now. She don’t know who the fuck I is. The blind bitch walk on away and back into the house. And I be into it now. Penelope call me Roger and I think I don’t care who the fuck she think I is, I’m gone knock it out. Damn straight. And that’s what I does. Her bony ass ain’t for shit, but I knocks it out anyway. I spreads her open and stabs her. I stab her again. I wanna wake her up and say the pussy ain’t no good. But she asleep. Sleepin like in that story. But my kiss dint wake her ass up.
Seben
Next mornin, Baby Girl come runnin into my room. She be yellin for me to get up and come to the phone. I tells her I be tryin to sleep, but she keep pullin on me.
“What the fuck is it?” I ax.
“They on the phone,” she say.
“Who on the phone?” I be wakin up and my mind be racin like crazy. The cops? Mr. Dalton? Who be on the phone. I awake now.
“From the telebision,” Baby Girl say.
“What?” I ax.
“Snookie Cane,” she say. “From that Snookie Cane Show.”
“Leave me the hell alone,” I say. “You ain’t funny.”
“I’se for real,” she say.