Part 46
"Let's get a couple things straight," I said in the car on the way to the mall. "Don't touch the radio, don't touch the windows, don't annoy me. That's it."
"Car rules," I heard Vince mutter from the backseat. "This is gonna be a fun ride."
"Did I forget to mention not to talk?" I asked, looking at him through the rearview mirror.
"Yeah, ya did," he said, leaning forward and resting his elbows on the front seats. "But I don't qualify for these rules."
"And why is that?"
"Tell her Dom," he said, looking at Dom. Dom turned to him.
"Will you sit back and shut up?!" he yelled, pushing Vince's forehead back, which was followed by the rest of his body. I looked at Dom who had returned his gaze out the window.
"What's your problem?" I asked him.
"I don't like shopping," he replied.
"Well you will after today," I informed both of them.
"Why you say that?" Dom asked, looking at me.
"Because I am the shopping Queen. After shopping with me, you'll know what it means to spend money."
"Speaking of money," Dom said. "How much do we have?"
"I dunno, how much you got?" I asked him. He retrieved his wallet from his back pocket then counted his money.
"Ah..... 120," he answered. I knew Vince had none so I lifted my hips and grabbed a wallet outta my back pocket. I looked at Dom and he was already looking at me.
"What?" I squeaked.
"Nothin," he said quickly, putting his hands up.
"Why you lookin at me like that?"
"I didn't know you carried a wallet," he said.
"I don't." I opened the wallet and showed Dom the driver's license inside.
"You took Leon's wallet?!" he exclaimed. I laughed.
"Stealin cars isn't the only thing I'm good at," I told him. He laughed that low, rough laugh of his. I threw the wallet at him and told him to count the money.
"Oh damn!" he said.
"What?!" Vince and I asked at the same time.
"He has like 200 dollars!"
"Well..." I started. "Not for long." We drove for a little while with Dom giving me various directions as we went.
"Hey, wanna hear a joke?" Vince asked, after a long period of silence.
"No," Dom and I stammered. We looked at each other and shared a smile. Maybe we were getting closer... becoming friends. Suddenly, my seat fell back along with myself and the car swerved as I shot back up.
"Vince! You dumbass!" Dom yelled before I could. I grabbed the latch on the side of the chair and my seat came back up. "You see that pole back there?" he asked.
"Yeah," Vince said after looking through the back window.
"We almost crashed into that because of you," Dom finished.
"No we didn't," Vince laughed.
"Am I really here?" I asked no one in particular. "Stuck in this beautiful car with... the Moron Twins."
"The Moron Twins," Dom said. "Has a nice ring to it."
"Yeah!" Vince agreed. Dom turned to Vince and they shared a high-five.
"Oh... my... God," I said, not sounding irritated... it was just plain.
"Oh come on," Dom said. "We are cool." I rolled my eyes.
"Morons, your bus is leaving," I said.
We finally arrived at the mall seconds before I slapped both of them. We got out, I turned the car alarm on, and we headed inside. Dom was walking next to me and we purposely walked fast to keep Vince behind us. His breath was horrible and his clothes were dirty.
"Guys! Wait up!" he called a few feet behind us. Dom and I looked at each other and smiled. I knew we were both thinking the same thing. We started running. We ran through the crowd trying to get inside the mall through the small doors. After a few yells at us we made it inside. We were laughing so hard, my stomach hurt and my eyes were filling with tears.
"Oh my God," I laughed. We saw Vince fighting his way in then we looked at each other again. Dom grabbed my hand and we started running again.
When we finally decided to stop acting like children, we found Vince and began our shopping spree with someone else's money. We discovered the men's section first because I knew how tough it was gonna be to find Vince an outfit.
"Ok," I said. "What do you like?" Vince looked at me.
"What I have on," he answered. I rolled my eyes and knew not to ask that question again. Quickly, I grabbed a white wife-beater and a pair of jeans.
"These better fit or you are walking home," I warned. He reluctantly took the two items from me and headed into the dressing room. "Now," I began, looking at Dom. "What do you want?" He opened his mouth to answer. "Wait! Say no more!" I interrupted.
"I didn't say anything," he said. I took his wrist and yanked him toward an outfit: black workman pants and a little ways down the aisle where I found Vince's wife-beater... I found a black one. "How plain," Dom said.
"Look," I said. "I have to have at least one hour to find me an outfit and one hour to find my sister an outfit, which means I don't have time for you."
"Fine, I'll take it," he agreed. He took the shirt and the pants and headed inside the dressing room as Vince came out. He was wearing the white tank top and the jeans. For being a grangly, grizzly guy, he looked good.
"Well?" he asked, putting his arms out. I raised my eyebrows and smiled.
"Not bad," I said. "Not bad. All you need to do is shave and you'll be good."
"I don't shave," he declined. "It's not me." I thought about it for a minute and pictured him without that ever popular beard of his.
"Yeah, you're right," I said. I turned around and headed for a chair because I knew Dom was gonna take his time just to annoy me.
"Hey," I heard Vince say softly. I spun around to face him and he was standing right behind me.
"Umm..." I said shakily. I didn't know what he was doing or what he thought he was about to do. "What?" My voice was so shaky, I'd never heard it that way before. His hand found my hair and stroked it softly. I swallowed hard; I had no idea what Vince was doing. His face came closer to mine and I quickly moved away... he'd just tried to kiss me.
"Hey," I heard Dom say from behind Vince. Vince jumped and turned around and I looked at Dom. "Get dressed," he told Vince. Vince was obviously too nervous to say no, so he did as he was told and went back into the dressing room. Dom approached me.
"What happened?" he asked, his voice was soothing not angry like I thought he was.
"He tried to kiss me," I said quietly.
"And why would he do that?" he inquired.
"I don't fuckin know!" I squealed.
"Calm down," he insisted, putting his large hands on my shoulders.
"Dom, I don't want Leon..." I started.
"I won't tell if you won't," he interrupted. I looked in his eyes and he appeared to be telling the truth. The sincerity in his voice made me a believer. I hugged him quickly before Vince came out of the dressing room.
"So you look sexy," I told Dom. He laughed and nodded.
"I know," he joked. He changed and I gave them money to pay for their clothes so I could start shopping for my sister and I.
I found the skirts and tank tops and I was in heaven. Mexico never had these kinds of clothes: street slut clothes, that is. There were so many outfits I wanted I was about to buy all of them for me and tell my sister to wear whatever she could find. But if I did that, I probably would have been murdered.
I looked for myself first. I sort of left the skirts and bikini tops for something new. I'd always dressed like a hoe because I wanted a boyfriend and I thought that was how to get one, but it wasn't. And now, I had a fiance, so I had to dress differently. I had no idea leather pants could be so sexy. I grabbed a pair of black leather pants that cris-crossed and tied at the hips, then a sleeveless top that also cris-crossed and tied between my breasts.
"Now that is hot," I heard someone say from behind me. I jumped, spun around, and almost ran into Dom.
"Just wait til I put it on," I said, smiling. He laughed. "Where's Vince?" I asked. I didn't really care, I was just making conversation.
"In the car," he answered. "He feels bad."
"I don't care," I said quickly, turning around to the clothes rack and looking for something for my sister.
"You should talk to him," he continued.
"When did you become Oprah?" I asked, turning to him. He rolled his eyes.
"Don't call me that," he said in his 'warning tone'.
"Then don't tell me what to do," I said. His head fell back as I began to walk passed him. He thrust his large arm in front of me and grabbed the clothes rack next to me, stopping me from going anywhere. I looked up at him.
"Don't do that," he warned, his voice low and rumbling. It sounded like thunder in a late night thunderstorm that, before that moment, I thought was comforting.
"And who are you? My daddy?" I asked.
"No and thank God for that," he sighed. My jaw dropped and I stared at him for a few seconds.
"That wasn't very nice," I finally said. He smiled and put his arm around me.
"I know," he said. "I'm sorry. Why don't you go try on that outfit, I'll find Z somethin, then you can talk to Vince."
"I'm not talkin to him," I protested as I headed inside the dressing room.
"Yes you are," Dom said.
"No I'm not," I argued.
"Yes you are."
"No I'm not!" I stammered then I slammed the door shut. I changed into the outfit and looked at my reflection in the mirror.
"Damn..." I said to myself. I never knew exactly how good I looked in pants because I hated them. I always preferred skirts to pants, but my mind was changing rapidly. I walked out of the dressing room into Dom's view.
"Damn..." he said, just like I had seconds before. I smiled. "Leon's gonna be gettin in a lotta fights."
"Why?" I asked.
"Cuz I'm bout to take you," he laughed. I joined him in laughter because we both knew he was joking. I knew that he and I could joke like that now, but I really couldn't believe that 'Dom' and 'friend' and 'me' would ever be used in the same sentence.
I quickly changed, found my sister an outfit, then we finally left. Vince remained quiet in the backseat just like I'd hoped he would, but Dom and I carried on a conversation about various things: me and Leon's wedding, he and Z's relationship, if Hector would ever get over our marriage... then, it came to me.
"Oh my God!" I squeaked.
"What? What is it?!" Dom asked.
"My sister's birthday," I said. "It's next week."
"Really? Wow..." he said.
"I don't know what I'm gonna do."
"Take her to a strip club," Vince chimed in. His words were slurred and made him sound like he was drunk, but he wasn't. He hadn't had a beer all day as a matter of fact. My eyebrow arched and my head cocked to the side.
"Come on V," Dom said.
"Not a bad idea," I said.
"What?!" Dom squeaked. I looked at him.
"My sister and I like to have fun. We've been to strip clubs before," I explained.
"Then it's a plan," Vince said.
"It's a plan," I replied, looking at him through the rearview.
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Part 47
There was a knock at the door, and I half-expected to see Mercedes there, her arms full of bags. I opened it, because I was closest, and was nearly knocked over by an extremely animated black man.
"Hector!" he called throatily, to which my brother responded by bounding from his room to hug the man.
"Whoa!" I yelled as I stepped out of the way. Leon was soon joining them. He'd decided to hook himself up on the couch after the earlier, embarrassing incident. He jumped in the small group of hugging and shaking hands. Just then, I saw La'Desta come running from the bedroom that she now shared with Hector.
"Desta!" the man rumbled with his gravely voice. She shreiked something as she ran to him, then jumped and wrapped her legs around his waist. He hugged her and her legs fell limp. "Where ya'll been?" he asked. Brian stood up and walked uneasily to the door, wiping his palms on the sides of his pants. The man, who was still totally new to me, eyed him for a minute, then thrust his hand out. Brian moved like he was going to shake his hand, but as soon as he was close enough, the man pulled him into a hug.
"Damn, boy, you don't know how good it is to see you!" Letty said, hugging him. I was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable. He and Mia exchanged greetings, and then his attention focused on me.
"Whoo... Leon! Boy! How a doofus-ass white boy like you gonna get with a girl this fine?" he asked. I wanted to laugh.
"Whoa, whoa, wait a second," Leon started. La'Desta interrupted.
"Edwin, this is Zoraida. Not Leon's girl, I told you about her, she ain't back yet," she said. Edwin laughed and apologized, then held his hand out for me to shake.
"Edwin," he said with a wink, "Since you free and all..." I laughed. Free was the exact opposite of what I was. Much like Brian, when I extended my hand to Edwin, he pulled me to him and hugged me. "I'll have my people get in touch with your people, we'll get together," he said slyly. He was a little too touchy-feely for my liking, and kinda cocky to boot.
"No hablo ingles," I said, tilting my head and narrowing my eyes, as if in confusion. He let out a defeated sigh. Letty began to say something, but Hector knew what was up and stopped her as he and Leon shared a moment in which they laughed and rolled their eyes. Letty's glare was going strong as she tried to bore a hole in the side of my face with her eyes. I was really getting tired of her. I ignored my glaring dissatisfaction with my polar opposite and concentrated on Edwin. He had his arm draped over La'Desta's shoulders, and the more I looked at them, the more I realized that he was her brother. They had the same features, like they were copies of each other. It was crazy. I made a mental note to ask Hector about it.
"Well let's sit down or somethin," Hector said, "I ain't about standin here in front of the door."
"Man, you ain't about nothin that don't got to do with food, money, or ass, lazy bitch," Edwin said. I gave Hector a sideways glance to show my disapproval, but he dismissed my gaze by shaking his head. His way of saying, 'don't worry about it.'
The next twenty minutes were long and agonizing. Leon, Hector and Edwin talked and talked, while La'Desta and Mia listened intently. Brian was trying to keep Letty occupied with petty conversation, but her eyes kept finding their way to me, and Leon was just sitting in front of me, not talking, not listening, just being. Whenever Edwin would ask me a question, I would answer with "No hablo." I didn't like him much. Of course, everyone except Edwin knew that I spoke perfect English, even better than my Spanish, but it had always been a way for me to avoid taking to people I didn't like. If I met a white man I didn't want to talk to, it was "No hablo ingles," and similarly, if it was a Mexican who looked particularly threatening or undesirable, it was "Yo hablo ingles" or "Yo no hablo espanol."
Finally, there was a loud banging of feet stomping up the stairs, and I could hear my sister declaring herself the winner. She burst through the door, and everyone's attention was turned toward her. "I won, I won!" she chirpped, oblivious to the new man in the room. Dom entered momentarily, carrying a few bags.
"Yeah, she won." He looked at me and I ran to them both, happy to be out of the uncomfortable situation.
"Where's Vince?" I asked. Edwin jumped up and started goin on about how I said I didn't speak English. Hector settled him down, then turned his attention to the door.
"Yeah, where's Vince?" he asked. Dom jerked his thumb in the direction of the stairs.
"He's comin." I smiled at Dom, kissed him quickly and took my sister to Hector's room without letting her say a word to Edwin. Dom noticed him, and the routine of hugging and shaking hands began again. We were there just long enough to see Vince come stumbling in, coughing and breathing hard.
"Oh girl! I love you!" I said as I pulled the clothes from the bag. I examined them before dismissing her from the room. I pulled the cut-off tee shirt over my head and yanked on the jeans. The door opened and I turned to see who it was as I finished zipping the pants. "Oh, hey," I said, smiling. Dom walked in and shut the door behind him.
"I'm gonna take you out for your birthday, where do you wanna go?" he asked, standing by the door. I explained that I wasn't really familiar with LA, so I didn't know what was there and it was up to him.
The week flew by, and my birthday was there before I even knew it. 27 years old. As promised, Dom took me out for dinner, and had Hector clear the house out for us. When we arrived at Hector's later that night, we were greeted by Leon and Mercedes, who were on the couch, laughing and goofing around.
"Hey, what's goin on here?" I asked. "I thought it was just us tonight?" Dom smiled at me.
"Well, it's just us and them." I rolled my eyes.
"Aright, smartass. So... What's goin on here?" I asked my sister. She regained control of herself and gave me a hug, then everyone wished me a happy birthday. They sat me on the couch and started talking.
"So we were gonna take you to a titty bar tonight," Leon said. Mercedes pinched his arm. "Ow! What'd ya do that for?" he squeaked. She rolled her eyes and continued his explanation.
"Yeah, well, we're not doin that now," she said. I chuckled a little and listened on.
"We're bringin it to you," Dom said. I looked at him sideways and asked him to elaborate. "Maestro!" he said, laughing. Mercedes flipped on the stereo and the thumping violin beat of "Back Dat Ass Up" filled the apartment. Perfectly in synch, my sister sat beside me, and our guys jumped up and began dancing. The sight was so comical that before the first chorus, the two of us were in tears.
'Girl you look good / Won't chu back dat ass up' Juvenile rapped. Dom had his back to us and was dancing like a trained, professional rap video back- up girl. Mercedes and I "whoo"ed and laughed as Leon began dancing like the stripper he was pretending to be, lifting his shirt to expose his stomach. As the second chorus began, they danced in time and had choreographed moves. Tears streamed down my cheeks. The looks on their faces were priceless, as Leon puckered his lips and Dom shimmied toward him. Thankfully, the song was cut short.
"Piece of shit cd burner," my sister managed to choke out between laughs and gulps of air. I was hiccuping from breathing so heavily and laughing so hard. My entire body ached from cracking up, and I was so happy that it was over.
"Where are my singles?" Dom asked, sitting beside me. He fluttered his eyelashes and I laughed harder.
"Ooh girl, what'chu laughin at?" Leon asked in a horribly imitated female voice; he was too busy laughing to get it right. We all calmed down and laid back on the couch, my mind still whizzing from what I'd just encountered.
"Oh geez," Mercedes said as she was thrown into another laughing fit. I joined her, and soon the boys were in on it too.
"Oh shit, oh shit," I wheezed, my laughing coming to a slow stop. We hung out for a few more minutes, trying to calm ourselves and put different images in our minds.
"Ok, your turn," Dom said, laughing still. I looked at him with my face scrunched by laughter.
"You're not serious," I said, smiling. His face remained unchanged until a slow smile spread across his face.
"Oh, he's serious," my sister piped up, allowing a few more giggles to escape her throat. I looked at her with the same dubious glare I'd given Dom only moments before.
"All right... I guess..." I said slowly, still not sure if they were serious or not. When I watched Leon walk to the stereo and change the song, I knew they were for real. A few opening notes were played before I recognized "You're Makin Me High."
"Ah damn," I said, laughing. I stood and pulled my sister off the couch. "If I'm doin this, you gotta do it with me," I explained.
"No, it's all you girl," she replied, trying to sit back down. Leon and Dom looked at each other and moved so that they occupied the entire couch. "Come on guys," she said, "I'm not doin this."
"But that was the idea," Leon rumbled, winking. She rolled her eyes, exhaled with mock annoyance, and stood with me. I started the song over and began dancing toward Dom as Toni Braxton's smooth voice poured from the speakers.
'I always think of you / Inside of my private thoughts / I can imagine you / Touching my private parts,' we sang along with the stereo. I moved Dom's legs as I danced so that his feet were on the floor and I could sit on his lap. I straddled his knees and sat facing him on his legs. I put my hands on the back of his neck and sang to him, staring into his eyes. It was an intense moment.
His hands gripped the bottom of my shirt, and he tried to pull it up. "Are you trippin?" I asked. I continued dancing on his lap.
"Come on," he coaxed. He tried again, but this time I stood up.
"I'm not takin my shirt off with Leon and my sister right there," I said, then I continued singing.
'All I want / Is you there inside me / All night / Ooh baby'
"Come on," he asked again, jerking his head toward my sister, "I doubt they'll care." I looked to see my sister, half naked, leaning onto Leon. He was all over her and they were in their own world.
"Ah what the hell," I said, then yanked my shirt over my head and moved to sit back on his lap. He laughed against my skin as I stood and he pulled me closer to him. He pressed his lips against my stomach and feathered it with kisses. I began breathing heavily and became lightheaded, eventually collapsing onto his thighs to regain my equilibrium.
'It's our first time together and I'm feelin kinda horny / Conventional methods of makin love kinda bored me'
"Mmm..." I groaned. I'd always had a soft spot for LL Cool J, and my sister knew that. Obviously Dom knew it too, because he pulled me back down and it was him, this time, who sang with the music.
"I wanna knock ya block off, get my rocks off, blow ya socks off, make sure ya G spot's soft," he rapped in a whisper against my neck. I moaned as his breath tickled my skin.
"Let's go," I said before I lost the nerve. "Right now."
'So whatcha sayin / I get my swerve on / Bring it down make it last forever / Damn the kitty cat's tired'
"Ah Z," he said, "I don't think I can go anywhere. Let's just hang here for a second..." He swallowed hard and sat me on the couch beside him. I was ready to head to a more private place, so I figured I'd have a little more fun, since he wasn't.
"I need a roughneck nigga, mandingo in the sack, who ain't afraid to pull my hands spank me from da back," I sang softly into his ear. It was fun to watch him squirm as my lips grazed his ear. The torturer had now become the torturee.
This bantering continued for the remainder of the song. I'd try my damndest to make him leave with me, and he'd try his hardest to make me stay. Thanks to my sister, the ending of the song was omitted, her less than appreciative attitude toward the, "orgasmic noises" and "Uncle L's" were too strong for her to listen to it. I always laughed at her.
'You need a hot one I got one / I take and bend / Shake it down, break it down / With me and a friend / Biggity bounce, slide, ride / Work that thing to the right / Push it down, push it up, boom you dynamite'
"Oh shit!" she said, standing. Leon looked in our direction in disbelief.
"Hey, the Hot Boys call!" I said, winking at him. I stood and joined my sister dancing. We chimed in during the chorus.
"What'chu need boy?" she asked Leon.
He replied with "I need a hot girl."
My turn was, "What'chu want boy?"
And Dom's reply, "I want a hot girl."
Mercedes and I looked at each other and laughed. "No, don't do that anymore," she said. We looked at each other and realize that we were standin around half naked.
"You know what would go awesome with this?" Leon asked. Dom nodded.
"A beer and some girly action," he replied, winking at us. I looked at my sister and we both began laughing.
"A beer I can do," I said.
I went to the kitchen and grabbed a six-pack of bottles from the fridge, then came back out just in time to hear Mercedes say, "If we weren't sisters, which makes it illegal, it could've been possible."
"Damn laws," Leon said, feigning exasperation. I laughed and brought out the beer.
"Yes, Hector is God," Dom said as I handed him a bottle. I looked at him, then felt his forehead.
"Are you feelin aright?" I asked.
"Yeah," Mercedes quipped, "you look a little sick."
"Ya'll can go to hell and shut up," Dom said jokingly as he yanked the lid off his beer. "You don't know how long it's been since I had one of these." I just rolled my eyes, sighed, and handed on to Leon.
"You want one?" I offered Mercedes. She shook her head. Neither of us drank beer, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to offer.
"I'll take hers," Dom said, grabbing the one in my hand.
"Hey!" I exclaimed as he snatched the bottle from me. He didn't know I never drank beer. "What if I wanted it?"
"Do you want it?" he asked, holding it out.
"Well no, I don't drink beer," I said. He huffed and sat back, then swallowed half of his own in one large gulp.
"Ahh..." he said. Leon shared his same sentiment and they both leaned back against the couch and drank their beers contently.
"You know," Mercedes said jokingly, "it wouldn't be illegal for you and Letty to go at it," she told me. Leon chuckled, and Dom tried to supress a smile. I looked at my sister contemptuously.
"Yeah, I think it is," I said, trying to end the conversation. "Hey Dom, let's go." Now I was upset. More jealous than mad, but upset nonetheless. I needed some stress relief.
"Aright, aright," he said, following me. I watched him wave goodnight to Leon and Mercedes, then he walked behind me with his arms around my waist. I took the beers from his hand and placed them on the dresser next to Hector's bed.
"What's the plan, baby?" he asked, throwing himself upon the bed. He rolled onto his back as I locked the door. "Wow, Hector has mirrors on his ceiling."
"I know," I said, walking to the bed. "Get naked."
"Whoa! What's goin on?" he asked as I quickly undressed.
"I'm upset, and you're gonna get me un-upset," I said simply, placing my hands on my hips.
He looked at me for a minute, then said, "Aright, come on then."
He didn't have to tell me twice.
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Part 48
"Have fun you two," I called to Z and Dom as they headed for an unoccupied room. Dom laughed that scary, mischevious laugh of his before the door slammed shut. I looked at Leon and he had the biggest smile on his face.
"Oh," I laughed. "I'm not finished."
"What're you talkin about?" Leon sighed. I could tell he was excited and that made my plan even more agonizing for him. I headed into the kitchen and looked in the refrigerator to find not only a six pack of beer, but also a six pack of bottled water. I figured it must've been La'Desta's because Hector hated water. His water was beer.
"Good times," I said to myself. I grabbed two bottles and went back into the living room to find Leon still sitting on the couch.
"What took so long?" he whined.
"I was gone two seconds," I argued.
"Seemed like five days to me," he said sarcastically with his eyes wide. I smiled, opened the bottles, and set them on the table. I grabbed the remote to the stereo.
"What're you doin?" he innocently asked.
"Did you graduate?" I asked suddenly. He replied in laughter and I stood in front of him. I pressed play on the remote and my absolute favorite song began playing: 'Pour Some Sugar On Me' by Def Leppard. Leon laughed loudly and I smiled.
"Jesus Christ!" I heard someone yell. I stopped the song and turned around to see Dom standing in the hall with a sheet wrapped around his waist. "People are tryin to fuck in here," he said, motioning toward the room he and Z were in.
"Look," he started, putting both his hands up and letting the sheet fall by accident.
"Whoa!" I yelled. "One hand on the sheet Dom!"
"Whoa, hey!" he said, grabbing the sheet up again.
"Is it cold in there?" Leon asked. I turned my head so Dom wouldn't see me laughing.
"Shut your mouth," Dom demanded.
"Go on in there and whip it out for her big boy," Leon continued to joke.
"Yeah, right on your forehead," Dom said, before going back into his room.
"Can I continue uninterrupted?!" I exclaimed.
"Go on baby," Leon cooed.
"Thank you!" I stammered. I pressed play once again and the song began.
The strong beat completely took me over, as it always did whenever I listened to this song. I began swinging my hips left to right insync with the drums, then faster with the rhythm of the guitar.
'Love is like a bomb, baby, c'mon get it on/Livin' like a lover with a radar phone/Lookin' like a tramp like a video vamp/Demolitian woman can I be your man' Along with my hips, my head was snapping left to right with my hair flying every which way.
"Oh God," I heard Leon whisper. I smiled, but it quickly dropped because I didn't wanna ruin the sexiness of the song. I looked at him with hair all over my face and grabbed one of the water bottles.
'Take a bottle, shake it up/Break the bubble, break it up' I shook the bottle with my thumb over the opening. 'Pour some sugar on me!' I lifted it over my head and began pouring the water all over myself. Yeah, I was getting the carpet soaked, but I didn't care... I was havin fun.
"Come here," Leon growled. He grabbed my waist and yanked me onto his lap. Because I was only in my bra, he was able to lick the water from my stomach and chest.
"Aright, let's go," I said. I was nearly as excited as he was. He looked up at me.
"Shit, ain't got to tell me twice," he said just before picking my up and putting me over his shoulder. He ran to another room and threw me down on the bed before shutting the door and locking it.
"Let's get nasty," he said. My eyebrows furrowed and I looked at him stupidly.
"Don't ever say that again," I told him. He laughed then jumped on the bed and crawled on top of me. "White wedding?" I asked, sitting up on my elbows and looking him in the eyes.
"Blue wedding," he declared.
"White wedding," I said again.
"Light blue wedding?" he asked.
"White wedding," I said, getting a little bit irritated.
"Ok, white wedding," he finally agreed. I smiled and nodded. He kissed me and I slowly laid back on the bed.
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Part 49
When I woke the next morning, my entire body ached. "Happy Birthday to me..." I sang softly as I crawled painfully out of Hector's bed. I stood and yanked the sheet from the bed, covered myself up and walked toward the bathroom. I stopped midstep and turned to look at the empty bed. "Where's Dom?" I thought aloud. He wasn't in the room, and I couldn't find him anywhere else in the apartment, so I shrugged and went on to the bathroom.
I grabbed a towel and hopped in the shower, happy to have hot water. I remembered that I was at Hector's and reluctantly got out before the water ran cold. I wrapped myself in the towel and walked briskly back into the bedroom.
"Ah!" I screamed as I ran into someone. I wasn't paying attention, and ran smack into my sister.
"Jesus!" she yelled. I clutched my chest and grabbed my clothes from the floor.
"What are you doin?" I asked, still breathing erratically.
"Lookin at myself in the mirror, what's it look like?" she asked sarcastically.
"Hey girlie," I started jokingly, "don't give me an attitude like you think you know me..."
"Shh!" she hushed. I shut up and looked at her. She was examining herself in the full-length mirror on the wall, moving from full-frontal view to profiles and back again.
"No, seriously, what are you doing?" I asked, more concerned this time. I yanked my underwear on, then my bra. As I pulled the shirt I'd grabbed over my head, I realized that it was not mine. "What the fuck?" I asked. I saw that it was Dom's shirt that he'd tossed to the side in an effort to make me feel better. I smiled and giggled a little, before walking up to Mercedes and putting my chin on her shoulder.
"I'm trying to imagine what I'd look like if I gained a little weight," she said dreamily. I twisted my face in confusion.
"Why? Did Leon say you were too skinny or somethin?" I was genuinely confused.
"No, Leon doesn't know anything about it..." she said slowly, still moving. I removed my head from her shoulder and went back to the bed and grabbed my pants.
As I pulled them up, I turned around to look at myself while I buttoned them. My reflection was blocked by Mercedes, who was rubbing her hands over her stomach. My eyes lit up with realization. "Oh my God..." I whispered. She turned around and bit her bottom lip. I strode quicky to her and grabbed her shoulders. "Mercedes Selena Moreno," I said, whipping out the motherly tone I'd mastered after so many years of bossing my younger sibings around, "I'm gonna ask you a question, and it's imperative that you tell me the truth." She nodded slowly, her eyes wide with surprise. "Are you late?" I asked slowly.
"Well..." she started, lowering her head sheepishly, "Two weeks..."
"Oh Jesus," I interrupting, letting out a hard sigh, "Just two weeks, that's nothing... That's too much strenuous activity... Too much stress... Whew..."
She cleared her throat, "Two weeks ago was a month and a half." I nearly fell over.
"Oh sweet Jesus..." I put my hands on my head and began pacing, "I'm gonna be on the news!"
"Oh come on Z, chill. It's not that big of a deal," she said.
"Not that big of a deal?" I asked, my eyes nearly bulging from their sockets. "Ok, this is what we're gonna do. You and I are gonna go right now and get a test, because this unsure thing is not gonna work. Come on." I yanked her arm and flew out of the bedroom, stopping only to grab Dom's keys.
"Where's Leon?" she asked as we passed the living room couch, "He came out here last night..."
"No time to worry about him now," I said, pulling her outside.
"Z?" she asked quietly once we were in the car.
"What?" I asked curtly, starting the engine.
"You do know that you're not wearing any shoes, right?"
"I'm aware," I said, turning around in the driver's seat to take a look behind me, then I backed out of the parking space quickly, squealing the tires. I slammed the car into drive and took off toward a small convenience store that Dom and I had passed on the way back from dinner the night before. Dom. Where was he, anyway?
I jumped out of the car without even turning off the ignition as soon as I pulled into the small store's lot. I jogged into the establishment and grabbed the first pregnancy test I found. I waited impatiently as the old female clerk gave me a strange look.
"With all do respect, ma'am," I said as sweetly as I could, "but could we hurry this along, please?" She rang up my purchase and took my money, then began muttering in Spanish as I left the store. I huffed as I flopped into the driver's seat.
"What's the matter?" my sister asked.
"Old people... I swear to fuckin God." I slammed my foot on the gas pedal and backed out onto the street, then raced back to Hector's.
"Ok," Mercedes said as we entered the house, "what do I do?"
"You piss on it, then we wait for five minutes," I said, pushing her toward the bathroom.
"You say that like you've done it before," she laughed.
I narrowed my eyes and closed the door, "I have."
Minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom. "Ok, now we wait," she said softly, cracking her knuckles. I could hear the ticking of a clock, which I hadn't noticed before, at all. The time we waited for the result of the test was the longest five minutes of my life, and I'm sure they were twice as long for her. Suddenly, I came out of my dreamy state and looked at the clock.
"Aright, it's time," I said softly.
"Ok," she said, walking toward the bathroom. She got to the doorjamb, and grasped it. She stood there for a long moment, not saying anything.
"What's the matter?" I asked.
"I can't... I can't do it," she said, looking at me. "I can't look."
I stood up and hugged her, then walked in and grabbed the small white apparatus. The tip was blue.
"It's blue..." I said, staggering out of the bathroom. I leaned against the wall and sank to the floor; I felt like I'd just been kicked in the stomach by a sumo wrestler.
"Yes! It's blue!" she celebrated. "That's good, right?" I looked up to see her smiling down at me.
"Blue means pregnant," I said slowly. Her face slowly dropped, and she performed the same action of seating herself on the floor that I'd jst completed. I looked at her, and her eyes were watering. "Oh God, don't cry, please sweetie," I said, hugging her. She laid her head on my shoulder and I could feel her shaking with every sob. I stroked her hair, trying to calm her down. "Shh," I said softly, "it's gonna be alright." We sat there, unmoving for a long time. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I heard Hector's voice.
"Chicas!" he hollered, walking into the house. Mercedes quickly jumped up and dried her face.
"Oh my God, Hector can not find out! If Hector finds out, he'll kill Leon!" she hissed.
"It's okay, just go in there, wash your face, calm down, I'll take care of it," I said, pushing her into the bathroom.
"Hey!" Hector said as he almost ran into me.
"Hey, bro," I said slowly. He looked at me with narrowed eyes. I remembered that I hadn't left the test in the bathroom, but had dropped it on the floor while I was in shock. 'Fuck!' I thought to myself. I couldn't visualize where it was on the floor, but apparently Hector could see it.
"Oh shit, is that what I think it is?" he asked, his head cocking to the side.
"What are you talkin about?" I asked, playing dumb.
"Son of a bitch," he said, darting to pick it up from the floor. He snatched it before I could stop him. "Mercedes Selena Moreno, out here, now!" he bellowed. She walked out slowly.
"Why you middle-namin me for?" she asked, full of attitude. She stepped out from the bathroom, but slunk back in and nearly hid behind the door when she saw Hector's face.
"Now," he said sternly.
"I'm c-com-coming," she stammered, peeking from behind the door. He gave her a steady, deathly stare which made her emerge completely from the bathroom.
"Whose is this?" he asked sternly. She looked at me stiffly.
"Mine," I said, blinking. I saw Mercedes' eyes widen, then return to normal, and I couldn't believe what I'd said either. I figured that Hector would really be out for Leon if he knew it was hers, but what was he gonna do to Dom? Nothing.
"Mercedes, you need to get outta here," Hector said softly but sternly.
"Uhm, uh, why?" she asked softly. He took his eyes away from mine to look at her briefly.
"Because I'm gonna kill our sister, and I don't think you wanna watch!" he yelled.
"Oh, ok, aright. I'm outta here, see ya," she said, then she took off toward the front door. Hector's eyes came back to mine. We were both silent until we heard the door slam.
"Hector," I started. He held up his hand and cut me off. He looked away.
"Go in the living room, Zoraida, I can't even talk to you right this moment, gimme a minute," he said. I couldn't believe the audacity.
"You motherfucker," I said dubiously, "Who the hell do you think you are?" I yelled. His face was still turned from mine.
"Z!" he screamed over me. "Please, go sit down. We need to talk." I allowed myself to calm down a little, and walked quickly into the living room, flopping myself onto the couch. I rubbed my temples. I'd had a traumatic morning, and he wasn't making it any easier. He took his sweet time coming into the room, still not looking at me.
"What now?" I asked, sighing.
"Is Dom the father?" he asked. His eyes met mine, and I could see a hopeful look in them.
"Yeah," I said, rolling my eyes and shaking my head. I put my elbows on my knees and hung my head. I sighed heavily. 'What are you doing?' my mind screamed.
"Jesus Christ," he said, exhaling loudly. He nearly fell onto the recliner he was standing by. He sighed also, whistling. "Shit."
"Hector," I started. His hand went up again.
"Please Z, I need time to think," he said softly.
"Fine, whatever, man," I said rudely. I stood and walked out of the apartment, slamming the door behind me.
"Is everything aright?" Mercedes asked. She was standing by a Coke machine at the end of the hallway.
"Yeah, peachy," I said. I continued walking. She ran after me.
"Thank you," she said softly, pacing beside me. I nodded in acknowledgement. "What happens now?" she questioned.
"Well, I suppose he's gonna say something to Dom," I answered. She nodded.
"Yeah, probably. What are you gonna tell him?" she asked demurely. "I mean, when he finds out that you're not pregnant." I thought about it for a minute, still walking straight ahead. I didn't know where I was going, and the blacktop was burning my naked feet. Tears stung my eyes. I'd spent so much time worrying about my brother and sister, that I'd never given any thought to having a family of my own. Now the idea presented itself, but it was a lie.
"I guess I'll tell him I had a miscarriage or somethin," I said, allowing the tears to fall from down my face.
"Z, don't cry," my sister said, trying to comfort me. I looked at her and she was crying, too. "Come on girl, I'm pregnant, my hormones are all wild!" I laughed at her through my tears, and she joined me. I hugged her tightly.
"Ok, I'm not gonna be pregnant for long if you don't let up," she laughed, mocking a suffocated tone. I laughed and let go.
"Aright girl, let's get back, Hector's probably got the police out lookin for us, we've been gone for two whole seconds." We laughed again and headed back. As we walked up the steps and headed toward Hector's, Letty tore down them, nearly knocking us over.
"What the fuck?" I said, holding my arms out to my sides.
"You skanky fuckin slut!" she screamed at me once she'd reached the ground.
"Oh hell no," I said, walking back down the stairs. Mercedes grabbed my shirt and tried to hold me back, but I was pissed off. "What the fuck is your problem, bitch?" I asked, just as heated as she was. I kept walking until we were chest-to-chest. She put her hands on my shoulders and shoved me roughly away.
"Get the fuck away from me, you stupid whore!" she screamed.
"What Letty, what's the matter with you? Are you jealous?" I yelled, "I've been nothing but decent to you since you fuckin decided to drag your bitchy ass into my life, and you've given me nothing but dirty looks and shit, you need to check yourself and understand who the fuck you're dealin with."
"And you need to step the fuck outta my face," she growled. I gave her a shocked look.
"Excuse me?" I asked, "No honey, you don't fuckin talk to me like that. I need to step the fuck outta your face? Or what?" Her eyes were throwing Samurai swords at mine. We were toe to toe again, and I could tell that she was ready to do something.
As soon as I was sure that she was getting ready to turn away, I was even more pissed. "What, are you gonna hit me? You gonna fuckin hit a pregnant woman?" I raised my eyebrows, and I could see that her mind was completely gone. "Come on, Letty," I instigated melodically, "fuck-in hit me." Suddenly I felt arms wrap around my waist, and I could see Vince rushing around and pulling Letty away.
"Let go of me you fuckin prick!" she screamed. She was kicking and fighting, trying to get away. "I'll kill you, I'll fucking kill you!" she screamed at Vince, beating his chest with her fists, letting out all of her frustration. I was whipped around and dropped on the pavement. I looked up to see Edwin smiling at me.
"You a crazy bitch, you know dat?" he said. I smiled sarcastically at him.
"Help me up."
"Now that ain't no way to talk to someone who probably just saved ya damn life," he said, grabbing my arms. He yanked me off the ground and turned me toward him. He pulled my front to his. "Oh, Zoraida!" he said, winking.
"Pig," I said, shaking myself free of his hands. I could see that Letty was talking to Vince and had her back to me, so I decided to leave well enough alone, and walked upstairs.
I stormed past the small crowd of Hector's neighbors who'd gathered to see us fight, and stomped upstairs. Hector, Dom, Leon, Mia, Brian, La'Desta and Mercedes were all standing in the hall, watching the action. As I walked past them, Dom grabbed for my arm, "Don't," Hector and Mercedes both warned.
He dropped his hand and yelled, "Grah!" I walked into Hector's apartment and slammed the door behind me. I sat on the couch and waited for everyone to file in. My sister came in first, followed by Dom.
"Girl, come here," Mercedes said, hugging me again. We sat there for a minute, hugging, until Dom interrupted.
"Baby..." he started. I grabbed him around his neck and hugged him, too. He shut up and held me for a minute before pulling away. "Z," he said, looking at my face, "I'm racin tonight. Edwin's got the heads up on the races around here, and he found a way for me to make some quick cash." He looked at me questioningly.
"You want me to stay home, right?" I asked sharply. He moved back a little and put his hands up in defense.
"No, actually, I want you to go," he said softly. "And Leon wants you to come," he said to my sister. Her eyes lit up and flipped to mine. I could see that she really wanted to go, and wanted me to come.
"Aright," I said softly. "What time?"
"10," he said surely. I nodded and he kissed my cheek. "I love you," he said softly before leaving the room. I looked at the VCR. It was only noon.
Later, after everyone had calmed down, we all were readying ourselves for the festivities of the night.
"Baby, Mercedes, you guys gotta understand something," Dom said, walking into the bathroom where we were finishing with getting dressed and made up, "this is illegal as..."
"As illegal?" Mercedes offered. I laughed.
"Yeah, that's it," Dom said, rolling his eyes. "If ya'll don't wanna go, it's ok."
"No, we're going," I said simply. He smiled and nodded, then left.
"That kid is head over heels," my little sister muttered, applying mascara to her already-black eyelashes.
"Yeah, but I don't trust Letty," I said softly. I finished putting on my lipstick and threw it on the counter. "You ready?"
"Mmmhmm," she replied. "Let's roll."
Leon, Dom, Mercedes and I all piled into a red Mazada that had magically appeared in the parking lot.
"Where the hell did this come from?" I asked as Leon slid into the backseat. I pushed the passenger's seat back after he'd settled and climbed in.
"Hector's been holding it for a special occasion," Dom explained as he helped Mercedes into the seat beside Leon. He sat in his driver's seat, slammed his door shut, and waited for me to close my door. He made some kind of hand motion and we took off, followed by Edwin's car and Hector's, which were both full of the rest of our little dysfunctional family.
"Jesus Christ," I said as we approached the race site. "'Mana, check it out," I said in awe. Mercedes stuck her head between the front seats. We peered out, seeing a sea of cars and people.
"I've just died and gone to Heaven," she said sfotly. I smiled and nodded.
"Remember," Dom said sternly, "this is a dangeous place. These people aren't exactly nice to new people, so don't leave us. Stay with me or Leon or Hector. Got it?" he asked. I sucked my teeth and rolled my eyes.
"Yes, Daddy" Mercedes said jokingly.
"No, seriously," Leon said. "Don't go anywhere without us."
"Okay, okay, we won't," my sister said, exasperated. She sat back against the seat roughly.
"Z, promise me," Dom said, looking at me. His eyes flipped between the road and my face. I nodded. "No, say it," he persisted.
"Fine, I promise," I said.
"Thank you. Now ladies, get ready to see the greatest show on Earth."
"I thought we were goin to a race, not the circus," Mercedes said, laughing. I laughed, too.
"No, that's only the second greatest show on Earth," Dom explained, "This is is seventh wonder of the world."
----------------
Part 50
"I love the circus," I continued. I remembered a long time ago when our dad used to take Hector, Z, and I to the circus. Those were the best days... when our dad was around.
"I've never been to a circus," Leon said. I jumped and looked at him.
"What?!" I squeaked.
"I never knew my dad and my mom was too busy to even think about taking me anywhere. Then she left when I was 16," he explained. "But she taught me how to drive. I love her for that, but... nothin else." I smiled sadly and laid my head on his shoulder. I folded my arms over my stomach and remembered... I was pregnant.
I was only 22 and pregnant, but the father was the man I lost my virginity to, the man I fell in love with, and the man I was gonna marry... hopefully. I was scared to death when I thought about telling him. What if he got mad and left me? What if he stayed with me only if I got an abortion? But then again, what if he was excited?
Leon and I had never, ever talked about kids. The thought never crossed my mind and obviously never crossed his, but, nonetheless, I was excited. I'd always wanted kids because I was a big kid.
"What's wrong?" Leon asked, dropping his head down to my level. "Ya ok?"
"Mmm hmm," I squeaked happily. I was all too good at pretending nothing was wrong. We shared a quick kiss as the car came to a stop. Z attempted to get out, but Dom grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
"Hold on," he said. He turned in his seat to face me and Leon. "Play it cool," he said to Leon. "And you," he started, looking at me again. "Stay close." I saluted him.
"Yes sir." He snatched my wrist in his hand and it looked like he could wrap his fingers around again.
"I'm serious," he stammered.
"Aright!" I squealed, yanking my wrist away from him. We finally got out and everyone was staring at us.
"Ya get the feelin you're bein stared at?" Z asked. I smiled. Once people realized the driver was Dominic Toretto, they were crowded around him in a matter of seconds.
"Right this way Leon," Hector instructed once he'd fought his way through the horde of people. We followed him out until we stood in front of a beautiful yellow Nissan Skyline.
"Oh my God," Leon laughed, putting his hand over his mouth. "Where'd you find this?!"
"Connections baby!" Hector smiled. They shared a hug and I was still left in the dark.
"What, did you lose your virginity in this car?" I asked. Leon chuckled.
"No, not that." He told me to get in, but I was stopped when I headed for the passenger side. "Wrong side," he said. I learned that the steering wheel was on the other side and, needless to say, I was a big fan.
This car had it all: police scanners, NOS tanks in the backseat, 10 disc CD player, Playstation 2, and heated seats. I didn't approve of the color much, but the inside made it all better.
"You look so hot tonight," he said with slight laughter.
"I know, right?" I smiled brightly. He reached over and attempted to untie my top, but I quickly grabbed his hands.
"I don't think so," I cooed. I grabbed his shirt and pulled him over the scanners and almost on top of me. I bit my bottom lip as I ran my fingers through his always soft hair. Suddenly, there was a strong tapping at the window. We jumped and saw Dom standing there. Leon reached over me and rolled down the window.
"What?" he yelled.
"You got those scanners on?" Dom asked, slowly.
"Yes, they're on, now go away," Leon demanded. He rolled the window up again and locked the doors. When Dom had walked away, he flipped the scanners on. I gasped.
"You're a liar!" I said. He smiled innocently then nodded.
"Yes, I am," he said. I put my hands on his face and kissed him. He pulled away and he glanced to the race scene. "Oh shit," he breathed. I looked too and saw Dom face to face with some unknown man... I couldn't see his face. "I'll be right back." He began to get out, but quickly turned to me. "Don't move," he said.
"I won't," I said quietly.
"Please?"
"Where'm I gonna go?!" I yelled. He got out and ran to the now fight scene. I played with a few of the buttons on the console before getting scared I would break the car. I got out and leaned against the hood. I figured he wouldn't get mad if I was still by the car. I placed my hands on the hood behind me and and flung my head back so my hair would get out of my face.
"Now that's a sight," I heard someone say. I lifted my head slowly and looked at the Korean man.
"Who the fuck are you?" I asked.
"Lance," he replied. "Lance Tran."
"Who?" I asked, trying my hardest to show that I wasn't interested in this short guy standing in front of me.
"You're very beautiful, just like your father said," he said. My heart stopped. I looked at him.
"What did you say?" I asked. I looked over his head and saw Leon and Z jogging over to us. The man who called himself Lance, quickly ran away into a black Mercedes-Benz. I stood from the Nissan and stared into the driver's seat.
"Dad?" I whispered. He looked so familiar, he looked like my father, but there was no way it could've been him.
"Hey," Z breathed from behind me. I was frozen; I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't blink. "What's wrong?" she asked.
"It's dad," I finally said.
"What?" came the reply.
"Look!" I yelled, grabbing her arm. The Mercedes still sat there with the driver staring back at me.
"No, that's not him," Z said.
"That's him!" I continued. "Look!"
"No, no, it's not him," she said softly. She put her arms around me and pulled me away.
"Oh my God," Leon said. "It's Lance."
"Who?" my sister asked, sounding like me. I instructed her to walk ahead of us so I could talk to Leon.
"Who's Lance Tran?" I asked slowly.
"Not a nice person," he answered. I looked again at the Mercedes before it drove off, then I was told to get back in the Nissan. I plopped onto the seat and Leon shut the door before running around to his side.
"Tell me about Lance," I said once he'd gotten in.
"No," he whispered, shaking his head. His stare was pointed at the floor and he refused to look at me.
"Do you know my father?" I asked way before I even knew what I was saying. His head slowly raised and turned to me. He didn't answer. "You know him," I whispered. He shook his head.
"Not exactly," he said.
"Then what, exactly do you know?" I demanded. He began to speak, but was cut off. 'We have reported street racing...'
"Oh shit!" Leon exclaimed. He grabbed the cell phone, which doubled as a walky-talky and started yelling: "Cops, cops, cops!" I looked away and saw every person on the street scatter to the left or the right, depending on which side their car was on. They jumped in and sped off. Cars were speeding passed us every which way.
"Buckle up," Leon warned. I listened to him because I knew what kind of driver he was and buckled my seat belt. He slammed his foot on the gas and we were off following Dom in his ugly red Mazda. I wasn't gonna forget the conversation Leon and I were having, I was sure to ask about it later.
"I'm pregnant," I whispered very softly. I wasn't even sure I was talking.
"What?" Leon asked. I told him it was nothing as we weaved in and out of traffic. I'd tell him later... yeah, later. Much later.
"Let's get a couple things straight," I said in the car on the way to the mall. "Don't touch the radio, don't touch the windows, don't annoy me. That's it."
"Car rules," I heard Vince mutter from the backseat. "This is gonna be a fun ride."
"Did I forget to mention not to talk?" I asked, looking at him through the rearview mirror.
"Yeah, ya did," he said, leaning forward and resting his elbows on the front seats. "But I don't qualify for these rules."
"And why is that?"
"Tell her Dom," he said, looking at Dom. Dom turned to him.
"Will you sit back and shut up?!" he yelled, pushing Vince's forehead back, which was followed by the rest of his body. I looked at Dom who had returned his gaze out the window.
"What's your problem?" I asked him.
"I don't like shopping," he replied.
"Well you will after today," I informed both of them.
"Why you say that?" Dom asked, looking at me.
"Because I am the shopping Queen. After shopping with me, you'll know what it means to spend money."
"Speaking of money," Dom said. "How much do we have?"
"I dunno, how much you got?" I asked him. He retrieved his wallet from his back pocket then counted his money.
"Ah..... 120," he answered. I knew Vince had none so I lifted my hips and grabbed a wallet outta my back pocket. I looked at Dom and he was already looking at me.
"What?" I squeaked.
"Nothin," he said quickly, putting his hands up.
"Why you lookin at me like that?"
"I didn't know you carried a wallet," he said.
"I don't." I opened the wallet and showed Dom the driver's license inside.
"You took Leon's wallet?!" he exclaimed. I laughed.
"Stealin cars isn't the only thing I'm good at," I told him. He laughed that low, rough laugh of his. I threw the wallet at him and told him to count the money.
"Oh damn!" he said.
"What?!" Vince and I asked at the same time.
"He has like 200 dollars!"
"Well..." I started. "Not for long." We drove for a little while with Dom giving me various directions as we went.
"Hey, wanna hear a joke?" Vince asked, after a long period of silence.
"No," Dom and I stammered. We looked at each other and shared a smile. Maybe we were getting closer... becoming friends. Suddenly, my seat fell back along with myself and the car swerved as I shot back up.
"Vince! You dumbass!" Dom yelled before I could. I grabbed the latch on the side of the chair and my seat came back up. "You see that pole back there?" he asked.
"Yeah," Vince said after looking through the back window.
"We almost crashed into that because of you," Dom finished.
"No we didn't," Vince laughed.
"Am I really here?" I asked no one in particular. "Stuck in this beautiful car with... the Moron Twins."
"The Moron Twins," Dom said. "Has a nice ring to it."
"Yeah!" Vince agreed. Dom turned to Vince and they shared a high-five.
"Oh... my... God," I said, not sounding irritated... it was just plain.
"Oh come on," Dom said. "We are cool." I rolled my eyes.
"Morons, your bus is leaving," I said.
We finally arrived at the mall seconds before I slapped both of them. We got out, I turned the car alarm on, and we headed inside. Dom was walking next to me and we purposely walked fast to keep Vince behind us. His breath was horrible and his clothes were dirty.
"Guys! Wait up!" he called a few feet behind us. Dom and I looked at each other and smiled. I knew we were both thinking the same thing. We started running. We ran through the crowd trying to get inside the mall through the small doors. After a few yells at us we made it inside. We were laughing so hard, my stomach hurt and my eyes were filling with tears.
"Oh my God," I laughed. We saw Vince fighting his way in then we looked at each other again. Dom grabbed my hand and we started running again.
When we finally decided to stop acting like children, we found Vince and began our shopping spree with someone else's money. We discovered the men's section first because I knew how tough it was gonna be to find Vince an outfit.
"Ok," I said. "What do you like?" Vince looked at me.
"What I have on," he answered. I rolled my eyes and knew not to ask that question again. Quickly, I grabbed a white wife-beater and a pair of jeans.
"These better fit or you are walking home," I warned. He reluctantly took the two items from me and headed into the dressing room. "Now," I began, looking at Dom. "What do you want?" He opened his mouth to answer. "Wait! Say no more!" I interrupted.
"I didn't say anything," he said. I took his wrist and yanked him toward an outfit: black workman pants and a little ways down the aisle where I found Vince's wife-beater... I found a black one. "How plain," Dom said.
"Look," I said. "I have to have at least one hour to find me an outfit and one hour to find my sister an outfit, which means I don't have time for you."
"Fine, I'll take it," he agreed. He took the shirt and the pants and headed inside the dressing room as Vince came out. He was wearing the white tank top and the jeans. For being a grangly, grizzly guy, he looked good.
"Well?" he asked, putting his arms out. I raised my eyebrows and smiled.
"Not bad," I said. "Not bad. All you need to do is shave and you'll be good."
"I don't shave," he declined. "It's not me." I thought about it for a minute and pictured him without that ever popular beard of his.
"Yeah, you're right," I said. I turned around and headed for a chair because I knew Dom was gonna take his time just to annoy me.
"Hey," I heard Vince say softly. I spun around to face him and he was standing right behind me.
"Umm..." I said shakily. I didn't know what he was doing or what he thought he was about to do. "What?" My voice was so shaky, I'd never heard it that way before. His hand found my hair and stroked it softly. I swallowed hard; I had no idea what Vince was doing. His face came closer to mine and I quickly moved away... he'd just tried to kiss me.
"Hey," I heard Dom say from behind Vince. Vince jumped and turned around and I looked at Dom. "Get dressed," he told Vince. Vince was obviously too nervous to say no, so he did as he was told and went back into the dressing room. Dom approached me.
"What happened?" he asked, his voice was soothing not angry like I thought he was.
"He tried to kiss me," I said quietly.
"And why would he do that?" he inquired.
"I don't fuckin know!" I squealed.
"Calm down," he insisted, putting his large hands on my shoulders.
"Dom, I don't want Leon..." I started.
"I won't tell if you won't," he interrupted. I looked in his eyes and he appeared to be telling the truth. The sincerity in his voice made me a believer. I hugged him quickly before Vince came out of the dressing room.
"So you look sexy," I told Dom. He laughed and nodded.
"I know," he joked. He changed and I gave them money to pay for their clothes so I could start shopping for my sister and I.
I found the skirts and tank tops and I was in heaven. Mexico never had these kinds of clothes: street slut clothes, that is. There were so many outfits I wanted I was about to buy all of them for me and tell my sister to wear whatever she could find. But if I did that, I probably would have been murdered.
I looked for myself first. I sort of left the skirts and bikini tops for something new. I'd always dressed like a hoe because I wanted a boyfriend and I thought that was how to get one, but it wasn't. And now, I had a fiance, so I had to dress differently. I had no idea leather pants could be so sexy. I grabbed a pair of black leather pants that cris-crossed and tied at the hips, then a sleeveless top that also cris-crossed and tied between my breasts.
"Now that is hot," I heard someone say from behind me. I jumped, spun around, and almost ran into Dom.
"Just wait til I put it on," I said, smiling. He laughed. "Where's Vince?" I asked. I didn't really care, I was just making conversation.
"In the car," he answered. "He feels bad."
"I don't care," I said quickly, turning around to the clothes rack and looking for something for my sister.
"You should talk to him," he continued.
"When did you become Oprah?" I asked, turning to him. He rolled his eyes.
"Don't call me that," he said in his 'warning tone'.
"Then don't tell me what to do," I said. His head fell back as I began to walk passed him. He thrust his large arm in front of me and grabbed the clothes rack next to me, stopping me from going anywhere. I looked up at him.
"Don't do that," he warned, his voice low and rumbling. It sounded like thunder in a late night thunderstorm that, before that moment, I thought was comforting.
"And who are you? My daddy?" I asked.
"No and thank God for that," he sighed. My jaw dropped and I stared at him for a few seconds.
"That wasn't very nice," I finally said. He smiled and put his arm around me.
"I know," he said. "I'm sorry. Why don't you go try on that outfit, I'll find Z somethin, then you can talk to Vince."
"I'm not talkin to him," I protested as I headed inside the dressing room.
"Yes you are," Dom said.
"No I'm not," I argued.
"Yes you are."
"No I'm not!" I stammered then I slammed the door shut. I changed into the outfit and looked at my reflection in the mirror.
"Damn..." I said to myself. I never knew exactly how good I looked in pants because I hated them. I always preferred skirts to pants, but my mind was changing rapidly. I walked out of the dressing room into Dom's view.
"Damn..." he said, just like I had seconds before. I smiled. "Leon's gonna be gettin in a lotta fights."
"Why?" I asked.
"Cuz I'm bout to take you," he laughed. I joined him in laughter because we both knew he was joking. I knew that he and I could joke like that now, but I really couldn't believe that 'Dom' and 'friend' and 'me' would ever be used in the same sentence.
I quickly changed, found my sister an outfit, then we finally left. Vince remained quiet in the backseat just like I'd hoped he would, but Dom and I carried on a conversation about various things: me and Leon's wedding, he and Z's relationship, if Hector would ever get over our marriage... then, it came to me.
"Oh my God!" I squeaked.
"What? What is it?!" Dom asked.
"My sister's birthday," I said. "It's next week."
"Really? Wow..." he said.
"I don't know what I'm gonna do."
"Take her to a strip club," Vince chimed in. His words were slurred and made him sound like he was drunk, but he wasn't. He hadn't had a beer all day as a matter of fact. My eyebrow arched and my head cocked to the side.
"Come on V," Dom said.
"Not a bad idea," I said.
"What?!" Dom squeaked. I looked at him.
"My sister and I like to have fun. We've been to strip clubs before," I explained.
"Then it's a plan," Vince said.
"It's a plan," I replied, looking at him through the rearview.
----------------
Part 47
There was a knock at the door, and I half-expected to see Mercedes there, her arms full of bags. I opened it, because I was closest, and was nearly knocked over by an extremely animated black man.
"Hector!" he called throatily, to which my brother responded by bounding from his room to hug the man.
"Whoa!" I yelled as I stepped out of the way. Leon was soon joining them. He'd decided to hook himself up on the couch after the earlier, embarrassing incident. He jumped in the small group of hugging and shaking hands. Just then, I saw La'Desta come running from the bedroom that she now shared with Hector.
"Desta!" the man rumbled with his gravely voice. She shreiked something as she ran to him, then jumped and wrapped her legs around his waist. He hugged her and her legs fell limp. "Where ya'll been?" he asked. Brian stood up and walked uneasily to the door, wiping his palms on the sides of his pants. The man, who was still totally new to me, eyed him for a minute, then thrust his hand out. Brian moved like he was going to shake his hand, but as soon as he was close enough, the man pulled him into a hug.
"Damn, boy, you don't know how good it is to see you!" Letty said, hugging him. I was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable. He and Mia exchanged greetings, and then his attention focused on me.
"Whoo... Leon! Boy! How a doofus-ass white boy like you gonna get with a girl this fine?" he asked. I wanted to laugh.
"Whoa, whoa, wait a second," Leon started. La'Desta interrupted.
"Edwin, this is Zoraida. Not Leon's girl, I told you about her, she ain't back yet," she said. Edwin laughed and apologized, then held his hand out for me to shake.
"Edwin," he said with a wink, "Since you free and all..." I laughed. Free was the exact opposite of what I was. Much like Brian, when I extended my hand to Edwin, he pulled me to him and hugged me. "I'll have my people get in touch with your people, we'll get together," he said slyly. He was a little too touchy-feely for my liking, and kinda cocky to boot.
"No hablo ingles," I said, tilting my head and narrowing my eyes, as if in confusion. He let out a defeated sigh. Letty began to say something, but Hector knew what was up and stopped her as he and Leon shared a moment in which they laughed and rolled their eyes. Letty's glare was going strong as she tried to bore a hole in the side of my face with her eyes. I was really getting tired of her. I ignored my glaring dissatisfaction with my polar opposite and concentrated on Edwin. He had his arm draped over La'Desta's shoulders, and the more I looked at them, the more I realized that he was her brother. They had the same features, like they were copies of each other. It was crazy. I made a mental note to ask Hector about it.
"Well let's sit down or somethin," Hector said, "I ain't about standin here in front of the door."
"Man, you ain't about nothin that don't got to do with food, money, or ass, lazy bitch," Edwin said. I gave Hector a sideways glance to show my disapproval, but he dismissed my gaze by shaking his head. His way of saying, 'don't worry about it.'
The next twenty minutes were long and agonizing. Leon, Hector and Edwin talked and talked, while La'Desta and Mia listened intently. Brian was trying to keep Letty occupied with petty conversation, but her eyes kept finding their way to me, and Leon was just sitting in front of me, not talking, not listening, just being. Whenever Edwin would ask me a question, I would answer with "No hablo." I didn't like him much. Of course, everyone except Edwin knew that I spoke perfect English, even better than my Spanish, but it had always been a way for me to avoid taking to people I didn't like. If I met a white man I didn't want to talk to, it was "No hablo ingles," and similarly, if it was a Mexican who looked particularly threatening or undesirable, it was "Yo hablo ingles" or "Yo no hablo espanol."
Finally, there was a loud banging of feet stomping up the stairs, and I could hear my sister declaring herself the winner. She burst through the door, and everyone's attention was turned toward her. "I won, I won!" she chirpped, oblivious to the new man in the room. Dom entered momentarily, carrying a few bags.
"Yeah, she won." He looked at me and I ran to them both, happy to be out of the uncomfortable situation.
"Where's Vince?" I asked. Edwin jumped up and started goin on about how I said I didn't speak English. Hector settled him down, then turned his attention to the door.
"Yeah, where's Vince?" he asked. Dom jerked his thumb in the direction of the stairs.
"He's comin." I smiled at Dom, kissed him quickly and took my sister to Hector's room without letting her say a word to Edwin. Dom noticed him, and the routine of hugging and shaking hands began again. We were there just long enough to see Vince come stumbling in, coughing and breathing hard.
"Oh girl! I love you!" I said as I pulled the clothes from the bag. I examined them before dismissing her from the room. I pulled the cut-off tee shirt over my head and yanked on the jeans. The door opened and I turned to see who it was as I finished zipping the pants. "Oh, hey," I said, smiling. Dom walked in and shut the door behind him.
"I'm gonna take you out for your birthday, where do you wanna go?" he asked, standing by the door. I explained that I wasn't really familiar with LA, so I didn't know what was there and it was up to him.
The week flew by, and my birthday was there before I even knew it. 27 years old. As promised, Dom took me out for dinner, and had Hector clear the house out for us. When we arrived at Hector's later that night, we were greeted by Leon and Mercedes, who were on the couch, laughing and goofing around.
"Hey, what's goin on here?" I asked. "I thought it was just us tonight?" Dom smiled at me.
"Well, it's just us and them." I rolled my eyes.
"Aright, smartass. So... What's goin on here?" I asked my sister. She regained control of herself and gave me a hug, then everyone wished me a happy birthday. They sat me on the couch and started talking.
"So we were gonna take you to a titty bar tonight," Leon said. Mercedes pinched his arm. "Ow! What'd ya do that for?" he squeaked. She rolled her eyes and continued his explanation.
"Yeah, well, we're not doin that now," she said. I chuckled a little and listened on.
"We're bringin it to you," Dom said. I looked at him sideways and asked him to elaborate. "Maestro!" he said, laughing. Mercedes flipped on the stereo and the thumping violin beat of "Back Dat Ass Up" filled the apartment. Perfectly in synch, my sister sat beside me, and our guys jumped up and began dancing. The sight was so comical that before the first chorus, the two of us were in tears.
'Girl you look good / Won't chu back dat ass up' Juvenile rapped. Dom had his back to us and was dancing like a trained, professional rap video back- up girl. Mercedes and I "whoo"ed and laughed as Leon began dancing like the stripper he was pretending to be, lifting his shirt to expose his stomach. As the second chorus began, they danced in time and had choreographed moves. Tears streamed down my cheeks. The looks on their faces were priceless, as Leon puckered his lips and Dom shimmied toward him. Thankfully, the song was cut short.
"Piece of shit cd burner," my sister managed to choke out between laughs and gulps of air. I was hiccuping from breathing so heavily and laughing so hard. My entire body ached from cracking up, and I was so happy that it was over.
"Where are my singles?" Dom asked, sitting beside me. He fluttered his eyelashes and I laughed harder.
"Ooh girl, what'chu laughin at?" Leon asked in a horribly imitated female voice; he was too busy laughing to get it right. We all calmed down and laid back on the couch, my mind still whizzing from what I'd just encountered.
"Oh geez," Mercedes said as she was thrown into another laughing fit. I joined her, and soon the boys were in on it too.
"Oh shit, oh shit," I wheezed, my laughing coming to a slow stop. We hung out for a few more minutes, trying to calm ourselves and put different images in our minds.
"Ok, your turn," Dom said, laughing still. I looked at him with my face scrunched by laughter.
"You're not serious," I said, smiling. His face remained unchanged until a slow smile spread across his face.
"Oh, he's serious," my sister piped up, allowing a few more giggles to escape her throat. I looked at her with the same dubious glare I'd given Dom only moments before.
"All right... I guess..." I said slowly, still not sure if they were serious or not. When I watched Leon walk to the stereo and change the song, I knew they were for real. A few opening notes were played before I recognized "You're Makin Me High."
"Ah damn," I said, laughing. I stood and pulled my sister off the couch. "If I'm doin this, you gotta do it with me," I explained.
"No, it's all you girl," she replied, trying to sit back down. Leon and Dom looked at each other and moved so that they occupied the entire couch. "Come on guys," she said, "I'm not doin this."
"But that was the idea," Leon rumbled, winking. She rolled her eyes, exhaled with mock annoyance, and stood with me. I started the song over and began dancing toward Dom as Toni Braxton's smooth voice poured from the speakers.
'I always think of you / Inside of my private thoughts / I can imagine you / Touching my private parts,' we sang along with the stereo. I moved Dom's legs as I danced so that his feet were on the floor and I could sit on his lap. I straddled his knees and sat facing him on his legs. I put my hands on the back of his neck and sang to him, staring into his eyes. It was an intense moment.
His hands gripped the bottom of my shirt, and he tried to pull it up. "Are you trippin?" I asked. I continued dancing on his lap.
"Come on," he coaxed. He tried again, but this time I stood up.
"I'm not takin my shirt off with Leon and my sister right there," I said, then I continued singing.
'All I want / Is you there inside me / All night / Ooh baby'
"Come on," he asked again, jerking his head toward my sister, "I doubt they'll care." I looked to see my sister, half naked, leaning onto Leon. He was all over her and they were in their own world.
"Ah what the hell," I said, then yanked my shirt over my head and moved to sit back on his lap. He laughed against my skin as I stood and he pulled me closer to him. He pressed his lips against my stomach and feathered it with kisses. I began breathing heavily and became lightheaded, eventually collapsing onto his thighs to regain my equilibrium.
'It's our first time together and I'm feelin kinda horny / Conventional methods of makin love kinda bored me'
"Mmm..." I groaned. I'd always had a soft spot for LL Cool J, and my sister knew that. Obviously Dom knew it too, because he pulled me back down and it was him, this time, who sang with the music.
"I wanna knock ya block off, get my rocks off, blow ya socks off, make sure ya G spot's soft," he rapped in a whisper against my neck. I moaned as his breath tickled my skin.
"Let's go," I said before I lost the nerve. "Right now."
'So whatcha sayin / I get my swerve on / Bring it down make it last forever / Damn the kitty cat's tired'
"Ah Z," he said, "I don't think I can go anywhere. Let's just hang here for a second..." He swallowed hard and sat me on the couch beside him. I was ready to head to a more private place, so I figured I'd have a little more fun, since he wasn't.
"I need a roughneck nigga, mandingo in the sack, who ain't afraid to pull my hands spank me from da back," I sang softly into his ear. It was fun to watch him squirm as my lips grazed his ear. The torturer had now become the torturee.
This bantering continued for the remainder of the song. I'd try my damndest to make him leave with me, and he'd try his hardest to make me stay. Thanks to my sister, the ending of the song was omitted, her less than appreciative attitude toward the, "orgasmic noises" and "Uncle L's" were too strong for her to listen to it. I always laughed at her.
'You need a hot one I got one / I take and bend / Shake it down, break it down / With me and a friend / Biggity bounce, slide, ride / Work that thing to the right / Push it down, push it up, boom you dynamite'
"Oh shit!" she said, standing. Leon looked in our direction in disbelief.
"Hey, the Hot Boys call!" I said, winking at him. I stood and joined my sister dancing. We chimed in during the chorus.
"What'chu need boy?" she asked Leon.
He replied with "I need a hot girl."
My turn was, "What'chu want boy?"
And Dom's reply, "I want a hot girl."
Mercedes and I looked at each other and laughed. "No, don't do that anymore," she said. We looked at each other and realize that we were standin around half naked.
"You know what would go awesome with this?" Leon asked. Dom nodded.
"A beer and some girly action," he replied, winking at us. I looked at my sister and we both began laughing.
"A beer I can do," I said.
I went to the kitchen and grabbed a six-pack of bottles from the fridge, then came back out just in time to hear Mercedes say, "If we weren't sisters, which makes it illegal, it could've been possible."
"Damn laws," Leon said, feigning exasperation. I laughed and brought out the beer.
"Yes, Hector is God," Dom said as I handed him a bottle. I looked at him, then felt his forehead.
"Are you feelin aright?" I asked.
"Yeah," Mercedes quipped, "you look a little sick."
"Ya'll can go to hell and shut up," Dom said jokingly as he yanked the lid off his beer. "You don't know how long it's been since I had one of these." I just rolled my eyes, sighed, and handed on to Leon.
"You want one?" I offered Mercedes. She shook her head. Neither of us drank beer, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to offer.
"I'll take hers," Dom said, grabbing the one in my hand.
"Hey!" I exclaimed as he snatched the bottle from me. He didn't know I never drank beer. "What if I wanted it?"
"Do you want it?" he asked, holding it out.
"Well no, I don't drink beer," I said. He huffed and sat back, then swallowed half of his own in one large gulp.
"Ahh..." he said. Leon shared his same sentiment and they both leaned back against the couch and drank their beers contently.
"You know," Mercedes said jokingly, "it wouldn't be illegal for you and Letty to go at it," she told me. Leon chuckled, and Dom tried to supress a smile. I looked at my sister contemptuously.
"Yeah, I think it is," I said, trying to end the conversation. "Hey Dom, let's go." Now I was upset. More jealous than mad, but upset nonetheless. I needed some stress relief.
"Aright, aright," he said, following me. I watched him wave goodnight to Leon and Mercedes, then he walked behind me with his arms around my waist. I took the beers from his hand and placed them on the dresser next to Hector's bed.
"What's the plan, baby?" he asked, throwing himself upon the bed. He rolled onto his back as I locked the door. "Wow, Hector has mirrors on his ceiling."
"I know," I said, walking to the bed. "Get naked."
"Whoa! What's goin on?" he asked as I quickly undressed.
"I'm upset, and you're gonna get me un-upset," I said simply, placing my hands on my hips.
He looked at me for a minute, then said, "Aright, come on then."
He didn't have to tell me twice.
----------------
Part 48
"Have fun you two," I called to Z and Dom as they headed for an unoccupied room. Dom laughed that scary, mischevious laugh of his before the door slammed shut. I looked at Leon and he had the biggest smile on his face.
"Oh," I laughed. "I'm not finished."
"What're you talkin about?" Leon sighed. I could tell he was excited and that made my plan even more agonizing for him. I headed into the kitchen and looked in the refrigerator to find not only a six pack of beer, but also a six pack of bottled water. I figured it must've been La'Desta's because Hector hated water. His water was beer.
"Good times," I said to myself. I grabbed two bottles and went back into the living room to find Leon still sitting on the couch.
"What took so long?" he whined.
"I was gone two seconds," I argued.
"Seemed like five days to me," he said sarcastically with his eyes wide. I smiled, opened the bottles, and set them on the table. I grabbed the remote to the stereo.
"What're you doin?" he innocently asked.
"Did you graduate?" I asked suddenly. He replied in laughter and I stood in front of him. I pressed play on the remote and my absolute favorite song began playing: 'Pour Some Sugar On Me' by Def Leppard. Leon laughed loudly and I smiled.
"Jesus Christ!" I heard someone yell. I stopped the song and turned around to see Dom standing in the hall with a sheet wrapped around his waist. "People are tryin to fuck in here," he said, motioning toward the room he and Z were in.
"Look," he started, putting both his hands up and letting the sheet fall by accident.
"Whoa!" I yelled. "One hand on the sheet Dom!"
"Whoa, hey!" he said, grabbing the sheet up again.
"Is it cold in there?" Leon asked. I turned my head so Dom wouldn't see me laughing.
"Shut your mouth," Dom demanded.
"Go on in there and whip it out for her big boy," Leon continued to joke.
"Yeah, right on your forehead," Dom said, before going back into his room.
"Can I continue uninterrupted?!" I exclaimed.
"Go on baby," Leon cooed.
"Thank you!" I stammered. I pressed play once again and the song began.
The strong beat completely took me over, as it always did whenever I listened to this song. I began swinging my hips left to right insync with the drums, then faster with the rhythm of the guitar.
'Love is like a bomb, baby, c'mon get it on/Livin' like a lover with a radar phone/Lookin' like a tramp like a video vamp/Demolitian woman can I be your man' Along with my hips, my head was snapping left to right with my hair flying every which way.
"Oh God," I heard Leon whisper. I smiled, but it quickly dropped because I didn't wanna ruin the sexiness of the song. I looked at him with hair all over my face and grabbed one of the water bottles.
'Take a bottle, shake it up/Break the bubble, break it up' I shook the bottle with my thumb over the opening. 'Pour some sugar on me!' I lifted it over my head and began pouring the water all over myself. Yeah, I was getting the carpet soaked, but I didn't care... I was havin fun.
"Come here," Leon growled. He grabbed my waist and yanked me onto his lap. Because I was only in my bra, he was able to lick the water from my stomach and chest.
"Aright, let's go," I said. I was nearly as excited as he was. He looked up at me.
"Shit, ain't got to tell me twice," he said just before picking my up and putting me over his shoulder. He ran to another room and threw me down on the bed before shutting the door and locking it.
"Let's get nasty," he said. My eyebrows furrowed and I looked at him stupidly.
"Don't ever say that again," I told him. He laughed then jumped on the bed and crawled on top of me. "White wedding?" I asked, sitting up on my elbows and looking him in the eyes.
"Blue wedding," he declared.
"White wedding," I said again.
"Light blue wedding?" he asked.
"White wedding," I said, getting a little bit irritated.
"Ok, white wedding," he finally agreed. I smiled and nodded. He kissed me and I slowly laid back on the bed.
----------------
Part 49
When I woke the next morning, my entire body ached. "Happy Birthday to me..." I sang softly as I crawled painfully out of Hector's bed. I stood and yanked the sheet from the bed, covered myself up and walked toward the bathroom. I stopped midstep and turned to look at the empty bed. "Where's Dom?" I thought aloud. He wasn't in the room, and I couldn't find him anywhere else in the apartment, so I shrugged and went on to the bathroom.
I grabbed a towel and hopped in the shower, happy to have hot water. I remembered that I was at Hector's and reluctantly got out before the water ran cold. I wrapped myself in the towel and walked briskly back into the bedroom.
"Ah!" I screamed as I ran into someone. I wasn't paying attention, and ran smack into my sister.
"Jesus!" she yelled. I clutched my chest and grabbed my clothes from the floor.
"What are you doin?" I asked, still breathing erratically.
"Lookin at myself in the mirror, what's it look like?" she asked sarcastically.
"Hey girlie," I started jokingly, "don't give me an attitude like you think you know me..."
"Shh!" she hushed. I shut up and looked at her. She was examining herself in the full-length mirror on the wall, moving from full-frontal view to profiles and back again.
"No, seriously, what are you doing?" I asked, more concerned this time. I yanked my underwear on, then my bra. As I pulled the shirt I'd grabbed over my head, I realized that it was not mine. "What the fuck?" I asked. I saw that it was Dom's shirt that he'd tossed to the side in an effort to make me feel better. I smiled and giggled a little, before walking up to Mercedes and putting my chin on her shoulder.
"I'm trying to imagine what I'd look like if I gained a little weight," she said dreamily. I twisted my face in confusion.
"Why? Did Leon say you were too skinny or somethin?" I was genuinely confused.
"No, Leon doesn't know anything about it..." she said slowly, still moving. I removed my head from her shoulder and went back to the bed and grabbed my pants.
As I pulled them up, I turned around to look at myself while I buttoned them. My reflection was blocked by Mercedes, who was rubbing her hands over her stomach. My eyes lit up with realization. "Oh my God..." I whispered. She turned around and bit her bottom lip. I strode quicky to her and grabbed her shoulders. "Mercedes Selena Moreno," I said, whipping out the motherly tone I'd mastered after so many years of bossing my younger sibings around, "I'm gonna ask you a question, and it's imperative that you tell me the truth." She nodded slowly, her eyes wide with surprise. "Are you late?" I asked slowly.
"Well..." she started, lowering her head sheepishly, "Two weeks..."
"Oh Jesus," I interrupting, letting out a hard sigh, "Just two weeks, that's nothing... That's too much strenuous activity... Too much stress... Whew..."
She cleared her throat, "Two weeks ago was a month and a half." I nearly fell over.
"Oh sweet Jesus..." I put my hands on my head and began pacing, "I'm gonna be on the news!"
"Oh come on Z, chill. It's not that big of a deal," she said.
"Not that big of a deal?" I asked, my eyes nearly bulging from their sockets. "Ok, this is what we're gonna do. You and I are gonna go right now and get a test, because this unsure thing is not gonna work. Come on." I yanked her arm and flew out of the bedroom, stopping only to grab Dom's keys.
"Where's Leon?" she asked as we passed the living room couch, "He came out here last night..."
"No time to worry about him now," I said, pulling her outside.
"Z?" she asked quietly once we were in the car.
"What?" I asked curtly, starting the engine.
"You do know that you're not wearing any shoes, right?"
"I'm aware," I said, turning around in the driver's seat to take a look behind me, then I backed out of the parking space quickly, squealing the tires. I slammed the car into drive and took off toward a small convenience store that Dom and I had passed on the way back from dinner the night before. Dom. Where was he, anyway?
I jumped out of the car without even turning off the ignition as soon as I pulled into the small store's lot. I jogged into the establishment and grabbed the first pregnancy test I found. I waited impatiently as the old female clerk gave me a strange look.
"With all do respect, ma'am," I said as sweetly as I could, "but could we hurry this along, please?" She rang up my purchase and took my money, then began muttering in Spanish as I left the store. I huffed as I flopped into the driver's seat.
"What's the matter?" my sister asked.
"Old people... I swear to fuckin God." I slammed my foot on the gas pedal and backed out onto the street, then raced back to Hector's.
"Ok," Mercedes said as we entered the house, "what do I do?"
"You piss on it, then we wait for five minutes," I said, pushing her toward the bathroom.
"You say that like you've done it before," she laughed.
I narrowed my eyes and closed the door, "I have."
Minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom. "Ok, now we wait," she said softly, cracking her knuckles. I could hear the ticking of a clock, which I hadn't noticed before, at all. The time we waited for the result of the test was the longest five minutes of my life, and I'm sure they were twice as long for her. Suddenly, I came out of my dreamy state and looked at the clock.
"Aright, it's time," I said softly.
"Ok," she said, walking toward the bathroom. She got to the doorjamb, and grasped it. She stood there for a long moment, not saying anything.
"What's the matter?" I asked.
"I can't... I can't do it," she said, looking at me. "I can't look."
I stood up and hugged her, then walked in and grabbed the small white apparatus. The tip was blue.
"It's blue..." I said, staggering out of the bathroom. I leaned against the wall and sank to the floor; I felt like I'd just been kicked in the stomach by a sumo wrestler.
"Yes! It's blue!" she celebrated. "That's good, right?" I looked up to see her smiling down at me.
"Blue means pregnant," I said slowly. Her face slowly dropped, and she performed the same action of seating herself on the floor that I'd jst completed. I looked at her, and her eyes were watering. "Oh God, don't cry, please sweetie," I said, hugging her. She laid her head on my shoulder and I could feel her shaking with every sob. I stroked her hair, trying to calm her down. "Shh," I said softly, "it's gonna be alright." We sat there, unmoving for a long time. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I heard Hector's voice.
"Chicas!" he hollered, walking into the house. Mercedes quickly jumped up and dried her face.
"Oh my God, Hector can not find out! If Hector finds out, he'll kill Leon!" she hissed.
"It's okay, just go in there, wash your face, calm down, I'll take care of it," I said, pushing her into the bathroom.
"Hey!" Hector said as he almost ran into me.
"Hey, bro," I said slowly. He looked at me with narrowed eyes. I remembered that I hadn't left the test in the bathroom, but had dropped it on the floor while I was in shock. 'Fuck!' I thought to myself. I couldn't visualize where it was on the floor, but apparently Hector could see it.
"Oh shit, is that what I think it is?" he asked, his head cocking to the side.
"What are you talkin about?" I asked, playing dumb.
"Son of a bitch," he said, darting to pick it up from the floor. He snatched it before I could stop him. "Mercedes Selena Moreno, out here, now!" he bellowed. She walked out slowly.
"Why you middle-namin me for?" she asked, full of attitude. She stepped out from the bathroom, but slunk back in and nearly hid behind the door when she saw Hector's face.
"Now," he said sternly.
"I'm c-com-coming," she stammered, peeking from behind the door. He gave her a steady, deathly stare which made her emerge completely from the bathroom.
"Whose is this?" he asked sternly. She looked at me stiffly.
"Mine," I said, blinking. I saw Mercedes' eyes widen, then return to normal, and I couldn't believe what I'd said either. I figured that Hector would really be out for Leon if he knew it was hers, but what was he gonna do to Dom? Nothing.
"Mercedes, you need to get outta here," Hector said softly but sternly.
"Uhm, uh, why?" she asked softly. He took his eyes away from mine to look at her briefly.
"Because I'm gonna kill our sister, and I don't think you wanna watch!" he yelled.
"Oh, ok, aright. I'm outta here, see ya," she said, then she took off toward the front door. Hector's eyes came back to mine. We were both silent until we heard the door slam.
"Hector," I started. He held up his hand and cut me off. He looked away.
"Go in the living room, Zoraida, I can't even talk to you right this moment, gimme a minute," he said. I couldn't believe the audacity.
"You motherfucker," I said dubiously, "Who the hell do you think you are?" I yelled. His face was still turned from mine.
"Z!" he screamed over me. "Please, go sit down. We need to talk." I allowed myself to calm down a little, and walked quickly into the living room, flopping myself onto the couch. I rubbed my temples. I'd had a traumatic morning, and he wasn't making it any easier. He took his sweet time coming into the room, still not looking at me.
"What now?" I asked, sighing.
"Is Dom the father?" he asked. His eyes met mine, and I could see a hopeful look in them.
"Yeah," I said, rolling my eyes and shaking my head. I put my elbows on my knees and hung my head. I sighed heavily. 'What are you doing?' my mind screamed.
"Jesus Christ," he said, exhaling loudly. He nearly fell onto the recliner he was standing by. He sighed also, whistling. "Shit."
"Hector," I started. His hand went up again.
"Please Z, I need time to think," he said softly.
"Fine, whatever, man," I said rudely. I stood and walked out of the apartment, slamming the door behind me.
"Is everything aright?" Mercedes asked. She was standing by a Coke machine at the end of the hallway.
"Yeah, peachy," I said. I continued walking. She ran after me.
"Thank you," she said softly, pacing beside me. I nodded in acknowledgement. "What happens now?" she questioned.
"Well, I suppose he's gonna say something to Dom," I answered. She nodded.
"Yeah, probably. What are you gonna tell him?" she asked demurely. "I mean, when he finds out that you're not pregnant." I thought about it for a minute, still walking straight ahead. I didn't know where I was going, and the blacktop was burning my naked feet. Tears stung my eyes. I'd spent so much time worrying about my brother and sister, that I'd never given any thought to having a family of my own. Now the idea presented itself, but it was a lie.
"I guess I'll tell him I had a miscarriage or somethin," I said, allowing the tears to fall from down my face.
"Z, don't cry," my sister said, trying to comfort me. I looked at her and she was crying, too. "Come on girl, I'm pregnant, my hormones are all wild!" I laughed at her through my tears, and she joined me. I hugged her tightly.
"Ok, I'm not gonna be pregnant for long if you don't let up," she laughed, mocking a suffocated tone. I laughed and let go.
"Aright girl, let's get back, Hector's probably got the police out lookin for us, we've been gone for two whole seconds." We laughed again and headed back. As we walked up the steps and headed toward Hector's, Letty tore down them, nearly knocking us over.
"What the fuck?" I said, holding my arms out to my sides.
"You skanky fuckin slut!" she screamed at me once she'd reached the ground.
"Oh hell no," I said, walking back down the stairs. Mercedes grabbed my shirt and tried to hold me back, but I was pissed off. "What the fuck is your problem, bitch?" I asked, just as heated as she was. I kept walking until we were chest-to-chest. She put her hands on my shoulders and shoved me roughly away.
"Get the fuck away from me, you stupid whore!" she screamed.
"What Letty, what's the matter with you? Are you jealous?" I yelled, "I've been nothing but decent to you since you fuckin decided to drag your bitchy ass into my life, and you've given me nothing but dirty looks and shit, you need to check yourself and understand who the fuck you're dealin with."
"And you need to step the fuck outta my face," she growled. I gave her a shocked look.
"Excuse me?" I asked, "No honey, you don't fuckin talk to me like that. I need to step the fuck outta your face? Or what?" Her eyes were throwing Samurai swords at mine. We were toe to toe again, and I could tell that she was ready to do something.
As soon as I was sure that she was getting ready to turn away, I was even more pissed. "What, are you gonna hit me? You gonna fuckin hit a pregnant woman?" I raised my eyebrows, and I could see that her mind was completely gone. "Come on, Letty," I instigated melodically, "fuck-in hit me." Suddenly I felt arms wrap around my waist, and I could see Vince rushing around and pulling Letty away.
"Let go of me you fuckin prick!" she screamed. She was kicking and fighting, trying to get away. "I'll kill you, I'll fucking kill you!" she screamed at Vince, beating his chest with her fists, letting out all of her frustration. I was whipped around and dropped on the pavement. I looked up to see Edwin smiling at me.
"You a crazy bitch, you know dat?" he said. I smiled sarcastically at him.
"Help me up."
"Now that ain't no way to talk to someone who probably just saved ya damn life," he said, grabbing my arms. He yanked me off the ground and turned me toward him. He pulled my front to his. "Oh, Zoraida!" he said, winking.
"Pig," I said, shaking myself free of his hands. I could see that Letty was talking to Vince and had her back to me, so I decided to leave well enough alone, and walked upstairs.
I stormed past the small crowd of Hector's neighbors who'd gathered to see us fight, and stomped upstairs. Hector, Dom, Leon, Mia, Brian, La'Desta and Mercedes were all standing in the hall, watching the action. As I walked past them, Dom grabbed for my arm, "Don't," Hector and Mercedes both warned.
He dropped his hand and yelled, "Grah!" I walked into Hector's apartment and slammed the door behind me. I sat on the couch and waited for everyone to file in. My sister came in first, followed by Dom.
"Girl, come here," Mercedes said, hugging me again. We sat there for a minute, hugging, until Dom interrupted.
"Baby..." he started. I grabbed him around his neck and hugged him, too. He shut up and held me for a minute before pulling away. "Z," he said, looking at my face, "I'm racin tonight. Edwin's got the heads up on the races around here, and he found a way for me to make some quick cash." He looked at me questioningly.
"You want me to stay home, right?" I asked sharply. He moved back a little and put his hands up in defense.
"No, actually, I want you to go," he said softly. "And Leon wants you to come," he said to my sister. Her eyes lit up and flipped to mine. I could see that she really wanted to go, and wanted me to come.
"Aright," I said softly. "What time?"
"10," he said surely. I nodded and he kissed my cheek. "I love you," he said softly before leaving the room. I looked at the VCR. It was only noon.
Later, after everyone had calmed down, we all were readying ourselves for the festivities of the night.
"Baby, Mercedes, you guys gotta understand something," Dom said, walking into the bathroom where we were finishing with getting dressed and made up, "this is illegal as..."
"As illegal?" Mercedes offered. I laughed.
"Yeah, that's it," Dom said, rolling his eyes. "If ya'll don't wanna go, it's ok."
"No, we're going," I said simply. He smiled and nodded, then left.
"That kid is head over heels," my little sister muttered, applying mascara to her already-black eyelashes.
"Yeah, but I don't trust Letty," I said softly. I finished putting on my lipstick and threw it on the counter. "You ready?"
"Mmmhmm," she replied. "Let's roll."
Leon, Dom, Mercedes and I all piled into a red Mazada that had magically appeared in the parking lot.
"Where the hell did this come from?" I asked as Leon slid into the backseat. I pushed the passenger's seat back after he'd settled and climbed in.
"Hector's been holding it for a special occasion," Dom explained as he helped Mercedes into the seat beside Leon. He sat in his driver's seat, slammed his door shut, and waited for me to close my door. He made some kind of hand motion and we took off, followed by Edwin's car and Hector's, which were both full of the rest of our little dysfunctional family.
"Jesus Christ," I said as we approached the race site. "'Mana, check it out," I said in awe. Mercedes stuck her head between the front seats. We peered out, seeing a sea of cars and people.
"I've just died and gone to Heaven," she said sfotly. I smiled and nodded.
"Remember," Dom said sternly, "this is a dangeous place. These people aren't exactly nice to new people, so don't leave us. Stay with me or Leon or Hector. Got it?" he asked. I sucked my teeth and rolled my eyes.
"Yes, Daddy" Mercedes said jokingly.
"No, seriously," Leon said. "Don't go anywhere without us."
"Okay, okay, we won't," my sister said, exasperated. She sat back against the seat roughly.
"Z, promise me," Dom said, looking at me. His eyes flipped between the road and my face. I nodded. "No, say it," he persisted.
"Fine, I promise," I said.
"Thank you. Now ladies, get ready to see the greatest show on Earth."
"I thought we were goin to a race, not the circus," Mercedes said, laughing. I laughed, too.
"No, that's only the second greatest show on Earth," Dom explained, "This is is seventh wonder of the world."
----------------
Part 50
"I love the circus," I continued. I remembered a long time ago when our dad used to take Hector, Z, and I to the circus. Those were the best days... when our dad was around.
"I've never been to a circus," Leon said. I jumped and looked at him.
"What?!" I squeaked.
"I never knew my dad and my mom was too busy to even think about taking me anywhere. Then she left when I was 16," he explained. "But she taught me how to drive. I love her for that, but... nothin else." I smiled sadly and laid my head on his shoulder. I folded my arms over my stomach and remembered... I was pregnant.
I was only 22 and pregnant, but the father was the man I lost my virginity to, the man I fell in love with, and the man I was gonna marry... hopefully. I was scared to death when I thought about telling him. What if he got mad and left me? What if he stayed with me only if I got an abortion? But then again, what if he was excited?
Leon and I had never, ever talked about kids. The thought never crossed my mind and obviously never crossed his, but, nonetheless, I was excited. I'd always wanted kids because I was a big kid.
"What's wrong?" Leon asked, dropping his head down to my level. "Ya ok?"
"Mmm hmm," I squeaked happily. I was all too good at pretending nothing was wrong. We shared a quick kiss as the car came to a stop. Z attempted to get out, but Dom grabbed her arm and pulled her back.
"Hold on," he said. He turned in his seat to face me and Leon. "Play it cool," he said to Leon. "And you," he started, looking at me again. "Stay close." I saluted him.
"Yes sir." He snatched my wrist in his hand and it looked like he could wrap his fingers around again.
"I'm serious," he stammered.
"Aright!" I squealed, yanking my wrist away from him. We finally got out and everyone was staring at us.
"Ya get the feelin you're bein stared at?" Z asked. I smiled. Once people realized the driver was Dominic Toretto, they were crowded around him in a matter of seconds.
"Right this way Leon," Hector instructed once he'd fought his way through the horde of people. We followed him out until we stood in front of a beautiful yellow Nissan Skyline.
"Oh my God," Leon laughed, putting his hand over his mouth. "Where'd you find this?!"
"Connections baby!" Hector smiled. They shared a hug and I was still left in the dark.
"What, did you lose your virginity in this car?" I asked. Leon chuckled.
"No, not that." He told me to get in, but I was stopped when I headed for the passenger side. "Wrong side," he said. I learned that the steering wheel was on the other side and, needless to say, I was a big fan.
This car had it all: police scanners, NOS tanks in the backseat, 10 disc CD player, Playstation 2, and heated seats. I didn't approve of the color much, but the inside made it all better.
"You look so hot tonight," he said with slight laughter.
"I know, right?" I smiled brightly. He reached over and attempted to untie my top, but I quickly grabbed his hands.
"I don't think so," I cooed. I grabbed his shirt and pulled him over the scanners and almost on top of me. I bit my bottom lip as I ran my fingers through his always soft hair. Suddenly, there was a strong tapping at the window. We jumped and saw Dom standing there. Leon reached over me and rolled down the window.
"What?" he yelled.
"You got those scanners on?" Dom asked, slowly.
"Yes, they're on, now go away," Leon demanded. He rolled the window up again and locked the doors. When Dom had walked away, he flipped the scanners on. I gasped.
"You're a liar!" I said. He smiled innocently then nodded.
"Yes, I am," he said. I put my hands on his face and kissed him. He pulled away and he glanced to the race scene. "Oh shit," he breathed. I looked too and saw Dom face to face with some unknown man... I couldn't see his face. "I'll be right back." He began to get out, but quickly turned to me. "Don't move," he said.
"I won't," I said quietly.
"Please?"
"Where'm I gonna go?!" I yelled. He got out and ran to the now fight scene. I played with a few of the buttons on the console before getting scared I would break the car. I got out and leaned against the hood. I figured he wouldn't get mad if I was still by the car. I placed my hands on the hood behind me and and flung my head back so my hair would get out of my face.
"Now that's a sight," I heard someone say. I lifted my head slowly and looked at the Korean man.
"Who the fuck are you?" I asked.
"Lance," he replied. "Lance Tran."
"Who?" I asked, trying my hardest to show that I wasn't interested in this short guy standing in front of me.
"You're very beautiful, just like your father said," he said. My heart stopped. I looked at him.
"What did you say?" I asked. I looked over his head and saw Leon and Z jogging over to us. The man who called himself Lance, quickly ran away into a black Mercedes-Benz. I stood from the Nissan and stared into the driver's seat.
"Dad?" I whispered. He looked so familiar, he looked like my father, but there was no way it could've been him.
"Hey," Z breathed from behind me. I was frozen; I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't blink. "What's wrong?" she asked.
"It's dad," I finally said.
"What?" came the reply.
"Look!" I yelled, grabbing her arm. The Mercedes still sat there with the driver staring back at me.
"No, that's not him," Z said.
"That's him!" I continued. "Look!"
"No, no, it's not him," she said softly. She put her arms around me and pulled me away.
"Oh my God," Leon said. "It's Lance."
"Who?" my sister asked, sounding like me. I instructed her to walk ahead of us so I could talk to Leon.
"Who's Lance Tran?" I asked slowly.
"Not a nice person," he answered. I looked again at the Mercedes before it drove off, then I was told to get back in the Nissan. I plopped onto the seat and Leon shut the door before running around to his side.
"Tell me about Lance," I said once he'd gotten in.
"No," he whispered, shaking his head. His stare was pointed at the floor and he refused to look at me.
"Do you know my father?" I asked way before I even knew what I was saying. His head slowly raised and turned to me. He didn't answer. "You know him," I whispered. He shook his head.
"Not exactly," he said.
"Then what, exactly do you know?" I demanded. He began to speak, but was cut off. 'We have reported street racing...'
"Oh shit!" Leon exclaimed. He grabbed the cell phone, which doubled as a walky-talky and started yelling: "Cops, cops, cops!" I looked away and saw every person on the street scatter to the left or the right, depending on which side their car was on. They jumped in and sped off. Cars were speeding passed us every which way.
"Buckle up," Leon warned. I listened to him because I knew what kind of driver he was and buckled my seat belt. He slammed his foot on the gas and we were off following Dom in his ugly red Mazda. I wasn't gonna forget the conversation Leon and I were having, I was sure to ask about it later.
"I'm pregnant," I whispered very softly. I wasn't even sure I was talking.
"What?" Leon asked. I told him it was nothing as we weaved in and out of traffic. I'd tell him later... yeah, later. Much later.