THE LYIN’ KING (6 page)

“Owe me?” he questioned. “Baby girl it's time to go, get your shoes!” he replied. “But….” I began.

“But nothing. We don't need him standing outside waiting on us.” I smiled and went to put my shoes on and grabbed my jacket. I appreciate him, I really do. I didn't have to ask. He just did it. He doesn't owe it to me to be this nice. I can't help but to feel like it's more to him. We headed out the door to the car. He, of course opened my door. By the time he had gotten in the car I remembered that I left my cellphone; but I didn't say anything. Everyone that I wanted to talk to would be with me anyway.

We continued on to Thias’s school. I asked him about work and how he was feeling. He seemed a bit tired. I asked him questions about gifts he’s received in the past; just to get an idea of what I should do for tomorrow. He was very vague. Almost as if he knew why I was asking and didn't want me to get anything. I have to do something really nice for him; he’s so thoughtful and sweet. He deserves something amazing for Valentine's Day.

“You know I don't expect anything from you, right?” he asked.

“That doesn't mean you don't deserve it.” I replied removing my seatbelt as we were pulling into the parking lot. Thias began skipping towards the car. I got out opening the door and strapping him in the seat belt.

“Hey mama! Hey Arsen!”

“What’s going on little man? How was school?”

“Ahh, it was ok. We had a Valentine's Day party.”

“Well that’s nice Pumpkin” I replied. “Well Arsen has a surprise for you.”

“COOL!!! What is it Arsen??” he was so excited.

“We will be there in about 30 minutes and you’ll see.” 

“Aww man! I can't wait!!! I know it's going to be cool!!!”

We all laughed, Arsen turned the radio up as we made it to the highway. When we finally pulled up to SkyZone, Thias was ecstatic. He was out of his seatbelt before we found a parking space. Arsen finally parked and we all headed inside. It was pretty packed to be 3:30 in the afternoon. Nonetheless, I was excited too; almost as excited as Thias. I haven’t taken him on an outing in so long; I almost forgot what it was like to see him this excited. While Arsen is at the desk getting tickets, I began taking Thias’s shoes off so he can get ready to jump around. Arsen walks back towards us.

"Sage, you want to go to the snack bar and get something to eat? I know he’s probably hungry." he asked handing me a couple of twenty dollar bills.

"Ok, is there something you want?" He looks down at Thias. “What you want to eat little man?"

"Pizza!!!" Arsen looked back at me.

"Pizza." He replied. I smiled at both of them.

"Ok, I’ll get Pizza." I headed towards the snack bar. No one was in line so I stood at the counter looking at the menu. "How can I help you?" the cashier asked as she was walking towards the counter. "I think I’ll just get a large cheese pizza, with two medium drinks." Thinking Thias and I would just share a drink. He doesn’t drink much soda anyway; neither do I. "You can make that a family meal and get a large bag of chips." she said pitching me on her sales techniques.

"Ok that sounds fine."

"That will be $27.76" I hand her both twenties. She rings it up and hands me the change. I stuffed it down in my pockets and turned to lean against the counter with my back facing her. I spotted Arsen and Thias running and jumping around the trampolines. Thias was laughing so hard he could barely jump. Every time Arsen caught up with him, he would throw him up in the air. Thias loved that. They looked like they were really father and son. My baby was so happy. He was really enjoying himself. I have to do something nice for Arsen tomorrow, he really deserves it. "Ma’am....Ma’am?" I could hear the cashier trying to get my attention. I had been in a daze watching my son and my friend....my man. What? We are supposed to claim it right?

"Here are your cups, which bag of chips you want?" I looked over at the bags. I didn’t know which kind Arsen would eat; probably, barbeque. All black people love barbecue, I know me and Thias do anyway.

"Barbecue, is fine." She grabs the bag of chips and hands them to me. "Your pizza should be done in about 20 minutes." "Ok, thanks hun." I replied. I found an empty, clean table and sat our stuff down. I looked up to see Arsen and Thias running towards me with their shoes in their hand.

"Here you go mama!!!" Thias shouts handing me his shoes. Arsen places his under the table.

"You want to go jump with him love?" he asked.

"Oh nooooo! I’ll just watch you guys! The pizza will be ready in 20 minutes." He leans over the table and kisses my forehead. Those lips!

"Ok, we will be back! Come on little man!!!"

“Ok Daddy!” Thias yelled with a smile on his face. I looked at Arsen to see if he was uncomfortable. He was smiling. I'm not asking him to play daddy, hell we not even together. What made Thias say that? We will definitely have to talk about this. They both take off running back towards the trampolines. I loved seeing the two interact with each other though. He’s so good with him. I don't know where this is going or what this all means, but I really do hope it last forever. Tonight was great, tomorrow is going to be even better.

"Happy Valentine’s Day mama." Thias says as he walks into the bathroom holding a red heart shaped card." Awww! Thank you baby!" I sat down on the lid of the toilet to read it.

"Dear Mama, You are sooo beautiful and the sweetest mama I know, I luv you so very much. Happy Velentine’s Day!" I looked at him and smiled. "Thank you baby! Did you see what mama got you?"

"Yep! Chocolate!!!! Can I take it to school Mama?"

As much as I wanted to say no, I decided to let him get away with it today because of this super sweet card he had just given me.

"Just a few, not the whole bag ok?"

"Yay!! Thanks Mama!!"

"Ok hurry up so we can go to the bus stop!!"

I slid on my sweatpants with the matching sweat shirt that had PINK written down the sides and my sneakers. Thias grabs his book bag and we head out the door. As I’m locking the door Thias runs down the stairs and instead of going toward the bus stop he turns to the left. I began walking down the steps calling his name. "Thias? Where are you....?” As soon as I reached the bottom of the steps, I notice Arsen parked to the left. Thias was already in the car. Arsen was standing at the passenger door waiting for me. I walked over to him and gave him a hug.

"You don't have to do this every day you know?" He kissed my forehead and leaned towards my ear. "As long as I’m breathing I will always make sure you and Thias are ok." I could literally feel his words running through my eardrums and stroking my heart strings like an echo, making my legs extremely weak. I leaned back looking him in his beautiful hazel eyes.

"I hope you never stop breathing." I whispered. He took his eyes off me for a second, as if he knew something I didn’t. Taking my hand to guide me into the car he said,

"I will try my best not too." He closed the door and got in the car. "You ready Thias?" he asked.

"Sure am!!!" "Here you go mama." I looked back at Thias and he had flowers and three balloons, with one of the biggest white teddy bears I had ever seen in my life.

"Oh my goodness!!!!" I covered my mouth, I hadn't even noticed all of this when I got in the car. "This is for me??"

"Duh! Mama! Don't you like it?" I was speechless.

"Sage, do you like it?" Arsen asked. I looked over at him and without saying a word I threw my arms around his neck.

"I absolutely love it. You are amazing!" I spoke softly into his neck, trying to keep myself from crying. I could still feel a couple of teardrops fall down my cheek onto his neck. "Thank you so much!" I took the flowers from Thias as Arsen began to drive out the parking lot. I was overwhelmed it was all so beautiful.

"Have you found someone to watch Thias tonight?" he asked.

"Yeah, Shelly said she was going to watch him for me."

"Ok, well I have to work for a little while today. So I'll see you later on when it's time to pick Thias up from school." I nodded and continued to admire the flowers, smelling them and smiling to myself. When we pulled in front of the school, the administrator opened the back door for Thias. "See you guy’s later." he said getting out the car. We both waved at him and watched him run into the school.

When we finally made it back to my apartment Arsen got out to help bring my gifts inside. "We will pick him up from school and I have to go back to work for a bit, but I'll be back around 7:30 to pick you up." he said.

"What should I wear? I mean should I dress up?" I asked.

"Don't worry too much about it. You'll be beautiful in whatever you put on."

I grabbed both sides of his face and kissed his lips. He kissed me back. As he headed towards the front door he tripped over one of my pumps. "Oh I'm sorry." I said slightly embarrassed. He picked it up and looked at it for a second, then slid it towards the side out of the walkway.

"It’s ok. I’ll be back. Call me if you need me."

"What if I just want to talk?"

"Call me if you just want to talk." he replied and walked out the door.

I put the flowers in a vase with some water and the teddy bear on my bed. I went to my room to finish painting the picture I had started for him last night when I got home.

I had been painting for so long that I hadn’t realized it was two o'clock already, until my phone began to ring.

"I’m on the way love." he said.

"Ok, I'm ready." I had paint all over my sweats and hands. Before long, my phone rang again.

"I’m outside."

"I'm coming out now." I replied. I slip my sneakers on and grabbed my keys, locking the front door. I walked down the steps and got into the car.

"Hey beautiful."

"Hey babe." I replied, covering my mouth in shock when I realized I called him babe. It just came out that way. He smiled.

"You got it right!"

We headed to the school to pick Thias up. Shelly had called me to let me know that she was going to pick Thias up early because her nephews were coming over too. Shelly and her girlfriend had broken up a while back. So instead of indulging in ice cream and romantic movies for Valentine's night, she decided to babysit for those who had dates. We made it back to the house, Thias and I rushed up the stairs to open the door, while Arsen was getting something out of his trunk. I left the front door cracked so he could just walk in.

"Baby, pack a little night bag. Shelly will be here in a while to get you. Her nephews are going to be with her."

"Mama you talking about Travis and Shaun?" he asked.

"Yes baby them two."

"YESSS!!!!" he shouted running to his room to pack a bag.

I laughed to myself; they are really going to drive Shelly crazy tonight. I walked down the hallway to see Arsen standing in the living room with two boxes. He looked at me and said "Don’t open them until I leave, please?" I was a bit confused, but for some reason whenever he asked me to do something, I felt the need to listen. Kind of like a "Yes Daddy" moment. "I'll be back at 7:30."

"Ok I'll be ready." He kissed me and walked out the door.

As soon as the door closed I ran to the couch to open the boxes. The first box had something wrapped in red paper. There was a card on top with Shelly’s name on it. Shelly? Confused, I open the card and out fell a $50 dollar bill with the words "Thank you for watching our son."
“He really thought this through.”
I thought to myself. I pulled opened the paper and lifted up a white long sleeved form fitting dress. I opened the other box and it had a red pair of platform pumps with an ankle strap; about 6 inches high. He has great taste. No wonder he didn't want me to worry about what I was going to wear; thinking back on when he tripped over one of my pumps. That's how he knew what size to get, huh? He thinks he’s slick! I love it!!! He did and said everything right. He's almost too good to be true. I began cleaning up the house as Thias was watching cartoons on the couch. There was another knock at the door. This time it was Shelly and her nephews. She rushed in like the typical friend and headed straight towards my fridge.

"Girl, aint nothing in there!" I joked.

"You know I had to check." she said laughing, sitting down on the couch.

"Whose shoes are these?" she said picking up one of the red pumps. "And this dress???" I smiled.

"He bought that for me to wear tonight." I replied.

"Girl he got taste!!!" she exclaimed.

"Oh! I almost forgot." handing Shelly the card he had got her.

"What's this?"

"Stop asking so many questions and open it!!" We both laughed as she opened the card. The money fell out and she read the note. "Girl! He is definitely a keeper!!!"

"I know right?!" I looked over at the clock on the TV box. "It's 5:30, I gotta start getting ready."

"Ok, well we gonna go. Tell ya boo I said thank ya! And make sure you shave that twat! I know you got cobwebs!" she said laughing hysterically. "Boys!! Come on let's go!!" she yelled to the back. All three of them came stampeding down the hallway. I kneeled down next to Thias.

"You be good, ok? And listen!"

"Ok mama."

"Have fun girl! And be prepared to tell me all about it!"

"Ok love." I laughed. "And thanks!"

I went to my bathroom, turned on Pandora and jumped in the shower. I was definitely feeling myself. I took Shelly's advice, shaving everywhere that displayed unwanted hair. I then used my body scrub all over my body so I could feel extra soft. I haven't done this in a while. After I got out the shower and dried off, I began painting my toenails a rose red color; then my fingernails. I plopped down on my bed, landing on my back, for a few minutes to let my nails dry. I stared at the ceiling lost in my thoughts of what tonight had in store for me. I haven't had a companion worth having in a long time. Moments past and I realized that I am still completely naked and my nails are done drying. I look over at the clock on my night stand. It's already 6:30. He is typically on time so I should probably pick up the pace. I got up and began putting on makeup. I've never been good with makeup, so I just kept it simple as usual. A little filler for my eyebrows, eyeliner, mascara, and lipstick to match my nails. I was extremely excited, I felt like a little kid on the inside; jumping up and down, nervous all at the same time. I did sort of a basket weave with my locs from the back to the front, pinning them up into a bun that made a swoop over the right side of my forehead.
“Maybe that would make him kiss my lips instead of my forehead tonight.”
I joked to myself.

I lotioned my entire body before slipping into a black bra and thong set. I didn't want any lines to show through the dress, although I find thongs to be very uncomfortable. I slide into the dress, it fits perfectly. The bottom was pencil and it reached right to the middle of my knees; not too short and not too long. The dress fit my curves and gave me just enough space around my midsection to where I couldn’t notice my stomach. I felt extremely sexy looking in the bathroom mirror. I put on my round, gold earrings that covered the bottom of my ear. I figured I'd keep it sophisticated and not wear anything dangling with my bun. I picked up a gold charm bracelet Thias and Shelly gave me for my birthday last year. I stepped back to admire myself a little bit. I walked in my room to gather Arsen’s painting, putting it in the living room so he could see it when he walked in. I run back to the bathroom as I forgot to put on some perfume. Just as I began to spray a couple sprays, I hear a knock at the door. I peek out the bathroom looking at the clock. Damn! He is always on time. I sit down on the bed to strap on the red pumps. He knocks again, and I trip my way down the hallway trying to buckle the last strap. I get to the door standing up straight and adjusting my dress, trying to look perfect. I began smiling from ear to ear as I open the door, there stood Arsen. He had on a long sleeve white button down Polo shirt, with dark jeans, and a blazer. He looked like he had just stepped out of the GQ magazine. Fresh haircut, face shining, shirt pressed to the tee.
“Look at my man.”
I thought; just look at him.

"You look absolutely beautiful, love." he said.

"Thanks! You look amazing yourself. Come in for a second, I have something to show you." I demanded politely. He steps in and I point towards the painting. "Now you can’t take it with you tonight, because it still needs to dry a little." He began staring at the painting. He wasn’t saying anything, I began to get nervous. "Do you like it?" I asked. He continued to stare before looking at me replying.

"I love it. It’s me and you, but why are you crying?" he asked. The painting showed the wind blowing my locs in my face as tears flowed from one eye peeking through my locs. In the background I painted him with a crown on his head walking towards me.

"They’re tears of joy." I explained. "This painting depicts my King finding me and healing my broken heart." He looked at me as if he were accepting the honor. “We should probably go." I continued.

"Yes, we should be there by 8:15." We headed out to the car as he helped me down the stairs.

“I'd sure hate to bust my tail before we get to where we going.” I laughed to myself.

As we were getting into the car he turned to me and said, "Baby girl, it's just me and you.” I smiled, sitting back in my seat gazing out the window.

"Yes it is." I replied.

We made it to the restaurant. It was amazing, so many couples. We were completely surrounded by laughter and love. We quickly joined in as we sat at our table and placed our orders. The entire time we never took our eyes off each other. We occasionally held each other’s hands, laughing and talking hours away. Our smiles matched the chemistry. If the perfect world never existed before in my life, it did tonight. Arsen grabbed my hand as we were leaving out the restaurant, making our way back into the car. He held it the entire walk, never letting go. As we head home, I began thanking him for such an amazing night. Of course he was so modest and humble. As we pulled in the parking lot of my apartment, he told me that he would walk me to the door. In my mind I was hoping he did a little more than that, but I agreed. As I opened the door I stood there wishing he would follow me in. He stood at the steps not even crossing the threshold. I kind of got the hint at that point.