Two Thin Dimes (8 page)

“Then call him,” LaChina suggested.

“Why? I hate him!”

“Then tell him,” LaChina replied.

Jamaica sat down on the bed next to a snoring Arianna.

“I will not call him.” Jamaica pouted. “He's a nobody. Besides, he knows where I am.”

“Then go to sleep!” LaChina said forcefully.

Jamaica folded her arms and pouted. “I can't. I'm not sleepy.”

“I am, and you're not keeping me up.” LaChina rolled over to emphasize her point.

Jamaica nudged her. “It's your fault.”

“Is not,” LaChina told her.

“Is too.”

“We'll discuss it tomorrow.” LaChina yawned.

“We can't discuss it tomorrow, because tomorrow we'll be shopping,” Jamaica retorted.

“I bet I can guess at which mall,” LaChina taunted.

“Hah!” Jamaica said excitedly. “You're wrong! I'm not going anywhere near him, or that establishment.”

“We'll see.”

“What?” Jamaica asked. “You don't believe me?”

“I didn't say anything.”

“It's the way you didn't say anything.”

“Go to sleep, Jai.”

“I can't.”

“Good night, Jai.”

Jamaica exhaled loudly, and lay back onto a narrow spot on the bed. “Good night, China,” she said out loud.
Good night, Tameer,
she didn't.

Tameer pressed the power button on his cordless phone, again cutting it off. Slowly, he lay back in his bed with his thoughts on another part of the city.

“Good night, Jai,” he said. It was a whisper.

“I thought you said that we were not coming anywhere near this mall,” LaChina said, while trying to keep pace with Jamaica's rapid stride.

“Tameer doesn't own this mall. He's just a lowly employee at one of the many and varied stores throughout this establishment,” Jamaica replied. She raised her arms into the air and spun around freely, before stopping face-to-face with LaChina. “And, if he bothers me, I'll have him thrown out. Besides, I'm not going anywhere near his store.”

LaChina folded her arms and exhaled forcibly.

Jamaica turned toward her friend. “What?”

LaChina shook her head. “I didn't say anything.”

“I know, but it's the way you didn't say anything.”

“Jai, girl, you are mental.”

“Am not.”

“Are too.”

“I came to this mall to shop,” Jamaica told her. “What's mental about that?”

LaChina extended her palm into Jamaica's face. “Girl, talk to the hand.”

“I did!” Jamaica stomped. “I did come here to shop!”

“Okay, Jai, what do you want to buy from this mall that you couldn't have bought any number of times before?” LaChina asked.

“I saw some cute uh…uh…” Jamaica glanced over her shoulder and found a store out of the corner of her eye. “Shoes! Yeah, some cute little shoes.”

LaChina folded her arms and shifted her weight to one side. “From where, Jai?”

Jamaica turned and pointed. “From there!”

LaChina turned in the direction in which Jamaica hand pointed. “Oh, yeah right, Jai! Since when have you ever been inside of a Payless?”

“I have.” Jamaica nodded fervently. “They sell shoes, right?”

“Of course.”

“Well, then, let's go,” Jamaica said, as she led off.

LaChina followed close behind.

The store was of the mall variety, meaning of medium size, and staffed primarily by young freckled face teens. It was well traveled, and the carpet showed this clearly. The shoes were stacked on racks that created aisles throughout the store, and there were little benches spread throughout the establishment so that customers could try on their shoes prior to purchasing them. There were several customers throughout the store today, and it smelled of feet, and bubblegum.

“Oh…oh…oh my God!” Jamaica's hands flew to her chest, as she traveled through the aisles examining the shoes and their prices. “Cheap shoes, I'm…I'm…I'm hyper…ventilating. Get…me…out…of here.”

LaChina folded her arms and glared at her friend. “I ought to leave your butt in here.”

Jamaica continued her shallow breaths. “Don't play…get…me…out…”

LaChina grabbed Jamaica's arm, and headed for the store's exit. In the middle of the aisles leading to the mall, sat an extremely large woman, jamming her size-ten foot into a size-eight shoe. A child hovered near the fat woman, like a planet orbiting its sun. He popped his bubble gum loudly, and smiled at Jamaica revealing a missing tooth.

Jamaica leaned forward and smiled. “Somebody's going to get a visit from the Tooth Fairy.”

Smiling back at Jamaica, the child of the fat woman stuck his short stubby finger inside of his once pink nose, turning it red, and then quickly jammed it into his mouth.

Jamaica's hands flustered about frantically. “Ooooh…oooh…China…air…air!”

It became a race for the exit.

“Miss, it's getting cold outside, and my children need shoes!” the woman at the counter reiterated. “I don't care what Check Rite says, my check is good. It has to be a mistake!”

The discussion caught LaChina's attention. She clasped Jamaica's arm and pulled her back into the store.

“Ma'am, I'm sorry, we can't take your check!” the manager intervened. He lifted his arms defiantly. “Now, I know you shop here, but thousands of others do as well. If I did business based on personal acquaintances, I'd be out of a job, and every housing project in the city would be full of people wearing new shoes!”

Jamaica stared at the children's feet. Their shoes were filled with holes, and were coming apart in several places. The little boy's shoes flapped when he walked, as the sole had completely come apart. LaChina nudged Jamaica.

“Did he just say what I think he said?” Jamaica whispered.

LaChina nodded and moved in closer.

“But, sir, my check is good,” the woman continued. “Please…”

The store manager's hand rose into the air, stopping the woman in mid sentence. “If it's good, go to the ATM machine right down the hall, withdraw the money from your checking account, then come back and see me.”

“Excuse me,” Jamaica intervened.

The woman turned, and Jamaica reached into her gigantic Hermes Kelly Bag and pulled out her wallet. From it, she removed four crisp one hundred-dollar bills and handed them to the woman.

“Here, ma'am. There's a store just down the hall that sells high-quality athletic shoes.” Jamaica glared at the manager. “I'm sure that you'll find the service much better.”

The woman's thin wrinkled hand trembled as she took the money. “God bless you,” came from her mouth, and tears from her eyes.

Jamaica hugged her. “It's okay.”

Jamaica smiled at the little girl, and waved to the family as they left the store. It was the little girl who continued to wave.

“'Bye, Tiera!” the little girl shouted from the mall. Her mother peered down at her as they continued along their path.

“Who are you talking to?” the mother asked.

Inside of the store, LaChina waited patiently until the family was out of earshot. Her steps toward the counter were cool, calm, collected. LaChina's demeanor made Jamaica cringe. She knew the look. It was LaChina's war face.

“Do you know what dignity is?” LaChina asked the manager.

He remained silent.

“I didn't think so.” With that, LaChina turned and walked out of the store. Jamaica followed close behind.

“I thought that you were going to read him up one side, and down the other,” Jamaica told her. She placed her arm around LaChina's shoulder.

“I wanted to, but I knew that I wouldn't be able to control it, once I let it out.” LaChina smiled and pulled Jamaica close. “That was good, Jai. That was real good.”

With their arms wrapped tightly around each other, LaChina and Jamaica shared a long, wide grin.

“I'm hungry,” Jamaica said. “Let's get something to eat.”

Their path to the mall's food court led them past a store that they had forgotten about.

“Jamaica! Jamaica!” Tameer bolted from the store calling to her.

Jamaica and LaChina stopped, turned, and stared at him. His words flowed out clumsily.

“I…I'm…I'm sorry,” Tameer said softly.

Jamaica's expression remained stoic.

“It was my father. I…I caught him…” Tameer lowered his head, directing his gaze toward the ground. He couldn't decide whether to tell her and risk losing her, or not tell her, and lose her for sure. He decided to risk telling her.

“I caught him using drugs, Jai.” His sniffle was unintentional. “I caught my father using drugs.”

Jamaica's hands flew to her face and she covered her mouth. “Oh, my God!” Jamaica trembled at the thought, and quickly reached out and embraced Tameer. “Oh my God! I'm sorry, Tameer. I'm so sorry.”

LaChina clasped Tameer's forearm and squeezed it reassuringly. “It'll be all right.”

He nodded.

Jamaica leaned back from their embrace and smiled at him. “So, where are you going? Are you off work already?”

“No.” He shook his head. “I'm taking a break.”

Gently, Tameer took Jamaica's hand into his and led off. “So, where are you two going?”

“We were going to the food court to grab something to eat,” Jamaica replied. She nudged him slightly with her shoulder. “Care to join us?”

“Yeah, sure.” He smiled. “But first, I wanna stop by the record store and grab this new CD.”

“A rap CD, I presume?” Jamaica smiled.

Tameer smiled sheepishly. “Is there any other kind?”

Together they shared a laugh.

“So, when are you taking me out again?” Jamaica asked.

“Well, my car is kinda on the fritz right now,” Tameer told her.

“When is it not?”

“Well, actually, this time it's bad. It's kind of like…dead.” Tameer shifted his gaze to the floor and exhaled loudly. “Yeah, the Gray Ghost is gone.”

Jamaica tugged his shirt sleeve. “I'm sure that it's in that big junkyard in the sky.”

“You know you didn't like my car,” Tameer told her.

Jamaica smiled. “Actually, I thought that someone should have done a mercy killing on that thing a long time ago.”

Jamaica and LaChina giggled.

“Hey, I loved that car.” Tameer squeezed Jamaica's hand lightly. “I'm sure it's in Heaven.”

“I'm sure it is,” Jamaica told him. “So, what CD are you going to buy?”

“It's a new CD from this group called Southern Merchandise. I heard it on the radio last night during the mix show.”

LaChina gasped. “The music store!”

LaChina leaned forward and peered around Tameer at Jamaica. “We're going to the music store?”

Tameer smiled and nodded. “Yeah, that's where one usually goes to buy music.”

“Oh my God!” LaChina's hand flew to her chest and she started breathing heavily.

Jamaica stared at her strangely.

LaChina began nodding her head in the direction of the store. Jamaica caught on.

“Oooooh, ooooh!” Jamaica moaned, and her eyes flew open wide. “Oooooh girl, walk slow,” LaChina told her.

Tameer shifted his gaze toward LaChina. “What?”

“I said, Swing Low,” LaChina said, swallowing hard. “Swing low, sweet chariot. It's my favorite song.”

LaChina began humming the tune and snapping her fingers. “As a matter of fact, I can't wait to get to it. I'll tell you what, I'm going to run ahead, and I'll see you two when you get there.”

She was off.

After putting some distance between her and Jamaica and Tameer, LaChina turned back to her friend. “Jai, swing low, girl! Swing low!”

Jamaica nodded and grabbed Tameer's arm. She placed her arm inside of his, and stopped to stare into the nearest window display. It was a pet store window.

Jamaica put on her best entertainer's face and smiled, while pointing at the display. “Look at all of those cute little fishies! I just love fish. Ooooh, look at the little black-and-white one!”

L
aChina bolted into the record store, where she quickly located a salesperson to assist her. She was still breathing heavily from her all-out sprint to the store. “Uh…I…I…I'm looking for your…Tiera CDs.”

The salesperson, a twenty-ish, freckle-faced female stared at LaChina as though she had just escaped from an asylum.

“Sure, ma'am.” The salesgirl waved her hand toward a shelf on the far wall. “They're right over there.”

The salesgirl led LaChina to a section on the wall which contained Jamaica's CDs. The store stocked a lot of them. Jamaica's face stretched for several feet, splashed across the front covers of each of her six CDs, which contained her numerous multiplatinum hits.

“Tiera is hot right now,” the salesgirl gushed. “She's one of my favorites.”

“Mine too.” LaChina returned her smile. She folded her arms and stared at the wall of CDs.
I hope that they don't call the padded wagon on me,
she thought to herself. “In fact, I like her so much that I'll take them all.”

The salesgirl removed one CD from each of Jamaica's previous albums, and then perkily glided to the counter. LaChina shook her head, exhaled loudly, and followed behind her. The salesgirl had not understood.

LaChina reached behind the counter and grabbed a large, blue, plastic bag. On her way back to the shelves containing Jamaica's CDs, LaChina shook the bag, filling it with air and opening it widely.

From the counter the salesgirl watched in astonishment as LaChina raked the entire collection of Tiera CDs into her bag, and then tossed the bag over her shoulders and staggered back to the counter. Her freckled face had turned pink, by the time LaChina reached the counter and tossed her black credit card onto it.

The store's silence made LaChina turn around. All eyes were on her.

LaChina smiled sheepishly and shrugged her shoulders. “I mean, I'm a really big fan.”

When Jamaica and Tameer strolled into the store, they smiled at LaChina as they walked past her. She smiled stoically standing at the store's entrance, accompanied by two large plastic bags filled with merchandise. Neither Tameer nor Jamaica noticed the bags at her feet.

Upon reaching the rap section, Tameer again glanced at LaChina, who was still standing near the entrance, with a mannequin-like smile plastered across her face. LaChina waved at him.

“I'm sorry,” Tameer said to Jamaica.

“What?” Jamaica asked, not understanding why Tameer was apologizing.

Tameer shifted his gaze from LaChina to Jamaica. “I'm sorry because I thought that you were the one who was crazy.” He turned back to the display and continued to browse.

Jamaica ventured several feet from Tameer, and coughed loudly to attract LaChina's attention. When LaChina finally peered in Jamaica's direction, Jamaica waved for her to join them. LaChina vigorously shook her head.

Frowning, Jamaica again waved for her friend to join her, although this time even more vigorously. Her motioning was answered by a large exhale from LaChina. Again, Jamaica frowned, but this time it was a frown of confusion. LaChina answered by folding her arms, exhaling, and stepping to the side.

Behind the spot where LaChina once stood, was a life-sized, cardboard cut-out of Tiera, the award-winning songstress. The massive poster caused Jamaica's eyes to fly open wide. She quickly began motioning for LaChina to step back in front of the poster.

LaChina rolled her eyes at her friend. She knew what she was doing.

“Here it is!” Tameer proclaimed. He reached for the CD that he had come for.

“Are you ready?” Jamaica inquired nervously. She desperately wanted to grab Tameer's arm, and drag him from the store.

“Oh, yeah. Well, hold on,” Tameer told her. “I'mma look around and see what else they have.”

Jamaica put on her best entertainer's face and smiled nonchalantly. “No hurry. Take your time.”

LaChina watched excitedly as a store clerk entered from the rear of the store. She knew deep down in her heart what was inside of the boxes he held inside of his hands. She watched in horror as he headed for the Tiera section, and once there, started to restock the shelves.

“Shit!” was what came out loud. Her outburst caused a few stares, but she no longer cared. Tameer was browsing along a path that would take him too near the R&B section, and she couldn't chance the fact that he may keep going into that section.

Leaping into action, LaChina quickly accosted the store clerk, removing several boxes of Tiera CDs from his hands. To his astonished silence, she hurriedly placed the CDs that he had stocked on the shelves, back inside of the box, and then raced to the checkout counter. Again her credit card flew onto the counter, this time stopping next to the hand of another speechless clerk. Again, LaChina could only shrug her shoulders and smile apologetically.

“I mean, I'm a really, really, big fan,” she said sheepishly.

While Tameer ventured up to another checkout counter, Jamaica strolled up to her life-sized cardboard cut-out. She stood in front of it, placed her hand onto her hip, and examined the poster carefully. She didn't recall posing for this particular picture, but it didn't matter. Jamaica knew that thousands of pictures such as this one existed. The record company had thousands, her fans had thousands, and the magazines, newspapers, and tabloids all had thousands. It came with the territory.

Jamaica breathed heavily, and then turned toward the counter to see what Tameer was doing. Fortunately, he was pulling money out of his tattered billfold and not paying her any attention. The clerk helping him, however, was peering around the store in an effort to avoid staring into Tameer's wallet. His glance passed by Jamaica, and then by the poster of Jamaica, causing him to do a double-take. His mouth fell wide.

Nonchalantly, Jamaica turned back toward her effigy and examined it once more. Back at the counter the clerk began to stutter. He lifted his hand and pointed in Jamaica's direction, desperately trying to make his words flow coherently.

“Shhhhhhh!” was what he heard.

The clerk glanced in the direction of the sound, only to find an non-smiling LaChina leering at him, with one finger still posed over her lips. She looked as though she meant business. The clerk looked back at Jamaica, and then again at LaChina. LaChina balled her tiny fist tightly, and waved it in the air toward him. He got the message, and quickly shifted his gaze toward the counter.

Jamaica exhaled once again, and using her right hand, pushed the cardboard poster over onto its side, causing it to fall forward onto its face.

“I look fat!” she said to the fallen poster.

“You look beautiful,” Tameer told her as he approached. “You ready to go?”

“Yeah, let's go,” Jamaica told him. She placed her arm inside of his, and stepped over the fallen poster as they exited the store.

“Hey, was that…”

“Of course not,” LaChina interrupted the querying clerk. She turned to her freckle-faced cashier and pointed to the bags of Tiera merchandise near the door. “Give that away to the kids that come in.”

LaChina pushed the boxes of CDs that she had just purchased across the counter toward the clerk. “And these too.”

LaChina turned, and haughtily strutted through the store's exit, stepping over the fallen poster as well.

Jamaica strolled out of the motel's tiny bathroom, tying her towel tightly around her. “China, I need a car.”

“For what?” LaChina asked.

“To get around. Tameer's car is dead.”

Jamaica made the sign of the cross and giggled. “And may it rest in pieces.”

LaChina gobbled another hand full of popcorn and began crunching. “So, what do you want me to do about it?”

Jamaica reached into the bowl and grabbed a hand full of popcorn for herself.

“Duh!” She crossed her eyes and tossed the popcorn into her mouth. “How about buy one?” she said sarcastically.

“What kind?”

“I don't care,” Jamaica answered. “No, wait. It has to be used.”

Jamaica spun and braced herself on the cheap, rickety, motel table. “I can't believe I said that.” She spun back toward her friend. “China, what's happening to me?”

“Something that should have happened a long time ago.”

Jamaica frowned. “Funny.”

“No, serious. Anyway, I'll call around and take care of it.”

“I need one now,” Jamaica whined.

“You'll have it first thing tomorrow. I'll have one delivered—dents, scraps, scratches, and everything.”

Jamaica tilted her head to the side. “Not too bad.”

“Of course too bad. Jai, the record store was a close call. We have to play this one through.”

LaChina gathered her paperwork which was sprawled across the bed, and set it neatly to one side. “That reminds me, the little girl at the shoe store.”

“Right.” Jamaica nodded. “She recognized me.”

“The hat's not good enough,” LaChina told her. “Sunglasses, Jai, even inside. I would prefer it if you wore a ponytail and a bini hat. It's starting to get cold, so a bini or a hooded sweatshirt won't draw any stares.”

Jamaica shrugged her shoulders. “Right. You're the boss.”

Jamaica walked to the bed and sat down next to LaChina. She leaned over, placed her head against LaChina's head, and then gave her friend a great big bear hug.

“You always take good care of me,” Jamaica told her.

“Whatever.” LaChina was unfazed. “You'll be calling me a bitch tomorrow.”

“It's only because I love you.” Jamaica smiled.

“How sweet.” LaChina gave her an obviously fake smile, and then sat up in bed. “So, where are you two going?”

Jamaica ran her fingers through her damp hair, sending it over her shoulders and down her back. “Well, we haven't been to the local amusement park, or to the Riverwalk yet. The pictures I saw in the magazine made them both look pretty fun.”

“Yeah.” LaChina nodded slowly. “And it won't be that many people at either of them because it's off-season. Great choice.”

Jamaica rolled her eyes toward the ceiling. “Will you stop worrying and be young again!”

“Sure.” LaChina nodded. “When we get back to New York, and you start being Tiera again. Until then, I'm going to do what I'm paid to do, which is worry.”