Babineaux Bléu

12

Big Mad or Little Mad?

Lyle could hear her laughter through the opened door and the familiar smell of her cooking fill his nose.

He was upstairs with Esther in her room, keeping her company. This became a normal thing for them.

When she expressed how empty the house was after Siani left and how much Yolanda got on her nerves, he told her that he had no problem checking in on her.

He did most of his work on his Mac, so he didn't mind visiting Esther from time to time. He always anticipated Siani's presence when he did visit.

He didn't see her as often anymore, and she didn't respond to any of his texts or phone calls.

When he learned that she was living on campus, it took a hit at his ego. It was like a slap in the face for him because he knew he encouraged her with his actions and disregarding her demands of not wanting to see him.

After a while, Lyle thought Siani was being childish in avoiding him because his intentions for coming over were only for her.

On the days when she'd stop by to cook Esther's meals for the week, she'd quickly throw her things into the oven and lock herself inside of her room.

It irritated him because he really wanted to talk.

Aside from her petty behavior, Lyle enjoyed hanging with Esther. She was very entertaining and highly animated—full of riveting stories and history.

There were a few times he brought Tessa over and she talked her head off. She'd even get invited into Siani's room when they were done.

Never in a million years did Lyle think he would envy his little sister.

He had a hard time focusing on Esther's current story about her younger days, growing up in the south and her uncle chopping up live chickens and them running around with detached heads.

It was interesting, but not as interesting as what was going on downstairs. He wanted to know who Siani was with and why he was making her laugh.

What the hell was so funny?

Usually, Esther would send him to fetch her something or she wanted to go downstairs herself, but she hadn't made a move yet.

He kept wondering if this guy was sitting too close or if he was touching her inappropriately. It was driving him mad.

***

"Yo, isn't iguana an aphrodisiac in the Caribbean?"

Siani turned her attention from peeling eggs over the trash bin and looked at her friend, Jacob, with knitted brows.

"I don't know. I don't even eat iguana." She chuckled, turning back around. "My mother's probably had it before. She's into wild gamey stuff like that."

"That shit is nasty." He commented, taking the hot skillet from out of the oven and placing it onto the stovetop, removing the mitt from his hand. "They make this soup or stew out of the male parts—and you know they have two Johnson's, right?"

"No, I didn't." She laughed. "Is your stuff done? I need to put my dish in."

After their business class, Jacob followed Siani home to put his money where his mouth was. He swore up and down that he knew how to cook and could probably cook better than Siani. She didn't believe him and challenged him to a cook off.

She had no doubt that he could cook. Almost everyone knew how to throw down in Louisiana, even though he was from Baltimore; but nobody, other than her grandmother and her mom, who was a chef, could burn better than her.

"There's this beverage called Noni juice." Siani continued, handing Jacob the dish and he slid it into the oven. "It's not the best tasting fruit, but it's supposed to be like the holy grail for curing almost everything, even for both men and women's libido."

He made a face, closing the door. "I think you meant punani juice. Coach gave me a bottle of that crap, said it would help with soreness...straight up overpriced vomit fruit."

"Hey, it's not that bad. My father swears by it."

He shook his head and mumbled. "That's that Haitian shit."

Siani doubled over in laughter and flicked an eggshell his way and he swiftly dodged it.

"Poot you."

Jacob was an all around athlete and highly regarded around campus. He was a cool humble guy, even cute with his fresh fade, silky brown skin and tall lanky build, and he had the most defined cheek bones Siani had ever seen, they made her jealous.

The two recently started hanging outside of school a lot, which seemed to be a smart move for her. Rachel liked him and he definitely helped take her mind off Lyle and everything that happened last month.

Once Esther's health started to get better, she decided to move back on campus. Most times when he would be there she wouldn't stay long. It didn't help that nothing got resolved given the fact he lived a few blocks away and was clearly not going to give her space.

She swore her grandmother was behind it, trying to get them to make amends, but she didn't want anything to do with him. He made her life even more complicated than it needed to be and tampered with her judgment. She didn't want to think about him, but he was always on her mind.

Despite his crazy, Lyle made Sinai feel wanted and that was something she hadn't felt in a very long time. But the mess that was made was just too much for her to deal with, so she did the one thing she knew how to do best. Avoid.

Upon hearing footsteps, she looked up and her shoulders dropped. Speak of the devil.

Lyle walked into the kitchen. He stopped and looked at Siani before his eyes shifted to Jacob.

She looked over at him, a wisp of a smirk on his face. Jacob looked back and forth from the two as he placed pats of butter onto his crab-stuffed cornbread.

The entire scene was awkward, especially with the back of Esther's head now coming into view as she righted herself in her La-Z-Boy and cut the TV on in the living room adjoined.

"What's up, Lyle?" Jacob acknowledged with a head nod and Siani's brow went up in confusion.
"You know him?" She asked, completely ignoring the third party.

"He did some work for my mom some months ago and we chopped it up for a few minutes. He said he went to LSU." Jacob went on to explain.

Lyle remembered him. His mom was a sweet woman and he seemed like a standup guy, but the green monkey on his shoulder threw all of the positive things he thought about him right out of the window.

Given the situation, he briefly returned the gesture before setting his eyes on Siani. She turned and pretended to busy herself and he could feel a strange sensation rumbling in his chest.

He was jealous.

"Jacob, right? How's that campaign going for your mom?" Lyle greeted, walking over to the refrigerator, grabbing two bottled waters.

"Great, man. That ad really helped. Thanks again."

"No problem. Just doing my job. Nice seeing you again." He easily lied with a smile.

"Same here."

Siani, skeptical of his next move, looked through her lashes and watched Lyle's back as he walked out of the kitchen and into the next room with her grandmother.

Twenty88 - Selfish

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