Life Is (Mostly) Beautiful

3. Mommy Dearest

I thought I could pick up being a waitress easily, since I'd worked in the dining hall my freshman year, but the two jobs weren't even remotely similar. Customers could be rude, and their kids could be loud. I almost never got a break from standing on my feet, and always came home smelling like gravy. But hey, at least I got tips.

Another strange thing had been happening though. People would sometimes come in and point or stare at me. Apparently when I left, it was big enough news that random people around the nighborhood knew me as "Mae's uppity daughter that left". I didn't mind the staring though, it only lasted for a minute before people remembered that their food was much more exciting than me.

As for my mother, I hadn't had the time yet to see her since starting work. I had no doubt that she knew I was back, given how word spread around this neighborhood. But, I just needed to settle and find a good time to talk to her--better yet, to figure out what I was going to say.

"Alena," Shanti called out to me. "I'm clocking out girl, see you later."

"Alright, bye. Have a goodnight," I said tiredly. I was so jealous. After a busy dinner rush, closing was the absolute last thing I wanted to do right then.

"Hey cheer up, it'll be over soon," she smirked.

"Yeah easy for you to say," I laughed. In the last couple weeks, I'd gotten to know and actually like Shanti a lot. She was still cool, but seemed more mature than I'd rememebred her.

When she left, I began collecting dirty cups and plates from the tables and piling them into the dishbin. The bin was getting heavy and I still had to lug it to the back of the restaruant to get washed. Unfortunately, as I tried to move the bin into a more comfortable position in my arms, the bin missed my grasp and slipped.

"Ahh- Oh!" I cried out in surprise. Strong arms had reached out at the last second to catch the bin before everything went spilling out. "Th-thank you!"

"No problem," the owner of the arms smiled. "You're Alena right? The new girl."

"Yeah," I said nervously. I knew who he was already. A lot of the other girls gushed over him in the back and it was easy to see why: he had smooth light brown skin, over a slightly muscly build, and a tall frame. Not to mention, his velvety voice...

"I'm Kente, nice to meet you."

***

"Woah girl, this place is huge! You living here?" Shanti asked, that weekend. I finally had some time off work, and Shanti had been wanting to do a girl's night.

"Just renting for now. None of this stuff is actually mine," I said, gesturing to the furnished space.

"I know, but damn! Shoot, it's still better than my crib," she said plopping on the faux-leather couch.

"At least you're talking to your parents. I've been here for two weeks and I'm still too nervous to knock on my mom's door," I said walking over to the kitchen. I pulled out two spoons for the pints of ice cream we'd just gotten, and walked back over to Shanti.

"What's the problem? She yo mama, just talk to her," Shanti said simply. "Ooh you got one of those smart TVs!"

"It's not that easy," I said shaking my head. "And again, this isn't mine. I'm pretty sure it's some dude's bachelor pad judging by all the video game consoles."

"Ooh girl, you got all the channels. I been wanting to watch Bad Girls Club on a real TV!"

"Shanti,"  I said seriously. "I really need some help with this. Has my mom said anything since I've been back? I know her and your mom used to talk sometimes."

"I don't know, but I'll ask my mom," she said earnestly.

"Ok, thanks."

"Look Lena, don't sweat it. She may have been dissapointed, but she yo mama, she don't hate you."

"Thanks Shanti. Now go ahead," I said rolling my eyes. "Play your ratchet trash TV."

Shanti laughed and grabbed the remote from the coffee table. We spent the next few hours laughing over a few reality shows and eating ice cream. I never had any girlfriends in high school to do this type of thing with, so it felt refreshing to finally laugh and let my hair down.

"So," Shanti said, shutting off the TV. "What's going on down there?"

"What?" I asked, genuinely confused. She made a pointed look down there, making me squirm on the couch. "Uhh, are you asking if I have a yeast infection or something?"

"No dummy, you know what I mean! You seein' any guys?"

"No," I said blushing. I'd been doing my best to forget him, and had blocked all his calls and messages. It was still too fresh and I didn't want to go into it. Shanti, however, was persistent so I had to give her something. "But there is this guy..."

I told her about Kente, how he helped me, and how he stayed and talked to me all night about everything. He was so sweet and I didn't want to assume anything, but I couldn't deny that he was sending signals.

"Hmm, just watch out though cause he a flirt," Shanti warned. She was probably right, but I honestly wasn't thinking of him as anything more than friend. "And Lena," she said, "Talk to yo mama."

***

I waited ten seconds before knocking again. The Fall chill was starting to creep in around this time of the year, and I hadn't brought any Fall clothing from California. After rubbing my arms, I knocked again, louder this time.

"What?" A deep, masculine voice called from the otherside. The door swung open and revealed, a large and heavily-tattooted man. This isn't Darryl. "Watchu want?"

"I-I'm here to talk to Mae Parker. I'm her, um, her daughter," I said shakily, more from his intimidating stance than the cold air.

At that moment, however, his features softened and his stance relaxed. "She said you might come knocking around here," he said softly. "She said not to let you in."

"Oh," I said, my voice cracking involuntarily. It's not that I thought this would be easy, but still. "Can you- Can I- Um. Crap, sorry," I stammered. I was at a lost for words and I had no idea what to do.

"Look, I don't know the whole story between you, but you her daughter and I think you twos got to talk it out," he said warmly.  I gazed up at him in teary-eyed awe. Underneath his hard exterior, he seemed like a warm, good man--and he had more of a spine than Darryl did. "Come inside. She ain't here yet, but she will be in a bit, she just ran to the store."

"Ok, thanks," I said gratefully. Just stepping over the threshold brought me back to being in high school again: the smell of cigarettes and lavender still clung to the air, while local news played on the small TV. All that was missing was my mother's screeching voice yelling for something or someone. "Wow," I said taking it all in. Thank you for inviting me in, uh..."

"Oh excuse me, my name is Henry. The pleasure is all mine Miss Alena," he said with a bow.

"You know my name? Does she talk about me?" I asked excitedly.

"Well, she's said-"

"That the minute you leave this house, you are no longer welcome here," a sharp voice, cold as ice and gravely as stone, stated from behind me.

I turned to where my mother stood rigid in the entrance of the open doorway, a grocery bag in hand and a mean scowl on her face.

"Hello Mama."