Imperfect

T W O - A B I G A L E R U S S E L L

  "Sorry," breaking the silence, well, trying to break the silence, "sorry if I did anything wrong." The room still stayed quietly silent inside.

  "What is the big problem," Lawrence went on asking his parents, "why are you all so quiet and why do you have something against my fiancé?"

  As my fiancé went on constantly demanding answers from his parents, my eyes observed Maggie very closely. It seemed as if she was completely out of it. She was like in a different universe. She wasn't paying any attention to any of Lawrence's questions.

  Not only was Maggie out of it, but tears were coming down her face. They slid down her face slowly like molasses on warm eggs.

  Why was she crying? There was nothing upsetting about any of the questions that Lawrence was asking them. But, then again, she wasn't paying any attention to the questions that her son was asking her. So, what made her so upset to cry?

  "Let me be honest," Jeffrey said while slamming his hand on the dining room table getting all of our attention, "the truth can hurt sometimes. And, the truth should be out in the open."

  Truths should be out in the open. What kind of truths? Why do his parents hate me so much? I did nothing to them.

  "Go speak on it," Maggie responds to her husband while rubbing his hand, "speak your truth. Speak our truth."

  "What is 'your truth'?" Lawrence asked his parents confused.

  Although Lawrence was completely clueless, I had my suspicions on what their "truth" was and why they didn't like me.

  My gut and my instinct were telling me that they didn't want their son to date anyone of my race. They obviously have a problem with any of their family members being in a relationship with a person that is African American.

  "Abigale couldn't be her real name," Jeffrey bluntly admitted, "she looks like a Keisha, or a Kiana... what is your real name?"

  "Hold on," I responded with anger, but didn't show it, "What does this have to do with anything?"

  The feeling in my gut and my instinct was right. The issue with Lawrence's parents about me was of being an African American woman.

  They only knew about the stereotypical "black" females, not an actual African American female. We aren't all alike, each woman of color has their own personality--we aren't bland like they think we are...

  They are trying to prove me wrong, trying to provoke and show the "bad" side of me to give them a reason to have hatred towards me.

  "Is your dad in your life or is he in jail?" Maggie bluntly asked me.

  "That's enough mom!" Lawrence shouted out to Maggie, disappointed and angry at both of his parents, who didn't like or care about me at all.

  Lawrence was about to get up out of his seat and attack both of his parents physically, but I didn't want that to happen.

  Although they disrespected me to the fullest, I didn't want my fiancé to do any harm to them--I wasn't that type of malicious person, like THEY THOUGHT I WAS.

  I touched the middle of his stomach and looked at him, instructing him to sit down and not cause a scene.

  "Now, listen Mr. And Mrs. Mullins," I said calmly to Lawrence's parents while smiling, "I love your son, more than anything. I've been with this man for years and he's been with me for years as well. We belong together and he thought the same way; and, so he proposed to me. But, let's have this end right here and right now. None of this needs to go on. We can learn to love and be here for each other."

  "We don't eat neck bones and fried chicken missy..." Jeffrey stated to me sternly.

  "Sir," I responded to Mr. Mullins calmly, "get with the times. Same sex marriages exists in this world and so do interracial marriages. I love Lawrence."

  "Why would he want something like you when he could be with someone like Rachel, from his childhood... Other than someone who was actually born and from the hood!" Maggie said scoffing.

  Who was this "Rachel" person?

  Um, Rachel who?

  Sorry, I don't know her and I don't want to know her. But, I didn't want to discuss anything about Rachel, because I didn't have a clue about who she was, so I let that slip from my mind.

  "Why would he want something like me," I admitted to his family, "because I'm imperfect. Just as he seems perfect from outside of his body, he's perfectly imperfect. Despite the scars on my body, Lawrence still loves me. Despite the small sized penis, I still love Lawrence. We both have imperfections and insecurities that we aren't proud of, but we both love and accept each other for who we are. If you won't accept me, how will you accept your own grandchild?"

  Not only were Lawrence's parents speechless, but my fiancé was shocked as well.

  Yes, I was pregnant with Lawrence's unborn child. I was trying to tell him, but his parents interrupted the conversation.

  How were Maggie and Jeffrey going to feel about being grandparents to a biracial child?