May 1995 :
Torii –
Taking a second to pull my jeans up, I threw my hands back up, dancing in my spot as Troy and I watched Kris Kross perform one of our favorite songs from their last album. The SoSoDef Block Party was the dopest show we'd been to, to date, and I was beyond glad that Daddy managed to get tickets at the last minute.
The show being on my birthday made it even better, and getting an impromptu shout out from the stage was the icing on the cake. "It's hard for me to sleep, 'cause in my hood all I ever here is..."
I rocked from side to side, rapping along. "And you ain't really have to start it; but since you did, let's play a game called hit the moving target." After rapping the chorus one last time, they stopped and brought Da Brat out. Naturally, being one of the greatest female emcees, she came out spitting straight fire as she did her verse from their song Da Bomb and I went off, turning to my sister, flowing word for word like we would at home while listening to the album.
That's when Kris Kross took their exit and Da Brat jumped straight into tracks from her Funkdafied album. Complete and utter excellence.
If anybody thought we were too turned off by hip-hop, simply because we rarely listened to it outside of our home, they were sadly mistaken. We could follow and keep up better than most of the self-proclaimed hip-hop heads, and tonight was just the moment we both needed to turn off the 'prissy-R&B chick' vibes most had tagged us with.
And when I heard the intro to my favorite song, I gave a stank face before jumping up and screaming. Winding my hips to the quick verse by the Jamaican artist she'd featured, I shrugged my shoulders; unashamed as eyes around my sister and I fell on me.
"Bump-diddy-bump is that good that ya get when ya listenin' to the sounds of Da Brat."
Troy looked at me before giving her best Biggie Smalls impression. "Baaaaay-beh!"
"It's like that, it's like that. Ain't no future in frontin', so to avoid all that I keep bumpin'. I ain't no muh'effin' joke! Step up and get broke up, Loc! How I came in is how I'm goin' out."
"With a bang!"
"Puttin' it down, puttin' it down ain't no thang."
Troy and I slapped hands, smiling once we finally realized that Da Brat had bent down and pointed her microphone directly at us. "Ain't no thang, ain't no thang... whaaat?!"
"For me to knock clowns out the box daily!" Troy and I shouted together, throwing our fists for effect before we fell out laughing and thanked her.
She looked down at us and smiled. "I don't know about the rest of the crowd, but these two got my ass feelin' real good! Let me find out y'all young ones know my shit like this."
I pulled at the bottom of the tank top I was wearing and finally took a minute to catch my breath and calm down as she got into Fa All Y'all. That was Troy's jam and I chose to stand back and watch as she cut up.
I was so glad that she didn't have to fly out for my birthday weekend. We'd made plans, with the exception of tonight's concert, months ago and we've been running around Mount Pleasant and Memphis the entire time. As Da Brat finished her set, they announced an intermission while Xscape and another artist got ready to finish the second half of the show.
Troy and I returned to our seats and I quickly put my jacket on before sitting down. "Sis, I know your new boo wanted to celebrate your birthday with you, but can I just say that I'm glad you chose to bring me along."
I laughed, shaking my head as I looked around us. "He violated when he said that Brat was a trash rapper. You can't start dating me and then talk mess about what I like, not right away anyway." I sighed and cleared my throat. "I'm just glad Daddy was joking when he said he brought three tickets."
"I see you still censored yourself when you were rapping along though."
I smiled. "Too scared he'd played us and was somewhere close, listening to see if I would curse." Troy laughed, literally jumping out of her seat when she noticed Usher pass by us. Now me, personally, I didn't get the hype behind him, but Troy was in love with the boy.
"Torii, stop frontin' like you don't be blasting Call Me A Mack.'
"With the rest of the Poetic Justice Soundtrack. I mean, his songs are cute, or whatever, but I get nothing."
"Tuh, he's so fine. Watch, he gon' blow up even more real soon."
"If you say so, girl. I'm gon' need for you to stop lusting extra hard next to me." I smiled, leaning closer, deciding to mess with her. "How do you think Marliss would feel about it?"
Troy turned her head so quickly, staring at me as if I'd called her out of her name. "Who cares what he'd think?"
"You know that's your future."
"Nooo." She sighed. "Besides, he's got a girlfriend and she looks ten times better than I do. She's older, and more mature. UGH. Leave me to my fifteen-year-old fantasies with Usher, please and thank you." She turned around, trying to spot him again through the crowd and I laughed before standing up and letting her know that I was going to buy something to drink.
The next afternoon, after getting some much needed rest, I strolled into the kitchen; yawning as I waved to Daddy and Crystal. "Well good afternoon, how are you feeling?"
Opening the fridge, I leaned back and smiled before flipping my hair over my shoulder. "I feel excellent, Crystal. Allow me to recall everything." Daddy chuckled, staring into his newspaper. "My birthday weekend starts out wonderfully, at school. Not only was it the last day of the year, I got asked out by Nathan Lewis; only the most popular guy in school. Then, I come home to this amazing birthday dinner and party, and I get my dream car!" I giggled, flipping my hair again as I thought about it blowing in the wind whenever I let the top down on my convertible. "On top of that, the next day, I got a call saying that I didn't have to go to work, and Daddy comes and surprises me with the concert tickets. Which, by the way, was the bomb! At the concert, not only do I get a shout out from Kris Kross, after they spotted my birthday tiara, Troy and I got a little attention from Da Brat."
"Whom you two love."
"Absolutely, Crystal. But that wasn't the end. We got to go backstage! I had to thank Troy for that though, because if she wasn't so insistent on finding Usher in the crowd, we wouldn't have bumped into one of the Kris Kross members. We got pictures with everyone, and you know she's going to treasure that picture with Usher for life."
"Oh Lord."
I laughed at Daddy and cleared my throat before finally grabbing a small box of orange juice and some applesauce. "And today, I wake up feeling absolutely amazing. I'm sixteen years old, life for me is wonderful, I have the best family. There's nothing more I need. There's nothing that could make this weekend any better."
I sat down at the kitchen table, smiling wide when I finally noticed what was playing lowly from the radio sitting on the kitchen table. "And where is Troy?"
I shrugged, taking a quick sip of my juice. "If she's not around here practicing, she's probably still asleep. Or, in her room and on the phone with one of the girls from the group. I don't know."
I sang along to Seven Whole Days, trying just a little to imitate Toni's voice. Though it was impossible, for me at least, it was fun to see how low I could go.
"Hey y'all."
I looked up and waved to Troy for a second before I finally opened my applesauce. "You've gotta eat more than that Torii."
"I will."
"Mmhm. Hey Troy, are you just waking up too?"
She shook her head and sat down, pushing the cordless phone towards me. "Nope, I was talking on the phone."
"To who? Marliss?"
Troy turned one side of her lip up before she mugged Daddy. "I wish y'all would stop assuming I like that boy."
"He's the only one out of your new friends that you invited to your party, I just assumed..."
"He lives in Tennessee, Daddy, and I just offered an invitation just to be nice. I invited Roman too, but you wouldn't even let him in the house."
"Ehh, I don't like him."
I laughed before asking Troy why she was reaching me the phone. "Someone wants to speak to you. Make sure you take it off mute."
I nodded and cleared my throat, speaking clearly after I made sure the mute button was no longer blinking. "Hi, this is Torii speaking."
"Ms. Mercier, glad that we could speak with one another, again."
"Again? And you are?"
"Brandy Monroe, we met when you came out here to visit with your sister."
I looked up at Troy and there was a huge Cheshire cat smile on her face. She sat back in her seat, pulling her hair into a ponytail as she urged me to continue talking. "Oh, hi Ms. Brandy, glad to speak with you again as well. But, are you sure you don't mean to be speaking with Troy right now?"
"I am absolutely sure. Troy and I have already spoken about business regarding her, as far as the group goes. I'm calling to speak with you about filling the last spot in the group."
"But I thought that-"
"Yes, there was another girl, however we've concluded that she just was not a fit for the group. Not because she wasn't talented or anything that was directly her fault. It's just that, after hearing you sing with your sister, and then hearing you again with her, Leann, and Ava that afternoon in the studio; something clicked for me. You're what's missing, you're what's needed for us to finally get the show on the road." I sat, listening intently. "Now I'm going to be very honest Torii; I went back and watched a few other tapes extensively these past few weeks. And the truth of the matter is; you should have been chosen along with your sister."
"Wow. I thought maybe I'd messed up. Or they just didn't want siblings together."
"That may have very well been the issue, the having two siblings in one group; but it's not an uncommon thing. In fact, most groups start with siblings and family members. Anyway, I would like to formerly offer you the last spot in Fly Girl."
I sat silently, unsure of what to say. "I mean, sure, but I feel terrible for someone else having to leave."
This might sound crazy, but I could feel her smiling. Maybe it's because, when we met face to face, she gave off this warm vibe and personality. Well, when she wasn't arguing with Troy's manager and trying to get them all to focus. "That's very kind and noble of you, Torii. But you can rest assured, Jayla did not leave empty handed, nor did she leave sad. She'll still be singing, only solo, and she'll still be around as another one of Chauncey's clients. We've gotten everything taken care of, we just need a definitive yes from you and your parents so that you can join your sister on the next trip out."
"Yes! A million times, YES, from me. Hold on please."
I shrieked and Daddy set his newspaper down, asking me if I was having a mental breakdown. "No, but I need you to take this phone and say 'yes'."
"What am I saying yes to?"
Troy smirked. "You're saying yes to Torii joining the group with me so that we can finally be complete and record music that will actually be released."
He chuckled, taking the phone. "I'm going to assume this is Ms. Monroe? Hi, the answer from my wife and I is yes. You already do so well looking after my youngest, I know you'll do very well with Torii. Yes Ma'am, thank you and goodbye."
He hung up and I jumped up and down, screaming. "I can't believe it!"
"I told you Sis, it always works out the way that it's supposed to."
"You had a hand in this, didn't you, Troy?"
She shook her head. "Nope. Every time they said the words we're going to replace... I was the first to raise my hand and suggest you, but they didn't believe me when I said that you could sing. Remember, they thought your voice was an automated recording. Anyway, congrats Sis. You definitely deserve it, and now you don't have to pretend that you're not still sad about not being chosen."
I laughed, sitting back down in my chair after finally calming down. I took a deep breath, thanking God. "I'm raising future super stars." We both looked at Daddy as he shook his head. "I better go write out this list of family member that are real, because you know they're coming out of the woodworks."
"Dad, that's not nice."
"Neither is someone thinking they're going to get over on the two of you by playing the family card. Don't worry, Daddy's got your back."
Crystal shook her head, rubbing her belly she pushed her work to the side. "Don't worry girls, one more month and the focus will shift from you to the twins, and you can live without your daddy making threats every other week."
We laughed and Daddy went back to reading his paper. "Think that all you want. Anyway, Torii, congratulations Baby. I'm very proud of you."
"Thanks. If you'll excuse me, I've got to call a few people." I got up and ran up to my room, once again thanking God that my chance had come. Perfect timing.
Leann -
Sitting in the food court with my brother, I covered my mouth as I yawned and cleared my throat, smiling as I watched him color in between taking bites of his po'boy. It was the first real chance that he and I have gotten to spend together for longer than a few minutes in the morning or an hour or two at night. I missed him dearly; often only catching glimpses of him as he slept.
In between the trips back and forth, I was still working whenever I was home, trying to make sure I kept some kind of money coming in so that Jay wouldn't have to pay for or do more than she already was.
I couldn't begin to put into words how grateful I was that she was doing all that she could to take care of my brother, while assuring him that I hadn't abandoned him like he initially felt. I'd also gone back home to see if our father had even noticed his children were missing; but, as usual, he was laid up in a drunken and drug fueled stupor. Part of me was sad, angry that he couldn't witness the good thing that had finally come my way. The other part of me was glad he didn't notice or care, because it meant he'd put up no objections or try to stop me when I finally get my chance to take KC away.
Today, I was dog tired, but I refused to break a promise I'd made the very first day I left him.
"Did you have fun, KC? You were finally big enough to ride in the go carts."
He looked up and nodded, and the only thing I could do was laugh at the ketchup and mustard sitting on his face, buried within one of his dimples. I grabbed a napkin from the dispenser on our table and leaned over, wiping his chubby cheeks before I sat back down. "Can we do this again soon? Oo, or how about every week? We can go bowling, to the zoo, the aquarium, the park."
I shook my head. "I really wish that we could. But you know what's going on with me, right? You understand now why I leave so much?"
"Yeah, you said it's to give me a better life." He was looking down at his coloring book again, going back and forth between the multiple colors he had sitting next to him. "I didn't think that getting that meant we'd have to be apart all of the time. I know you haven't, but sometimes it feels like you've left me for good. Like my mom did."
I frowned a little. "I will never, ever leave you like that. No matter where I go, or how far I go; if I can't bring you with me, best believe that I'm coming back. That's my promise to you, and it's one that I will always keep."
He nodded again, but still didn't look up. "KC." Nothing. "Kenny." Again, nothing. "Kenneth Comeaux, Jr."
KC looked up at me with a blank look on his face, his bottom lip poked out. I already know what he's about to say. "Don't call me that." He sighed, focusing back on his book. "I don't like that name."
"But it is your name."
"But it's his name too, and I'm scared that I'm gonna be like him. If people call me KC, like I ask, that lets me be myself. Then I don't worry about ending up like Daddy."
I apologized, once again respecting the wishes he'd made when he was only three years old and began to learn the hard truth about our father. "Okay, did you hear what I said about never leaving you?"
"Yes, I heard. And I believe you." He looked at me again. "But that doesn't mean I'm happy, not about you always leaving. But I'm happy that people get to see what I see."
"Which is what, KC?"
"How great you are. I'll be proud to tell people that you're my sister, and you're famous. I'll be proud of you."
"You would?"
He nodded. "Yeah, because you're always proud of me and what I do. And I have lots of other people that are proud of me, but you don't. You need someone to be proud, so that's me."
I smiled, moving to his side of the table before I hugged him, kissing all over his cheeks. He groaned trying to push me away while laughing. "Thanks Kid. You really are the best little human in the world."
Finally moving over a little, I pulled the remainder of my boudin towards me and KC went back to his coloring book, stating that he would save the rest of his po'boy for later. I simply nodded, wrapping it up for him before I went on to finish my own food.
"Leann, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure."
"When I grow up, will I get to be as famous as you're going to be?"
I nodded. "If that's what you want to be, yes."
"People would expect me to be a rapper too, huh?"
I chuckled at the way he said it, almost as if he hated the thought of being a rapper himself. "Nah, you can be anything that you want to be, KC. See, when you grow up and you get older, and you start figuring out who you are, along the way, you learn that there are so many different opportunities. No two people are the same, not everyone is meant to work the same job, or like the same things. It's nice when you meet people who share interest in what you like, but it's not mandatory. So, just like my only goal in life is to be a famous rapper, your goal in life could be..." I sighed and thought for a second. "You could be a comedian, or you could be a teacher. You could be a doctor, a lawyer. You like dinosaurs, so you could very well grow up to be an archeologist. I can see it now." He looked at me, side-eying. "My baby brother, all grown up and discovering all of these amazing different species that no one's ever seen before. You never know, you could discover a whole new dinosaur, and then somebody will make a movie about you."
"That's nice or whatever, but I think I want to play basketball."
I laughed. "Or, a professional basketball player. That works too. You gon' give me free season tickets, courtside?"
He shrugged. "I might not have the hook up like that."
"Haha, aiight, but you better not play for a bum team."
"Even if the team is terrible, I'll be the one to turn it around."
I held my hand to my chest, looking at my little brother. "Extreme confidence; you got that KC. I'll be cheering you on." I pulled at a few of his curls before finally taking a look at my watch.
It was nearing six p.m., and there was still so much that I wanted to do with him before the remainder of our day dwindled away.
My brother didn't know it, but with school out for the summer, and with us needing to buckle down in the studio now that we're supposedly, finally, going to have the perfect combination of girls, I'd be gone for a lot longer than the weekend.
Each time, it got harder and harder to say goodbye to him. And, if I had to witness him cry again, well, I'm not sure that I'll be able to handle it without breaking down myself.
"What else are we going to do, Leann?"
"You pick this time. Whatever you want, we'll do it. We'll take more pictures too, 'cause I've got another disposable camera, ready and waiting."
He rolled his eyes, openly expressing his dislike for pictures. I think he only agreed to the ones today because I asked, stating that I wanted them to take on the road with me. We'd never taken pictures before, not as a family, not as siblings; never. I figured, why not start while I have the chance to make sure he has some good memories of his life.
"Can we go to a laser tag place? Ooooo, no." I looked at him, smirking at the huge amount of excitement that washed over his face. "Paintball."
He smiled, a little too evilly for my liking, but I shrugged and agreed. "Hope you're ready to lose, Kid."
"No, no, bay-beh..." I laughed, extremely tickled at how hard his accent slipped out. "I never lose, and won't be starting today. It's going down."
I shook my head, wondering what my life had been before he and his silliness came along.