Eventually Jay and I made our way back to the party. I was so happy we were on good terms again and the vibe had returned back to normal. I sat with Jay on the couch as he mingled with his friends and couldn't help but feel bored at their sports talk.
"Babe, let's dance," I suggested, placing my chin on his shoulder.
Jay looked over at me with an annoyed look.
"Don't interrupt my conversation," he said.
The smile I had faltered and I leaned back against the couch. Darius came back from the bathroom and plopped down next to me.
"Why you moping?" he asked.
I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Aren't Barbies supposed to be happy and shit?" Darius continued with a wide grin.
Before I could reply, Jay put his hand on my thigh and gave it a light squeeze. I looked up at him and his eyes were on Darius. When one guy was giving me attention that's when Jay would finally show me some. But any other moment I was expected to stay by his side without him even talking to me.
"I'm going to go find Kendra and them," I said.
Jay ignored me and wrapped his arm around my shoulder. He kissed the side of my neck.
"You're going to stay your ass here, okay?" he said into my ear.
I nodded. While Jay wasn't looking I took out my phone and sent a text to Chris that I was ready to go home. Pretty soon he walked over to where Jay and I were.
"Alright, y'all im finna head out," Chris said. "You ready, Amore?"
"Yep," I said rather quickly. I cleared my throat and started to get up but Jay stopped me.
"Where you going? I thought I was taking you home," he said.
I had never assumed Jay was taking me home and I knew he was only saying this because he didn't want me to leave.
"It's okay I'll just get a ride with Chris," I said.
"Yeah it's more convenient," Chris added. "You trying to hold her hostage or something?" Chris laughed and punched Jay in the arm playfully.
Jay laughed, but his eyes remained dark. I didn't like that look.
"You know what, Chris," I said, "I'll stay for a little bit longer."
"You sure?" my brother asked.
I nodded and glanced at Jay. He rubbed my leg and gave me a smile.
"Ay, the police are up front!" a random person started yelling.
"Ah, shit," I heard Darius say.
At that moment the house became chaos as everyone ran out before the police could catch anyone drinking and smoking, the music cut off and the room just filled with a mixture of drunk, confused laughter and chatter. Chris scared ass ended up leaving me. I held onto Jay's hand as he walked to the front door where a couple of officers were standing.
"Is this your house, son?" one of them asked.
"Yes," Jay said. "I was just throwing a Halloween get together."
"Well this 'get together' has rallied a few complaints from your neighbors. Your folks home?"
"They are, sir."
I looked at him in surprise. I had no idea his parents were home. I'd assumed he threw this party without their knowledge.
"Let me go get my mom," Jay said. "She's upstairs." He looked at me. "Stay here, I'll be back."
I watched him walk upstairs and awkwardly stared at the officers. The one who'd been questioning Jay offered a smile, but his partner remained stern. A few moments later Jay came downstairs followed by his mom.
"Good evening, ma'am. I'm Officer Jimenez. This is my partner Officer West," the nice officer said.
"Hi, officers," Kelly replied. "I'm so sorry for the disturbance we've caused. I only expected Jay to have a few friends over, but I guess it got a little out of control." She laughed softly and smiled. She really was beautiful, especially for someone who'd been addicted to drugs like Jay had told me.
Officer Jimenez silently acknowledged her beauty also and gave her a grin.
"I understand, ma'am," he said. "But please just be more careful and considerate for your neighbors."
"I will, sorry again," she said. "I'll make sure to give my son a tough talk."
"Good," Officer West interjected. "There clearly was some underage drinking going on around here. You wouldn't want to be responsible if any of those kids had gotten g=hurt would you?"
Kelly shook her head.
"I promise you I will handle this," she said. She gave Jay a stern look. Jay only glared at her in response.
Kelly walked the officers outside and said goodnight before closing the door. She turned her attention to Jay who was sitting on the couch. I shifted my feet and she glanced at me. She looked surprised, but a smile broke across her face.
"Oh, hello," she said. "I didn't even see you were here. I apologize."
"it's fine," I said. "I didn't even know you were here at all." I laughed.
"You can go back upstairs now, Kelly," Jay said as he flipped through the TV channels.
My mouth hung slightly. He referred to his mom by her first name. I understood they had a past but I wasn't expecting such disrespect.
"What have I told you about talking to me like that?" Kelly said. "When your dad gets home best believe I'll be telling him about all this. You told us you were only going to have a few friends over."
"You heard all these people down here yet you didn't say anything," Jay snapped. He stood up and from the corner of my eye I swore I saw Kelly back up slightly. Jay started gathering empty beer cans from the floor.
"I'll clean this all up," he said.
Kelly seemed surprised.
"Good," she said.
"I'll help," I said.
"Oh, no, sweetie why don't you go on home. This is Jay's mess to fix."
"Well, he's my ride so if I'm going to wait I might as well be useful."
"Okay, well if you insist." Kelly smiled. "I was going to cook dinner tomorrow, will you be here? Do you like Jamaican food."
"I've never had it," I admitted.
"Ooh, well girl you're gonna have it tomorrow," Kelly said.
I looked at Jay who was still cleaning but clearly listening to our conversation.
"I'll see if I can make it," I said.
"Alright, well you're welcomed here any time just know that." She leaned in for a hug which I wasn't expecting. I hugged her back and she gave me a squeeze. Hugs were supposed to be comforting but for some reason her's only made me feel worry. She pulled away and retreated back upstairs into her room.
"She really is a nice lady," I said to Jay.
He looked at me and narrowed his eyes.
"She's only nice out of guilt, Amore," he said. "Believe me, if you saw how she used to be you'd dislike her just as much as I do."
I didn't respond.
"You can come to dinner tomorrow," jay said.
"I don't remember asking for your permission," I muttered.
"What was that?"
"Nothing," I said quickly. "I meant, I already was going to come. Will I meet your dad."
"Yes. He doesn't work the weekends."
"Where is he now?"
Jay shrugged.
"He's not here that's all I know."
I left the conversation at that. For the remainder of the time Jay and I cleaned in silence.
***
"Man, where were you last night we didn't even get to kick it like that?" Kendra whined into my ear.
It was a Saturday afternoon. I was outside in my backyard on the phone with her enjoying the crisp soon to be November air.
"Jay had me on a leash," I said.
Kendra laughed although I had a hint of seriousness in my tone.
"You guys are such love birds cant spend one minute without each other," she said. "So cute."
"Yeah yeah," I said. "I'm going over to his place later to eat dinner with his family."
"Oh, really? Are you nervous?"
"Not really. The only person I haven't met yet is his dad but I suppose it will still be hella awkward being with everyone together."
"I feel you. I've met his dad before he's a cool guy."
"For real? When was this?"
"He used to always come to Jay's games. He'd sometimes treat us all to Wingstop after. Don't know why he stopped though."
A bit of relief came over me. I don't know why I expected Jay's dad to be mean. Maybe it was because he was in such a high profile job it made me think he had a cut throat personality. Or because of Jay's own seriousness at times; his personality had to have been inherited from one of his parents.
Kendra and I chatted for a bit longer before I hung up. Jay wanted me to come over a little bit earlier so we could have some alone time together so I went to my room to get ready. Jay showed up at my house around five and we drove to his house.
When we walked inside it smelled like a restaurant and the house smelled of flavors and spices. My stomach growled and Jay laughed.
"I haven't ate nothing," I said, laughing along.
"Why not? Too nervous?"
I nodded.
"Is your dad here?" I asked.
"You really want to meet my dad, huh?" Jay said.
"Well, yes."
"He should be in the kitchen. He was helping my mom cook before I left."
I smiled at that. Jay's family seemed very warm and nice, I couldn't understand why his energy seemed off at the mention of them at times. I followed him into the kitchen. Kelly and Jay's dad seemed to be having a serious discussion but were interrupted by our sudden appearance.
"Hey, babygirl!" Kelly said with a wide smile. She gave me a warm hug compared to the one I received the previous night. Her whole demeanor was different to be honest. Less timid.
"Hi, Miss Kelly," I said politely. I looked at Jay's dad and waved shyly. "Hello."
Jay's dad smiled and held his hand out. I shook it.
"I'm Mr. Washington, jay's dad," he said.
Of course he was Jay's dad they looked nearly identical. He was obviously older looking and a bit taller with a more muscular built. He wore pajama pants and a shirt. Kelly was also in her pajamas. Kelly saw me eyeing their outfts and laughed.
"You'll have to excuse me and my husband," she said. "He wears business clothes all week. When it's his days off he just likes to unwind. I swear I normally dress up but you're a cool girl so I knew you wouldn't judge."
"Oh, no you're fine," I said. "I should've worn my pajamas."
"I see you've got my boy's letterman jacket on, he's a great player isn't he?" Mr. Washington said.
I looked at jay who hadn't said a word this whole time. His expression was unreadable but I knew he wanted out of this kitchen.
"He's a great player," I said. "Well don't let us hold you guys back, I'll let you guys finish the food."
"Okay, it should be done in a little bit," Kelly said.
Jay took my hand and guided me out back into the living room. We sat on the couch and I looked at him.
"Are you okay?" I asked him.
"I'm fine," he answered. "I just hate how my mom is. Especially when she's around my dad. Tries to act like everything's good."
"Well, everything does seem good. I mean, they look like they're happy together."
"You don't know shit, Amore."
"Well then tell me, Jay. How do you expect me to be understanding towards your emotions about your family when you refuse to let me know anything."
Jay sighed.
"You're right," he said. "But there's really nothing to tell. Like I said she stole from my dad, was on drugs for nearly a year. She's been back with us the last five years but she doesn't even acknowledge what she did to my dad. He was angry for a long time. Very angry." Jay's voice trailed off. "That year she was gone he was a different man. He's back to normal now but she doesn't know what went on while she was away blowing his money getting high."
"What happened?" I asked.
Jay shook his head.
"I've already shared more than I'm comfortable with right now," he said.
"Okay," I said. "Take your time."
Jay leaned in and gave me a kiss. For a moment I forgot we were in his living room and kissed him intently. We were interrupted by someone walking in. I immediately pulled away and saw it was Naomi.
"Hello," I said.
"Hi," she said. "I like your hair. It's long when its straightened."
"Thanks." I smiled. I couldn't help it. This was the first time she had ever complimented me or engaged in a conversation that wasn't awkward. "I like your nails."
"Thank you." She stared at me. I suddenly remembered when I had gone into her room yesterday and felt a surge of guilt. I wonder if she somehow knew I had been in there.
Jay wrapped a comforting arm around my shoulder and I relaxed into it.
"So, Naomi, how'd you spend your Halloween?" I asked.
"I just went trick-or-treating with my friend and her little sister," Naomi said. "Did you dress up?"
"Yeah, I was a Barbie. Jay was supposed to be my Ken but he flaked." I got a flashback to the argument we had had and how he'd shoved me. It made me get chills.
Jay stared down at me as if he had gotten the same flashback and gave me a smile.
"Okay, who's ready for dinner?" Kelly sing-songed, walking into the living room.
Naomi grinned and got up to give her mom a hug.
"You made the chicken extra spicy, right?" she asked.
"You know I did."
I watched them walk into the dining room area as they laughed and talked. Their relationship was clearly different than the one Jay had with their mom. Naomi was only a year younger than Jay so she was old enough to understand what her mom did, but that didn't seem to effect her and her mom's relationship with one another.
Jay and I walked into the dining room and sat next to each other at the table. I picked up the spoon that was in the bowel of rice and beans.
"Jay, you're not going to serve Amore?" Kelly asked.
"You don't need to tell me how to treat my girlfriend," Jay said bitterly.
"Jay," Mr. Washington warned. He gave Jay a pleading look as if this was a common routine that he didn't want to sit through again.
Jay calmly took the spoon out of my hand and put a scoop of rice and beans on my plate.
"Can I have some more, please?" I said.
Jay's jaw clenched and he angrily applied another scoop on top of the other portion. Everyone appeared to be watching the two of us. This family loved to stare, but it was impossible to tell what they were staring for or what they were thinking.
"My mom's jerk chicken is the best, Amore," Naomi said. She gave me a smile and I smiled back thankful at someone attempting to make this dinner less awkward.
"I bet it is, everything smells amazing," I said. "Thank you all so much for having me."
"It's no problem," Mr. Washington said. "I didn't even know Jay had a new girlfriend. But I can't expect anything less from him. He's been having all the ladies on him since kindergarten."
I laughed and glanced at Jay who smiled a little.
"Oh, really?" I said.
"Yeah, just like his own pops always after the ladies," Mr. Washington continuned. "And he got himself a beautiful one too."
I blushed and smiled. This was where Jay got his charm.
"Damn, Dad this is my girlfriend," Jay said, shaking his head.
The whole table laughed. The laughter was real but almost seemed robotic. It was nice Jay made a joke but clearly no one was expecting it.
"Do you play any sports, Amore?" Kelly asked me before she but into a piece of chicken.
"I'm in cheer," I replied.
"She asked if you played a sport," Mr. Washington said.
I laughed and playfully pouted.
"Cheering is a sport a dangerous one," I said defensively. "I've seen cheermates break bones."
"Jay's got a thing for cheerleaders," Naomi said slyly.
The table went quiet after that comment and everyone chumped their food. Kelly took a nervous sip of her water and glanced over at Jay. For the first time ever he appeared uncomfortable. His ex. The one Chantel had mentioned. He clearly had a not so fond history with her. I needed to figure out what it was.