Eric had camped outside Shanice's apartment for more than an hour now waiting for her to arrive. He'd thought after her meeting with his ex-wife that she would head for home with crying eyes. It had never occurred to him that she might have anticipated that he too would drop by her apartment to try and see about explaining things to her and instead decided to head someplace else. Eric might have thought about stopping by her friend Michelle's place if only he knew where it was. He was resigned to sit out by her front stoop and wait for her return. He'd tried her cell number a couple of times and though it rang, it went unanswered. There was an anxious pounding in his heart; obviously he was going to have to do a whole lot of explaining when he saw her.
Why hadn't he ever thought of telling her about Tara in the first place? He couldn't believe the thought had never stumbled to the forefront of his mind all this time until now. Sure, he ought to have told her about his past marriage ... but he'd figured it was much too early in their relationship. Besides, his stint with Tara was a part of his life he'd hoped to forget—aside from her getting pregnant with his baby. But there was nothing he could do about that. The judge and the court system had firmly made sure of that. Thus he was an absentee father, and he'd had no choice but to live with that burden to his name. That part of his life had been over and done with ... at least that's the way he'd always figured it to be. Still, that notwithstanding, he should have told Shanice about it. But then again, whatever had prompted the bitch to come searching for him all this time they'd been away from each other.
He shook his head at just how surprising his day was starting to turn out. Surprises just seem to come when you least expect them.
He stood up from the side of the stoop where he'd been sitting for some time now and stretched himself, watching commuters stroll past him. His ass felt cold and clammy as a rock. His car was parked less than a block away. He could drive on back home and come back some other time ... but what good would that do?
Just when he was about to give up on whether or not to continue his stay, a taxi drove to a stop less than three feet from him in front of the apartment building. His heart jumped to his throat when he saw the two familiar faces come out of the backseat. Both women's features clouded into a frown the second their eyes focused on him.
"Hi, Michelle," he nodded at Shanice's friend.
"Hi, Eric," Michelle replied, though the coldness in her voice indicated it wasn't a happy greeting.
His eyes turned to Shanice who too was staring at him as if he didn't exist. Probably wishing that he didn't too. "Hi Shanice ... how're you doing?"
"I don't want to talk to you anymore, Eric," she said. "I don't ever want to see you anymore either."
"You have every right to say that, but first of all hear me out—" he tried to hold her hand but she flung it away from him, wanting to get past him. "Please, Shanice, at least just hear me out ... it's not what you think—"
"What the fuck do you expect me to think, Eric?" she yelled at him, immediately regretting it as a couple of faces walking the street turned to look at them. She was standing here by her front stoop creating a scene and that was something she never desired to do. Except she just couldn't help it. "We've got nothing to say to each other. Just go back and keep living the lying life you've been living—"
"I've never lied to you, Shanice—"
"—how could you look me in the eye and never told me—"
"—it wasn't like that at all—"
"—you've just been using me all this time—"
They would have stood there for a long time trading words back and forth at each other had Michelle not come to their middle to push them aside and thus make them avoid further embarrassment from staring commuter's eyes.
"Enough, you two!" said Michelle. "Eric, I don't think Shanice's listening to you. I think you'd better leave it for another day."
Eric saw the look in her eyes, looked back at Shanice who'd suddenly turned and gone up the stairs into her apartment building and realized it was a no-win situation. He swallowed his pride, turned around and went in the direction of where he'd left his vehicle. Michelle stood there and watched him walk away before going up the stairs to join her friend.
"How dare he come down here to apologise," fumed Shanice after she'd let herself and her friend into her apartment. "Bastard must think I'm some kind of fool or something."
"I don't know, girlfriend," said Michelle. "The lady you met when you were over at his place, you said she said she was his wife?"
"No, she said she is his wife. How could the bastard never mentioned such to me?"
"You mean he never gave a clue that he was married?"
"Mich, you know me well enough. You thinking I knew about this but still went along with him?"
"No, no, I know that ain't you. Just wondering how come he'd pull a stunt like that. But all this while you've been to his place, you never saw anything that indicated that he had a wife, right?"
Shanice shook her head. "No, I never did. If they were, then he sure took his time putting all her stuff away. But the woman told me they'd been separated for a while, having a rough time of things. I just can't believe it, Mich. Really, I'm so sick of men right now."
"You're not alone on that, sister," muttered Michelle who then dropped herself on a couch, her thoughts filled with her slowly dying man back at her pad.
* * * *
Saturday came. Eric's eyes came awake to the sight and sound of the new day, though the memory of Shanice was still knocking on his mind and thus he found no solace in the day's morning sunshine; all he saw was dullness and a cloud full of grey sky. He got up with a groan and went into the bathroom to clean himself up.
An hour later he was dressed up in a tee shirt and jeans and was about fixing himself a cup of coffee when there came a knock on his door. A look of hope came to his face as he pictured it was Shanice standing there coming to hear his side of the story as he went to unlocked the door. The look of hope evaporated immediately from his face when he saw who it was—Tara. She stood there leaning by the side of his door with a smug smile on her face.
"What do you want, Tara," he said, feeling exasperated already with just the sight of her.
"How about a 'hi there, Tara. Nice seeing you again today.' That's sounds like a better way to start the day. Why do you always have to be so mean towards me, Eric?"
"Is this a trick question?"
"Try the truth on me for once at least, Eric."
"I'm not mean to you, Tara. I just know that you're poison and I don't want to have anything to do with you anymore."
"Are you going to let me into your home, or would you like me standing here by the corridor all day, and perhaps wait till your landlord sees me." She flashed her eyes at him.
He really didn't want to and against his better judgement he pushed his door further open and made way for her to come inside his apartment. Tara's eyes went everywhere, trying to find if anything had changed or had moved since last time she was here. But most especially looking out for any indications that he'd had someone over the previous night. Maybe that bitch she'd met last time.
"So now you're in, tell me what exactly can I do for you, Tara?" Eric's words cut through her search.
She sat down on the arm of a couch to face him. "Did you get a chance to think about what I told you yesterday?"
"About you wanting me back in your life?"
She nodded.
"There's not a chance of that happening, Tara. You know that just as well as I do, so why don't you stop dreaming and wake up to reality."
"No dream, Eric. I really am being serious. I want you back, and Gloria too wants you back."
"Well isn't that sweet," he couldn't help but smirk. "You using your daughter to your selfish purpose. I thought you were smarter than that, Tara."
