Taylor sat on a beanbag in the middle of the dimly lit apartment. The place smelled strongly of marijuana and a cloud still hovered in the air. She impatiently huffed and crossed her long slender legs. Her cowboy boot bobbed anxiously. She combed her fingers through her curly blonde strands, which hung just above her thin shoulders, and checked her watch.
A large man entered the room. He wore a dew-rag, white tank top, and gym shorts that slid below his ass. He held the baggy of weed out toward Taylor, but as she snatched for it, he yanked the dope away.
Taylor curled her brow. "What's the deal, Tee?"
Burden Tee hunkered on his scarred sofa, cotton reached out from the busted seams. "Before I give you this, I need to know that me and you are cool."
"How long have I known—"
"Stop." Tee wagged his finger at her. "Are you the type of bitch to watch Roots backwards just to get a happy ending?"
"What the fuck are you going on about?"
"That neo-nazi shit on the news."
"You know about that?"
Tee nodded. "I seen ya marchin' with all them other crackas in Charlottesville."
"And?"
"You forget what color I am?"
Taylor cleared her throat. She sprung up from the beanbag, hands on her hips. "It doesn't matter. My money speaks. That is all."
"So, you are racist... I should have known by them shit-kickers you always wear." Tee sighed, disappointed. "Sorry, baby-girl. Can't sell to ya no mo."
"I'm not a fuckin' bigot." Taylor folded her arms, angrily tapping her foot. "Liberals are just stepping over the line. They're trying to take down our—"
"Racist-ass statues."
"Hate to break it to ya," Taylor challenged, "but the Civil War was fought over state's rights."
"Don't give me that ole bullshit," Tee replied. "I know my history."
"Oh yeah? From that white-hate propaganda?" Taylor asked rhetorically. "They'll have you believe crackas are all cave dwellers with hunched shoulders and tails."
"Better than your Ku-Klux-Klan tellin' everyone we're all monkeys."
Taylor clenched her jaw and turned to a nice flat screen hanging on the far wall. "Nice TV. You loot it during a BLM protest?"
Tee laughed off her insult and simply returned, "Get out."
Taylor's stance softened. She began to panic for the drug. "Come on. I-I'll give you double."
"Wow!"
"So, you will?"
"No," Tee snapped. "I'm just surprised how you're reacting right now. You're not in 'Hollywood' hills anymore, Dorothy. You're white privilege isn't gonna benefit you here."
"I didn't bring my white privilege card with me, was afraid it might get stolen 'round here." Taylor's glare, once again, sharpened. "Now, stop fuckin' with me and just give me the goddamn dope."
Tee seemed to find her short temper hilarious. He chuckled aloud while softly whipping the bag of pot like a helicopter propeller. "You want it?"
"Fuckin' yes!" Taylor reached for it, but Tee yanked it away. She tripped and fell over his lap and into the arm rest. Disgusted, she hurriedly jumped up and brushed herself off as though his touch contaminated her.
"What?" Tee scoffed. "You afraid I might give you something?"
"They say aids came from apes," Taylor dauntlessly stated.
"Is that why you rednecks keep it in the family?"
Taylor fumed. She gnawed at her lip. "Listen, my boyfriend is waiting outside. We're really in a rush."
"Prove to me you're not racist."
"Fine," Taylor sighed. "What?"
Tee smiled, showing a gold tooth. He patted his lap for her to take a seat.
"Ha! Sorry. Santa's not black."
"The gift I want to give you wouldn't fit in Santa's bag."
Taylor puckered her lips in rebuke. "That's not the gift I'm looking for."
"It's a gift you'll gladly accept if you want this." Tee leaned up from the couch, twirled the baggy of marijuana.
Taylor blushed, her cheeks as red as the stripes in the confederate flag. Her throat knotted. Her breath hastened. "I don't know about this. My boyfriend is right out—" As her eyes swept over the lime-green weed in his hand, she choked on her words. She shot a nervous glance out the window before turning back to Tee.
"Think of this as a form of reparations."
"That's called welfare," Taylor quipped.
Tee rubbed his palms together. "You're just adding more fuel to the fire."
"This is so fucked up." Taylor unbuttoned her white shirt, unlatched her blacked bra. Her breasts were slender with slight sag, her tiny nipples pink. She scornfully eyed him while wiggling out of her frayed jean shorts. She erected her posture, standing only in her cowboy boots. Her hands hid her nipples.