“I just want you happy, Harley,” CJ said, ignoring Aunt Bailey, which Rebel admired so much. “If Ryan makes you happy, then you should be with him.”
“I’m so ashamed,” Harley whispered. “And I know Nardo will be so mean, even over the phone.”
“We know how much words hurt, Harls.” Rebel resisted the urge to cut her eyes at Aunt Bailey.Somehow.“You’ve already been so traumatized, I can’t imagine how you’re feeling.Iwant you to do it, but that’s easy for me to say. I’m telling myself I’d do it if I was in your place, but I don’t know.”
“Harley, I want to get my fucking hands on Nardo so fucking bad,” CJ told her. “Those fuckheads know they’re fucking dead, so they’re hiding. If he’s still contacting you, he might be willing to answer, so Uncle Stretch can pick up their location from whatever cell tower they are close to. If it was up tome, I would tell you to make the call, but I’m willing to let that motherfucker escape for now if it jeopardizes your mental health. I’m not a psychiatrist, so—”
“Exactly! You aren’t a psychiatrist,” Aunt Bailey said, always finding fucking words at the worst possible time. “You’re the reason she’s in this position. You turned your back on her. You left her when she needed you most. You’re nothing. You’re not worthy to even look at my daughter.”
Aunt Bailey’s low opinion of CJ wasn’t anything new. She’d made her feelings known weeks ago, but it still shocked Rebel and hurt CJ, judging by the look on his face. He must’ve held out hope that Aunt Bailey hadn’t turned so completely against him.
“You know who the fucking problem is, Aunt Bailey?” CJ pointed to the small mirror on the other side of the room. “Stand in front of it and you’ll see her staring right the fuck back at you. I didn’t make Harley do a motherfucking thing. Stop blamingmefor what the fuckyoufailed to do. If you want to fucking help her now, tell her how much we all love her and could never be ashamed of her. Tell her you don’t give a fuck if she fucked a koala bear on the back of a fucking crocodile. Help her to help us and helpusto helpher.”
“No. When I allowed her to visit Nardo, it wasn’t supposed to turn intothis. She was miserable because you were too selfish to allow her to go through growing pains, so yes I blame you. You aren’t worthy of her and Ryanespeciallyisn’t worthy of her.”
“Harley asked me and Rebel to help her explain things to you. But you’re not even hearing us. You’re judging. I don’t understand how you can turn your back on her right now.”
“Of course you wouldn’t understand,” Aunt Bailey told him bitterly. “You have the perfect sister.”
Rebel snorted. “In his fucking dreams.”
“The perfect mother. I’m just mid-tier and Harley’s even lower.”
The woman had gone batshit fucking crazy. What the fuck was she talking about?
“Why did it have to be you, Harley?” Aunt Bailey continued woefully. “Usbehaving badly.”
“Us?” Rebel echoed, wondering why CJ stiffened and narrowed his eyes. “We aren’t against you, Aunt Bailey. We’re all family.”
Ignoring Rebel, Aunt Bailey hiccupped. “You’ve turned me into the stereotypical angry black woman, and yourself into a statistic.”
Us? Did she mean…?
Rebel gasped as the meaning dawned on her.
“Mommie—” Harley cried.
“Mydaughter is held to a higher fucking standard,” Aunt Bailey said, sobbing. “And what does she do? Behave the fucking worst.”
“Really, Aunt Bailey?” CJ demanded. “We’re going there now? We’re supposed to be helping Harley. Instead, you’re humiliating her, yourself, and Uncle Mort.”
“You’re blind, CJ. But what can I expect when you have the fucking world at your feet? We aren’t you. She isn’t one of you. If a girl like Molly or Rebel or Mattie had done the exact same thing as Harley and you claimed to love her for her entire fucking life, you would’ve still seen a future with her. But Harley’s hair is different. Her skin is different. You couldn’t look beyond that.”
Rebel really wanted her mother. She didn’t even know how to respond to Aunt Bailey’s hate and vitriol. Harley was a fewmonths older than Rebel, but she’d seen Harley as a member of her family her entire life. Once Mattie was born, it had been the three of them. They hadn’t overlooked their differences; it was right there in their faces and they didn’t shy away from it.
Lolly and Uncle Mort had always been proud of who they were. Rebel and Mattie knew as much about how to care for Harley’s hair as Harley knew how to care for theirs. For Aunt Bailey to feel differently…yeah, fuck her because the same hurt she’d noticed on CJ, Rebel now felt.
“You wouldn’t have left Harley if she was someone else.”
“The fuck I wouldn’t have, Aunt Bailey. What the fuck happened to you because you’ve lost your fucking mind? What happened to Harley and me had nothing to do with her fucking hair or anything about how she looks. It had to do with the fact that she was trying to fucking control me when the situation she flipped out over was out of my control. I would tellanygirl to kick fucking rocks if they don’t trust me, don’t believe what I say, or tell me who I can and can’t be friends with.”
“Idon’t believe you,” Aunt Bailey bit out. “Youused her andRyanjust saw her as an easy lay.”
“No, Aunt Bailey,” Rebel snapped, compelled to speak on behalf of that miserable motherfucker, which made her even angrier. “As much as I hate defending Ryan at any time, Harley was one of the reasons he started to change. She was a good influence on that miserable fuckhead. He really cares about her.”
“And you know that little fuckhead so good that you can defend him?” Aunt Bailey responded evilly.
“Yes!” Rebel cried. “As a matter of fact I do. He’s my fucking cousin, as much as I wish that wasn’t the case most of the time. But family first. And family includes you and Harley.”
