Once the song came to an end, Destin spun the record and cut to Beyonce’sAmerica Has a Problem remix. Still in the lowest squat possible, Yanna began to tick her waist to the beat. Destin sung along with Kendrick Lamar to hype Yanna up. She laughed and stopped dancing, smiling at Destin as he cut to another song. “Are you ladies good up here? Y’all need more juice? Another bottle?” She questioned the group of women who’d started dancing amongst each other.
“No, we’re good girl! Can you close out the tab for us, though? If you don’t, I’m afraid I’ll end up spending my mortgage up in here!” The woman who presented as the leader of the group replied, to which Yanna nodded her head.
“I’ll be right back with your receipt,” she informed before prancing off, using a napkin to dab away the beads of sweat that started to form on her forehead.
By the time she closed out the section of ladies, then tended to and closed out the remainder of her sections, it was well after two am. The club had closed, and she was stuffing her tips for the night into her mini backpack. Since she usually changed clothes at home, she pulled off the heeled knee boots she was wearing and replaced them with a pair of retro Jordan 1s.
“Bitch, I know you racked up in tips tonight,” Nisha commented, coming out of one of the bathrooms dressed in a pair of leggings and a crop top.
“I can’t lie, I haven’t even paid attention to what I made in tips. That table of ladies did make sure I knew they tipped $200, though. I don’t really?—”
Before Yanna could finish her sentence, her train of thought was interrupted by a conversation between two other bottle girls. Usually, she wouldn’t have cared what they were talking about, but the mention of Kas interested her.
“Girl yes, I saw the video. I was like,ain’t that Onyx’s brother?” One girl named Shan commented.
“It definitely was him. I was tripping because I swore him, andyou know whotalked.” Another girl, Tia, added.
“Mhmm, but that nigga got money and is on his way to being one of the biggest producers in the industry. Bitches tend to let shit like that slide when they fucking with a nigga of his status.”
“I don’t blame her. Get your dick sucked all you want, baby. Just make sure I get an all expense paid trip to Cabo for me and my girls as a form of apology.”
Both girls laughed, and Yanna could hear them slapping hands. Slamming her locker shut, she let the girls know they weren’t alone in the locker room.
“See, Nisha, this the shit I hate. Bitches speaking on me and Kas and having no fucking idea what they’re talking about!” Yanna stated, being sure to speak loud enough for the girls to hear. Realizing they’d been caught gossiping, Shan and Tia said nothing as they scurried out of the locker room.
Yanna shook her head, and her anger rose now that the situation with Kas and Yasmine was fresh on her brain again. Even though she assured Kas they could start anew, her mind had been on the video since she first saw it. She smiled when around Kas and was overly nice, not wanting to allow him a glimpse of the misery residing in her eyes. He always complained about her distant behavior and constant declaration that they weren’t a couple, but he continuously proved to her why she needed to be that way. Why she had to be so guarded, to protect herself from the inevitable heartache that came along with giving her heart to a man. Yanna played tough, acted unconcerned like she didn’t care, but truthfully, she was extremely sensitive.
“Girl, fuck them dusty ass bitches, and you better not let them get you all in your feelings. We parking lot pimping tonight or what? Des said to tell you he took a bottle along with his payment for the night, he’s waiting out there.”
She was supposed to be meeting up with Kas after she got off, but now that she’d been reminded of her hurt feelings, it wasfuck Kasagain. The circles just kept going, a perpetually spinning carousel. Parking lot pimping was the term Nisha coined for chilling in the parking lot after hours. Sometimes it would be just the girls, other nights they’d hang out with Destin or other guys they met in the club.
“Yea, fuck it.”
Closing her locker, she placed her bag over her shoulder and followed Nisha out of the club. When they made it outside,Destin and some guys she didn’t recognize were posted up in the parking lot next to Nisha’s pink Jeep.
“There go my girl,” Destin regarded, pushing off his BMW and making his way over to Yanna. When he approached, he grabbed her into a hug. “Damn, you smell good.”
“Always,” she responded, walking back over to his car with him.
Destin sat atop his hood, and Yanna took residence next to him.
“Yanna, Nisha, these my niggas Mari and Santana. Y’all, this the homie Nisha, and my fine ass Yanna,” Destin introduced, pulling a blunt from his pocket and lighting it.
The guys offered greetings to Nisha before turning their attention on the girl who had their friend smitten.
“What’s up, Yanna?” The one introduced as Mari spoke.
“I’m alright.”
“How y’all know each other?”
“Yanna from ‘round the way, a Highland Park girl from 5thand Front Street. I been trying to fuck with her since the sixth grade, but she be bullshitting.”
“Don’t be out here telling these people I’m a bullshitter. I told you I genuinely consider you a friend, and I’m not trying to mess that up.”
“Damn, she friend zoned you, Des.” Santana commented.
“That doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Consider yourself lucky, I view you as a friend because I don’t take that title lightly.”
