My best friend, Ebone, was a real estate agent and split her time between New York and Houston. She’d been sending me different places to look at that were my style, and each time, I’d come up with a different excuse as to why the place wouldn’t work. And the excuses were so dumb, I was surprised she’d let me get away with them. In one place, I told her I didn’t like where the fridge was in the kitchen. In another, I didn’t like that there was a no pets allowed rule.
Mind you, I didn’t even have a damn pet. I was just being difficult. Ebone knew it and let me drag it until she was over my shit. She popped up at the hotel late one afternoon, dressed for the streets, with a whole itinerary.
“Get up, bitch,” she said as she entered the room with the extra key card I’d given her. “We going outside.”
“It’s Sunday, Ebone,” I groaned, covering my face with a pillow from the bed. “Ain’t nobody outside on a damn Sunday.”
“No, babe. We ain’t used to doing too much on the East Coast on a Sunday. But this is Houston. They go up on Sundays. Like this literally they shit. They call it Sunday Funday. So, getcho ass up so we can go make it do what it do. I’m hoping to see DJ XO in the spot, so I can sing to him. You know that Love Somebody EP got me in a chokehold.”
“Ughh.” I snatched the pillow off my face and got a good look at her attire. “Having all that ass hanging out them shorts on the Lord’s day should be a sin.”
Ebone was thick like me, so her jean shorts couldn’t help but to ride up because of all her juiciness. That was what we called our big thighs. She paired the shorts with a cute polo and on her feet were a pair of Chanel sandals to which she had the bag to match.
“He know what he blessed me with. But don’t worry bout me. You just go head and get yourself together, so we can go have some food, drinks, and good vibes.”
Shaking my head, I pulled the sheets off my body and stood. I’d been in pajamas since the time I woke up. Grabbing my phone from the bed, I headed for the bathroom to shower. As I went to pass by Ebone, she cleared her throat and held her hand out.
“What?” I stopped mid step and turned to her with a confused look.
“I’ma need that phone, boo.”
“Forrr?” I dragged.
“Your sanityyy,” she mimicked. “You been waiting for Pryce mean ass to call. I know you.”
“I’m…”
“About to sit here and lie.” She finished my sentence. “We been friends too long, boo. I know you. Go head and hand me the phone and go get fine. You was sad bout that nigga in NY.Don’t bring that shit to Houston. Just over here flooding the place with tears.”
I rolled my eyes and handed the phone over. I couldn’t argue with the truth. In the bathroom, I took a twenty-minute shower and stepped out into the steam. Wiping the fog from the mirror, I stared at my reflection, taking in my full face. My eyes were bright, but there was also a sadness to them. My skin glowed from a well-maintained, head-to-toe body care routine, but looks were deceiving. I seemed put together on the outside but still felt like I had the weight of the world on my shoulders.
That usually happened when you wrapped part of your identity in someone else. Sighing, I reached for my toothbrush to brush my teeth again. After washing my face, I put on the complimentary robe the hotel provided and walked back out into the room. Ebone was now seated at the small desk beside the bed, and there were two outfits laid out for me. One was a two-piece skirt set, and the other was a midriff tank top and a pair of jorts. Each outfit was paired with a different heel.
“Figured you’d want options, boo.”
“You figured right.” I grabbed the jorts and tank top and headed back to the bathroom to oil my skin and get dressed.
“That’s my motherfuckin’ best friend right there!” Ebone shrieked, popping up from the desk once I walked back out.
I was fully dressed and had taken the time to add a few loose curls to my hair. After making the drastic decision to leave New York and plant seeds in Houston, I figured my look needed a change too, so I had Ebone dye my bundles red and had been rocking the color ever since. It looked good on my brown skin. Hitting my body with a generous amount of perfume, I put on my shoes and jewelry and grabbed my purse.
“Come on before I change my mind,” I said, picking up my key card on the way to the door.
We ended up at Bar 5015, and what started out as another day of sadness and second guessing my decision to leave what I knew for the unknown turned out to be one of my best days in Houston. The vibes were everything, food was amazing, and I fully enjoyed my time with my best friend. While she got drunk and sang off-key, I laughed, recorded her, and threw my ass in a circle. We’d even blended in with a group of women next to us that were celebrating a birthday.
As if the spot couldn’t get any more turnt, there was sudden pandemonium. The DJ had announced someone named Trill had walked in then dropped a record I’d never heard before.
“Ooou, girl, this Don running through me. I gotta pee,” Ebone said in my ear.
“Okay, come on.” I grabbed her hand, and we went to walk toward the restrooms.
We managed to bump into who I figured was the man of the hour and his entourage posted up near the bar as we headed there. I locked eyes with him, and he flashed a smile and a wink. I smirked and kept moving. While Ebone used the bathroom, I used the opportunity to reapply my lip gloss and check my hair. The curls had dropped, but I still looked good.
“You having fun?” she asked, walking out of the stall and over to the sink.
“A ball. Thank you for still not knowing how to take no for an answer after all these years.”
She laughed. “Lucky for you, I’ll never change.”
