“Okay,” she said, real easy. “You can make it.”
Then she added, without lookin’ up, “But you have to wait a minute while I finish making my husband’s plate.”
It wasn’t loud, but it was clear.
Reni stayed where she was, waitin’, and for a second it felt like everything in the kitchen slowed down.
Sha’Nelle shifted beside me, and I could feel it in her too. We ain’t like it, but for Renza, we was lettin’ it ride.
Pluto finished the plates one by one, not rushin’ or breakin’ her rhythm, and when she was done, she slid Renza’s plate to the side without sayin’ a word.
Reni picked it up like she had somethin’ to prove.
We grabbed the rest of the plates and walked them out to the men, and even though nobody said nothin’, that lil’ moment followed us out that kitchen.
Kay’Lo looked up when I walked over, his whole face changin’, and I handed him his plate.
“Appreciate you, baby,” he said, lookin’ at me.
I bent down and kissed him. Then, I glanced over at Renza and Reni, watchin’ how she handed him his plate like she was claimin’ somethin’, and he ain’t even peep it like that. He just took it and kept talkin’ and laughin’ like everything was normal.
I stood there for a second, lookin’ at Pluto, then at Sha’Nelle, then back at Reni, and I already knew what time it was.
Whatever that was in the kitchen, it wasn’t goin’ nowhere. And as much as I loved Renza, and as much as I was willin’ to keep the peace for him…
I ain’t even know if I wanted this bitch around me like that.
When we finally made it home, my ass couldn’t wait to tell Kay’Lo about the shit that went down between Pluto and Reni.
I ain’t even give myself time to sit down good before I started, followin’ him around the room while he was pickin’ up stuff and foldin’ clothes like he had a whole routine he wasn’t about to break just ’cause I had tea.
“Baby,” I said, already talkin’ fast. “When I tell you that shit got weird in that kitchen…”
Kay’Lo ain’t even look up at first. He just grabbed one of his shirts off the chair and started foldin’ it, noddin’ slow. “Damn…”
“I’m serious,” I kept goin’, walkin’ right behind him while he moved to the dresser. “Pluto ain’t even do nothin’ wrong. She was just makin’ plates like she always do, called Pressure, asked what everybody wanted, and when she asked what Renza wanted…”
He glanced at me real quick, then went back to what he was doin’. “Mm.”
“I’m tellin’ you, soon as she said that, Reni whole face changed,” I said, pointin’ like he had been there to see it. “It wasn’t on no loud dramatic shit, but I caught that shit. I know what that look is.”
Kay’Lo folded another shirt, calm as ever. “That’s crazy.”
I rolled my eyes but kept goin’, ’cause I knew he was listenin’ even if he wasn’t givin’ me all the energy I was givin’ him.
“Then she gon’ ask Pluto, ‘you make his plate all the time?’” I said, mockin’ her tone just a lil’. “And I’m sittin’ there like… bitch, what? Pluto don’t want no damn Renza.”
That made him pause for a second, then he let out a low breath through his nose like he was tryin’ not to laugh. “She said that?”
“Yes!” I said, throwin’ my hands up. “Out the blue, baby. Out the fuckin’ blue. And Pluto looked at her confused, ’cause she wasn’t even thinkin’ like that.”
He shook his head, pickin’ up another piece of clothin’. “Damn…”
I followed him into the bathroom while he grabbed his toothbrush, and I ain’t stop talkin’ not one time.
“I’m tellin’ you, it wasn’t even what she said, it was how she said it,” I continued, leanin’ against the counter while he startedbrushin’ his teeth. “You could tell she felt some type of way about Pluto even askin’ about Renza’s plate.”
Kay’Lo looked at me in the mirror with his toothbrush hangin’ out his mouth, his brows slightly raised, then went right back to brushin’.
