“So, where you from, Rayna?” Chanell asked. At this point of the conversation the other girls were around and listening in.
“I’m from the east coast. I went to school in North Carolina,” I said coolly. I didn’t want to go beyond that and didn’t have to because that’s when Syn shrilled, “Oh, you one of them brainiac bitches, hunh?!” and began laughing manically. She was inebriated but I didn’t care. I lost it at that point. I couldn’t understand what was written on my forehead to make this chick believe I could be tested. Was it my feminine docile manner? I had to check her and right away.
“I don’t know who the fucckkk…” I enunciated, “…you take me for but you got one more time to come out your face with another smart remark and Im’ma slap the living shit out you!” I bawled, calling on all of my around the way flair.
Syn’s neck snapped. “Who the fuck she think she talking to?” She seemed to have asked someone else instead of me.
“What I tell you, Syn, about your mouth? Just shut the hell up before all this shit get carried away and back to Divine and Kid!” Kim advised.
“Oh, no! Don’t tell her another muthafuckin’ thing! Let her keep running her mouth. And fuck what any of them gonna say because I’m gonna whoop your high yellow ass!” I said as I walked up on her ready to swing. I was out of breath and had clearly lost control of my temper.
She followed up and walked towards me, too, like she was ready to brawl. The girls got in between us so that it wouldn’t go down. Once she saw she had a barrier Syn hog spit and aimed it at me. It landed on my foot. Anger rose from the pit of my core. I pulled my fist as far back as my arm would recoil and swung forward with such force that I lost my balance when Chanell pushed Syn totally out of my range. Syn stumbled but managed to land on her feet. At that time I moved closer to her to swing again when Kim belted out, “Stop it!!”
People back in L.A. had to hear that. It seemed as if everyone on the beach obeyed that command because there was dead silence and all eyes were on us. Chanell gave me an “I can’t let you fight her” look as she shook her head forlornly. Kim’s expression told me she wasn’t letting anything go down on her clock either. I was so infuriated that I grabbed my things and trekked back to the hotel building just a few feet away.
I had to calm myself down and realized that I was with people of a certain element, as Jamie Foxx so profoundly put it. And although I was, too, I was out numbered. To take it down and summons my class and dignity as well as manage my back pain and cramping I put on smooth music I managed to find on the radio. I took a bath in the gigantic whirlpool, submerging the back of my head to soak all the salt from my weave. I ran about three baths to be sure most was out and after which, I showered and washed my hair. When I got out I began blow-drying my hair so the braids underneath wouldn’t be so damp. Having extensions added to your natural hair was so much work but well worth the look when it was complete.
As I was looking in the mirror taming my hair I jumped when I saw Azmir’s alluring gaze upon me from over my shoulder. He had a soft smile that took my breath away, but for some reason I knew he had heard what took place on the beach. I was prepared to handle him, I’d just hope this wouldn’t get too ugly.
“You startled me,” I said dryly. Self-protection mode on.
“I’m sorry. It’s just that you are visibly upset and cute as hell about it.” His smile disappeared and I secretly wondered if my callous tone was the cause. When he used words like visibly in such an articulate way, I totally forgot I was talking to the thug and pulled back. He confused the hell out of me with that. But I just played along.