I stopped to let him take the call.
“Peace…Peace,” he answered his cell in a thick Brooklyn accent. I could hear a wispy voice on the other end but couldn’t make out any words. Azmir asked, “…anybody hurt?” as I lifted myself off of my knees. Then again, the voice from the phone came through. Azmir’s face tightened as he listened intently. “Alright. I’ll be right there. Lay low!” he ordered.
“Ray, after we take Ms. Brimm home, I need to go over to the spot off of Crenshaw,” Azmir called out.
“Yes, sir,” Ray replied in acknowledgement.
“Is everything okay?” I asked, disturbed by the abrupt change in plans. Although we didn’t exactly plan to go back to my place together, it was understood that we would.
“I’m sorry,” he said before burying his face in his hands. Instantly, he shuddered in his seat and screamed, “Fuck!”
I paused as I didn’t know what to say. I’d never seen him up in arms like this. There was silence for a few seconds before he said, “I’m sorry. That was my peoples telling me that my barbershop in the “C” is on fire right now and it doesn’t look good.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, Azmir,” I replied in a low sympathetic tone.
He sat back in his seat massaging the bridge of his nose in between his eyes. He looked so perplexed. I didn’t know what to do. After a few more seconds of awkwardness, while looking out the window, he placed his right hand on my left thigh. I took it as a sign that he was ready to let me back in. Although it was a huge risk, I moved closer to him and lay on his chest. He followed up, folding his arm over me. We rode that way all the way to my house. Once there, he got out to walk me to the door.
After I opened the door I turned to him, “I really do hope everything turns out okay.”
As soon as those words left my mouth I felt reduced to a teenager who couldn’t find the appropriate words for the occasion. He kissed me on my forehead, said he’d call, and promenaded back to the car.
I didn’t hear back from Azmir that night. I had gotten a text from him the next morning while at the airport. It read: Enjoy the island, Sweetheart. Happiest of birthdays!
I smiled but couldn’t help but still feel disappointed by not seeing or speaking to him since he dropped me off the night before. I was ready to take our intimacy to another level. What I didn’t want him to know was something I hadn’t quite shared with Michelle; I’d never really gone down on a guy. I’d licked and maybe even engulfed once, pulling out immediately but that was just a method of foreplay when I was drunk fucking Tyquan. I’d never inhaled or sucked with the means to an end in mind. With Azmir I wanted to, I wanted to make him loose control while melting into my mouth. I wanted to match his sexual dominance and skill, even if that was damn near impossible. I wanted to try. How could I go wrong? If I couldn’t pleasure Azmir orally it wouldn’t be for the lack of trying. But it never happened.
The flight out was cool. I took out my iPhone, went into the iPod app, threw on my sunglasses and slept practically the entire flight. The girls chatted it up in anticipation of our vacation. I knew that I was being rude but didn’t care. They were used to my reclusive propensities. They made due as if I wasn’t there.