Simon Sr. huffed as he looked to his son and saw traces of worry over his features even though he tried to hide it, “Hey, don’t stress out about it, all kids develop differently. You weren’t potty trained fully until you were five when you shit yourself in Kindergarten. Never forget.” He said.
Simon’s mouth slowly fell open as horrid flashbacks from that day flickered back to life at the mere mention. He slowly turned his attention to his dad and rubbed along his jaw, “Good talk dad. Thanks for that.” He replied.
Pulling up to a nice suburban house, smoke billowed, and music streamed from the backyard. They got out of the car and met the other men around back. A bunch of dads there were happy to see the chubby little boy and tugged on his feet and hands while saying their hellos. They treated Jr. like a fellow man even though he had no idea what it meant yet, “Hey! What’s up Jr.?” one man asked.
Jr. stared blankly at him with wide blue eyes and wet lips. His little eyebrows tucked together before he hummed out and grunted with a kick of his legs. Simon kept a firm hold of his son and gave a forced smile as Jr. kicked him in the permanent set of bruises he’d left with his constant movements, “He says hello.” Simon said.
Finding somewhere to sit, Simon cracked open a beer while they waited for the barbecue to finish. His father lit a cigarette which hung from the middle of his bottom lip while he played cards with a couple of friends. Soon, lunch was done, and Simon was served chicken, rice, coleslaw, and corn. He pulled off little bits for Jr. to try as he sat on his dad’s lap.
As Simon handed his son shredded bits of chicken, by instinct Jr. pushed the meat in his mouth and chewed. Slowing down, his face twisted from the charred taste on his tongue and he spat it out. The meat rolled down his bib and fell onto the grass beneath while he fussed.
Simon he looked up at the one who manned the grill and sighed, “I think he’s used to Cherish’s cooking.” He muttered as he picked up the mess. He wiped Jr. off before reaching into his bag for the sandwich.
The man laughed out loud and rolled his head, “Oh please! Save us the talk. Your dad never shuts up about her cooking either! Until we get to meet this woman and eat her food, we don’t want to hear the bragging!” he said.
Simon Sr. smirked to himself as he took a big bite of corn and shook his head, “I was serious when I said she’s a ten.” He replied.
Simon stared at his father with a dull expression, “How much DID you talk about?”
Simon Sr. acted as though nothing was wrong, “Hm? No, not as much as you think.” He answered.
A short, brunette man jumped into the conversation, “Enough for us to know that you’re a lucky bastard and you’re taking your sweet ass time getting in on her.”
Simon stared into his father who simply toasted with his beer despite the deadpan expression he received, “There it is.” He stated.
Simon Sr.’s partner, Gary, spoke up and pointed out, “I’m surprised the madam let you out of the house on your own. Pat doesn’t let me out without the fight of a lifetime and an extensive schedule of what I’ll be doing and when I’m home. Including when I piss.” He joked.
Simon cleared his throat, “Cherish and I aren’t together, so I don’t have to worry about that.” He clarified; as always.
His father pushed the issue now that he had back up, “You’re going to let her get away if you don’t hurry.”
There were hums and nods in agreement from all around while the short man spoke up again, “I knew this girl, Lucy, back in college. I took too long to commit and before I knew it, I saw her with Ted. Now I’m stuck with Nadine.” He expressed.
Simon sighed. None of them knew of what was between Cherish and him. He wasn’t scared, but he summed it up simply for them, “It’s just too soon.” He stated. Which was a statement he used often to get people off his back.
Immediately they all understood and nodded. “Let’s watch the game.” Gary offered as he turned the television on in the living room.
With football in the background, Jr. ate some of the sandwich, but it was the strawberry pie he devoured without hesitation. Getting red syrup on his mouth and hands, Simon got up and took him to the bathroom, “Give us a second.”
Riding about forty-five minutes out to a part of town she didn’t recognize, Cherish pulled up to a nice, brick and stone building. There were older children playing outside at the park immediately across the road. Margaret hadn't told her what they were doing, but once she plugged the address into her GPS, she found out that it was a spa experience. She wondered to herself how they were supposed to enjoy a spa with Jasmine.
Stepping out of the car, she saw Margaret already outside of the building on a bench and speaking to a woman who looked vaguely familiar and another who instantly smacked a smile on her face.
Margaret pointed out towards Cherish, Miriam waved, while Imani turned her head and broke into a grin. The door to Cherish's car creaked open as she quickly bowed down
