“I really am truly sorry about what happened with Roxie, man.”
“Forget about it. In fact, you did me a favor.”
“A favor?”
“Yeah, a big one.”
Mike and Dwayne worked their heads from side to side like they were watching a tennis match; trying not to miss a word that Felix and I exchanged.
“How could you possibly view what happened as a favor?” Felix asked me.
“It’s simple really. Roxie wasn’t the one for me and you helped me see the light. I mean, any woman that would do such a thing doesn’t deserve to be the mother of my children. That’s where it was headed, too. I’m glad she revealed her nastiness before I went out and plunked down a grip on a ring.”
Felix looked dumbfounded. “Are you serious? You were planning on marrying her?”
“I’d considered it. After all, I did have the hots for Roxie for years.” I looked him up and down and then brushed past him. “Then again, I guess I wasn’t the only one.”
Felix came after me. I picked up a ball and started practicing my dribbling.
“I had too much to drink, man. If you decide to make up with Roxie, I promise it won’t happen again.”
I laughed. “I will definitely not be making up with Roxie. You’re welcome to her. In fact, I’d appreciate it if you’d hook up with Roxie so she’d stop ringing my phone off the damn hook.”
Dwayne slapped me on the back. “That’s my boy!” I slapped him a high-five. “Tell that hoe to move on.”
Mike guffawed. “Ya’ll Negroes are crazy. Let’s play some ball already.”
“Yeah, let’s do this,” I responded, slamming the ball into Felix’s chest.
He leered at me and slammed the ball back at me. “I don’t want Roxie.”
“Why not?” I slammed it back at him. “Because she’s no longer my woman? Not a scandalous enough scenario for you?”
“It’s not even like that, Yardley. I’ve tried to explain but enough is enough. I’m not gonna kiss your ass or anything.”
“That’s because you’re too busy kissing Roxie’s,” Mike stated jokingly.
All of us shared a good laugh; except Felix.
The tension was thick throughout the entire game. And it was one hell of a game. I couldn’t recall a time when the four of us had played so hard. Not to mention so roughly. I knocked Felix on his ass numerous times and he elbowed my ribs continuously, knocking the wind out of me a couple times.
“That’s it for me,” I finally said, taking a seat on a bench to catch my breath.
“Good game!” Mike exclaimed. “I’m gonna be sore for days though.”
Dwayne came over and sat down beside me. “Say, what do you have planned for tonight? Want to check out that new Morgan Freeman flick?”
“No, I can’t,” I told him. “I have a date.”
“Date!” they all yelled out in unison.
Felix, the last one that needed to say shit, was the first one to ask for details. “Who do you have a date with? I guess you really are over Roxie.”
I snarled at him. “Felix, if you want to stay stuck on the Roxie topic, be my guest. I’ve moved on to better things.”
“Like?”
“Like a real woman that’s not into playing games.”