A slight smile appeared on Charlie’s face. “That’s what’s up.”
Mike and Cooler approached the driver’s side window. The look on their faces indicated that they didn’t have any good news to give Charlie.
“What?” Charlie asked in a gruff voice.
“Bad news,” Mike started. “It looks like either one of two things—your alternator or your transmission. Either way, this car is dead in the water.”
“Fuck!” Charlie pounded the steering wheel again.
“Can we get a few bucks for trying?” Mike asked.
Charlie flashed a scowl. “Nigga, get the fuck away from my car!”
Disappointed, both men scurried away from the vehicle.
Charlie had to call a cab to get them to their destination. The last thing she wanted to do was travel through the busy city with their belongings in several black garbage bags. But they didn’t have a choice.
The taxi dropped them off in a posh Brooklyn area called Clinton Hill. The sisters stood outside a nicely developed five-story building. They would be staying the night with Melanie, a classmate of Claire’s. Claire and Melanie had several classes together, and they would frequently study and talk on campus, but they didn’t hang out together. They weren’t friends by anyone’s definition, but when Claire called her out of desperation, Melanie agreed to help her out. But it was just for one night, and it wasn’t out of altruism. Melanie simply wanted to be nosy.
Dragging the large garbage bags, the sisters entered the building and climbed three flights of stairs. Claire knocked on the door and it soon opened with Melanie looming into their view. The look on the girl’s face spoke volumes to the sisters. Seeing the trash bags they carried, she blocked their entrance into her apartment and said, “I thought I said you could spend one night. What’s up with all these trash bags?”
Charlie didn’t like her attitude. She was ready to go off on her, but Claire spoke first, saying, “It is. But we couldn’t very well leave our things in the hallway or outside. Come sunlight, we’ll be gone. I promise, Melanie. Do me this solid and I’ll owe you one.”
Reluctantly, Melanie moved to the side and allowed the sisters into her home.
“This is my sister, Charlie,” Claire introduced her.
Both women sized each other up and nodded acknowledgement. Claire hoped that her sister played nice.
They walked into Melanie’s large, one-bedroom apartment and they instantly grew jealous of her. It looked like she had hired an interior decorator. There were blue, green, and gold colors, large area rugs, costly looking vases, large paintings with glided frames, and a baby grand piano. The large white sectional with lots of throw pillows was the room’s anchor. It looked so perfect that they didn’t want to sit down anywhere.
Claire and Charlie dragged their bags to the corner, and they instantly became an eyesore in the lavish looking room. Melanie exhaled and thought, It’s only for one night. She was kicking herself for inviting Claire to stay, but it was too late to ask them to leave.
“So, do y’all want a drink?” she offered to try and take the edge off.
Charlie wanted a glass of Hennessy. She needed something strong after the day she’d had, but when Claire saw Melanie frown, she knew not to ask for the same. Melanie wasn’t a thug bitch. She came from a different world far from theirs. She was classy. She had dreams and carried herself a certain way.
Melanie went into the kitchen, which was connected to the living and dining room. She mixed up some appletinis and grabbed a plate of sushi rolls she had just made. The food was out of the girls’ league. Charlie wanted to be stubborn and refuse the sushi, but her stomach was growling like a lion. Charlie and Claire dug into the sushi, and surprisingly, it was delicious.
“You play the piano?” Charlie asked her.
Melanie nodded. “I do.”
“Wow, that’s what’s up. I always wanted to learn how to play the piano,” said Charlie.
Claire was stunned by the confession. When was this? she wanted to ask. But she decided to keep her comment to herself.
“I can teach you someday,” Melanie said.
Charlie didn’t look interested in furthering the conversation. If she did want to learn to play the piano, it was a long time ago. She was just making conversation with Melanie, trying to size her up and feel her out.
“That would be cool,” Charlie replied nonchalantly.
As they continued to make conversation, the sisters found out that Melanie also decorated her place, she was an A-student, and she was a good cook, making them think of Chanel. She was attractive, but Claire and Charlie’s beauty didn’t go over her head. Melanie resembled a younger version of Halle Berry, but not as pretty. Maybe she could be a distant cousin.
Once the alcohol began to flow through their systems, the mood started to loosen up. After several more cocktails, all three of them started to act like old pals. They laughed and joked and started to get to know each other more. Melanie was a nosy one. She wanted to know all about the sisters. They were intriguing.
“Y’all from Brooklyn, huh? Brook-lyn in the house,” she enunciated with an urban tone.