Free Flip Side of the Game by Tu-Shonda L. Whitaker

thoughts anymore. When I walked into the shop, I saw Taj sleeping in my station chair. I walked over to him and kissed him on his forehead.
    â€œI’m sorry, Taj.”
    He swiveled the chair around and grabbed me by my waist. “You need to stop this tough-girl routine. You’re chasing everybody away.”
    â€œI don’t mean to chase everybody away, but—”
    â€œBut what? Don’t you know that you’re worth loving? Trust me, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. What are you so scared of?”
    â€œEverything,” I found myself admitting. “Of dopefiends, lion claw tubs, men with silver belt buckles.”
    â€œWhy?”
    â€œBecause that’s all that I see.”
    â€œThen see me. I’m here.”
    â€œWhy?”
    â€œBaby, I’m in love with you. But I’m not the type to pamper a little girl. I want a woman. And if you have to cry, baby, it’s all good, but you have to be a woman about the situation no matter what. That sad, deprived little girl routine has to end. Plus, I think you’re kinda cute wit’ your stubborn-ass.”
    â€œStubborn?”
    â€œMad crazy stubborn,” he said, giving me a peck across the lips.
    â€œAnd you love every bit of it.”
    â€œToo much of it.”
    â€œTaj, I’m sorry about Roger and the other day.”
    â€œYeah?” he said with a smirk.
    â€œYeah, I’m really sorry.”
    â€œGood, ’cause those three days without you were hell.”
    â€œUm, well, I was fine. No sweat. Those three days were a breeze.”
    He tilted his head and looked at me out the corner of his eye. “Yeah? The three days were a breeze? And you could breathe without me? You weren’t all Waiting to Exhale on the phone with the girlfriends, doggin’ me out?”
    â€œCould I breathe? Please, what you think? And on the phone with the girlfriends? My girlfriends and I, we don’t even talk like that.”
    â€œYeah, right.”
    â€œYeah, right? Well, could you breathe?”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œOh.”

Step Four
    â€œIf that ain’t ’bout the corniest shit that I have ever heard! He need you to breathe. What he gonna do if you go outta town? Die? His ass ain’t Eddie Murphy. Y’all been watching too much TV!” Shannon said as she tried to squeeze her size sixteen into a pair of size twelve jeans.
    â€œI’m losing weight, girl. Can’t you tell?” she said.
    â€œI can tell you fuckin’ up those jeans!”
    â€œWhatever. Get to the real shit. You trying to slip up on me?”
    â€œExcuse me?”
    â€œExcuse me? You heard me. You trying to fall in love on me, Miss Vera? Miss ‘A big dick is just a big dick.’”
    â€œTaj is different.”
    â€œAnd how is that? He got a little dick?”
    â€œOh, you think yo’ ass is funny! For your information, he got a Mandingo, Zulu warrior, West African dick!”
    â€œWhat, he got one of those Kunta Kinte dicks?”
    â€œBig and strong, like dynamite!”
    â€œMm-hmm, and it got yo’ ass sewed the hell up!”
    â€œAll right, I’ll admit I’m feeling him a little bit, but I’m not ready to commit.”
    â€œTake yo’ time, girlfriend. One thing about love, its ass is persistent.”
    â€œLove? Chile, please! I ain’t hardly in love.”
    â€œYeah, that’s the same thing Lee said.”
    Lee? I know this heifer didn’t just compare me to Lee. Lee was a whole ’nother ball game, but nevertheless, she was our girl, and the shit that her man pulled on her was enough to make us wanna kick his ass.
    Lee had waltzed in the shop on Valentine’s Day with a gorgeous black tree, also known as James. I couldn’t help but stare, because I was shocked as shit. As a matter of fact, the entire shop was shocked. Here was the black Laura Ingalls, with Tyson on her arm. Hmph! Well, when Aunt Cookie saw these