The Act|| Tarasia

Chapter Sixteen

Taraji's POV

I walked the floor of my walk-in closet, modeling my little black dress for Dani while she sat on the white leather lounger, sipping a glass of champagne like we were in a showroom. Tonight is Fantasia's concert, and I decided to give the extra ticket and backstage pass that she gave me to Danielle. I hope that she behaves like a married woman tonight, but I don't think she would be crazy enough to flirt with me in front of Danielle. I would expect her husband and kids to be there, too. There's no way that she's going to try anything with them around.

Taraji: What do you think? Is it too much for a concert?

Danielle: It is a lot, but I fuck with it. Never mind that your coochie and ass are about to fall out.

Taraji: Is it really that short?

My voice elevated with panic and I frantically turned in the mirror, trying to test her theory. I'll admit that I'm trying to tease Fantasia just a little bit with my outfit, but at the same time I don't want to overdo it. I don't want Tasia to know that this is for her.

Danielle:*laughs* No, I'm just kidding. At least about the coochie part. I still don't know if that tiny dress can hold all that ass.

I hit her arm, making her laugh harder than she already was. Her young, lively energy keeps me on my toes and helps me forget about all the drama going on in my life, even if it's just for a moment. That's the difference between her and Fantasia. Dani just wants to be my solution, while Fantasia wants to be my problem and my solution. What she needs to understand is that I'm trying to protect her by distancing myself from her. If she threw her family and career away all for me, she would forever live to regret it. I'm not worth it.

Taraji: Would you want to fuck me if you didn't know me and saw me in this dress?

Danielle: Raw, no questions asked. Now can we please go? Why are you freaking out so much about how you look anyway? We're just going to see Tasia, and you look good in everything so why are you stressing?

Taraji: I'm not.

Danielle: For you to be such an amazing actress, you sure are a shitty liar.

Taraji:*rolls eyes* Whatever. Let's just get out of here.

I used a remote to turn off the chandelier in my closet as we walked out of it. We left in Dani's black Escalade, going downtown. We blasted Fantasia's music the whole way there. I sang all the words to "Lose To Win" at the top of my lungs. The lyrics have always deeply resonated with me, unfortunately. It's going to be a surreal experience to see her perform it live. My grandfather was the biggest Fantasia fan, and after he died, I vowed that I would bring my grandmother to one of her concerts. Sadly my grandmother is all the way in DC, but I plan on flying her out for The Color Purple movie premier, once the movie is done filming, so that she can meet Fantasia. Hopefully by then we will at least be back on texting and calling terms. I miss our conversations, but they always lead to something that can get us both in big trouble.

The venue, although smaller than most concert venues, was packed from wall to wall. When Tasia said that the concert would be intimate, I didn't think that it would be this intimate.

Danielle: Damn, she brought the whole city out for this little ass room. Is that Colman and Corey over there?

I looked in the direction she was pointing in, my eyes following her trail to a table in the far right corner at the front of the stage.

Taraji: Yeah. It looks like Halle and Oprah are with them, too.

There was one person amongst the group that I didn't recognize. He was a tall, light skinned man with a wide nose and a beard sprinkled with tiny grey flecks. His entire face smiled when he laughed at something Corey said. It wasn't until I squinted my eyes that I realized he's Fantasia's husband. I've seen him on her Instagram, but he looks different in person. He's handsome enough, I guess, and everyone appears to be vibing well with him. My stomach started tumbling as Danielle locked her hand around my wrist and dragged me through the crowd to the table. After greeting everyone with hugs and kisses, I was left face to face with Kendall. It seems like I'm the only person who hasn't met him yet, because even Danielle approached him like he was a longtime friend. Fantasia could have at least warned me that he would be here. What kind of insane person wants their husband to run into the person they've been hinting at having an affair with? I bet she's backstage right now laughing her ass off. All I can do is plaster on my best poker face and pray that nobody notices how uncomfortable I am. Even though I never touched Fantasia in any kind of sexual way, I still feel like I betrayed this man I don't even know.

Kendall: Hi, I don't think we've had the pleasure of meeting yet.

Taraji: No, we haven't. I'm Taraji. I'm assuming you're Kendall?

Kendall: You would be right about that. It's an honor to make your acquaintance, Miss Taraji. Fantasia talked about you so much that I was starting to get a little jealous.

Everybody laughed, but I didn't find shit funny about it. However, I put on my acting panties and laughed along with everyone else like I was standing in front of the next Dave Chapelle.

Taraji: She talked about you a lot, too. It's nice to finally put a face to a name.

Kendall: I would say the same to you, but your face is all over. Everybody knows who you are. Honestly, I want to thank you for being humble enough to openly welcome Tasia into the film industry and give her some guidance. Your support has boosted her confidence in ways that you don't even know.

Taraji: You don't have to thank me. Everybody needs a hand to hold. I gave her mine, and in a lot of ways, she gave me hers. We're a sisterhood.

Kendall: I guess that makes me your brother in law.

Taraji: I guess so.

He raised his glass to me. I tapped my bottled water against it. I'm leaving the alcohol alone tonight. I need to be aware of everything going on around me. I feel horrible for Kendall. He seems like such a nice, standup guy. He talks about Tasia like he never knew what life was before she came into his. What would make her want to cheat on him? Truthfully, it's not my business. I can't control what Fantasia does to her husband. All I can control is my response to her actions. The lights suddenly went down, and everyone knew that the show was about to begin. The room erupted into screams as Fantasia rose up from under the stage on a platform. When the spotlight hit her face, everything around me disappeared, and all that was left was her. She looked stunning. Her eyes immediately found mine in the crowd. She then looked over at Kendall who was standing beside me. She kicked the show off with "Sleeping With The One I Love", and suddenly it became clear what kind of message she was trying to send.