HARDAWAY | trilogy

V2 - Chapter Twenty Five.

𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐀 𝐉𝐈𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐙

               "Alexander! Get your fat-ass up! They're here!"

Simultaneously sealing the doors to my mothers vehicle along with my mother and sisters, standing on the gravel driveway of the gray-bricked, one story home. My hands buried in the pockets of my olive hooded, cropped windbreaker over the honey embroidered graphic tank top. My dark jeans had ripped knees and leather combat boots. A black, ribbed knit beanie covered the top of my curly mane in a low ponytail.

Sunny and chilly day before Thanksgiving. We traveled to Arlington where our grandmother and her husband lived. We may have not seen her often, somehow every holiday we were here with the older unfiltered couple.

Sound of a high-pitched squeal approached. Stout and short Dominican woman with coffee brown skin and dark brown hair wavy mane pushed my mother out of the way and embraced Jasmine and Marisol. She narrowed her eyes at me and Aalea when we snickered at our grandmother pushing her.

"Aw, my beautiful granddaughters!" She cupped the younger sisters faces and beamed. She looked at me and Aalea, making her way to us. She engulfed us both closely and kissed our cheeks. "Practically grown women now. Alexander! Get your ass out here!"

"Goddamn, Louise! I walk on a cane woman!"

Screen door slamming followed by the deep, resonated voice. He appeared on the bricked front porch, long-legged and portly. Chocolate brown tone and completely bald. My Grandmother husband Alexander Webber. Casually dressed he limped with his cane and embraced my mother.

He hugged every last one of us before he paced backwards. "Always a pleasure when my favorite girls come to town."

"What are you doing on a cane old man?" My mother asked patting his back.

Before he was able to open his mouth and respond Grandma Louise said, "He swears he not pushing sixty and had the nerve to try and fix a lightbulb on a wobbly ladder when I told the retard not to. I leave for one second and the retard fell on the ground."

"Louise, you are not my damn mouth." Alexander responded.

"So, can we go inside?" Jasmine asked, "kinda chilly out here."

"Oh, right; let's go."

We trailed Grandma Louise into the house, stepping in on the tan colored carpet of the big foyer with a square mirror surrounded by our baby pictures along with my mother and her sister childhood photos.

"Now, Gloria is driving up from San Antonio today," Grandma Louise mentioned in reference to my mother's bougie older sister. "Can't wait until my successful daughter grace us with her presence. Instead, you show... with that hideous neck tattoo. Are you retarded?"

"Oh, Mom, please do not start—"

"I'll answer that for you; you are retarded." Grandma Louise pointed, "Why are you even with this young boy? Excuse me, bum!"

"Alright, girls, y'all can go to the room while they talk." Alexander instructed and we footed down the hall with no hesitation; no one wanted to hear their arguing cause they would just scream back and forth.