sixteen,” Billy vowed. Again this was no premonition, again he knew because Pastor had told him so.
“That shol’ would be nice!” Lady grunted as she led the march to The Rib Shack.
“Hey y’all!” Carlita shouted when the family entered the small diner. She said y’all but only looked at Billy. She fluttered her false lashes at him and smiled brightly.
“Chile, you gone fly away you keep flapping them lashes,” Lady teased. It tickled her to no end how much attention her handsome young son got. She noticed it more and more as he grew more and more handsome by the day.
“What’s wrong with you, chile?” Lady asked seeing her daughter sitting across the table with a look of distress on her face.
“I’on know,” Mary frowned. The strong aromas of fat back, hog maws, chitterlings, bacon, pork chops, ribs, and lard assaulted her all at once. They overwhelmed her to the point that she scrambled to get to the bathroom. Her three hundred pounds slowed her down from getting out of the booth. She only made it three whole steps before her breakfast came gushing out of her mouth.
“Oh Lawd, that chile is pregnant!” Carlita announced with glee. The fact that she hadn’t heard it meant she could be the first to spread it.
“Pregnant!” Lady squealed with laughter. “She must be another Virgin Mary then cuz that girl ain’t got no man, cain’t get no man, and don’t want no man!”
Mary’s head and shoulders drooped with sorrow as she continued on to the bathroom. Once the last of the grits, sausage, eggs, biscuits, and jelly she’d eaten for breakfast had come back up she washed her mouth out while she counted back. She frowned her face to help her think and obviously it helped because she came up with an answer — not a good answer, but it was the right answer.
“Oh shit! I am pregnant!” she shouted to her reflection. If there was one consolation it was that at least she knew who her baby’s daddy was, even if it was her brother.
“You okay?” Billy asked out of breath from holding his breath.
“No, I mean yes!” she said holding her head up proudly to spite her mother’s mocking. “I am pregnant! And I’m keeping my baby!”
“Chile, you… you serious? By who? Who?” Lady demanded, making a scene. Mary clamped her lips and crossed her arms over her breast, which meant ‘I ain’t telling you shit!’
“Who been in my house!” she turned to Billy and demanded. He was so shocked that he was at a lost for words so he simply shrugged.
“I’on know,” he barely got out passed the lump in his throat.
“Oh, so y’all slick, huh? Y’all grown, huh? Well, pay fo’ y’all own meals then!” their angry mother said as she slid out of the booth. She then tossed her head back and stormed out of the restaurant.
“She coming back?” Carlita asked when she returned with the three orders and noticed Lady gone. Mary shrugged and then scraped her mother’s plate onto her own.
“Prob’ly not. I got it though,” Billy announced in dismissal.
“I know you do!” she shot back and made a big show of walking away.
“What you gon’ do if you pregnant?” Billy asked once they were alone. It took Mary a full minute to chew and swallow the large mouthful of food in her large mouth.
“Pregnant people have babies,” she quipped sarcastically and reloaded her mouth with ribs and macaroni and cheese.
“Girl, we brother and sister! We cain’t have no baby!”
“We got different daddies so it’s fine,” she suggested and continued eating. She didn’t’ know if that was true or not, but it didn’t matter and she didn’t care. She didn’t have shit and never had so she was keeping the baby.
The rest of the meal was spent in silence. The only sounds to be heard were Mary’s breathing through her nose, since her mouth stayed full, and the clanging of the silverware hitting their plates. The unconcerned girl finished her meal and then sucked down two of her favorite peach
“That shol’ would be nice!” Lady grunted as she led the march to The Rib Shack.
“Hey y’all!” Carlita shouted when the family entered the small diner. She said y’all but only looked at Billy. She fluttered her false lashes at him and smiled brightly.
“Chile, you gone fly away you keep flapping them lashes,” Lady teased. It tickled her to no end how much attention her handsome young son got. She noticed it more and more as he grew more and more handsome by the day.
“What’s wrong with you, chile?” Lady asked seeing her daughter sitting across the table with a look of distress on her face.
“I’on know,” Mary frowned. The strong aromas of fat back, hog maws, chitterlings, bacon, pork chops, ribs, and lard assaulted her all at once. They overwhelmed her to the point that she scrambled to get to the bathroom. Her three hundred pounds slowed her down from getting out of the booth. She only made it three whole steps before her breakfast came gushing out of her mouth.
“Oh Lawd, that chile is pregnant!” Carlita announced with glee. The fact that she hadn’t heard it meant she could be the first to spread it.
“Pregnant!” Lady squealed with laughter. “She must be another Virgin Mary then cuz that girl ain’t got no man, cain’t get no man, and don’t want no man!”
Mary’s head and shoulders drooped with sorrow as she continued on to the bathroom. Once the last of the grits, sausage, eggs, biscuits, and jelly she’d eaten for breakfast had come back up she washed her mouth out while she counted back. She frowned her face to help her think and obviously it helped because she came up with an answer — not a good answer, but it was the right answer.
“Oh shit! I am pregnant!” she shouted to her reflection. If there was one consolation it was that at least she knew who her baby’s daddy was, even if it was her brother.
“You okay?” Billy asked out of breath from holding his breath.
“No, I mean yes!” she said holding her head up proudly to spite her mother’s mocking. “I am pregnant! And I’m keeping my baby!”
“Chile, you… you serious? By who? Who?” Lady demanded, making a scene. Mary clamped her lips and crossed her arms over her breast, which meant ‘I ain’t telling you shit!’
“Who been in my house!” she turned to Billy and demanded. He was so shocked that he was at a lost for words so he simply shrugged.
“I’on know,” he barely got out passed the lump in his throat.
“Oh, so y’all slick, huh? Y’all grown, huh? Well, pay fo’ y’all own meals then!” their angry mother said as she slid out of the booth. She then tossed her head back and stormed out of the restaurant.
“She coming back?” Carlita asked when she returned with the three orders and noticed Lady gone. Mary shrugged and then scraped her mother’s plate onto her own.
“Prob’ly not. I got it though,” Billy announced in dismissal.
“I know you do!” she shot back and made a big show of walking away.
“What you gon’ do if you pregnant?” Billy asked once they were alone. It took Mary a full minute to chew and swallow the large mouthful of food in her large mouth.
“Pregnant people have babies,” she quipped sarcastically and reloaded her mouth with ribs and macaroni and cheese.
“Girl, we brother and sister! We cain’t have no baby!”
“We got different daddies so it’s fine,” she suggested and continued eating. She didn’t’ know if that was true or not, but it didn’t matter and she didn’t care. She didn’t have shit and never had so she was keeping the baby.
The rest of the meal was spent in silence. The only sounds to be heard were Mary’s breathing through her nose, since her mouth stayed full, and the clanging of the silverware hitting their plates. The unconcerned girl finished her meal and then sucked down two of her favorite peach
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