He’d been trying to muscle in on my business for a couple of months, upsetting my routine, the little fat-faced fucker. Leaving me threatening messages, warning me, that he was coming for me and sooner or later, he’d get what I so called owed him. Wasn’t my fault he was bad at math. Besides, betting against the house is for losers anyway. And he was a fuckin’ loser, saw it in his eyes the first day I laid eyes on him. I’d seen the same look on every other loser like him. Guys with starry eyed optimism, loaded with dreams, thinking they could beat the odds. Losers every one of them.
So I’d been ducking his punk ass for weeks – avoiding my normal territory, grazing in different spots, falling into new watering holes. But this evening she had to have a calzone outta the old neighborhood.
She was a slick number. A girl I’d met uptown. She had curves in all the right places to make you observe the speed limit when passing over them. Smart and funny. A chick with a high level of education. What she saw in me, I’ll never know, but we had a high degree of chemistry for sure. In a word, we just clicked. Just to see her come walking around the corner sent me soaring like a rocket. I’d met her through an associate of mine, named Johnny. She was his cousin out of Jersey.
Anyway, I’d just run into Johnny a week ago. He’d told me some guy’d been walking around the old neighborhood asking about me. So being back here made me as nervous as a prostitute in church.
Fortunately, I could see Mickey’s restaurant, up ahead. We were just minutes from gettin’ off the streets, when all of a sudden, I heard a loud noise coming from my right.
The little, butterball came running through the mass of tables, rushing forward like a fat-faced kid with a supersoaker, pumping and charging, ripping up the sidewalk racing toward me. He rounded the bistro tables, yelling and screaming. He was kicking up so much noise I couldn’t hear what he was saying. I could only read his lips. I watched them mouth the words, “I fuckin’ warned you…”
He had one eye open and one eye shut, head cocked, resting on his shoulder as he took aim while sporting a devious smile. Unloading his quiver, shots came firing; emptying his cache into my bubble goose.
The first shot went right through the arm of my right sleeve. Feathers exploded into the air. The shot exited the back as white down floated to the ground. I could hear the steady cadence of shots coming at me, thwip, thwip, thwip, thwip.
My eyes widened, as I gasped for air in shock, just as the second shot, was drawn back taut by stubby fingers. He let it fly with a shwoosh into my right thigh. Shot three, exploded into more feathers. Shot four, into the shoulder.
Shot five, struck me right in the heart. The arrow’s momentum carried into my frame, bumping me back on my heels. I knocked over a table, catapulting glasses of sloshing water into the air, before I began to fall backward.
She reached over and placed her hand across my chest to protect me. But she was too late, I was already in descent, pulling down chairs with me on my way down. Two more arrows hit – six – seven – while I fell in the slowness of the moment.
She held out her arms to hold me as I struggled to sit up while gasping for air. In the moment, I tried to calm myself as I looked up into her eyes. I became all starry eyed as I sat there riddled with arrows. On some level, I could sense it, I could feel myself slipping away fast. I was falling in love.
“Ha ha ha.” I could hear him laughing from behind us. He pulled up on the corner of his cloth diaper, while switching the chewed butt of his cigar from the right to the left side of his mouth. He yelled out, “I warned you I’d get you, ya dumb fuck! Now you’re in love!”
By malakhai jonezs
(C) copyright 2016
img src: https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/07/51/5c/15/outdoor-lovely-as-well.jpg
fucking adorable.
Thanks Redhendrix!
OMG, I love this! You totally got me, I had no idea where this was going. So good, MD!
Thanks Vic! I don’t know about this writing business. I have at least 20 partial stories to finish. Good ideas too, at least, I think so. Then this one jumps out of my head and skips the line in about 2 hours last night. I could just see the whole thing. 🙂
Ah, that’s the best thing about inspiration! When things come so quickly to your pen. 🙂 It’s awesome. I really like it!
Well thank you, Vic!
This is SO stinky adorable, and vivid and you have a magnetic way with words, M! I love your use of sounds!! 🙂
Thanks Em! I appreciate you reading mah stuff! 🙂
Well, of course! I appreciate yah stuff!! 🙏🏼😊💜
Haaa! 🙂 Right back at me.
Hopefully I did a good enough job to misdirect you until the reveal near the end.
Absolutely! Totally captivated. 💘
I say this with the maddest possible respect: you’re a devious bastard! 🙂 (And so is that cigar-chewing punk ass kid.)
Thank you so very much for the compliment Sunshine! My job here is done. 🙂
Love the story, M…and I didn’t see the ending coming at all. 🙂
Thanks Cathy! I was hoping I didn’t let the cat out of the bag too soon or had provided enough misdirection.
You did good…I would never have guessed Cupid was the culprit.
Clever writing, I was trying to decipher what was going on in the last third and it just struck me it might have been a setup?
Love the beginning, you set the scene really well and the emotion and descriptions relating to the broad (boad seems fitting in this piece) were mega readable.
Nice piece. Reminded me a little of Lucas gunning the guy down in broad daylight in American Gangster but switched up obviously.
Thanks Fionn! The big misdirection. Lol! I had one scene in my head, what would the violence of cupid look like on the street. It took off from there. A hitman, mob tone seemed like the perfect fit for it.
I. Love. This.
Period! 😉
Thank you very much Carisa!
🙂 backatcha!
Nice. Love isn’t always going to sneak up on you. A full frontal assault with a happy ending. Positivity. Nice
Thanks daccad!
love your post
thank you for sharing
Thank you so very much for reading it Voulahh!
oh very welcome dear
Kisses
This is fire, Malakhai! I like your style because it is natural – no forced wordplay or anything like that. This is what poetry is supposed to be! I look forward to more pieces from you!
Darryl, I appreciate the comments. It felt good to have fire describe my work! I really appreciate it. I love all the comments, but it also feels good to hear it in a familiar tongue. Ima check out your site too.
Hah!
Love the twist there, really sweet.
Thanks Nam! Much appreciated!
So good, did not see the end coming!
Thank you so much for the feedback. I appreciate your time!
haha LOVE it!
Thanks Kelly! Your laughter let’s me know that I got ya. Thanks for reading my piece.
Those damn cherubim! They get you every time. 😉 In case you were wondering, they tend to be a softer touch for we women. Jessayin’.
I reached out on your contact page, fyi. You may have to check your email’s junk/spam/bulk folder. Ha, my laptop seems to be a dirty slut, probably infected with some sort of nasty virus.
By the way, I was already smiling, waiting for the big crescendo, when he started crashing the tables! 🙂
Epic.
So you saw it coming? Too bad. 😃
Nah, I didn’t see the cupid coming…but I felt something on it’s way…..I read on, big ol’ grin on my face, though. It was the absolute perfect contrast…the violent way that little bastard shot your ass! ha!
I loved it. Even though I felt it, it was a beautiful surprise. Your writing is ridiculous! Glad to have found your blog. Love true talent such as this.
Thank you so very much for your compliment and thank you for taking the time to read my blog and give me feedback. I’m enjoying your site as well. I’m glad you found my site. I finally tracked down your comment. Mal works. That was my nickname in college.
Sweet! I’m so glad…I hate loose ends. Jeez, I sound like a damn cupid. ;o))
LOL!
Bounced you back a comment on your contact page.
Rec’d. 🙂
wow this is awesome MJ. I love it.
Thanks Nyx! I appreciate you reading it. 🙂
Of course buddy. Just been busy with life and stuff – you know how it goes. 👊🏻
I do. I do, indeed. 👊🏾
https://tanyatale.wordpress.com/2017/07/07/bridge-of-eternal-love/
Haha! Nice ending. Enjoyed a lot
Thanks! Glad the ending left you with a smile.
If you can have favorite pieces as the originator, this is one of them.