Page 71 of Give Me Honesty

“Why are you sitting in your room by yourself? We’re getting ready to play charades downstairs in a couple of minutes.” Honesty peeked her head into my room before she walked in.

“I take it rich people aren’t taught manners, huh?”

“Well, I can’t speak for anyone except myself, and I’ve never been a fan of rules. Plus, your door was cracked, so I assumed you weren’t in here with your balls out.” She shrugged as she walked further into my room and took a seat on the edge of my bed.

She glanced around the space in silence while I continued to play my video games. I tried my best to ignore her in the hope that she could catch the hint that I didn’t want to be bothered, but she wasn’t fazed.

“We have got to work on your sense of style and decor. Every room in this place looks like someone out of a magazine, but you choose to live in a room that resembles a prison cell with empty walls.” Honesty turned her nose up in disgust. I hadn’t intended to laugh, but the disgusted expression on her face took me over the edge.

“Aye, shorty, what do you know about a prison cell? I’m sure you’ve been sleeping on Egyptian cotton since the day your momma brought you home from the hospital.” I chuckled sarcastically.

“You’re absolutely right, and from the look of this room, you could use some of my style and expertise. This room is an eyesore, and there isn’t any resemblance of joy or happiness in here. It looks sad in here.”

I should have taken offense to her statement, but her assessment was spot on. Yaya offered to take me out to decorate my room, but I had no plans to stay there long. I didn’t want to get comfortable in a situation that wouldn’t be permanent.

“Why do you care so much? This isn’t your room, and it’s not like you’re gonna be spending any time in it.” I questioned, with my eyes still focused on the screen.

When Messiah first bought me the Xbox, I told him I didn’t need it, but he told me he didn’t give a damn and set it up anyway. I laughed when he started coming to my room and playing it without asking. He even bought his own chair and would yell at the game while I sat there looking stupid. It took a while for me to feel comfortable accepting gifts from him, but once I realized he didn’t care how I felt, I just let him do his thing.

“What do you mean? I’m in here right now. Besides, if we’re gonna be friends, you need to make this space more welcoming. I’m thinking we could add some green accents. You need a new comfortable set, a rug, and maybe a few decorative pillows. There’s enough space in here for a futon or a small couch. Plus, we need to get you a full-length mirror,” Honesty rambled on.

“What do I need a mirror for?”

“To get a full view of your outfits, duh. You need to be able to see the complete outfit to make sure it all looks right together. Besides, I love to look at myself, and right now it’s giving jailhouse confessions in here.”

I chuckled at how serious she was with her demands and ideas. She was seriously in my room trying to bully me into decorating my room.

“You’re bold as hell, shorty. How do you even know I want you in my space? You’re making plans as if you plan to be a part of my everyday life or something.”

“Well, duh. You live with my brother and my soon-to-be sister-in-law. You might as well get used to me being around.”

I shook my head. “Are you bullying me into a friendship?” I asked.

Honesty stroked her chin with her eyes focused on the ceiling before she turned to look at me. “I wouldn’t call it bullying. You need a friend, and the way I see it, I’m your best option.” She replied with confidence.

“I don’t even like people like that. It’s the reason I don’t have a lot of friends. Sounds like a bully to me.”

“Well, at least I’m a pretty one.” She shrugged again, crossed her legs, and got comfortable on my bed.

From that moment on, Honesty bullied her way into my life and my heart. I still couldn’t believe how far our relationship had come, but I had regrets. She was the best thing that ever happened to me, and my only worry was whether I could live up to the version of me she saw every day.

Spinz and Alro stepped out for a cigarette. Spinz would smoke weed in the studio, but he claimed he didn’t like the way cigarette smoke lingered. If you asked me, that shit was disgusting, and I never understood how people could smoke them.

The minute they left the room, Phoenix took it as her cue to shoot her shot.

“Aye, what the fuck are you doing?” I inquired when she squatted in front of me and attempted to reach for my zipper.

“What? I figured we could use our free time wisely. You know they’re about to be gone for at least ten minutes. It gives us plenty of time for a quickie. It’s been a while since we’ve fucked, but I still remember what you like,” she cooed.

“Aye, back up. I don’t want to be disrespectful, but that’s not gonna happen.”

Phoenix must have thought I was being funny because she made another attempt at my zipper, but I gently pushed her away.

“Are you hard of hearing or something. I just said the shit is not going down. You gotta chill, Phee.”

Her eyes widened in shock as she slowly stood up and adjusted her clothes.

“I don’t understand. What’s the problem?”