Page 19 of Pretty

“I don’t want your cultured ass teasing me anymore.”

“I’ll see what I can do.”

“PB and J isn’t even a meal. It’s a snack.”

“It has a fruit, a grain, and a protein—that’s a full meal. Jelly is the fruit, peanut butter is the protein, and the bread is the grain. There!” she explained triumphantly.

“You tried it.”

She snickered and I laughed. “On another note, I would like to invite you to an old-school R&B concert with me.”

“Old-school, huh? Somehow, I didn’t get that vibe from you.”

“My taste in music is eclectic. It ranges from jazz and R and B to country and blues, to classical and opera. Jazz and lo-fi are my favorites. I definitely can get with hip-hop and pop too. I love music; all credit goes to my dad for that. He loves R and B the most.”

“That’s wassup. My range goes from hip-hop to jazz and that’s about it.”

“So, no R and B concert, huh?”

I took note of the disappointed look on her face, and I vowed that I would never do that again. She deserved to smile all the time. “That’s not what I’m saying. I’m cool with the concert. I grew up on R and B because of my parents. Hip-hop is my preference, and I learned to listen to jazz from one of my football coaches. He used it as a medium when he tried to get me to calm my energy down and learn to meditate. I struggled with ADHD early on, and that was a tool he thought would prove useful for me.”

“And did it?”

“Yeah. I still use it for the same purpose, but sometimes, I just love listening to jazz. R and B brings back good memories from my childhood. So, who’s going to be at the concert?”

“Keith Washington, Freddie Jackson, Kenny Lattimore, Karyn White, Jody Watley, and Miki Howard.”

“That’s an impressive lineup. My folks would love that. Need to see if I can cop them some tickets to go too.”

“I can get them for you. You want to double date with your parents?” she teased.

“Look at you working your way up to becoming my woman.”

She choked on her food, and her eyes watered. “What?” she asked when she calmed down.

“I’m teasing, chill. It’s all about the whole bringing a girl home to meet your parents thing. I like my parents well enough, but taking them with us would mean dozens of questions for you. My mom is definitely gonna play matchmaker, and if you’re on this neighbor stuff, you might not want to take that risk.”

“On second thought, I’ll get them separate tickets.”

I chuckled. “Yeah, I thought so.”

“I know from the weekend that we spent together that you like to travel, attend live sporting events, and reading, but what else do you like?”

“Watching action movies and sports, hanging out with family and friends, checking out things around town. I like to explore my town, even if I’ve lived there forever. I think experiences and encounters always reveal something you didn’t see before.”

“I like that, and I can see that. It teaches a deep appreciation for life, mankind, and community, as well as help us not take so much for granted. I used to love hanging with friends, but I’ve become a recluse in these last few years. I’d say I like hanging with my family, fighting for causes that are close to my heart like keeping good art programs in schools, and having stimulating conversations like the ones you and I have.”

“You don’t get to gloss over that.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she replied, overly focused on cutting her lamb chop.

“Why don’t you hang with your friends anymore? What happened? Broken relationships?”

“No. Nothing like that. I’ve just been through some things.”

The finality of her tone let me know that she didn’t want to discuss it. I wasn’t about to push her, but I hoped in time she would open up.

“I can understand that. They say what doesn’t break us builds us stronger; I’m not so sure that’s always true. What do you do when you’re not traveling, visiting art galleries, and reading?”