Page 56 of Thirst

“Well, you nailed it,” she says as I enter the living room with her. I watch her turn around and go back to the smaller paintings, eyeing them all carefully. “You have to do something with these. You can't just let this level of beauty sit on your floor, girl. I think you're ready for that exhibit you've always wanted.”

I sit down on the couch and grasp my cup with two hands. “I've been thinking about that. Work and life are stressing me out, and I was thinking that it’s time to switch it up. I've had this art dream for so long, but the motivation was fleeting. Now that it’s here, I wanna take advantage. I just hate that it seemed to show up when I met Amari.”

Janae sits down next to me, making sure not to wrinkle her clothes since she has to leave for work soon. “What’s the matter with Amari? Is it going left?”

I'm back at the crossroad again, but I choose the same path as before, selecting my words carefully. “I don't know. He had a little incident at the club last night. Got into it with a customer I was giving a dance.”

“Oh, not the jealousy.”

“Well, to his credit, I don't know if it was jealousy more than it was a very strong sense of protectiveness that I didn't expect. This guy slapped my ass and started talking crazy when I didn't just accept it. His friends cheered him on, and before I knew it, Amari was in the booth with us. He hemmed the guy up—tossed him out the booth and knocked a few of his friends down. The whole club came to a … stop. I actually haven't talked to him since. I know he was just looking out for me. It was just a lot.”

“Sounds like it,” Nae says. “I mean, on one hand, it’s dope that he was willing to risk it all to make sure you weren't disrespected. On the other, violence is never cute.”

“Never. These boys don't know we get sick of that mess. Why risk going to jail when I could just have the guy tossed out the club? At the same time, though …”

Nae and I share a look with our heads tilted. We widen our eyes at the same time and silently agree that sometimes people need to be thrown out of the booth to make a point. Both of us start laughing hysterically at our telepathic abilities.

“I understand what you're saying,” she says, still giggling. “It makes sense to feel conflicted with that type of situation. Everything has been cool up to that point, though?”

I nod slowly. “Yeah. We still get along great, and the sex has been off the chain. It’s just … a lot.”

“I feel you. Well, maybe you should just take some time for yourself. You've got all of this great artwork now. This might be the start of you getting out of that strip club and doing what you always dreamed of since we were kids. And don't give credit to him. This is your art. This is your passion. He hasn’t painted a single brush stroke. This is your beauty, girl. Let it shine. Didn't you say that rich creeper from the club was an art dealer or something? What was his name?”

“Stanley? Yeah, he gave me his card and everything.”

Nae tilts her head. “Girl, you better call that man. You may have been struggling with inspiration when he first gave it to you, but what I'm looking at here deserves to be on people’s walls. Where’s the card?”

With an exhale, I get up from the couch and go to a junk drawer in my kitchen. The card is still sitting right on top. I grab it and bring it to Nae. She looks it over and hands it back to me.

“Call him,” she says. “Right now, while you're still thinking about how stressed you are and you feel the urgency. Just get it done, see what he says, and start focusing on yourself. Then, if it doesn't work out with Amari, at least your glow up will have begun.”

I glance down at the card and then back up at Nae. We both smile, and I reach for my cell phone. I put it on speaker so that she can hear, and we’re both surprised when the call is picked up in just a few rings.

“Stanley Moore,” the husky voice says.

“Umm,” I say, pausing to clear my throat and sit up straighter like it’s a job interview. “Hi, Stanley. This is Aaliyah … from Fantasies on Fourth. Remember me?”

“Aaliyah … Aaliyah … Oh, yeah! Fantasies on Fourth. Yes, I remember,” he says, his voice going up an octave once he recollects. “Wow, you actually called.”

“Well,” I start, looking at Nae as she nods in encouragement. “You told me to give you a call if I ever got to a point where I had enough paintings to potentially host an exhibit. I happen to have found a source of inspiration, and I've been putting in work. I've got a handful of pieces finished, and even some ideas for a few more, and I’d like to set up a meeting to go over the possibility of us working together for an exhibit. If you're still interested, of course.”

As Nae gives me a thumbs up, Stanley says, “Oh, yeah that sounds awesome. I'd love to set something up. I even have a small location available if you're looking to get into something sooner, rather than later.”

“Absolutely,” I reply, trying to keep from sounding too excited, even though my face is hot from it. “Just let me know when and where, and I’ll be there.”

He pauses a minute. “Uhh, yeah, actually tomorrow works for me. I've got a space down on 84th Street in Center City. How does two o’clock sound? Bring your paintings and we’ll talk business.”

“That sounds perfect,” I chirp. “I’ll be there fifteen minutes early.”

“That’ll work. Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“Alright. Thanks, Stanley.”

“No problem. Looking forward to it.”

The call ends, and the second we know Stanley is no longer on the line, we both jump off the couch and start cheering in pure excitement. We take a few minutes to act like schoolkids again, hopping up and down while we hold hands and celebrate the possibility of a dream coming true. The nightmare from last night and the horrible way I've been feeling vanishes with the emergence of much-needed good news.

When we finally contain ourselves, Nae is beaming. “Oh my god, that was so perfect. I told you girl, all you have to do is make the call. Now look at you, on your way to your first business meeting about your art. This is only the beginning, Aaliyah. You watch—everything you've ever dreamed about is gonna come true, and we'll always remember this moment as the start of it all.”