Leaving mother’s house was no easy feat. I had so much to work through. Not just for myself, but for my twin brother and younger brother. With Lynell no longer in their life, they had no guidance or discipline. Of more immediate concern, they didn’t have the security of knowing where their next meal was coming from.
While I was fifteen trying to figure out life, mother was dressing up and eating well. She was still dating the man who helped her run off my step-dad. When she realized no one believed her when she told us they were cousins, they began to openly present themselves as a couple. Every chance they had they were either traveling in his motorhome or locked up in her bedroom.
One day I took the bus to visit my brothers; they still lived with mother. When I walked in I saw them in the kitchen. Lester was standing at the refrigerator and Dre was sitting at the table. I asked what they were planning to eat for dinner. They said there was no food in the house and mother hadn’t bought groceries in a while. While they were speaking, mother’s boyfriend emerged from her bedroom. I said, “ Hey, where are you and my mother headed.” He said they were going out for dinner. I asked, “Are you taking my brother’s with you?” He said, no. With anger and disgust, I said, “You mean you are taking my mother out to eat while her children are home hungry? How does that work?” He looked at me and said, “ You’re right. Tell your mother I’ll be right back. I’m going to pick the boys up some dinner. Did you want anything?” I said, “NO! Just for my bothers.”
While he was gone, mother came out. She asked if we had seen him. I said yes, “I sent him to get food for your son’s before he takes you out to eat.” If looks could kill, I would have been dead. She hated me. Even more since she realized, in that moment, her boyfriend now knew the problem wasn’t the man he helped run out of the house. It was the woman that was still there.
S
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