For Lovers Only Read online

  Joel was surprised. Mrs. Kelly’s words relaxed him a bit. He was about to pour on the bullshit and spread it nice and thick. “You’re definitely my favorite principal. I wouldn’t be able to do half of the things I do around here without you.”

  Mrs. Kelly deliberately took a seat right next to Joel’s desk. “Awwww, thank you. Our fifth graders really looked like distinguished young ladies and gentlemen during today’s closing ceremony. Didn’t you think so?”

  Joel always got distracted, focusing on her dull makeup and drawn-on eyebrows when they were face-to-face. Catching himself he said, “Yeah, they really did look distinguished. Michael Stevenson’s speech was outstanding. I had to take a minute to explain to him what it meant when people said he was articulate and spoke eloquently. He didn’t know whether people liked him or were criticizing him.”

  “That’s cute. Good thing you told him what those words meant. I’m surprised he didn’t snap and go upside somebody’s head first. His mother must have medicated his little behind a couple of times this morning.”

  Joel almost liked this side of Mrs. Kelly. He laughed and said, “Check you out making jokes. I don’t know about the medication part. All I know is that Michael made me real proud up there today. He didn’t even seem nervous.”

  “That’s because you worked extra hard with that young man and everyone is extremely pleased with his progress. I already called Mrs. Winston at West Baltimore Middle and told her to keep a close eye on Michael for us.”

  Joel thought to himself, That poor little boy was marked for life. He hated the fact that Michael would never be able to escape his troubled past and get the fresh start he deserved. Most of the time Joel’s colleagues meant well, but they had a tendency to do more damage than good to their students’ reputations.

  Joel said, “I’m sure he’ll do just fine over there.”

  “He certainly will.” Mrs. Kelly looked at her watch and asked, “What are you still doing hanging around here?”

  “I’m just about to get outta here. I was putting the final touches on something I was writing.”

  “Honey, work is over. You better enjoy this temporary freedom while you can.”

  Joel laughed and said, “Yes, ma’am.”

  “So, what do you and your girlfriend have planned for the summer?”

  A solemn expression covered Joel’s face and there was little he could do to hide it. “Nothing special.” He shrugged his shoulders and said, “Probably nothing at all. I dunno. What about yourself?”

  “My husband and I are heading out to California in a couple of weeks to visit our oldest daughter and her family.”

  “Sounds nice.”

  “Well, I don’t know about you, but I’m going home.” Mrs. Kelly stood and said, “Give me a big hug.” As he stood, she put her arms around him and said, “As always, it’s been a real pleasure working with you. You’re such a positive role model for all of our students, but especially for our young men. Hard to believe you’ve been here for three years already.”

  “I know.” Joel struggled to get his breath back as their hug ended. “It’s been a real pleasure working here and I’ll continue to do my best.” He was blown away by Mrs. Kelly’s kindness. “Have a great summer. Don’t forget to send me a postcard from Cali.”

  “I’ll do that, and pick out a nice refrigerator magnet for you too.”

  Joel managed a smile. “Thanks.”

  Mrs. Kelly was about to exit the room, then suddenly turned around and asked, “Mr. Davis, I mean, Joel. Something is bothering me. I don’t mean to get in your business, but are you okay? You seem really sad.”

  Joel put on another smile and said, “I’m fine.”

  “I’ve been part of this faculty for twenty-one years now and I’ve seen it all. I can tell when someone is having relationship problems. If that’s the case and you need someone to talk to or someone to just listen, I’m here for you.”

  “I appreciate it, but I’m fine.”

  “You can talk to me openly without having to worry about other people around here knowing your business or gossiping about you. Whatever you say to me stays with me ... I promise. It bothers me seeing you like this. You’re like a son to me.”

  Mrs. Kelly seemed so sincere, compassionate and genuinely concerned that she quickly put Joel at ease.

  “I usually don’t discuss any of my business at work. But since you put it like that, Renee and I broke up a little over a month ago. What gave me away?”

  “The sadness in your eyes. It looked like your mind had drifted off somewhere else when I mentioned something about your girlfriend.”

  “Like I said before, I usually don’t discuss my business at work, so please don’t repeat any of this because I’m really a private type of person.”

  “So am I. I’ll respect your privacy, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  “You just better keep your head up.” Within seconds Mrs. Kelly’s face lit up with excitement. “Let me tell you something.”

  “What?”

  “An angel just whispered something in my ear.”

  Joel laughed. “What did it say?”

  Mrs. Kelly couldn’t stop smiling. “This is such a blessing. The angel said, hold on and don’t you worry ’cause help is on the way.”

  Joel hunched his shoulders and said, “Wonder what that means.”

  “I know exactly what that means. Is it all right if I share what we just discussed with one other person?”

  He looked at Mrs. Kelly like she had lost her mind. “Who?”

  “My niece. She’s right around the corner in my office, dying to meet an attractive professional young man like you. I know the two of you would make a lovely couple.”

  He felt lightheaded and disoriented. He looked at Mrs. Kelly and thought, Hell no! He struggled as he asked, “Your ... niece ... meet ... me?”

  Joel instantly imagined someone younger who closely resembled Mrs. Kelly, with a face covered with dried pancake batter-lookin’ makeup, topped off with a synthetic auburn wig and the same cheap overpowering fragrance.

  Mrs. Kelly grabbed him by the arm and pulled. “C’mon.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “We’re going to meet my niece.”

  Like a fool Joel yelled, “Noooo!”

  “You’re coming with me.”

  Mrs. Kelly actually pulled, pushed and nearly dragged Joel’s five-eleven, one hundred ninety pound frame down the hall with her five-three, three hundred twenty-five pound self.

  Mrs. Kelly asked, “Do I have to drag you around the corner too? You know I will.”

  Joel was laughing so hard that he cried. “All right. Hold up a minute. I’ll do this if you give me time to get myself together. We both look real crazy right now. I’ve never seen you act like this before, but I like it. You’ve got me cracking up. I had no idea you were this wild or so strong.”

  “Nobody around here takes the time to get to know me better. I’m always in a good mood, especially when the school year is over.”

  “Your job must be stressful as hell.”

  “You don’t even want to know.” Mrs. Kelly paused for a second. “Look at you trying to change the subject. Stop acting so silly and shy. I’m serious about you meeting my niece. I’ll pick you up and carry you if I have to.”

  “I know you will, but that won’t be necessary. I promise I’ll walk the rest of the way.”

  Mrs. Kelly exhaled loudly and said, “Thank God. Look at me. You’ve got me all out of breath and about to have a heart attack.”

  Joel straightened out his clothes and said, “I’m sorry. I really wanna meet your niece now.”

  “Well, what was the problem at first?”

  “Immaturity on my part. Plus, I wasn’t really trying to meet anybody new. I was thinking about contacting a couple of my old girlfriends to see what they’ve been doing and see if they were interested in hooking up again.”

  Mrs. Kelly frowned and threw her hand. “Ugh! Tha
t’s not the way to go at all. Been there, done that.”

  Joel smiled and said, “I’ve been there, but I didn’t do all of them.”

  Mrs. Kelly thought she had missed something. “What?”

  “Put it like this, too much information and not enough time to explain.”

  The sound of somebody approaching stole their attention for the moment. They listened closely as a pair of high-heeled shoes tapped to a certain kind of sophisticated cadence on the school’s industrial tile flooring. That was a sound Joel loved to hear.

  Mrs. Kelly took a quick peek around the corner and said, “Oh look, here comes my niece, Asia, right now. When you meet her you’ll forget all about your old girlfriend.”

  When he made eye contact with Mrs. Kelly’s niece, she reminded Joel of Renee. Her intricate hairweave of long blond spiral curls, big expensive Coach handbag, stilettos, manicured fingernails and toenails, and the annoying way she popped her gum all sent up a huge yellow caution flag. She seemed too artificial. After a quick introduction to Asia, Joel automatically shut down because he knew that he wasn’t interested in her. No chemistry whatsoever. Then he thought, Whoa, hold on a minute. She’s got a cute face, nice ass and some big titties—good. But she doesn’t smile enough and I don’t like this strong hoochie vibe she’s got going on. All I’d do is end up using her for sex. Hmm, that might be nice. But I’d hate to dog this girl and then have to deal with her and Mrs. Kelly.

  Asia didn’t initiate much of a conversation and didn’t strike Joel as being too intelligent. Her physical appearance was fine, but she didn’t stimulate his mind at all. He was looking for a total package. In reality, Asia was okay, but was forced to pay the price for looking too much like Joel’s ex. He wanted the real thing or nothing at all. Thinking about Renee and looking at Asia was like comparing McDonald’s to Burger King, Coke to Pepsi and Beyoncé to Ciara.

  Asia only made matters worse by trying to act more glamorous than she really was. She began to come off as goofy. Every move she made ended with an awkward pose. It was obvious that she had been watching too many reruns of America’s Next Top Model and was emulating what she saw. Joel laughed to himself because the only thing sophisticated about Asia was the way her heels had sounded when she first walked around the corner. Joel could tell that they had very little in common and the last thing he needed or wanted was a carbon copy of Renee. Too much work.

  Meeting Asia left Joel feeling severely discouraged and disappointed. He wasted thirty minutes of his life trying his best to humor Mrs. Kelly and her ghetto-fabulous niece.

  Asia said, “It was nice meeting you, Joel. Here’s my number.” She handed him a colorful business card with her full name, Asia Kelly—Model & Fashion Designer. It had a notation above her number, Available for fashion shows, photo and video shoots. She said, “Check out my page on myspace.com whenever you get a chance. Just type in my screen name, Holla at this model chick and you can find me.”

  It took everything inside of Joel not to burst out laughing. “Aight, Asia. It was nice meeting you too.”

  “Don’t forget to holla at this model chick when you get home.”

  Joel felt that strong urge to laugh again because Asia sounded so silly. His eyes got big and he said, “Wow, I don’t even know what to say.”

  Mrs. Kelly sensed that Joel wasn’t interested in Asia, but she was determined to make something happen. She said, “Joel, you forgot to say that you were gonna call Asia and you forgot to give her your home and cell numbers.”

  He pressed his lips together really tight, scratched the side of his face and fidgeted with his ear. “I ... I don’t really use my home number anymore. The best way to get me is on my cell.”

  As soon as Joel handed Asia his cell number Mrs. Kelly snatched it from her hand and whipped out her cell phone. She dialed the number and within seconds Joel’s cell phone rang.

  Joel and Asia stood there with puzzled looks on their faces.

  Mrs. Kelly acted like one of her students and said, “Oh, all right. I thought you were trying to play my girl.”

  Joel just shook his head and walked away laughing. He went back to his classroom to pick up his belongings. He loaded the last few boxes of paperwork and supplies in the back of his Jeep Cherokee and headed to the beltway to claim a spot on what looked like the world’s largest parking lot. It was a hot muggy day and traffic was bumper-to-bumper. In front of him was a giant display of assorted bright red brake lights as far as the eye could see. Joel intentionally turned off his cell phone and thought about how tough it was going to be to find an intelligent, attractive woman with goals and interests similar to his. He knew that finding someone compatible meant more than just finding a woman with a heartbeat, a warm body and good sex.

  Chapter 6

  On the way home Joel listened to a local talk radio show. The call-in topic was about ways to heal after bad relationships. The heat, the traffic congestion, the fact that nothing seemed to be going his way, and some of the call-in guests heightened Joel’s frustration. One guy called in and talked about how his previous relationship made him lose track of who he really was and how he had lost sight of the world around him. His ex was just that consuming. He described himself as a decent hardworking black man trying his best to find love and the secret to making a relationship work. The caller said that just before his relationship ended, he resembled a clown walking a tightrope without a safety net, doing backward flips and jumping through narrow rings of fire, while wearing gasoline drawers. After all that, his ex still wasn’t impressed and wanted him to do more. This particular call really hit home. Joel knew exactly what this guy was going to say before he even finished his sentences. He was basically telling Joel’s story.

  During the rest of the ride home Joel thought about how his story went back a lot further than Renee Monique Rhodes. He was born in Baltimore, in a working class African-American community. He grew up on a quiet street lined with old row homes and huge shady trees. Kids played ghetto games on the sidewalks and in the street.

  As a child, Joel promised to never break his parents’ hearts. They always showed him and his older brother Shawn unconditional love. Joel’s father, Theodore Davis, was without a doubt one of the most abrasive, easily agitated and hotheaded individuals anyone had ever met. When he got mad he appeared to be larger than life and scared his kids half to death. He worked two full-time security jobs to keep the lights on and food on the table. Joel’s father rarely had a traditional day off from work. His off days usually meant he only had to report to one job. A regular eight-hour shift was an easy day to him. Joel and Shawn didn’t have real father-son relationships with their dad. The little time they did have with him consisted of a lot of lecturing, complaining, yelling and outrageous demands. Soon after all that came the beatings. Joel could never forget the beatings. One thing Joel could say about his dad was that he made time to attend church with his family. He always seemed to be a God-fearing man, a quality Joel undoubtedly inherited from him.

  Joel came from a strict Christian family. His mother, Mary, was a homemaker and a dedicated Sunday school teacher. She was old-fashioned in every sense. Everybody knew that Mrs. Mary Davis wouldn’t be caught dead or alive wearing pants or makeup. She mostly wore her hair in a bun. Skirts, dresses and her natural effortless beauty were the norm for his mother. She recognized and respected her husband as head of their household. It was hard to find anyone as easygoing or as proud as Mrs. Davis. Most of her time was spent cooking, cleaning and making sure that Joel and Shawn stayed on the right path. Mrs. Davis taught her boys to have the utmost respect for women. She even found time to teach her boys about the birds and the bees, constantly reminding them that premarital sex was a sin. She was the only person Joel knew who could recite the Ten Commandments word for word and in order.

  Although Joel had both parents at home, he gave his mother most of the credit for molding him. She tried her best to raise Joel and Shawn to be well-mannered and respectable men. Their fat
her taught them right from wrong at an early age. Once he laid down the law that was it. If they did wrong their mother would instantly report it to their dad. When their father got home from work he’d wake them up in the middle of the night if he chose to, and would whip them from head to toe with a belt—and sometimes the buckle, depending on what they had done.

  No matter how hard parents try to guide their kids and keep them on the right path, they should never forget that their kids have minds of their own. Shawn knew the consequences for disobeying his parents, but he did what he wanted to do anyway. He started hanging out with the wrong crowd during his senior year of high school. Within the first few weeks of school he was doing stuff like smoking and selling marijuana. Peer pressure can be vicious. At the time, Joel was a junior at the same high school and was too involved in wrestling and playing on the varsity basketball team to consider doing anything related to drugs. Joel was strong, quick, agile, and had plenty of stamina. A local trainer noticed how athletic he was and introduced him to boxing.

  While Joel was busy with sports, Shawn was busy getting into drugs. He actually brought weed into their house. Shawn was living fast and going out of his mind trying to impress people, mostly girls, by being a fake thug. Joel and Shawn lived in the hood and all, but the only thing they knew about the streets was what they heard from classmates or saw on television. Eventually Shawn learned the streets for real.

  On the other hand, Joel wanted to be different. He knew that every poor young black man from the ghetto didn’t have to be a thug or drug dealer. There were a few straight-up good kids in the hood and Joel was one of them. Nobody bothered him. Guys approached him occasionally, trying to recruit him to sell drugs. No words from Joel were ever necessary. He would give them a certain look, and then shake his head. The fearlessness, or a degree of hardness in his stare, made them leave him alone. From that point on everybody knew that Joel was focused on making something positive out of himself. He carried himself with respect and received plenty of it in return.