Sins of a Side Chick

by Kandie Marie

Genres: African American Urban

Synopsis

As they are about to transition into adulthood, college seniors find themselves embroiled in a juicy love triangle.

Eric and Reneece are seniors in college, preparing for the journey of adulthood. While Reneece believes the relationship between her and her mate is perfect, Eric has been keeping secrets of his own. Having an affair on the side, things between him and his side piece, Dareen, become more than he’d bargained for. On a journey to become a better man, Eric realizes his love for Reneece and tries to end his affair, but Dareen isn’t having it. Infatuated with Eric, she vows to make him hers by any means necessary. Will her efforts benefit her, or will she be left alone and broken-hearted?

Publisher: Urban Books

Print pages: 288

Sample

Later That Day

I finally got out of our bed around eleven to Eric yelling at the top of his lungs. “Reneece, bring yo’ ass here, girl,” he said. “Babe, come on, get down here.”

Rising out of the bed, I noticed a wet spot in the middle of it from our little sexcape from that morning. I grabbed my scrunchie from our wooden nightstand, throwing my medium-length honey-blond hair into a high ponytail as I removed the sheets from the bed. Eric continued hollering for me to come downstairs, but I had to change those sheets first.

“I’m coming, babe, damn,” I shouted out of the bedroom. I felt myself becoming irritated at him.

I heard him let out a slight laugh, then mumble, “Not fast enough,” as he walked away from the bottom of the steps. As I changed the bed, the aroma of freshly cooked bacon, pancakes, and even scrambled eggs filled our home. Scurrying to brush my teeth to get to those smells, I thought, This man has made me breakfast, plus gave me some bomb-ass dick. This is going to be a great birthday, after all.

After getting my hygiene and appearance together, I ran down the steps, ready to eat and see what he was bellowing about. There, scattered all over my red, faux fur rug, he had twenty-one gifts laid out.

“What’s all this?” I asked, shocked, as I approached the living room.

He grabbed me by the hand and led me to the couch. “Happy birthday, beautiful.”

I looked into his eyes. “Babe, all of this … This is for me?”

With a slight chuckle and nod, he responded, “Yeah, babe, you definitely deserve it.”

Eric stood before me and leaned over to give me a simple, sweet kiss on my cheek before entering the kitchen.

“Before opening your presents, you should eat something first.” He returned with a brown tray; on top of it, a paper plate was filled with cheese grits, two pancakes, scrambled eggs, and bacon.

“Okay, either you’re being super nice, you up to something, or you fucked up. ’Cause you never cook, at least like this.” Reaching for the tray, I joked with him.

“Well, it’s your birthday, plus, I know you been feeling like I been distant. I want you to know that I love you, and there’s nothing and no one else I would rather be with,” he said while walking toward the front door.

“Nigga, where you going?” I questioned, noticing him put on his Nike slides.

“I’ll be right back. I have a quick errand to run. I don’t want anything interrupting us today. So eat. Open your presents like it’s Christmas and shit, and I’ll be back before you know it.” Then returning to the couch, he pinched my cheek and stole one of my slices of bacon before heading out the door.

I know some women would’ve been bothered, but with all the clubs he was in, plus his frat, I’m sure he just wanted to take care of those things so they wouldn’t be calling and shit. Lord knows I hated when we had a date night or something, and he would have to run to a meeting or an event. As he walked out the door, I sat on our couch, looking like a little kid on Christmas with all these gifts in front of me, ready to dig into each one.

Eagerly pulling the first box toward me, I noticed it was wrapped up so well, covered in a cream-colored wrapping paper, and tied in a gold bow. It was so beautiful to look at that I almost didn’t want to open it. I gently pulled on the satin ribbon, letting it fall into my lap, then tore off the wrapping paper to find a pair of black stilettos inside with a twenty-dollar bill stuffed inside each shoe.

Stuffing the money into my bra and placing the stilettos on the floor beside me, I moved off the couch to grab a medium-sized brown gift bag with the words “Birthday Princess” written on the front. The bag wasn’t too heavy, and an envelope lay on the top. When I opened the envelope, I found a birthday card with forty dollars inside of it. The card was simple, but what he wrote inside melted my heart.

To my beautiful girlfriend, Reneece,

I hope these gifts show you how much you mean to me. I hope everything fits. I just wanna thank you for being an awesome girlfriend and my best friend. I love you, baby. I have a bigger surprise for you later. You can open the other gifts later, but go ahead and open the one in the rectangular box near the TV. I’ll see you later, babe.

Eric

The card was sweet, especially for a man who wasn’t super vocal about his emotions or feelings. Sometimes, I wondered if he loved me or at least was still in love with me after all this time. Being with someone since high school and growing up with them daily is something serious. It’s hard sometimes, I can’t lie.

Placing the bag on our suede black sofa next to my uneaten plate of food, I stood up and walked over to the TV. Just like Eric said, beside it was a long rectangular box with the same wrapping paper, but this time, a black ribbon. I bent over to detach the small note that dangled from the ribbon.

I can’t wait to see you wear this tonight, it read. I assumed the inside of the box was lingerie, so I took the box and the heels he bought me upstairs so I could try them on in my full-length mirror. Laying the box on the bed, I opened it and was pleasantly surprised. Inside was a beautiful, red satin, strapless dress with a heart shape cut at the top. It draped low in the back. I couldn’t wait to see how it would fit. Underneath the dress was a black lingerie teddy piece. It was completely lace, with garter straps around the legs.

At that moment, I was feeling myself. I began undressing so I could take a shower before Eric got home. I was about to show him how much I appreciated all the gifts and the time he put into making my birthday memorable.

Knock, knock, knock.

I heard the knocking as I was about to go into the bathroom. I tried to ignore it, thinking it maybe was a Jehovah’s Witness or something. Running my bathwater, I could hear the knocks get louder. Completely irritated now, I grabbed my big, lavender towel, wrapped it around my naked body, and ran down the stairs to see who it was.

Yelling “Hold on” so they would stop knocking, I finally reached the last step. Before I even opened my door, I looked through the peephole to see who it was. There, standing in front of the door and banging on it, was some rat-faced-looking bitch. You know, like that nigga off of the wire, only uglier. I opened the door just slightly to see if maybe she was lost, and things immediately took a wrong turn.

“Yo’ name Renee?” she asked while attempting to push my door back.

“No, my name is Reneece, and maybe you have the wrong house,” I stated, pushing my door shut.

She grabbed the door before I could shut it completely. “I’m looking for Eric,” she said.

She piqued my interest when she said my nigga’s name. “Why are you looking for him?”

“I have something to tell him,” she responded cynically.

“Whatever you need to tell him, you can tell me,” I retorted, pulling the door back, then folding my arms across my chest.

“No, I want, and I need, to tell him personally, not through a third party,” she countered as she reached into her pocket, pulling out a melted piece of gum.

“And that would be what exactly?” I inquired, watching her chew the gum with her mouth wide open, showing her missing teeth on the side. I almost threw up watching the spectacle.

She laughed in my face with spit flying everywhere. “Tell him Dareen stopped by,” she said, throwing up her middle finger at me as she walked to the parking lot.

Eric never mentioned anyone named Dareen before, and for her to have the balls to come to my house, especially on my birthday, made me fucking livid and intrigued to know what the hell she wanted to tell him. My intuition was telling me there was some bullshit about to come my way.

After she left, I couldn’t take my mind off that purple-black, rat-toothed-face, Whoopi Goldberg look-alike. I called Eric for a good thirty minutes straight and received no answer. The more my calls went unanswered, the more curious, angrier, and baffled I got by the second. Two hours later, guess who finally arrived home?

It was about six o’clock that evening when Eric walked in. He came in the door, turning on the tall lamp, to find me on the couch, my arms folded and a stone-cold face. He looked at me, confused, not sure what was wrong.

“Hey, babe,” he said, walking over, attempting to kiss me, but I wasn’t here for it.

Shoving him away from me, I shouted, “Don’t you ‘Hey fucking babe me.’ I know you saw me fucking calling you. Why didn’t you answer? Were you that busy you couldn’t answer my calls or text me?”

He stepped back into the middle of the living room floor. “What’s wrong? Did you not like your gifts?”

I was so enraged at that point that I threw one of the unopened gift boxes at him, yelling, “This isn’t about no damn presents! You know why I’m upset. Stop playing fucking dumb.”

In my mind, I knew that that ugly-ass bitch probably called him. I don’t get why he’s acting so fucking confused.

He approached me cautiously and asked, “So, what’s the issue? I can’t do nothing to surprise you?”

“Who the fuck is she?” I uttered.

His eyes widened. “Who?”

Taking a deep breath, I clenched my hands together before I went off. “Don’t you dare sit here and play dumb with me. Who the fuck is she, Eric?”

He looked surprised, still playing dumb. “Babe, I seriously have no clue what you’re talking about.”

“Dareen. Who the fuck is Dareen? Answer me now, Eric,” I demanded, walking up to him with my fists balled up, ready to punch him in his shit if he was going to deny knowing her.

He just stood there silent, dumbfounded, as if he was looking for something to say or how to answer me.

“Eric, you not going to say shit?” Using the back of my left hand to slap him across his face, I had to ask the lingering question. “You fucking her? You fucked her in my house?”

“Babe, listen,” he said.

“Nah, motherfucker, answer my question.”

He fell to his knees, grabbing and caressing my legs. Tears leaked down his face. He just kept saying he was sorry. That’s all he would say … over, and over, and fucking over. “I’m sorry.”

“How long you been fucking her?” I asked in a whisper.

“It was just a few times, and I …” He clung to my legs, refusing to let me move.

Kneeing him in his chest, I asked him again. “How long, Eric? More importantly, how the fuck did she know where I stayed?”

Since he didn’t respond, I asked, “Did you fuck her in our home? In our bed?”

He still didn’t respond. I pulled away from him. I couldn’t believe not only had he cheated on me, but he also did the ultimate disrespect by having her in a home that we shared. This nigga has truly lost his fucking mind. I hit him with whatever was nearby and then said, “Hey, aye, are you serious? You can’t be serious. Not only were you cheating with a gorilla, but you also fucked her in my shit?”

“I fucked up,” he said, looking up at me like a sad puppy dog.

“Yeah, you damn right you fucked up.” Shoving him out of my way, I headed toward the stairs in utter disgust.

“I’m sorry, Reneece. Baby, I’m sorry,” he yelled, following behind me.

I walked into my bedroom, and when I looked at my bed, I could envision all the times he probably fucked her there—on my sheets. The way he probably kissed her, even if he ate her pussy, or how she probably tried to swallow his dick like it was a hot dog or some shit. As the tears ran down my eyes, I started to throw all the sheets and covers off the bed. Then I grabbed his clothes and started throwing them down the stairs.

“Reneece, what the fuck?”

“Get the fuck out.”

“Come on, can we talk about this?”

“You can’t be serious.”

“Come on, it’s your birthday. I can make this right. Please, let me try.”

As I cried, I began to laugh. I was either losing my mind, or I was trying to refrain from killing him. I couldn’t get those images out of my mind.

“Fuck you, Eric. Fuck you.”

“Babe—”

“Fuck you. Fuck my birthday. I hope your fucking balls and dick fall off, you piece of shit.”

Eric tried to walk up the stairs as I threw his sneakers at him, yelling at him to get out of my house. I needed my space and time to digest all of this. Standing there, he just looked at me, full of regret, taking the hits and weeping like a bitch. It almost seemed like he was crying more than I was.

“I’m not fucking leaving, so keep throwing shit. I’m not fucking leaving,” he declared.

“I’ll call the police if you don’t leave,” I shouted so he would understand that it was time for some space.

“You’re overreacting right now,” he murmured.

“Eric, you cheated on me and had the audacity to sleep with the ho in my fucking house. What the hell do you mean? If it was the other way around, no telling how you’d be acting, so fuck you. Don’t you fucking dare tell me that I’m overreacting or how to feel right now,” I said before balling up my fist, then punching the wall to the right of me.

Eric started to walk down the stairs. Then he looked at me and said, “After six years … We been together six years.”

“You should’ve remembered that when you stuck your dick in that raggedy ho,” I yelled at him with my back turned.

I walked back into my room and slammed the door. I couldn’t believe he did this to me—to us. I gave him all of me in so many ways. All the time, energy, love—all of it, I put into him, into us. And this is how he fucking repaid me? He doesn’t love me. How could he? I made him my first love, I let him make me into a woman. And now, here I am.

As I continued to scream I hated him, Eric was banging on the bedroom door, begging me to let him in. He constantly groaned, “I’m sorry,” but I wasn’t hearing it. I knew if he didn’t leave, I needed to. I grabbed whatever I needed in eyesight and packed a quick overnight bag before storming out of the bedroom. I wasn’t sure where I was going at that moment, but I just knew I was leaving.

“Move out of my way,” I demanded.

“Baby, please. I wanna fix this—fix us. It’s your birthday. I planned something special for you tonight,” he pleaded.

Attempting to walk past him, I said, “Eric, move out of my way,” as he tried to grab my hand.

“Reneece,” he called, begging me to stay.

“Eric, I said move—damn.” I pushed my way out of his path and knocked him into one of the mirrors adjacent to the rail on the stairs.

My emotions were all over the place. I didn’t realize I had shoved him into the wall as hard as I did. His head was bleeding slightly. I wanted to nurse it, but I needed to leave. I turned back to look one last time before running out the door to my car. I left him there with everything and headed to Jalisa’s house, my girl, to clear my mind.

 

Dear Diary,

I can’t believe this shit is happening to me. I departed from what used to be our home and drove to Jalisa’s. Had I stayed there another minute, there was no telling what could have happened because he just wouldn’t let me leave.

Diary, if you could’ve been a fly on the wall, you know these past few hours have been hell. Everything was cool at first. I went through my presents, then suddenly, a random knock came to my door. I wasn’t gonna answer it at first, but I’m glad I did. A girl named Dareen came asking me for Eric. Like that rat-face bitch had a whole lot of balls, let alone the audacity, to go to my home. This shit there was unbelievable. When I confronted Eric, he decided to play stupid. Ugh. I hate him. I fucking hate him. I hate him for making me believe he loved me. I hate him for making me his fool and thinking he was the perfect fucking man.

Here I am, sitting in Jalisa’s parking lot, uncontrollably crying. I’m hurt. No, I’m way beyond hurt. I hope they are fucking happy together. I’m done with his ass. See, that’s what’s wrong with niggas. They always wanna use the smallest fuckin’ reason, or at times, no reason at all, but they’ll go fuck the first bitch they see. But she will never amount to half the woman I am.

I may not be the baddest bitch, but I sometimes like thinking of myself as being a thicker version of Kelly Rowland with my medium-length natural honey-blond hair, beautiful brown eyes, cute feet, educated look. . .