CHAPTER 45: SHAKE IT OFF
"Shake It Off"
[Chorus]
I gotta shake it off/ Cause the loving ain't the same
And you keep on playing games/ Like you know I'm here to stay
I gotta shake it off/ Just like the Calgon commercial life
I really gotta get up outta here/ And go somewhere
I gotta shake it off/ Gotta make that move
Find somebody who/ Appreciates all the love I give
Boy I gotta shake it off/ Gotta do what's best for me
Baby and that means I gotta/ shake it off
{VERSE ONE}
By the time you get this message/ It's gonna be too late/ So don't bother paging me/ 'Cause I'll be on my way
See, I grabbed all my diamonds and clothes/ Just ask your momma she knows
You're gonna miss me baby/ Hate to say I told you so
Well at first I didn't know/ But now it's clear to me
You would cheat with all your freaks/ And lie compulsively
So I packed up my Louis Vuitton/ Jumped in your ride and took off
You'll never ever find a girl/ Who loves you more than me
[Bridge]
I gotta shake, shake, shake, shake, shake it
Off...
I found out about a gang/Of your dirty little deeds/ With this one and that one/ By the pool, on the beach, in the streets
Heard y'all was/ Hold up my phone's breakin' up
I'ma hang up and call the machine right back/ I gotta get this off of my mind/ You wasn't worth my time/ So I'm leaving you behind
Cause I need a real love in my life
Save this recording because/ I'm never coming back home
Baby I'm gone/ Don't cha know
I gotta shake it off/ Cause the loving ain't the same/And you keep on playing games/ Like you know I'm here to stay
I gotta shake it off/ Just like the Calgon commercial life/ I really gotta get up outta here/ And go somewhere
I gotta shake it off/ Gotta make that move/ Find somebody who
Appreciated all the love I give/ Boy I gotta shake it off
Gotta do what's best for me/ Baby and that means I gotta
shake it off**
MELANIE
I’m still in a state akin to shock. I mean, Brian and Justin are BOTH the fathers of the new additions! It’s wonderful, no matter how it came to be! But now they have blown my mind even further, by asking me to be the MOM to Gus, Jennifer Renee, and Jordan Raymond… I don’t think I could possibly feel more blessed than I do right now. It makes all the time I spent in an obviously one-sided relationship with Lindsay, worth every heartache and sacrifice I have made over the years.
“What’s on you mind, Sugar Lips?” Leda asks me. And that’s another thing… my friends are incredibly slick, but in the very best ways. I still can’t believe she’s here, even if she DID prove that she wasn’t a figment of my imagination repeatedly last night.
“Just thinking of how things are turning out. I went from a mom of one, to a mom of three in a matter of minutes, after witnessing a silent conversation that I never expected would have happened.
“Silent conversation?”
Nodding, I smile. “Between Brian and Justin… It’s really amazing how it happens. Most times, they don’t even have to look at each other to know what the other one is thinking. Yet, they are in total agreement when one of them- usually Justin- speaks.”
“We used to be like that, too, you know?”
“Were we?” I ask, because although we were, I thought it was more just because we were a lot alike. I guess I just subconsciously decided not to read more into it.
“Yes, we were, Mel. And I’d like to be that way again… if you’d allow it.”
Before I have a chance to answer her, Brian and Justin come into the living room of my house. And they are not alone. I smile at all of the newcomers. “George, Malcolm! What are you guys doing here?”
They both reach out to hug me, but it’s Malcolm that answers for both of them. “Well, first we came to say, ‘Congratulations’. I can’t even tell you how happy we are for all of you. The second reason though, is to talk about all the changes.”
I chuckle. “I think Brian and Justin are more new to the changes about to befall them than I am. I mean, Gus has been in existence for quite some time, but… well, let’s not talk about her. I will say that the adjustment will be a bit more tough now though. So how are we going to handle this co-parenting thing, guys?”
Justin steps forward, and taking my hand, leads me over to the sofa before answering. “Brian and I have talked about it, and we think we have a solution. But first, I have to ask… just how attached to the idea are you of remaining here?”
“Here?”
“I’m not only talking about this house, but the neighborhood.”
I have to think about that for a few moments. Sure Dusty and Marie are here, and they have been more than amazing friends to me while I’ve been dealing with, not only the destruction of my marriage, but learning to be a single parent in the process while still maintaining my career. But outside of them, no one else has even seemed remotely concerned about me, as a person. It’s just been about how I should be standing by Lindsay, and have I heard from Lindsay, and Lindsay… Lindsay… Lindsay! I’ve been so close, any number of times, to telling them the entire truth about my split from the harridan.
But as was first agreed between the three of us most affected by this mess, I’ve kept my silence so that the case wouldn’t be tainted in case the jury selection included members of this neighborhood.
“I’m not attached to anyone, except Dusty and Marie, who know the full story but have kept all of their knowledge quiet. They’ve always been more my friends than Lindsay’s, which isn’t the case with just about everyone else in the neighborhood.”
“So, moving wouldn’t be much of a problem for you?” At my puzzled look, Justin continues. “Look, Mel, I’ll be honest with you. Brian and I have decided to relocate, even though we are still keeping the loft for several reasons. However, we made this decision mostly because of the children. The trials are going to be starting soon, and we don’t want to be readily accessible to…”
“Debbie,” I finish for him. “I can understand, but I don’t agree with moving to basically run away from her.”
“That’s not what we’re doing, Smelly Melly,” Brian answers, in place of Justin and narrows his eyes at me.
“Isn’t it, though?”
Justin cuts his eyes at Brian, before turning back to me. “No, it isn’t, Mel. Although, she does figure into the equation a bit, she’s not the sum total of why we made this decision. The loft, while we could easily turn it into a duplex- and still might at some point- is just not a good environment for Gus, Jenny, and Jordan. Even though the babies are small now, like Gus, they are going to grow and need room to move and breathe freely. That can’t happen at the loft.”
“So where are you guys planning to move to?”
George steps forward then. “Malcolm and I own several properties in our neighborhood. But more importantly, we bought up all the surrounding manors around our estate so that we would have ample privacy.”
“Manors?” Leda asks, in awe. And I have to say that I’m having the same type of reaction. I mean, who would do that?
George and Malcolm smile at us, easily discerning our thoughts. “When my ex-harridan from Hell was alive, she thought to be able to use the neighbors to get information on what I was doing. Only, she didn’t expect that word would get back to me about it. Fortunately, for me, the neighbors couldn’t stand her. But they didn’t want to unduly make an enemy of her either. You see, Virginia was a real and spiteful bitch, and as you know, rumor and innuendo can sink an empire faster than going bankrupt, within our set.
“So they came up with a way for us to be able to thwart her, while seeming to just want to move elsewhere. I hired an outside attorney, who also acted as my property manager so that Virginia couldn’t blackmail him into doing her bidding and giving her information on me that really wasn’t her business. On the last day, when the final house was sold to me, Malcolm moved in. It was also the day that my divorce from the bitch was finalized. So there was nothing she could do.”
“Goodness, remind me never to piss you off, George,” Brian said in awe.
“You won’t forget, youngster,” he tells Brian, affectionately. Not for the first time, I wonder about the relationship between them and how it has evolved to what it’s become. The way George looks upon Brian is reminiscent of the way my own grandfather looked at me, when he would tell me things about my family’s history. It’s very special to behold.
“How many properties, not including your estate, do you own?” Leda asks.
“There are eight in total.”
“Eight?!” I exclaim.
“Yes, Melanie. There are eight,” Malcolm confirms. We live within a cul-de-sac, with our house at the very top of it. All of the yards adjoin now, but is gated in the front, and at the far ends. It gives the appearance of a gated community, instead of a series of extended properties.”
“Also, each property is far back from the street, and requires a bit of a drive to reach the front doors. In fact, from the street view, it looks more like a wooded area,” George adds.
“So Mel, what we were thinking is that since Brian and I are going to move into one of the manors, perhaps it’s time for you to let this place go, too. I know that ever since Debbie showed up here, you’ve been uneasy, and Brian and I have begun to feel the same way about the loft, to a degree. If you want, we can take three of the adjoining properties and have a pass-through built so that the children don’t have to go outside in order to go between the houses.”
“Wait! Why three?” Leda asks.
Justin smiles, slyly then. “Because Mel and Brian in the same house would have me ready to lock them both in the basement, until they got along. This way, Brian and I will have our own space, as well as Mel. But the center property would belong solely to the children, who are now the center of our family. That’s why I suggested the pass-throughs, so that we can get to them immediately, along with having access to each other when necessary. I can’t think of a more effective way to co-parent, while creating a safe space for all the adults at the same time.”
“But what of your house, Justin?” I ask. “I would hate for you to have to let it go.” Even though I’ve never been there, I know that it’s seclusion was a major reason why Justin fell in love with it. According to Emmett, it was just perfect for Justin’s healing in all facets. I don’t want him to lose that when he’s been working so hard to reinvent himself.
“Don’t worry about it, Mel. In fact, my place is on the far end of George and Malcolm’s estate, and is on wheels. So it won’t be hard to move at all.”
“You live there already?”
“I have since the day I left the hospital after Ethan’s idiocy. Brian has been there a few times. Right, Brian?”
I’m shocked, but not surprised when Brian nods in response. “I have, and I actually like it out there a lot. I know that by nature, I’m a city-dweller, and happy to be one. But if I was ever going to move to the suburbs, I admit that I would have chosen that kind of place for myself.”
“What’s it like?” Leda asks him, and I admit that I’m curious as well. I mean, if finicky-ass Brian likes it…
“Justin’s place? Or the area as a whole?”
“Start with Justin’s place,” I suggest.
“I never thought a tiny home would have so much… space,” Brian says, in total awe. “Perhaps, it’s just the way he has it outfitted, but even though it’s only just over 430 square feet, it feels larger than this living room. But what I really fell in love with was his shower. Even if we both can’t fit in it together, the scenery from it makes up for that.”
“Ah! The au naturale in nature appeal, eh Brian?” Leda laughs.
Brian smirks. “Absolutely.”
“George, if I take one of the manors, can I have it refurbished like that?” she asks.
“Whoa! Wait a minute. Leda, your life is in Hollywood, or have you forgotten?” I ask her.
She looks at me, seriously. “That’s true. But what if I want my life to be here?”
“Leda…”
“Mel…”
“Hey, LESBIANS!” Brian interrupts, earning laughter from all of us, despite the fact that I want to snap back at him. “Apparently, you guys need to have a serious talk about what you want. But Mel, seriously, you are NOT about to pull this gun shy shit.”
“Brian,” I say, warningly.
“Brian’s right, Mel. You have to move on, for real. I know you said that you have…”
“I have!” I defend.
“Then it’s time you act like it!” Justin exclaims back at me, but softens his tone when he addresses me again. “Mel, you’re a good woman; a great one, even. You would be doing yourself a disservice not to take this second chance, on yourself as well as on Leda. I mean, look at me and Brian. Whoever thought that he and I would be in the place we are now? And we had many more issues than you and Leda did, but never said anything. At least, you both had a clear understanding of why you fell apart; didn’t have to wait until something tragic happened again for you to finally lay it all on the line. So I’m going to tell you this, Mel. Decide what you want, once and for all. And then decide if you want that with Leda.”
And hearing that from Brian and Justin, but especially from Justin, made such an impact on me. They had so many struggles no one knew about. Everything from Justin’s bouts of rage and night terrors to Brian’s continuous bouts with PTSD… no one could have even imagined that these two headstrong men were floundering so much. I guess it was a situation where we were just seeing what we wanted to see, which was far from the reality that was. Because honestly, if we looked at these two gods of our world as mere humans, it would have exposed our own flaws to such a degree that it would have broken us. And ironically, that’s exactly what’s happening to me right now.
My brief introspection is interrupted by the ringing of my home phone. Startled, I answer it by the second ring. “Hello.”
“You have a collect call from... Mel it’s Lindz, James quit! Can you believe it?! I NEED YOU! ….an inmate at a state correctional facility. The cost is two-dollars for the first minute, and one dollar for each additional minute. Would you like to accept this call?”
I click off, wishing for nothing more than a rotary receiver right now so that I could slam it down hard. That bitch actually had the temerity to call ME?!
“Who was that?” Brian asks me, just as his cell phone goes off.
“DON’T ANSWER THAT!” I order, before calming myself immediately. “That was our unfriendly resident Bitchzilla. Apparently, her attorney, and sometimes sex-partner-for-payment quit on her. I suspect it has something to do with the information I handed him and Annette this morning. So I suppose she’s now looking for legal counsel at OUR expense.”
“I guess all those dicks she’s sucked over the years aren’t counting for as much as she thought they would at the time,” Brian says, as he repockets his cell phone. “So, back to our very important conversation before we were so rudely interrupted… what are you going to do, Mel?”
As I look at all of the occupants of my living room, it’s so clear to me now that I’ve allowed Lindsay to paralyze me with fear. And it’s time for me to hang up on her again… permanently. Taking a deep breath, I smile at all of them. “So guys, is my new place move-in ready or does it need work?”
Justin grabs me up, hugging me tightly, even as Brian pats my shoulder. Looking at the two of them, and the bright smiles gracing their faces, I no longer doubt that I’ve made the right decision. My family has already grown; it’s time I grow with it.
LYNETTE
As I’m staring through the nursery window, I’m amazed to see my new niece and nephew wide awake while the other babies are sleeping. They aren’t crying, or looking at anyone else except each other. I wonder what they are thinking, as it looks as if they are having their own conversation without words. It’s something I watched their fathers do at dinner last night, and I’m just as fascinated that the trait to do so may have been passed down to these two little humans.
“You alright, dear?” Mother asks me, as she comes to stand beside me.
I smile at her, even if my heart is broken just a little. “I’m okay. I made my peace with my situation a long time ago, Mother. I’ll be happy just being Auntie Nette to these two and little Gussie. It’s more than I ever thought I would have.”
Mother nods in understanding. “It’s more than any of us believed we would have. But let’s look on the even brighter side.”
“Is there one?”
“Actually, there are two we should look at.”
“And they are?”
“Number one is that when all is said and done, Lindsay will never be a part of their lives…”
I nod. That does indeed put a bright light to my melancholia just now. After all she’s done to make me miserable, she’s now paying the high-price Karma demands for the wicked. “And the second thing?”
Mother smiles, slyly. “We get to spoil all the kids… and then give them back to their parents. It will drive Mel, Brian, and Justin to distraction!”
I laugh at the thought of the three control freaks, being led around by the noses by the adorable three. “I’m especially looking forward to Brian’s reaction to his first strand of gray hair.”
Mother laughs loud at that. “Oh, what fun we’re going to have, Darling! So no, you don’t get to be in your feelings about not having your own. Not when we have planning and work to do, especially with little Jennifer. If she’s anything like Brian, she will already be a handful. But with influences such as us and Jennifer-the-First, I suspect it will be like having Justin in girl form. Our little angel girl is going to set the world on fire!”
“And Gus and Jordan? What will they be?”
“Why Darling, they will be the gasoline of course. Our grandchildren- your niece and nephews- will want for nothing.”
“And with three headstrong and determined parents, there won’t be anything they can’t do. Thank you, Mother.”
“For what?”
“Giving me purpose.”
“Oh Lynette, you’ve always had purpose; it’s just taken you a little more time to remember it. You’re going to find that with being the Aunt Nette to these three, your life and legacy of love will live on forever. Never doubt that, Darling. Besides, we have a few more scores to settle.”
“You’re right. Lindsay, first, but who else?”
“Raeford and Tamara Charles. They’ve egregiously offended our darling girl in there. Taryn hasn’t spoken much about it, although I suspect Ronald knows the full story. He spends more time at the Club than either of us. But I know that whatever it is he knows has pissed him off.”
“Oh? How can you tell?” Daddy hasn’t said anything to me, which I’m usually who he talks to when he’s beyond pissed off at something or someone.
“I’ve begun a new project. It’s called studying your father. And I have to say that he’s quite fascinating to... watch.”
It takes me a moment to catch on but when I do, I think I want to run screaming. “Mother!”
“Yes, dear?” At my shocked look, she laughs. “Oh come now, your father and I have been married too many years to want to start over in the meat market again. So Ron and I have decided to do something we’ve never had a chance to really do since our marriage was arranged. We decided to date each other, and I must say, we’re having a blast learning a host of new things about each other.”
“O-kay,” I say slowly, beginning to feel what millions of other people must feel about their folks. Parents are weird!
“And speaking of dating…”
“Oh no! You will NOT set me up with anyone, Mother. I’m perfectly fine just the way I am.”
“I’m not saying that you have to date the man, just… you know.” She looks at me, meaningfully.
“Oh God! I am NOT having this conversation… with my MOTHER!”
“Oh Darling, get over it. Your parents have sex, and A LOT of it, while you are hellbent on drying up. You are just barely thirty-five years old. You can NOT keep swanning your celibate hindparts through life, without living a little. Have an affair with an unmarried man, for goodness sake, but just get that stick replaced with a…”
“FINE!” I say, before she can finish that statement. “I will give what you said some serious consideration.”
“See that you do, dear. I would hate for the battery companies to start sending you offers to invest.”
I can feel my face flame with her very correct innuendo. Changing the subject back to Taryn, I ask, “So what are we going to do about Raeford and Tamara?”
“Oh, Darling, there are just too many things to name. But the first order of business, would be to expose their connection with dear Lindsay.” She laughs. “They need to learn that we- as in Brian, Justin, and Mel’s family- take care of our own.”
I don’t think they are ready for the WASP revenge with a hefty side of the Marcus-Taylor-Kinney faction thrown in for good measure. Hell, Lindsay is still learning that particular lesson, and it’s only going to get harder with the trials coming up. Oh, I can’t wait!
LINDSAY
I really can’t believe that Melanie hung up on me! I really need an attorney! It’s times like this that I really regret messing up with her. I could have spun this any way I wanted, if only Brian and Justin didn’t have her go digging for information about Rage. By the time everything was over and done with, including the birth of the babies, she would have been firmly in my corner… where she STILL belongs! Brian would have had to make a choice- the RIGHT choice- or he would have lost ALL of his children, beginning with Gus. But no! They just had to start looking for shit, and the part I played in all of it!
Now with the new charges against me, I’m going to be forced to go with legal aid. Everyone knows that they don’t have your best interest at heart. It doesn’t help that new evidence just keeps cropping up at every turn. I can’t believe that Justin, but especially Mel, gave the fucking police and DA’s office permission to search the storage facilities. Oh God, that means they found… NO! FUCK!
No wonder that bitch, Annette, isn’t willing to offer me a deal! With that alone, I’m not looking at years, but MILLENNIUMS in this hellhole! I can only hope that Michael keeps his fucking mouth SHUT about why we really have that. I should have used it when I had the chance… then Justin Taylor wouldn’t have been a factor; nothing but an inconsequential memory, at best. And I wouldn’t have even had to fuck Chris Hobbs in order to fuel his jealousy.
The coward never would have acted if I hadn’t put forth the deal that- to his mind- would have guaranteed him a shot with Justin. Michael and I thought enlisting one of Justin’s classmates was foolproof, and that none of what we’d done would come back to bite us in the ass. Or at least, that’s what I thought, since ultimately, I was setting Michael up just in case it did. So many of the things that befell Justin, I should have taken on myself. I would have made sure that the shit was done fucking RIGHT!
Instead, after Justin began working at Babylon, I enlisted Gary Sapperstein to drug the blond bastard. I wanted the Teflon Twink gangbanged, and then left for dead somewhere. Or at the very least, so fucking scared to stay in Pittsburgh that he would have skipped town without so much as a fucking goodbye to ANYONE, but especially to Brian. But that hadn’t panned out as I hoped either, since Gary only gave him the GHB, and Justin only did a line of coke. And although Sapperstein tried to hold up his end of the bargain, he refused to use the contents within the safe due to the possibility of his high-profile clients getting caught up in the scandal-ridden death of the troubled teen, Justin Taylor happening on his property; his words, NOT mine.
So the safe with all of the illegal drugs mixed with acetaminophen, was returned to the fucking storage locker, where it remained along with everything else! And there is no fucking way I’m going to be able to shake any of this shit off of me, and onto Michael. FUCK, FUCK, and DOUBLE FUCK!!
**Artist
Writers
Johntá Austin, Bryan-Michael Cox, Jermaine Dupri, Mariah Carey
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