Flip Side of the Game by Tu-Shonda L. Whitaker Page A

of me.
    â€œSo that’s it?” he said. “We’re done?”
    â€œRoger, you are married. This shit couldn’t go on forever! Now, get up!”
    He pressed his chest deep into mine and pushed the hardness of his lower body into my abdomen and against my thighs.
    â€œWhat the hell are you doing?” I said, trying to push him off of me.
    â€œFuck you!” Roger said, getting off of me. “I’m sick of you, you tramp-ass ho!”
    â€œWhatever! Just get yo’ shit and just leave!”
    â€œGet my shit? You got a tow truck for the house, the car, and everything else around here that I bought?”
    â€œIf you don’t stop talking stupid, I will hurt you. Now, get the fuck out and don’t ever come back!”
    â€œOh, bitch, you gonna see me again!” Then he got up and left.
    Immediately I jumped in the shower. I didn’t want to smell like Roger when Taj came over.
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    I felt guilty when I saw Taj come through the door, and at that moment, I swore I would never see Roger again.
    â€œWhat’s wrong, Vera?” Taj asked as soon as he walked in the door and threw his stethoscope on the sofa. “What’s the problem?”
    â€œWho said I had a problem?”
    â€œYour vibe. I saw the way you looked when I walked in here. Now, what’s up?”
    â€œI don’t have a problem.”
    â€œOh, here we go,” he said, sitting down next to me. He placed my feet in his lap and started giving me a foot massage.
    I snatched my feet away and placed them back on the floor. “Here we go?” I said. “Oh, so you really wanna know the problem?” I snapped. “This shit is the problem!”
    â€œWhat shit?”
    â€œThis love situation between you and me.”
    â€œOh, so that’s it,” he said, bending down and untying his sneakers.
    â€œWhat’s it?” I asked.
    â€œLove?”
    Love? Did he hear me say love? Did I say love? Well, maybe I did, but the more I was with Taj, the more I thought about Rowanda and starting over again, and having more emotion toward her than despise and disgust.
    â€œI just can’t take all of this closeness and you being in my personal space all the time!” I screamed out of frustration and anger. Goddamnit, what was going on? Loving this man was like an innate need to coexist with the silver lining of a dream, and the shit wasn’t normal. What would happen when he left? He was going to leave, we all know that, but what would happen to me?
    â€œWhy do you keep pushing this love situation between us?” I said.
    â€œThere it goes again. You said love.”
    â€œAll right, I said love! Dammit! Love.”
    â€œOh, so you admit it?”
    â€œAdmit what?”
    â€œThat you love me?”
    â€œWait a minute. Let me clear this up. I never said that I loved you.”
    â€œOh, so you don’t love me?” he said with a look that said he felt anything but the opposite of his question.
    â€œI don’t even know how to be in love. Please, I have told so many niggas that I love them, just to get some shoes, a bag, a house, a car, a bank account. Hell, even a college and cosmetology degree. I have said I love you so much that I don’t even know what it means. Hell, what is love anyway? Just a name?”
    â€œOkay, now whatever that was you just said is done and over with. Get to the real shit, because I’m listening. And another thing, I’m getting a little tired of the tough girl routine. So you,” he said, pointing, “better catch yourself! And another thing,” he said before I could respond. “Did you go to lunch with Roger the other day?”
    â€œNo.” I said, praying that he couldn’t tell I was lying.
    â€œAre you telling me the truth, Vera?”
    â€œWhat did I just say? Why would I lie? Stop sweatin’ me about that shit!”
    â€œSweatin’ you? Why are you so defensive? Let