Page 53 of Out of Bounds
“Aight,” he said before ending the call.
Dialing my mom’s number, I dropped the phone in my cup holder and continued moving in and out of traffic. “I’m pulling up now,” she shouted into the phone after answering.
“Maddie is having a makeup crisis. Can you go back there with her until I get there?”
“I got you. How much longer you got?”
“I should be there soon.”
“Okay. Be careful. She’s going to be okay.”
“I know. I’m just… ya know.” I bit my bottom lip.
“You’re going to make it, Masai. Focus on traffic, and we will see you when you get here. Be careful.”
“Yes, ma’am,” I muttered before hanging up the phone.
When I timed how long it would take me to get from my office to the school, I knew with traffic it would take thirty minutes. However, Atlanta’s traffic was unpredictable, so I allotted forextratime. When I thought about everything that could go wrong, makeup was the least of my worries. I had toshow up on time, or that would be something else Kreed fussed about.
Instead of the predicted fifteen minutes, it took an extra ten for me to make it to the kids’ school. As soon as I parked my truck, I hopped out and raced into the building. When I made it to the dressing room, Maddie Claire was off to the side, sitting Indian style on the floor, putting her hair into a ponytail. The room was packed with the other girls from her company and their mothers. My baby was the only one alone, and I hated that I was late, but I was here now.
“Bug!” I called out, gaining her attention.
Without looking up, she said, “I just finished curling it. Can you pin it for me?”
I dropped my bags in the corner and took a seat next to her. “Yes, baby, I can. Your dad said you was having trouble with your makeup?”
“I can’t get my eyeliner like you do.”
“Oh.” I sighed in relief. “That’s an easy fix.” I smiled at her.
Once she was done securing her ponytail at the top of her head, I used bobby pins to secure her curls so they would last during her performance. “Now, let me take a look at this makeup.” Grabbing her chin, I tipped her head back. She’d done a good job with the application. The only thing missing was the wing on her upper lid.
Popping the top on the eyeliner, I told her, “You did an amazing job. I love how you did your lips. Can I make a suggestion?” I asked while applying the wing to her lids. “Since you’re going to be under the bright lights, I think you should leave the lipstick matte. I think the gloss takes away from it. Also, let’s try this instead…” Using a makeup wipe, I cleaned her lips. “I like the red on red, but… I think… we should use Night Moth liner and the Ruby Woo lipstick. We can give your lips thatombre effect so that you don’t need the gloss to make it stand out.”
“Can you do it for me?”
“I most certainly can.” I pecked her lips. I relished in this moment while fixing her lip combo. My Bug was growing up on me, and there wasn’t anything I could do to slow down time. Pretty soon, we would be picking out prom dresses and colleges. The thought alone had my eyes misting. “Here… tell me what you think.” I held the mirror out for her.
“I love it!” She beamed and tossed her arms around my neck. “Thank you, Mommy.”
“You’re welcome, Bug. Are you ready? Think you rehearsed enough?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Good.” I crowed. “Need me for anything else?”
“No, ma’am.”
“Okay.” I stood from crouching on the floor. “I’ll be back here when you come off the stage.” I pecked her forehead before asking her again if she needed anything else. When she confirmed that she didn’t, I slipped out of the room and went to the auditorium where Kreed and the kids were.
Slipping into the seat beside him, I expelled a deep breath.
“Y’all got everything worked out?” he asked, looking over at me.
“Yes. Thank God it wasn’t anything major.”
“I didn’t mean to freak you out. You know my ass don’t know shit ’bout no makeup. I offered, and she told me to get out.”
