Page 35 of I'm So Mega
“Please and thank you.” She rolled her little ass over, pulled the covers to her neck, then started lightly snoring like she really went to sleep that fast. All I saw was cover and a fucking bonnet.
Ruth was about to have to kiss my ass with this gentle parenting. I got not spanking my daughter because I never wanted her to think it was alright for a man to put hands on her. Ruth needed to tag her ass a little more. If I had said what she just did to my mama, Goldie would have sat on my damn head. I didn’t think a little girl or any child that got smart with their parents was cute. If you didn’t nip that in the bud, it would be a problem later.
I didn’t say shit. I just left her lil funky room. “Let me check on my fur babies. At least they love me,” I said to myself.
I walked into the dogs’ house, which looked like a mini house. By the time it was all said and done with, my backyard would make my house a compound. All these damn structures. I purchased the lot behind mine just to expand my property. Goldie said while I was at it, I might as well expand hers as well.
“Hey, my babies.” Wait, . . . two of my puppies were missing.
I knew they didn’t climb out of their kennel. The other dogs weren’t even in here right now. Like the little traitors they were, they were in the house near the kitchen with their mama. I picked up the two that were left to see what was missing.A boy and a girl.
I took the puppies out for a walk before I headed back into the house. “Ruth, two of the puppies are missing. Do you know where they are?”
She stopped making a plate. I only saw two plates, so that meant her mean ass wasn’t making one for me. That had been the status quo right now. She gawked at me, looked around herfeet, then near the other fur Smurfs. “I don’t see them in here, so I have no idea where they are.”
I laughed. “I’m only going to give you and Maggie a little more grace with these attitudes, and then it’s gonna be a time in the Manfield residence. I know I said that I would never spank her, but her grandma will. You know damn will she’s been out of pocket lately, and that shit is a product of your stink attitude. Don’t let your attitude get her lil ass fucked up by my proxy.”
Ruth said nothing as I walked off, because she knew what it was. Mama Goldie didn’t play about that misbehaving. She gave grace, but when it was time to get serious, she did. I walked back to Maggie’s room because something told me that she was the puppy thief. I didn’t bother with the formality of knocking this time.
Like I thought, there she was in the middle of the floor with puppy one and two. My eyes were tight. Her eyes were big as she grabbed the puppies in her arms.
I outstretched my hand. “Maggie, please bring the puppies here so they can go with the rest of the litter where they belong. I told you about touching things that don’t belong to you.”
With a twist in her neck, she responded. “These are mine. You can’t have them, because Mama said they were mine.”
She rolled her little eyes like she ran something around here. When I took a step toward her, a hand grabbed my arm. I knew Ruth’s touch. “What the hell are you doing? You better not hit her.”
I slowly turned to face her with a tight jaw. I spoke in a low voice. “You’ve lost that much faith in me that you think I would hit my daughter when I never have?” I walked into her space. “Before you put me in the light of that kind of man, I’ll leave your ass.”
It was unmistakable to see the disbelief etched on her face. Yeah, she could say she would leave me over some nut; well,this situation called for the same. I played all day, but not when it came to my parenting.
“I—I didn’t say that. I just know that you’re frustrated with pretty much everything these days.” Her voice matched mine.
I tilted my head and said something to my wife that I never thought I would. “Ruth, get away from me. I don’t want to be near you.”
I turned back to Maggie. “I understand that’s what your mother said, but I’m telling you no. We already have four big dogs. We don’t need anymore.”
The tears were automatic. “Daddy, please. I never had a puppy. I love them already.”
I didn’t have the strength for this shit. I pivoted on my heels to leave her room. Ruth was in my way. “Please move out of my way. I’ll be staying in my man cave until further notice.”
I knew it was real. I never thought that I would see the day that I opted to stay away from the woman that I loved almost more than myself. I had to, though, because I didn’t want to say something out of anger.
She moved out of my way. I left Maggie’s room and went to our room to pack a bag. I had certain things in my man cave but still needed a few things. I was almost finished packing when Ruth came in. “Mega, can Maggie please keep the puppies? I told her that she could have them before Megha died.”
I paused for a moment before I chortled. “Yeah, let me get the fuck out of here.” The sound of the zipper on my bag closing was the only sound heard. I grabbed the bag, then walked toward the room door. I stopped before I exited. “That’s a real low blow to use our son in your manipulation to keep a set of damn puppies. I don’t give a fuck if she keeps them.”
I left the room with my heart on my sleeve. Maggie stood in her doorway with tears still dripping out of her eyes.“You can have the puppies. It will be you and your mother’s responsibility to take care of them.”
She ran out and hugged me around my waist. “Thank you, Daddy. I will take care of them, I promise.”
Back To The Present. . .
It took a little while for Ruth and I to get over that hump in our relationship. I stayed in my man cave for two weeks. By the third night, Ruth had broken in. She literally broke in because I kept the doors locked. Her little ass climbed through a window. I woke up with her wrapped around me and Maggie on the pull-out couch in the living room.
Ned shook his head. “Y’all need a bigger house with those dog beasts roaming around. You lucky none of them ever bit my damn baby.”
My head snapped in his direction. “So, were you going to act like you don’t have one of my bred dog beasts from Papa and Smurfette at your house? Is that what we’re doing?”
