For obvious reasons Harlem was not in good standing with me. Since our last encounter I had completely looked at him differently. The smooth New Yorker with the sweet smile had become a lying antagonist who seemed so small as he struggled to come up with an explanation.
“Who is this,”? I asked.
Harlem’s face was as stunned as a deer caught in the headlights.
“It’s just some girl on Myspace,”? He said.
“Oh really,”? I said.
“So this is the reason you hadn’t answered my calls, or texts last week,”? I asked.
“Look Ma don’t trip it’s not that serious. I don’t know her, and I ain’t gone never meet her, so chill,”. He said.
It felt like a ton of bricks had fallen all at once right on my face. It was like déjà vu, because I had heard the “It’s just Myspace” line so many times I should have had it printed on a t shirt. The truth was yes, it may just be a social network, but it was also a fresh new playground for deception. I didn’t take it much farther than that. How could I?
I sat on Harlem’s black suede couch my eyes piercing his as I thought. I was thinking where did I go wrong? What warning sign had I missed this time around, and how could I prevent this from happening again? I wondered how I had traveled all the way down to Atlanta, Georgia only to find the same type of ass hole I was trying to run away from back in Youngstown. I tend to be very analytical, at times, always trying to search deeper within a situation to find the truth. I don’t know how I managed to have so many questions dash across my mind in only a matter of seconds.
Everyone will make a mistake every once and awhile, and little did Harlem know I was willing to forgive because it was understandable. We were just a bunch of young kids feeling each other out, and we hadn’t made it official that we were an item. However, I couldn’t take his approach when confronted with the truth. His first safe haven wasn’t to come completely clean, but rather manipulate facts, which was completely unacceptable.
I was agitated and extremely disappointed, and our relationship never really recuperated after that. Things just weren’t the same, but I still had a slight soft spot for him, but I found every emotional brick I could find and rebuilt the guard I thought I had allowed Harlem to tear down just a month ago.
The next week we all went to the same skating rink that New New (Lauren London) and Rashad (T.I.) graced in the movie ATL. It was epic. I wore high-waist jeans with a fuchsia blouse that was opened in the back. I had fuchsia pink pumps to match with gold accessories. I was cute.
The felt like I was right in a scene of ATL when I walked in. I saw hundreds of New News walking around with big bold gold hoop earrings smacking on gum almost as loud as the music. I saw saggy jeans and fitted caps with dreads and gold teeth. “I love ATL”,. I thought.
I forgot about the Myspace incident for that night, and Harlem made it easy as he gripped while we skated around the rink thumping to loud hip-hop beats. Harlem had been here before I could tell. He held onto my hand while he danced twirling me around him. I thought I was going to fall, but Harlem was always there just before I thought I would bite the dust. The night was one to remember. I still gell once or twice, but it didn’t matter. I had a ball and I owed it all to him.
Even though I had a blast the night before it didn’t negate what had transpired a few days ago. I don’t know if after the Myspace encounter I began to notice the truth, or if Harlem’s flaws just started to shine brighter than Christmas lights, but I began to notice his idiosyncrasies, and I didn’t like what I saw.
He was boastful. The tales about his life in the big apple started to sound like personal pats on the back. Everything was an opportunity to showboat, and validate himself. I was so sick of hearing about how many clothes and shoes he had left behind. It was torturous to my ears.
“Yea back home I was the flyest. I always had all the Jordan sneaks,”. He said. (I wish I had a better recollection of what he said, but most of the time I sat with a glazed look on my face zoning in and out. My body was present, but my mind was eons away.
He wasn’t charming to me anymore, He didn’t make me smile as much as before, and I realized sometimes things just don’t work.
My month-long vacation was over in Atlanta, and it was time to go home. It was time to get ready for school, and get back to reality, and he was there to see me off just as he had done when I came stepped off the plane.
“So I guess you really leaving, huh,”? He said.
“Yea I guess so,”. I said.
“Keep in touch,”. He said.
“I will,”. I said.
We hugged. We smiled at each other, and kiss our final kiss, and I said goodbye. Harlem had showed me a good time minus the BS, and I appreciated it, but I think we both knew we would never see each other again. It was bittersweet as I waved farewell to my one, and only summer love.
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