falling in leaves

eleven

"party & bullshit"

"Yo, Quinn! What's up wit'chu, girl?" Red shouted just as loud as the music as I approached.
"Hey, Rashad," I smiled, hugging him briefly before his hugs were passed onto Keisha.
"Y'all are lookin' good— real good. Y'all tryna' find your husbands tonight, huh?" he teased.
"Boy, please," Keisha responded, playfully rolling her eyes.
"You never know, right?" he grinned.

"Thanks again for the invite, Red," I expressed my gratitude.
"I figured y'all could use a good time. Besides, I'd feel wrong disturbing your peace with a party, and not even bothering to invite you," he admitted, his reasoning seeming valid. "Well, go ahead and enjoy yourselves. The Henny is where it always is, so now all you gotta' worry about is picking your poison," he concluded, alluding to the different colored rooms, which all provided different selections of music.

Keisha and I smiled and thanked him once more before joining hands and guiding each other through the Purple Room, where people grinded to the hard beats and impeccable flow of the late, great Tupac. All of the beautiful, bold people of color that inhabited the room glowed under the deep violet rays, their skin either reflecting the color or absorbing it. It was a sea of mulberry and wine, only a few people possessing the color of eggplants amongst the crowd. Despite all the varying shades of purple passion, everyone wore bright smiles that exposed either the glimmer of gold or sparkle of diamonds that shielded their true pearls or the authentic stones that were stuck into their being.

It was all so beautiful, but it didn't compare to the Green Room, where the sound of funk music and the funk of weed reigned supreme. People of pine and lime, pear and moss were seeping into relaxation just as the bass guitar driven grooves seeped into the walls. Many danced, especially once seating became limited. The lack of chairs didn't seem to bother them much though. As long as they had their beloved Mary Jane, there was no care to be had. Keisha and I continued to make our way into the Orange Room. It was an iridescent dream, making me feel like I'd just entered the physical core of R&B and Soul music. Toni Braxton was blaring, my hips falling into the rhythm instinctively. My hand dropped itself from Keisha's hold as I began to dance, freeing myself from the stresses of my week.

I've been one of the last stylists in the salon everyday for the past two weeks. Sweets theorized that I was throwing myself into my work to forget about "getting my feelings hurt by Juwan." It was a reasonable theory; however, it wasn't a correct theory. I was throwing myself into my work because I've been fixin' to treat myself to a shopping spree. How the hell was I going to do that when my half of the bills, my half of the groceries, and my half of the rent was due? I just needed to rack up on a couple of paychecks before I would be able to maintain my place in the apartment and buy materialistic items.

But tonight, I was taking a well deserved break before repeating my grind once Monday rolled back around. Tonight, it was all about me having fun.