The Space In Between(20)

She didn’t question the smell any longer. Her face was grinning ear to ear as she looked at me. “I tracked down my mom,” she said effortlessly. I shot up from my laying position and stared at her, shocked. Ladasha never spoke of her mom, and as far as I knew she didn’t have a mom.
“What?”
“That’s why I came to New York,” She explained, “To find my mom. My grandma said she was over this way and after long nights of finding people who knew her, I found her.”
Why was she not freaking out about this? How was she so calm? There was so much I wanted to know, so many questions. I couldn’t understand how any person could walk away from Ladasha and not look back. She was too special.
“She was strung out. Drunk, high, God knows what else.” Ladasha’s smiley face faded as she thought on what she’d witnessed. “She didn’t know me. She didn’t know my name. She didn’t know my age. But she knew my face and I knew hers.”
Ladasha’s long eyelashes blinked as the tears formed and were prepared to fall. “And a knot formed in my gut because I am her. That’s who I am going to be in a few years.”
“That’s not true,” I hissed at her. It wasn’t. Ladasha was a strong woman. She was a friend. She was a sister to me. And she was nothing like her mother.
“Isn’t it? Look at me. I’m a f*cking stripper, Andrea! With no family. No one. There’s not a lot I got going for me.”
“You got me,” I said. I wiped her falling tears and reminded her she wasn’t alone. As long as my heart would beat, she would never be alone.
“Meow.”
I narrowed my eyes and looked at my friend, confused. “Excuse me?”
“Oh…that wasn’t me.” Ladasha opened her jacket and revealed a beautiful orange and brown cat resting against her chest. “I found her at my mom’s. She looked hungry and there was no food over there. So I brought her home with me.” She paused and looked at me with worried eyes. “That’s all right isn’t it? I didn’t want her to go hungry…”
I laughed, took the cat into my hands, and listened to her purr. Ladasha was considerate. She was loving. She was talented, smart, and compassionate. She was nothing like her mother. I asked the name of the cat, and she grinned.
“Freckles.”
Welcome home, Freckles.
I glanced at the time on my cell phone next to me and looked to Ladasha. “So I thought you were working tonight?”
“Roger gave me the night off. Turns out the ass kinda has feelings.”
Placing Freckles on the ground, I cleared my throat. “Oh that’s nice.” I checked the time again and bit my bottom lip.
“Why are you acting weird?”
“What? Me? I’m not acting weird. So do you have any plans tonight?” I quickly asked, and she looked at me as if I had three heads.
There was a knock on the door and Ladasha narrowed her eyes on me. She turned towards the door and back to me. “You’re not wearing Derrick’s cologne.” She whispered as she continued to sit on my legs.
“I know, I forgot—”
“No.” She cut me off quickly and sniffed the air around me. There was another knock on the door, but Ladasha didn’t care. “You’re actually wearing perfume.”
I laughed and shook my head.
“No. You are. And...you are not wearing Derrick’s sweats. You’re wearing a dress. A red dress.” Knock Knock. I should be answering the door but Ladasha was still holding my legs down against the couch.
“It’s no big deal,” I said as I tried to get up. Jesus Christ, Ladasha is strong.
“You’re wearing your sexy panties, aren’t you?” She mocked me as my cheeks turned as red as my dress. She shot up, went over to the door, and opened it. My heart skipped a beat when I saw Cooper standing there, camera around his neck. Ladasha’s eyes landed on him and the camera before lightly shoving his shoulder. “What kind of weird shit are you two into?”
I covered my face with a pillow as I erupted into laughter. I watched as Cooper turned even redder than me and tried to explain how he took his camera everywhere. Which was true! Ladasha just wasn’t buying it.
“I don’t think we’ve actually met each other. I only witnessed you leaving my best friend in a sheet.” Ladasha grinned with her tongue in her cheek. Cooper looked like a young guy who just met his girl’s parents for the first time. I wanted him so bad when he was sexy and aggressive, but the timid, shy guy was just as yummy.
“I’m Cooper.” He shook her hand and Ladasha held his grip for a moment, staring into his eyes.
“I know you, don’t I?”
He grew a bit uncomfortable and I watched as his body stiffened. “I don’t think so…”
“You’re from that reality show! The Davidson’s Weddings,” she exclaimed as Cooper nodded like his biggest secret had been revealed.
Ladasha let go of his hand, walked into the kitchen, and grabbed a couple beers. She proceeded to toss one to me and tossed one to Cooper, who sat his down on the counter. “I hate reality shows. It takes away from the real actors. I mean, why would I watch some reality bullshit when I could watch Joseph Gordon-Levitt or Ryan Gosling for two hours? Reality television is ruining real talent.” She opened her can of beer and sipped at it. She shifted her eyes to Cooper. “I mean, no offense.”
“None taken. I completely agree with you.” Cooper’s nervousness began to subside as he got a feel for the type of loud personality Ladasha held inside of her small frame. I stood up from the couch and looked over to him, still standing by the door. I mouthed an apology to him for the sudden change of plans, and he smiled and winked at me.