HOODS ON A LYNX

“Dude this is so fucked up.”
“Nah dude, it’s not, really.” Roost stood up slowly from his spot on the stoop and stretched nonchalantly, grinning.
“The fact that you’re grinning kind of seals the deal,” I said. “You only grin when you’re guilty.”
“Or when he lying,” said Soup. He stretched his legs and moved up to the top step, lighting a cigarette. “Lyin like a rug.”
“You smoking again Soup?” said Roost, faking a look of genuine concern.
“Yeah nigga,” said Soup. “Why yo white ass changing the subject, Rooster? You lyin.”
“Dude, I told you guys, Byron stepped into what I was already building. You gotta keep in mind I’d already known her for two days; I was with her on West End for all of Thursday and Friday before you guys came down. Its not my fault Byron liked her, she already like me.”
Soup burst into laughter. I just sat there shaking my head, my mouth wide open, staring at Roost in astonishment. Roost looked back and forth between us.
“What’s so funny?” he said to Soup. Then he looked to me. “Dude why are you looking at me like that?”
“You need to man up. This is the third, different version of the story so far. What is the truth?” Soup suddenly outstretched his arms and looked up to the sky.
“The truth . . .will set you free Roost,” he screamed. “You lying bastard.”
Two kids on bikes passed by. Two white boys, decked out in Ecko jerseys and timbalands, one of them with a boombox set up on the back of his bike. It was playing Biggie. Roost starting bopping his head to the music.
“Yo I love that shit,” he said. Soup slapped the back of his head.
“Man stop changing the fucking subject, answer the question.”
“Okay, dude,” he paused, laughing, and started to count on his fingers. Soup looked to me and shook his head.
“This nigga unbelievable.”
“Okay, I met her on Wednesday night,” said Roost, lighting a cigarette. “She came to the apartment with Shane and a bunch of other people – she was pretty drunk but so was I. We ended up talking a lot and it was all good and we hooked up but I never fucked her.” Soup flicked his cigarette away and I watched his hands as they formed fists for a moment and then settled back into the shapes of palms and fingers.
“Roost.” He said. “Man you lyin, ‘at ain’t what you told us, dawg.”
“Yes it is, dude.” Roost looked to me. “Perry?”
“Hell no,” I said. “You told us, when we all got to Bane’s on that Saturday, you told us that you woke up that morning and there was a beautiful Puerto Rican girl in your bed that you’d never seen before.”
“Then,” said Soup. “Later, when we was at your apartment getting boosed and fucked up, you leaned over to Me, Perry, Byron and Scarecrow and you straight up said ‘Dude I fucked her last night, but she was so drunk she prolly wouln’t remember.’ Now you fucking saying that you known the bitch for two days, before we even met her.”
“I never screwed her.” Said Roost. “That was a lie.”
“What’s to say you’re not lying now?” I said. “You’ve told us three different stories, all with little details that were never mentioned before.”
“Yeah,” said Soup. “Just so happen, never mentioned.”
Across the street a young black woman in a tiny red dress slut-strutted by, all eyes locking onto her like target beacons, falling victim the art of seduction that she had apparently mastered.
“Damn,” said Roost. He whistled. Soup and I exchanged a glance.
“Yo you like her too now dawg?”
“Nah man,” smiled Roost. “Just looking.” Soup pulled out another cigarette and lit it, leaving it to dangle lifelessly in his mouth as he leaned back on both elbows.
“That bitch a mynx, man.”
“A what,” I said.
“A mynx,” said soup, his head jutting forward slightly. “You aint never heard that before man? It mean she look fine and shit”
“Uh that’s not a word,” I said. Roost continued to stare.
“God damn,” he muttered. “Look at that ass.”
“Yo, mynx is a word, dawg,” continued Soup. “You never heard that?”
“Well then what is it?”
“It’s like, an animal or suttin.”
“You mean a lynx?” said Roost, eyes still tight on the black girl.
“Whassat?”
“A lynx,” I said, “it’s like a bobcat.” Roost waved his hand and scoffed.
“Nigga you think I know what the fuck a bobcat is? Get the fuck outta here. It’s called a mynx, man, it’s a like… a little animal.”
“Yeah, Soup:” I said. “That’s what a fuckin lynx is.”
“You sure you’re not thinking about a fox,” said Roost, turning finally towards us.
“Ya’ll white dudes is trippin, man.”
I looked at my phone. “We gotta leave soon,” I said to Roost.
“Where ya’ll going,” said Soup.
“Mongomery’s.”
“Is that that bar on 53rd Watson?”
“Yeah.”
“You wanna come?” asked Roost.
Soup shrugged, looking at me warily. “They only sell beer in there?”
“No, you get whatever you want.”
“You should come,” said Roost. “Pick up some hoes.”
“Psht,” Soup waved him off. “Nigga you outta yo mah-fuckin mind, you think I’m playing wingman to your lyin ass.” He laughed, looking at me.
Roost shrugged. “I still don’t see how this is my fault.” Down on Burnham Street three cop cars whizzed by. It was about 5 o’clcock and people were starting to come out for the night.
“It’s your fault,” I said. “Because never told us you liked her. You said you didn’t really know her, then you said you’d fucked her.”
“I swear to God it’s mynx, man.”
“Now you’re saying you didn’t fuck her,” I continued.
“I knew it was bullshit, “ said Soup. “I been known it was bullshit, anyway, the whole time” Said Soup.
“So,” I said to Roost, who grinned guiltily at the cracked pavement with both hands in his pockets. “By what you told us originally, Byron didn’t have any reason not to make a move on her. He actually liked her. And her friend, what was her friends name?”
“Naomi,” said Soup.
“Yeah,” I said. “Naomi even told us that she wasn’t feeling you, that she wanted to hook up with Byron and that she thought Byron was fine and shit.”
“I didn’t know that.”
“Yo why you continue to lie, man?” said Soup, and I could tell he was starting to become angry. “Perry told you that night that Byron was trying to do work, I was standing right there I heard him tell you.”
“You just couldn’t handle it, could you?” I said. “Some other dude, your friend for that matter, who we all know has enough lady drama already, you just couldn’t let him move in on a girl without trying to prove to everybody you got the most game or whatever.” Roost grinned and shrugged, the cockiness oozing out of him, a nice frosting for all the bullshit.
“Dude, it’s not my fault that girls feel on me more than the rest of you guys. You gotta take the initiative. If you bring a girl around, and you guys aren’t dating, I don’t give a fuck: she’s fair game. I don’t care how much you like her or whatever. I won the game this time.”
“That’s pretty low,” I said, nodding. Roost laughed.
“It’s not my fault. I’m not sorry for what I did; because I didn’t do anything. She wanted me. She told me she wanted to fuck me.”
“Oh,” said Soup, his voice raised. “Now she say she wanted to fuck, huh?”
“I said that before.”
“No you didn’t,” I said, pointing at him. “You did not. Don’t fucking lie, Roost.”
“I’m not, man,” he said, smiling like a kid.
“You are the worst at telling lies in the world, man,” said Soup. “You lucky we your friend otherwise we’d be beating yo ass.”
Roost laughed. None of us spoke. Soup took a drag off of the cigarette. I watched a few crows as they lazily hopped around on the roof of the burger king. Roost kicked the pavement with his sneaker. The crows on top of the burger king roof flew upwards and away, one by one, like an assembly line.