by Desirée
“Baby, what’s wrong?” I asked, kissing his ear. He moved his head out of the way but kept a soft grip on my hands around his neck. Both of us were naked in his bedroom as we sat there in silence.
“I don’t know. I just don’t feel right,” was all he said. “I’m not going back to sleep, though, but you can.”
I let out a sigh before pulling away to lie back down. “I’ll try to stay up as long as I can,” I mumbled.
He looked back at me, nodding before continuing to dial numbers on his phone, trying to get a hold of somebody. It was definitely going to be a long morning. Ugh.
Jordyn
The sounds of sirens going off outside woke Elijah and me from our sleep on the couch. Looking out the window, I could see the flashing lights zoom by as I heard another round of sirens go off. What in the world is going on outside? Elijah was fighting to stay asleep as my room door opened.
“What is going on outside?” Taylor yawned.
I got up from the couch, gently shaking Elijah from his sleep. We slept in our underwear, squeezing on this small couch together, while I allowed a sad Taylor to take the room. Long story on that one, but when he did wake up, we were already putting on some shoes and coats. I slipped on some jeans and a hoodie, grabbing my keys.
“What the fuck is happening?” he asked in a low voice as he sat up, taking his scarf off to shake his locs loose.
“I don’t know, but I’m going to find out,” I said as Taylor grabbed her keys.
“Hold up, baby,” he grumbled, standing up to stretch as another round of sirens went off with blue lights flashing by the house. Taylor went on ahead and stepped out while I waited on Elijah to throw on some clothes. Yet, as he put on his jacket, he stopped—literally stopped moving as he looked at me with an intense stare, almost freaking me out.
“What?” I said.
His eyes shifted to the window before looking back at me. Shaking his head suddenly, he started to move with a quickness, looking around for his shoes before deciding to put mine on.
“What’s wrong, Elijah?”
“Trent,” was all he mumbled, grabbing the keys to his truck as he guided me out of the house, closing the door behind us.
It was a cold, early Sunday morning as we stepped out onto the streets, following the chaos, seeing other neighbors stepping out to see what was happening. Walking along the well-lit street, we could spot fire trucks, police cars, and an ambulance all together toward the end of the block.
“Hold my shit, baby,” Elijah said, handing me his phone and keys.
“Where are you—”
He started to run in the direction of the lights. I followed, trying to keep up. The moment we reached the end where they were blocking everything off, with cops trying to back people up, I spotted the body. I instantly recognized who it was as they put him on the stretcher. Taylor was already standing there, mouth to her hand, crying as Elijah moved past everyone, screaming his brother’s name. I could see the pool of blood on the curb, and my heart dropped.
“No, no, no, no,” Elijah mumbled, moving underneath the yellow lines. “Not my brother, man. Not my brother,” he cried, voice shaking.
“Sir, you’re going to have to—”
“What happened? What happened to him?” Elijah frantically asked as the cops tried to calm him down. He gripped his head in a panic, watching them carry his brother’s body into the back of the truck. He was hysterical at this point. I’d never seen him like this.
“Sir! You’re going to have to ste—”
“That’s my fucking brother!” he screamed, tears coming down as he snatched his arm away from the cop’s grip. “Trent!”
I tried to go to him, but they were keeping me at a distance as I watched Elijah fight to get on the back of the ambulance. They finally let him in, closing the doors. Suddenly, as I watched the truck zoom past us, I felt I was in a position where I had to step up and take care of everything. I’d never had to deal with something like this before, but I was going to try for Elijah.
Grabbing Taylor’s arm, I pulled her away, and we walked back to the house while I was trying to break into Elijah’s phone. As soon as I remembered that lock code, I went through his contacts, trying to remember each sibling’s name. Seeing a few missed calls from Shiloh, I decided to call him first. Although it scared the crap out of me just to talk to him, I had to suck it up.
“Hello?” He answered on the first ring.
“I, um . . .” I looked around as Taylor and I continued to walk. She was crying her eyes out. She could barely speak. “I—”
“Who the fuck is this?” Shiloh snapped.
I cleared my throat. “I’m with Elijah, and I . . . we . . . Trent’s been shot, and Elijah just rode with the ambulance to the hospital.”
“Shit.” I could hear him hiss, and there was a bunch of noise in the background. “Which hospital, shawty?”
I started to panic, realizing I didn’t even ask. But then I remembered hearing one of the officers say Grady.
“I think they’re taking him to Grady. I can find out and call you back for sure.”
He hung up immediately. I saw Jahiem had called Elijah a few hours ago, so I called him next as Taylor and I got in Elijah’s truck.
“Hello?” Jahiem answered, sounding asleep.
“Hi, this is Jordyn,” I said, turning the truck on as Taylor bent over in the seat, head in her hands, crying. “I’m sorry to wake you, but Trent’s been hurt, and they’re taking him to Grady Hospital.”
“What!” He flipped, causing me to jump at the sound of his voice. “Hurt how?”
“He’s been shot.”
“What happened? Who did it? Do they know?” he asked frantically.
I could feel my anxiety about to take over, but I was fighting to keep it at bay.
Now is not the time to have a panic attack, Jordyn.
“They haven’t said. I’m just trying to call everyone up. Elijah is already on his way down there with him.”
“A’ight,” he said, hanging up.
Going down the list of people, including his mom, I called as I started to drive, making my way to Grady. I felt myself trying to keep strong, even though this was too much for me to handle. The only person I couldn’t get in contact with was Olivia, his sister. Taylor even tried, but to no avail, so she sent her a text message in hopes that she would get it.
When we got to the hospital, I spotted some of the siblings running around, trying to find the room. I hung back in the waiting room. I didn’t do well with hospitals. I didn’t even like being in one. So, I sat by myself, waiting and waiting. Occasionally I heard a doctor pass by, talking about Trent and his wounds. He’d been shot three times.
His mom, who was in tears, walked back in the waiting room with someone I guessed was her boyfriend. “It’s okay, baby,” he cooed, comforting her as she cried. “He’s going to be okay.”
More of the brothers came down, and Jahiem sat down across from me, fist to his nose as he closed his eyes. He said not a word. Anthony and his baby mama came and sat down along with Ontrell and his boyfriend. Talin and his wife sat down next to me as she talked him down, keeping him calm while she rubbed her belly. Nobody said a word until Shiloh and his girlfriend came in. His eyes were red, and his mom stared hard at him.
“I know you have something to do with it,” Ms. Ava mumbled at Shiloh, who immediately cut his eyes at her.
“You better shut the fuck up talking to me. I don’t have shit to do with my brother getting shot, and I ain’t got shit to do with you period!” he snapped angrily.
“Don’t talk to me like I’m one of your hoes, nigga. I’m yo’ fucking mama.”
“You ain’t shit to me!” he spat, looking her up and down in rejection. “I don’t fuck with you like that.”
“Boy, I gave you life—”
“Take that shit away then!” he threatened, stepping up to her as the boyfriend stepped to him. Shiloh slowly backed up, smiling through the pain, e
yes watering up. “Yo’ li’l boyfriend can get got too, you feel me?”
“You’re going to be respectful to her while I’m here,” the man warned as Shiloh looked him up and down with his girlfriend pulling at his arm.
“Or what, mothafucka? Huh?”
“Nigga ain’t finna do shit!” Jahiem spat as he jumped in the mix, standing beside Shiloh. That immediately started off a bout of yelling and arguing from the mom and her boyfriend versus the brothers.
Elijah slowly appeared around the corner, looking defeated. Everyone immediately became quiet as his mom wrapped her arms around his neck, trying to comfort her son. I was watching everyone get up to go to him while I sat nervously to the side. I didn’t know what to do or how to react in this situation, because just being there in the hospital already had me on edge.
“Why they gotta do me like that?” Elijah cried as Shiloh grabbed him, holding him tight, letting his brother cry against him. “Why they fucking with me?”
Hearing him speak in first person wasn’t unusual when it came to Trent. They considered themselves each other basically, including their sister. When one hurt, they all hurt.
“We gon’ take care of it, E. Don’t even worry about it,” Shiloh promised. “This city ain’t gon’ sleep until them niggas do.”
“You good?” Talin’s wife asked as she looked at me. She was a pretty, light-skin girl with dreads tied up.
“I’m okay,” I said softly.
Elijah looked up, eyes meeting with mine. I just slowly smiled, trying to keep positive when he walked over to me, causing me to stand up.
“I can’t believe you stayed this long in a hospital,” he mumbled as I wiped his eyes, smirking. He knew how I felt about them. I looked at the man I fell in love with, the one I met at the gas station who was sooo damn crazy, obnoxious, wild, and chaotic. Now he was trying to smile through the pain. His eyes and cheeks were wet from tears; his dreads were slumping down with his head as he tried to toughen up for me. He didn’t want me to see this side of him. It just so happened that I had a man that would cry when he was angry, and I was just fine with that, even if he wasn’t. So, instead of pitying him like everyone else, I wanted to show him that he was still my man, my protector, my everything, even though he was at his weakest.
“You remember that time we brought that light-skin girl back to the room?” I asked him softly, hoping no one else could hear us.
He nodded, smiling instantly. It was one of the craziest nights of our lives. It got violent on her end, and we had to call the cops to get her out of the house. I don’t even know what kind of drug she was on, but she was definitely on something.
“Bitch was fucking crazy, J,” he said as I laughed. “I already told yo’ ass she looked like she was on some other shit, but when that weave came off, though? Bruh . . .”
“She was cute, though.” I pouted as he shook his head, arms coming around my waist.
“Yo’ taste in women is a hit or miss, shawty. Aye, but it’s this nurse in Trent’s room that is banging. Like, I’m talking phat ass and everything. She’s yo’ type,” he said, and I smiled. Everyone else was silent, trying to listen to us converse about women.
“What does she look like?” I asked softly, wiping his face as he began to describe the girl to me.
“Where is he? Where is he?” I heard a voice say. We all looked up to see a light-skin man with hazel eyes, almost the spitting image of Trent and Jahiem, walk up. Elijah hadn’t told me much about his dad, only that no one really messed with him for their own reasons. There was a lot of bad blood, a lot of issues with this family that I couldn’t even begin to tap into, but that whole morning, it was nothing but family attempting to come together. Trent’s fraternity brothers showed up in waves, a couple of female friends came, and the sister finally showed up, crying hysterically. It was my first time seeing her, but when our eyes locked, we instantly recognized each other. I’d seen her in too many gay clubs getting it on, and I almost slept with her at one point, but I was thankful that I hadn’t. She was definitely the wildest one out of the group. I was sure her brothers had no idea who she truly was as a person.
With people in and out of the waiting room, wanting to see Trent, who I heard had finally woken up from his coma, the police came to ask questions and give a rundown of the process. He had survived three shots to the body. It was a miracle he was even alive, and the one girl that was by his side the entire time was Taylor—not the little girls he ran after on the yard, and not his ex-girlfriend.
* * *
Walking back outside into the cold Sunday afternoon, I spotted Jahiem sitting on the bench with a cigarette in his hand, looking at his phone.
“You’re good for my li’l bruh, you know that?” Jahiem asked.
I smiled with a shrug.
“Y’all two were made for each other.”
“I don’t think one person can be made for another,” I answered logically. “But I know what you mean.”
He smiled before looking back at his phone. “You heard from yo’ girl?” he asked, glancing at me as he took a drag off his cigarette, blowing the smoke out with a quickness. “Got me stressing out like a crazy nigga. I don’t even smoke these things like that, but shit.”
“Who’s my girl?” I pressed curiously.
“Tia.” He looked at me as I shook my head no. “I’ve been trying to call her, but her phone is cut off. I don’t know where she is, and I can’t find her homegirl.”
“She’s probably around the city somewhere,” I mumbled, taking a seat on a nearby bench.
“Probably fucking around with the next nigga with her pregnant ass,” he muttered with a smirk.
I smiled, watching him laugh to himself like he’d thought of something funny about her.
“If that’s the case, then why are you so worried about where she is?” I asked.
He just looked at me from the side, taking a final pull before tossing the cigarette out, letting the wind catch the smoke. “I don’t know.” He shrugged. “I still love her ass, and I don’t even know why. Ain’t that some shit? I fell in love with a ho.”
“We all did.” I smiled.
Noelle
“Is there anything you want me to get?” I asked Shiloh as I came up behind him, hand on his shoulder. I needed to go home and change. I’d been at this hospital since 4-something in the morning, and now it was going on 8 o’clock at night. I needed a shower, a fresh change of clothes, and to get my life together in general.
He looked up at me with tired eyes, shaking his head in a silent no. He sat in the corner of hospital room, watching his younger siblings talk with Trent, who lay back on the bed, bandaged up on the shoulder, ribcage, and left thigh where he’d been shot. I don’t even know how he was alive, but God was definitely looking out for him. Their mom stood at the end of the bed, smiling down at the three, but she kept her distance from Shiloh, as did he from her. It was just too much for me to handle: too many Carters, too much drama, and I hadn’t even had a hot shower that day.
“Aye,” Elijah said, turning toward Shiloh with a smile. “This nigga asked if he was a thug now that he’s been shot. I told him I don’t know too many pretty-boy thugs, so you’d be the first, bruh,” he cracked as Shiloh smirked.
“Man, shut yo’ ass up,” I heard Trent mumble, and I laughed.
“I’m so glad you’re okay, baby,” their mom cooed softly as Olivia lay comfortably next to Trent on the bed. Shiloh stood up, placing his hand on my side to walk me out of the room. His eyes were empty and cold as usual, but his voice was tired.
“Go ahead and go home,” he said, bringing me close for a hug and a simple kiss. “I appreciate you holding it together for me, queen.”
“I got you.” I smiled, kissing him softly on the lips.
The door opened, and his mom stepped out. Her low eyes immediately went to me with a warning glare. Even though she didn’t get along with him, I could tell she didn’t want me, or any other girl, pushing up on he
r son. I stepped back—just a little.
“Call me as soon as you get home, baby,” he said against my mouth before kissing me again and letting me go. Without so much as a word to his mother, he moved past her to get back in the room, closing the door.
So, it was just her and me walking down the hall to get to the main level. In silence. She was dressed to a T; pretty, dark-skin woman with those signature eyes and short hair. She looked to be in shape for her age. Meanwhile, I had on a scarf, a hoodie, and some jeans with my only pair of Jordans and small coat in hand. I was ready just to go home and get out of this depressing setting. When I realized she wasn’t going to speak, I kept it moving in the other direction, opting to take the stairs.
In the waiting room, I said my goodbyes to everyone, hugged Tyree, who kept everyone entertained, and walked out into the cold parking garage to find the truck. With Shiloh’s keys in hand, I hopped in the big Escalade and cut it on, letting the engine warm up as I looked around. I felt so small in there.
As soon as I pulled off, my phone rang. Looking down at the caller ID, I smiled.
“Helloooo,” I greeted.
“Gurl! What the fuck is going on? Did you hear about that boy that got shot—”
“I just left the hospital,” I said, cutting her off.
“So, it was Shiloh’s brother. I was thinking it was maybe another Carter. Damn, how many of them is it?”
“Too many to count,” I mumbled.
“Any of them single? Shiiit, help a girl out here. I’m trying get like you,” she joked.
We chopped it up for the rest of the ride, until I reached my house. I saw a familiar car parked outside. What in the world?
“Oh my God,” I mumbled, hearing Layla chew on her food.
“What’s the matter?”
“Girl, this man is at my house again.” I sighed, parking the truck at Shiloh’s place and hopping out.
“Who?”
“Michael,” I said, closing the door. I stepped over the yard to get to mine and saw that his car was empty. What in the world?
