The Wrong Side Of Love: A Hood Love Story

by Charmanie Saquea

  “Mom,” Quaid whined.

  “Ignore him and let’s go.” Jayliah rolled her eyes as she walked her son to the door.

  “You heard what the fuck I said,” Quadir said as he jumped up.

  Ignoring him, Jayliah continued to walk outside with Quaid. Due to his tinted windows, she couldn’t see Tariq but she could tell he was staring a hole right into her and knowing him, he probably had a look of disgust on his face.

  “Be goo—What the fuck!” Jayliah yelled as she was pulled back by her hair.

  “When I say some shit, you better fucking listen!” Quadir said through gritted teeth.

  “Dad, let her go! What are you doing?” Quaid yelled.

  “Do we have a problem?” Tariq asked as he and Zeek got out of the car, guns cocked and at their side.

  Even though he and Jayliah weren’t together, it didn’t mean that his love for her was gone or that he was going to sit back and watch anther nigga disrespect her, baby daddy or not.

  “Quaid, get in the car, nephew,” Zeek told him.

  Not having to be told twice, Quaid rushed to the car and got in, locking the door. Tariq wasn’t worried about him because if shit did just so happen to pop off out here, Quaid would be alright because his car was completely bulletproof. From the tires to the windows.

  “Now, if I were you, I would take your hands off of her and go back in the house to mind your business,” Zeek told Quadir.

  “This my bitch, and whatever goes on between us don’t have shit to do with nobody else,” Quadir seethed.

  “I’m nobody’s bitch. Let my hair go, Quadir!” Jayliah yelled as she tried to get him to let her go.

  She knew he was just showing out and feeling some kind of way because of Tariq because this wasn’t even him. She couldn’t wait to get in the house and show him what acting brand new would get him.

  “He’s right,” Tariq said as he put his gun up. “Let’s go.”

  Zeek gave his cousin a questioning look as he walked back to his car but never voiced his concerns as he looked back at Jayliah who was looking hurt and confused as she watched Tariq walk back to his car. Following behind him, Zeek put his gun up and walked back to the car and jumped back in. Tariq wasted no time speeding out of Jayliah’s driveway. Satisfied with how the situation turned out, Quadir let Jayliah’s hair go with a smirk before she turned around and slapped off his face.

  “What the fuck is your problem?” he yelled.

  “Don’t you ever, and I do mean ever, put your hands on me, Quadir, and I mean that shit,” she told him.

  “Yea, whatever.” He waved her off.

  “Whatever my ass, I’m not playing with you. Do some bitch shit like that again and see what the fuck happens to you,” Jayliah threatened as she stomped back in the house.

  “What the fuck are you going to do, Jay?” Quadir laughed. “Huh?”

  Walking over to her purse, Jayliah pulled out her gun and cocked it, pointing it right at Quadir’s head, which immediately caused his laughing to come to a halt.

  “The fuck, you pulling guns out on me now, Jay?” he barked.

  “I swear to God, I’m not playing with you, Quadir. If you ever in your fucking life put your hands on me or even so much as raise your hands at me, I’ll blow your fucking brains out,” Jayliah told him with a straight face.

  For some odd reason, Quadir actually believed her. Any other time, he would have laughed her off and waved her off but the look in her eye let him know that she was not playing with him.

  “Alright, you got it,” he gave in.

  Sighing, Jayliah went upstairs to get ready for work. Just that quick, Quadir had fucked her day up and she had an attitude.

  ___

  Coco had just left one of her patient’s rooms and was about to sit behind the desk when she was stopped by one of the other nurses.

  “So, Jacole,”

  “What?” Coco asked dryly with a vicious eye roll.

  It was no secret that Coco didn’t like her co-workers and she could tell that the feelings were very mutual. There was one common denominator in the situation; Ezekiel Clay. Even though he and Coco were not in a committed relationship. Just the fact that they even had something going on had those hoes antennas on flames, especially since they all wanted a piece of Detroit’s biggest baller.

  “Are you going to be on Zeek’s arm at his party this weekend or is he going to be catering to his real wifey?” Airen questioned with a smirk.

  “Party?” Coco asked, ignoring the subliminal shot she was trying to take.

  “Oop,” Airen snickered. “Never mind then, I guess the side chick wasn’t supposed to be invited at all.”

  Coco closed her eyes and counted to ten quickly as she had to remind herself that this was where she worked and she couldn’t afford to be fired. To prevent herself from punching Airen in the face, she swiftly walked away and found something to do. Reaching her post, she pulled her phone out to send Zeek a quick text. She wanted to know why she didn’t know about this supposed party he was having and she was laying her head in his house.

  Me: Was I not supposed to know about this party you were having this weekend?

  Not even thirty seconds later, her phone was vibrating with a new text message.

  Zeek: We’ll talk when you get home

  Coco wanted to text him back and say that’s not my home but she knew that wouldn’t do anything but start a semi argument between the two of them and she didn’t have the time for all of that. Arguments between she and Zeek didn’t really happen because he would say something crazy to shut her up and she wouldn’t be able to have a comeback and that was weird for her because she always had something to say.

  Three hours later, Coco was walking in Zeek’s house, his real house in Bloomfield Hills that was behind the iron gate that you have to use a code to get into. That night that she’d acted stubborn and accused him of taking her to the jump off house, he’d explained to her that it actually was the jump off house but he just didn’t feel like driving all the way home so they were going to crash there for the night.

  Walking into his master bedroom that was bigger than her whole house, she headed straight for the shower. Every time Coco got in his shower, she fell in love with his six head shower head. Adjusting the temperature to her liking, she undressed and took a quick shower and washed her hair. When she was done, she wrapped her hair up and moisturized her body before throwing on a pair of panties and one of Zeek’s button downs and climbing in his silk sheets and dozing off.

  Two hours later, Zeek walked in the house with his phone glued to his ear.

  “Hello?” Coco answered groggily.

  “Hell you at?” he asked.

  “You would know if you came in your room,” she answered.

  “Aye, don’t get smart, woman,” he told her. “I’m on my way up.”

  “Mhm,” Coco hung up.

  When Zeek got to his room, he ran to his bed and jumped on Coco, humping her.

  “Eww, boy, move,” she whined.

  “You smell good as fuck,” he said as he buried his nose in her neck. “You got my shirt on?” he asked, snatching the covers off her.

  “Oh my gosh! Yes, I do, so what? Why you gotta play so much? Zeek, stop!” Coco laughed as Zeek continued to hump her. “You damn dog.”

  “I’m a dog in heat, what you gon do to help me?” he asked.

  “Not a damn thing, you’re not my dog.”

  “See, that’s that shit I be talking about,” Zeek said as he pushed her out the bed.

  BLOOP

  “Ouchhhh!” Coco yelled as she fell out of the bed with a loud thud.

  “Man, you are too fucking dramatic, get your crybaby ass up here,” Zeek said as he helped her off the floor.

  Coco cut her eyes at him and looked as if she wanted to slap the shit out of him and Zeek was silently daring her to, but she wasn’t that crazy.

  “Fix your face.”

  “Anyways,” Coco rolled her eyes. �
�Tell me about this party I’m not supposed to be invited to that Airen just so happened to tell me about.”

  “Airen, huh?”

  “Yea, the one you swear you never fucked,” she said knowingly.

  “I ain’t fucked that girl,” Zeek said with his face scrunched.

  “I don’t believe you.”

  “What have I told you about me and lying? I don’t lie. She may have sucked my dick once or twice, but never will I ever fuck that girl. Zeek don’t do community pussy and that’s exactly what that girl is. Do you know how many of my niggas done been up in that girl, including my cousin? Nah, I’ll pass. I do have standards,” Zeek told Coco with a straight face.

  Coco just looked at him with a blank stare for a few seconds. “Okay, back to this party.”

  “Right,” he laughed. “It’s my birthday bash. A nigga bout to be twenty-five and shit, the colors are white and gold, of course,” He told her.

  “Of course, those are your favorite colors. So why didn’t you tell me, was I not supposed to know?” she asked.

  “Jacole, make me slap the shit out of your little ass right now. You’re laying your head in my shit, of course you were supposed to know. The streets talk so I figured you would find out on your own.” Zeek shrugged.

  “Mhm, whatever you say, playboy. I have to go home so I can look in my closet and see what I have to wear,” she said as she fell back on the bed.

  “That’s dead,” Zeek told her.

  “What’s dead?” she questioned.

  “You going home. You’re my hostage until I get some ransom money,” he said as he rolled over on top of her.

  Coco just laughed as Zeek started kissing on her neck. She loved the way things were between them. They had a bond like a relationship without the commitment of one and she was fine with that for now. He was free to do him and she was free to do her.

  Chapter Thirteen

  It was Coco’s day off and she was lounging around Zeek’s house not doing anything when her phone started ringing. She didn’t recognize the number but she answered anyways.

  “Hello?”

  “May I speak to Ms. Jacole, please?” the caller asked.

  “Speaking, may I ask who’s calling?” Coco asked.

  “This is Elias.”

  Coco damn near screamed as images of the sexy man she ran into at the grocery store a while back flashed back in her mind. It had been a while since she’d heard from him so she figured he had gotten rid of her number but to know that he actually kept it made her happy.

  “Hi, Elias, how are you?” she asked, trying to get control of herself.

  “I’m fine, I just feel so bad that I’ve been so caught up in work that I haven’t been able to sit down and give you a call until now,” he told her.

  “It’s no problem; if nobody else knows, I know work comes before anything else so don’t feel bad. This is my first day off I’ve had in a while so I don’t know what to do with myself,” she explained.

  “Today is your day off you said?” Elias asked for clarification.

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Well, would you mind meeting up with me for lunch and maybe a drink? That is, if you’re a drinker,” he suggested.

  “I’m not much of a drinker but I will take you up on your lunch offer,” Coco told him.

  “Ah, perfect. Let’s say we meet up at the Hard Rock downtown in an hour?”

  “That’s fine,” she assured him.

  “Okay, see you then.”

  “Ooooooh, that’s a sexy ass man!” she gushed after they hung up.

  Coco ran up the stairs to change her clothes out of her leggings and tank into something more presentable. She knew if Zeek knew she was leaving to go have lunch with another man, he would most likely try to beat her ass, which is exactly why she wasn’t going to tell him.

  What he don’t know won’t hurt him, she thought as she pulled a sundress out the closet. Shit, he ain’t my man anyways.

  After changing her clothes, she was ready to go. When Coco tried to start her car, it wouldn’t start. She tried to start it multiple times, and each time it wouldn’t work for her.

  “Oh, talk about karma for my sneaky ass,” she laughed.

  She sat there for a few seconds before she pulled out her phone and called Zeek.

  “Talk to me,” he answered on the third ring.

  “Zeek, my car won’t start,” Coco whined.

  “You and that raggedy ass car not about to work my nerves,” Zeek sighed.

  “My car is not raggedy,” Coco said defensively.

  “Shiiiit, I can’t tell. But anyways, just grab a pair of my keys and just take one of my cars.” He told her.

  “I don’t know if that’s a good idea.”

  How was that going to look, her going to see another man in her other nigga’s car?

  “Why the hell not? Where you going where you can’t drive my car?”

  Already knowing where the conversation was headed, Coco put an end to it before it could even get there.

  “Nowhere, Ezekiel. I’ll take one of your cars,” she told him.

  “I thought so, and stay your ass out my Bentley.”

  “But that’s the one I wanted to drive,” she whined.

  “Not today, ma, some other day,” he laughed.

  “Asshole.”

  Zeek hung up the phone laughing but Coco didn’t see anything funny. Zeek knew good and damn well she had been trying to get behind the wheel of his cocaine white and chrome gold Bentley ever since she’d laid eyes on it. That was the prettiest car she had ever seen and she was going to drive it whether he wanted her to or not.

  Getting out of her car, Coco ran in the house and grabbed the keys to Zeek’s Benz and was out. An hour later, she was pulling up to the Hard Rock Café and pulling into a parking space. Elias was sitting in the restaurant waiting for her to arrive when he noticed a car that he was very familiar with. He thought today was his lucky day and Zeek just so happened to be eating at the same place as him today until he noticed Coco getting out of the car.

  He knew for a fact that that was Zeek’s Benz she was driving because his name was on the plate and that was the car Chico bought him for his sixteenth birthday. All types of questions were running through his head and the main one was how in the hell was Coco connected to Zeek because as far as he knew, Zeek was still with Chanel. He needed answers and he needed them quick.

  “Sorry I’m late,” Coco said when she reached the table. “My car wouldn’t start and my friend was nice enough to let me borrow one of his.”

  “Friend, huh? I don’t have to worry about him running up in here trying to shoot this place up because you’re here with me, do I?” Elias asked.

  “Like I said, he’s just my friend. I would never try to downplay my relationship if I were in one just to try to get with the next man. I’m not that type of woman. And this is coming from the same man who didn’t bother to ask me if I had a man because he didn’t care,” Coco reminded him.

  “Touché,” was all he could say.

  Now knowing that the woman in front of him had ties to Zeek, the game plan had just changed. He had just found a new way to get some insight on Zeek because his other source was on some bullshit. No doubt his plans were to still get with her but he had even more motivation to get next to her. He was about to rock Ezekiel Clay’s world and he wouldn’t even see it coming.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Girl, I can’t believe Zeek actually letting you push the Bentley. You sure you ain’t over there putting it on that nigga? From what I heard, he ain’t even let Chanel drive this car,” Jayliah said.

  Today was the day of Zeek’s birthday bash. When Coco woke up this morning, there was a note on his side of the bed that said he was going to be out all day but he left her the black card and the keys to the Bentley. He told her to get whatever she wanted today and made sure she looked good for him tonight because it was on him.

  “Girl, no, I am not fucking Zee
k. I ain’t a hoe,” Coco told her.

  “No, you’re just spoiled as hell. I can just imagine what it’s going to be like when you do lay it on his ass,” Jayliah laughed.

  “Girl, shut up. You are stupid. Anyways, is this the shop?” Coco asked.

  “I think so,” Jayliah answered.

  “Alright, let’s go,”

  “Chanel, ain’t that Zeek’s car?” somebody in the shop asked.

  As soon as Chanel looked up and saw Zeek’s Bentley, she started smiling. “Sure is, I know my nigga car anywhere.”

  “I would hope, he the only nigga in Detroit with one like it,” Lola, the owner said.

  The smile on Chanel’s face quickly fell when she saw Coco get out of the driver’s side of the car smiling and laughing as if she had just struck gold.

  “Oop, that’s Zeek’s car but that’s damn sure not Zeek getting out,” Lola said, stating the obvious.

  Chanel was so pissed, she couldn’t even speak. All eyes in the shop were on her to see what she was going to do. When Coco and Jayliah walked into the shop, it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Jayliah, being the more outspoken one out of the sisters, was about to ask if there was a problem until her eyes fell on Chanel. Before anyone could speak, Coco’s phone started ringing.

  “Hello?” she answered.

  “You at the shop yet?” Zeek asked.

  “Yes, I just walked in.” She answered.

  “Put me on speaker.”

  Taking the phone from her ear, Coco put the phone on speaker.

  “Alright, you’re on.” She told him.

  “Lola,” Zeek’s voice boomed through the phone.

  “Yes, Zeek?”

  “I need you to get my girl Coco and sister Jayliah together tonight. You’re the only one that’s allowed to touch their heads. I don’t want no shit out of nobody in that damn shop because if I just think some shit going on, I’ll personally come through and shut that bitch down and won’t none of y’all bald headed bitches be getting y’all heads done for tonight. Do we have an understanding?”

  “Yes, Zeek,” rang out throughout the shop.

  Jayliah and Coco gave each other a look before turning their eyes to Chanel who was sitting there looking as if she was ready to spit fire. To say that she was hot was a serious understatement. It was like Zeek knew she was there and was daring her to get out of line. Chanel wouldn’t even look in their direction. It was like all that mouth and boldness she had on that porch that one day was all of a sudden nonexistent.