Jess allowed for her father to hug her as a few tears escaped her eyes. Sorry seemed to be all she heard from the men in her life lately.
“It doesn’t matter. I have to go,” Jess replied and pulled away from Sampson.
Ashamed and at a loss for words Sampson allowed Jess to leave. He watched her climb into her expensive car and pull away. He vowed to himself that he would be a better father to her and also find out where she was getting all of her lavish gifts from. For the moment she was still a minor so he had a huge say so in what she did and who she did it with. He didn’t wanna visit with Jackie but he knew that was the only way he could get down to what was really going on with Jess.
Jess found herself driving to Sabeen’s home. She really wanted to go to the apartment that she shared with Deon but she was afraid he would be there. Jess chose to go to Sabeen’s place instead. Jess pulled into Sabeen’s driveway and parked. Her cellphone started to ring and she grabbed it out of her cup holder. She saw that she had several missed calls from her father and Deon. She rolled her eyes at both of them and waited for Sabeen to come outside.
The more Jess sat in silence the more she felt angry and hurt at what had happened to her. She loved and respected her father and he had left her mother for another woman. She thought that married couples worked out their issues and stayed together. Obviously her father didn’t feel the same, then she was also dealing with Deon and his lies. His betrayal had cut her deeply and what made it worse was that she was now experiencing what she felt was the beginning stages of morning sickness. Jess felt beyond stupid to possibly be pregnant by a man that also had another woman pregnant. She never imagined her life playing out like that. All she had ever wanted to do was be a schoolteacher. Show kids how important education was, and now she would have to put all of that onto the backburner if she was going to have a child.
“So I’m taking it the visit didn’t go to well,” Sabeen said climbing into the car with Jess.
Jess laughed although she felt like crying.
“Wanna go shopping?” Jess asked feeling like retail therapy could cure her pain for the moment.
Sabeen smiled putting her seat belt on.
“Hell yeah, my mom just gave me my child support money,” Sabeen replied.
Jess backed out of the driveway and pulled away. She glanced over at Sabeen.
“Child support money?”
Sabeen fixed her hair nodding.
“Yeah, my mom gives me all of the checks my daddy sends. She doesn’t want shit from him not even his $900 a month. I need the money so I don’t object. She’s been doing that ever since they divorced a year ago.”
“But your moms okay? She’s not acting weird now that your dad is gone?” Jess asked thinking of her own mother’s drastic change since her father had left.
Sabeen shook her head and applied some clear gloss to her lips.
“No, she acts the same. She was hurt at first but after a while she bounced back. I mean they were together for fifteen years hell any woman would be hurt. How is your mom acting?”
Jess let out a nervous laugh.
“Like a crazy woman. At first I was happy because I had all of the freedom I wanted but now I miss her. I kind of miss her questioning me about everything. At least I knew she cared then. Now all she cares about is going to church and pretending to be happy when she really isn’t. I can hear her crying all hours of the night ’Bean. It’s really sad and it’s made me hate my dad. He’s living out in the suburbs with his new woman while I live in hell with my mom.”
“Things will get better Jess. Time heals all wounds even the ones Deon has left you with. You have to just pray and let it go because you are starting to look sick boo. I miss seeing that glowing freckled skin of yours,” Sabeen said and smiled.
Jess took in her friends’ words and shook her head.
“Well that could be because I have been throwing up for the last week. I think I might be pregnant,” Jess replied.
Sabeen looked at Jess in shock for a minute. Jess was a 3.5 grade point average student. She could be a 4.0 student if she applied herself. She was so beautiful and clearly headed for college and she was talking about being pregnant. At seventeen? Sabeen did a lot of things before her time but she didn’t play around with unprotected sex. Her mother was a nurse and drilled into her how important it was to have an education and career before love. Sabeen felt bad for Jess because she knew that Jess didn’t have that type of support system at home. On the outside Jess looked like she had it all but Sabeen knew that with a man like Deon things were bound to only get worse for her friend. She wanted to help her in any way that she could.
“Well um if you are, we can always go to that clinic on Six Mile. You’re so young and Deon is already about to be a dad. You have to put yourself first,” Sabeen replied.
Jess nodded not sure how to respond. She had contemplated abortion too if she was indeed pregnant but then she also thought about what her and Deon’s child would look like and how just maybe if he knew about her potential baby he would drop Tiffany’s sister and be the boyfriend she needed him to be. She hated Deon at the moment but she did still love him. He was indeed the one that was about to fund her shopping trip to the mall. If she was to let him go and abort her baby if she was pregnant then what would she have? Jess cut on her radio to drain out her thoughts. She figured she could cross that road when she got to it.
Chapter Eight
“Hey ma,” Jess said walking into her mother’s bedroom.
Jackie smiled at Jess and continued to watch her news program. Jess shifted from one foot to the next and looked at her mother again. This was not how she wanted to spend a Saturday but she felt that as mother and daughter they had so much to catch up on.
“So how has work been going?”
“Fine, I took on extra hours because my bills were falling behind.”
“So more time away from home?” Jess asked with a frown on her face.
Jackie looked at her daughter with irritation. She was due to be at the church in a few hours and she really just wanted to eat some ice cream and watch the television.
“Jessenia what do you want? Is Willow not home?” Jackie asked.
Jess shook her head because she had told her mother that Willow would be away for a while but she guessed that fell on deaf ears.
“Willow won’t be home anytime soon mom. Can we maybe go to the movie or out to eat before you go to the church?”
Jackie quickly shook her head. She didn’t wanna go out to eat or to the show. She had no interest in doing that.
“Jess, I’ve lost a little weight and I’m not feeling like myself. We can do that in a few weeks when I’m feeling better. Can you please give me some privacy? I wanna relax before church,” she replied and stretched out on the bed.
Jess looked at her mother and her heart felt heavy. She sighed and walked out of the room. Jess grabbed her newest purse a black Prada pyramid bag and walked out of the house. She pulled her shawl close to her body as she jogged to her car. Jess climbed in and drove away with so many things on her mind. Just months ago her life was simple now she was facing all types of challenges and she really didn’t know what to do.
Jess found herself eating alone at a popular soul food restaurant in Downtown Detroit. She hadn’t seen Deon in almost a month and she really didn’t know how to feel about it. She missed him so much but she refused to call him first when he was the one in the wrong.
“So you dodge my calls then your boyfriend sends some little niggas to jump me and I can’t even get a hi?” Mauri asked standing over Jess.
Jess smiled at the sound of his voice. It really was like music to her ears. She looked up and Mauri smiled down at her. Dressed in a brown Ralph Lauren sweater with black jeans and Nike boots Mauri looked even better than he did last week at school. Jess had done as much as she could to stay away from him but she had no idea that Deon had sent people to fight him.
“Hi Mauri, are you following me?” she asked smilin
g.
Mauri took a seat across from Jess and looked at her. Damn, she was gorgeous to him. Her hair was parted down the middle and pulled behind her ears. She was wearing a Burberry checkered shawl with a black cami and black leggings with tall black riding boots. He sat back in his seat and wondered just why she wasn’t giving him a chance? He never wanted a female as bad as he wanted her.
“When I say I miss you I’m not just playing, I really miss kicking it with you in school. I miss our little text messages and shit. You really gonna let this dude regulate who you talk to like you his wife? He having a baby by Tiff’s sister Torie,” Mauri said.
Jess started back eating her food. The word quickly spread thanks to Tiffany about how Jess was sleeping with her sister’s man. Jess was embarrassed but to the impressionable girls in school it only made them look up to Jess more. In their eyes Jess was this bad ass female that had pulled the famous Deon. They envied her and couldn’t wait for their chance to get at him.
“I’m not trying to come at you disrespectful Jess. I’m just being real with you. That nigga ain’t shit,” Mauri said getting upset.
Deon had sent five men to catch him after school and even though Mauri could fight he still couldn’t hold his own against five grown men. They threatened to shoot him in his legs if he kept talking to Jess. That would surely end his basketball career before it even started.
“Mauri how is basketball going?” Jess asked changing the subject.
Mauri looked at her.
“It’s been good. You gone save me a dance at the homecoming? I might not be able to make prom. I’m going to go play overseas so that I can enter into the draft,” he stated proudly.
Jess jumped out of her seat and rushed over to Mauri. She bent down to hug him and he wrapped his arms around her body closely.
“I wanna be with you too,” he whispered in her ear.
Jess closed her eyes and wished that she could have a normal boyfriend for once but it wasn’t that simple. Jess went back over to her seat and looked Mauri in his eyes.
“Even if I was pregnant with someone else’s baby?”
Mauri stared at Jess for a moment trying to take in what she had said. He couldn’t believe she would allow for Deon to get her pregnant. He was treating her like a no class hoodrat when she was much more than that.
“So what about college? What about you being a teacher? I’m not about to sit right here and pretend to be happy that you carrying his fucking child! He a bitch ass nigga with his old pedophile ass. I can’t believe you Jess. You acting so much lower than what you are worth,” he said and stood up.
He dropped a hundred dollar bill down onto the table to cover Jess’s food and he walked away. Jess sat back in her seat and told herself not to cry. A big part of her wanted to push Mauri away because she felt like she was holding him back. She wanted him to go to the NBA and be great. He didn’t need to be worrying about her. Her life was a mess and she didn’t want him to get harmed trying to fix it.
Jess ate enough of her food until she felt like she would pop and she got up. She noticed some girls staring at her as she exited the restaurant but she didn’t think anything about it. Jess made her way to her car and someone called out her name. She closed her eyes knowing that she was about to be in some mess. She could just feel it. Jess continued to walk and was yanked from behind by her hair.
“Nah, bitch you ain’t going nowhere!” a high pitched voice yelled pulling Jess to the ground.
Jess tried to get up and was rewarded with kicks to the face and body. She covered her head but what that did was leave her stomach open for attack. Heels along with gym shoes dug into Jess’s body.
“Stupid bitch! Think you so fucking cute with your dumb ass! If you think you’re going to be his new side bitch then you must be crazy!” another voice yelled.
Jess’s heartbeat was so fast she felt like she might have a heart attack. The kicks suddenly stopped and the six girls took off running. The ringleader Sienna looked back at a badly beaten up Jess and started to laugh. Jess didn’t look as bad as she did after Deon beat her up but she was in bad shape. Deon had been avoiding her and she knew that this would get his attention. Everybody knew he had a new side chick and Sienna was happy to have had the chance to bless Jess with her hands.
“Bet you’ll think twice about fucking Deon! That dick BEEN mine hoe!” she yelled and ran as fast as she could to her waiting truck.
Jess whimpered and two men walking into the restaurant spotted her. They ran over to her and helped her stand. Jess’s body was in awful shape. Her right eye was swollen shut. Her face was bruised and she was sure her body was as well. She was one of those people that bruised very easy. Jess’s stomach started to cramp as the men walked her back into the restaurant.
“We’re going to call the cops and the EMS,” the taller man said.
Jess shook her head. She didn’t want the police to get involved. She pulled out her cellphone and called the person that was responsible for her injuries.
****
Deon sat inside of the hospital off of West Grand Boulevard and the Lodge Freeway. Sabeen was sitting next to him with a scowl on her face while Danilo sat next to her with his eyes on her shapely legs. Deon was so angry he couldn’t even think straight. Sienna just didn’t know when to stop. He hadn’t fucked with her since the fight they’d had but she had been blowing him up daily begging him to forgive her. She was irrelevant to him and soon she would know just how he felt about her.
“So how long has Jess been pregnant?” Deon asked Sabeen.
Sabeen looked at Deon and rolled her eyes. She was starting to hate him. All he did was bring pain to Jess. She felt like the sooner her friend got away from him the quicker she could get back on the right track. Sabeen had secretly called Jess’s parents and was anxious for them to arrive. She prayed they could get rid of Deon. Now that he knew about their baby she was sure he would feel like he could do whatever to Jess and she would still stay with him.
“Does that even matter right now? She could have lost the damn baby thanks to your hoes,” Sabeen replied.
Deon looked at Sabeen and his first thought was to slap fire out of her. He instead sat back in his seat and tried to remain calm. He didn’t understand why Jess had to have such loud mouth ass friends. Actually the more he thought about it the more he told himself he would see to it that she dead her friendship with Sabeen and Willow the minute she was feeling better. He didn’t like those two bitches.
“It matters to me because she went a whole fucking month without speaking to me and she was carrying my fucking baby. Sabeen, I really want you to think about the next shit you say to me. Responding the wrong way will have the nurses admitting your ass. Pretty bitch or not I will slap the fuck out of you,” he replied.
Sabeen could see Deon was dead ass serious. She swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat and decided to stand up and sit across from him and Danilo. Danilo looked at her and licked his lips. He loved Willow but she was gone for the moment and Sabeen was looking like Halle Berry. Not exactly like her but her beauty was flawless to Danilo and he just had to know what she looked like with no clothes on.
“Deon calm that shit down. You gone fucking scare her,” Danilo said frowning at his cousin.
Deon ignored him and pulled out his cellphone. He was getting several text messages from people telling him that Sienna and her friends were bragging about beating up Jess in the hood. He was also getting texts from Torie asking him was he still seeing Jess. Deon was stressed out and in need of a vacation. He was also in need of new hoes. He knew he had to keep Jess and Torie but the rest were about to go. He needed his women to know their place.
“Sabeen! Is she okay?” Jackie asked rushing into the hospital with Sampson following behind her.
Jackie didn’t wanna ride with Sampson to the hospital but she had been too distraught to ride herself. She hated to admit it but she had checked out on Jess and the outside world. She had no clue why someon
e would even want to fight her daughter.
“Yes, let me check and see if the nurses can take you two back to her,” Sabeen replied avoiding eye contact with Deon.
Jackie followed after Sabeen while Sampson stared down Deon. Deon hadn’t ever been the type to back down to someone and he wasn’t about to start today. He stared back at Sampson with the same mean mug that he was giving him. Jess would be eighteen next year; it wasn’t like she was a child.
“So you bought her that car?” Sampson asked.
“Yes I did,” Deon replied trying to be at least cordial to him.
Sampson nodded.
“And how old are you?”
Danilo sighed hoping his cousin didn’t do anything crazy inside of the hospital.
“I’m old enough to buy Jessenia a Mercedes.”
Sampson’s jaw ticked. He wanted to kick Deon’s teeth as deep into his throat as they would go. He was a grown ass man talking about buying his baby girl a car. Sampson felt less of a man for allowing his daughter to fall prey to such a pervert.
“Yeah we’ll see about that. You are not allowed to go back to her room and you will be served.”
Deon chuckled. He knew more about the law than most people. He had a slew of family members that practiced law and he himself needed to know his rights with his line of work.
“It ain’t shit you can do to me. In Michigan, the legal age of consent is sixteen. Jess might be your daughter but she belongs to me now,” Deon said staring Sampson in the eyes.
Sampson rushed towards Deon but was stopped by Danilo. Danilo did not want Jess to have to bury her father so he pushed him away from his grinning cousin.
“Let me go,” Sampson said through gritted teeth as he fought with Danilo.
Danilo let him go and Sampson pushed past him. Two security guards ran up and Sampson told them the issue. They asked Deon and Danilo to leave and Deon started laughing. He would never let anyone run him out of any place but he was itching to get at Sienna.
“Jess is carrying my baby. If you think she’s not going to be in my life then you must be out your fucking mind. I will eliminate any problem that gets in the way of Jess being with me,” Deon threatened Sampson before walking off with his cousin following behind him. Deon and Danilo jumped into Deon’s car and Danilo looked over at him.
A Fistful of Love: A Domestic Violence Anthology Page 9
