Diamond Life

by Aliya S. King

  Birdie finally got out of the car and trotted up the steps to the house. He had keys, but he rang the doorbell anyway. As soon as Alex came to the door, Birdie’s eyes widened. She was wearing the white tank top and a pair of his old basketball shorts. And she was smiling. Not hard. But enough.

  “Come inside,” said Alex, walking toward the living room.

  “You look good,” Birdie said.

  “Thanks. How are you?”

  “I just wanted to check on you. It’s been a minute.”

  “You’ve been busy.”

  “Jake’s rereleasing my album,” Birdie said. “Trying to get it to diamond status.”

  “Nice.”

  Before she could say another word, Birdie rushed up to Alex and put his arms around her waist.

  “Birdie, don’t.”

  “Don’t what?”

  Alex pushed him away.

  “Don’t mess with my head. Why are you here?”

  “I’m here because this is where I belong.”

  “You belong in that frat house in Jersey where anything goes.”

  “No, I don’t,” said Birdie. “I want to be wherever you are.”

  “Birdie,” Alex said, her voice trailing off. “Do you really think we could start over again?”

  Birdie thought about the times he and Alex were so broke that they scoured the couch for spare change so that they could split a pack of Ramen noodles. Alex still never gave up on his dream—ever. When Birdie wanted to quit rapping and get a job at UPS, Alex talked him out of it. She was usually the first person to hear his songs and the last to leave his shows—even the ones with only a sprinkling of people who had come to see someone else. She’d financed years of studio sessions. She’d encouraged him even when Travis and Daryl told him to give it up. And when he cheated on her with Cleo, she forgave him and married him.

  “I do think we could start over again,” Birdie said.

  Alex kept her eyes on the floor.

  “I . . . I have to tell you something.”

  Birdie froze.

  “What is it.”

  “When you were on tour . . .”

  Alex’s face crumpled, and she buried her face in her hands. Birdie leaned down and grabbed her hand.

  “What Alex! What’s wrong?”

  “I didn’t have a miscarriage,” Alex said, crying harder.

  “What are you talking about?”

  Alex stopped crying long enough to look up at Birdie’s face.

  “When I found out about the chick in Australia, I just . . . I fell apart. I could not see us getting back together and so I—”

  Birdie felt a chill and he dropped Alex’s hand.

  “So you what?”

  “I got an abortion.”

  Birdie backed away from Alex and began pacing.

  “After all we worked for?” Birdie said, his voice rising. “The shots. The treatments. The transfers . . . And you—. You—”

  Birdie felt nauseated.

  “I was devastated,” Alex said. “I wasn’t in the right state of mind.”

  “You just wanted to hurt me. Like I’d hurt you.”

  Alex was silent.

  “You didn’t want to have a baby by me. Because I cheated on you. I can’t believe I made you feel like you needed to—Jesus.”

  Birdie sat down on the floor next to his wife and held her close. She sobbed as he smoothed her hair back over and over. For hours, they sat together on the floor, holding each other, forgiving each other. In the morning, they were still there, talking, crying—and making a plan.

  Jake sat at the conference room table in the label offices. Alone, he held the telephone to his ear and listened closely.

  “Sixty million for the clothing line,” said Dominic.

  Jake nodded.

  “Ten million to buy you out of your contract at the label.”

  “What about my shares of the label?” asked Jake.

  “Another twenty-two million.”

  Jake sat back in his chair and exhaled.

  “Let’s make it happen,” said Jake. He hung up the phone and went back to his office at the end of the hallway. He nodded to his assistant, who got up and followed him into the office and closed the door behind her.

  “I’m leaving in three weeks,” Jake said.

  Sydney nodded.

  “I need you to make sure everything here is put into storage until I figure out what to do with it.”

  “I’ll take care of that,” said Sydney.

  “What are you going to do after I go?” asked Jake. “Whoever they bring in is going to can you immediately.”

  Sydney shrugged.

  “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. What are you going to do?”

  Jake walked over to his window and looked out to the street below.

  “I’ll still perform,” he said. “When I want to. Make an album if I feel like it . . .”

  “Jake?”

  Jake turned around to face his assistant.

  “What’s up?”

  “You look good. Rested.”

  “Sober?” Jake asked.

  Sydney smiled.

  “I was trying to be tactful.”

  “I’m getting better. Thanks for noticing.”

  “You’re really walking away from everything,” said Sydney. “Just like Kipenzi did.”

  Jake nodded.

  “I’ve made a nice amount of money over the past few years,” said Jake. “It’s time to have some fun with it.”

  An hour later, Jake’s driver pulled up to the building and looked back at his passenger.

  “Do you want me to wait for you?”

  Jake looked at his watch.

  “No. I’ll hit you up when I’m ready.”

  Jake took the stairs to the second floor. As soon as he opened the door, he heard screams. He stopped short and listened closely. Down the hall, he could see the door to Lily’s apartment was slightly open. And the screams were coming from inside. Jake jogged down the hallway to the door and pushed it. There were at least three guys in the doorway to Lily’s bedroom. He couldn’t make out what was going on. All he knew was that Lily was screaming and he needed to act.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Jake yelled out.

  One boy, no more than fifteen, jumped when he heard Jake’s voice and ran past him and out the door. Jake barreled into the room and saw a tall young man with his fist high in the air. He had the other hand pinning Lily to the bed. Jake flew over to stop him, but the boy punched Lily in the jaw just before Jake landed on his back. The two of them scuffled. Jake was finally able to overpower him and punched him in the chest hard enough to send him falling backward back into the living room. He landed with a thud and began groaning about his neck.

  Jake turned around to face the two guys left in the bedroom. He scanned the room and saw Lily in a corner, half-dressed and crouched down low. He felt sick to his stomach. Jake was no angel. He’d run trains on girls as a teenager. But he’d put that world so far behind him that he had almost managed to convince himself that it never existed.

  “Y’all can’t get no ass on your own?” he said to one boy who had his belt buckle undone.

  “That’s Jake . . .” said the other boy, whispering to his friend.

  “What are you doing here? With . . .” The boy looked over at Lily, who was lying in a still heap in the corner. “With that.”

  “I’m giving you exactly one second to get out,” Jake whispered. “Take your friend with him before I break his neck for real.”

  The boys scrambled out of the bedroom and picked up the friend who was on the floor. One of the boys whispered “freak” as they dragged their friend out of the apartment.

  Jake rushed over to Lily’s limp figure in the corner. Her eye was turning purple and she had a split lip and a few deep cuts on her cheek and forearm.

  “Let me help you up,” Jake said, taking her arm.

  Lily was silent. Jake watched a droplet of blood fall out o
f the side of her mouth and down her chin.

  “Shit,” Jake whispered. He picked Lily up, unsure if he was doing the right thing, and placed her gently on the bed.

  Jake took out his cell phone and called 911. He gave his location and her name and then sat on the edge of the bed, holding Lily’s head in his lap. Every five minutes, he placed his hand over her heart to make sure it was still beating. Although she was unconscious, she was still alive.

  “What happened!”

  Jake looked up and saw a young woman, out of breath and panting, standing in the doorway.

  “I don’t know,” said Jake. “Who are you?”

  “What did you do to her . . .” the girl said, walking slowly in his direction.

  “I didn’t touch her,” Jake said calmly. “I came over and some guys—”

  “Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod . . .” the girl said, whimpering. She sat down on the bed next to him and stroked Lily’s forehead, moving her hair and placing a lock of it behind her ear.

  “She’s dead.”

  “No. She’s just unconscious. Ambulance is on the way.”

  The girl seemed to wake up from a dream.

  “You called an ambulance? Then you need to get out of here,” she said. She went to the window of Lily’s bedroom and looked out.

  “And you need to go now.”

  Jake didn’t move. He didn’t know who the chick was. But he was going to make sure that Lily was taken care of. And he was going to make sure his face was the first one she saw when she woke up.

  “I’m not going anywhere,” Jake said, shifting his weight so that Lily could fit more comfortably in his lap. “You go.”

  The girl clapped her hands under her chin and closed her eyes. She looked like a small child about to say her nightly prayers.

  “Please listen to me,” she said. “My name is Corinne. I’m Lily’s friend.”

  “So?”

  “So. I—. I really don’t think you want to be here when the ambulance gets here. There’s a crowd of people outside. Reporters, cameras, all of that. You do not want them to see you here.”

  “I don’t care.”

  “You will care. Trust me.”

  “Corinne, I’m not leaving. Period. I’m staying here and I’m going with her to the hospital.”

  Jake watched Corinne carefully. Her mouth kept opening up and closing and she was breathing heavily. She only looked away from Jake when the sounds of the approaching ambulance filled the apartment. Jake could hear a commotion coming from the area right below Lily’s bedroom window. Corinne knelt down next to him and put her hands on Lily’s cheek. She leaned in and whispered something in her ear that Jake couldn’t hear. As soon as she stood up, Jake could hear the bustle of EMTs rushing into the apartment.

  Jake and Corinne moved back to the wall near Lily’s closet as the men moved Lily onto a stretcher and shouted orders at each other.

  “Jake,” Corinne whispered. “Lily really can’t have people knowing that you were here.”

  “Why? Is she married or something?”

  “It’s not my place to say why. I just really want you to know that it’s not something she would want. If you care about her . . . and it seems like you do . . . you should not go to the hospital with her.”

  Jake turned to look at Corinne. She had her head down. The EMTs hoisted Lily out of the bedroom and started out of the apartment. Corinne grabbed a bag and walked behind them. When they got to the front door, Corinne turned around. Jake was still in Lily’s room, watching her. She looked at him for a moment, walked into the hallway of the building, and then closed the apartment door.

  Jake looked around Lily’s bedroom and then out the window. She was being placed in the back of the ambulance while several people stood around gawking. Jake went into the kitchen and looked for a sponge. He wet it, squeezed it out, and took it back into Lily’s bedroom. He knelt down and began scrubbing the bloodstains out of the floor. A few hours later, her apartment was as clean and neat as the day Jake came over unannounced and ate Lily’s leftovers.

  It was nightfall when Jake heard a key turn in the front door. He stood behind the sofa, his hands clasped in front of him.

  “Watch your step,” said Corinne. “Here. Give me your hand.”

  “I got it, Corinne. Just let me—”

  Lily saw Jake and froze. Corinne turned around and her eyes widened.

  “You’re still here?!”

  Jake ignored Corinne, walking slowly over to Lily and putting his hand on her back. He felt a tightening in his chest when he saw the two rows of black stitches on the side of her head. The skin beneath was red and puffy. Her eye was now dark purple, hugely swollen, and completely shut. Her left arm was bent at the elbow, close to her chest, wrapped in a plaster cast.

  “You okay?” Jake asked, rubbing Lily’s back.

  Lily kept her eyes down.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked softly.

  “I never left,” said Jake. “And I’m not leaving.”

  Jake saw Lily exchange a glance with Corinne. Corinne shook her head, dropped Lily’s bag on the couch, and headed for the door.

  “I’ll be back in thirty minutes,” she said, before walking out.

  Jake took Lily by the arm and led her into the bedroom.

  “You cleaned up,” Lily said, looking around the room.

  “Relax,” said Jake, easing her down onto the bed. “Who were those guys?”

  “They live in the building. They’ve been messing with me for a while now.”

  Lily winced as she tried to prop herself against a pillow.

  “They usually just talk shit. But today I came up the stairs and they were hanging outside my door. I opened the door and they pushed their way in.”

  “Why would they—”

  “Jake, I need to talk to you.”

  “I need to talk to you too.”

  Jake started pacing back and forth in the bedroom.

  “I’m not saying that I’m, like, trying to be with you forever or anything . . .” Jake peeked at Lily to see her reaction. She was staring at her lap. “But I am saying that I like you. A lot.”

  “Jake—”

  “Damn, would you please let me talk?” Jake shook his head. “You’re always trying to fight me off and it’s annoying as hell. I know you want to take things slow. And I know you don’t want me to treat you like a groupie. Which is easy because you don’t act like a groupie.”

  Lily furrowed her eyebrows and then put her head back down.

  “That didn’t sound right. Forget about the groupie thing. Look, I just want you to let down your guard and let me in. I know it’s hard. I never let a woman into my life until I met Kipenzi. I’m glad she showed me how to get in touch with my feelings and all that stuff. She would want me to do this. She would want me to pursue someone I’m interested in and see where it goes.”

  Jake stopped talking and pacing and waited for Lily to say something.

  “Why’d you come over here? Earlier.”

  “I wanted to tell you that I just cashed out,” said Jake. “As of next month I am no longer a CEO. Or a recording artist. I don’t have a clothing line or a restaurant.”

  “Congratulations?” Lily asked.

  “Yes. Definitely. Congratulate me. I’m looking forward to the rest of my life.”

  “I’m happy for you.”

  “Lily. I want to start this new chapter of my life with you.”

  “You don’t even know me.”

  “I know enough.”

  “No, you don’t.”

  Jake stood up and went to the wall covered with photos on Lily’s bedroom wall.

  “Who are these people?”

  Lily put her head back on the pillow and closed her eyes.

  “Family. Friends.”

  “Why don’t you have any pictures of yourself up here?”

  “I do. You just don’t recognize me.”

  Jake combed the wall with his eyes and then gave up.r />
  “I don’t see you.”

  “You’re not looking hard enough.”

  Jake shrugged and walked over to where Lily sat. He knelt down on the floor and put his hands on her face.

  “I’m clean, Lily,” said Jake.

  “I know. I’m proud of you.”

  “You got me here.”

  “No, Jake. You got yourself here.”

  “You helped me.”

  “Because you were ready to be helped.”

  “Why won’t you take any credit?”

  “I don’t deserve any.”

  Jake leaned over and kissed Lily on the lips. He felt her resisting him, but he didn’t stop until she relaxed and kissed him back. Lily pulled away and pointed to her closet.

  “At the top,” she said. “Bring me the brown box.”

  Jake brought the box over and helped Lily up into a sitting position. She used her good arm to pull a photo album out of the box and onto the bed. Jake felt his pulse quicken. Lily wasn’t making eye contact and her body language was awkward and distant. Lily picked up a photo book and leaned back on the bed, clutching the book to her chest.

  “I’m from Ohio,” Lily said.

  “Yeah? What part?”

  “Rendville. About an hour and a half from Columbus.”

  Jake kept his eyes on Lily.

  “What’s popping in Rendville?”

  “Absolutely nothing,” said Lily. “There’s less than fifty people there.”

  “Word?”