by Kia
“I heard Percy got her staying with Slick. Put some clothes on so we can go,” I said as I waited for them to get dressed.
I couldn’t believe this shit.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Nyssa
These had been the worst couple of days of my life. My son not being here put me in so much stress. He didn’t have anything to do with the shit I had going on. He was innocent. Damn. I had two problems on my hand; Bleek and the other fuck nigga. I refused to say his name. He didn’t even deserve it.
There was a knock at the door.
“Who is it?” I yelled from the couch. This was Slick’s place, so I wasn’t with opening the door for strangers. His ass ain’t been here since I made it back.
“It’s Divine. Open the door!”
Divine? What the hell was she doing at Slick’ house? I jumped up and opened the door to Divine, Malina and Neiman. I knew it was a catch. Neiman was the last person I wanted to see, so I rolled my eyes at her as I walked back to the couch. Never had I been around a more negative person in my life.
“Bitch, you wasn’t gonna tell us PJ was being held for ransom?” Malina asked as she sat in the chair across from the couch I laid on. Divine and Neiman sat on the other chairs beside her.
“I don’t like bothering people with my problems.”
“What?” Malina asked.
“Don’t play,” Divine said.
“Told y’all,” Neiman said.
“What happened?” Divine asked.
“Fuck all the small talk. How much they want?” Malina asked.
“It’s some nigga that Percy owe. His name is Bleek,” I said as I choked up. I almost cried thinking about it.
“Bleek? Damn, why that sound familiar?” Divine asked.
“Shit, I don’t know. But how much they want?” Malina asked.
“They added on, so now they want $100,000.”
“And we can’t afford that, so we need another route to take,” Neiman said.
“You know what’s funny to me?” Divine asked Neiman.
“What?” Neiman responded.
“Last night you spent all that damn time complaining about how you needed to come up with money so Nel could walk again, but you never once mentioned how much was needed for PJ,” Divine said. I was happy someone other than me let Neiman know how fucked up she was in the head.
“Are you kidding me?” Malina asked. “But she wanna tell us we need to go another route for PJ; her nephew.”
“Y’all see what I mean now?” I added.
“So y’all just bouta gang up on me?” Neiman asked as she stood up like she wanted to fight.
“Sit your punk ass down,” Malina said as she rolled her eyes.
“What’s up, Malina? Huh? You acting like you wanna catch this fade,” Neiman posted up with her fist balled. The tension was thicker than a steak.
“Shit, what’s up?” Malina stood up, but Divine got between them.
That’s when the front door came flying open. It was Tayla and some other girl. Out of all of the women in the room, the first person she saw was Divine.
“I knew it! Told you he was still fucking with that bitch, Quita. That’s her right there,” Tayla said as she pointed to Divine.
“Who you calling a bitch?” Divine asked, pushing Neiman and Malina out the way. All of us stood up, ready for shit to pop off.
“Why you here?” Quita asked.
“Bitch, who the fuck are you?” Malina asked, stepping in front of Divine. Quita looked like she was from South Dallas. She was black as hell with blonde hair and a fat ass booty.
“I’m Quita, hoe. Why y’all at Slick house? And where he at?”
“Everybody calm down. Slick let me stay here for a while because my house had gotten broken into, but I’ll leave now,” I said as I gathered my stuff. Divine was mugging the shit out of Tayla.
“Nah, you ain’t gotta go nowhere. Tayla need to be getting her shit,” Slick said as he walked in with another dude all calm and shit.
“Nigga, so you choosing them hoes over me?” Tayla asked, getting all up in his face. He took his right hand and threw it into her neck. Then he tightened the grip, being sure to choke the hell out of her. Quita tried to grab him, but his homeboy grabbed her.
“Bitch, didn’t I tell you to go head ’bout ya business? Huh? Why you wanna fuck with a nigga at all the wrong times?” he asked. Her eyes looked like they were about to pop out of her head.
“Let her go, Slick,” Divine said softly as she gently put her hands on his back.
He still didn’t budge. It took a good minute before he was satisfied with almost killing her. He finally let go, and Tayla fell to the ground, literally fighting for air.
“I… hate you,” Tayla said as she grabbed her throat.
“You ain’t the only one,” he said as he looked back at Quita. “Get this bitch out my crib,” he said before going up the stairs.
Before we knew it, we saw Tayla’s clothes flying down. Malina had a grin of satisfaction on her face.
“Slick!” Tayla yelled with a scratchy voice.
“Let me go!” Quita said, wiggling away from the dude.
“Get ya shit and get gone, hoe,” Malina said, waving her manicured nails at Tayla.
“Done showed ya ass too bad and daddy don’t want ya no more.” Slick’s homeboy laughed.
“Hurry up, Tayla. Nigga tired of looking at you,” Slick said as he walked down the stairs with the last of her belongings. She was crying hysterically like she didn’t see this coming. Hell, a blind man could see this coming.
“Tayla, don’t beg this hoe ass nigga. Come on.” Quita started picking up Tayla’s stuff.
“Slick, I just wanted to know if—”
“Bitch, get the fuck out my face ’fo I do something bad to you and ya ugly ass cousin,” Slick said as he stood in front of Quita.
“Nigga, fuck you! Ain’t nobody in this room gonna pop me,” she said.
Malina pulled up so smooth and hit her with a two piece, forcing Quita to fall into the front door. It happened so fast that Quita didn’t even have time to register what was going on. Malina hit that hoe in the throat and it was over.
“Ooooh shit,” Slick’s friend said as he squinted, but still didn’t break it up. Quita, like Tayla did, had to gasp for air.
“That’s enough,” Divine said as she pulled Malina off Quita. One thing about Malina, she was a small lil’ pretty thing, but she was like a firecracker when it came to fighting. That’s what her and Divine were known for. Malina had them hands. One would mistake her as a friendly ass chick. Big, tall, fat or skinny… Malina was with the shits. Ready to fight whoever.
“Move, hoe,” Tayla said, running up on Divine. Before she could sneak Divine, Slick yanked her back and threw her out the front door. Then his partner picked Quita’s big ass up and tossed her out too.
“Y’all good?” Slick asked.
Tayla was beating on the door and crying. Then she started threatening to call the police, but Slick ignored it.
“We good. Just about to leave,” I said as I grabbed my purse.
“Why?” he asked.
“Nigga, you got monkeys throwing shit,” Neiman said, pointing to the door.
“Well, let me walk y’all out so they won’t fuck with y’all,” he said as he put his gun on the table.
“Nigga, we good. Them hoes weak,” Malina said. Then they exchanged this awkward look. Well, it was awkward to me.
“Whatever, c’mon.”
Before he could open the door, bullets came flying. We all hit the floor. Slick crawled over to his gun and started busting back, along with his homie.
“Tayla ass is crazy!” Neiman yelled as the shooting continued. Finally, we all got up after the shooting stopped.
“Mane, I’m bouta murk this hoe. That’s self-defense,” his partner yelled as he opened the door, only to find Tayla hovering over Quita’s body.
“What the fuck?” Slick asked.
> “Who was busting?” His partner asked as he ran to the street to see the car that had just sped off.
“I don’t know! Call somebody! Please!” Tayla yelled as everyone came outside yelling.
This felt like a bad ass dream, and I was ready to wake up. If it wasn’t Tayla shooting, then I had been found by the person that I was hiding from.
“I’ll call,” Divine said, pulling her phone out.
“Fuck!” Slick yelled as he threw his hands over his head. He was just as confused as everyone else was.
“G, we need to get that shit out the crib,” his partner said. Then him and Slick ran inside and came back out with choppas. After putting all the guns in Slick’s car, they left.
Me, Malina, Neiman and Divine hopped in Divine’s truck. It had been a long time since I’d seen a dead body and it was scary. Before driving off, I took one last look at Tayla. That’s a perfect example of why people need to stay out the way and out of drama. Because they were at the wrong place at the wrong time. And now her cousin was shot and possibly dead.
When we got to the stop sign, I saw a car with tint. I didn’t pay it any mind. But as we were pulling off, the driver cracked the window and allowed me to see his face. I caught the chills. This was not a coincidence that he was here at this time. Now he wasn’t just fucking with me. He wanted my life.
Either I had to kill him, or I would be dead soon.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Neiman
We all had a crazy day, so we ended up at the Holiday Inn downtown. Divine and Malina went half on our rooms. The plan was for all of us to have separate rooms, but Nyssa was scared to be alone so she roomed up with Divine. Malina and I had our own rooms. But they were all on the same hall. I couldn’t believe all of this bullshit was happening. Somebody was trying to kill one of us, and we had no clue who.
But on the other hand, I don’t like the way Malina tried to play me earlier, so I had something for her ass. I texted Divine and asked her for Glory’s number and she gave it to me. I overheard Malina telling Divine that she was going on a date with Glory tonight, so you know I had to block that shit. Hoe had me fucked all the way up. I knew this would get under her skin. I got a knock at my door and grinned as I peeked out the peephole and saw Glory. Quickly, I opened the door and let him in. He was looking good as ever.
“What’s up, love?” He gave me a hug and walked over to the couch. I don’t know why he did that. He knew what was on my mind.
“Just stressed out. We got off on bad terms earlier.”
“You think so?”
“You don’t?” I asked.
“Nah, you just sensitive. So what’s up? Why you call me here?” He asked.
“Can I vent?”
“Sure. Can I smoke my blunt?” He asked.
“Go ahead. Come sit by me,” I said, trying not to sound like a hoe. He smiled, took his shoes off, and sat on the opposite end of the bed.
“Talk.”
“Shit, where do I start?” I asked.
“Anywhere.”
“Well, I want to start by getting to know you,” I confessed. Glory was mysterious, like a cat. Didn’t talk much. As a matter of fact, he didn’t speak unless he was spoken to.
“I’m Glory,” he said sarcastically, placing his hand out for me to shake it.
“I’m Neiman. How old are you?” I asked.
“Twenty-six.”
“Is Glory your real name?”
He laughed and shook his head. Guess he was used to being asked that.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“How long did it take you to grow them dreads?”
“Since I was fifteen.”
“Really?”
“Yaa.”
“You must be from New Orleans?” I asked.
“Yaa, how you know?”
“By the way you talk. So are you single?”
“Yaa.”
“Got kids?”
“Yaa.”
“How many?”
“I got one.”
“Really? So why aren’t you with her mom?” I asked.
“Her mom died in a flood a couple years back.”
“Oh my God. I’m so sorry to hear that,” I said as I out my hand’s over my heart.
“It’s all good. Me and my daughter do just fine.” He lit his blunt and took a puff. Then offered it to me, but I refused.
“So you raise her alone?” I asked.
“Yaa, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“What’s her name?” I asked.
“Rayne. She’s seven.”
“Am I asking too many questions?” I asked.
“Nah, you cool. That’s how you get to know people. I knew you would hit me up though.”
“How?”
“I just knew. Glad you did. I fucks with you, love. You cool, yaa.”
“Glad somebody thinks so. My cousins and sister been ganging up on me all day,” I confessed.
“Why?”
“They feel like I put my boyfriend before everyone.”
“Oh yaa?”
“What you think?”
“I told you how I feel. Put ya husband before everyone. Not a fuck nigga that ain't even put a ring on it. Do you feel like he deserves all of you like that, yaa?”
“No,” I confessed and it was so hard to hear myself admit that.
“Let me ask you something, love.”
“Yes?”
“Do you love yourself?” he asked. I laughed. “I’m serious,” he said.
The more I searched for an answer, the more I realized that I didn’t know. So I said what sounded right. “Yes.”
“What do you eat?” he asked and that confused me.
“Huh?”
“Just answer.”
“I like Taco Bell. Oh, and Sonic. Why? You hungry?” I asked.
“Nah, just helping you see if you love yourself or not. Do you eat fruit? Drink water? Eat vegetables?”
“I hate water. It doesn’t taste like nothing. I eat fruit and veggies every once in a while. What does that have to do with loving myself?”
“When you found out that nigga was cheating on you, did you at least make him wear rubbers after that? I bet you didn’t. Be real…”
“No,” I said as I put my head down.
“So how you gonna love yourself and you don’t even take care of yourself? You eat toxic, think toxic and allow a toxic nigga all up in your womb… your temple,” he said.
It felt like he had just thrown me off a hill. Never heard a reality like that before. If felt like today was judgment day, and all of my sins were on front street.
“But I loved him and wanted to make it work,” I pleaded.
“So you wanted to see him happy before making your own self happy?” he asked.
“But seeing him happy made me happy.”
“So you needed him? You loved him more than you loved yourself?”
“Damn, Glory! Stop.”
“Stop what?” he asked.
“Stop what you’re doing. I know I fucked up, okay?”
“Okay, but answer me.”
“Why are you doing this?” I asked.
“You asked me to. Now answer. Do you love yourself?”
It felt like Sunday morning in church when the pastor was deep into his sermon and all of your feelings came out in tears.
“No,” I said as tears threatened to fall.
“When did you stop loving yourself?” he asked.
Again, I couldn’t answer because I didn’t know. “Do you remember ever loving yourself?” He asked when he noticed that I didn’t have an answer.
“No,” I said. each time I said no , it took more and more out of me. Felt like I was naked with all of my clothes on. This is not what I expected out of Glory tonight. Now I was starting to see the beauty in his name.
“What do you love about yourself?” He asked. I didn’t answer. I didn’t know. “That’s okay; most people don’t know the answer to that ques
tion.”
“Man.”
“What?”
“I never realized how much I was fucked up. Everyone was right about me. I ain’t shit.”
“What? Don’t say that. The only difference between you and the people that judge you is they don’t know that they don’t love themselves. They’re too busy looking down on you to see their own bullshit. They don’t wanna help. Or maybe they do and you just pushed them away. Did you push them away?”
“Yes,” I confessed. Finally, I could answer yes, but this was still bad.
“Well, there ya go.”
“Teach me,” I said.
“Teach you what?”
“Teach me how to love.”
“How to love who?” he asked. He knew the answer but he wanted me to hear me say it; self-revelation.
“Teach me how to love myself.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Nyssa
“Thanks, cuzz,” I said as I got the ice from Divine.
“No problem. Did you get enough rest?” she asked.
I had been asleep ever since we got to our room earlier. I cried myself to sleep. Still had bags under my eyes.
“Yes, thanks for asking.”
“Cool.”
“You know what I love about you, Divine?” I asked.
“Huh?”
“You hold all of us together. I don’t know what we would do without you. It’s like you don’t judge any of us. I feel so warm with you. Feel like you really love me.”
“I love all of my family,” she said as we lay in our separate beds.
“I really appreciate you.”
“We need to go see Percy tomorrow,” she said.
“For what?” I asked.
“We can’t waste no time. PJ is gone and they can off him any day now. This is not a game. Someone blew your car up.”
“We don’t need to go see him,” I said.
“Why?” she asked.
I started to tell her why, but I decided against it. She would surely judge me and it wouldn’t make sense. She probably wouldn’t believe me.
“He not gonna tell us shit. I already went to see him.”
“Well, how we gonna get in touch with Bleek?” She was right. But I had a plan on how to get that money back. From the same nigga that stole it. The same nigga that was stalking me. I needed to keep my mind on him because that’s how I was going to get Bleeks’ shit back. And after I got that shit back, I was gonna kill him for playing with me.
