by Elbie Dee
A part of me wished he wouldn’t have allowed her to know about our relationship, but then again, what other excuse could there be as to why a CAN was arguing full forcefully with a visitor. She took a sip of the drink she obviously bought from the cafeteria, as she looked up to Ocho who stood six-feet tall.
“She’s good. You can go now,” she said, after the gulp of drink was down her throat and she removed her light pink, full lips from the cup.
“Sorry to bother you,” Ocho replied, after he reached his hand out for her to shake.
Instead of being rude, she returned the manners and shook his hand before he took off down the hallway to leave. In a way, I was upset he didn’t say goodbye to me. Assumingly. He must be still hurt from the course of pain I caused during our relationship.
“I’m so sorry about that,” I apologized to Neakah as the two of us stood outside of the room.
“Yup,” she replied before walking past me.
Purposely, she bumped her shoulder against mine before entering the room. A lot of me wanted to lose my job and snap her by her pin straight black hair for being such a bitch, but instead, I chose to be the adult.
After approaching Tiah and explaining the situation, I asked if I could have the rest of the shift off. Without wanting to cause more commotion in the wing, she accepted while telling me to make sure I was on time my next shift.
“Thanks girl,” I said to Tiah as I grabbed my purse from the cabinet.
“Get some rest today, baby,” she instructed, after welcoming me in for a warm hug.
As I felt the tears creeping into my eyelids, I hurried her contact and rushed for the elevators. Luckily, no one else was on the elevator with me. Once I was loaded onto the machine, water began to pour down my almond colored cheeks. I wasn’t aware of how much I missed Ocho until I looked into his dark grey eyes, and the good memories of us together played from them like a movie screen.
Bayleigh
Shutting my eyes was the best way to get the nurse to leave my room. In much pain, I didn’t wish to be bothered by some bitch I barely knew. Granted, she could have been the sweetest person in the world; her beauty was certainly visible. Without wishing to engage in much conversation, pretending to rest was my escape.
“Girl! You won’t believe what the fuck just happened!” Neakah said, after entering the room and closing the door behind her.
She hadn’t made it around the corner of the wall yet before I heard her screeching voice coming in. Once she was visible, I shot a look of agony her way. She had a cup of juice or some shit in her hand and a full tray of food. With all the tubes that had been shoved down my throat, my body was being filled with fluids and I hadn’t been able to eat.
“I’m sorry Bayleigh, but a bitch is hungry!” she pleaded.
She knew me like the back of her hand. I watched as she walked over to the off-white leather couch which converted into a bed for when visitors were allowed to spend the night. After resting her food tray on one of the cushions, she took a seat next to it. She rested her elbows on her knees while her feet were planted on the tile floor, while holding the styrofoam cup in between each of her palms.
“So first off, Chris is here, and he wants to see you,” she informed me.
My eyes lit up like a Christmas tree, and as bad as I wanted to motion to Neakah that it was okay for him to come in, I took my eyes from her direction and shook my head in disagreement. Overall, he was the reason I took on drugs as a full-time job to begin with.
“I’ll let him know, but I have more tea first,” she admitted.
I looked her way with my eyebrows scrunched, so she would be able to notice my confusion. She looked back my way, but with much better body language then what I held. Her grin was wide, and eyebrows were raised; her shoulders lifted to beneath her earlobes. Whatever it was, I hoped it made me as excited as she appeared to be.
“There was this fine ass man outside of your room door a few minutes ago,” she began, while emphasizing the word fine while her eyes looked to the ceiling and rolled to the back of her head.
“He was arguing with his ex-girlfriend who is a nurse her when I walked up on them. The explanation he offered was that he saw you at the gas station, and wanted to make sure you were okay,” she concluded.
My eyes grew wide as I wondered who -besides Chris, would be searching for me. My mother passed a few years back and was a lone body who had no friends. It couldn’t have been a friend of my father’s either. He passed away when I was two years old in a car accident, so I never got the chance to get to know him.
I wanted to ask so many questions, but I couldn’t speak with all the shit the doctors had me hooked up to. Curiosity took over me as I wondered, which caused a single tear to flow down my cheek. In addition to that, I thought about the attack I was forced to go through.
Addiction became a thing that took over my personality. Even with all the men I fucked for a few dollars to get a bag of whatever I could, not one ever tried my intelligence. Normally, they got pussy or some head and handed my cash. This time, someone was all in for a free ride. Needless to say, they received just what they were wishing for.
“You want me to turn the T.V. on?” Neakah asked as she looked over to the thirty-two inch that was mounted to the wall in front of my bed.
After nodding my head, she got up and took the remote that was attached to the bed by a cord and powered it on. Flipping through the channels, I noticed she looked at me between each one. When the news station finally appeared, I began muttering to let her know to stop. As bad as it would traumatize me to relive my attack, I was in desperate need of knowing if they caught the bastard who did this to me.
Hearing Neakah grub on her food no longer had an effect on me. My eyes were glued to the flat screen as I watched the weather forecast and waited for the stories to start showing.
What seemed like forever and a day, the anchor began narrating the stories while showing clips of the incidents. When the moment came for my story to show, I held my breath and was sure rose pedals began to form upon my pale cheeks.
“Twenty-eight-year-old identified as Bayleigh Crease is currently being hospitalized and is in stable condition after the attack which happened on the block of 2nd Avenue and 36th Street. The attacker, as known as Pedro Ramirez, has been arrested and is currently being held without bond on charges,” I released my breath once it was confirmed that the mother fucker was behind bars.
“Well that’s good news, bitch,” Neakah expressed with a mouth full of food. When I grazed my eyes toward her, it looked like she had just finished with her plate and was placing it back beside her.
Knock! Knock!
We heard a noise before the doctor came in introducing himself before he was visible to me. Neakah, who sat on the couch, was able to get a view. Noticing she didn’t have an expression upon him walking in, before I even heard his voice, I knew it wasn’t an unwelcomed visitor.
“Hello, Ms. Crease,” the tall, male doctor introduced as he made his way to the sink to lather up his hands.
I watched as the six-foot-three Caucasian man, who looked to be in his sixties, activated the faucet by lifting the stainless-steel lever. Once a palm size amount of foam soap dripped onto his left hand from the dispenser, he joined his hands together and scrubbed before rinsing his hands.
He took two sheets of white paper towels from the holder and pat his hands dry, before using the damp towels to turn the water off. The full head of short length, gray hair he sported grazed over his forehead wrinkles as he tossed the paper towels into the trash can. After grabbing a pair of latex gloves from the box, he put them onto his hands and walked to my bedside.
“Let’s check you out,” he stated before grabbing his retinoscope from the front pocket of his white coat.
“You can check me out too,” Neakah whispered from behind him.
He chuckled, and I rolled my eyes. Admittingly, he was a nice-looking older man, but it wasn’t my thing like it’s always been
hers. Not being able to count a time where she dated anyone under ten years over her age, I assumed mature looking men gave her the ultimate sexual desire.
“Your swelling has gone down tremendously since last night. Still some bruising, but in all, you’re recovering well,” he informed me as he investigated the damage done to my face.
He put the retinoscope back in his coat pocket after throwing the plastic cap, that sat on the nose part, in the garbage. After grabbing his stethoscope from around his neck and putting it to my chest to listen, he took his index and middle finger and placed it on my pressure points.
“I think its safe to say that we can remove the oxygen tubes today, and get you started on a light diet,” he stated, which brought music to my ears. “We’re going to keep you a few more days to keep an eye on you.”
“See, bitch. And you were looking at me all crazy for grubbing in your face!” Neakah laughed after the doctor left the room.
If looks could kill, she’d be dead. I loved my girl and all, but her mouth was reckless most of the time. Annoyed at her screeching voice, I took my eyes from her and closed them shut. With the tubes still down my throat, I had to humble myself since I couldn’t cuss her out yet.
∞∞∞
“Echhh,” I coughed upon waking up, after the endotracheal tube had been removed.
My throat was sore, like I had just smoked two packs of Newport cigarettes back to back: one-hundreds to be exact. Since I was unconscious upon arriving at the emergency room, I didn’t get a chance to feel when it went in. At first, I wondered why they didn’t run oxygen through my nose but was soon made aware that my nose was broken, and a risk couldn’t be taken to push oxygen through a nasal tube.
“Wh-what,” I stuttered, and swallowed to try and regain hydration in my throat before continuing. “The fuck. Are you doing here?”
Squinting my eyes and trying to look past the bright light in the room, I was met with the presence of Chris once I looked to see if Neakah was still on the couch. Neakah was informed to let him know to leave, but either she never told him, or he didn’t listen. Knowing him, she probably did make him aware. He’s never been a good listener.
“Bayleigh, please,” he whispered, as he had his feet planted on the tile with his elbows resting on his knees.
His man hands dangled beside each of his thighs. The puppy dog face he made caused wrinkles to form upon his forehead, right below the hair line to his low-cut, dirty blonde hair. The matching colored goatee was freshly shaved, and his dark blue eyes shone in the beam of the light. For a second, all the wrong he done was forgotten about, but I quickly snapped myself from admiring the man who hurt me the most.
“Please nothing, Chris. If you wouldn’t have shoved your dick in all the bitches you did during our relationship, then I wouldn’t be here. Hell! The only reason I’m not over the hills searching for drugs right now is probably because they’re pumping me with morphine!” I managed to get out of my mouth before gagging and trying to catch my breath.
“Bayleigh, I’m fucking sorry!” he yelled. Noticing he made my body jump in fear as I laid on the hard ass hospital bed, he calmed his tone.
“That was the past. I’m sorry for hurting you and I hope one day you forgive me. Besides all that, I still don’t wish anything bad to happen to you. I love you and always will. When you’re released, I want to offer to get you checked into rehab. Maybe we can try our hand at a relationship again,” he concluded.
Sincerity rested in his voice, and for a second, I thought about taking him up on the offer. Past all of the bad times were loads of good ones. A smile crept upon my face when I remembered a vacation we went on together to Disneyland in California. Sure, Disney World in Orlando would have been closer, but we needed to get far away.
Needing a break from Florida, we boarded a plane and landed at the John Wayne Airport in California. After catching an Uber to the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, we checked into our hotel and prepared for a week full of fun.
Since we landed at five in the afternoon, and wasn’t fully settled until seven, we decided we would lay low the first night and get drunk in our room. We got wasted from the vodka Chris managed to get past airport security and fucked all night long.
The day after, we were fully recovered from our hangovers around one in the afternoon. We got dressed and enjoyed the rest of the days around the resort. From roller coaster rides to late night bar hops, we had nothing less than a fantastic time. Our trip came after Chris’ infidelities and him swearing to me he’d never hurt me again.
The trip was considered to be our new beginning. Sparks between us were reclaimed and cloud nine became a thing again. Even after returning to Miami, we kept a good and honest relationship for a while… until the day came when I found out our rebuilt relationship was apparently being taken for a joke from him. Little did he know, I was finished with him for good.
“I don’t want your help Chris,” I said to him while trying to control my tears.
As bad as I wanted him, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to give up my addiction. Besides, men like him don’t change, and I’ll eventually be forced back into the streets of Miami doing it all over again.
Ocho
She doesn’t look as good as she used to.
I thought to myself as I was getting into the driver’s side of my vehicle. Sure, Zaiya will always be beautiful, but something changed with her. It wasn’t the curly up-do, or the magnetic lashes and smoky-eye makeup she’s been wearing for years. The change in her look, in my eyes, felt like it was coming from her soul.
Back in the day, she was a happy spirit. Even through all of the changes in her sudden need for other men’s attention, she kept the same happy soul. This time, I felt as if her welcoming spirit had turned to become a dark tunnel. From the vibes she gave off, I knew she wasn’t cheerful with her life.
Ring!
I answered my Samsung Galaxy S10 on the first ring, as I cruised down the road and headed back home. Since I owned my own athletic business, I could pick and choose when I wanted to go to work… especially when no clients were scheduled for the day.
“Ocho Spinks on the line. How may I help you?” I answered since it was a private call and could have been a potential client.
“Hello?” I asked in a confused manner. Instead of getting a straightforward reply, all I heard were whimpers on the other end of my line.
“Hello?” the voice replied as the sounds of sniffling remained.
“Yes. How may I help you?” I decided to remain as professional as possible, despite who I imagined the call to be from.
“I miss you, Ocho!” the woman cried aloud. I should have went with my gut, and not answered the fucking call to begin with.
“Zaiya? What the fuck man!” I screamed.
Luckily, I was at a red light. If I weren’t, I could have caused a deadly crash from the way I took my phone from my ear and directed my attention toward screaming into the mouthpiece of the phone. I was fucking hot.
“I had to leave work because I couldn’t emotionally handle seeing you checking on another woman! I get I fucked up in the past, but can we at least talk?” she asked as the light turned green.
“What’s there to talk about?” I calmly questioned, as I took my foot from the brake pedal and caught a steady speed.
“I just need closure, Ocho,” she cried out to me.
“Fuck Zaiya!” I said in an irritated manner. “Send me the damn address!” I yelled before disconnecting my end of the line and throwing my phone onto the passenger’s seat.
Ding!
I sucked my teeth when I heard the notification on my phone go off. Regret quickly crept upon my soul for agreeing to meet with Zaiya. Instinctively, there wasn’t a way in hell we were just going to have a talk like she implied. Instead, I was aware that either disaster would strike, or I’d fall for her manipulative ass all over again.
Approaching another red light, I grabbed my phone from the seat it laid on as I reduced my
speed. Once I was at a stop, I opened the text notification before clicking on the address link she sent me. With seconds to spare, I was able to set the address in the Google Maps application before the light turned green. After placing my foot on the gas pedal, I was ten minutes away from what felt like was going to be the biggest mistake I could ever make.
First, you gotta forgive me,
Let me know everything gon’ be okay.
PARTYNEXTDOOR and Rihanna’s song, Believe It, whispered through the speakers of my stereo. After clipping my phone to its stand that was placed on the centered air vent of my Audi, I lowered my arm and turned the music up until it was only ten notches below the maximum volume. Creeping down the street, I kept my left hand on the steering wheel as my right forearm rested on the middle console.
Ten minutes later to the second, and I was pulling into a luxurious apartment complex; at least it looked to be from the outside. The leasing office is the first thing you see with a round about leading into the start of the tall, three story buildings. Each building had freshly trimmed bushes lining the cherry red, brick walls.
After passing a small park, a pool and a building in which I assumed was a fitness center, I was led to the building that was deemed to be my destination, according to the GPS. Once I located the door that had a fancy G letter hanging above it, I pulled into the empty space that was directly in front of the door next to it.
“Here we fucking go,” I said to myself aloud as I placed my gear into park.
Before powering off the ignition, I grabbed my phone from the stand and shot a text to Zaiya to let her know I had arrived. I grabbed my phone and key fob and slowly opened the driver’s side door.
When I took my left foot from my floorboard and rested on my door panel with my foot hanging outside, I took a quick look into my rearview mirror to be sure I looked alright. Impressing her wasn’t on my mind, but I needed to be sure I looked better than the last time she remembered me… and that I was doing even better without her.