Forced Out of the Darkness

by Jackson Jr, G. Wayne

  “My day was cool. I can’t wait to get home.”

  “I want you to come by my place when you get home ok. I want to treat you to a nice early dinner/late lunch.”

  “I can do that. I will come over when I get in.”

  “I am going to grab something to eat and then go to sleep. I have a crazy director that is looking at me now so I have to make sure that I am clearly early tomorrow.”

  “Good night, Monti.”

  “Good night, Cam. Love you.”

  Cameron sat in the bed thinking about his relationship with Monti. He knew that it was new and he also liked being in a relationship. He was a better man in a relationship than outside of one. He wanted to do something to show his appreciation for Monti. He noticed when he was over at Monti’s place that he had a pretty substantial collection of cologne. He decided that when he got in, he would stop by the mall at Macy’s and pick him up a bottle of cologne. He did notice that Monti didn’t have Bvlgari Black so he would get him a bottle of it as a gift. Cameron pulled out his laptop and went to Macy’s website to see if they had it in stock. He found out the store close to his house had a good supply. Satisfied, he called it an night. He realized that he wanted more of a relationship type of situation and would use tomorrow to let Monti know.

  Monti lay down to sleep and was sleeping well until his phone rang. He looked at the time and noticed it was about 2:00 am. He looked at his phone and the caller ID read ‘Unknown’. Monti did not answer unknown calls so he sent it to voice mail. A few minutes later, his phone notified him that he had a voice message. His curiosity got the best of him so he picked up the phone and dialed his voice mail to check his messages.

  Hey Monti, when are you going to come over and let me get some more of that stuff? You can’t be too happy in that weak ass relationship you have with that square. Think long and hard before you make the decision. I get what I want voluntarily or by other means. Peace.

  “Who the hell is that?” Monti thought. He did not recognize the voice. “What did he mean, I can’t be happy?” Monti did not know who this caller was and he definitely didn’t know what he wanted. “How did this guy get my number?” Monti was irritated and confused. He tried to go back to sleep but his mind was racing to fast for sleep. He thought about calling Cameron to tell him about the call but didn’t want to wake him because he had a few flights for tomorrow. He just simply pondered the call. He kept pushing the button to repeat the message but still could not identify who the caller was.

  The night rolled on by and Monti did not find much sleep. He just turned on the television and watched televangelists and infomercials all night. He would have to be up getting ready for work in about an hour and a half anyway. His mind continued to race throughout the night. Once his alarm clock went off letting him know that it was time to get up, he got up and went to his closet and pulled out another signature Tayion suit. He went to the bathroom to shower and groom himself. After he finished he went back to his room. When he re-emerged from his room, he looked like he was ready to take on the world. “Let him talk about this suit…” he thought as he went to work.

  Monti was headed to work at his normal time and thought that today was going to be a day where he just got through the day. Once he got to work, everything seemed to be normal. His evening counterpart briefed him on the prior shift and then he left. Nothing was out of the ordinary. Monti knew that he was going to be able to catch a nap because the day was slow. The thought kept running through Monti’s head…”who was that caller.” Monti’s cell phone rang.

  “Hey Monti, just giving you a call to see how your day was going.”

  “It’s is ok. I am a little sleepy but I will make sure that I take a nap before you get to my place.”

  “I am on my way to the airport; I am gonna be a little late coming in because they changed my flight I have to do a different flight back home.” Cameron lied about his arrival because he wanted to surprise Monti with the cologne.

  “What flight is that going to be?”

  “The 12:15 pm from Boston to Detroit.” Cameron pulled this out of thin air. He had to have time to get the gift so Monti would be surprised.

  “Just let me know when you come in. I am having a good day today. Hope your flights are safe and I will see you soon.”

  “Ok, bye.”

  Monti was excited to see Cameron. He seriously enjoyed the time they spent together. He knew that he had to address his issues but he did not know how too. How was he supposed to get a handle on his demons when they were so deeply rooted? He didn’t have any outlet to get help but didn’t even know where to go to seek help. He thought that once he was in a committed relationship, he would be able to be comfortable in the relationship. He had a gregarious past with many different conquests. He did not realize that everyone that he had relations with were still a part of him in a negative way. Monti had so much bad karma that he had put out that he was destined to have to pay for his ill deeds.

  Chapter Thirty

  e verything Happens For A Reason

  Cameron arrived back to Detroit without incident and was at the mall. He intentionally did not turn on his phone because he did not want Monti to know that he was there early. He knew exactly where the cologne was. He purchased it and had it gift-wrapped. The old lady in the gift-wrapping department was nice, but was slow as molasses in the wintertime. After about half hour, she was done and Cameron was out of the store. As he walked to his car, he turned on his cell phone. When he looked at the phone he saw that he had missed some voice messages. When he checked his voicemail, he had five messages from Monti. Cameron was concerned because he thought something had happened.

  “Hey Cameron, just checking in with you. What flight did you say you were coming in on? What time does it get here?”

  Cameron deleted the message.

  “Hey Cam, I called you and the phone is going right to voicemail. I guess you are still on the flight. Call me as soon as you land and get this message.”

  Delete.

  “Hey man, I called the airline and they don’t have any flights that come from Boston at the time that you said you were coming in. What is going on? Call me.”

  “Damn. Is he some investigator.” Cameron thought. Cameron became upset that Monti was going through such great lengths to check on him. He knew that he should not have lied but he wanted to surprise him. Cameron had wanted to stop and pick up some flowers for Monti but he opted not to because he was irritated. He didn’t want to go over there now but he told himself that he should and ask Monti what was really going on.

  “Hey call me back…”

  Delete.

  “Hey…”

  Delete.

  Cameron sat in his car for a moment to breathe and calm himself before he called Monti back. He could not believe that Monti was so insecure that he would do this. He was getting his thoughts together when his phone rang. He looked at the caller ID to find that it was Monti.

  “Hello.” Cameron answered not wanting to be bothered with this right now.

  “Hey Cameron, what is going on? I have been calling you and your phone has been off.” Monti said clearly irritated.

  “I am here now…what is up?” Cameron opted to try to not say much right now as he was at his tipping point.

  “I need you to be straight up with me Cameron. What is going on? I called the airline and they said there was not a flight from Boston to Detroit at the time you said it was. Don’t lie to me man. If you are seeing someone else just let me know. I thought we were going to be exclusive. What is the deal?”

  “First of all, who do you think you are calling me to try to check me? That is some fucked up shit, Monti. Where do you come off checking up on my flight?”

  “Don’t throw this on me? You said they changed your flight. Were you telling me the truth?”

  “No Monti, I told you that because I wanted to stop and get you something to surprise you. But you have taken this shit to a different level. What the hel
l is wrong with you and the insecurities?”

  “You wanted to get me a surprise?” Monti felt shame come over him. “I am so sorry, Cameron. I know I have some issues. I just need you to be straight up with me and don’t lie to me.”

  “You are saying that there will be no times where I can surprise you or do something for you without you playing fucking Sherlock Holmes?”

  “Cameron, I know you are mad at me right now and you have plenty of reason to be but if you can put yourself in my shoes for just a second babe to see where I am coming from.”

  “I don’t really care about where you are coming from right now. What you did was completely uncalled for and you want me to think about you?” Cameron spewed. “What about me? Can you put your insecure ass in my damn shoes? Here I am, trying to do something to put a damn smile on your fucking face and you do this bullshit.”

  “Man, I am sorry.” Was all Monti could manage to say as he felt a tear fall from his eye. In that moment he knew that his insecurities were jeopardizing his relationship. He wanted to be able to have a healthy relationship like anyone else, but he just could not shake these images that permeated his thoughts.

  Cameron was silent as his face burned with anger.

  “Please say something, Cameron.”

  Cameron sat there silently.

  “Baby…please say something. Are you there?”

  “What do you want to do right now, Monti? You fucked up a very nice day and for the record, I was having a great day.”

  “I realize that now. I am so sorry. Please forgive me?”

  Cameron could tell that Monti was sincere but he was angry. The Irish blood in him was hot. Cameron had a temper and had a hard time forgiving when he was wronged. He lived his life trying to do right by people and treating them well. When he was wronged, it was not easily forgiven.

  “I need to take some time for myself right now. I’ll call you later.”

  “Are you still coming by?”

  “I said I will call you later. Do I have to be any clearer?”

  “Ok, I understand. Please call me later. I will wait to hear from you.”

  “Bye.”

  Cameron started his car and drove it home where he could sit and think about the events that took place today. How did he find an insecure man who looked like he was full of confidence? What was he doing in this situation? Cameron pondered the situation but in his anger he was focusing on the negative. He knew that was not going to be a good end result if he did. He decided that he would take a nap, in hopes that he would not be as angry when he woke up. Once at home, he lit the candles that he kept in his bedroom windowsill, then he turned off his phone. He wanted to listen to some music to help him fall asleep so he turned on the Bose system. Zhane was singing: Holding On.…Everything happens for a reason they say.

  Cameron did not know that this song was his warning that this happened for a reason. He was being shown who Monti was, but would he realize this before it was to late? He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

  Chapter Thirty-One

  u nintentional consequences

  Monti was at home pacing the floor. He knew he messed up royally. Couples tell each other white lies to surprise their mates. That was just something that they did. Why did he have to take it to the next level? Why didn’t he just leave well enough alone and wait until Cameron got there before even addressing the situation. Why did he just live in the moment and take everything as it came instead of having to search and find out something. He knew that without a full picture his mind would fill in the blanks. They would not be filled in with things that were going to benefit Monti. They both shared blame in the fight but the majority of the blame fell on Monti’s shoulder. This time he was wrong. Yes, Cameron told him he would be in later but that was to buy him time to get his surprise. What was the surprise that he wanted to give him? Monti wanted to know what it was.

  “Hey Big man, what is going on?” Dee said.

  “Man, I think I fucked this thing up with me and Cameron.”

  “What happened this time?”

  “Dee, he told me this morning that he was going to be late coming in because he had to work a different flight back here.”

  “What is wrong with that?”

  “I called the airline and checked the flight he said he was going to be working.”

  “Ok, why did you do that?”

  “I just wanted to make sure he was not lying to me. You know how guys are…they be out creeping trying to have their cake and eat it too.”

  “No, Monti. That is not every guy. Just because you like to do that doesn’t mean that everyone else does. What else happened?”

  “Thanks Dr. Fucking Phil.” Monti said sarcastically. “I found out that he had lied and there was not a flight that came from Boston at that time. I called him and left him a couple messages.”

  “A couple messages? Monti tell me you did not blow up his phone. I know how you can be.”

  “Yes, just a couple messages. Maybe like five or something like that.”

  “Why did you leave so many messages? What did you say?”

  “I don’t know man…it just was crazy. I wanted him to know that I was onto him and that he wasn’t going to get anything over on me.”

  “How is that working for you? Obviously, the result of this was not what you anticipated. What happened?”

  “He called me and said that he wanted to pick up something for me that was supposed to be a surprise, so he told tell me he had a later flight to give him time to pick it up.”

  “Couples do that all the time to surprise their spouse or significant other.”

  “I know…so I could tell on the phone that he was pissed off.”

  “You think?”

  “Man he just got silent on the phone. He would not say anything. That just killed me man. I knew I fucked up.”

  “What did he do?”

  “He said he needed time to think about this. He is usually a talker but he was so quiet. Dee, I’m not sure how this will play out. We have been through some stuff and I just got another chance to make it work out.”

  “You are just going to have to give him some time. He didn’t say how much time he needed, did he?”

  “No, just that he needed time.”

  “Just give him the time. Don’t force it. You really messed up, so just give him space and see how this goes. You, not only, didn’t trust him; you included his job to check up on him. That was over stepping your bounds. I would be mad as hell at you, too, if you did that to me.”

  “Ok man. I have to think about this and I will see what I have to do. Thanks for listening to me.”

  “No problem and Monti?”

  “What is that?”

  “Don’t do nothing stupid.”

  “Bye.”

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Thought I Lost You

  Monti found him in a self-created situation, again. He did not like the unknown. He had to do something about the situation, but what can he do. He did not like to be in limbo and helpless. He knew he could not wait until Cameron had thought about the situation. For all he knew, Cameron would choose not to be with him and he did not want a life altering decision to be made without his involvement in the decision making process. He decided to head over to Cameron’s house. He took the time, while driving, to think about what he wanted to say. He was not confident in the success of his imposed meeting, but he was going to try.

  “My future is hanging in the balance of Cameron’s decision.” Monti thought. “How can I fix this?” He asked himself. “I know I can tell him how I panicked and how wrong I was to call his job. I can just tell him that this happened to me before and then I found out that my ex was cheating on me.” Monti reasoned as he was made his way to Cameron’s house. Monti was not thinking the situation through but he did realize that this could be Cameron’s breaking point. Monti could not wrap his mind around this. He wanted 100 percent honesty from a partner though he was unable
to give the same thing in return.

  Monti pulled up to Cameron’s townhouse. He sat in the car for what seemed like an eternity as he got the courage to get out. He decided to call Cameron. The phone went right to voicemail. Frustrated, Monti got out his Jeep and went up to Cameron’s door. He pulled out his keys to open the door and then he realized that he never got the key back from before. So he knocked on the door and waited for Cameron to come down. After a few minutes, he knocked again this time adding the door buzzer too. After waiting, there was no answer. He phoned him again and again the call went straight to voicemail. Monti knew that wherever Cameron was, his phone was turned off.

  He walked back to his Jeep and stood there for a moment. He looked up to the third floor at Cameron’s room and saw the flickering light from Cameron’s window candles. He then knew that Cameron was up there. He walked back to the door and rang the door buzzer while banging on the door. “I know he is up there.” He thought. He continued to ring the buzzer and knock with no luck. He went back to his Jeep to wait. “What was he doing?” Monti thought. “Why was he ignoring me?”

  Monti’s ringing phone pulled him out of his daydream. Monti picked it up and answered it without looking at the caller ID. “Hey Cameron. I am sorry I fucked up. Can you please forgive me?”

  “Is this how you answer your phone all the time? You are begging one of them funny people to forgive you? That is not how I raised you, Montague Burroughs.”

  “Mother. I am sorry. I thought you were Cameron.”

  “Obviously I am not. Where have you been?”

  “What do you mean mother?”

  “I have not talked to you since graduation day. I have called you every day since your graduation. You act like you don’t know who your mother is anymore. We used to talk every day, sometimes multiple times a day and now you do not even answer your mother’s phone call.”