"Gucci."
"Don't stress, baby. Everything will be fine, but what I do think is that you should let him know that you're alright. He's going to be worried sick, Bari."
"I already thought about that."
"Well, do it, Bari. If it was you, you'd want to know that he was at least okay, and what if he panics and calls the police or something?" I hadn't thought of that. "At least call Major and Birdie and have them call him on his cell."
"Okay. Hold on."
"I don't want to listen!"
"Girl, hold on and quit that dramatic shit!" I dialed the number and waited for someone to pick up the phone. "Birdie?"
"Bari? What's going on over there? Seven just called here sounding like he was about to kill somebody. His father is getting ready to go over there."
"He's not there, Birdie. I want you to call him on his phone and tell him that I called, and I said I'm alright."
"Where are you? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Just please do it right away."
"Okay, hold on."
"No! I don't want to be in on this!" Gucci screeched.
"Shut up, Gucci. Birdie, it's really important that I not be on the phone while you call."
"Why not? What's going on, Bari?"
"I can't say right now, but will you please call him?"
"Will you leave me a number to give to him?"
"Sho'll won't!" Gucci piped in.
"Gucci, cut it out," I snapped. "Birdie, just give him the message, please."
"You moved, didn't you, Bari?" Birdie asked quietly.
"Yes Birdie, I did."
"And he doesn't know that? I don't understand."
"He knows now."
"I'll call right away."
"Thank you so much, Birdie. And please, don't say you talked to Gucci."
"Bitch, now you don' implicated Birdie. You just gon' drag us all down with you ain't you?"
"Who are you talking to?" I heard Six ask in the back ground.
"Hey, Babe! Hey Seven!," Gucci said loudly. "Uh, I'm talking to Mama. She says to tell you hi Six."
"Hi, Mama!" Six yelled in the background.
"She said you better be being good," Gucci lied. "I thought y’all went to find Bari."
"Gucci, cut that shit out," I whispered.
"Yeah Mama, he said when you gon' send him some more peach cobbler?"
"Bitch, I'm gonna kill you." I informed her.
"She said she'll do it this weekend, Six." Gucci and I both got quiet. We heard a cell phone ring in the background. "Oh Mama, that's just Seven's cell phone."
I held my breath.
"Let me talk to Mama," Six said.
"She don't want to talk. She's constipated," Gucci blurted out nervously.
"Okay. I love you, Mama!" Six yelled.
Gucci was silent, allowing me to hear what was being said in the background.
"When Birdie?" Seven asked. "Did she say where she is? Did she leave a number?" Tears came to my eyes at the sound of Seven's voice. "Alright."
"That was Birdie, Seven?" Gucci asked. "Mama said tell her hi when you talk to her again."
I zeroed in on the conversation and made a mental note to slap Gucci silly when I saw her again.
"Yeah, she said Bari called her and asked her to call me to let me know she's alright. She said she didn't leave no number, no address, nothing."
"Seven," I heard Gucci say. "Do you feel a little better now that you at least know she's alright?"
"Save it, Gooch. I'm a kill that bitch when I find her."
"Oh Lord, Mama, I gotta go! I love you, Mama! Be safe and I hope God blesses you and protects you in his precious blood, Mama."
She hung up the phone.
Chapter 42
I tied the strings of the bikini behind my neck, adjusted the thong bikini bottom and tied a sarong around my waist. I stopped and picked up a towel. I was headed for the hot tub. If Seven was going to kill me I at least wanted to be relaxed when he did it. I slid down into the warm water and sank down to my neck. It felt awesome. I closed my eyes and let my head rest against the side.
"I know I got to be trippin'," a male voice said, jolting me back to the real world. "Bari?"
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"I live here. Well not here, but in that condo right there."
He pointed at the one next to mine.
"Are you serious? So, how did you see me? Were you spying on me?"
"I should have been," he laughed, with his sexy smile. "But no, I saw you earlier, but I wasn't sure it was you. I had to come see for myself."
"Well, now you know," I said, completely flipping the script. "Bye."
"Now, why you wanna act like that, Bari? I took a fade for you. You could be a little nicer."
"You didn't take no fade for me, Trim. That fade was yours and yours alone. I didn't want no part of you or your fade," I said seriously.
He laughed, and against my will, I laughed, too.
"There's that smile that got me in trouble in the first place. It was worth it. I'd do it again." I stared down into the water and blushed like crazy. "What are you doing here? Where's your man at?"
"I'm not with Seven anymore." The hint of a smile formed at the corners of his lips. "And I'm not trying to replace him either, but then, you and I both know that isn't possible."
"Damn, you a mean li’l somebody. You gotta come at a brother like that?"
"I guess not. Just don't want any false hope floating around, ya know? And do me a favor, don't let anyone know where I live, please."
"I wouldn't do you like that, Mommi. Then I'd be fuckin' myself out of some possibilities."
"Bari. The name is Bari, and there are no possibilities."
"Okay, Mommi. Bari it is." He smiled, and despite myself, I did, too. "And I think you'll change your mind about the possibilities. Don't you think it's more than coincidence that we ended up living in the same place?"
"We don't live together, Trim. We just live in the same area."
"We're next door neighbors. That's the next best thing, ain't it?" He pointed out, with his fine ass.
"So?"
"Don't make me get you evicted, Mommi," he joked. "Me and the manager are pretty tight."
"Let's just hope you don't go asking your buddy for any fashion tips." He laughed so hard he almost fell in the water. His laughter ended abruptly. "ls that a bruise on your face?" He asked gently.
"I guess it is," I answered simply, yet quietly.
"Damn, sorry. I didn't know it was like that."
"You don't have to be sorry. It was a good time gone bad, not the end of the world," I said, feeling the need to defend Seven. "It was no more than an accident," I lied with a straight face.
"Oh."
He nodded in understanding. The dire need for Trim to vacate my space turned into a desire for him to stay. Two hours later, we were talking like old friends.
"ls that mine?" He asked, when a cell phone rang.
The phones were sitting side by side on the edge of the hot tub.
"I think it's mine." I said, and answered the phone.
"Bari?"
"Uncle Meestake? How did you get my new number? I had it changed, and I hadn't had a chance to call you yet."
"The attorney gave it to me, Bari. What the hell is going on?"
"You already knew I was moving, Uncle Meestake."
"Oh yeah! Well congratulations! I'm happy for you, then. Marion says hi."
"How does she like the big house?"
"She loves it, Bari! But we'll just stay there until we can find something else. Then it's all yours."
"Well, I found a place already, and I love it, so there's no rush. Stay there as long as you like. When are you coming for good?"
“Next week, and Marion can't wait. Oh! She wanted me to let you know that her cobbler took first place."
"Tell her I'm so happy for her!" I laughed.
"Oh Bari, I gotta go. My fish is burning!"
He hung up. I didn't even get a chance to tell him that if Seven called him, not to give him my number. I tried to call right back. His line stayed busy for about half an hour; probably Marion. Uncle Meestake didn't really like to talk on the phone.
"Bari, your phone!" Trim yelled to me as I went through the double glass doors and into the house to use the bathroom.
"Pick it up! It's probably Gucci! Tell her I'll be right there!" I thought better of it and turned around. Gucci wouldn't have any understanding as to why Trim was at my house. "Just tell her to hold on," I said, but the look on his face let me know that it wasn't Gucci.
"Man, it ain't even like that," Trim said into the phone. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "It's Seven." He held the phone out to me. I didn't reach out for it. "You might as well get it over with."
"Sev..."
“What the fuck is Trim doing answering your mutha fuckin’ phone?” Seven raged.
“I thought-”
"Answer the damn question."
"If you would let me fin..."
"Fuck that. I'm a kill yo' ass, Bari. You and that nothin' ass, punk ass, bitch ass nigga you been fuckin' behind my back.”
Seven sounded totally calm, which scared me even more. He spoke quietly, but I knew he was mad. I took the phone and went inside the house.
"Seven, I never cheated on you with Trim or anybody else. You should know better than that.”
"Why you sound so nervous, Bari?"
"How did you get my number?"
"Some man that thinks you got the Godfather chasing you gave me the number he gave you. Some dude gave me your number when I called. Now, what the hell is Trim doing answering your phone? What the fuck is he doing at your house?"
"I didn't even know he lived here until a little while ..."
I realized my mistake as soon as I said it.
"So, you playin' house with the nigga?"
"No, Seven."
"You just decided to move next door to the fool?"
"I didn't know where he lived. It wasn't done on purpose whether you believe it or not.”
"Not."
"Seven, what do you want?"
"I'll tell you when I get there," he said and hung up.
The phone immediately rang.
"What, Seven?"
"Bari, bitch, Seven has your number!"
"I know, Gucci. He just called."
"I knew I'd be too late. He called a little while ago and told Six that he talked to the man at the first condo. That fool blew our cover. I oughta have my cousin, Carol, go over there and scare the shit out of him."
"Who in the hell is going to be scared of a dude named Carol?" I snapped. "Leave that man alone. There's no telling what Seven told that man."
"I know, huh?"
"Where is Six?"
"In the bathroom. Bari, what did he say?" I told her about Trim being there and answering my phone when Seven called. "Six! We need to get to Bari's! Now!"
"Bari's?" I heard Six yell in the background. "I thought you didn't know where she was!"
I heard Gucci running through the house.
"There's no time to be playing lie detector!" She snapped.
She told Six what I had told her.
"Bari?"
"Yeah, Six?"
"We're on our way, okay?" I heard the toilet flush. "Where is Trim?"
"I don't know. He was outside. I'm inside."
"Well, go outside and tell him to get away from there. How long ago did my nigga call?"
"Not even five minutes."
"Hold on." He put me on hold, and then I heard Six's voice. "Sev, man, where you at?"
"Hummin'."
That meant he was in his Hummer and wasn't about to tell Six where he was headed.
"Where to?"
"Man, that bitch Bari is dead." He told Six about Trim as I listened on the line.
"She's on the phone,” Six admitted. “The girl is already scared, my nigga."
"Bitch, you should be scared," Seven informed me. "'Cause that little shit you seen last week wasn't nothing compared to how I'm a serve yo' ass this time."
"Where you at, dog?" Six asked.
"Where that bitch, Trim, at?" Seven asked me, ignoring Six's question.
"I don't know, and it doesn't matter. We didn't do anything, Seven, never have."
"Bari?"
"Yeah, Six?"
"We're on our way, okay?"
"Okay."
"I don't know what the fuck you called them for. I do what the hell I wanna do. Bitch, I'm a grown ass man. You got me fucked up."
"Bye, Six," I said.
"Don't hang up that fuckin' phone, Bari," Seven said quietly.
"What?"
"You heard me. Keep your ass on the phone."
"If she stay on the phone then I have to stay on the phone," Six pointed out.
"Then stay," Seven told him.
"Stay on the phone for what?" I asked. "You're on your way over here anyway. I'm hanging up."
"Bitch, I said stay on the phone."
"I'll see you when you get here,” I said, with way more courage than I felt. I hung up the phone. It rang immediately. "What?"
"Keep playin', Bari."
"Seven, damn." I was tired. I was mad. I was tired of being mad. "I'm not gonna sit here and navigate for you. You know where you're going."
"Yeah, I've been to Trim's house before," he said sarcastically.
"Good. Mine is right next door, just a hop, a skip and a little jump."
I hung up the phone.
"You alright?"
"Trim, you're still here?"
"I'm not gon' leave you by yourself. You ain't did shit."
"I know, but I'm having a hard time convincing Seven of that, and it doesn’t help that I had your number that night.”
"Did he find it, or did you give it to him?"
"I gave it to him. I was supposed to," I said without hesitation.
He smiled, "A down ass chick, huh?"
"I try. Look Trim, I appreciate you trying to stay and all, but for real, I think it's best if you leave. I can't let Seven get here and see you. It's bad enough that he thinks we've been creepin' all along. The worst thing I could do is act like I don't care about how he feels and have you stay here. He already feels like he's been disrespected."
"How? Y’all ain't even together."
"Do you believe that Seven gives a damn about that?"
"Not when it comes to you."
"Then you can see where he's coming from. I'd never even want him to think I've been out of pocket behind his back, even if it isn’t true. It matters to me what he thinks about me, and I'm not going to lie and say I don't care what he thinks."
"At least you know how to keep it real, but let me tell you something, Bari. If you really love Seven, and I see that you do, you shouldn't let that shit go. I don't blame that nigga. If I found a girl like you I'd be acting the same way."
"Thank you, Trim."
"Are you sure you want me to go?"
"I'm positive. Seven is really mad, and on top of being mad he's really hurt. That's not a cool combination."
"Bari, Seven will kill you."
"I'm not worried about that, Trim. Seven loves me. If you know he'll kill me, what do you think he'll do to you?"
"I can take care of myself."
"I know, but you know what, Trim? My main concern is that an innocent person doesn't get hurt because of me. I don't want that on my conscience."
"I feel you."
“Bye, Trim.”
“Damn.”
“It’s okay.”
I watched Trim walk back to his condo and let himself in. I wanted to shower and change my clothes. I walked to the back yard to get the stuff I had left behind. I threw my towel over my shoulder and headed back inside. I was almost to the stairs when the phone rang. I turned around to go answer it.
"Gucci?"
"Bitch, come open the damn door," Seven ordered.
> He probably didn't want to mess up his manicure by ringing the bell. My stomach dropped, and my hands started to shake uncontrollably. I walked to the front door and paused, my hand on the doorknob. I wanted to run and put on some clothes. I turned away from the door.
"Open the door, Bari. Now!" I slid the lock back and pulled open the door. He walked in slowly, looking me up and down. I closed the door. "That's cute, Milkshake. Let me see it." He untied the knot that was tied on my right hip and let the sarong fall to the floor. He walked around in a complete circle. "You just put this on right? ‘Cause I know good and goddamn well you didn't have that on in front of no nigga."
I wiped sweat from my forehead.
"I ..."
"You what?"
"I was in the hot tub."
"Oh, and what about when you got out of the hot tub?"
"I need to go change."
"What the hell do you want to change now for? And where's your boyfriend?"
"He's not my boyfriend, Seven, and I suppose he found somewhere he'd rather be than here dodging bullets with me."
I felt myself getting angry; angry at myself for letting Seven scare me.
"What happened?" He asked, sitting down on my new sofa and making himself a little too comfortable.
"Nothing happened, Seven."
I bent to pick up the sarong from the floor.
"Leave it there. If you was comfortable enough to stroll your ass around in front of that nigga with that on, then you damn sure shouldn't be trippin' off me. Come here."
"No."
"Bring your ass here, Bari."
It seemed to me that if someone didn't know Seven, they would think that he never got angry, that he was just a very quiet person. But I knew him, and his tone was menacing.
“I said no. I need to go change my clothes. I'm very uncomfortable." If looks could kill . . . "It doesn't have anything to do with you. I don't make a habit out of walking around in a fucking bikini, Seven! Did I do it at your house? No. So, why would I change up now? I'm going to change my clothes. If you want to shoot me in the back of my head when I walk away then fine."
I turned to go upstairs, but he caught me by my arm.
"Why the hell would you say that to me, Bari?"
I was confused. He sounded genuinely hurt.
"Huh?"
"Why did you say that?"
"Because. Didn't you say you were coming to kill me? Well, get it over with, Seven, if you're gonna do it. I'm not gonna keep tiptoeing around you, hoping you don't snap and blow my head off. I'm tired, Seven." My voice cracked, and tears filled my eyes. "Do what you're gonna do so I can get on with my life, or not, but I'm not..."
Crazy In Love With A Thug: Bari and Seven Page 20