COMPLICATED

by Chenell Parker

  ***

  “What’s with the attitude now? I could have stayed my ass at home if I would have known that you would be acting like this,” Zyra yelled while putting her clothes back on.

  She had stayed the night at the hotel with her friend Jeremy. He had been begging her to spend some time with him, and she finally agreed. Now she was wishing that she hadn’t because he was seriously pissing her off. At first, he got mad because her girlfriend Mica kept calling. Zyra turned the ringer off, and that seemed to satisfy him for a while. She even made sure that she was either outside or in the bathroom when she texted her back. He knew that she was with somebody, so Zyra didn’t know what the problem was. Even Mica knew where she was and who she was with, but she didn’t trip. Zyra was an open book. She was upfront and honest about her sexuality and a person could either take it or leave it. She was fine either way. She made it clear to whomever she came in contact with that she had infidelity issues. Some people called her confused, but she disagreed. She enjoyed the company of women and men, and she would never apologize to anyone for that.

  “I don’t have an attitude. I’m trying to see what’s up with you,” Jeremy replied after being quiet for so long.

  “What do you mean what’s up with me? If you want to know something, just ask. I don’t have a reason to lie about anything.”

  “Okay, I have a question,” Jeremy said turning to face her.

  “Shoot,” Zyra encouraged.

  “You have a huge two story house that no one lives in but you and your brother. Why do we continue to come to hotels instead of your house? You’ve been to my house several times, and I’ve only seen yours in passing when I pick you up or drop you off. I just don’t get it,” Jeremy babbled.

  “It’s like you’re smart, but then you’re dumb at the same time. When we met eight months ago, I laid everything out for you. You knew that I didn’t bring anyone to my house. I have a girlfriend who has never been there. I’ve been through a lot, and I have trouble trusting people, and you knew that from day one. I’ve always given you the opportunity to walk away if my baggage was too much for you to carry. I’m fucked up in the head, and it takes an equally fucked up person to be able to deal with me. I understand if you’re not that person,” Zyra answered.

  Thanks to Tommy, Zyra had trust issues not only in her relationships but with friendships as well. Everyone was surprised that she took to Rylee as fast as she did, but it was just something about her that drew Zyra in. Rylee was genuine, and she never judged her or anyone else. She always told Zyra that whatever made her happy is what she should do. Her support meant more to her than she would ever know.

  “Are you ready?” Jeremy asked ready to leave.

  Zyra was a beautiful person with a vibrant personality, but she wasn’t the woman for him. He was thirty-two years old with no kids, and he was ready to settle down and start a family. Zyra was a free spirit who lived each day like it was her last. They were on two different paths, and it was time for them to go their separate ways. Jeremy knew that from the start, but he remained hopeful. The sex with Zyra was always new and exciting, and that’s what kept him coming back. He could see himself loving her unconditionally, but she was right. Her baggage was too much for just one individual to carry.

  “I’ll be in the car,” Zyra replied as she turned and walked out of the room. Jeremy took his time getting dressed all the while thinking if leaving Zyra alone for good is what he really wanted to do. He would be lying to himself if he said that he wouldn’t miss her, so he had a lot to think about. Once he was dressed, Jeremy made sure that he had his wallet and the key card for the room that they’d been occupying since the night before. When he walked out, he saw Zyra sitting in his car with her cell phone up to her ear, probably making plans with somebody else. Jeremy shook his head in defeat as he walked to the front of the hotel to turn everything into the front desk attendant. When Zyra saw him walking back to the car, she immediately ended her call and gave him her undivided attention.

  “Look, Jeremy,” Zyra started as soon as he got into the car. “I don’t want us to part on a bad note. I know that I’m a lot to take on and I’m surprised that you were able to hang in there with me as long as you did. With that being said, I understand if this is not what you want. Hell, I really can’t say that I blame you. You’re a good man with a heart of gold, and I hope you find that forever ever with a woman who is just as good. Honestly, I know for a fact that that woman is not me.”

  As hard as it was to hear, Jeremy now knew what it was. He didn’t have to struggle with if he was doing the right thing. Zyra had just confirmed that for him.

  “Thanks, Zyra,” Jeremy smiled. “Most women would have probably strung this along, but I appreciate your honesty. That’s rare these days.”

  “No thanks needed. Real in the only way, I know how to be. I get it from my mama,” Zyra joked.

  “I see that,” Jeremy laughed.

  “So where to now?” Zyra asked

  “Well, since this is officially our last date, how about we go grab something to eat? It’s late, and we haven’t eaten since earlier,” Jeremy suggested as he started the car. He kept talking about what he wanted to eat even though Zyra was no longer paying him any attention.

  “Wait, Jeremy, don’t pull off yet. Kill your headlights,” Zyra instructed. Her attention was on the man who had just exited a room a few doors down from the one that they had just left out of. He was talking on his phone the entire time that he got into his car and pulled off.

  “That lying dog!” Zyra screamed as the man drove away and disappeared from their line of vision.

  “What’s going on Zyra? Who was that?” Jeremy questioned.

  “It’s nobody that you know, but don’t leave just yet. He didn’t turn in a room key. Somebody else must be in there because I know he’s not coming back,” Zyra replied.

  “Man Zyra, I work for the state. I’m not trying to be out here doing something that will cause me to lose my job. And I’m damn sure not about to sit out here and stalk no room that one of your niggas just came out of. That’s not happening.”

  “He’s not my…” Zyra started but stopped midsentence when the door to the room swung open. Before Jeremy had a chance to open his mouth, Zyra was out of his car and charging towards the other woman.

  “Shit,” Jeremy yelled as she unfastened his seatbelt and ran after her. It felt like he was moving in slow motion as he watched Zyra deliver a blow to the woman’s face that instantly dazed her and made her stagger. The woman was clearly caught off guard, but that didn’t stop Zyra from stinging her face two more times with her closed fist. When the woman fell to the ground, Jeremy got to Zyra just in time before she finished her off with a kick.

  “You nasty bitch! You’re fucking my best friend’s husband! Let me go!” Zyra screamed as she tried to break free from Jeremy’s grasp. The other woman quickly stood to her feet and tried to come after her, but Jeremy wouldn’t let her get close.

  “Fuck you Zyra! You had to catch me slipping in order to get one up on me. I told you from day one that Rylee is your friend. That bitch don’t mean nothing to me,” Brandy yelled.

  Seeing Zyra there was indeed a shock, but Brandy didn’t feel bad. She’d been sleeping with Mekhi for the past two months, and she didn’t feel an ounce of guilt behind it. It wasn’t intentional, and she wasn’t going to apologize for it. When she found out through Nicole that one of Mekhi’s waitresses quit, she decided to put in for the position. Nicole was always bragging about how much she got in tips every night, and Brandy wanted in. She tried her luck and went MJ’s one afternoon hoping to get an interview. Unfortunately, Mekhi wasn’t interested in her working at his place of business, but he had another position in mind for her. One that she’d happily accepted without second-guessing. Brandy had always thought that Mekhi was cute and sexy as hell. Up until recently, she never would have imagined that he cheated on Rylee. He was like the ultimate husband, and that was one of the reaso
ns why Brandy was jealous of his wife. His sex was the truth, and she wasn’t giving that up for Zyra or nobody else.

  “Let’s square up then bitch,” Zyra yelled pulling Brandy away from her trip down memory lane.

  “I don’t have time for this shit,” Brandy replied. She knew that she couldn’t win in a fight with Zyra, and she was tired of wasting her time. Even if she wasn’t caught off guard, Brandy was sure that she would have lost the brawl anyway. Her feelings were kind of hurt that Zyra kept referring to Rylee as her best friend. That was a title that she held not too long ago.

  “I knew your ass wasn’t right, but I tried to give you a pass,” Zyra admitted.

  “Are you sure you’re not fucking him too? You’re doing all of this behind the next bitch’s husband. You seem suspect as hell right now,” Brandy taunted with a chuckle.

  “I don’t even know why I’m surprised. Being a hoe is in your DNA so you can’t help it. At least, your mama is getting paid to stand on Bourbon selling her ass. You do the shit for free,” Zyra yelled hitting below the belt.

  Brandy’s smirk fell from her face just as quickly as it had appeared. She’d never confided in many people about her mother and Zyra knew that it was a sore spot for her. If she never knew it before, she knew it now. Zyra valued Rylee’s friendship far more than she valued hers. The gloves were off, and she was ready to fight dirty too.

  “At least, this hoe can give her man some babies. You can’t do shit with a dry rotted womb,” Brandy laughed as she opened her car door and got in.

  “Let me go so I can kill that bitch!” Zyra screamed as she went crazy and started fighting Jeremy.

  She wasn’t surprised that Brandy came at her equally as hard with her harsh words. Zyra knew that she was wrong for bringing up her mother, but Brandy’s words still cut like a knife.

  “Ouch, fuck!” Jeremy yelped when Zyra bit the hand that was holding her back from getting to Brandy. At that point, he didn’t care if both women killed each other. He was too busy trying to shake off the pain that he was experiencing. Zyra had her teeth marks in his hand, and she even broke the skin.

  “Get out of the car hoe!” Zyra screamed while kicking dents in her ex-friend’s car door. Brandy was yelling obscenities the entire time, but she never got out of the car or rolled down the window. When she started backing out of her parking spot, Zyra picked up a huge slab of concrete and hauled it towards the fleeing vehicle. Brandy was able to speed away, but not before the boulder hit her car, knocking her side mirror completely off.

  “Either you come on and let me bring you home, or you’ll need to find another ride. This is some bullshit,” Jeremy fussed as he walked back to his car mumbling under his breath. Like an obedient child, Zyra followed behind him and got back into the car. The drive to her house was silent, and she was happy for that much. She didn’t want to hear anything that Jeremy had to say. In fact, she was happy that this was their last interaction with one another.

  ***

  It was a little after midnight when Zyrian finally made his way inside. He knew that his sister was most likely home alone or still out with her male friend because no other car was there, but hers. Once he opened the door and disarmed the alarm, Zyrian headed for the stairs until faint noises could be heard coming from the den area. Making his way down the hall, Zyrian soon found out that the voices were coming from the music that was softly playing. He pushed the door open and found Zyra deep in thought while nursing a glass of wine. He was happy that she was up because he wanted to tell her about his day.

  “Man sis, you not gon’ believe who I ran into today,” Zyrian started before Zyra looked up at him with her bloodshot eyes.

  “Who?” She asked in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

  “Nah, fuck what I was saying. What’s up with you?” Zyrian said taking a seat next to her.

  “I’m good baby brother. Just know that it’s nothing that I can’t handle.”

  “Crying is how you’re handling it?”

  “I’m not crying,” Zyra protested.

  “Not now, but you were. Are you going to tell me what happened or not? You already know that I’m not letting it go.”

  “It’s Rylee,” Zyra answered making Zyrian’s heart rate speed up momentarily.

  Lately, Zyrian had only been seeing Rylee in passing, and they hadn’t had much communication. She still came to the house a lot, but he always seemed to miss her for some reason. It seemed like she was avoiding being in his presence, but he wasn’t sure why. More than likely it was Mekhi’s doing, but Zyrian still didn’t like it. He really missed Rylee and their daily banter. He missed her so much that he often found himself staring at the picture of her that he kept in his phone. It was one that he took of her the night of his party, but she wasn’t aware of it. She was looking down at the bottom level of the bar when he got the full body shot. Rylee was camera ready even when she wasn’t. She only wore lip gloss most of the time, but her natural beauty couldn’t be missed.

  “What about Rylee?” Zyrian asked after a few minutes.

  “I saw that bastard Mekhi coming out of a hotel room by the airport tonight. I made Jeremy wait a few minutes to see who he was in there with.”

  “Who was he there with?” Zyrian asked although he had an idea. He assumed it was the same person that he saw him there with until Zyra told him otherwise.

  “It was Brandy,” Zyra confirmed. “And I know that China probably knows about it because they’ve been together damn near every day lately.”

  “Brandy!” Zyrian yelled not expecting her to say that name.

  “Yeah and I tried to kill that nasty bitch with my bare hands. I’m just so confused right now Zyrian. Brandy was my friend, but Rylee is more like my sister. Even though I knew Brandy longer, there’s no comparison between the two. I don’t want to hurt Rylee, but I can’t leave her in the dark. But then again, I don’t know how she’s going to take it. What if she gets mad at me for telling her? That kind of shit happens all the time.”

  “You know your girl Zee. You know that Rylee wouldn’t get mad at you over some bullshit like that. But if you want my advice, I say keep it to yourself. Rylee and Mekhi are married. It would have been different if they weren’t. That nigga is foul, and it’s only a matter of time before she finds out on her own.”

  “So I’m supposed to betray my best friend to keep that nigga’s secrets? I don’t think so Zyrian. I’m telling her. I don’t know how, but I am,” Zyra said seriously.

  “It ain’t about keeping his secrets sis. I know you Zyra, you’ll never forgive yourself if you break up your girl’s marriage.”

  “That’s why I’m so confused. I don’t want her to find out that I knew and didn’t tell her. I need her to hear it from me. It’ll break her heart if she hears it from somebody else.”

  “I know it’s a hard decision to make, but I know you’ll make the right one. If you need me to knock Mekhi’s punk ass out, don’t hesitate to ask,” Zyrian said making her smile.

  Zyra could always count on her little brother to lighten the mood, and she needed that more than ever. She was happy that Zyrian gave his input on the situation, but Zyra’s mind was already made up. She was telling her girl everything that happened that night. She just hoped and prayed that the news didn’t have a negative effect on their friendship.

  Chapter 13

  An entire week had passed since Zyra’s run in with Brandy at the hotel, and things were getting crazier by the day. Brandy told Mekhi what happened, and he had the nerve to call Zyra trying to explain that it wasn’t what she thought it was. He basically begged her to leave the situation alone, but Zyra was torn. He tried to make her feel guilty about possibly hurting Rylee and admittedly it worked for a little while. That was before Zyra’s guilty conscience really started to kick in. She really felt like she was doing Rylee wrong and she decided that it was time to come clean. Zyra had gone so far as to confide in her mother about the situation. Of course, Glenda was just as upset,
but she gave Zyra some very valuable information. She told Zyra to put herself in Rylee’s place. Once she did, the decision was simple.

  “Rylee Jameson, may I help you?” Rylee greeted when she answered her desk phone.

  She’d been extremely busy since she walked in that morning and she was happy to finally be getting a break. Rylee’s boss had been in and out of court all morning, and one of the other attorney’s secretaries was out sick. Rylee had been trying to do her work as well as take messages for the other attorney. She had already worked well into her lunch break, and she was starving.

  “Hey boo, it’s me,” Zyra replied.

  “Hey girl, what’s up?” Rylee sighed loudly.

  “Nothing much, but I can tell that you’ve been busy. This is my third time calling and your first time answering.”

  “It’s been so crazy around here. I’m trying to do the work of two people, and it’s not easy. It’s after two o’clock, and I haven’t even eaten lunch.”

  “Aww boo, you want me to swing by and bring you something? You know I don’t mind,” Zyra offered.

  “Thanks, sis, but I’m good. I’ll just chew on these graham crackers until I get off. My hubby is taking me out to dinner tonight.”

  Rylee sounded so upbeat that Zyra was once again having second thoughts about what she was about to do. Her friend was happy, and she had no right to take that away from her. She thought that maybe Zyrian was right, and she should just let Mekhi hang himself. He was so sneaky with what he did; Zyra wondered when that would be. Mekhi even had her fooled into thinking that he was the ideal husband. Rylee didn’t get treated like most women did when their husbands cheated on them. Mekhi still showered her with lots of love and attention. He wasn’t one of the ones who changed up his routine and started acting differently. That’s probably why he was able to get away with it. The more Zyra thought about it, the angrier she became. She was ready to get it over with and let Rylee know just what kind of snake she was married to.