Reasonable Insanity

by Cynthia Freeman Gibbs

“Yes, it is,” Beverly agreed. “One of the girls kept saying something like, ‘Dwain is her man and for Olivia to stay away from him.’ Is Dwain Olivia’s boyfriend?”

  “Yes, he is,” Savvy confirmed. “Have you called him yet?”

  “No. I wasn’t sure and thought I would call you. You can handle it from here and contact her friends,” Beverly said.

  “What have the doctors said about her injuries?” Savvy asked.

  “Well, they said she took quite a beating to the head. They wouldn’t tell me much since I am not a family member. Hopefully, she doesn’t have a concussion. There were some deep cuts on the back of her head, and you can see all the scratches and bruises on her face. They said she’d recover although she will have some pain.”

  “They beat her up bad for sure,” Savvy replied. “I’m going to give Dwain a call and tell him to get here right away.”

  “Okay. I am going to go home now. I need to get ready for work in a few hours.” Beverly stood up, stretched and grabbed her purse from the nightstand. She squeezed past the bed and walked stiffly toward Savvy.

  “No problem. Thank you again for being here with her and for calling me. No telling how things would’ve turned out if you hadn’t intervened.” Savvy hugged her.

  “I thank God for waking me up. I wasn’t sleeping well anyway from my arthritis. I heard everything,” Beverly said and embraced Savvy tightly. She took out a pen and paper from her purse to write her contact information. She handed the paper to Savvy. “Here is my number to call me later with an update.”

  “I will keep you updated.”

  After she left, Savvy sat in the chair next to the bed. She gazed at Olivia again and mulled over who could’ve done this to her.

  Olivia’s purse sat on the nightstand. Savvy grabbed it and reached in to get Olivia’s phone book to search for Dwain’s number.

  Savvy rummaged through the purse and discovered a prescription bottle of pills. She pulled the bottle out and rolled it in her hand to see the label. “Hy-dro-chloro-thia-zide,” she sounded out the name of the drug. Hmmmm. What in the world are these pills for? She dropped the bottle back into the bag. She would ask her about it later.

  Savvy found the tiny address book she knew Olivia always kept with her and thumbed through to find Dwain’s number. She picked up the phone handset on the nightstand and pushed the buttons to call him.

  The phone rang several times, and Dwain finally answered.

  “Hello?” Dwain sounded like he’d been in a seriously deep sleep.

  “Dwain, this is Savvy. Sorry to wake you so early in the morning,” she said.

  “No problem Savvy. Whassup?” Dwain yawned.

  “It’s Olivia. She’s in the hospital. She got beat up a few hours ago.”

  “What? In the hospital? Beat up?” Dwain sounded fully awake. “Who did this to her?”

  “I don’t know what happened other than what her neighbor told me. She called, and I got here a moment ago,” Savvy said. “Olivia is still sleeping. Evidently, a couple of girls jumped her in front of her apartment.”

  “Which hospital?”

  “Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare in the Emergency area,” Savvy said.

  “I’m throwing on my clothes now. If she wakes up, tell her I’m on my way.”

  Savvy put down the phone and studied her dear friend. I can’t believe someone would do this to you. Although I’m furious about the swimsuit incident at the mall, I would never wish anything like this on you. “I’m here for you, Olivia. No matter what,” she whispered. She put her hands on her shoulder and started to pray.

  CHAPTER 13

  The sound of hushed whispers floated through the air and mingled with a beeping noise. Olivia couldn’t make out the voices talking around her. A sharp pain shot through the back of her head, which caused her to let out a loud moan.

  “Olivia. Olivia. Are you awake?” That was Savvy’s voice.

  “Baby, it’s me, Dwain. Wake up, baby. Savvy and I are here.”

  The sound of Dwain’s voice made Olivia struggle to open her swollen eyes. When she finally managed to peek out slightly, the bright light forced her to close them quickly. She tried again and slowly began to see the worried faces of Savvy and Dwain. She heard herself answer groggily, “Yes. I’m awake. Where am I?”

  “Olivia, you’re in the hospital,” Savvy answered. “You took quite a beating last night.”

  “Baby, don’t worry about anything right now. Rest and don’t try to move too much.” Dwain rubbed her arm.

  Olivia winced when Dwain’s hand touched a bruise. She pulled her arm away. “Ouch. My arm hurts right there.”

  “Oh. I’m sorry, baby. I didn’t mean to hurt you.” Dwain drew his hand back.

  “My head is killing me.” Olivia grimaced from the pain and reached her hand to her head. She noticed all the gauze. “Why am I wrapped like a mummy. Am I dying?”

  “No, no, Olivia. You’re not dying,” Savvy reassured her. “You took some hard hits to the head. The doctor who checked on you wouldn’t tell us much. Thankfully, you don’t have any broken bones. He said they’re going to do a CT scan of your brain to make sure there isn’t any bleeding going on.”

  “Do you know who did this to you?” Dwain asked as he angrily pounded his fist into his hand.

  “I don’t know. My brain seems foggy right now,” Olivia began slowly rubbing her forehead.

  “Don’t’ worry about it right now,” Savvy suggested.

  “Wait. I vaguely remember something. A Hispanic girl. Yeah. She was at the banquet. She kept staring at me throughout the whole dinner.”

  “Okay. Don’t strain yourself but what else can you remember?” Savvy questioned.

  “In the middle of the night, I heard my doorbell ringing. I got out of bed to see who it was. This girl said she needed to talk to me about something. When I checked her out, I didn’t feel threatened since I’m much taller.”

  Olivia’s eyes darted back and forth to gather her thoughts. “I stepped out on the porch to find out what she wanted. Before I knew it, another girl jumped out of the bushes, and they started beating on me.”

  “Oh, Olivia. That’s awful,” Savvy exclaimed.

  Olivia’s eyes began to water. “I recognized the other girl from the TSUF cheerleader squad. I remember seeing her at a game before. She stood out to me since she’s the only black cheerleader.”

  Savvy noticed Dwain’s face change from concern to surprise. He leaned back from the bed and dropped his eyes to the floor. The muscles in his jaw began to tense up, and he started bouncing his leg nervously.

  Olivia groaned and touched her head again. She continued, “She said her name is Isabella and something crazy about being in love with Dwain.” Olivia paused and gazed at him. “She said she loved you and you love her. What’s she talking about Dwain?”

  “Baby, don’t worry about that right now. I don’t know anyone named Isabella. She’s probably a football groupie or something. You know, a lot of girls become obsessed with me. You need to rest. I don’t want you making yourself feel worse worrying about this craziness.” Dwain’s left eye began twitching.

  “I need to find out who they are. They stalked me,” Olivia exclaimed. “They beat me in the head with a stick and were trying to kill me. What if they come back for me?” Olivia asked, frantically looking back and forth at Dwain and Savvy with her eyes wide in fear.

  “Calm down, baby,” Dwain said. “We’ll focus on that later. Hold up; I need to call my coach to let him know I’ll be late for practice. I’ll be right back.” Dwain exited the room.

  Savvy raised her eyebrows and seemed surprised.

  “You know, Olivia, I think what you need to do right now is rest. Breathe in and out deeply.” Savvy demonstrated and encouraged her to do the same. She imitated her and began to relax. “Much better. You’re going to be fine. When you recover, we’re going to call the cops and file a police report against these tricks,” Savvy stated firmly.

 
“Ok, thank you, Savvy. I don’t know why they would do this to me.” The weight of recalling everything had exhausted Olivia, and she sank into the pillow and drifted back to sleep.

  Savvy sighed and pulled Olivia’s covers to her neck. She eased out of the room and went into the hallway. Dwain was on a pay phone, his back toward her. She headed in his direction hoping they could discuss what happened to Olivia. Dwain’s angry voice caught her attention when she got closer.

  “Isabella. I told you not to do anything stupid,” Dwain hissed. “If you waited like I told you to, you wouldn’t be in this trouble right now.”

  Savvy couldn’t believe her ears.

  “Look. I love you, too. You’ve got to stop trippin’ on Olivia. She and I’ve been out only a few times,” Dwain pleaded on the phone. He listened to the response and huffed in frustration.

  “I know, I know, we were together at the banquet since you told me you had to work. I told you I had to bring someone with me,” Dwain said. “She doesn’t mean anything to me. I love you, baby.”

  Savvy had enough. She quickly marched in front of Dwain and stared at him with her arms folded until he noticed her. He almost dropped the phone when he realized she heard his conversation. He started to stutter and told the girl he would call her back.

  “Savvy, I didn’t see you standing there,” Dwain tried to explain as Isabella’s angry voice bellowed through the handset.

  “Obviously. You didn’t think I heard your conversation with your so-called coach? Is that what you’re trying to say?”

  “Yeah, uh, yeah. That’s right. I had to call my coach to let him know I would be late.”

  “Stop right there, Dwain,” Savvy snapped and stuck her index finger in front of his face. “Don’t you stand there and lie to me. I heard everything you said to Isabella and what you said about Olivia. Not only that, I know you don’t have football practice on a Sunday.”

  “It’s not what you think it is,” Dwain said.

  “What do you think I think it is?” Savvy rolled her neck like her head was on a swivel. “Look, it doesn’t’ matter what I think. What matters is what Olivia will think when I tell her what I heard you say on the phone. That’s what you need to be worried about.”

  Dwain grabbed Savvy’s arm and tried to plead with her. “Savvy, please don’t say anything to Olivia. Isabella doesn’t mean a thing to me. She’s obsessed with me and is jealous of any woman I’m around. Olivia doesn’t need to be worried about this stuff. You know how much I love her.”

  Savvy yanked her arm from Dwain. “Don’t you dare put your hand on me and lie to me again. I heard everything. Do you hear me? Everything. Olivia loves you and will do anything to please you. This is what you do to her? She’s in the hospital right now because of your cheating on her.”

  “Savvy, please listen to me,” Dwain begged.

  Savvy backed away from Dwain and pointed her finger as if placing a curse on him. She squinted her eyes viciously, which made Dwain stop in his tracks and notice she wasn’t playing.

  She stomped into Olivia’s room with her heart pounding in her ears. What am I going to tell her? How will she deal with finding out her man has been lying and is a cheater? This is too much for anyone to handle.

  CHAPTER 14

  Savvy peered at Olivia. She seemed to be resting well. Once the doctor discharged her from the hospital, she would have to find a way to tell her about Dwain.

  A nurse wearing blue scrubs and Big Bird clogs entered the room to check Olivia’s vitals. She had tired eyes and a friendly smile. “Your friend is going to be fine. I know she appreciates you being here.”

  “Did anyone contact her parents? I can get their number to give them a call.”

  “Olivia has requested for us not to reach out to them. She was adamant she did not want them informed about this situation,” the nurse said.

  “Oh. Okay.” Savvy wondered why Olivia didn’t want her parents to know she was in the hospital. “Do you have any idea about when she’ll be released to go home?” Savvy asked, frowning when she noticed Dwain entering the room.

  “When the doctor makes his rounds, he will determine when she can go home. We won’t know anything for a while,” the nurse responded. “Why don’t you go and get some sleep. She needs rest to help her recover.”

  Dwain spoke up, “Yeah Savvy, why don’t you go ahead and leave and I’ll stay with her for now.”

  He really needs to shut up right about now before I hurt him. Savvy narrowed her eyes at Dwain and decided to restrain herself from saying something to him.

  “I guess I’ll run home for a minute and come back to check on her later,” Savvy said to the nurse.

  “Don’t worry. She’s in good hands. My name is Annette, and I will be here until seven. The nurse on the next shift will help you when you return,” she replied and walked out of the room.

  Savvy gazed at Olivia and shook her head. She took her bruised hand and gently patted it. She whispered, “I’ll be back later on today, Olivia. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll get you out of here once the doctor says it’s okay. I love you, my friend.”

  She grabbed her purse and headed toward the door where Dwain stood.

  “I’ll keep watch on Olivia and let her know you’ll be back later,” Dwain mumbled without making eye contact with her.

  “Yeah, sure.” Savvy glared at him and brushed by to leave the room. She didn’t have much to say to Dwain right now. His dealings in the dark would soon come to light. Very soon.

  Savvy walked out of the hospital to Nicole’s car. She gritted her teeth thinking about scandalous Dwain and what happened to Olivia. Somehow, she would have to help her work through all this craziness.

  Savvy got in the car and glanced at herself in the rearview mirror. She laughed loudly when she realized the hair bonnet remained on her head.

  When Savvy pulled into her apartment parking lot, she noticed a car with a FAMU sticker on the bumper parked in front. Since she hurried to get to the hospital, she hadn’t paid any attention to it when she left. Oh. This must belong to Nicole’s mystery guest. Who’s she kicking it with from FAMU?

  Savvy quietly let herself into the apartment and tiptoed into her room. She took her coat off from over her pajamas and hung it in the closet. She climbed into bed and snuggled into the covers, which were warm from her electric blanket.

  “Ahh. This feels so good.” She sighed and closed her eyes while taking several deep breaths until she drifted to sleep. The creaking sound of Nicole’s bedroom door opening woke her. She heard Nicole and her guest whispering when they passed her room.

  The front door opened and closed quietly. I have got to see who this guy is. Savvy rolled out of the bed, and tiptoed to her window which faced the front of their apartment. She spread the blinds apart with her fingers to peek outside. The two of them stood in front of the door kissing like newlyweds.

  Savvy couldn’t see his face since his back faced her. “Dayum. He is fine,” Savvy mumbled. His jeans fit his booty perfectly, and his muscles rippled through his FAMU sweatshirt.

  Nicole stood on her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his neck. Savvy squinted to see his face and still, could only see the back of his head. The bright moonlight cast shadows on the two of them, which made it where she could only see the outline of their bodies.

  Nicole and the mystery man reluctantly broke away from their embrace. He jogged downstairs to the parking lot. When he walked toward the car with the FAMU bumper sticker, the street light illuminated his face.

  Savvy choked when she recognized his angular jaw. She blinked her eyes several times before checking again to make sure she didn’t imagine what she thought she saw. She put her hand to her mouth in disbelief and her stomach hurt from disappointment when she recognized Nicole’s lover.

  Carl. It’s Carl. Carl Greer.

  CHAPTER 15

  Savvy plopped down onto her bed, hurt from what she witnessed. She couldn’t believe her roommate betrayed her. How could Ni
cole do this to me? We’ve been such good friends so why would she lie to me? She’s never expressed any interest in Carl.

  Savvy replayed in her mind seeing Carl and Nicole kissing on the front porch. She closed her eyes tightly to get the scene out of her head.

  Nicole played with her heart by offering to fix her up with Carl. What kind of friend, let alone a roommate, does this to someone? This is crazy.

  Savvy heard Nicole come back into the apartment and the sound of running water in the kitchen sink. Now, how am I supposed to handle this situation? Of course, Carl isn’t my boyfriend, however, Nicole knows how much I like him. This is just a game to her. Nicole is basically laughing in my face each time I fantasize about Carl. Unbelievable. There’s no way I can continue to live here because I can’t trust this trick with anything now.

  Savvy decided that she needed to confront Nicole. No way would she be able to walk around faking. She jumped off the bed, opened her door, and walked slowly to the kitchen. Nicole stood barefoot in her fluffy yellow bathrobe. She was washing dishes in a sink full of soap bubbles and humming to herself.

  Nicole smiled at Savvy when she sensed her presence. “Good morning, Sunshine. I wasn’t expecting you to be awake this early.”

  I can’t believe she’s acting fake with me like nothing happened last night.

  Nicole continued smiling at her. “Well, since you’re awake, how about I make breakfast for you? I’m clearing the sink to find a skillet to use. I think I’ll scramble eggs with bacon and make pancakes. Sound good?”

  “No, I’m not hungry right now,” Savvy said through clenched teeth.

  Nicole’s smile faded, and she crinkled her eyebrows in concern. “Are you okay? You never turn away my great cooking. You got cramps?”

  “I’m fine, just tired. I had a lot of studying to do last night,” Savvy replied. “By the way, I fell asleep studying in the living room. I awakened when I heard you come in.”

  “Oh. I’m sorry I disturbed you. I thought you were in your room. If I had known you were studying in there, I would’ve stopped in to wake you to go to bed,” Nicole laughed.