The Rolexxx Club - Anniversary Edition

by Meta Smith

  The nurse gently tapped Mr. Lopez’s arm.

  “You’ll have time to reunite in a moment. Let me examine her,” the nurse said sternly. Mr. Lopez stepped away from the bed.

  “Desiree how many fingers am I holding up? The nurse asked firmly.

  Dez blinked several times, the dark pupils adjusting in size within the golden caramel of her hazel eyes.

  “Three. Now who the hell are you and where’s my sancocho and san- gria?” Dez asked the nurse. Sparks was in a foul mood. He’d had zero sleep and a day filled with meet- ings, phone calls and non-stop business. He wanted to be grateful. Being a mogul is what he worked for. But it was all becoming so heavy. Sometimes he wished that someone would join him behind the scenes and help alle- viate some of the burdens of being the biggest producer in hip-hop. Heavy is the head that wears the crown, he thought.

  When his phone rang for the millionth time that day, Sparks didn’t bother to mask his annoyance.

  “Who is it and what do you want? Make it quick,” he snarled, without checking the caller ID.

  “It’s Ginger and I want you to know that Dez is awake so you and your brother need to get your asses down here. Was that quick enough for you?” Ginger sassed.

  “Did you say what I thought you said?” Sparks asked, pulling his car to the side of the road. His hands shook as he took deep breaths.

  “I’d have loved to tell you with more finesse but you’re cranky as all get out,” Ginger said.

  “She’s awake?” Sparks repeated.

  “She’s awake. Get her man and get here,” Ginger told him and hung

  up.

  Sparks headed straight home. He knew Bentley would still be passed

  out from all the bullshit he was on the night before. When he got to his condo he told the valet to keep the car close. Sparks was going to get Bentley together in record time. He had to get to the rehab center, had to see Dez. Sparks told himself that he was in rush for Bentley’s sake, that his brother wouldn’t want to hesitate. But inside he knew the truth. He was still in love with Dez. Bentley shrieked like a 12-year-old girl when the bucket of ice water hit his body. He was still wearing his vomit covered clothes – Sparks wasn’t about to undress and bathe him like a baby. The water clung to his skin and the stench from his puke hit Bentley’s nostrils. He winced at the pu- trid odor.

  “What the fuck, bro?” he complained as he wiped the water from his face.

  “Get up! I tried to wake you up the normal way but you wouldn’t budge because you’re too fucked up,” Sparks said.

  “Your ass better not be doing all this to get me to come to the fucking studio,” Bentley complained.

  “I’m doing this because Ginger just called. Dez is awake!” Sparks told his brother.

  Bentley blinked and stared. “She’s awake?” he asked.

  “Yes. So get out of bed, get your stankin’ ass in some water and soap and put some fresh clothes on. Be ready in 10 minutes. Don’t leave her waiting,” Sparks ordered. He glared at Bentley as he got out of bed and trudged toward his bathroom.

  Bentley unzipped his pants and let them fall to the floor as he took a piss, droplets of urine hitting the toilet seat that he hadn’t even bothered to lift. As his dick tingled a bit, he hoped like hell that he’d used a rubber with the bitch he fucked at Tootsie’s. What was her name again? Ebony? No. Ivory. He couldn’t remember details but he remembered she had a mean headgame.

  Bentley felt a tinge of guilt as he thought about what he’d done. He didn’t need to recall all the details to know that he fucked a stripper. He’d fucked many strippers since Dez’s shooting. He wasn’t sure why they were his go-to bitch of choice. Maybe he was still angry at Dez about her past and felt like he was hurting her by fucking bitches that would be so happy to tell her that they’d had her man while she was in a coma. Maybe it was because they did whatever he wanted. But he didn’t have time to feel bad. He had to go see Dez.

  As the warm water hit his body in the shower, his head throbbed. He felt fucked up. The effects of the drug cocktail were still lingering along with the beginnings of a blistering hangover. He had to get it together. He reluctantly ran the water cold in an attempt to wake up. That didn’t last long. He cut the water off, got out the shower, and wrapped himself in a towel. He drank a glass of water and promptly threw it up. He repeated the process a few times until he felt like his stomach was empty. Then he brushed his teeth, gagging and dry heaving on the fumes of the minty fluoride paste the entire time. He put eyedrops in his eyes, but more of the saline solution ended up on his face than actually in his eyes. He brushed his hair. He still looked a mess. He remembered the vial of cocaine that was in his jeans pocket. He’d blown the bag in his jacket pocket with Ivory, but he kept a vial of pure shit on him that he didn’t share. It would do the trick to wake him up.

  As he was about to take a bump of the blow, Bentley caught sight of his reflection in the mirror. He felt ashamed of himself. He had turned into a typical Miami junkie in two short months. He couldn’t use Dez as an ex- cuse. He should have been stronger. He ran the water in the sink. It should have been easy for him to pour the coke down the drain. But it wasn’t. He couldn’t do it. He was startled by a knock on the bathroom door.

  “Come on man. We need to go!” Sparks said from the other side of the closed and locked door as he tried the knob.

  “I’m coming!” Bentley shouted. He screwed the top back onto the vial and palmed it, then exited the bathroom. He looked at Sparks. “I’m throwing on a shirt and some shorts. Be right down,” he told him.

  Sparks nodded and left the room as Bentley went into his walk-in closet. Bentley waited until he heard the door close to take a bump of the coke. It was just a bump. What would it hurt? Ginger and Mr. Lopez stepped out of Dez’s room when the doctor walked in so that they could have a bit of privacy. Ginger escorted Mr. Lopez to

  his car and told him to bring back his daughter and grandchildren right away. She knew that Dez would want to see them. Mr. Lopez promised to not only return quickly with his family, but with the sancocho and sangria he’d promised Dez as well.

  Ginger didn’t want to leave Dez alone for too long so she rushed back to her room. Ginger really didn’t care about Dez’s privacy or doctor con- fidentiality rules. She only cared about her sister and getting her any and everything that she needed to make a full recovery. And from what Ginger saw when she entered the room, she realized that Dez needed her now more than ever. She was crying hysterically, her face red, her arms flailing. Ginger rushed to her side.

  “Ginger! Ginger, I can’t move my legs! Oh my God! I can’t even feel them!” Dez cried.

  “I’m so sorry, Dez. The doctors said that this might be a possibility,” Ginger replied, soothingly rubbing Dez’s shoulders. Dez shook Ginger’s hands off of her violently.

  “It can’t be!” she shrieked. “This can’t be fucking happening to me!” “Calm down, hermana. The damage might not be permanent,” Ginger

  said.

  “Might not be? Fuck a might!” Dez snapped.

  “Dez, now that you’re awake, I know you’re going to make a full re- covery. Jesus will—” Ginger began. Dez calmed instantly at the mention of Jesus. Her face turned to stone.

  “Ginger, don’t. Please. Not now,” she said icily.

  Ginger nodded. Dez took a deep shaky breath and wiped the tears from her face. The doctor and Ginger stood silently as she composed her- self. After a few moments, Dez spoke.

  “Doctor, what are the odds that I’ll walk again?” she asked him.

  “I can’t say definitively, for now. Your body is still readjusting to re- viving from the coma. It could be very temporary, or it could take a while for you to regain the use of your legs.”

  “But it isn’t permanent?” Dez asked.

  “From the results of the tests taken right after the shooting, there wasn’t much permanent damage to the spinal cord and nerves but it’s too soon to tell how the damage you did susta
in will impact you long- term. We’ll need to take more tests now that you’re awake. But it’s not impossible. I’ve seen people worse off than you fully recover,” the doctor explained to Dez.

  “What do I need to do?” Dez asked him.

  “For now, you need to rest. Eat. You’ve lost a bit of weight. You need

  to regain your strength. I’ll schedule some tests for in the morning. When we get more definitive results, we’ll take things from there. But I think that it’s safe to say that regardless of the outcome, when you’re ready, we’ll begin intensive rehab and physical therapy. For now, reconnect with your family. They’ve been waiting for you to wake up for a while.”

  Dez fought to hold back the tears threatening to form again behind her chameleon-like eyes and nodded. She had to be strong. Tears wouldn’t help her walk again.

  Sparks and Bentley then entered Dez’s room at the same time, but Sparks rushed past his brother who was walking in slow baby steps to- wards Dez’s bed. Sparks sat on her bed and took Dez into his arms. He held her and rocked her back and forth. Dez couldn’t hold back her tears. The gesture was so affectionate, so tender, so nurturing, that she just let go in his arms.

  “Baby girl. You had us all fucked up. Don’t leave us anymore,” Sparks whispered in her ear as he stroked her hair.

  “I’m not planning to,” she replied, looking up at him and smiling. She wiped her tears with the back of her hand and looked over at Bentley, who was still approaching her bed in slow motion.

  “Bentley, baby? You act like you’ve seen a ghost. Well, ain’t you got nothing to say to your woman? Bentley! What’s wrong? Get over here!” Bentley stood staring at Dez, completely mute and expressionless.

  “I think he’s in shock,” Sparks said quickly. He got up from Dez’s bed and stood in front of his brother. He grabbed him by the shoulders and looked him in the eyes. They were still dialated. His brother was definite- ly still high. Shit.

  “Get it together, nigga!” Sparks warned Bentley. “She needs you.” “Dez,” Bentley’s voice was a hoarse whisper. “Desi, baby?”

  “Bentley,” Dez replied. Their eyes met. Bentley swayed back and forth ever so slightly. Dez could tell that he was high. She hadn’t been in a coma long enough to forget what that looked like. She couldn’t tell what he was on, but it was more than weed, that much she was sure of. And she didn’t like it. But she figured that it was due to all the stress he’d been under since she’d been shot. It had to have been so hard for him. He’d seen ev- erything happen, and had been at her bedside so many times. She remem- bered hearing his voice and being unable to answer. It killed her to listen to him beg and plead for her to come back to him, to weep and mourn over the loss of his first child. Now, they had a chance at happiness, if only she could get her stupid legs to work. Dez shook off thoughts of self-pity as she watched tears form in Bentley’s eyes.

  “Baby,” he croaked.

  Dez smiled and motioned for him to come to her.

  “Come here, baby,” she said softly. Bentley buried his head in her chest, ashamed of his reaction. He was crying, clinging to her with all his might.

  “Dez, I’m so sorry. I love you baby. I love you so much,” Bentley sobbed. “You don’t have anything to be sorry about. None of this was your

  fault. I love you baby. It’s okay,” Dez said.

  Ginger dabbed at her eyes with a tissue from the box that sat on an end table next to Dez’s bed.

  “Sparks, let’s give them a minute,” Ginger suggested. “We can wait for Mr. Lopez to come back with his family.”

  “Mr. Lopez?” Sparks asked Ginger.

  “Come on, I’ll fill you in on everything,” Ginger said and she and Sparks left Bentley and Dez alone. They were already oblivious to anyone besides each other so the couple didn’t even notice them exit.

  “I love you, I love you,” Bentley repeated over and over again. Dez wept with her man with no shame, returning his declarations of love for what seemed like hours.

  “Bentley, look at me,” Dez finally said, after she and Bentley had calmed down a bit. Bentley looked up sheepishly.

  “Baby, there’s some things I need to tell you.”

  “Shhh, you don’t have to talk,” Bentley said, and silenced her with kisses.

  Dez kissed him back passionately, but something was different. She felt the same flutter in her heart as always, but that extra tingle, the one that happened between her legs was absent. She panicked. She couldn’t feel her legs, but did that mean she wouldn’t be able to feel what was be- tween them either?

  “I have to tell you,” she said, breathlessly pulling away from him. “What’s wrong?” Bentley asked her.

  “Baby, I can’t walk. I can’t feel my legs,” Dez said, starting to cry.

  “I, I knew it could happen,” Bentley admitted. “They said it when they told us that you lost the baby.” Bentley started to cry again too. “But I don’t care. I’m not going anywhere, baby. I love you. This thing I got for you, it’s forever.” Bentley rose from Dez’s bedside and dropped to his knees. He clasped her hands in his and looked into her eyes.

  “Dez, baby. Will you marry me? I don’t want to be with anybody else in this world but you. You’re everything to me.”

  “Bentley, you’re high,” Dez said with a little laugh. “You think I can’t

  tell?”

  “It’s not that baby. I mean it. I want to marry you.”

  “But what if I can’t ever walk again? What if I can’t give you babies?” “Dez, we’ll get to what if, when we get there. We can do anything together. No matter what happens I’m in this for life. I don’t have a ring for you right now, but I promise that first thing in the morning I’ll put the biggest, baddest motherfucking diamond you’ve ever seen in your life on

  your finger.”

  For life? Ha! How long do you think he will really stay with you if you can’t walk, can’t dance, can’t fuck? Dez aksed herself. No, he loves me. He really loves me. He’s never going to leave me. He promised me that. He proposed. Got down on his knees and begged me to be his wife. He isn’t going anywhere! But he told you he loved you before. And he left you. He’ll leave you again. The voices in her head argued back and forth. Dez shook her head as Bentley kneeled before her awaiting her an- swer. Shit, my ass ain’t been up a goddamn day and my mind is playing tricks on me. Shut the fuck up! Dez said to her negative thoughts. Say yes!

  “Yes baby! Yes, I’ll marry you!” Dez told Bentley. He kissed her again and this time Dez didn’t care that she couldn’t feel the arousal that once dominated their relationship. He loved her for her, no matter what. It was what she always wanted. Ginger walked with Sparks to the lounge. She was happy that it was emp- ty. When they stepped inside, she closed the door that normally remained open and welcoming. As soon as it was shut, she blew up.

  “Sparks! Are you going to tell me what the hell is going on?”

  “What do you mean?” Sparks asked her, wondering where all the an- ger was coming from. Ginger should have been happier than anyone; she and Dez were so close.

  “Excuse my language, but what the fuck is going on with Bentley? He’s fucked up! He didn’t even have the respect to pull it together before he got here?” Ginger snapped at Sparks. Sparks sighed.

  “I’ve got it under control, Gin,” Sparks told her.

  “No, you don’t, Sparks,” Ginger said. “Not by a long shot. Shit is falling apart around you. Are you going to stay in denial?”

  “I’m not in denial, Ginger. I’m handling things,” Sparks said, patiently. He loved Ginger, but once she got on a tangent there was no stopping her and he wasn’t in the mood.

  “Sparks, you and I have talked a lot since this all went down,” Ginger said, this time with a bit more sensitivity. She knew that she could be

  blunt, but she didn’t want to see the people she cared about make stupid mistakes that could be avoided.

  “And I couldn’t have made it through this without you. None
of us could. You’ve been our rock,” Sparks said. He looked gratefully and Gin- ger who gave him a warm smile.

  “Yeah, I might be a rock but I’m not as dumb as one. I know when someone is high out of their mind. Firsthand. Bentley is clearly drunk. He smells like a corner store wino. And he reeks of weed. His pupils are dilated like crazy. And do you think I don’t see his jaw grinding worse than Bobby Brown’s? He’s on weed, liquor, coke and X. That’s a recipe for disaster!” Ginger knew how that recipe turned out and didn’t want to see Bentley end up the way she had or worse. And more than that, Ginger didn’t want Desiree to have to deal with helping one more addict; she and Dez’s mother had been enough.