by Nicety
Sin would play a few games then would stop mid-way through and just watch Cocoa do her thang. He wasn’t really interested in gambling he just did it because she liked it. He would have done anything for her even if that meant shooting his own mother in the head. He’d done it if she’d asked. Sin just wanted to be there with her. He wanted to spend almost every waking moment with her if it meant she would marry him.
He would sit and stare at her thinking she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Cocoa paid him no attention and was there solely to make money. She was so into herself and off the wine that she did not even notice his staring. When she had her fill of winning and losing money they left to hit the strip.
When Cocoa shopped, she shopped! She loved to shop on the strip, which is usually known as The Mag Mile in the downtown area. This bitch bought Gucci, Prada, and Fendi. She spared no expense on her ass. There would be things in the display window that she wouldn’t ordinarily want but it looked cute so she felt she had to have it. She was very much so an impulse buyer. Sin wouldn’t say anything about it he thought it was cute. All day they kicked it and shopped. They shared a lemonade and pretzel while reminiscing on the good ol' days.
"You remember when they used open the fire hydrants? That was the shit!"
“Yeah babe, that was the shit.”
Sin agreed. Most of the time he would just let her talk and gaze into her eyes admiring her beauty. She knew that when he looked at her like that he was back on the marriage trip again. She tried to avoid it by talking a lot or talking on her cell phone.
On the car ride home, Sin was still thinking about the other day when he poured out his heart to her.
"So when we gonna get married, K? I ain't waiting no more, now answer my question."
"Damn nigga this shit again? Fine. I'll marry you but not right now ok. Just give me some time. I’m still young. I wanna travel and see the world. I wanna see Chile, you know I love it there. I’m having too much fun being young."
“I’m young too shit but I love you enough to want to marry you. I’m not saying let's have kids right now. I’m saying fucking marry me.”
“Fuck! Not right now! OKAY!”
Cocoa yelled. That was not the answer Sin wanted to hear.
“Oh shit. Now you wanna yell. I can’t believe you playin’ me like this after all we’ve been through. But its cool cause one day a woman is gonna swoop me up and you gonna be feelin’ like shit when I’m in love with someone else.”
Cocoa smacked her lips then replied,
“Shut up nigga! You ain’t going no damn where.”
Anger began to build in Sin’s stomach then up to his throat. He tried very hard to keep his composure and remain quiet. The car was silent the whole way home. It was so quite you could hear a rat piss on cotton. As they slowly pulled up in front of the house, Cocoa glanced up at the front door and saw that it was broken wide open. She and Sin jumped out the car barely parking it and ran up the stairs into the house. Her house was completely destroyed not to mention all of her electronics were missing.
It was gone. All of it. Gone. Her big screen TV’s were missing and her cameras were pulled out and stripped away. Her tables and chairs were all smashed up and destroyed. The culprits even cut up her couches and rugs. Whoever did this was on some vindictive angry shit. She immediately started to think that this shit was the result of one of her invasions she pulled when she needed money. Someone must have gotten wind of the fact that it was her causing all of the raids and decided it was time for some much needed payback.
Cocoa knew she got what was coming to her but she did not think that the goons would allow this to happen.
“Where are the fucking goons?”
Everyone appeared to be gone as well. There were no blood or dead bodies anywhere so where the hell did these muthafuckas go? She knew that her goons wouldn’t have gone without a fight so she knew kidnapping was out of the question. Shit was really wrong.
She ran to the top of the stairs and stuck her hand through a small crack in the wall and pulled a lever. A small door opened in the wall revealing where Cocoa kept her money at since she did not trust banks. The thought of the government having that much control over her pissed her off but now she really wished she had put the money in the bank. It too was gone. All of it. Gone.
She had over $600,000 stashed away and it was gone. How did anyone know her stash? Someone had to have been watching her every move. Someone might have watched her surveillance tapes, which were also gone.
"Who the hell would fucking do this shit to me?"
Cocoa said screaming at the top of her lungs.
"I don't know baby but I'm about to find out right fucking now."
Sin said as he ran frantically out the door, jumped in the car and took off.
Looking around the house Cocoa did not know where to begin to pick up the pieces of her shattered home. She had hustled so hard for this shit over the years and now it was gone. Without money she began to wonder how she would pay her bills and mortgage. Cocoa went to the garage to see if the bastards had destroyed that too. Amazingly, it was still in tact. No tools were missing at all. Cocoa went back in to look in her bedroom only to discover that her jewelry, clothes, and shoes were all gone too.
Who the fuck! She went in the basement and saw that all of the liquor was smashed up and the stage was broken up and cracked. Then she returned back upstairs and sat on her mutilated couch just looking around realizing that her world had come crashing down in a matter of hours. Cocoa locked the door and slept in silence and darkness on the torn couch waiting on Sin to come back with results.
Days went by with no sign of Sin.
"Could he be in on the shit?"
She began to wonder. She had been stewing in her own filth and tears unable to eat, sleep, or shower. She walked around the house with the curtains closed and the doors locked extra tight.
Every other hour, Cocoa would peer out the side of the curtains to see if anyone was out there lingering around or watching her house. After not hearing anything from Sin, she began to feel abandoned by everyone. No one came by to see how she was doing or visit. No one ringed her phone off the hook as it did many times before the desecration of her house.
It was like she never existed. There was no sign of any of her employees either. Cocoa ventured to the basement to see if she could salvage what was left of her liquor supply. She found only one bottle of Erk and Jerk and guzzled a good chunk of it. She hadn’t eaten in days and she sought liquor as her only sustenance. As she sat there wasting herself away in alcohol she sluggishly slumped over and passed out. ****
A dark storm brewed in the west and was headed right for her ass.
“Run, Bitch, Run!!”
She heard a voice call out from the darkness. She couldn’t see who it was but there was some indication that the voice had to know her personally since it was comfortable enough to address her as such. Cocoa did not know whether to fight or run. The storm brewed wildly now and showed no signs of stopping. She wanted to just evade the whole situation but it was like her brain wouldn’t allow her legs to move unless she decided to do the action it wanted her to do.
She tried to walk away and turn her back but nothing allowed her to move away from that spot she was in. Suddenly Cocoa realized that no one was yelling at her telling her to run. It was her own brain that was telling her to make that move.
As soon as she focused on running her body began to move. Her body never felt so limber and free. She ran and ran. It seemed as if she had been running forever and decided she wanted to stop. But when she tried she couldn't. She looked down at the pavement as she ran on then looked back up at a foggy road.
Cocoa closed her eyes trying to concentrate on not running anymore.
"Ha ha ha ha ha!"
There was laughter in her head and that's all. She began to worry about what might happen if she was never able to stop. Her body began running st
ronger, harder, faster. After what seemed to be a few hours of running, Cocoa’s thinking became clearer. She was no longer afraid or confused at what her mind was telling her body to do. It felt right. It felt natural. Soaring in the mist of fog as her body beat against the crisp cool night air. A bird couldn't feel what she felt this night even if he rose to the highest height. It was like running on clouds she thought as she smiled enjoying the ride.
Cocoa looked down and did not see the ground anymore. Furthermore, she couldn't feel it anymore either. She began to wonder if this was the way she was going to die. To die on a long winding road of fog would be truly fucked up. Just then she realized she hadn't even moved the whole time. She had only run in place on darkness. The light began to shine down into the shadow upon her.
Finally Cocoa was able to bring her body to a halt. She looked around and saw nothing but fog. There was no sign of life anywhere but she felt something prickly on her skin. Something was pinching her and the feeling became more intense by the second. Cocoa now felt nauseated and dizzy. The wind was hitting her body in full force. She tried to shelter her body from the blows but it was no use. The blows were coming from all around her. Cocoa looked down and saw that the light was beneath her diminishing gradually. As the wind smacked her body in every which way Cocoa began to tumble. It was then she realized she was falling.
She screamed her head off hoping someone would hear her. No one did. She tumbled for so long in the abusive wind that she believed this was how it ended for her. The end would be a dark hole of death. CRACK! Cocoa's body hit the pavement like a semi truck. Her head was split open with blood and brain everywhere. Her body lay in a position as if she were running still, her eyes open. She was still alive but only barely. There was a baby-sitting very still right in front of her face just staring. Her vision became blurry so she figured it must have been her angel ready to take her home. As she slipped into death she heard a voice whisper,
"Now breathe." ****
Chapter 11- Get Up
Cocoa woke up in a puddle of vomit. Coughing, she looked around to see where she was. Her heart was beating fast as hell, startled by the fact that it was all a dream. That shit scared the fuck out of her. She did not know what the hell it meant but considered it some kind of message. Cocoa looked down at her puke infested clothes, getting angry with herself. Enough was enough. Cocoa decided to quit feeling sorry for herself and get out here and find out who did her bogus.
Cocoa remembered that her bags and purse from shopping with Sin the other day were still in his car, so she did not have many extra clothes. After showering and finding a jogging suit that was left from the wreckage, she went to ask around to all the niggas in the hood. No one heard anything or even seen Sin. The local stores hadn’t seen him in there to buy his regular blunts nor had the bitches who flirted with him on a regular seen him.
She went from Englewood to Marquette Park to Roseland and back again and found out nothing. She did the only thing that was left for her to do. She went to talk to Drew. Cocoa had put off going to talk to him because she was afraid of what he might say. She did not have any money for him and she did not know how she would get any.
Scared of what he might say still, she decided it was time to face the music and maybe he would have mercy and help her find who fucked her shit up.
The long ride to his house made her so nervous that she couldn’t speak. She hated riding on public transportation because it seemed to her that the people were always looking and judging her. When she finally made it to his house, she replayed over again the excuses that she would tell him. Nothing really sounded right so she decided to go with the truth.
"Drew somebody fucked me up. They smashed my crib and I haven't heard anything about who did it. I'm wondering if you can help me."
It appeared that he may have been waiting on her. He did not say much and was rather more calm than normal about the situation. He looked at her dead in her eyes.
"Nobody has heard anything, K? I told you not to stay in that hood you should've moved. I gotta tell ya you should've listened to me."
Cocoa wasn't paying attention to his words. She was too busy looking around his million-dollar mansion, one of the biggest in Schaumburg. He was truly ballin' with his crystal glasses on the table and floor to ceiling windows, right along with his jet-black Phantom parked in the driveway. Then she sparked an idea.
"Hey, do you think you can bump me a loan just until I get back on my feet? I promise I will get you your money back plus interest, plus what you lost."
Drew turned and looked at her with a devious grin.
"I only lend friends money. You ain't no friend of mine honey."
Cocoa's face dropped in disbelief. She couldn’t believe what she’d just heard from someone who she thought had her back for so long.
"Wh...What???" she exclaimed stepping backward.
"Yeah, I mean who do you think has the power to take everything from you and get away with it? I couldn't very well let you think you could take my spot could I? You've got to honor the game baby. See the things you failed to learn about this game is.... it is a bitch! Ha ha now get the fuck outta my face before I bend you over like the bitch that you are. Unless you're willing to do something strange for a piece of change. I mean you are broke..."
Cocoa was stunned. In the blink of an eye her life went from easy to drastic. Drew stood there waving a $100 bill in his hands. A measly $100 wasn't going to get her through the night. She looked at him, facial expression becoming saddened by his old ass wrinkly body. Her skin crawled at the very thought of even touching his ass.
“How the fuck you gonna play me nigga? After everything we’ve been through. You watched me grow up helping me and shit and this is what you reduce me to.”
Cocoa was mad heated.
“Listen you was nothing more than pussy to me then and you are nothing more than that now. What the fuck did you think we were friends?” He replied
“Not friends but at least business partners. I thought you would have my back at least, damn.”
“Bitch that’s where you failed in the game. My dick is my only friend. Now if you want this change you gonna have to give my best friend a little taste. You feel me bitch?”
“I can not even believe this shit.”
Full of disgust she got down on her knees in front of him, unzipped his pants and pulled out his dick. She promised herself she wouldn’t let this nigga see her gag no matter how bad she wanted to. All she knew was she had to take one for the team because the only thing she had in her pocket was a bus pass and a few dollars. She began sucking and gagging in her mind at the fact.
"Swallow that nut bitch!"
He said as he grabbed the back of her head and pushed it faster. Yeah she had told herself she wouldn't gag but it was getting harder not to now. How did her life come to this? She kept thinking about sticking this nigga up but knew she wouldn’t have gotten far.
Finally after 15 minutes of panting the nigga nuts all in her mouth and she swallows it like a pro as she was told. She stood up as he tries to catch his breath snatches the money from his dangling hand and starts to walk off.
"You know you can always come work for me. I'll do that bangin ass body some good."
“Kiss my ass.”
“Oh! Now you talking. Let’s go!”
“Fuck you, Drew.”
“Talk dirty to me bitch, that’s right! Ha ha ha ha ha. But that offer still stands. Come work for me anytime.”
Drew said while buckling his pants back up. Cocoa turned around with her head held high and said,
"I'll think about it."
She walked out the door and headed back to the crib. When she left, Drew walked over to open his desk drawer and stared into it. In it was an anonymous letter. He slumped back in his chair thinking about what the letter said while fiddling his fingers.
The letter read:
Hello Andrew Cunnings, son of Martha and Andr
ew Cunnings Sr. Your business will be through, all shattered to pieces. Your overseas connects gone. Your houses, your money, your life, GONE! If you don’t destroy Cocoa’s business. How would you like to go to sleep tonight then wake up in Columbia with men standing over you ready to torture and kill you? I know there are people looking for you there and that’s why you haven’t been there in years. Make a decision. One small business or one life. Should you choose this task it must be done one way or the other immediately. If you tell anyone or alert anyone to this message you will die. I have sharp shooters around you at all times for my enjoyment. Don’t be stupid.
K
As soon as she hit the door she slumped over on the floor and started crying. It was like her tears poured uncontrollably. Where was Sin? She'd hoped that he wasn't killed and nobody thought to inform her. A month went by and no one came to her house to visit her.
Her hoes all belonged to Drew now and if they were caught talking to her they would be disciplined and the same with her foot soldiers. All gone. It was like her fame never existed. She had reverted back to the bum as bitch she started out as except now she had no one in her corner to help her.
Cocoa decided to go by Sin’s house to see if he would answer. When she got there, the doorman wouldn’t let her in or even buzz for him. He kept saying no one lived there by that name. She tried desperately to explain to the man that he did but the man threatened to call the police on her. Cocoa couldn’t end up in jail right now so she backed off. Sin’s building was so big that she couldn’t climb up to his window. She just walked away with her head hung low.
Months had past and by now bills started to pile up and she needed money fast. She never had a real job before but decided to give it a try. She went and put applications in everywhere from retail to restaurants but nothing came through soon enough to pay some bills before they shut them off. She realized she was crazy for thinking she was going to get a job during the recession anyway. The $100 she got for sucking Drew's dick was only enough to put groceries in the house which she nibbled off of and surely did not last a week. She actually used $50 of that money and went to the boat. She figured if she could flip the little money then she could have enough to live off of for a short while and come back to play again.