9. Pluto Monroe
Trill-Land, Jungle Estate
A fter breakfast, I decided to go back to my assigned room and decompress.
Being in the mansion with a bunch of catty ass women who argued all day about who looked better and lifestyle upgrades was startin’ to feel like punishment instead of opportunity.
I didn’t know how the hell I was supposed to stay six weeks in this place without losing it.
Every corner of the house echoed with somebody gossiping about who Pressure might wife up or about how they were going to manifest a ring and a Range by next month.
It was only Day Two, and some of these women already smelled like they skipped Day One’s shower. I didn’t say nothing, but I noticed. The same ones hollering about being “top-tier baddies” were leaving lashes in the sink and not cleaning up after themselves like we hadn’t just got here.
I kept the window cracked in my room just enough to let some air in, but the sound of laughter outside kept sneaking through.
The women were all by the pool, twerking to old Megan Thee Stallion and hyping each other up like this was spring break.
I heard Kashmere’s laugh above everybody else’s.
She fit right in—loud, carefree, and floating on good vibes like she didn’t have a worry in the world. But I did…
I couldn’t stop thinking about Zurie. My baby sister was six years old, with a brain disorder that made every second I spent away from her feel risky.
She was strong, but her body was delicate, and sometimes things just…
happened. I kept telling myself she was in good hands with Uncle Lionel and Aunt Deanne.
I believed that when I packed her bag and kissed her on the forehead.
But now, sitting here with no phone, no updates, and no peace of mind, that belief was getting hard to hold on to.
What if Mama tried to come get her? What if she showed up at my Uncle Lionel’s house wilding? What if Zurie had another episode? What if she needed me and I wasn’t there?
I stood up and started pacing, realizing something that made my heart beat faster. I never wrote down my uncle’s number. It was saved in my phone, and now my phone was locked up somewhere in this big ass jungle mansion like it was contraband.
I didn’t even grab my shoes. I just opened my door and stepped out into the hallway, moving fast and looking around for somebody—anybody—who could help.
I passed two girls sitting near the stairs whispering, but I ain’t speak.
I kept moving until I spotted one of the security guards near the entrance to the den.
He was tall, dark-skinned, built like a tank, and dressed in all black with an earpiece in.
“Excuse me,” I said, trying to keep my voice calm. “I need to speak with Pressure real quick.”
The man barely blinked. “He’s busy right now. You’ll have to wait.”
“It’s kinda urgent,” I said. “I just need to get a number out my phone.”
He shook his head. “No phones. That’s part of the house rules.”
“I know, but it’s not like I’m tryna scroll Instagram. I just need one number.”
He kept that same flat tone. “If you need to call somebody, use the house phone.”
“That don’t help if I don’t know the number,” I snapped, stepping in a little closer. “Look—I’m not trying to cause a problem, I just need my uncle’s number. My little sister’s with him and I need to make sure she okay. You don’t understand—she has a medical condition.”
“I understand,” he said, “but I can’t break protocol.”
I clenched my jaw, feeling that familiar heat rising in my chest. “You got kids?”
He didn’t answer.
“Exactly, so don’t stand here and act like I’m asking for too much.”
That was when Kay’Lo came walking up from the other end of the hallway, dressed in designer joggers and a crisp white tee, his chain sitting heavy on his chest.
“What’s goin’ on?” he asked, looking between me and the security guard.
“I need to talk to Pressure,” I told him. “Please.”
“He’s tied up right now. Wussup?”
“I just need my phone for a second. I need to write down a number to check on my sister. I’m not tryna use it for anything else, I swear.”
He exhaled like he was torn but shook his head. “Nah, you gotta use the house phone. That’s the rule.”
“And I just told you I don’t know the number off the top of my head!” I raised my voice, tired of talking to men who weren’t trying to listen. “My sister is six years old and she’s sick. If something happened to her while I’m in here playing house with y’all, I swear to God!”
I was mid-sentence, still going back and forth with Kay’Lo, when I heard a voice from behind me. It was deep and calm, with a tone that didn’t have to be loud to get respect.
“Pluto.”
I turned, and there was Pressure.
He stepped into the hallway like he’d been watching from the shadows. Like always, he had a blunt between his fingers. His eyes met mine and he nodded once, like he understood without needing the whole explanation.
“You good,” he said. “Let her get her phone.”
He didn’t raise his voice or explain himself. He said it once, and just like that, it was handled . The security guard gave a nod and motioned for me to follow him down the hall toward a locked cabinet.
I was still pissed, but I followed without saying anything.
After carefully watching the guard unlock and open the box, I spotted my phone with the cracked glitter case, grabbed it quick and unlocked the screen.
My hands moved fast as I opened the contact list, then asked the guard if he had a pen.
He handed me one without saying much, and I wrote my uncle’s number across the back of my hand.
The guard walked me over to the house phone and stood nearby while I dialed.
It rang twice before Uncle Lionel picked up. “Hello?”
“Unc. It’s me, Pluto.”
“Baby girl,” he said, his voice warm. “Everything alright?”
“Yes. Is Zurie okay?”
“She’s fine,” he said immediately. “She’s in the backyard right now pickin’ flowers with Dee. She’s been laughin’ all morning.”
My knees got weak from relief. I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes. “She ain’t had no spells or nothing?”
“No spells. She slept through the night, ate breakfast, watched that Moana movie again, and been talkin’ about you all morning. She said to tell you she miss you.”
I smiled, even though my eyes stung. “Tell her I miss her more. So, so much.”
“You want me to put her on the phone?”
I thought about it but shook my head. “No. I will just make her sad. Just tell her I called, and that I’m okay.”
“I will. You focus on doin’ what you gotta do out there.”
“Thanks, Unc.”
“Always. We love you.”
“I love y’all too.”
I hung up and handed the house phone back. The guard didn’t say anything. He nodded again and walked off.
Back in my room, I closed the door behind me and leaned against it, letting the silence fill me.
The noise from the backyard was still floating through the air.
All the laughter and playfulness felt a thousand miles away from how I felt inside.
I walked over to the bed and sat down, staring at the floor.
Kashmere was probably out there right now, giggling with her feet in the pool, swapping stories about who Pressure looked at first and who got next. But I couldn’t be part of it today. Maybe not tomorrow either.
This mansion was beautiful, no doubt, but after having to argue just to get to my own phone, it was starting to feel like a prison.
Not because of the walls, but because of how much I had to explain myself just to be heard.
I didn’t mind following rules, but if something that small turned into a whole back and forth, I couldn’t help but wonder what else I’d have to fight for in here.
It was one thing to sign up for all this, thinking I could stick it out and use the money to help Zurie, but the longer I stayed in this mansion, the more it felt like I didn’t belong here.
The girls were cool in their own way, but this just wasn’t my speed, and if I was being real with myself, it already seemed like Pressure had his eyes on someone else.
Maybe that was a sign I needed to go. Maybe I wasn’t built for this type of environment, or maybe I just didn’t care enough to fight for space in a place that didn’t feel like mine to begin with.
At this point, I was ready to pack my shit and go back home.
It was 2 a.m., and all the girls were finally asleep. My bags were already packed, and I was ready to go.
I’d been waiting on this moment all damn day.
As soon as the house got quiet and I knew everybody was sleep, I grabbed my luggage and dipped out the room.
I didn’t say nothing to nobody. I had been keeping to myself since day one, so I wasn’t about to start explaining myself now.
I wasn’t here to make friends or be part of some group vibe.
I came for a reason, and right now, I was ready to go
I tiptoed barefoot across the marble floor, dragging my suitcase with one hand and holding my purse close with the other.
I hadn’t told Kashmere I was leaving because I couldn’t.
She would’ve tried to talk me out of it, probably followed me down the hall whispering a million reasons why I needed to stay.
I didn’t need that. I needed air, home and my sister.
When I got to the little wall box where they locked up our phones, my heart started thumping like I was committing a crime.
I knelt down and stared at the keypad, biting the inside of my cheek, trying to remember the code Pressure’s security guard used earlier today.
I watched him punch it in earlier, but now I couldn’t remember for nothing.
I thought I had it. I even ran it through in my head a few times…
but standing here now, my mind was blank.