Intercept My Heart

Chapter 11

Two Years later

Dinero was going to have a fit when he saw all the gifts I had gotten him. His birthday wasn’t something he enjoyed celebrating, but that never stopped me from getting him a gift. My man went above and beyond to take care of me, so the least I could do was make sure he had a cake and presents for his special day.

Things had changed so much for us in the last two years, but there were no complaints on my end. Life had finally begun to turn around for me, and I was excited about what the future had in store for Dinero and me.

He was in his sophomore year of college, and the NFL recruiters had been watching him like sharks. Originally, he planned to wait until he finished school, but we all knew they would make him an offer soon enough.

There were people all over the apartment complex, and it looked like one big old party. I hadn’t considered the fact that Dinero may have gone out, because he normally told me about his plans for the weekend. When I talked to him this morning, he told me he was going to take a nap and then chill for the night. They were training harder than normal, so between that and his testing, he’d been more tired than usual.

One thing I loved about Dinero was the fact that he put just as much effort into his schoolwork as he did into his game. He made sure that he studied almost every night and got up for his classes on time. Most student athletes didn’t care about the academic portion when they’d already decided they wanted to go to the NFL or NBA. I respected his dedication to higher learning.

“Ahh!” My whole body almost jumped out of the car when I heard the banging sounds at the rear of my car. When I turned to see what was going on, I saw two men fighting. One of them had the other pressed against the trunk of my car as he delivered hit after hit. They were yelling, but most of it was unintelligible. Reaching for my phone, I thought about calling Dinero to help me. Since I still wanted to surprise him, I decided to wait out the fight. The delicious aroma from the food in the back seat caused my stomach to growl.

He loved the hibachi from Wagos, and since they didn’t have one out here, I figured this would be a treat for him. Dinero’s body was even tighter since he’d been in college. He told me the coaches mandated them to work out five days a week and do yoga as well. Most college students usually gained weight within the first year, but Dinero stayed in the gym. Just the thought of him lifting me up and fucking me against the door caused me to shiver. I had been coming up here every other weekend just so I could ride my favorite player.

A small group circled my car before finally breaking up the fight. I knew college life could get wild, but I hadn’t anticipated it to be like this. There was music blasting from individuals’ cars, and I could see red Solo cups and beer bottles everywhere. A group of girls were bent over, twerking in front of this car, while a few boys were leaning up against it. Nero mentioned they partied like this on the weekends, but seeing it in person was a completely different experience.

I’d been in the parking lot for over thirty minutes, and I was tired of waiting. I reached back to grab the food, birthday cake, and balloons. I brought them and decided to have him come back for my bags. He hated for me to carry my own stuff anyway, so I knew he would be fussing.

“What’s up, sexy?” A tall man greeted me as soon as I exited the car. He was cute with his long locs piled on top of his head. Based on the tattoos covering his neck and arms, I figured he was much older than me.

“Do you need some help?” He gestured toward the bags of food in my hands. As nice as he may have appeared to be, he was still a stranger to me.

“No, thank you. I appreciate the offer, though.” I hurriedly brushed past him to get to the correct building.

1208 . My eyes scanned the numbers on top of the buildings to ensure I found the right one. When I found the correct one, I hustled up the stairs as fast as I could. I was socially awkward, so I hated being around large groups of people, especially when I didn’t know them. If I learned nothing else from my past, it was that I couldn’t put anything past a soul.

“Hey, don’t I know you from somewhere?” Another handsome gentleman approached me as I walked up the steps.

“Umm, you probably have me confused with someone else. I’m not from around here.” I didn’t want to give him too much information, but he definitely had me confused with someone else.

“Well, you’re pretty as hell. My apartment is across the hall in case you want to come visit with me too.” Obviously, the men on campus were a bit more friendly than I was used to because there was no way I’d invite a random stranger into my home.

The sound of music may have masked my knocks, so I pounded a little harder. It took a few more moments for someone to answer the door. When it finally opened, I was greeted by another handsome stranger.

“Damn, you sexy as hell. How can I help you?”

“Umm, yes. Is Dinero here?” I knew this was the right place, but it was possible he could have left.

“Damn, I’m not sure. I just got off work, and we have a full house. You’re more than welcome to come in if you want.” I hesitated for a minute, then decided to go inside. A part of me started to rethink this whole surprise thing now that I was here. When he pushed the door back, and I saw all those people in the middle of the living room, I wanted to turn and run right back out to my car.

“Who the hell is that?”

“She must be a transfer because I’ve never seen her before.”

“Stop drooling; she’s just a girl. If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.”

“I’d drink her bath water. That bitch is cold as hell.”

“Stop being a hater, Tessa. That girl is fine as fuck.”

These were only a handful of the comments I heard while walking through the room. The music in here wasn’t nearly as loud as the music blaring from the hallway. You could hear the people talking around you, and the overall vibes were chill.

As I scanned the room, I still didn’t see Dinero anywhere. Since his room was at the far end of the apartment, I headed in that direction. There were people on both sides of me, and the room started to feel small.

“Hey, boo. Where did you get those earrings from? They are too cute!” a pretty girl standing next to the bathroom asked me. I’d completely forgotten I had earrings on, so I touched my ear to check.

“Oh, one of my friends makes these. I think I may have one of her business cards with me.” I moved my crossbody bag to the side so I could look through it. When I finally found one, I handed it to her.

“Good looking out, boo. My name is Monique.” She held her hand out for me to shake. I returned the gesture since she seemed like a nice girl. My nerves settled slightly, but I was anxious to get to Dinero. Once I finally got to his room, I couldn’t hear anything coming from the other side of the room. I didn’t want to barge in, so I knocked instead. I waited for someone to come to the door, but no one came after a couple of minutes.

I saw light coming from the bottom of the door, so I knew someone must have been in there. When I texted Dinero to ask where he was, his answer left me confused.

Me:

Hey, baby. Where are you?

My Love:

I’m at home. I wasn’t in the mood to go out, so I decided to stay at the apartment.

Either he was lying or hadn’t heard me knocking on the door. Since he told me he was in the room, I decided to let myself in. When I pushed the door open, the sound of a woman’s voice caught me off guard.

“I didn’t make this baby by myself!” Her words stunned me as I walked into the room.

“I don’t understand how this shit could have happened. I’m not saying that I won’t take care of my responsibilities if it’s mine. However, I don’t remember us fucking, so this shit isn’t making sense to me. Besides, if I did smash, there’s no way I would have went in raw.” I slammed the door behind me to let them know someone else was in the room. Dinero’s head shot up, and I could see the guilty expression on his face. He stood in the middle of the room, with eyes full of regret.

“Shit, baby. This isn’t what it looks like. I was?—”

“Save it! I should have never come here in the first place.”

Dropping the food and gifts on the floor, I raced out of the room and out of the apartment. A few more men attempted to gain my attention, but I was on the verge of a panic attack. Once I finally made it to the car, I heard the sound of Dinero yelling for me. I couldn’t bear to face him right now because my heart was crushed.

Tears clouded my vision as I attempted to open my door. Of course, luck wasn’t on my side when I dropped my keys on the ground.

“Sunny, stop!” Dinero’s hands gripped my arms as he turned my body to face him. Seeing his face only made me cry harder.

“I know you’re upset, but you’ve got to hear me out. The situation with Harper was an honest mistake. I swear to God, I wasn’t trying to hurt you. This shit isn’t what you think.”

“I heard enough! Not only did you cheat on me, but it sounds like you were careless too. How could you do something so reckless!” I shouted, pushing him in the chest. Dinero had never given me a reason to doubt him until now. It made me question if I’d been too trusting when it came to our relationship.

“I-I don’t know, baby. All I know is that I got too drunk at a party, and the next thing I know, this girl is telling me she’s pregnant.” I stared at him as if he had two heads.

“Are you serious right now? That’s the best you could come up with? You don’t remember?” I scoffed in disbelief as I turned to walk away. Now I really felt like he was trying to play in my face.

“Sunny, please. I’m trying to be honest with you. I never meant for any of this to happen. I don’t even remember anything that happened after I started drinking. You know in your heart that I would never intentionally hurt you. Yes, it was irresponsible of me to get that drunk, but it wasn’t on purpose.”

“You are unbelievable. So, you really expect me to believe you passed out and have no memory of sleeping with another girl? Do you hear how crazy that sounds? You’re about to have a baby, Money! A baby! What do you expect me to do with something like this? You can’t possibly think I’m gonna stay with you.” All this felt like a bad nightmare, and I desperately wanted to wake up.

“Hey, Money. I tried to find you earlier to see if you wanted to hang out.” A random girl walked over to us as if she didn’t see us talking. I observed her from head to toe. I wasn’t a hater by any means, so I could admit she was attractive. She was shorter than me, but her portions were larger. Her ass was hanging out of the bottom of her shorts while her breasts spilled out of the tank top she sported. Her dark chocolate skin was blemish-free and downright mesmerizing. If it weren’t for her being in my man’s face, I would have complimented her.

“Aye, I’m in the middle of something right now.” Dinero’s aura changed, and I could tell he was uncomfortable.

“Well, come see me when you’re done with your little friend.”

“Aye, chill out. I’m talking to my girl, and you’re interrupting.”

“Hmm, what a bummer. I expected you to have a bad bitch on your arm, not a scared little church mouse. I’ll wait for you. You know where to find me.” The bitch was bold, and I had so much anger in me that I didn’t hesitate to take it out on her. Clearly, she took me for a joke as she stood there with her hands on her hips.

“Now, what were you saying?” I sassed, rolling my eyes at the rude girl.

“Oh, please. You don’t scare me at all. If I were you, I would get in that car of yours and never look back. You’re not the kind of girl a man like Money needs on his arm. You are plain and basic, love. Money is about to be a superstar, and he doesn’t need to be dragging the help along with him. Don’t worry though, I’ll take good care of your man in your abs—” I socked her right in her smart-ass mouth. She stumbled back, but I didn’t let that stop me. I continued to swing on her in order to get out all of my frustration. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go, but here we were.

“Bae, stop!” Dinero wrapped his arms around me while I continued to beat the weave out of ol’ girl’s head. All the anger and frustration I had built up was being unleashed.

“Get her off me!” she screamed. A crowd of people surrounded us with their phones recording. I hated having this kind of negative attention on me, but I could do nothing about it. I got one last punch in before Dinero hauled me away, kicking and screaming.

“Let me go!” Tears streamed down my face as reality settled in. For these last few years, Dinero had become the only person I could trust. Not only was he my boyfriend, but he was also my best friend. Why would he do this to me when he knew I had no one else in this world?

“Put me down!” I fought my way out of his hold. He finally obliged once we got closer to my car.

“Baby, please don’t leave. I know this looks bad, but give me a chance to make things right. Come back inside with me so I can talk to you.”

“No, it’s okay. I should really be going.”

“What do you mean? You’re upset, and you shouldn’t be driving like this. I’ll even sleep on the couch if you want to sleep in my bed. Rae, you know that I love you more than anything. I don’t have any reason to lie to you. Please, at least give me a chance to explain.”

“I don’t care. You’re free to do what you want.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“It means exactly what I said. I told you from the beginning that a long-distance relationship wouldn’t work, and I was right.”

“That’s not true. I love you, and I’m not trying to be with anyone else but you.”

“So, was that girl the only person you’ve had sex with since you’ve been here?”

“What?” His response was very telling, and it felt like a punch to the gut.

“You heard me, Dinero. I’m not stupid. Even if what you said about the girl upstairs is true, it’s clear you aren’t setting any boundaries. I wanted to believe you wouldn’t cheat on me, but we’re young, and I expected you to mess up. That’s why I suggested we take a break, but you didn’t want to listen to me.”

“I didn’t want to lose you, Rae. I’m not out here partying and fucking every bitch I see. Yes, I’ll admit that I fucked up with Harper, but it was a one-time thing. Our relationship means too much to me to throw it away over some shit I don’t even remember. You’ve got to believe that.” I could see the sincerity in his eyes, but it did nothing to make me feel better.

“I think it’s best if we go our separate ways. You’re going to be going off to the NFL soon enough, and if you can’t handle temptation now, it’ll only get worse once you step into the big leagues.”

“Rae, I love you. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you. When I see myself being drafted and going to the NFL, you’re right there with me. I don’t want to do this without you. Please don’t do this. I’ll get an apartment for us, and you can move out here with me. Whatever I need to do to keep you with me.” Hearing him pleading almost caused me to give in, but I didn’t have the energy for this.

I’d constantly be worried about what he was doing when I was not around. These women weren’t broken and damaged the way I was. They were confident in themselves in a way I wasn’t. Even if he kept his word and remained faithful, I knew my insecurities would get in the way eventually. I wasn’t built to be the woman of a superstar. I saw the way they carried themselves, and I didn’t fit the mold.

“I know you love me, but love isn’t enough. We’re both young, and we have a lot of growth to do within ourselves. Right now, you need to focus on you, and I need to focus on me.”

“So that’s it? You’re just going to throw our relationship away over one screwup?”

“A screwup would be if you stayed out too late or missed our anniversary. You have a whole child on the way. I can’t compete with that.”

“I’m not asking you to. I’m not even sure if it’s my kid or not. All I’m asking is for you to give me a chance to fix this. Please, Sunny. I can’t do this life without you.”

The depressed look on his face almost caused me to give in, but I just couldn’t.

“I’m sorry, Dinero. I refuse to live a life looking over my shoulders, wondering if you’re being faithful. Dealing with bitches who hate me for being with you. I went through that in high school when we weren’t even official, and I’m too old for it now.”

“Sunny—”

“Goodbye, Dinero. I wish you nothing but success, and I pray you make it to the NFL someday. Take care of yourself.” I got into my car and immediately drove off. Tears flowed down my chin and onto my clothes, but I kept going. It was going to hurt me to let Dinero go, but I had no other choice but to move on.

“I’m surprised you decided to come out with us. I expected you to be laid up with your boo,” Laiti expressed, tossing her shot back. When I first came to Cullen University, I kept to myself because of my trust issues. My roommates tried to include me in the party festivities, but I normally declined. After everything that transpired with Dinero last night, I welcomed the distraction.

“We broke up, so I’m free to do whatever I want.”

“It’s his loss because you are a baddie, and any man would be lucky to have you on their arm.” Tamia hyped me up, even though I didn’t want to think about being with anyone besides Dinero.

“Girl, stop babysitting your drink! We are surrounded by fine-ass men and hella drinks. If I were you, I would cuddle up with one of these niggas to get over whatever you have going on with your man,” Arnessa pressed.

We’d been roommates for a year now, but tonight, I was seeing them in a new light. They were really cool and down to earth. Tamia reminded me a lot of Ciera, so I gravitated toward her.

An hour passed, and I finally started to feel the effects of the liquor coursing through my body. We were lit and having the time of our lives, and I loved every minute of it. Tamia danced on the table in front of us as Laiti tossed money at her.

“Bounce that ass, trick!” Arnessa screamed, joining in with Laiti. I laughed hysterically, enjoying my time with the girls. Maybe this breakup wouldn’t be as bad as I anticipated with them around. I couldn’t remember the last time I laughed like this, and I prayed it wouldn’t be the last.

“I have to go to the bathroom,” I shouted over the music. We were in the backyard of this big ass mansion with the DJ booth directly across from where we sat.

“Do you want me to go with you?” Arnessa asked.

“You don’t have to do that. I promise, I’ll be right back.” I hated to inconvenience anyone, especially when we were having such a good time.

“No, I don’t mind, girl.” She grabbed my hand as we headed inside the house. There were just as many people inside the house as there were outside. I’d heard stories about college parties, but I’d never experienced anything like this. Arnessa stopped and asked someone where the bathrooms were. Apparently, there were multiple. We tried two bathrooms on the first level, but they were occupied, so we decided to try the ones upstairs.

My anxiety started to get the best of me with the number of people that were in the house. Couples were making out everywhere I turned. People were offering drinks left and right, to which I vehemently declined. If I’d learned nothing else, you were never supposed to take a drink you didn’t see being poured.

“Damn it, this one is full too.” Arnessa hissed as we peeped the line by the hall bathroom.

“What’s up, Nessa?” Josiah, a popular football player from our school, greeted her. Arnessa’s energy completely shifted as they gave each other googly eyes.

“Hey, Siah,” Nessa cooed, twirling her bundles with her fingers. I wanted to get away from them as soon as possible because I felt like an intruder.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming? You could have rode with me.”

“You never asked. Plus, you’ve been too busy to talk to me anyway. I’m surprised you still remember who I am.”

“Man, stop playing with me. A girl as fine as you isn’t easy for a nigga to forget about.” I stood there awkwardly as the two of them flirted back-and-forth. My bladder gave me the signal that I needed to keep pushing, so I tapped Arnessa on the arm and told her I was gonna find another bathroom.

“There is a bathroom in the master suite. If you go down that hall and go all the way down to the end. Adam said only his close friends can use it, but it won’t be a problem. Just make sure you shut the door back once you’re done,” Josiah explained.

“I’ll be right there after I get done talking to this fool.” Arnessa rolled her eyes as if she wasn’t interested in talking to him. Even though I knew that wasn’t the case, I wouldn’t bust her out like that.

“Yeah, alright. Keep playing with me, girl.” He pulled her closer, and that was my cue to leave. I thanked him and quickly raced down the hall to relieve myself. Even with the room door closed, the music boomed through.

Whoever owned this house must have paid their neighbors off; otherwise, the police would have shut this party down hours ago. I heard the door slam, so I called out to Arnessa to let her know I would be out in a minute. As I stood in front of the mirror, I smiled at what I saw. The girls helped me apply a little makeup and gave me an outfit to wear. The yellow crop top matched the blue jean mini skirt and complemented my slim frame. For once, I felt sexy, and I relished in the feeling.

“Girl, I’m pretty sure I peed all of the liquor out,” I joked as I stepped out of the room. I expected Nessa to respond, so when I heard nothing, I lifted my head to see where she was. My stomach dropped to my feet as I stared into cold, familiar eyes.

“You’ve got a lot of nerve to be up in here partying as if you didn’t tear apart an entire family,” he seethed. The fire dancing in his eyes told me that I was in danger. I silently cursed myself when I realized I left my crossbody with my phone in it downstairs with the girls.

“W-what are you talking about, Drake? What your parents did wasn’t my fault.” After I turned over all the evidence Ciera left behind, along with my statement, Vera and Dennis were arrested and charged with child abuse, child endangerment, and a host of other charges related to sexual assault and misconduct with minors. After the story aired on the news channels, a few other girls came forward to tell their stories as well. Once the trial was over, I packed my things and headed off to college. I picked an out-of-state school to start over and get away from the stares and whispers.

Vera was sentenced to fifteen years, while Dennis took a plea deal for thirty-five. To be honest, that wasn’t enough for me, but I guess it was better than nothing. To be honest, after I left, I never thought about what it would mean for Drake and his sisters. Hell, none of them cared about what happened to Ciera and me, so I returned the favor by focusing on myself. From the menacing glare on Drake’s face, he hated me as much as I hated his parents.

“All you bitches do is lie. My mother said that you were trying to destroy our family because my father refused to be with you, and I believe her. You and those other lying bitches were jealous that my parents were in love. You didn’t have a family of your own, so you decided to take away mine! You stupid bitch!” Drake lunged toward me. I attempted to step backward but ended up backing myself up to the bed. I tried to break away from him, but Drake slapped me so hard my vision began to blur.

“You ruined everything! You took my parents and my best friend away because you want to be a damsel in distress! You just had to take everything from me!” Drake pushed me onto the bed and then gripped my neck as he straddled me. My hands clawed at him as I tried with all my might to get him off of me. Nothing seemed to work, and the longer he held me down, the more frightened I became. My life hadn’t been the best, but I certainly didn’t want to die this young.

Drake finally released his hands from my throat, and I fought to catch my breath. Tears streamed down my face as I reflected on what had just transpired. Drake climbed out of the bed, so I assumed he would be leaving, but I had been sadly mistaken.

“You know, one thing about crying wolf, eventually, your lie will become your reality, but by then, no one will believe you. I’m gonna make sure you never forget the name Jones.” Before I could truly process his threat, Drake began to yank on my skirt. I fought him off, but his weight dominated mine. He reached into my skirt and ripped my panties off as he spread my legs.

“This pussy better be good for everything it’s cost me,” he grumbled. I let out a piercing scream, but the music was so loud I doubted anyone could hear me. Arnessa told me she would be coming, so I hoped she made it in time.

“Shut up! You weren’t crying when you got your ass on that stand and lied to those jurors.” Drake undid his belt with one hand while the other squeezed my throat. When he freed himself, I attempted to kick him, to no avail. Drake laughed cynically before he spit in my face. My feelings were hurt, and I felt so degraded. Drake rained blows over my body while he positioned himself between my legs.

“This is what happens to bitches who don’t know how to keep their mouth shut.” He grunted before shoving himself inside of me. Due to my dryness, the pain hurt worse than I could have ever anticipated.

His hold on my throat grew tighter as he pumped into me. Tears streamed down the sides of my face until they dripped into my ears. I could feel myself slipping in and out of consciousness, and I didn’t bother to fight it. Anything would be better than this. Drake wasn’t as big as Dinero, but his size was enough to feel as if he was ripping me apart.

“Stupid bitch.” He continued to call me all kinds of disparaging names while I lay there fighting for every breath I could get. There were no sunny beaches or vacations this time. Instead, the scene appeared to be an out-of-body experience. I watched myself lie there helpless, begging for me to fight back. Only there was no movement as I straddled the fence between reality and unconsciousness. Once he finished, Drake turned and hocked another loogie on me once again. I was too busy flailing like a fish, trying to catch my breath.

“Now Dinero will finally see you for the worthless trash you’ve always been. I bet he won’t want anything to do with you now.” He laughed. His words haunted me as I wondered how I would even tell him. Or if I even should.

I lay on the bed in a fetal position and sobbed until there were no more tears. Eventually, Arnessa must have realized I had been gone too long because she burst into the room, calling my name. I was naked from the waist down, so she covered me up first. When she insisted we call the police, I frantically declined. The last thing I needed was for this to make it to the news. Who knew? Maybe Drake was right, and the world would think I lied.

“Charae, we have to tell someone. Whoever did this to you needs to be arrested. You didn’t deserve this.” I wasn’t quite sure if I believed her. Maybe all of this was my fault. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut and just moved on with my life. Then, none of this would have happened.

“Please, no. All I need you to do is help me put my clothes back on and get me out of here. I don’t want anyone to know what happened. It’s done and over with.” Arnessa gave me a sympathetic look, but I turned my head. There was no room for sad faces and feeling sorry for myself. I wanted to bury this deep in my mind and move on with my life. Nothing would ever be the same.