Chapter Fourteen. #3
Caresha woke up from her deep sleep and realized Danger still hadn’t come to bed.
She sat up and sighed, staring at the blank TV.
She had sensed his distance from the moment he came home a few hours ago.
He hadn’t been himself, barely saying two words to her.
He’d come into the bedroom, taken a shower, and headed straight downstairs to eat.
Sensing he didn’t want to be bothered, she let him be, thinking he would come back up so they could talk then.
But he never returned, and she eventually fell asleep waiting for him.
Stretching, Caresha slipped into her house shoes and followed the sound of loud talking into the game room down the hall.
When she stepped inside, she found Danger stretched out on the large leather sectional with his headset on, controller in hand, talking shit to Domo.
He didn’t even look up to acknowledge her, but she knew he saw her.
Caresha went to sit beside him, noticing the liquor bottle and empty glass on the table.
He’d been drinking…smoking. She confirmed he was upset when he didn’t reach out to her.
Ever since that first night they got comfortable at her apartment, there hadn’t been a time when Danger didn’t show affection in her presence.
Yet there they were…him still focused on the game.
“So, you’re just going to ignore me?”
Danger glanced at Caresha but didn’t say anything.
Instead, he continued talking into his headset, chuckling at something Domo said while concentrating on the game.
After a few minutes of this, Caresha reached over and pulled the headset off his head.
Danger’s eyes darted toward her, then quickly back to the screen, but the distraction had already fucked up his gameplay.
“Yo, what the fuck, ma?”
“I’m trying to talk to you.”
Danger ended the game and tossed the controller beside him. “Sup, Ree?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. You tell me. That’s what I’m trying to figure out. You come in the house barely saying a few words and then stay in here all night. What’s going on?”
“Nothing, I’m just chillin’. A nigga can't play the game?”
Caresha twisted her lips at him as if to say, don’t play with me.
“Since when you decide to do something else while I’m present? That’s not like you. You’re obviously feeling some kind of way.”
“I don’t know what you talkin’ ’bout.”
“Don’t do that. We’re better than that. Talk to me. Are you upset?”
Danger leaned back against the sectional, tugging at his chin hairs. “I said I’m good.”
“And I’m saying I don’t believe you. Are you upset about what I told you?”
He sighed, slightly irritated. “Nah, it’s all good.”
“You ain’t acting like shit is all good.”
“How I’m acting? I told you I’m just chillin’.”
Caresha grew quiet, folding her arms. They sat in silence until Danger picked up his phone and started scrolling through Instagram. He was doing everything he could to ignore her…dismiss her. She picked up on it.
“Dee, come on. You’re not acting like yourself. Don’t paint me out to be crazy. Talk to me.”
“About what? What you want me to say, hm?”
“About what I told you. How do you feel?”
Danger's expression tightened as he shrugged. “Man, it’s all good.”
“You sure? You don’t have anything to say about me moving to North Carolina?
“Nah. You say you leaving, so it really ain’t nothing for us to discuss. Whatever we were doing, shit gotta come to an end. Cool. Understood.”
“Whatever we were doing? I thought you wanted me to be your lady.”
“I’m good on that. We can chill on that lady shit. That’s it. Congratulations on all you got going on. Follow yo’ dreams. I wish you nothing but the best.”
Caresha’s face fell slightly as she stared at him, so disappointed.
Every wall she had let down for Danger slowly began to rise again.
She grew cold in seconds. She wasn’t inconsiderate; she knew this could affect him.
But she thought they could at least be adults and discuss their feelings, and the potential of their relationship if she decided to move.
It wasn’t her fault that life decided to hand her an opportunity now.
But Danger was sitting there, cold and distant, giving her nothing to work with.
And it hurt…real bad. So much so that she almost cried.
However, Caresha held it in and shook off the pain. She wouldn’t let a nigga take her there. She stood, shaking her head. “You know what? You’re right. We just met. This shit doesn’t matter. Forget it. Can you take me home?”
“Nah. I’ll take you tomorrow. Don’t trip. I won’t bother you tonight. I’ll stay out ya way, so you ain’t uncomfortable.”
“You think you being away from me is what makes me comfortable?”
“Shit, I can’t tell. You moving, ain’t you?”
Rolling her eyes, Caresha tried to stand her ground. “Dee, I wanna go home right now. I’m not feeling the vibe.”
“It’s late. I’m exhausted. A nigga been up since early this morning. For me and yo’ safety, let’s wait until tomorrow. I’ll take you then.”
“Whatever.” Without another word, Caresha smacked her lips and stormed out of the room.
Stubborn as they came, Danger watched her walk out without putting up a fight. He turned his attention back to the game, but he couldn’t seem to focus. Domo talked so much shit about him getting his ass handed to him that he finally told the nigga to go fuck himself and quit.
Danger sat on the couch, head hanging low, sighing to himself. That emptiness he felt when Lil Mo died had returned, and he hated it. When he hurt, he didn’t speak on it; he bottled that shit up and eventually spazzed out.
Danger’s head was all fucked up since Caresha revealed her plans to move. Instead of telling her how it affected him, he sat paralyzed by fear and agitation. Turning on his favorite movie, Training Day, Danger lay back on the sectional, watching until he fell asleep.