1
Goddamn Dio! Where the fuck are you?
Swerve, lean, sharp right.
Man, I hope you are good. Big bro is going to find you. I hope you didn’t run. Fuck!
Screech! Halt!
I just pulled up to the hospital. Preach said he went to visit Chevy, but the nigga wouldn’t answer the door. He said something in his spirit told him to kick in the door and when he did, Chev was on the floor in the living room, unconscious. I’d called everyone to let them know. Everyone answered but Harvey and Foe. I knew they were probably together, and the thought of that pissed me off. I still hadn’t gotten over that I’d lost her to one of my best friends.
I knew I was to blame, but part of me was still angry. I was mad that although my feelings seemed to be there; I didn’t know how to care for Harvey like I thought. I tried convincing myself that she was the one for me, but I see God had other plans.
I parked my bike rushing inside the hospital. Here we were yet again in this same muhfuckin place. Every time I walked in this bitch, I got annoyed. I hated the hospital. It was beginning to feel like this was a sign for me that one day I would be the one in this bitch praying for God to spare a nigga. As I entered, I saw Preach standing with both his hands on his head and Navi right by his side, rubbing his back. Watching my niggas get into relationships with their person ate away at me. The idea of what that felt like was creeping to the surface. I rushed over to him, “Yo nigga what the fuck happened now?”
When Preach glanced up at me, I shook my head. His eyes were red, despairing, and broken. I backed away slowly, “Nah, hell, nah!”
I shouted.
He didn’t need to say anything because his eyes said it all. Either Chev didn’t make it, or my nigga was down badly and either way, I couldn’t deal with it. My brother was already missing. I hadn’t heard from the nigga in over twenty-four hours, and that alone was fucking me up.
Moments later, Diamond and Rayana came rushing in, then Foe and Harvey. Harvey came in, looking disheveled, but she held a glowing aura around her. He fucked her! My stomach dropped. I wanted to lash out, but this moment wasn’t about me but Chevy. I swallowed my pride, placing my emotions toward her to the back of my mind.
“Fuck going on?!”
Foe shouted.
Preach turned toward them. “My-my,”
he choked up, then blew out a sharp breath. “My nigga was laying there. I-I don’t even know how long he was fucking laying there. He was alone, bro I tried waking him but nothing,”
he barely got out as a tear rolled down his face.
“Fuck!”
Diamond shouted, causing the front desk worker and security to direct their attention to us.
The security eased his fat ass toward us. Before the nigga could utter a word, I jumped in. “Nigga I swear if you don’t get yo Gilly-looking ass away from us I will put a bullet in you,”
I gritted.
That’s when I noticed Rayana and Harvey whispering. “What the fuck do y’all know that we don’t?”
I asked, walking over to them. “I said what the fuck—”
“Aye Zu I would hate to beat yo ass talking to my girl like that. I need you to chill and fast,”
Diamond jumped in.
I slowly nodded.
“Shit!”
Harvey blurted out, then suddenly broke down in loud sobs.
Something was up. I could feel it. Diamond stepped over to her.
“Harvey, sweetheart whatever you know you need to tell us,”
he said as he turned to us and slapped his hands together. “See, I knew when that bitch Lola said that shit something was up! We shouldn’t have let that nigga leave until we found out!”
he shouted.
“I need y’all to sit down,”
Preach mumbled.
“Nigga ain’t nobody sitting down. So, if you need to say something then fucking say it!” Foe spat.
I pointed to Foe. “Yeah, what that nigga said.”
“Everybody sit the fuck down!”
Harvey screamed.
She slowly stood as we all sat. Eyes on Rayana. Eyes on Foe. She couldn’t even look at me. She paced the small space. “I promised Chev I wouldn’t say anything, but considering the circumstances, I need to,”
she paused. “Chev he’s- God,”
she paused.
“My nigga sick! Chevy is sick!”
Preach blurted out.
All our heads swung his way. I was boiling inside. I thought Chevy, and I were closer than that. How did Preach know before me? Had I really destroyed my friendship with Chevy in which he felt he couldn’t tell me? It was like I was on an island alone while everyone was on another.
Foe shot up from the chair, “Wait! Nigga how you know?”
“He didn’t want to tell me, but I forced him to. Listen this isn’t about who knew first it’s about us helping him. If he pulls through, we need to be there for Chev like no other.”
I ran my hands through my dreads. “Ok, what’s wrong with him? Do you know that?” I asked,
Rayana shot up from the chair. “Chevy has cancer!”
“The fuck! How you know?”
Diamond turned to her.
“Diamond baby I-I—”
“No! Fuck no! You knew all this time and ain’t said shit!”
he said, pointing at her. “My nigga is dying of cancer, and you didn’t think to say a muhfuckin word?”
She went to touch him, but he pulled away from her, and then pointed to Harvey. “Harvey, I expect that from her because she’s been knowing Chev for a very long time, but you, nah. Yana go home man, just go home,”
he told her.
“But Diamond—”
Navi stepped up, “I know you mad but don’t fucking talk to my sister like that. Just as you niggas know how to use a gun don’t forget I do too. Come on Yana let’s go. Preach call me, I love you,”
she said, cutting her eyes at Diamond.
“Pretty,”
Preach called out. “Zaria does not need to find out. I’m sure Chev wouldn’t want her to know so please,”
he said to her.
She slowly nodded, leaving the hospital. It was like as soon as she and Rayana walked out of the hospital, Preach, Diamond, and Foe all broke down. Me, I stood there trying to hold back my emotions as I have done so many times before. The thought of my nigga, my best fucking friend, dying never crossed my mind. The one nigga who had my back regardless of my fuck ups. The one nigga I watched sacrifice everything for every one of us no longer being here made me feel sick.
A nurse came out calling for Harvey. She stepped forward while we all were on edge, trying to capture any word we could. As I tried listening to what she was saying, my phone vibrated. By the time I pulled it out, it was a missed call from an unknown number.
Shit! It was probably Dio.