Chapter 3 #2
Stormi didn’t look like herself. She looked pale and fragile.
Like the last couple of days had been the worst of her life.
I couldn’t tell if she was sleeping or still hadn’t woken up.
The machines beeped quietly, but it was the silence that screamed at me.
And then Seth turned around. His eyes locked on mine and the fire lit instantly.
Before I could say a word, he was on me. In my face. Breathing my air.
“Where the fuck is Dre?” Seth snapped, voice cutting through the room like glass. His eyes had just been soft on Stormi now they were sharp, savage, aimed straight at me.
“I don’t know,” I said quickly, swallowing hard. “I dropped him at the airport. Said he had some business to handle. Told me he’d be gone for a minute.”
“Why you asking about Dre?” Jo asked suddenly, her voice laced with worry. Her eyes flicked between all of us confused, scared like nobody had told her what Dre might’ve done.
But Seth ignored her. His eyes never left me. “Where. Did. He. Go?”
“I told you I don’t know, man!”
Seth took a step closer, jaw locked tight. “Do it look like that’s the answer I want to hear?”
“I said I don’t know!” I snapped. “I can’t even find out Rich grabbed me before I could find my phone!”
“Rich didn’t give me time to find my phone,” Seth mocked, voice dripping with venom. “You really think that nigga was gonna answer for you after he tried to take your sister’s life?”
That word tried echoed in my head... I blinked.
“So, she’s still alive?” I asked, trying to look around him, past the heat of his body and to Stormi’s still figure.
“Dre is who shot Stormi?” Jo’s voice cracked as she moved toward me, her hand on her chest like she couldn’t breathe.
Then suddenly a whisper cut through the air.
“Yes,” Stormi said, her voice soft and shaky. “He’s Ronnie’s son.”
We all froze. Stormi’s eyes fluttered open. Seth spun back to her side like he’d been yanked by his heart.
“What did you say, baby?” he asked, dropping to his knees by her bedside.
Stormi’s voice trembled. “Dre… before he shot me, he said he watched you kill his father. And this was for Ronnie.”
Seth’s face shifted like rage and grief twisting together. He kissed her hand and pushed her hair gently from her face to kiss her forehead.
My throat burned. “Stormi, I’m sorry,” I said, taking a small step forward. “I didn’t know.”
Seth’s arm snapped out, blocking me.
“Man, that’s my fuckin’ sister!” I barked, my frustration boiling over. “Why the hell y’all actin’ like I’m some stranger off the street?”
Seth turned slowly, face stone cold. “Now she’s your sister?” he said, stepping into my space again. “Now you care? You done pushing her away? Blamin’ her? Making her feel like shit for doing what was best for herself?”
Each word hit like a punch. And the worst part? He wasn’t wrong. Stormi had been trying to hold us all together. And I kept treating her like the enemy.
“Man, this is family business,” I said through clenched teeth. “Stormi might need you to swoop in and save the day, but I don’t. I’ll never need another nigga to play hero. I’m the man of this family, not you.”
I should’ve been ready, but I wasn’t. Seth grabbed me before I could even brace.
Fist balled in my shirt; he lifted me clean off the floor.
My feet dangled. His knuckles dug into my chest like he was pressing my soul into the wall.
His eyes didn’t blink. He didn’t flinch not once.
His eyes said everything, and it was clear he wanted to kill me.
“Seth!” Stormi called out, her voice was weak but sharp.
His grip loosened just slightly but he didn’t let go. He turned his head just enough to speak to her, and not me.
“Stormi,” he said darkly, “I’ll never get in the way of you and your brother’s relationship.
Never. But you better tell this lil nigga right now that you’re my wife…
and that I just watched a team of doctors bring you back to life because he couldn’t tell the fuckin’ difference between a friend and an enemy. ”
He turned back to me, fire back in his eyes. “You want this street life? Cool. I’ll give it to you. Excursion-style. Bullet between your eyes.”
His voice dropped low. “Don’t ever think you man enough to step to me about anything concerning my wife. She’s the only thing sparing you right now.”
The room was silent. No one moved or spoke. Jo, Ms. Serena, not even Stormi. It was like time froze until Seth finally let me go, and I caught myself before I hit the ground. Breathing hard, I straightened my clothes and looked around the room, and all I could do was smirk.
“I should’ve known you were just like Jo,” I said bitterly. “First nigga shows up and play God, and you flip. Turn your back on family. Like mother, like daughter.”
Jo stood slowly. The air around her shifted calm, but fierce. A different Jo than I’d ever seen. She was clean, composed, and collected but full of fire.
“I’m sorry,” she said quietly. “I’m sorry your sister had to raise you because I couldn’t. I’m sorry that once she left, I kept showing you the same hurt that broke her.”
She stepped closer.
“I know you’re hurting. I know pain very well. But don’t you dare put any of that on Stormi. You want a punching bag? I’m right here. Aim that shit at me.”
She stepped even closer, her voice firm now.
“Stormi left because she needed to. You were my responsibility and you still are. And whether I raised you or not, I swear to God, you will not talk to me, to your sister, or to any woman like that again.”
She reached for my hands, but I pulled away before she could touch me.
“Man, fuck all of y’all,” I spat, my voice cracking under the weight of everything I was holding. “I don’t need this shit.”
And with that, I stormed out. Heart pounding, throat tight, guilt clawing at my insides like wildfire.
I found the nearest bathroom and locked the door behind me.
Dropped to the floor. Back against the door.
Chest caving in and out as the tears came hard and fast with no warning. I buried my face in my hands.
“Thank you, God,” I choked out, my voice barely there. “Thank you for saving my sister.”