Chapter 12
TWELVE
After an entire ten days in the hospital, Biggie was happy as hell to be released.
The pain he had experienced was something out of this world, but he thugged it out as best he could.
He knew the nurses were ready for him to leave.
He had been raising hell and trying to force his healing, which only set him back more.
Luckily for them, though, they didn’t have to worry about him anymore.
Even though he was still in pain, it was no longer touch and go for him, and he could go home and heal comfortably.
“You ready to get out of here, homie?” Demo asked as he entered the room being loud.
Biggie had just finished dressing in the regular clothes Tuesday brought for him the night before. The shit took him thirty minutes, but he did it, and he did it alone, despite the nurse’s fussing at him.
“Fasho.”
“Let’s get the hell out of here.” He looked around the empty room. “You don’t have to check out or somethin’ like that?”
Biggie shrugged.
“They know I’m leavin’. I’m not about to sit around here any longer. They already took that I.V. out and checked my vitals, so I say I’m good to go.”
“You’re ignorant,” Demo said, shaking his head, but he wasn’t about to hold Biggie up when he was on a mission. To them, it felt like Biggie had just done a stint in prison, and they were happy as hell the shit was over.
Slowly, they walked out of the room. Thankfully, the floor was pretty quiet, so Biggie was able to slip out of his room with no hassle or signing any papers, or God forbid, riding down to the entrance in a wheelchair.
Demo had to admit, though, by the time they made it to the elevator, Biggie was out of breath. The nurses had made Biggie walk laps around the ICU a couple times a day, and it wasn’t easy. He should have known getting to the car would be harder than normal.
“You good, man?” Demo asked as he eyed Biggie while they got onto the elevator.
Biggie huffed, leaning against the wall. “Yeah, I’m cool.”
Truthfully, he couldn’t wait to lay down, but he wouldn’t admit that out loud.
He wasn’t used to being this weak. Vulnerable.
Fragile. For a big nigga, he was active and used to moving around at his will.
Being shot was a huge wake up call for him and made him realize how much he had taken for granted, including this new life God handed him in the form of Wallis and Tuesday.
Tuesday had visited him every day while he was at Bloomfield. He had never taken the time to really get to know a woman without the physical shit getting in the way, but this situation forced him to stop looking at his baby mama as physically attractive and get to know her mentally.
He learned so much about her, from her love of cooking to her hustling nature to her family dynamic.
She even mentioned that her mom wanted to formally meet him, which surprised him.
He wasn’t too much of a family man since his mama died, but he realized he wasn’t opposed to settle into this new family dynamic Tuesday presented to him.
When they made it to Demo’s brand new ride, Biggie had some trouble sliding into the seat.
Not only that, it surprised him how his nerves rattled inside him at the realization that he was getting back into a car.
Biggie wasn’t afraid of anything, but trauma was a mutha fucka, and even the body understood when something traumatic happened.
He breathed steadily as he waited for Demo to get into the car. It wasn’t until they pulled out of the hospital parking ramp that Demo noticed Biggie gripping the side of the door and the center counsel with his eyes closed.
“Bro, you good, man. Them niggas is dead. Whole hood went up for you after they heard what happened. Ain’t nobody gonna do nothin’ to you.”
Demo’s words made Biggie realize he was panicking, and he was able to ease his eyes open and nod.
“‘Preciate it, bro.”
“It’s cool.” It was silent for a few minutes before Demo said, “You know I ain’t come to see you because I didn’t want to drive?
I felt like a bitch for that, too, so I told myself I had to be the one to get you from the hospital.
We got into this shit together, and I wanted to be the one to get you home—safely this time. ”
Biggie let his words marinate. It was clear they were both struggling with the aftermath of that shootout.
Though Demo hadn’t been shot, it had been hard for him to see Biggie like that.
A part of him felt responsible, like if he had drove better or helped shoot them niggas, things would have turned out differently.
The truth was, they were both lucky to be alive, and that made the moment feel weighted with heaviness.
“I’m done, D. I can’t do this shit no more,” Biggie finally said in response.
Demo nodded, allowing the silence to stretch between them, before he sighed heavily.
“I know, man. I knew that was comin’, and I honestly don’t have a fight to give on it. I really ain’t even all that sure I want to be in this shit anymore.”
Biggie adjusted in the seat as he continued looking out the window.
“We gettin’ too old for this shit, man. I think we need to invest in some legit businesses and leave this street shit to the youngins. They clearly want it more than us at this point. Let them have it.”
Demo ran a hand down his face as they stopped at a red light.
“You might be right, homie. We just don’t know nothin’ but the streets. We don’t know nothin’ about starting a business.”
Biggie smirked.
“I know someone who does, though. Aye, turn here. Take me to my baby mama’s house. We can talk more about this in a few days.”
Demo nodded and they spent the rest of the ride in silence.
When they pulled up to Tuesday’s house, he saw Tuesday and Wallis in the front yard waiting for him.
He had let her know he was on the way before Demo showed up to his hospital room, and he was glad they were waiting outside for him.
He couldn’t wait to see his boy and love on Tuesday.
She had been keeping him at arms length, standing on business when it came to him getting out of the game, but all that shit was dead now.
“You need help?” Demo asked when Biggie reached for the door.
Biggie halted his movements and turned toward Demo, reaching his fist out.
“I’m good, man. Thank you. I mean that. You ain’t have to come get me if you weren’t ready to drive. I really appreciate it, bro. This a nice ride too. It’s a good look.”
Demo waved him off.
“Let me know if you need anythin’. Let’s get up soon to talk about this new business shit. Business men, huh?”
Biggie chuckled, but it came out sounding sad. For some reason, him stepping out of that car felt like the end of an era. They lingered for a moment longer before Biggie patted Demo on the shoulder.
“Business men,” he confirmed.
Without another word, Biggie opened the door and slowly got out. As soon as Wallis spotted him, he took off.
“Wallis, be careful, baby!” Tuesday yelled after him, and Biggie could tell she worried about his injuries and Wallis being too rough on him, but his son was aight with him.
He had been needing his love and energy for almost two weeks, and he welcomed him with open arms. With a slight struggle, he stepped up onto the curb and bent to pick Wallis up.
He was out of breath again already, but he didn’t pay that any mind.
He hugged his son tightly, relishing in the warmth of him.
“How are you, big man?”
“Sick, daddy? Mama say you sick?” Wallis asked, grabbing Biggie’s cheeks in his hands and looking into his father’s eyes.
Biggie’s eyes teared up at that moment. Looking into his son’s eyes, his son who looked so much like him, it made him realize how much of a blessing it really was to be alive.
“Daddy’s okay now. I’m okay.”
They hugged for a moment, and Biggie noticed Tuesday standing in the grass and looking at them with tears running down her face.
After a few minutes, Biggie put Wallis down, and he took off running toward his toys that were scattered in the front yard.
Biggie slowly made his way toward Tuesday and pulled her into him by her waist.
“Biggie—”
“I don’t want to hear it,” he grumbled, leaning down to kiss her. He wanted to do more, but he knew he wasn’t in the best shape to show her how much he really wanted her.
Tuesday pulled away and noticed his staggered breath before grabbing his hand and calling out to Wallis.
“Baby, it’s time to go inside.”
Wallis didn’t reply. He simply left all his toys right in the grass and ran toward the door with Biggie and Tuesday following.
Biggie could tell Tuesday was getting ready to fuss over him, and he decided he would let her.
He wanted to come to her home for a reason.
Love lived here, and he wanted to soak it all in.
Just when they stepped to the door, Tuesday’s mom stepped out. She looked surprised to see them all standing there, and then a smile spread across her face.
“I was just about to leave.” She put her eyes on Tuesday. “I just finished cooking. Fried chicken, mac and cheese and biscuits. You need anything else?”
Tuesday shook her head.
“I told you not to cook, Mama. I appreciate you.”
“I wanted you to be able to spend time with this handsome young man here without having to worry about food. Hi, I’m Celia, Tuesday’s mother.”
Biggie stretched out his hand.
“Nice to meet you, ma’am. Thank you for cooking. I definitely like to eat.”
Tuesday and Celia giggled before Celia responded.
“It’s really no problem. I wasn’t expecting to meet you until you were feeling a bit better, but I’m glad I ran into you now. I’ll let you guys get settled.” She moved out of the way and allowed them to walk into the house.
“Bye-bye!” Wallis called out, waving from the door.
“Bye, Wallis. You be good.”
“No!” he said before charging into the house.
“That boy is hell.” Biggie chuckled and then insisted on watching Celia get into her sedan and drive off before they closed the door.
“Go sit. Are you hungry now?” Tuesday asked.
“Nah. Come sit with me.” Biggie pulled her toward the living room where Wallis sat on the floor, flipping through a picture book.
When they sat, he pulled Tuesday into him, frowning when she resisted.
“Biggie, you know what I said that first night in the hospital. I meant it. I can’t be with someone who is always at risk of losing his life, or God forbid that will put me and Wallis at risk. I can’t—”
“And I told you I would take care of it, didn’t I?”
“Yes, but—”
“And I handled it. I’m out of the streets. Demo and I talked about it on the way over here. We’re stopping cold turkey and going legit.”
Her hand flew to her mouth.
“Really?”
“Yeah, now stop acting funny and come here.”
She happily did, snuggling under his arm and tracing her finger over the bandage on his chest. They stayed like that for a few moments before Tuesday whispered, “Welcome home, Biggie. Thank you for making it back to us. Thank you for everything.”
Biggie kissed the top of her head, completely understanding her words and allowing them to resonate within him.
Tuesday understood how big of a deal it was for him to get out of the game.
She appreciated his will to live and his presence now.
It had been a long time since he’d been recognized in such a way, and he knew as soon as he was feeling up to it, he wanted to show the full scope of his love to Tuesday.
Luckily for him, he had nothing but time on his hands to do so.