Chapter 11
Tasha didn’t bother with the lights when she got home.
The living room was submerged in the thick blue light of the late afternoon, the kind that made everything look unfamiliar.
The couch, the coffee table, even the framed photos on the wall looked distant, like they belonged to someone else’s life.
She stood in the doorway for a moment, the pharmacy bag from the doctor’s office still clutched in her hand.
The plastic crinkled softly every time her fingers tightened around it.
She was done crying. The tears were long gone, replaced by a hollow, ringing silence.
She felt alone, even though Juelz was outside in the car.
She needed her best friends, the ones who understood her more.
Tasha walked straight to the couch and dropped down onto it like her bones suddenly forgot how to hold her up. The cushions sank beneath her weight.
Her thumb moved across her phone screen until she found the contact she was looking for. Niyah. She answered on the second ring. “Tasha! I was just about to call you. What did the doctor say? Are you okay?”
Tasha opened her mouth, but the words stuck in her throat. All she could manage was a whisper. “Yeah… I’m at the house.” Her voice sounded strange to her own ears. “Just… come over. Now! Please.”
Niyah didn’t ask another question. “A’ight. I’m on my way.”
They hung up the phone, and Tasha tried to call Shyann.
The phone rang steadily, and rang, and rang.
She let it ring until the voicemail picked up before dropping the phone beside her on the couch.
Of course, typical Shyann behavior. Probably somewhere outside, living her best reckless life while she was drowning in a harsh reality.
Fifteen minutes later, the front door opened, and Niyah rushed in, bypassing the usual pleasantries.
She found Tasha curled up on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, looking smaller than she ever had.
Niyah didn't ask questions; she just pulled Tasha into a tight hug. They didn’t need words.
They were more than best friends. They were sisters.
The kind that felt each other’s pain before it was spoken.
And in that silence, Niyah held her, rocking slightly.
Whatever it was…she’d face it with her.
Tasha’s face was pressed into Niyah’s shoulder when she finally whispered, “She said…she saw somethin’.”
Niyah froze but didn’t pull away.
“The PA, after the Pap.” She swallowed hard. “She said it felt like a mass…that it might be a tumor or cyst or somethin’. They gotta run tests to know for sure.”
Niyah pulled back just enough to look her in the eyes. “Damn, Tash…”
Tasha’s eyes brimmed, but the tears didn’t fall.
“I didn’t tell Jue,” she admitted. “You know we been tryna get pregnant forever. I—I just didn’t wanna have him feelin’ down with my news.
He wants a baby so bad, Ni. I see it every time we around kids.
” She laughed, but there was no humor in it.
“You see the way he looks at you and Sin’s kids?
Like he’s picturing his own. The way he always asks me to pick up my sister's kids so he can play ball with the boys and take them shopping.”
Her voice grew quieter. “I just hate that I can’t give him our own baby.
I mean months of negative test results.” She wiped her nose quickly with the now-soaked tissue.
“Then my periods started acting weird. The cramps.” She shook her head.
“And now they talkin’ about a mass.” The tears finally slipped free.
“Like…what if I can’t ever give him the one thing he wants the most? Huh?”
Niyah looked at her, eyes stinging. “Ohh…Tasha. I’m so sorry you're going through this. I’m here for whatever you need. I got you. But I think you need to tell Juelz. He deserves to know, babygirl.”
Tasha blinked, finally letting one tear fall. “I ain’t ready to tell him yet. I just wanna keep this lil’ bubble of peace we got right now. Even though it soon will be shattered.” She wiped her eyes and laughed, “I’ma G, ion suppose to be sheddin’ tears.”
Niyah laughed and hugged her again. “You are so crazy, girl. It’s okay for G’s to cry if they need to.” She bumped shoulders with her, “Can’t be hard all the time. But seriously, I get what you're saying. And when you do tell him…he’ll still love you. That man worships you.”
Tasha nodded. “Yeah… I know. Thank you for comin’ over, I hate I had to pull you away from the kids. I needed my girls.”
“Oh, it’s cool, girl. The twins be in their own world, and Zilyn’s spoil tail just wants to be held all day. And speaking of girls.” She tilted her head, “Where the hell is Shyann ass?”
Tasha snorted. “Girl, I called her, but she didn’t answer.” She rolled her eyes. “You know how she is. Probably somewhere sucking on somebody's man.”
They both busted out laughing, the tension breaking just enough to breathe. They sat like that for a while. No TV. No background noise. Just the hum of a heavy truth neither of them wanted to face but knew they had to.