E’Levyn Days

Chapter 1

Navy ‘Nay’ Prescott

Ihad been moving my stuff out this house piece by piece for the past two weeks, just enough at a time so it wouldn’t look obvious.

It was really only a bag here, a few pairs of shoes there, some of my favorite wigs, a couple boxes of uniforms, and things I knew Rome wouldn’t notice missing right away because that man only paid attention to what he wanted to pay attention to but tonight wasn’t about being careful anymore.

Tonight I was grabbing whatever I could get my hands on and getting gone for real, because after everything that had happened, I was done playing house in a place that had started feeling more like a trap than a home.

The house was beautiful, and that was the part that used to mess with my head.

Anybody walking through that front door would’ve thought I had it made with a big open kitchen, marble countertops, high ceilings, glass staircase, and a master bedroom big enough to fit a whole damn apartment inside of it.

Rome loved that part, because he was a showoff and loved when people walked in and looked around like we was really living some perfect life.

He loved the compliments, the pictures, and the way women side-eyed me like I had won something because I had a man who could put me in a house like this.

They just didn’t know half the nights I spent in that same pretty ass house crying in the shower with the water running so he wouldn’t hear me.

They didn’t know pretty didn’t mean peaceful, and a big house don’t mean shit when you feel small inside of it.

My closet didn’t even look like mine no more.

Half of it was empty with hangers spaced out and for once, I wasn’t putting shit back in place to make it look right.

I had spent too much time fixing things that wasn’t mine to fix, straightening up messes I didn’t make, and pretending me and Rome was better than we really were.

After the last time he put his hands on me, something in me changed in a way I couldn’t talk myself out of.

It wasn’t the first argument, and it wasn’t the first time he called me out my name, threw something across the room, or stood too close all up in my face while I tried to explain myself like I was on trial.

However, it was the first time I looked at him after it happened and didn’t see a man that could one day change.

I saw a man who had gotten too comfortable thinking I was going to keep taking whatever he gave me.

I yanked another drawer open and started stuffing my scrubs into my bag, not even bothering to fold them this time.

I had worked too many twelve-hour shifts, and wiped too many grown people asses, standing on my feet until my back felt like it was breaking to let a man with good dick and a controlling, cocky ass attitude make me feel like I didn’t have nothing without him.

I had a good career and my own money and somewhere along the way Rome had made me forget that because he had more than me.

My phone kept lighting up on the dresser behind me, and I didn’t have to turn around to know who it was, and that alone made me madder because he wasn’t even supposed to be calling me like that.

He was supposed to be out of town, doing whatever business he claimed was so important, which really meant running around with whoever he wanted, while pushing dope and thinking I was home waiting like a damn fool.

At first, I had been grateful he was gone because it gave me space to move the rest of my stuff without having to worry about him walking in and causing drama.

Now the way he kept calling had my nerves jumping because Rome didn’t call back-to-back unless he wanted something, knew something, or was trying to make sure I wasn’t doing something.

“Boy, please,” I mumbled, snatching a stack of leggings off the shelf and shoving them into the bag with my scrubs. “Now you wanna act like you care where I’m at. You should’ve cared when your little pregnant bitch was calling my phone like she was giving me an appointment reminder, the fuck.”

That was the part that still had me hot and I had to laugh because if I didn’t laugh, I probably would’ve lost my whole mind and everything I worked hard for.

Out of everything Rome had done with all the lying, sneaking, gaslighting, and disappearing, that phone call from his other bitch had been the final straw and it wasn’t because I thought Rome was faithful, because I wasn’t slow, it was because the girl had called me too comfortable and too damn bold like she had been waiting for her little moment to let me know she existed.

She had the nerve to tell me she was pregnant in this soft little voice, like she expected me to break down or beg her for details.

Then she followed it up by saying all the bills in the house were in Rome’s name, like that was supposed to hurt my feelings or scare me.

I almost laughed in her ear because she messed up by telling me all of that.

Her silly ass managed to give up the address thinking she and I would have a real face-to-face, woman to woman talk.

Like bitch please, you are not Shirley and I am not Barbara, I thought to myself the second she suggested it.

Since everything was in his name and she wanted to remind me so bad, I got off that phone and made a few calls of my own.

I called FPL and cut the lights off. I then called Miami-Dade Water and Sewer and cut the water off too.

Xfinity was next, and I cut it off as well, bitch didn’t need WI-FI anyway, she needed a fucking life with some morals.

I didn’t care if the lights blinked off mid-shower, mid-Netflix, mid-pregnancy craving, or mid-lie.

Congratulations, hoe, since you wanted him and everything attached to him, enjoy sitting in that big pretty house with no Wi-Fi, no water, and no power.

The joke was on both of them because I already had my storage unit, my important documents, and enough sense to stop letting that man use me as his peace in his world full of chaos.

My phone lit up again, and this time I snatched it off the dresser.

Rome’s name flashed across the screen, and underneath all those missed calls were messages I already knew were going to piss me off.

I didn’t open them right away, I just stood there holding the phone, trying to remind myself that I didn’t have time to argue with him.

I needed to finish packing, get this last load to the storage, check into whatever hotel had availability, and figure out the next step after I got away from this house.

I didn’t have the whole perfect plan, but I had enough of one to move and sometimes that had to be enough.

Before I could talk myself out of it, I called my best friend and Tasha answered on the second ring like she had been waiting for me to call anyway.

“Pleaseeee tell me you on the way to my house and not still in that damn mansion of misery,” she said, not even bothering with hello.

I rolled my eyes and held the phone between my ear and shoulder while I zipped one bag and reached for another. “I’m not coming to your house, Tash. I already told you I’m not bringing this shit to your door.”

“Navy, I don’t give a fuck about that, it’s little but you can come here. My couch is open, my guest room open, hell, my bed open if you need me to sleep on the floor. I don’t like you over there by yourself, especially after what he did.”

“I’m not by myself for long because I’m leaving. I just gotta get the rest of my stuff out before he get back.”

“He supposed to be gone until tomorrow, right?”

“That’s what he said, but you know Rome lie like it’s second nature. I don’t trust nothing that come out that man mouth unless it’s attached to a receipt, and even then I’m checking the date.”

Tasha made this muffled sound like she was trying not to laugh, but I could hear the worry all in it. “You still mad about that girl calling?”

“Mad?” I said, placing all of my perfume into my bag and let out a dry laugh.

“Tasha, that bitch called me like she was calling from the front desk at Jackson Memorial. Talking all calm and official. ‘Hi, Navy, I just felt like woman to woman, you should know I’m pregnant.’ Girl, woman to woman, you should’ve known better than to get pregnant by a man with a wife.

” I used to think Rome was a prize, but we were high school sweethearts and got married fresh out of high school.

Now some years later, things just aren’t the same.

“That’s what she said? She really said woman to woman?” Tasha rambled like she couldn’t believe it.

“Yes and then had the nerve to tell me all the bills here in his name like she had won a prize. Like, okay, baby, since you keeping inventory, let me help you update the list. I had allll that shit turned off… disconnected immediately. If she wanted to play house with my headache, she could play Little House on the Prairie too.”

Tasha burst out laughing then, and for a second I laughed with her because the shit was funny.

It wasn’t funny in a happy way, but it was funny in a this is my life and I cannot believe this man had me acting this crazy kind of way.

My laugh didn’t last long though, because the second my eyes moved back toward the closet, all I saw was the rest of my life sitting in piles, waiting on me to decide what I was willing to leave behind.

“You petty as hell,” Tasha said.

“No, I’m tired as hell and it’s a difference. Petty is when you got time boo, and tired is you finally realize you been living a life that don’t even love you back.”

She sighed, “Nay, just come here.”

“Tasha.”

“I’m serious, just stop being proud for five minutes. You my best friend, not some random girl from work asking for a favor. If you need somewhere to lay your head, come here.”