Chapter 1 #2
I shook my head of my naughty thoughts and squinted to look for my friends.
That’s when I saw that Zynea was in the middle of the dance floor, still slow grinding with a dude.
Our two other friends from college came out with us tonight as well.
After graduating from Cornell University, we all stayed close and celebrated together when we could.
The night belonged to Zynea because we were celebrating her signing her contract to become a Brooklynette.
It had been a while since I had something in my life to celebrate.
I had graduated a year prior with my Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree, and shortly after, I passed the NAVLE with flying colors.
The only problem I was having now was actually finding a job.
I still had a little money left behind after using my mother’s life Insurance policy to pay for her funeral and put me through school.
I was staying in her old apartment. Our apartment.
The place she had moved into during my sophomore year of high school.
And over the years, it had become an expense that I couldn’t keep up with.
If I didn’t find a job quickly, I was going to run out of money.
While I was away at school, I would sublease or Airbnb the place.
But when I didn’t have someone else to be financially responsible for the apartment, I had to dig into my savings and cover the costs myself.
The lump sum was quickly diminishing, and without finding some money soon, I was bound to go broke.
“Follow me,” I said before walking off.
He kept close behind me as I made my way back to my girls.
“Y’all not in a section?” he asked when I made it to a corner where our bags were occupying the chairs.
“No,” I answered.
A section would have been nice, but we decided as a group collectively to save some money. When we invaded my girls' space, all three of them had their eyes trained on me and who I had brought into our circle.
“Ladies, welcome to Obsessions. I’m Orion, the owner,” he took the lead and spoke.
Orion. I finally had a name to match that handsome face of his. Zynea used the back of her hand to wipe the light coat of sweat that had formed on her forehead.
“I’m Zy, that’s Brandi, that short one sitting down is Ali,” Zynea looked at me and then smiled, “and I see you already know—”
Boom Boom Boom
I dropped the Don Julio bottle, and my body hit the floor right behind it as I ducked for cover. As pandemonium filled the club, I couldn’t focus on voices. I tried to look around for my girls, but my sight was blurry.
“Ahhhh,” I screamed when my calf felt like someone had set fire to it.
“Oh my God, Cayla, you’re hit!” I heard Zynea frantically scream.
“No, the fuck I’m not.”
I looked down and saw blood squirting out of my leg and onto my strappy heels.
“Shittttt,” I gritted, “my shoes! My fucking leg!”
It was like once I noticed my injury, that's when all the pain hit me.
“Damn, pretty, that’s going to leave a scar.”
Orion came into my sight and then held his hand down on my wound. His piercing eyes were fixed on something going on across the room.
“So much for not making The Shaderoom,” I jokingly said.
His thick brows were dented in concentration at the mayhem that was taking place on the other side of the club.
“What’s going on?” Zynea asked, looking in the same direction.
Barstools, turned-over tables, and people ducking for cover blocked my view, so I couldn’t see what had them so focused.
“Where’s Brandi and Ali?” I asked when I couldn’t see them.
“Girl, they are gone. They both hightailed it out the door,” Zynea quickly answered without ungluing her eyes from the commotion occurring across the room.
In no time, paramedics arrived and were putting me on a stretcher.
“Which hospital are y’all taking her to?” Orion asked one of the paramedics as they were gathering basic information from me.
“Jamaica Hospital,” he answered as they quickly started to push me out of the club.
“Cayla, that’s my name,” I called out to Orion as I was being pushed toward the exit.
I hadn’t had the chance to tell him, and I was sure Zynea was getting around to that before the shots went off.
On the way out, I saw what had Zynea’s and Orion’s attention.
The man who had grabbed my arm just a while ago was sprawled out across the floor.
His ass must have tried to grab the wrong nigga’s bitch.
“Oh shitttt!” Zynea tried to cover the screech that escaped from her lips as we passed the dead body.
When we made it outside, the police were everywhere.
I scanned the crowd for Brandi and Ali, but I should have known I wouldn’t find them.
They weren’t the hood type. They were both infatuated with the street life, but when street shit like bullets flying occurred, they got low and gone.
That’s why Zynea was my best friend; that girl would ride with me until the wheels fell off.
I shook my head at the bitches who had left Zynea and me high and dry.
I winced in pain as the paramedics lifted me into the back of the ambulance.
I couldn’t believe how a night of celebration had ended with me being hit by a bullet.
“Cay, I’m gonna follow you to the hospital in my car, and then I need to head home to get ready for this flight.”
I just nodded my head up and down. Zynea was the only true friend I had.