Chapter 17 #2
And that is just what I did. At first, I moved a lil’ slower, getting a feel for how they ran things. Checking on patients, updating charts, following behind a couple nurses just to see their flow.
But then, I found my rhythm.
Talking to patients, handling what I needed to handle, moving like I had been doing this shit all my life.
“Okay,” one of the burses said as I finished up in a room. “They talked like you were still a rookie out here, looks like you know what you are doing.”
I smiled. “I’ve been out of the field for lil’ minute, but it’s like riding a bike.”
That broke the ice just enough.
After that, it was small talk here and there. Nothing deep, just enough to feel included without being forced.
Hours passed smooth—no rushing, no chaos, just steady work.
And somewhere in between checking vitals and updating charts, I realized something…
Gio.
He wasn’t a constant thought on my mind.
I paused at the station for a second, fingers resting on the counter as that thought hit me.
It felt weird, like I was forgetting something I was supposed to remember.
But it didn’t feel bad.
“Islah,” Renee called, snapping me out of it. “You good?”
I nodded. “Yeah,” I said, straightening up. “I’m good.
She smiled and walked off.
By the end of my shift, I was tired, but it felt good to be tired. I grabbed my things from my locker and walked out to see a few of the nurses I worked with standing around the desk.
“Goodnight,” I said, walking by.
“Hey, Islah,” the nurse Deja called out. I turned around, and all of them were staring at me. “We were thinking about going out to get drinks, you want to come?”
I thought about it for a second.
“Yeah, I’m with it.”
“Cool, follow us,” Kenya said.
I nodded and walked to my car, threw my shit in the back, and waited for one of them to start up their car and followed behind.
After a few minutes, we pulled out of the parking lot, falling into a straight line like we had been riding like I had been riding with them for years.
The city looked different now that the sun was down.
Lights were everywhere; cars moving, people walking.
Atlanta felt alive in a whole different way at night.
We pulled up to a spot not too far, nothing too fancy, but it was packed enough to let me know the vibes were hittin’.
I parked, grabbed my purse, and stepped out, locking my door as I caught up with them. As soon as we stepped inside, the noise wrapped around me. Music playing, people laughing, glasses clinking. The vibes were hittin’ like I thought.
“This is our spot,” Deja said, leading the way like she owned the place.
We got seated pretty quick, sliding into a booth together. I sat on the end, taking it all in while they started talking over each other, laughing, already in their groove.
“You drink?” Renee asked me, grabbing the menu but not really looking at it.
“Yeah,” I said. “I do.”
“Say less, then, sis,” Kenya responded.
They ordered for the table like it wasn’t nothing. The drinks came out not long after. I took a sip, letting it hit, feeling like this was the first time I sat back and had fun in a long time.
“So…” Deja leaned forward, resting her chin on her hand. “You real quiet, Ms. Islah. What’s your story?”
I gave a lil’ shrug. “It’s not much to tell, I just needed a change.”
They all looked at me like they knew there was more to it.
“I feel that,” Renee said. “Everybody running from something or starting over.”
I sat with that for a second.
“I dated a Rollin’ Crip nigga from Crenshaw for seven years. After our home got ran into by the police, I found out he was fuckin’ some bitch for coke. I left him while he was in jail.”
They all stared at me. Kenya’s mouth was to the floor.
“Oh, so you ain’t no soft bitch.”
We all laughed as I shook my head.
“Not at all.”
“So are you running from the nigga?” Deja asked.”
I smiled before I answered, and I could tell that threw Renee off.
“Not at all,” I said before I took a sip. “I actually love that nigga a lil’ too much, and if I didn’t leave while he’s locked, I would probably be in the same spot that I was with him.”
They all nodded in understanding.
“Well, here’s to leveling up on a nigga!” Deja said as she lifted her glass in the air.
The glasses clinked together, and I took another sip, letting it settle in my chest.
“Leveling up,” I repeated low, almost to myself.
It sounded good, felt good. And for once, it ain’t feel like I was just talking.
The conversation started flowing after that, not on no forced shit, either, just natural. They started telling me about their own mess: old niggas, baby daddy drama. Renee even talked about how she had sworn off dating for years and already broken that promise twice.
I found myself really laughing, my shoulders relaxed, my guard dropped just a lil’ bit. It felt good to be in the moment.
“I can tell you got a mouth on you,” Deja said, pointing at me. “You’ve just been holding back.”
“I don’t know y’all like that…” I said, smirking.
“That shit is not gonna fly for long,” Kenya chimed in. “You already outside with us on your first day; you’re locked in now.”
I shook my head, but was smiling.
Locked in.
Those words hit different, not in a bad way. I just haven’t had friends in a long time that weren’t connected to a nigga that Gio knew.
We kept talking and sharing stories until the food came out, and a group of niggas stopped by our table trying to spit game.
The night kept going. I learned who was who, who talked too much at work, and who stayed in drama.
It wasn’t deep shit, but enough to know who to fuck with and who not to at work, and that’s what I needed.
By the time we left, I wasn’t tense; my body felt lighter, like I could actually breathe. We stood outside for a minute, saying our goodbyes and exchanging numbers.
“Our next day off, we gonna take you out for a girls’ day,” Deja yelled while Kenya and Renee agreed.
I smiled as I walked to my car.
“Listen, tell me where, and I’m there. I need that.”
We parted ways after that, and I slid into my car, closing the door and pulling out of the parking lot.
When I got home, I stumbled my ass to the shower with a smile on my face. After getting comfortable, I laid out my clothes for the next day and saw the girls had already added me to a group chat.
I grabbed me a snack, some wine, tuned it to one of my shows I needed to catch up on, and chatted with the girls. I was in the middle of responding to Deja when I got a call.
I stared at the screen for a minute, recognizing that the number was the same number that Gio had called me from before. I sucked my teeth as I picked up.
“Gio! Please stop calling me. We are over. I’m done. I’m not waiting for you.”
The line was silent for a few seconds, then I heard a chuckle.
“I’ll be seeing you soon, my love,” he said.
His words and his tone sent a shiver down my spine. Before I could respond, the nigga hung up.
I stared at my phone for a minute and took a deep breath, a lil’ worried, Gio didn’t sound the way he normally did. I took a sip of wine to calm my heart from racing and to try to stop my mind from spinning, and then I thought about it.
I’m in Atlanta, that nigga is locked the fuck up. And then I laughed to myself. Nobody from Cali that fucked with him knew where I was. There was no way for that nigga to get to me.