21. Ozyris Brentley
PRESENT DAY
Summer looked at the headstone, her little hand still in her daddy’s, and said it softly. “Auntie Reesie is in heaven now, and she’s looking down on you, King… right, Daddy?”
Summer looked up at PB, and he smiled down at her and confirmed, “Right, baby girl.” PB put a hand on each of their shoulders, and Summer turned and wrapped her little arms around King’s neck, giving him a hug.
I couldn’t say nothing. My mind wasn’t even really here no more. It had gone back to that night—the phone ringing, the way my stomach dropped, the drive to the hospital where I had the driver run every light, and me holding her hand in that room with machines beeping around us.
Before I even knew it, I was crying. This shit was hard, man.
PB caught it quick. He looked at the kids and said, “Summer, tell Auntie Reesie happy birthday. King, tell your mommy something nice. She can hear you.”
Once they turned back to the stone, he pulled me off to the side, wrapped his arms around me, and let me fall apart on his shoulder like I was the little brother instead of the older one.
“Bruh, it’s okay,” he said, patting my back.
“No, it’s not.” My voice cracked.
“Listen. I know you not still hanging this over your head, are you?”
“I am, bruh. You already know how I feel about this.”
“Neither one of us was at fault, Ozy. We did what we could do. We gave her money when she asked. We tried to support her the best way we knew how. We tried to get her help.” He pulled back just enough to look at me. “Her overdose ain’t on us.”
“It is.” I shook my head. “I sent her that money two days before it happened.”
That guilt had been eating at me ever since.
Truth was, for the last year and some change, I had damn near disappeared from music altogether.
The label wasn’t feeling it, but even they knew better than to push me.
They knew my heart wasn’t in it and my mind was somewhere else completely.
I still showed up here and there, dropped a post, hit an award show, and kept enough of a presence that people didn’t start asking questions.
Wasn’t hurting my pockets none. But the real me, the one who used to live for the stage, that version of me had stepped all the way back.
“I get it. I get exactly how you feel. I’m still grieving too, bruh. Some days, I think it’s my fault too. But the reality is… it ain’t.”
We stood there for a minute, just letting it be quiet between us—the kind of quiet that don’t need nothing said. I ended up using my shirt to wipe my face, laughing a little at myself for it.
“How things been at the house?” PB asked.
“King such a good kid, man.” I let out a breath. “I’m real happy I was able to take him in. With the time off, I been getting to spend more time with him than I thought I would. But I can’t be off forever. Gotta go back on tour soon. Man, so shit, I’ma need a nanny for him.”
“Honestly that makes sense right now. With Paisley, Rah Jr, and Summer at the house full-time now, it’s already a lot over there. Whenever you need to drop him off, though, or just need a breather, I’m there. I don’t mind at all, and Pais doesn’t either.”
“I appreciate that, for real. But I want him close to me, PB. I need somebody who can watch him while I’m working and travel with us too.” I felt my throat tighten again. “I just feel so bad. I want him to always know I’m here. I don’t ever want him feeling like people just leave out his life.”
“You doing a real good job despite everything,” PB said. “That boy is happy, Ozy. And I know she’s looking down, proud you took him in. He ain’t in the system. We doing the best we can. He gon’ have a great life.”
“Thanks, nigga. I needed to hear that.”
“You know I gotcha, bruh.” We shared one last brotherly hug.
We walked back over to where the kids stood, and I called out, “Who wants pizza?”
“Me!” King shot his hand up.
“Who wants ice cream?” PB asked.
“Me!” Summer shouted, and I laughed. They were greedy as hell.
I took King’s hand in mine, and PB took Summer’s.
I glanced back at the headstone one last time and said, “Happy birthday, Reesie.”
Somehow, I managed to smile at it too before we all turned and walked to the car.