DIO PRESS PLAY
DIO
PRESS PLAY
The night howled as Samara and I lay in bed.
She hadn’t said much to me since the other night.
I knew this shit was going to happen. I knew she was over my ass, and to add fuel to the fire, I needed to tell her I was moving out for the semester.
When I received my text that I had made the line, a nigga was excited.
However, with that came rules. Like I couldn’t walk on grass, I had to wear black and white, and the main rule was not to be seen with the opposite sex.
I knew the only way for me to see this through was to stay on campus until this shit was over.
I had asked Beans if there was any way around it, but he said this was part of it.
The nigga looked out and nominated me, and the last thing I wanted to do was disappoint him and his name.
I wasn’t sure about this step, but I wanted to try. I wanted to show that not only could a nigga find brotherhood within the Zoo, but also outside.
I rolled over to spoon with her. I wanted this night with her to be chill. I knew over the course of the next few weeks, I wouldn’t even be able to kiss her. “Mars,” I called out. She didn’t say anything. “Samara, I know you hear me.”
She sighed. “What Dionysus?”
“Damn! Like that?” I hissed.
Her head spun. “Are you ready to tell me what that was?” she asked me.
“What what was?”
Even though I knew what she was asking, I needed to pretend like I didn’t. I got away with ignoring it the night in the car, but I wasn’t sure if it would work tonight.
She smacked her lips. “That thing with Paige and Beans?”
I knew every woman who was chosen by a Zoo nigga had their moment.
To the women, it was a very special night, but for the Zoo, it was a night of initiation.
A night to remember, enjoy, please, and cause a little pain, but most of all, it should show how loyal she was to the Zoo.
If the women could withstand that single night, then it was a sure thing that everything they had gone through to get there was worth it.
It was fucking with me because even though I was slowly maturing, there were things I wanted to accomplish before we had our time, like making it through this fraternity shit.
I looked at her as she stared at me, waiting for an answer. “They were making up, and we helped, but you know that.”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. It seemed like something more to me. It’s like all the girls have this connection with their men in a different way.”
“This could be true, but what you and I have is different from everyone else. Mars, your title as my woman is different from theirs, but I get you.”
She turned her head to look away. “If you say so,” she mumbled.
I didn’t want to dismiss her feelings, but what I needed to say next was much more important than a fucking Orange Light Special. I was trying to figure out how to tell her that once I walked out of the house in the morning, I wouldn’t be coming back until the semester was over.
I ran my hand over my face. “Mars, I need to tell you something,” I muttered.
She didn’t bother to look at me. “What?”
I let out a sharp breath. “I-I’m moving out for the semester. I—”
Her head snapped my way. “Why?”
I sighed. “It’s just something I need to do. Look, I don’t want you to think I don’t love you because I do. I just need this time. It’s still you and me. I just have to move a little differently.”
She said nothing, but for a second, I thought I heard her sniffle. Man, shit! “Samara, baby, look at me.”
I didn’t want her to cry, but it was too late. The goal wasn’t to disappoint her, but I knew she didn’t understand either. Samara got out of bed and headed out of the room.
“Fuck!” I shouted.
I wanted to tell her that I was joining a fraternity and that this was part of the rules, but I couldn’t.
I could only make up some dumb-ass excuse as to why I wouldn’t be holding her at the end of the night.
This was the part of the relationship that I didn’t like.
The part where miscommunication came in and wreaked havoc in my life.
However, I chose this, and because I did, I needed to chuck it up.
I was doing this not only to prove something to myself but also to prove it to my brother.
I had been through a lot, even close to death, and this was bigger than the Zoo, bigger than being accepted into college; this was a life-changing thing.
So, if she just held on a little bit longer, the outcome would be a better man for her and me.
Did I fear that she would get wrapped up in the college life and cheat on me? No. What I did know was this was a test to see if we could withstand small shit like this. To me, she was my forever person, but was I hers?