Chapter 2 #2
“It’s because I had my eyes on someone. I watched you command attention as you strutted back and forth in your heels like they were some tennis shoes, not missing a beat.
That shit was sexy as fuck to me. Each time I saw you, I thought you were beautiful, passionate about what you loved, beautiful, and a boss. ”
“You already said beautiful.”
“The last beautiful was directed towards your body, the first one was for your face.” He smiled a lopsided grin at me. “Tell me something about you, though. While we have this little time together.”
“Not you acting like a reporter. I get enough of questions after the games.” I laughed then thought of something simple to tell him. “Umm my name is Brianna Bronx Kincade; I’ll be twenty-six in a few months and—”
“Back it up to that middle name,” he interrupted. “Where did Bronx come from? Because now I’m feeling like we were really meant to collide that night in the hospital. Brooklyn and Bronx sound good as hell together.”
“Oh gosh. My mom is from Brooklyn, New York and hated that my dad talked her into moving to Florida. She wanted to keep a part of that with her so, Brianna Bronx was born.” The way he smiled at me had me trying to hold my own damn smile in.
I was trying not to do this childish school girl giggle but he had me blushing just from the way he looked at me.
“It’s beautiful, just like you so it fits.”
Before I could speak, my phone went off.
I immediately pressed answer on the screen, thinking it was PJ calling and I didn’t pay attention to the name until it was too late.
“Brianna!” Teddy’s voice boomed through the speakers.
“What?”
“Oh, that’s what we on now? I know you saw me texting you. Why you ain’t reply back?”
“Why should I? I haven’t heard from you in weeks so replying to you wasn’t a must-do.
Plus, I read all of them. All fifty of them, and you already know I don’t respond well to threats.
No, you can’t have another key, you can’t borrow any money and yes, I threw away everything of yours that you left behind. Goodbye, Teddy.”
“Bitch, you better not hang up on me!” he roared.
“Hol’up, I need you to watch yo mouf’ and mind ya fuckin’ manners when you speak to her.
Because now you just pissed me off, and I’m the last muthafucka anyone wants to see pissed off,” Brooklyn spoke up, making my heart drop.
“I was quiet because she was handling her business, and I don’t get in the middle of bullshit because right now, she’s not mine. ”
“Fuck you mean she’s not yours right now?” Teddy was furious.
“Just know that bitch word, to me, are fighting words. So, unless you ready to shoot it out, then talk to her nice.” How did he go from fighting to a shootout?
Teddy huffed. “I guess this wanna be Nino Brown ass nigga is the reason you put me out. I knew you weren’t shit. We just broke up and if you are already with this nigga then y’all been fucking around.”
“Just like a man to blame the woman. How about it was you and the dumb ass shit you did that made me put yo’ ass out.
The lack of affection, accountability, love, time, conversation, and asking simple shit like is my father ok!
Shit, Teddy, you lacked everything so yes, it was time for you to go.
I couldn’t carry you and my own load any longer.
I wish you the best with everything, and I hope you keep your rehab meetings up. ”
“Why you letting this nigga know all of my business?” Teddy spat, making Brooklyn laugh.
“I was simply wishing you well.”
“It’s cool, Brianna, I’ll see you around.”
“And what does that supposed to—" Teddy ended the call before I finished asking him what the fuck was that supposed to mean.
“Don’t let him near you again without someone being with you.
That nigga is off his rocker, and you can hear it in his voice.
Make sure you get my number before we leave this hospital and call me anytime you need me.
No matter what time it is. Be careful with that nigga, Bri.
” Brooklyn left me with those last words as he pulled up to the front of the hospital behind Zoo, allowing me and PJ to go right inside.
brOOKLYN
“Bruh, I ain’t neva shot a muthafucka through a phone before but if that shit were possible, Bri’s ex would have been a dead ass.”
“What happened?” Zoo asked, then started laughing like he knew it was some funny shit. We locked up the cars and walked back up towards the hospital.
“The nigga called her on straight bullshit then called her a bitch.”
“Say less, I already know you threatened that man's whole existence.” Zoo knew me too well.
“He got no more times to come at her like that. Especially when she didn't do shit to deserve that. And she said the nigga on that shit, too.”
“What? Wait, he on that shit, or that shit… shit?” Zoo quizzed, knowing it was two types of shit a muthafucka could’ve been on.
Pills or powder.
That’s how we looked at it. Popping pills was a start, the next step was powder. He was one pill away from being a dead-ass crackhead if he kept fucking with Bri.
“She ain’t say but I think the first one,” I told him.
“Bri better handle that nigga now. That nigga sound like he a loose cannon.”
“I already told her. Ain’t nothing safe about that nigga at all.”
“Shit, to be honest, ain’t shit safe about you either and he gon’ learn that shit the hard way.”
I didn’t even have to say shit after that because he knew just as well as I did that, I only gave one warning, and I gave ol’boy that right there.
I wasn’t trying to get in the middle of what they had going on because I was on the outside looking in but I didn’t allow nobody to be disrespected like that.
It didn’t matter how long I'd known them, I just didn’t do disrespect.
As we entered the emergency room, Bri waved us over to the double doors.
Once we got there, the lady at the desk opened the doors and allowed us to go to the back.
Bri took off her heels after the game and now had on some Yeezy Foam Runners.
She was really pushing it through the halls while we hustled to keep up.
When we made it to the room, everyone was standing outside Naomi’s door.
“How is she doing?”
Those simple words Bri asked, broke PJ down. “I don’t knoooow!” she cried out, making Bri swaddle her with her arms.
I guess this was the protector part she was talking about. She was trying not to cry over her friend because she needed to be strong for PJ. Brianna was trying to take care of everyone and that led me to want to know who took care of her if she was pouring into everyone else's cup.
She was just in an intense argument with her ex and a few minutes later, acted like nothing had happened.
She completely pushed her issues to the back of her mind.
Being there for her girl was the right thing to do, as long as she still took care of Brianna, too.
From the way things sounded in the car, she wasn’t.
“Shhh, she’s going to be ok,” Bri told her as she rocked her back and forth. I saw the tears filling up in her eyes, and she dared one of them to fall.
“I’m sorry but, I’m going to have to ask you guys to wait in the waiting room. It’s just a short skip and a hop down the hall. We do have other patients here, and she’s being very loud.”
I looked back when I heard Emily's voice behind me. When her eyes locked with mine, she tried to smile but I mugged her instead. I was surprised to see her because she didn’t work at this hospital.
“Tuh, anyway! I need y’all to go to the waiting room.”
“We heard you the first time,” Bri spoke up.
Emily looked around me and when she saw Bri, she started laughing. “I knew you were fucking this bitch.” She pointed at Brianna.
Me and Zoo couldn’t move fast enough before she and PJ were in Emily’s face. The team members that were standing there, pulled them back.
“Not here. You guys have too much to lose,” one of them said.
“It can be here, or outside, wherever, whenever. Y’all don’t scare me!” Emily shouted, now gaining the attention of other staff members.
“Emily, you already know how I get down. I’on play games and you trying to make me spazz on you right now. Take that shit on somewhere before I make a way for them to meet cho’ ass outside for real.”
“Fuck you and that bitch, Brooklyn.”
“Bitch!” Bri yelled out followed by a Yeezy flying past my face and hitting Emily in hers. Bri couldn’t get away from her team, but she found a way to still put her hands on Emily.
“You just gon’ let her throw shit at me?”
“I told you to move around, Emily. You gon’ lose yo’ job and get cho’ ass beat in the same night. They ain’t playin’ with chu’,” I growled. “These people have serious shit going on and you coming over here on bullshit.”
“I was just…”
Grabbing her arm, I pulled her down the hall and a way from everybody else, taking her into that same waiting room she tried to force them into. Once the door shut, my hand was around her throat like a tight-ass choker necklace.
“I’ma say this shit for the last time. We ain’t shit, will never be shit, and will never have shit.
When you see me, act like you don’t. When we leave out this room, take yo’ ass back to work and wipe some ass or something but don’t bring yo’ ass back over there or we will have a serious problem. Do you understand?”
She nodded while scratching at my hand. Releasing her, she fell to the ground just as the waiting room door was pushed open.
“Come on before you get cho’ ass put in jail,” Zoo told me then pulled me out of the room. “I was gon’ stop you from choking her ass sooner but that bitch needed a few more seconds to get some understanding. I was looking out for you, though.”
“My bad, man. I hate she just did that shit. Bri nem’ good?”
“Yea, she sent me at chu’. I walked slow as hell, too.” I tried not to laugh at Zoo but that was hard to do.
I was not the type to ever put my hands on a female and that was the first time I’d done that shit, but Emily was pushing all my buttons, and I ain’t had but one to push.
“You know I gotta tell Auntie yo’ ass need to start those anger classes again. ‘Cause yo’ ass is mean as fuck. I thought I was fucked-up in the head, but you got me beat. Quiet but deadly ass muthafucka.”
Waving Zoo off, we rounded the corner. All the players had left, leaving Bri and PJ standing at Naomi’s door. Bri looked like she was pissed off and was still standing there with one shoe on like the other one wasn’t a few steps away.
Zoo went by PJ’s side while I called Brianna over to me.
“I’m sorry about that.”
“Don’t even worry about it. I’ve encountered her before, so I know how she is. She’s the type that doesn’t believe shit stank until you shove that shit in her face.”
“Facts, but still, I apologize and that will never happen again.”
“It’s fine. We are just friends, so I’m not worried about her. Like I told her the first time, you are safe for now.”
“I hear you. Go ahead and put your number in my phone so we won’t leave tonight not having contact, ‘cause if lil’ homie start actin’ up again, you better call me. I already warned him once, and I don’t repeat myself at all.”
“Just give me the phone. Save the speech.”
“I’m serious, Bri. You gotta be careful. Your girls can’t come save you, but I can.”
She smirked at me as if she were trying to feel me out. “Who said I needed saving?”
“Just in case, I’m here.” I took her phone out of her hand, instead, and put my number inside, saving it under what I wanted it as. Then, I called my phone from hers so that I could have it.
“Make sure you call me, Bri.”
“I will... if I need saving.”
I watched as Bri walked back over to PJ and Zoo, just as Naomi’s room door came open.