17. Vani #3
With the way he made money, it was hard to get comfortable.
Even when I didn’t realize it, it was like I was always waiting for something to go wrong.
My biggest fear was him going to prison just like I had.
Thankfully, I wasn’t riding with enough drugs to get a super long sentence, but Darius was a bigger hustler than my cousin had ever been.
The thought of him being sentence to double digit numbers in prison made my gut churn.
I eased over to the open bar to get a drink.
My nerves were shot, and I didn’t want to automatically assume the worst. Once the drink had been consumed, Azarius and Darius were still outside, and my anxiety wasn’t going to allow me to keep waiting.
When I stepped out onto the sidewalk, Darius was pacing with a deep frown contorting his face.
Azarius had both hands in his pockets, and he was patiently waiting for whatever Darius came up with.
Both turned to look at me, and Darius sighed. I was sure he didn’t want to stress me, worry me, or make me mad, but he should have known I was coming. Azarius made his way back inside, and Darius stopped pacing.
“What’s wrong? And please don’t say nothing.” My tone was gentle. Clearly, he was upset, and I wasn’t trying to make it worse.
“Man,” Darius inhaled deeply through his nose before sucking his teeth.
His jaw muscle flexed and his lip twitched.
He was pissed. “For years, even before I met you, I’ve been keeping my dope at this broad Mya’s crib.
I’ve never had an issue. Not one, now this bitch is telling me her house was broken into, and I’m out of five bricks.
That’s $105,000. And that’s not what I was gon’ make off the shit. That’s what I paid for the shit.”
I couldn’t fathom taking that kind of loss.
But in true woman fashion, I wanted to know who the fuck this Mya chick was.
I knew Darius was already heated, and I knew I should tread lightly, but this was news to me.
She’d been around for four years or more, and I had never once heard of her?
There was something really fishy about that.
I’d be a fool to just say nah, my man isn’t, hasn’t been, or has never cheated on me.
Darius and I had a brief stare down. Finally, he inhaled another breath.
“I stopped fucking her when I met you. Mya is green. At least I thought her ass was green. She works, single, doesn’t have kids, doesn’t have men at her crib like that.
I only kept my dope there because I’d never keep it where I rest my head, and you damn sure weren’t keeping it where you rest yours. ”
I could kind of understand that, but he still had frequent interactions with a woman that I knew nothing about, and that was very sneaky to me.
Still, it had been a beautiful night, and he was clearly already upset.
I didn’t want to make it worse, but holding my tongue was feeling like an Olympic sport that I wasn’t adequately trained for.
“Vani,” I could hear the stress in his tone, so I simply held my hands up in surrender.
“What are you going to do?”
The look that he gave me caused a chill to creep down my spine.
I already knew what he was going to do to the person that took his drugs if he found out who it was.
That was one thing I knew about Darius, but I didn’t want him to do it.
I didn’t ask any questions about the night I drove his car to the club.
If anything happened to Darius, I would go right back to that dark place I was in while I was in prison, and it wouldn’t be good.
I only got through that by the grace of God.
I walked over and stood directly in front of him.
“Darius, I know you’re angry. I would be too.
And I don’t have anywhere near $100,000, but you can have everything I have in my bank account.
Everything I’ve been stacking. Take it and do what you can with it, but please just don’t do anything you might not be able to come back from.
” There was pleading in my tone, and I was sure in my gaze as well.
“Man,” Darius shook his head. “I’m not taking your money.”
“Why?” I drew back. “What rule is there that says you only have to give and can never receive. Before I went to prison you always made sure I was good. When I came home from prison you made sure I was overly straight. I can even sell one of my Chanel bags. That’ll be at least $10,000 right there. I can always get another bag.”
Darius frowned as if what I was saying was the most absurd thing he’d ever heard. With another slight shake of his head, he looked off to the side. I was sure his pride didn’t want to allow him to take my money. But I was a prime example of how one dumb decision could change everything.
“Darius, please just be careful. I know you’re not going to let what he or them did slide, and I get it.
But we lost three years due to my dumb ass actions.
I’m not trying to lose you. You have a daughter to remain free and alive for.
You’re already a father, and now you want to be a husband. You gotta start moving like it. Okay?”
“I hear you bae.” Darius placed a quick peck on my lips before we headed back inside.
I knew he heard me. But I also knew that I wouldn’t be able to talk Darius out of doing anything he really wanted to do.