Chapter 7
Addison 3 Months Ago
Istared at my phone in disgust as the notification updated from ‘sending’ to ‘delivered’, indicating the picture went through. I threw my phone down and placed my head into my hands. I hated this!
When Olivia approached me those few months back, I thought God sent her into my life as a blessing when she told me she could help and would introduce me to her boss, Mr.L. Honey, when I tell you my discernment was not powered on, because I would’ve known it was a test and not a blessing. Now I was stuck dealing with Mr. L and my soon to be husband.
If I wasn’t in dire need, I wouldn’t have accepted, but what other choice did I have? At first, Mr. L held up his side of the bargain by getting us caught up on all the bills and he even hired an around the clock caregiver for my nana. I thought I could rest easy knowing that while I was finishing school in Vegas, she was being taken care of back home in Philly. Of course, I was sadly mistaken!
Once Mr. L and I signed the contract making him the temporary guardian over my nana, he’s done the bare minimum! Not only has he failed to pay the bills, but he’s even forgotten to pay for nana’s caregiver a few times. I should have known not to trust that asshole! Hell, I sacrificed my freedom so that my grandmother would be comfortable and safe, but it seems like it was all for nothing.
A knock came at my door, snapping me out of my thoughts. I took a deep breath and plastered on a fake smile. I may have been dealing with Mr. L’s bullshit and lies and would eventually be given away to some old pervert, but I didn’t let that get in the way of the little happiness I had. Opening the door, I found my friends Cindy and Sandy, who were cousins, and Akira standing there.
“What up, friend!”
Sandy sang, pulling me into a hug.
“Hey, girls,”
I laughed, embracing her back.
I gave Cindy a quick hug and gave Akira, who I liked to call K sometimes, a kiss on each cheek. I may have been friends with everyone, but Akira was my best friend. I felt comfortable around her, and we told each other everything. We started at college together and damn near had the same major, so it was inevitable that we’d become close.
Don’t get me wrong, Cindy and Sandy were cool, but I just met them a few months ago. They were freshmen on my floor and since I was the RA, I always talked to them. They eventually started to come around more and more until ultimately, we all became friends.
“What’s the move tonight?”
Cindy asked, sitting on top of my desk.
“I heard there was a new bar downtown, we should check it out.”
Sandy chimed in.
“I don’t know about that. I have a few midterms tomorrow and I need to study.”
Akira protested, sitting crisscross on my bed.
“I’m with K. As much as I want to turn up, this is my last midterm, and I refuse to fuck up my GPA now.”
“Ugh! I swear y’all are so boring sometimes. Live a little, why don’t you!”
Cindy pouted.
“Girl, you acting like you don’t have two midterms tomorrow, too.”
Akira snapped.
“We do, but damn, we still like to go have fun.”
“Yeah! Maybe if y’all come out and get the cobwebs dusted off y’all coochie, y’all wouldn’t be so stressed about some tests.”
Sandy stated, snapping her fingers in the air.
“Bitch, fuck you!”
Akira laughed, throwing a pillow at them.
“What? Just saying. When was the last time you made time for yourself and entertained the opposite sex? Or same sex, if you like eating more than sucking.”
Akira rolled her eyes.
“I’m talking to someone right now, for your information, but we both care about our future and are focusing on getting our priorities handled. Trust and believe, when the semester is over, not one speck of dust gonna be on either set of lips. You feel me?”
“I know that’s right!”
I cackled, giving her a high five.
“Aht, aht, not too much, miss ma’am. What about you?”
Sandy tsked as she pointed her finger at me.
“She’s talking to somebody,”
Akira interjected.
“Actually, that fell through.”
“What?”
Akira asked, her eyebrows pinching together.
“Y’all hoes and secrets - spill the tea.”
Cindy impatiently waved her hand.
I rolled my eyes before giving Akira a gentle smile.
“Well, when I went back home over the winter break, I met this really fine guy at a bar called Jill’s. I mean, nothing happened besides us having some really good conversation. I ended up giving him my number and on the last weekend I was in town, he hit me up to hang out. I spent over two hours doing my hair and makeup just for that asshole to cancel at the last minute.”
“I know you fucking lying!”
Akira gasped.
I shook my head as I sat down at my vanity.
“That's what I got for letting a guy named Ayzo talk sweet bullshit in my ear,”
I huffed out loud.
Cindy and Sandy looked at each other, causing me to squint my eyes. Sandy cleared her throat and gave me a sympathetic smile.
“Do you still talk to him? Maybe he’s available now.”
I shook my head.
“Nope. After he stood me up, he sent me a text message the day I was boarding the plane back here, explaining that he still had feelings for some girl he used to talk to and it wasn’t going to be fair to me to string me along. When I tried to reach out to him again, the number was disconnected.”
“Or he blocked you.”
Sandy stated, matter-of-factly.
Akira rolled her eyes at her before looking back at me and expelling a small sigh.
“At least he told you the truth. A lot of these niggas out here would have tried to fuck and then leave you on read without a second thought.”
I nodded in agreement.
“When you’re right, you’re right. Besides, when we met at the bar, I could tell that he didn’t really want company, but he was fine as hell, and I would've been a fool not to talk to him. I should have listened when he slipped up and said some girl had him down bad and he was just looking for a friend to talk to, but this damn hussy in between my legs was ready to finally jump in the game.”
“Girl, I can’t!”
Sandy chuckled.
Akira grinned before standing up and rubbing me on the back.
“Don’t worry, boo. When you find the right man, he’ll want you and never leave you hanging.”
I felt tears well at the corner of my eyes, but I quickly blinked them away as I hugged my best friend. I wanted so much to believe that would happen to me, but at the end of it all, my fate was sealed. I was already promised to be married to someone that I had never met. The dream of being able to find the love of my life was shattered the day I accepted help from Mr.L. Real love was never going to be in the cards for my life.
Akira’s phone chimed, causing her to mutter under her breath.
“Looks like I have to work early in the morning, so I definitely cannot go out.”
I scrunched up my nose before looking at my watch.
“Girl, it’s almost seven in the evening. Why your boss just now saying something about somebody house needing to be cleaned this late at night?”
K shrugged one shoulder.
“I’ve learned not to ask questions if I wanted to get paid.”
“Big facts,”
I chuckled.
“Oh! Why don’t y’all come with me? All of the heavy lifting will be done tonight, so in the morning, all we’d have to do is basic stuff like dusting.”
“Hell to the no! I am not spending my weekend cleaning some nasty ass house,”
Sandy sneered, standing to her feet.
“Agreed! I’m trying to get my back blown out by dick not from scrubbing floors.”
Cindy chimed in.
I rolled my eyes as the pair waved goodbye and walked out the room. A part of me understood where the girls were coming from. At the same time, I’ve seen Akira bring home at least a stack every time she was called to clean. Shit, I could use an extra grand right now, especially if all I had to do was tidy up.
“I don’t mind going with you, Akira, as long as we’re back before the afternoon.”
Akira’s nose crinkled as a questioning look danced in her eyes. We may have been best friends, but she still did not know everything I was going through. I had been able to keep my weekly doctor checkups and my arranged marriage hidden, but I could tell that she knew I was hiding secrets. It was written all over her face, but she didn’t speak on it.
Akira cleared her throat and grinned.
“Absolutely! If we get there by six, we’ll be done by nine at the latest. They’re offering three bands, so I’ll give you half.”
I jumped up and wrapped my arms around my best friend.
“You are the bee’s knees, boo!”
Akira laughed as she embraced me.
“I’ll shoot you the address tonight.”
“Can I just spend the night with you? I mean, it’ll be easier that way; we can just ride together.”
Akira nodded her head.
“I’m cool with that.”
“I’m going to do a bit more studying and then I’ll text you when I’m on the way.”
“You know you can just study at my place, right?”
I shook my head.
“The last time we had a study session, neither one of us actually studied because we were binge watching Martin. I almost put You Go Boy in my thesis paper.”
“Girl, bye,”
Akira laughed out loud.
“Okay, okay, I’ll see you in a bit.”
I waved goodbye and slumped against the door. As much as I loved my best friend, I really didn’t want to spend the night at her house. I mean, she had a cozy one bedroom apartment next to the campus, but I wanted to sleep in my own bed, not toss and turn all night on a pull out couch. Unfortunately, this was my only option. I was on strict orders to be with Bruno, my personal driver, whenever I went outside of the campus — per Mr. L’s orders. If I did anything on my own, my driver snitched, and all hell would break loose.
I sighed. There were times when I wanted to tell Akira everything that was going on. When I couldn’t hang out or had to come up with an excuse for something so trivial like meeting at a location, I felt the tension in our friendship grow. I didn’t think she’d stop being my friend, but maybe she’d start distancing herself to match my energy. I mean, would it be so bad if I told her what was happening in my life?