35. Monica
Monica
A couple days later
I was tired. The last thing I felt like doing was coming to this job, but I had no choice. If I didn’t show up to work, no one was going to pay the bills for me. I’d lost Joker and had to solely depend on my own money. It was depressing as fuck.
After his lil threat, I had been keeping my distance. I was waiting for shit to fall apart and him to come running right on back to me once he found out that his lil hood rat wasn’t what he thought she was. It was bound to happen soon or later.
Reaching over to the passenger seat, I grabbed my purse and lunch bag along with my Stanley cup out the cupholder and climbed out the car. I was going to be here ’til four this afternoon. Seemed like eternity to me. That’s the exact reason why I needed a man so that I could quit this job.
It wasn’t no hard job. All I did was sit behind a desk at the doctor’s office and schedule appointments all day long. It was the getting up early in the morning for me. I was far from being an early morning person. What I should’ve done was found me a job where I didn’t have to get up so early.
I trekked across the parking lot to my building. “Hey,” I spoke to a woman who passed me along the way. Another thing about my job was that it forced me to be social even when I didn’t want to.
I entered the building and stepped through the metal detector. “Good morning,” the security said.
“Morning,” was the only thing he got out of me.
I pressed the up button on the elevator and climbed inside. It took me up to the eighth floor and I got off. I used my badge to scan into the door and stepped inside. I trotted around to my desk, placing all my things underneath it except my cup.
“Hey, Monica,” Lisa said when she reached her desk.
“Hey. Is it time to go home yet?” I joked.
“Girl, you just got here.” She laughed and waved me off.
“I know.” My eyes rolled and I signed into my computer. It was now eight o’clock, and patients had started to come in. “Good morning.” I flashed one a smile as she stepped to the kiosk and signed in.
The door opened again, and I don’t know what the hell made me look in that direction, but when I did, my heart dropped to my lap. Halo strutted in here, skin just glowing as if she needed to be on a Fenty commercial or something. She had on this cute ass pink floral maxi dress. Her hair was in its natural curly state. She stopped at the other kiosk and signed in. I immediately went to the schedule for the day to see if she was on it, and I’ll be damned if she wasn’t.
She went over and sat down, removing her phone from her purse. I eyed her, wanting to get up and smack the shit out of her ass. I hadn’t seen her since the day we were fighting outside of Joker’s place. I still couldn’t believe the help swooped in and stole my nigga.
“Hey, can I reschedule my appointment?” a woman stepped to the desk and asked.
I took my attention off Halo and to her. “Did you have one scheduled for the day?”
“Yeah, it was at eight fifteen. Something has come up and I need to leave.”
“Okay. What’s your name and date of birth?”
“Joy Nickerson, and my birthday is ten, eight, ninety-four.”
“Okay.” I typed her information into the computer and saw that she was here to see Dr. Johnson. “Okay. We have an opening for Friday at nine thirty. Will that work for you?”
“Yes, that’s fine.”
“Okay. I have you down for then. See you then.” I flashed her a grin.
“Thank you,” she replied and stepped away from the desk.
“Halo Carter?” one of the nurses called out her name, and her eyes shifted from her phone up to the door. She got up from her seat, tightly clutching the strap of her purse, and trotted toward the door.
“Hey, it’s me.”
“You’re here for a pregnancy test, correct?”
My hand slammed down on the desk and my eyes bulged from the sockets. I just knew I didn’t hear that shit correctly.
“Monica, are you okay?” Lisa questioned me.
“Yes,” Halo replied.
“Right this way.”
My stomach balled into knots. This nigga was ready to end both of us just because he thought I might be pregnant, and he went out and got this trifling bitch pregnant. He really lost his got damn marbles. I know one thing for sure, that shit better come back negative.
I slightly twisted in my chair, nibbling on my lower lip.
“Monica?” Lisa called out my name, snapping me from my thoughts.
“Huh?” I looked over at her.
“I was asking are you okay?”
Bitch, do I look like I’m okay?
That’s what I wanted to ask her, but instead, I replied, “Yeah. I’ll be fine,” not wanting to place her in my business. At work, I kept my personal life separate. People get any lil bit of information and it was spread all over the fucking office. They won’t be discussing me over lunch.
I sat there, waiting for Halo to come out with her results. She rounded from the back and the nurse opened the door for her. “Just have a seat. I’ll get back with you in a moment for your results.”
“Okay.” Halo grinned at her. This bitch really thinks she hit the jackpot with my man. I was the one walking around here with his brand on me, not her.
She went over and sat back down in her previous seat. I pushed back from my desk and lifted to my feet. “I gotta use the bathroom,” I told Lisa so she could look out for my patients while I was gone. She nodded and I rounded the corner. Instead of going to the bathroom on my end of the hallway, I walked all the way around to the one on the other side where I knew they kept all the tests. The closer I got to the station, the louder my heart thudded. If that test was positive, somebody might as well pick me up off the floor and find me a new heart because that mufucka was gon’ be crushed.
I skimmed the counter and found her test sitting there. Getting on my tippytoes, I leaned over to read it and my heart fell to my feet. This bitch was pregnant. Ain’t no fucking way.
Clutching my shirt, I turned and went back to my desk. I looked over and she sat there, smiling at her phone, probably talking to Joker. If I wasn’t at work, I would’ve knocked her head off her shoulders.
“Carter?” the nurse called out her name again. She stood to her feet and went over to see what she wanted. “It’s positive. You’ll have to get an appointment scheduled. Step over to the check-out desk.” She was lucky that she didn’t have to deal with me, or else I would’ve scheduled her appointment five years from now. Ugly ass ho. As she stepped in front of Lisa, her eyes finally landed on me, and they widened. I sat there, arms folded over my chest, mugging her stupid ass.
Getting up from my seat, I stormed off toward the back. No way I was gon’ be able to survive at work, knowing the information I had. I entered the bathroom and shut the door behind me. Turning on the water, I covered my mouth and screamed into my hand.
Once I was calm, I went back out and Halo was gone. “Are you sure you’re okay?” Lis questioned me.
“As a matter of fact, I’m not feeling too well. I think I need to head home for the day. Can you cover for me?”
“Sure. I hope you feel better.”
“Thanks,” I replied and reached underneath the desk to grab my things.
I left out of there and headed to my car. I didn’t lie to Lisa. I really was sick. Sick that my man had gotten another bitch pregnant. He was giving that ho the life that I worked for, and that wasn’t gon’ work for me.
Hitting the fob on my car, I climbed in and went to Joker’s place. This was the final time I was going to try and talk to him.
I pulled up in front of the building and got out the car. It was a chance that he wasn’t even here, but it’s worth a try. Entering the building, I stopped at the desk and asked, “Can you call up to Joker’s place?”
The chick looked at me and rolled her eyes. “You’re not allowed on the premises. I’m calling security.”
“Are you fucking kidding me right now?”
“Do it look like I’m joking?” she asked, pointing at her face. “Joker doesn’t want you here. I have strict instructions to call security if you were to ever show up,” she said, reaching for the phone.
“A’ight. I’m leaving.”
I stormed out the building and stopped at the curb. Joker’s truck pulled in for valet and he hopped out. Running around to him, I shoved him hard in the chest. “You son of a bitch!” Now that I’d laid eyes on him, I couldn’t stop the tears from flowing. “How could you get her pregnant! You know I been asking you for a baby! How could you!” I shoved him again and he stumbled a bit. At this point, I was ready to throw hands with him.
“Man, gone head somewhere,” he said and went to walk off.
I shoved him so hard in the back that he tripped over his own feet. “You trifling!”
Turning and facing me, his hands balled into fists. His eyes turned to slits. “I’m ’bout to knock yo’ teeth down yo’ throat. Keep playing with me,” he warned.
“Do you not see that I’m hurting? I loved you and you treated me like shit. Why?”
Joker stepped to me and stared straight over my head. “Cut the bullshit, Monica. We both know that you only wanted me for my money. Now you not getting the money or dick anymore you’re ready to crash the fuck out. Let’s not forget who’s really the crash out here. I suggest you take yo’ ass on home before you really piss me the fuck off.”
Snot trickled to my upper lip. He was really standing here in my face, trying to tell me how I felt about him. I did love him. Sure, I was benefiting from being with him, but that didn’t stop me from catching feelings for him. I wanted to create a family with him. Joker was really the only thing I had besides Candice. How was I supposed to let the only thing I know go?
Without uttering another word, he turned on his heels and entered the building. I stood there with tears streaking my cheeks, watching him as he got on the elevator as if nothing had happened. Wiping my eyes with my hands, I climbed back into my car and hit the steering wheel with my fists. “Fuuuuuuuck!” I screamed.
I was trying to be nice, but I see he wanted the bitter bitch to come out of me. I was gon’ show him. Pulling away from the curb, I drove ’til I made it to the police station on Ripley and parked in front of the door.
My heart ached. If Joker didn’t see a future with me, he could’ve been left me alone a long time ago. Instead, he strung me along ’til he found something else. And the crazy thing was, I didn’t even see her being better than me. I looked better. I had more money than her. I had my own everything, yet he downgraded for someone who couldn’t touch me.
Grabbing my phone out the cupholder, I went to the phone icon and dialed a number and then placed it to my ear. It rang a couple times before they finally answered. “Hey, I’m gon’ need to come stay with you for a little bit. Is that fine?”
“Is something wrong?”
“Not yet. Just know that I’m coming,” I said and ended the call.
Getting out the car, I went into the building and stopped at the desk. As soon as Nesha’s eyes landed on me, she asked, “What now, Monica?”
“I need to speak with someone.”
“About what?” Concern marred her features.
“Can you just get a supervisor, a detective or something?” I didn’t want to tell her anything about what I had going on.
“Okay,” she replied and got up from her seat.
I paced the floor in front of the desk, debating if I was really about to go through with this or not. Once I did, Joker was gon’ hate me for life, but I didn’t think compared to the shit that he’d done to me.
Seconds later, Nesha came back with some man behind her. He wore a pair of black slacks and a navy-blue button-up shirt.
Stopping in front of me, he extended his hand in my direction and said, “I’m Detective Black. What can I do for you?”
“Can we go somewhere private to talk?” Nesha was all in my face. Though I hung with her a few times and she was Candice’s cousin, I didn’t trust her. Joker had a lot of people in his pocket. What I was about to do, I wanted it to be a surprise.
“Sure, follow me,” he replied and led me toward a door. We entered it and he took me down a hallway to another door.
Grabbing the doorknob, he pushed the door in, and I stepped inside the room. From the rectangular table and the glass window, I knew it was an interrogation room.
“Have a seat,” he said, gesturing toward the table. I took a seat and picked the lint off my black scrubs. “Can you tell me what brings you in today?”
“I wanted to talk to you about a person of interest.”