Chapter 5
Sariah Bland
After Kat went to sleep, I managed to maneuver out the bed.
She had a king size with one of those mattresses that don’t alert the other person when you get up.
It was comfortable as hell and I hated getting up at three in the morning to do a stakeout at my so called man’s house.
Well, I can’t get too close due to the extensive amount of security that monitors his place but I could drive by the condo.
It’s where we used to spend time at until he allowed me into his house which by the way was fucking humongous.
Anyway, I quietly went into the bathroom to shower and get myself together.
There was no need to drive around in pajamas or a bonnet knowing I had to be at work by six.
I may as well get ready while I’m in the process of catching Raul with another woman or even the alleged wife.
What could I really say if he were with someone else?
He was refusing to call me his woman in public so did I have the right.
Chicks probably had no clue we were even messing around and it’s my fault because I never put my foot down and demanded respect.
I met Raul at my receptionist job at the hospital emergency room.
I hated the place and only stayed to pay my bills.
My parents passed away when I was a kid and my granny took care of me until she couldn’t anymore.
Now I’m working my ass off to make ends meet and take care of my granny.
She was only sixty two but working in a warehouse for years took a toll on her body and now she has a lot of ailments that limited her movement.
Besides needing a walker here and there when we go out, she could walk but only for short periods at a time.
We weren’t broke but living paycheck to paycheck was rough.
The day Raul came in the hospital five months ago; it wasn’t for him or a family member. He was there for a friend of his that fell off a motorcycle while they were joy riding. The guy was messed up really bad and from what the doctors said, he wasn’t going to make it.
Raul called in some specialist and somehow the guy not only survived but went on with his life as if it never happened.
The doctors said it was a miracle where I knew money made the world go around and the more you had, the better service you get.
It’s sad that we live in a world where your health was placed in order by your health care provider.
My granny always said, Just because certain doctors only took the good insurances doesn’t mean they were A+ students. They could be doctors with a D grading but you’d never know. Ever since then, I would stare at doctors and watch how they interacted with patients and gave them my own grades.
Long story short, the nurses were running around like whores trying to get his attention whenever he came out the room to use the phone.
They would walk by switching, asked if he needed anything, one asked if she could have an orgy with him and his friends.
I had never seen anything like it and found it to be disappointing that women were throwing themselves at a man who was there to make sure his friend was ok.
It just showed how some women would cross any like to get what they wanted.
That night I got off from working a double and Raul was still there but with a bunch of other guys. The parking lot was damn near packed from them and he called me over.
“What’s up?” Looking directly at him as he spoke, I had to exhale by how damn fine he was. Inside I wasn’t able to see him up close because of all the work I had to do.
“Hey.” Waving him off, I hurried to my car. It was too many men for me and it always made me uncomfortable. Men don’t take rejection well and I don’t need none of the getting mad because of me not wanting them.
“Hold up.” He jogged his sexy ass over and butterflies formed in my stomach when he smiled. He had perfect teeth with two gold linings around his teeth on the side. It reminded me of how Chris Brown had his.
Raul was much taller than me, and his chocolate complexion had me turned on.
I loved a dark skinned man and the waves in his hair were fresh like he just left the barber shop.
The brown sweat suit wasn’t tight and fit just right to show off his build.
When he licked his lips I was ready to fuck him in my car.
“What’s your name?” Not knowing if giving him what he asked for mattered because a man as fine as him probably had tons of women, I went against my better judgement and gave it to him.
From that day forward, me and Raul spent countless hours on the phone; I even used my vacation time just to go away with him.
He had a key to my house and my heart, yet for some reason he refused to consider me his woman.
The only family of his that I’ve met was Cairo, Raul’s brother, their friend Felix and some of the other guys he hung around with.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying he had to claim me or giving him an ultimatum.
I just wanted him to know that if there’s no title on us and he was free to do whatever, then the same applied with me.
I’m not going to sit around waiting for him to decide what he wanted when I’ve been as loyal to him as I could be.
“What are you doing?” I asked Kat when she jumped in my car. I was so engrossed in how me and Raul met, I had no idea she came outside.
“It’s three in the morning and you’re leaving. You’re either going to drive by Raul’s house or someone you think he messing with. Therefore, as your bestie, it’s best for me to come.” Kat had on a pair of sweats, a T-shirt, some sneakers and her hair was pulled in a ponytail with a hat on top.
“Now let’s get this over with because you’ll have to bring me back home so I could get ready for work.” Pulling the seatbelt across her body to lock in all I could do was laugh. Kat was really my ride or die friend and I appreciated her more than she knew.
As I drove out her driveway, I noticed a blue car slowly ease out behind me. Not trying to scare myself by assuming someone was following us, I continued driving and kept my eye on the car.
Once I made it to the highway, the vehicle disappeared.
Breathing a sigh of relief, I pressed down on the gas and damn near sped to Raul’s place.
Kat wasn’t paying me any mind and I’m glad because she would’ve been the first to complain about how fast I was going.
She drove slow as molasses which was why I hated when she drove.
Kids on bikes would pass us on residential streets due to how slow she’d drive.
“I could never get over how beautiful his house is.” Kat never been inside but she dropped me off a few times.
“The inside is even better but we not here for that. Do you see any bitches?” Kat turned to me as I slowly crept down the street.
Raul’s house had a huge yard and his house was pushed all the way to the back.
That’s why I couldn’t get close enough to really see much and with security having a booth outside the gate, I couldn’t get out and use my binoculars either.
He had me at a disadvantage and it kind of pissed me off.
“Now you know damn well I can’t see that far and bitch pay attention.” She jerked the steering wheel to the right so we wouldn’t hit an oncoming car. I was too busy stretching my neck over to the passenger side window, I wasn’t looking.
“My bad.” I pulled over down the street and took a deep breath.
“Sariah, I’m always gonna be here for you good and bad, right or wrong. But this is crazy.” I gave her a weird look because how was this crazy and she next to me.
“What I’m saying is, if you’re not a couple why be out here on stakeouts. Why not just tell him how you feel and if he didn’t want to be on the same page, then move on.” I understood where she was coming from and she was right.
Kat didn’t wear her heart on her sleeve like I did. She was strong, kept a wall up and matched any negative energy from a guy. It did shock me to see Cairo had her at a loss of words because her mouth was reckless too. I was the same but not when it came to Raul.
“You’re right. I mean we can co-parent this child together and—"
“Hold up. Say what now?” Kat cut me off and forced me to turn around. I was staring out the window trying not to cry.
“I didn’t want to tell anyone because I wasn’t sure about keeping it.” My stomach wasn’t big and since I wore baggy clothes no one could tell.
“Are you serious? I’m your best friend; your sister and you couldn’t tell me.” Her response let me know how hurt she was over me keeping the pregnancy a secret.
“You don’t believe in abortions Kat and I didn’t want anyone talking me out of it.” She shook her head in disappointment.
“How far along are you?” She spoke with an attitude.
“Four months.” In a way I was happy but then again, what would I do with a kid. Me and my granny barely making it and I’ll never be a woman to chase a man to be around his child.
“FOUR MONTHS!!!”
“To be honest, I just found out the other day at the doctors. My periods are always light so I didn’t think about being pregnant.”
“I wanna smack you so hard right now but you’re carrying my niece or nephew so I’ll hold off until you deliver.” I laughed.
“We both know it’s too late to get rid of the baby at this point so what’s next.” Shrugging my shoulders, both of us jumped when there was a knock on the window.
“Oh shit. How did he know you were out here?” Kat asked the question on my head.
“Don’t you mean how did he know we were out here? You’re in the car too.” She waved me off and said to roll down the window while she came up with a lie.
“It’s quarter to four in the morning. Why you out here in the dark?” Raul had a toothpick on the side of his mouth looking sexy as hell.
“Kateri wanted to see Cairo.” Raul turned his face up hearing that.
“BITCHHHHHH! I know the fuck you didn’t.” Kat was mad as hell but it was the only excuse I could come up with.
“He don’t want her ashy and crusty ass. Why would you bring her here anyway?”
“Oh no you didn’t. Don’t nobody want his fake gangsta ass either.” She was mad. I turned the radio up and got out the car. Those two would go toe for toe with arguing and on a few occasions, I really thought Raul would take her life for talking slick. To avoid all that, it was best to get out.
“Why you really here and don’t use her as an excuse.”
“How do you know she didn’t want to see Cairo?” Kat didn’t say she was interested in his cousin but I saw it on her face. If he hadn’t embarrassed her, she would’ve been grinning in Cairo’s face.
“Ain’t no woman gonna respond the way she did if that was the case.” He caught me in a lie. Staring down at the ground, he lifted my head up.
“I wanted to see you.” A tear streamed down my face and I hated myself for allowing my emotions to be so fragile. Not that I could help it being pregnant but he didn’t need to see it.
“Why didn’t you call or tell security to let you in?” I really thought no one saw my car.
“Clearly security told you about me being here.”
“The second you drove on this street I was notified. Sariah, you know the type of nigga I am.” Raul was right. I was well aware of the person he was and how dangerous it was to be around him. I didn’t care though because he had my heart and I’d go anywhere to see him.
“What’s good?” Not really sure how to answer, I told him it was almost time for me to go to work and I had to take Kat home.
“I’ll be by when you get off work.” I nodded and wrapped my arms around his neck when he kissed me. Removing my arms, he forced my eyes to meet his.
“You sure you’re ok?” Smiling and wiping the lip gloss off his, I got back in the car. He tapped the top and walked away.
“Did you tell him?” Kat quizzed, turning down the music.
“Nope and I’m not.”
We were both quiet for the remainder of the ride back to her house. Once she got out, I drove to my house, called out of work and went to sleep. Raul had me confused, annoyed and most of all lost in love.
In a way it’s my fault because I should’ve left months ago when he refused to say if he cared or loved me. Moving forward it was all about me had my baby.
“Why you here and not at work?” I heard my granny’s voice in my ear.
“I know you hear me. You never call out so why are you here.” Moving the covers off my legs to sit up, I glanced at the clock and saw it was two in the afternoon.
“I wasn’t feeling good.”
“I guess not with my great grandbaby in your stomach. Get up and shower while I make you some food to feed the baby.” She demanded and stood there until I got out the bed.
“Who told you about the pregnancy?” I stretched standing up.
“Kat said she was calling all day and you didn’t answer. When I told her that you were fine she told me to wake you up to feed the baby. Clearly, she assumed you told me.” Sucking my teeth after hearing Kat was a damn snitch, I grabbed my towel and headed to the bathroom.
“I was going to tell you after work today.” I lied my ass off.
“Whatever. Just bring your ass downstairs and eat this food I ordered.” I never argued with my granny because at the age of sixty two she would still pop me in the mouth. A few times she challenged me to a fight because as she says, I was acting tough and she wanted to show me what tough was.
“I thought you said you cooked.”
“I changed my mind because you need to eat now before my great grandbaby comes out malnutrition.” I busted out laughing.
“Hurry up. The news comes on at four and you take forever to tell stories.” I just shook my head listening to her. She was a piece of work but I loved her to death.