I leanedback against the headboard, the glow of my phone the only light in the room as I scrolled through the Shade Room. I was halfway through a yawn when a headline froze my thumb mid-air.
Star player Kyrie Maddox rushed to surgery following shooting.
I sat up straight, the silk of my bonnet sliding back as my eyes scanned the caption. A slow, jagged smirk pulled at my lips.
I refreshed my screen, hoping someone had caught a clip or shaky footage, but there was nothing. Just a still shot of a gated community, police lights flashing against the stone walls. I shook my head, a dry laugh escaping my throat. For a man living that kind of lifestyle, he should’ve had real security around him, but nawl, he was out here moving like he was Mr. Untouchable.
I stared at the screen for a second before opening my contacts. I hovered over Sianni’s name, wondering if she’d even answer. We hadn’t been “cool” like that since she’d linked up with Kyrie. Ever since he put that rock on her finger, he had her head so far in the clouds she couldn’t see the ground. He made her feel like she was better than everyone else, even though we both knew it was only a matter of time before he got what he needed and tossed her aside.
It was not a secret how dirty Kyrie was when it came to females. I tried to tell her ass that, but she didn’t want to listen to me. She was too busy playing house.
I hit the call button and pressed the phone to my ear, picking at a stray thread on my comforter while I waited. On the fourth ring, the line clicked, and she answered.
“Hello?”
Her voice was thick, like she’d been crying her eyes out. I rolled my eyes so hard it hurt. I knew this heffa wasn’t crying over this nigga; she hadn’t even been with him that long. In my mind, this whole “marriage” was just a fucking ploy to get his career out of the dirt and make him look like a family man.
“I saw everything on the news and online,” I said, forcing the disgust out of my voice and replacing it with fake concern. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’m good,” she replied. Her voice was short, like she was trying to keep it together.
“Bet. Do you need anything?” I shifted my weight, leaning into the pillow. “You want me to come out there and sit with you?”
I waited for her to answer, already imagining the look on her face. I didn’t want to sit in a stale hospital waiting room, but I damn sure wanted a front-row seat to the downfall. I wanted to see exactly what “Mrs. Maddox” looked like when the lights went out.
“Nawl, you don’t have to come out here. I’ll be aight.” Sianni’s voice crackled through the speaker, sounding distant.
“You sure?” I asked, leaning back against the headboard again.
“Yes, I’m sure. But I’ll call you and Marvin back with an update as soon as I get one. I’m in the room with him right now, and he’s sleeping. I don’t want to wake him.”
“Aight, girl. I love you, and I’ll talk to you later.”
“Aight.”
The line went dead before I could even blink. I stared at the screen for a hot second, the silence of the room feeling heavy. The fact that she didn’t even fix her mouth to say she loved me back did something to my spirit, but I wasn’t about to let that heffa get a rise out of me. I tossed the phone onto the mattress, shaking my head.
Just as I was about to lie back down, Marvin stumbled into the room. The smell of cheap liquor hit me before he even cleared the doorway. He looked drunk as hell, swaying like he was on a boat after spending all night at somebody’s bar. He couldn’t even walk a straight line, damn near tripping over his own feet just to get to the edge of the bed.
“Aye… get up. Pack some clothes.” His words were thick and slurred so bad I could barely make them out. He reached for the dresser to steady himself but missed, nearly taking a face dive into the wood.
“Why?”
“Because we’re going down to Florida.” He grunted, trying to find his balance. “My cousin has been shot. We need to go see who the fuck this nigga is that shot him.”
I looked at him, like really looked at him, and I had to keep myself from laughing out loud. I didn’t know why he was trying to act so fucking hard when we both knew the truth. Marvin wasn’t about that life, and he damn sure wasn’t going to bust afucking grape once we touched down in Florida. He was all talk and no action, especially with a head full of Hennessy.
“Aight, baby,” I said, forcing the hugest smile I could find onto my face.
Even though I knew my “man” wasn’t going to do a damn thing, I was more than ready to go. If Marvin wanted to play tough guy just so I could get a front-row seat to the hurt on Sianni’s face, I was all over it.
I slid out of bed, moving with a quickness I hadn’t felt all night. I hurried over to the closet and snatched our bags off the top shelf. I started grabbing handfuls of clothes from the dresser, stuffing them into the bags without even folding ’em. I was ready to move. Sianni thought she was alone in this, but I was coming to make sure I saw every bit of her downfall in person.
After I finished stuffing everything into the bags, I hunted for something to wear. I needed a front-row-worthy outfit before I went into the bathroom. I didn’t know why, but I needed to look good before I went down there. I wanted to look like I was thriving while her life was on life support.
“Marvin, baby, can I ask you something?” I called out from the bathroom, checking my edges in the mirror.
“Yeah?” he asked, still sounding sloppy drunk.
