Page 2 of A Beast Captured My Heart

“Girl you are always daydreaming! I hope it's about dick! Cause you really need you some, like today bitch!” My best friend Meshalay teased causing me to roll my eyes.

“Business bitch! Everybody got some.”

She chuckled as I walked towards the hospital's exit with her hot on my heels. I only had twenty minutes left and usually, my supervisor would let us clock out early to head to the locker room to change out of our uniform. Once we approached the locker room, she continued her rant.

“I’m worried about you friend. You know I always got your back but you need to get a second hustle! I don’t plan on doing this security shit for long and I heard Vegas is in need of a dope hairstylist. I’m thinking about relocating.”

Rolling my eyes at the conversation she was bringing up once again, I shimmied my way out of my skin-tight uniform pants. I had thick ass thighs and a huge ass some would swear was fake but nothing on me was plastic. I was a plus-size brick house.

“Look Lay, you can go to Vegas and I’ll visit! I can’t do hair. I write books and even that’s not going good for me right now. I just got to find my way.”

I sounded like a broken record but I knew things would look up for me someday. I just didn’t know when.

“No offense Kayori, but you’ve been saying that since your mom died. It’s been six years now friend! You gotta do something! When I leave, who’s going to look out for you?”

She dug in her bra, pulled out a couple of hundreds, and placed it inside of my bra. Tears welled in my eyes because she was right.

“Don’t start. You know I don’t like to see you cry but I wouldn’t be a real friend if I didn’t keep it real! Use that money to pay your rent. I got a VIP client that tipped me generously. I took care of your car note for this month but you really need to think about what I’m saying.”

She was right, even though I didn’t want to face it. My mom died when I was nineteen, from breast cancer. Two years after her death, my big brother Malcolm was killed from trying to run the streets. He ended up getting into some trouble and owing money. He started robbing people that ran in the same circle as him and that was bad for business so they killed him. I missed my big brother but I didn’t mourn him like I did my mom. In a crazy way, I was okay with Malcolm being gone. When our mother died a huge part of my brother did too. He became another person, very dark. We tried to support each other but Malcolm felt like he had nothing to really live for. It’s almost as if he was begging someone to take him out of his misery. I hate he was killed because it really left me with no one. We never knew our father and from what my mom said he died in the streets as well. Which is why I vowed to never date a thug. Only two things came from that and it was death or jail. Meshalay was all I had. I never dealt with family because all they did was gossip and talk bad about me.

“Yori! Are you listening to me?!”

Snapping out of my thoughts, we walked out the dirty ass locker room side by side.

“Yes Lay, but I can’t take this shit from you. I’m tired of you giving me money.”

I tried to hand it back and she gave me a crazy look.

“Girl please you know I don’t care. Plus you have a car note that’s in both of our names. You know I don’t play about my credit.”

Lay was obsessed with keeping a perfect credit score. When she cosigned on my Nissan Altima, it lowered my car note by a couple of hundreds.

“My man is relocating to Vegas and his close homie is looking for private security detail with his daughter. I want you to come and try it out…”

“Send me the link and I’ll apply,” I replied sarcastically, knowing it was some street shit that I was not about to get myself into.

“Look bitch you don’t have a choice. The pay is good as fuck! You need to find you a man and Vegas is the place! Stone is giving me money to open up my shop. I can’t just leave you out here by yourself and you can’t make ends meet alone. I’m moving in a two-bedroom condo, so we can finally be roomies and enjoy a better fucking life!”

Meshalay’s high yellow complexion was turning beet red as she gave me an exasperating look, trying to convince me to move.

“I told you about depending on a man Lay and getting hurt in the end.”

I loved Lay like a sister. She was as beautiful standing at five foot six and very slim like a model. She always ended up in relationships with top-paid men who ran the streets. They also took her through the most shit. She had been with Stone for a year now and so far, no big drama but I still was very reluctant.

“This is different Yori, and even if it’s not different, the rent in Vegas is cheap as fuck. That shop I’m getting is going to be in my name so even if the nigga dogs me out, at least we will have a constant income.”

It all sounded good, but Cali was my home. Leaving here felt like I was leaving my soul. All the memories I had were right here. Deep down I knew I needed a change. I struggled with constant depression after my mom died. I missed her so much. I had absolutely nothing to fill the void. Sometimes I felt so alone and lost in this great big world. It felt like I had nothing to live for, but I was too much of a coward to take myself out of this world. Plus, I knew Meshalay would never forgive me. So, I tried to keep my feelings buried and keep busy. If she left for Vegas without me, I would fall even deeper into depression.

“Just give me a couple of days to think on it.”

Rolling her eyes and smiling, we headed to my car. We took turns carpooling to save gas. This week was my turn to drive.

“The shit with Beast is legit. You still need to take the offer if you do decide to go to Vegas with me.”

She sparked up a cigarette and reclined her chair.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. You’re not giving me much of a choice in the matter.”