You Had Me at Hello Page 9

  I was amazed at all Ziyon was telling me. It was as if he lived a whole other life that I knew nothing about. It didn’t make me love him any less. I gained a new level of respect for him, if I must say so myself.

  “So, are you completely stepping away from it all?”

  Ziyon was quiet for a minute.

  “Eventually yes. Right now, I’m slowly transitioning out without many people knowing. I’ll still get a cut of the profits because that’s what was agreed on, just as Dolla’s daughter gets money put up for her in a separate account.”

  “Wow.”

  I didn’t know what else to say. He had just dumped a lot on my lap, and I was working on allowing it to sink in.

  “Here, let me help you put this stuff away. I don’t know about you, but I’m jet lagged like a son of a bitch. I need a nap. Who knows, maybe we can begin christening the house,” he joked.

  I playfully slapped him.

  “You’re so nasty.”

  “You love it though.”

  I laughed but said nothing else. For the next thirty minutes, we put the groceries away and relaxed together on the couch. I couldn’t believe he actually had come down here with me, but I was thankful nonetheless.

  ***

  Ziyon

  It took me all of an hour and a half to realize there was no way in hell I would be lasting without Breionna for four months. I quickly hopped online and booked the earliest ticket to Jacksonville, FL I could find. I was glad she didn’t flip out about me not answering the phone. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to, I just couldn’t, or the surprise would be blown.

  The look on her face when she opened the door made it all worth it. It wasn’t how the surprise was supposed to go, but I had forgot to put my phone back on vibrate and the damn Make Me Better ringtone blew my cover. I was glad she didn’t come out swinging or anything though.

  I looked down at her sleeping. She looked content and peaceful. I told a small lie, which I knew I would have to come clean about in the future. I did come down here to see her, but I also came down to scope out the drug business on the sly. Who ever said there was something wrong with expanding? Why not come visit my girl and make money too? Dolla knew what he was doing when he was telling me the ins and outs of the game. Right now, she knew all it was that she needed to know. I kissed the side of her face.

  Chapter Seventeen

  “Ex-Factor” Lauryn Hill

  Breionna

  The semester was going smoothly. Ziyon was back and forth between Jacksonville and Rhode Island. When he first came down, he was here for about a month straight and then he started his trips back home. They bothered me at first, but after a while, I got used to them so I didn’t say anything. This move proved to be beneficial to me. I finally was able to put my bartending license to use. I picked up a weekend job at Pure Night Club, bartending. I liked the fact that it was only weekends, but Ziyon hated the entire gig. He didn’t miss a chance to tell me how much he hated it, but I didn’t care. He wanted me to become reliant on him, and that would never happen.

  I washed my hands as the timer went off. I took a deep breath and went back into the bathroom to look at the five different tests that sat on the bathroom sink. They all said the same thing. I was pregnant. I figured I was because my period had been missing in action since I brought my ass here. I sighed as I went to grab my phone. I took a picture of the five positive tests and then wrapped them up in tissue and threw them in the trash. I sent the picture to Ziyon.

  Me: (11:02am) - We will be celebrating Mother’s and Father’s Day this year and every other year to come.

  I smirked as I put the phone on the bathroom sink and prepared to take a quick shower. I thought about what I was going to do about school. I knew I would be finishing up this semester, and depending on when the child is due would determine if I would come back for fall or take time off. The moment I stepped into the shower, my phone began vibrating. I knew it was only Ziyon and made a mental note to call him back after I finished. The vibration stopped but started back up almost immediately. I chuckled to myself and washed quickly. I stepped out, dried my hands and grabbed the phone just as it rang a third time.

  “Hello.”

  “Yo, you serious, Ma? It ain’t April Fool’s just yet, so tell me you’re serious,” he was talking fast as hell.

  I couldn’t do anything but laugh.

  “Yes, Ziyon. I’m serious.” The phone all of a sudden went silent. “Hello?”

  “Yeah I’m here. Wow! I don’t even know what to say. When did you find out?”

  “When I sent you the picture. I just took the tests all I at once.”

  I walked into the bedroom, sat on the bed and began applying lotion.

  “When are you gonna make an appointment?”

  “I’m gonna call and set one up.”

  “Damn. Make it for the end of this week or next week so I can be there.”

  “When are you coming back?”

  “Two or three days.”

  I rolled my eyes as if he could see me.

  “Alright, whatever.”

  “Why the whatever? You want me to come sooner?”

  “Come whenever you can I guess. But I’m taking whatever the first appointment they can give me is.”

  “Really? You can’t just wait until I get there?”

  I sucked my teeth again.

  “Whatever Ziyon. I’ll let you know.”

  I hung up and silenced the phone as I finished getting dressed. I had class in less than an hour, and I didn’t have time to sit on the phone and argue with him about an appointment. If he really wanted to be at the appointment, he would get his ass to Florida.

  As I walked out of my house, I looked up the number for the St. Vincent’s Medical Center to call for an appointment. This was all new for me. I figured I would tell my parents once I received an ultrasound picture. Just as I reached my class, I had finished making my first appointment. Ziyon was lucky. It was only Tuesday and the soonest appointment I could get was Friday afternoon. If he wasn’t here then he would just have to miss it.

  I text him the date and time of the appointment and then went inside for class. The professor ended class early, which was fine with me and everyone else in the class. I dialed Ziyon back as soon as I left class.

  “What’s up?” He answered.

  I looked at the phone like he was crazy.

  “I’m gonna try this call again.”

  I hung up before he could respond. I don’t know who he thought I was. He wouldn’t be answering the phone for me like I was one of his friends. I dialed his number again.

  “Why the hell you hang up?” He answered.

  “Wrong again. I’ll call back,” I told him as I hung up again.

  I waited a few minutes before dialing his number a third time.

  “Hello.”

  “Much better. What are you doing?”

  “About to book a flight back down there. Have you told anybody else?”

  “No, and I don’t plan on telling them until I find out exactly how far along I am, so don’t tell anybody, especially Kyshawn or Daymeon because neither of them can hold water.”

  I heard him laugh on the other end, but he knew it was true just like I knew it was true.

  “A’ight. I won’t say anything until you’re ready to tell.”

  “Good. Let me know when your flight comes in. I’m about to go catch a nap before doing homework.”

  “A’ight. Love you.”

  “Love you too.”

  I pulled up to the condo and noticed another car parked in front of my house. I paid it no mind and figured they were there for a neighbor. I parked in another spot, grabbed my things and headed towards my house. The moment I unlocked my front door, I heard a voice behind me.

  “Excuse me.”

  I turned around and watched as a short petite woman walked up the stairs.

  “Can I help you?” I asked her, as I shifted my bag from one arm to the other.
>
  “I’m looking for Ziyon.”

  My face twisted. I hadn’t even lived in Florida for long for anybody to know me, and Ziyon is never here enough for anybody to know him.

  “I’m sorry. Who are you?”

  “My apologies. My name is Monica. I’ve been dating Ziyon for a few weeks. I rode by here one day and spotted him leaving, so I figured he lived here.”

  I looked her up and down. She wasn’t ugly, but she wasn’t something that you would right home too. Damn Ziy; I thought to myself. I shook my head and chuckled to keep from allowing the tears in my eyes from falling.

  “Monica, is it? Um, Ziyon isn’t here, but trust me; I will let him know that you’re looking for him. Maybe he can move his shit up out of here and in with you since he’s been dating you for weeks. But just know, if he’ll fuck around on me, he’ll fuck around on you.”

  I turned to walk into the house, but she grabbed my arm and stopped me.

  “I’m confused.”

  “Give Ziyon a call, I’m sure he’ll explain. Better yet, hold on.”

  I pulled my phone back out and dialed Ziy’s number.

  “What’s up, Ma?” He answerd.

  “Hold on, I have somebody here who wants to speak with you.”

  I pressed the speaker icon and handed Monica the phone. I crossed my arms over my chest and waited for shit to unravel.

  “Ziyon,” she spoke. “What’s going on?”

  “Hello?”

  “Ziyon,” she called again. “It’s Monica.”

  “Who?”

  “Monica.”

  The phone got quiet before my phone beeped signaling that he had hung up. I laughed and shook my head as she stood there confused. She handed me back my phone.

  “I’m sorry to bother you.”

  “It’s cool. I’ll be sure to have Ziyon’s shit packed and ready for him to bring to your house. Have a great day.”

  I turned and walked away, leaving her standing outside by herself. The moment I closed the door, I broke down. I couldn’t believe he was really doing this shit. I sat on the floor and cried for over twenty minutes. Ziyon tried calling me back repeatedly, but each time, I ignored him. I wasn’t trying to hear his lies and excuses. I knew I should have followed my gut before and just let it go. He made it clear that he wasn’t ready for a relationship. He was free to do him. Just because we were having a child, didn’t mean we had to be together. Keyshia Cole sang it best. “If he ain’t gonna love you the way he should, then let it go.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Confessions” Usher

  Ziyon

  FUCK! How the fuck did Monica and Breionna end up around each other, let alone talking about me? Something ain’t right, and Breionna won’t answer the phone. Monica has been trying to call me, but I wasn’t trying to talk to her. She had to had opened her mouth in order for Breionna to know something. Shit wasn’t good. I paced Kyshawn’s living room as I dialed Breionna’s number for the twentieth time.

  “My nigga, what the fuck is going on?” Ky asked, as he licked a blunt closed.

  I threw myself on to the couch and washed my hands over my face.

  “Bre somehow found out about some chick I fucked with a few times out there.”

  “Don’t say out in the Jack.”

  I nodded my head.

  “The fuck Ziy? Bre ain’t been down there but what, two and a half months? Three months tops?”

  “I know, man, I know. I was out one day while Bre was in class, and I met this chick in the mall. She gave me her number; we talked a few times, went caught a bite to eat few times and fucked a few times. Her shit is a’ight, but it ain’t nothing to brag about. I stopped calling her and ain’t talked to her in like two weeks. Man, I gotta get to the Jack.”

  I jumped up and called the airport to get on the next possible flight to Jacksonville. I kept trying to call Breionna, but she wouldn’t answer. I didn’t know what Monica told her, but I needed to talk to her to clear shit up.

  Luckily there was a flight that was leaving tonight at five and would have me in Jacksonville by eight forty-five. I looked at the time and seen I had a little less than two hours to get to the airport and make the flight.

  “Ky, drop me off at the airport homie,” I told him.

  Without asking questions, he got up and followed me out the door. The entire way to the airport I continued calling Bre. Monica called again. I figured if I couldn’t get in touch with Bre, Monica can at least tell me what happened.

  “Yo.”

  “Ziyon, what’s going on?”

  “What did you tell her?” I asked through clenched teeth.

  “What do you mean what did I tell her? How about you tell me what game you’re trying to play.”

  “Ain’t no games to play, Ma. That woman you met today is my lady; my wife, my heart, my everything, and soon to be the mother of my child. So again, what did you tell her?”

  “W-what? Your lady? You didn’t say you were in a relationship. I thought that we-…”

  I cut her off. “I ain’t never gave you any indication that we were in a relationship. Yeah, we fucked and shit, but you can do that with people you just are cool with. So yeah, we fucked, but we ain’t do nothing that would consider us in a relationship. I never stayed at your house, you don’t get money from me, and I don’t take care of you.” I caught Kyshawn’s eyes widen out the corner of my eye. “Again, what did you say to her?”

  “I told her I was looking for you and that I had seen you leaving from there before, so I figured you lived there and that we had been dating for a few weeks.”

  I sighed deeply. A part of me wished I was in front of Monica so I could slap the shit out of her, and another part of me was glad that I wasn’t in front of her out of fear of what I would do to her.

  “It’s bitches like you that never get anywhere in life because you can’t keep your fucking mouth shut. Lose my number, shortie.”

  I hung up and blocked her number from my phone. I now knew why Breionna was pissed. It didn’t matter how many times I called her, she wasn’t going to answer the phone.

  Ky pulled up to the airport, and I jumped out before the car could come to a complete stop. I jogged over to the machine to print out my boarding pass and headed straight to the TSA line. I felt as though everyone was moving slow. I tried Breionna again as I waited in line. She hadn’t answered none of my thirty plus calls and continued to ignore them. I gave up on calling and figured I would just see her when I got there. Shit was so fucked up.

  I slept the entire flight. I damn near flew off of the plane and to the car rental garage. An hour and a half after landing, I was pulling up to the condo. I barely put the car in park before jumping out and using my key to let myself in.

  “Bre,” I yelled. “Breionna!”

  I listened to see if I heard anything, but the entire house was extremely quiet. I walked through, trying to listen for any sound. I heard faint noise coming from the second floor. When I got to the top of the stairs and looked in the direction of Breionna’s room, I saw an illumination creeping from under the door. I slowly opened the door and found her curled in a ball in the middle of the bed.

  I slowly walked over to the bed and carefully sat on the edge. I could see the side of her face and noticed her eyes were puffy. I know she had been crying for a while, and it killed me that I was the cause of her tears.

  “Bre,” I whispered.

  She stirred in her sleep, and her eyes fluttered open. She looked around until her eyes landed on me. She pulled away, and if looks could kill, I would have died right there on the side of the bed.

  “Ma, I’m sorry.”

  “Save your apology, Ziyon, because it doesn’t mean shit! I told you from the beginning that if you don’t want to be in a relationship, we don’t have to be. You do you, and I’ll do me. I come here to get away and start over, and your ass brings the shit right to my front door. Who is she?”

  “She’s a nobody.”

&nb
sp; “Did you fuck her?”

  Breionna had fire dancing in her eyes. By looking at her, I knew that she knew the answer already; she wanted to see what I was going to say.

  “Yeah,” I answered, just above a whisper.

  “How many times?”

  She had silent tears rolling down her face.

  “It doesn’t matter, Ma.”

  “How many fucking times, Ziyon? Don’t fuck with me.”

  “Two or three times. That’s it.”

  “That’s it? Nigga, it shouldn’t have happened! Once can be considered an accident, but anything more than that, you know what you’re doing. You’re not sorry you did it, you’re sorry you got caught. Fuck you and that bitch. Get the fuck out.”

  I looked at her as she stood on the opposite side of the bed with her arms folded. She looked sexy as fuck when she was pissed, but now wasn’t the time to try and get it in. She was probably liable to cut off my dick.

  “I can’t fucking believe you,” she muttered.

  The moment I was out of the bedroom, she slammed the door. I stood in the hallway for a minute then went down to the living room. I would give her the space that she wanted, but I wasn’t leaving.

  I pulled out bud and dutches from my stash and rolled up two blunts that I planned on smoking to the face. I fucked up, and it was up to me to fix it.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “Zion” Lauryn Hill

  Breionna

  It had been two months since the woman showed up at my front door. I barely spoke to Ziyon, and I was okay with that. He would send me random texts throughout the day telling me that he loved and missed me and apologized, but those messages were left unanswered. If it didn’t have anything to do with the baby, I didn’t say anything. I just finished my last final and was heading to my appointment to find out the sex of the baby. I told Ziyon about this appointment, but his ass was in Rhode Island. Oh well, sounds like a personal problem to me.