Page 50 of June: When Gangstas Collide

I didn’t see June’s car in the driveway, but I knew he had to come home at some point. When I walked into the house, the first thing I noticed was a hole in the wall. Then another and another. The further I stepped inside, the more I realized that he had destroyed things. I glanced over at the plants and most of them were ok except King, whose leaves had been dying, but I noticed he was sprouting new leaves now. I loved King because he reminded me so much of June. In my eyes, King represented June from growing into something massive, towering over everything, being dominant, strong, and protective. However, lately King had been falling apart just as June had.

“Zaria!”

I heard Samara call out.

I turned to see her standing behind me. She glanced around the living room before looking at me again.

“Chevy was looking for you.”

“Did he tell you where he was going?”

She shook her head. Samara came up to me and wrapped her arms around me.

“I’m happy you’re ok.”

“Z!”

Dio said as he stepped into the house.

“You can’t be leaving like that. You’re trying to get the city painted orange.”

I smiled.

“I am fine. I needed a small break, but I’m back. Do any of you know where June is?”

Dio shrugged.

“Probably out killing somebody. The nigga lost his mind.”

I knew Dio was being funny, but there was probably some truth behind it, and if it were true, it was the exact reason I had left to begin with. I decided to wait for a while before I went out searching. I tried calling him, but he hadn’t answered. Dio came over to pick up things from the floor and fluff my pillow before I sat down.

“We were going to go with him, but Zeus and Sasha decided to spring on a quick wedding.”

I was filled with happiness.

“They got married?”

Samara smiled.

“Yes, and it was so beautiful.”

It was nice to hear that Zeus and Sasha decided to make that commitment. It was a big deal, but if it was with the person you loved, it was worth it. I noticed a paper sitting on the floor near the broken table. I pointed to it.

“Dio, hand me that.”

He reached down and glanced over it before handing it to me. My eyes scanned the paper to see things that I heard June saying when we were arguing that went over my head. God could not be doing this to me. He knew how to build and destroy, and the thing he chose to destroy for me was my marriage. June’s name wasn’t valid? How could this be? I could only imagine what he was feeling. How much he was hurting, and instead of being understanding in the moment, I didn’t listen. I didn’t regret the argument, but felt bad for not fully hearing him out.

Although this paper proved that he was not June Calloway, to me, he was. It didn’t matter to me if his name was June, Clark, Chevy, or even John Doe; he was still someone to me. He was still, in my eyes, my husband. I wobbled up from the couch because I needed to ask Preach something. Maybe he could explain how marriage licenses worked because he was the one who married us. I glanced over at Dio, “Is Preach home?”

“Nah, he had a service tonight. I can drop you off, we were on our way to the rink.”

I shook my head no.

“You guys go and have fun. I’m going to go down there. Hell, I might need some prayer while I’m there.”

Samara stared at me, “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

She came over and hugged me tightly.

“I love you, Mom,”

she whispered in my ear.

“I love you, too.”

When she pulled away from me, she looked like she wanted to say more, “What’s wrong?”

“We can talk about it later.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.”

Dio and Samara headed out with me behind them. I got in my car and headed toward the Cove. I was going to try to figure all this out to give June some peace.