Page 22 of On Everything 2

Ciara

"P! Open up, it's me."

I'd been standing outside Pernelle's door with my two suitcases for ten minutes knocking, yet no one was answering the door.

My adrenaline was still high, and I'd been rude to several innocent people on my way over here.

I haven't had a fight since the fight I had in high school that first landed me in detention with Kairo.

Now all these years later, I'm tussling, and I am too fuckin old for this shit.

I'm sure I will be sore as hell in the morning.

Where fighting over Hov didn't sound like something I wanted to be a part of, everything else did.

The way Hov took care of me, the way he let me have a mind of my own while still protecting me.

He had been the perfect gentleman thus far, which is why I went down on him last night.

Is the baby truly a deal breaker between us?

I don't know. But if he can't control Cashmier, then we have a real fucking problem we can't come back from.

"There must not be fucking here. Damn."

I beat on the door again, giving up and grabbing my suitcase. I draggedthemback to the elevator and thanked God that they were working today because I had already had to drag them all the way from the bus stop.

With nowhere else to go, I looked across the courtyard at my building, so I figured I could just go home for right now.

Hopefully, Kairo was too scared to come back there, and if he wasn't, oh well.

I'm just going to ignore him and drink nothing inside that apartment before I hear back from Pernelle, and if he decides to trip, I will call the police.

As I walked over towards my building I tried to think about what I would be doing now that me and Hov just had a blow out or should I say me and Hov's baby mama.

I can't believe he's been preaching that keep it real shit to me thus far, yet that's not what he's been doing.

If I had a baby on the way, that would've been the first thing I told him.

My body felt strained, and my feet felt heavy as I struggled to take those final steps to my building. I was relieved when I saw that Markelle was walking inside just a few steps ahead of me.

"Kel, can you please hold the door for me?"

He looked back over his shoulder and then proceeded into the building without saying a word to me.

This was the second time I've run into him with attitude, and I wanted to check his ass about it.

Especially after all the countless plates of food I've given him, letting him come in my house all the time, and giving him advice when I could.

I hustled up the steps after him and called out his name.

"Yo, Kel, did you not hear me? What's your problem? You picking sides like that?"

I was already riled up from my fight with CashmiersoI'm sure I cameoffaggressive.

"Yo, I'll be upstairs in a minute."

He told his friends.

"Now, what did you just say?"

"I said that you been acting so funny with me the past few days. I know Kairo is your boy, but I thought I was cool with you, too. Kel, I've been nothing but nice to you."

"What the fuck does nice have to do with anything when I got beat the fuck out of in an alley because of you. Your man said that if I fucked with you ever again, he would kill me, so I'm choosing not to talk to you at all, shorty."

"Who told you that? Kairo?"

"No, Hov, your new nigga. It was the night Tre and Iheld up Silvia's. I was trying to catch you to calm you down, but he ended up catching me instead. That man beat me like I was a punching bag and took my piece. I'd just got that fucking gun too."

Kel smacked his lips.

"Kel, I didn't know that was you. I'm sorry that happened, but he was only trying to protect me."

"Yeah, protecting you against everybody, huh. I also heard what he did to Kairo. Your ass is switching up on what you know for a man you don't. Sad to see but bitches love an upgrade until they figure out it's a fuckin facade."

Kel left me standing there, hurt, for a minute because I didn't know whether to be offended by what he said or feel bad that he felt that way about me.

My head started pounding like crazy, and the scratches on my arms began to sting.

I really felt like I needed to sit down, so going up to this apartment was necessary.

Sitting out in the hot sun, I just can't do it.

I started climbing the steps with my suitcase to go inside the apartment. When I got to the door, I stood outside for a moment, hoping that I didn't hear shit on the inside.

When I thought the coast was clear, I used my key to turn the locks and walked into my apartment.

The Paw Patrol theme song was echoing throughout the room, and sitting on the couch was a little boy with fair skin and a large curly afro that was almost as big as his head.

When he and I met eyes, he stared at me for a second before my presence eventually made him upset, and he started to cry to the top of his lungs.

That'swhen the bedroom door bolted open and a light-skinned chick with long red weave and no top came running out in her panties.

"Umm, who are you?"

She asked as if she had the nerve.

"This is my apartment, so who the fuck are you is the better question?"

"Oh, I know who you are now. Kairo, come out here!"

She called, and out came his goofy-looking ass in his boxers.

"What are you doing here, Ciara?"

"This is still my apartment. I came here to wait on Pernelle to get home."

He leaned to glance past my body at the luggage behind me.

"Ohhhh, you got kicked out already. Knew that nigga wasn't letting Cashmier's perfect ass go."

He laughed like shit was funny.

"I did not get kicked out; I came home because I wanted to!"

"Sounds like the same thing to me, but you packed your shit up and left me, so stay gone.

I don't want you anywhere around me, and I know you already told that nigga my plans to stay free, so I reallyain't'fucking with you now.

I have another plan, though, and Hov would be a dummy to come fucking with me with the cops looking after me.

So, he can have you, that's if he even wants your tired ass. "

"I'm nothing to be had or given away, and I don't care who your snitching ass works for or what your conniving ass plans are. The fact of the matter is, I did not give you this apartment so you and your girlfriend and,"

"And our son," he cut me off.

"Excuse me."

"You heard me, Ciara. Me and Jessica have been hiding the fact that King is my son for almost three years, but now that her nigga dead and you are dead to me, we are about to be a family."

"Oh, so this is Jessica, the one who got her husband killed sleeping with you. Makes sense. She looks like the type. Go to hell bitch ass nigga."

I grabbed my luggage and walked out of the apartment, slamming the door back and saying fuck the heat.

Now I would rather be outside Pernelle's door waiting for her to get into another scuffle. What the fuck is going on with my life now? Everything around me seems to be in shambles, and I can't take this shit.

After leaving out of my building, I hit the corner to go to Pernelle's house dragging the suitcases that felt like a hundred pounds behind me.

When I got close to their building, I spotted a crowd with a few people screaming for someone to call 911.

The closer I got to the commotion, the better I saw the distraught looks on everyone's faces as they looked towards someone on the ground.

It wasn't until I saw a silver bike with pegs and silver spokes on the ground that my heart sank into my stomach. That is Princeton's bike.

I forced myself into the huddle and dropped down to my knees when I saw Nancy Diaz applying pressure to a bleeding wound on Princeton's chest.

"Stay with us, Princeton!"

"What happened to him!"

"Someone shot him around the corner, and he managed to ride his bike over here. There is blood from here to around building six!"

There was so much chaos I couldn't think.

"Oh my God. Princeton, I'm here, baby, I'm here."

Tears streamed down my face as I held his hand and tried dialing Pernelle with the other. My calls went unanswered, but I wasn't leaving Princeton's side.

"You got this, baby, keep fighting. Keep fighting."

He looked up at me and started to move his lips, but nothing came out but blood. The feeling in my heart and my stomach right now isn't one I would wish on my worst enemy. He didn't deserve this shit, and my poor best friend will be heartbroken if he does not make it. Shit, we all will be.

This is Princeton, not some random person getting shot in The Bronx.