“Because he was cheating on you with your best friend,” Quest said, his amusement finally breaking through. “What were we supposed to do? Let him keep disrespecting you?”
“He was my husband! My life! You had no right?—”
“He was fucking Ivy,” I said from the doorway.
All three of them turned to look at me.
Serenity’s face crumpled. “Prime.”
“He was fucking your best friend,” I continued, walking into the room. “For months. Maybe longer. In your house. Probably in your bed. And you want to be mad at us for handling it?”
“You should have told me first!” Her voice pitched higher, more tears spilling down her face. “You should have let me decide what to do! Not just… not just take matters into your own hands like I’m some child who can’t handle her own life!”
“Would you have done anything?” Justice asked, finally looking at her. “Or would you have cried and forgiven him? Tried to work it out?”
“That’s not the point!” she screamed. “The point is you three always do this! You treat me like I’m helpless! Like I can’t make my own decisions!”
“You’re our sister,” Quest said, sitting up straighter. “Protecting you is what we do.”
“I don’t need protecting! I’m a grown woman!” She was pacing now, her hands shaking. “You didn’t just hurt him, you humiliated me. You made me look weak. Like I can’t handle my own marriage, my own problems. Like poor little Serenity needs her big brothers to fight her battles.”
“You deserve better than a man who’d cheat on you,” I said, my voice flat.
“That was MY choice to make!” She was crying harder now. “My marriage. My pain. My decision about how to handle it. And you took that from me!”
“We didn’t take shit,” I said, my voice dropping. “We gave you your dignity back. Whether you see it now or not.”
“That’s not your call to make!” She sank onto the couch, her whole body shaking with sobs. “I’m not a little girl anymore. I can handle my own life. But you three never let me. You just swoop in and fix everything and never ask what I actually want.”
“What you want?” Quest sat forward. “You wanted to stay married to a nigga who was disrespecting you every day? Who was fucking your best friend behind your back?”
“I wanted to make my own choice about it!” she shouted back. “I wanted to decide when and how to end things. But you didn’t give me that. You just did what you always do. Decided what’s best for me and acted on it.”
The room went quiet except for her crying.
“Ren,” Quest’s voice was softer now. “We were just?—”
“Just treating me like I’m five years old. Just like my father does. Just like every man in my life does.” She stood up, wiping at her face. “Get out.”
“Serenity, come on?—”
“Get. Out.” Her voice was cold now. Final. “All of you. Get out of my house.”
“Baby sis—” Justice started.
“Now!” she screamed.
Quest looked at me. I looked at Justice.
“You heard her,” I said, pushing off the doorframe. “Let’s go.”
We filed out like scolded children, which was probably exactly how she wanted us to feel.
Outside,standing by our cars in her driveway, Justice lit another joint. “She mad mad,” he spoke.
“She’ll be aight,” I replied.
“Yeah she will. But did you talk to Vivica?” Quest asked me.
