With his facecontorted from the sun’s bright rays shining in his face, Block sat up and grabbed his phone off the nightstand. It was noon. He usually didn’t sleep that late, but he hadn’t fallen asleep until four in the morning. Glancing over his shoulder, he observed Ebony asleep beside him. Lethal won his match, and a celebration ensued. Blak tagged along, and he brought his fiancée with him. He was the only nigga that Block knew that had two fiancée’s within three months. He was happy for him though and hoped he would remain happy. That would prevent any further crash outs. Hopefully.
Block had chosen not to take any pain pills. Instead, he smoked a few blunts and took one too many shots. By the time he and Ebony arrived at the Airbnb, he was practically seeing double. Being out of town and in the presence of a female that fucked up, he knew he was lacking. After all the preaching he’d done to Mario and Blak, he couldn’t understand why it was so hard for him to take his own advice. She was local. He wasn’t. Ebony should have never been allowed to spend the night. Block possessed at least a half a million dollar’s worth of jewelry. He’d seen niggas set up and robbed for much less than that.
His flight took off at 3:30. Block was going to shower, grab a bite to eat, then head to the airport. Brazil was already on his way back home since their mother had Unique, and Lethal was staying an extra day. Standing, Block walked toward the closet where a safe was located. After punching in the code, the door popped open, and he removed a stack of money. He counted out $1,000 for Ebony and placed the rest back inside.
Before he could wake her up and send her on her way, his phone vibrated on the nightstand. When he saw that Blak was calling, he didn’t hesitate to answer.
“Yo, you know I don’t get in your business and shit, but if you haven’t spoken to ole girl, you might want to call her.”
“Her?” Block’s brows furrowed.
“Symphony. Somebody found Monique slumped over in her car about an hour ago. Shorty OD’ed.”
Block’s heart slammed into his ribcage. He didn’t know Monique that well, but he knew Symphony. And he knew that she was surely, devastated. “Fuck,” he hissed. “Thanks for calling. I’m about to see if I can move my flight up.”
“No problem.”
Block moved toward the side of the bed that Ebony was occupying. “Aye,” he shook her shoulder. “It’s check out time, ma,” he alerted her as she stirred. “I gotta get to the airport.”
“Okay.” Ebony replied in a scratchy tone while sitting up. There was a confused look on her face as she looked around the room and gathered herself. The churning in her gut made her groan. She had drunk way too much the night before, and she could tell she was in for a nasty hangover. “Shit,” she eased out of bed.
The moment her feet hit the floor, the urge to throw up came so violently that it jerked her body forward. Ebony ran to the bathroom and emptied the contents of her stomach into the toilet. Block listened as she vomited. He was anxious, and hehated being anxious. After rubbing his hand across his waves roughly, he kissed his teeth, and sighed. He hated not being in control. Block hated being stuck on what to do next. Should he call her? Should he pop up at the crib? Did she even want to see him?
With each second that passed, Block become more agitated. Ebony was taking her time in the bathroom, and it was pissing him off. He wanted to get dressed and head to the airport to see if it was possible to catch an earlier flight. Whether she wanted to see him or not, getting to Symphony seemed like the right thing to do. Just as he was about to tell her to hurry up, she walked out of the bathroom with a look of distress on her face.
“I just need like fifteen more minutes in bed. You can leave. I’ll be gone by checkout time.”
“Nah, you gotta leave now. Sorry. Here,” he picked the money he’d placed on the nightstand up.
When her orbs landed on the cash, she swallowed the snappy response she was about to give him. Ebony lived with her mother, and the money she made at the restaurant was just enough to cover her car payment and basic needs. She had been searching for a better job, but she didn’t possess many qualifications, and she hadn’t heard back about any of the positions she’d applied for. The money he was handing her was much needed, and she didn’t want to risk pissing him off. Despite feeling as if she could barely take one step without it making her throw up, she took the money and got dressed, so she could be on her way.
The moment the door closed behind her, Block forgot all about food and went straight to the shower. The Airbnb was inside a building of condos. A few floors were designated for Airbnb's, but there were people that lived in the building. On the second floor, was a restaurant, bar, café all in one. He had eaten there a few times, and the breakfast was decent. He’d justhave to grab something at the airport because time was of the essence. Block showered and got dressed in record time. In the Uber, he searched relentlessly until he found an earlier flight that he could switch to. The last thing he wanted to do was argue or cause Symphony any type of emotional discomfort. He just wanted to hug her and place reassuring kisses on her forehead. Silly ass arguments and slick comments didn’t matter at the end of the day. With everything he possessed, Block had been trying to fight what he felt for Symphony. Downplaying his feelings for her was a way to cope with her absence, but he was fucked up ‘bout Dr. Simmons. There was no way she was going through something so tragic alone. Not as long as he had breath in his body.
Sleep wouldn’t find her. Symphony had been curled up in bed for the past two hours staring at the wall. Her eyes were almost swollen shut from all the crying she’d done. Her mother was inconsolable. Seeing Mason cry from his gut made her knees give out. It was a day she’d been dreading for the past two years, and it finally came to fruition. Everyone needed time to process their emotions. Symphony needed to be alone. His grandmother was with Mason, and she wasn’t sure where her mother was. Funeral arrangements, all that could be done tomorrow but for the day, Symphony just wanted to cry, scream, and not have to think. Life was complete and utter bullshit. As a doctor, she dealt with death often, but it hit home a little different when it was someone she had a relationship with. Through the good, bad, and the ugly, Monique was her sister.
Symphony didn’t toss her sister out like trash because she wasn’t perfect. She only distanced herself from Monique, whenshe got angry because Symphony wouldn’t give her money. She wanted her to get it together for Mason, so sometimes she was harsh. A tear rolled down Symphony’s cheek as she regretted every time she ever yelled at her sister. She prayed with everything in her that Monique knew she loved her.
It seemed as if every thirty minutes or so, it slammed into her like a ton of bricks that Monique was really gone, and a wail so intense and deep would push from her throat. Symphony’s phone was on DND. She knew people that loved and cared about her wanted to be there for her, but she didn’t possess the energy to talk. There wasn’t anything to say. And although she appreciated the gestures, she didn’t want anyone staring at her while she cried. Symphony sat up. If sleep wouldn’t come on its’ own, she’d take Tylenol PM. Maybe wine was better. She walked toward the stairs then stopped.
“No. Don’t use wine to cope.” As she was about to pivot and go get the Tylenol, her doorbell rang.
Irritation flowed through her body. What part about she didn’t want company didn’t people understand? She started to ignore it, but she didn’t want people worried about her. As she approached the door, she noticed the person standing on the other side was a man. Block. Her mouth went dry, and her stomach quaked. All plans to turn the visitor away went out the window as her feet began moving with little to no effort on her part. Symphony damn near ran to the door. When she opened it and saw the concerned look on Block’s face, she fell into his chest and cried like a baby. The tighter he held her, the harder she cried.
She thought she wanted to be alone, but his scent alone had her melting like ice on a scorching day. Symphony had no clue how badly she wanted to be held by Block. The pills she found were forgotten in that moment as she let it all out. He held her patiently while she cried from the depths of her soul. When shewas done, Symphony stepped back, sucked in a deep breath, and wiped her face.
“I won’t come in if you don’t want me to. I just wanted to see your face.”
Symphony grabbed Block’s hand and pulled him inside the house. Closing the door behind him, he removed his shoes, then locked the door.
“I want to sleep, but I can’t.”
“You have some herbal tea? Chamomile? I can make you some. Rub your feet. Lay with you. Try to make you relaxed enough that you can get some rest.”
“I do have tea.”
Block knew his way around her home, so Symphony curled up on the couch while he made her a cup of tea. When he was done, Block held the tea in one hand and reached for hers with the other. He led her up the stairs and to her bedroom. Symphony got comfortable in bed while he undressed. He didn’t want to get in her bed with outside clothes on. Symphony held the cup of steaming liquid as Block gently rubbed her foot. It felt almost impossible to relax, but if she didn’t sleep, she feared she’d lose her mind.
Block continued to massage as she sipped the tea. No words were spoken, and she was grateful for the silence. There were no words sufficient enough to say. When the mug was empty, she placed it on her nightstand. Block stopped the massage and wrapped his arms around her from behind. As they snuggled underneath the covers, she closed her eyes and tried her best to let her body relax. Tomorrow was a new day. The grief wouldn’t be any less heavy, but they would have to start making arrangements for Monique. That wasn’t something she’d ever let her mother do alone. She also wanted to get everything out, so she could be strong for her nephew. At least in his presence anyway.
