To her surprise, sleep actually came. When Symphony’s eyes opened, three hours had passed. She was still wrapped in Block’s arms, and she could feel his breath tickling her neck as he breathed softly. He was asleep as well. She didn’t want to wake him, but it was time to get up and face the rest of the day. The moment she sat up, his eyes opened. It took a moment for him to gather his thoughts, then he sat up too.
“You okay?”
“Yeah. I’m going to call my mom. Check on her and Mason. Thank you for stopping by.”
Block placed one finger underneath her chin and turned her face toward his. Softly, he kissed her lips, pulled back, peered into her eyes, and kissed her again. “I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have anything to be sorry for.”
“No more pills. I haven’t had any in a few days. I swear to God, I’m done. I’ll even come to your office and take drug tests if you want me to. And Blak wasn’t serving her anymore. Don’t think she got that bad pill from him. His shit is legit.”
“I know,” she gave him a sad smile. “Monique never would have put any more money in his pocket after he slapped her. I still want to kick his ass for that.”
“I’ll let you. You want me to call him over here right now, so you can beat his ass? On my daddy, I’ll let you fuck him up.”
“No, I’m good,” she pushed out a low chuckle, but the truth was, she’d never be good again. “This shit hurts,” she rocked back and forth. “God, it hurts.”
“I know it does, baby.” Once again, she found herself in Block’s arms. After a few minutes, he let her go. “You need to eat. When is the last time you ate?”
“I don’t have an appetite.”
“Nah,” he shook his head. “That’s not gonna do. You’re already hurting, you don’t need to make yourself sick from noteating. I’ll go get you anything you want, but you have to eat something. If not, I’m gon’ force feed you.”
Food was the last thing on Symphony’s mind, but she knew he was serious about force feeding her. She thought long and hard and finally decided on a salad. He told her to order it, and he’d be right back. She was willing to bet that he came back with more than a salad. Standing up, she prepared to walk him to the door. She studied him as he got dressed and wondered if he was really going to stop taking pills. There was no way she could take dealing with another person that battled that nasty habit. If she lost him due to an overdose, she was sure she’d give up completely. Her father’s death was the first one that hurt her, but Monique’s death hurt her even worse than her father’s did. There was no way she could take another close loss that was rooted in tragedy.
When his clothes were on, she walked him to the door. “Be right back.” He pecked her lips, and she opened the door.
Symphony saw headlights turning in her driveway. Her mother was there. As Block headed toward his car, Mason and her mother got out of her vehicle. Symphony’s mother’s eyes were just as swollen as hers was. She seemed to have aged since the last time Symphony saw her which was earlier. Sonya looked weary. Mason didn’t look too much better. His face was red, and his shoulders were slumped with defeat. Symphony’s brow hiked when she noticed her nephew glaring at Block’s car like he wanted to say something.
The closer he got to the door, his gaze switched from Block’s car to his aunt. “You know him? You’re cool with him? His cousin is the one that used to sell my mom pills. His cousin probably killed her, and you’re his friend.” Mason’s voice cracked. He may have been about to cry, but the sadness in his eyes had been replaced with fury.
“Mason, baby, I understand what you’ve been through. Your mother was my sister, and I’ve loved her since before you were born. Nasir’s cousin didn’t sell your mother anything that killed her. Nasir is also not responsible for what his cousin did. Let the grownups be grownups, and you stay a kid. Okay?” her tone was gentle and soothing.
No matter how nice she’d been, Mason wasn’t having it. He brushed past his aunt with a glower on his face.
“What’s he talking about?” her mother asked.
Symphony started from the beginning and told her about Mason’s fight with Mario and her confronting Block about it.
Sonya sighed. “Well, he’s going to be angry no matter what. I’m sure that’s how he’ll deal with his mother’s death. Anger. I’m getting too old for this.” Tears filled her eyes. “I swear I thought I was going to have a heart attack earlier.” Tears slipped over her mother’s eyelids, and Symphony hugged her.
Monique was her sister, but she was Sonya’s child. “I’m sorry, mama.”
Her mother hugged her back, and they remained in that position for what seemed like an hour. Finally, her mother pulled back and pulled an envelope from her purse. “You know what Monique liked. Can you take this policy to the funeral home and plan the funeral? I can’t do it, Symphony. I can do a lot but, I can’t do that.”
“I got you, ma. If you want to keep the money from the policy, I’ll pay for Monique’s funeral. I don’t mind.” Money wasn’t important. Never again did she want that to be the reason that she and her family weren’t on good terms.
“The policy is for $300,000. I know the funeral will probably run around $12,000 and that’s for something basic. I’m not going to let you spend your money, but thank you for offering. I’ve had policies on you girls since you were five years old. I just prayed I’d never have to use them.”
“You want something to drink? Eat? Nasir went to get me food. I can tell him to bring you something back.”
“Oh no, baby. My sister brought some food over, and mama is spending the night. She’s probably cooking right now. That’s what she does when her nerves get bad. I’ll take Mason, so he isn’t here when your friend comes back. After you handle that tomorrow, we’ll all be at the house. Come over and spend time with the family.”
Symphony gave a nod as her mother yelled for Mason to come on. He didn’t even say goodbye as he exited the house. Symphony loved her nephew. She loved him way more than she did Block, but she didn’t want to let him go. At the end of the day, he didn’t sell her sister the pills. No one could have prevented Monique from using drugs. She was addicted, and addiction was an ugly disease. Block had never brought her harm, and he was the first person in a very long time that nurtured her and cared for her in the way she deserved to be nurtured, protected, and cared for. All she could do was pray that her nephew came around because she wasn’t ready to come up off Block.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Block eyed Marioas he walked through the door with a sheepish expression on his face. He sat down, and Block observed his brother. “What’s been up with you?” he inquired.
