I dried off, lotioned my skin, then pulled my hair up into a neat bun, smoothin’ my edges the way I always did. I slipped into a fitted jumpsuit, simple but cute, slid on my sandals, and grabbed my purse off the counter. I was almost out the bathroom when I caught sight of Kay’Lo through the open bedroom door.
He was sittin’ on the edge of the bed with his elbows on his knees, and a blunt between his fingers, smoke curlin’ up around his face. He wasn’t on his phone. He wasn’t watchin’ TV. He was just sittin’ there, quiet, lookin’ straight ahead like he was somewhere else completely. And that made my stomach tighten.
I walked over to him, leaned down, and kissed his lips soft. “You good?”
He nodded once. “Yeah.”
The shit was dry, and flat.
I pulled back just enough to look at him, searchin’ his face. “You wanna ride with me to get Sha’Nelle?”
“Nah.”
It was that same dry tone and I ain’t like it.
“You sure you straight?” I asked again, my voice softer this time.
He took another pull from the blunt, exhaled slow, and finally looked up at me. “I’m good, Toni.”
Somethin’ in his eyes ain’t match his words, and I felt it in my chest, but I didn’t push. I kissed him again, lingered for a second, then grabbed my keys off the dresser.
“I’m finna head out,” I said.
He hummed in response, barely kissin’ me back when I leaned in one last time.
I walked out the room with that uneasy feeling sittin’ low in my stomach. It was the one you get when you know somethin’ ain’t right but you can’t put your finger on it yet.
The driveway felt longer than usual as I pulled out, the gates slidin’ open slow while I drove through and headed toward the main road. Sha’Nelle’s flight was landin’ in thirty minutes, and I wanted to be there on time. I turned the music down and smiled to myself, picturin’ her face when she saw me, already knowin’ she was gon’ talk shit about how big this damn house was and how I lived like a movie character now.
I needed that laugh.
As I drove, my phone alarm went off. My heart jumped just a lil’, and without thinkin’ I reached into my purse, diggin’ around with one hand while keepin’ the other on the wheel.
I dug deeper, my fingers movin’ faster now, that calm feelin’ from earlier startin’ to slip.
I ain’t feel what I was lookin’ for.
I tried again, slower this time, tellin’ myself I was trippin’, that it had to be in there somewhere. When my fingers came up empty again, my chest tightened and I cursed under my breath.
“Fuck.”
I glanced at the clock on the dash, then at the road ahead, then made a quick decision and hit the turn signal. I wasn’t far from home anyway. I could grab what I needed and still make it back to the airport in time.
The drive back felt longer. My thoughts got louder the closer I got to the house, and by the time I pulled back through the gates, my nerves was already on edge.
I parked, hopped out, and walked inside, my sandals slappin’ against the marble floor as I headed straight for the bedroom. The house was still, and when I stepped inside the room I saw Kay’Lo was still sittin’ on the edge of the bed in the same spot, like he hadn’t moved an inch since I left.
My heart thumped harder, but I kept my face neutral as I walked past him and went straight to the dresser. I opened one drawer, then another, movin’ casual even though my pulse was pickin’ up. I ain’t wanna look frantic, and I ain’t wanna draw attention to what I was doin’.
I checked inside the nightstand, but there was nothin’
I moved to the bathroom, opened the cabinet under the sink, then came back into the bedroom and tried the other side of the dresser.
I could feel Kay’Lo’s eyes on me now, heavy and watchful, and the air in the room felt different, like it had shifted while I wasn’t lookin’. I swallowed and kept searchin’, tellin’ myself to stay calm, and that I was overthinkin’ this shit.
Then his voice cut through the room.
“You lookin’ for these.”
