“You don’t scare me,” I hissed.
“You should be scared. You should be at home trying to figure out your next move instead of watching me run up and down the block. You should be worried about your son and why he’s a fucking monster. You, Fiona, should be scared that whatever secret you’ve been hiding will be revealed. Now, I’m going to finish my jog for the night, and you, well, I guess you can conjure up a plan to take me out. I’m going to need your share of the money for my project. Be safe, sweetheart,” he said as he tapped at the window frame before he jogged off.
I sat there, unsure how to feel. How did he know that I had a secret unless Braylen had told him? June Calloway coming to Toussaint was a problem, and if Naheem and Clark couldn’t get it done, I would. I fucked up once before, but this time I wasn’t going to miss. Everyone had to go; this was my game, and I was about to rearrange the fucking rules.
BEANS
PRESS PLAY
After a three-hour drive back to Covana, I finally made it to my crib, which was closer to campus. I couldn’t believe what the day held for me. It felt like a test. It was the universe against me, trying to knock at the door of evil. It was damn near two in the morning, and although I should be calling it a night, the thought of me leaving shit how it was with Piggy fucked with me. I pulled my phone out and scrolled until I came up on her name. I hit dial and waited for her to answer. When she picked up, the sound of her soft, sweet voice, it made me feel something. “Braylen?” she called out. “Is something wrong?”
I sat back on my couch as I let her voice soothe me. “Nah, I’m good. Were you asleep?”
I could hear her moving around, “Yeah, it’s like two in the morning. I have an early class, but you know that.”
I ran my hand down my leg. “I want to see you. Come over.”
“No.”
“Why?” I asked.
She sighed loudly. “Because you don’t get to pick and choose when you do and don’t want to deal with me.”
I knew she was still upset, but I wanted to try to fix it. “Let me make it up to you. Come over.”
She gave me a sarcastic laugh. “You can’t be serious.”
“I am. Come on,” I asked again.
“But I—”
“See you when you get here,” I told her and hung up, so she didn’t have time to say no.
I hurried to get up and clean myself up. When I heard a knock at the door, I glanced at my watch and saw it had been twenty whole minutes. I opened the door to see her standing there, wearing a blue bonnet, an oversized Treasure of Doom shirt, and sweats. “Not the bonnet,” I joked.
She gave me a half smile as she looked up at me. “You made it seem like it was important, so why not come as I was?”
I stepped back and let her inside. Piggy had been to both my cribs plenty of times. In fact, she had been the only female I allowed in my personal spaces. She made herself comfortable on my couch as I sat beside her. I flicked at her shirt, “You love this damn game.”
She shrugged. “Yeah, and you love being an asshole, but I bet you don’t want to talk about that.”
I shook my head. “You got jokes.”
She shifted her body to face me. The smell of her sweet perfume wafted to my nose, making my body react. If it were up to me, I would have her ass tied up somewhere, devouring her until the sun came up, but I knew that she wasn’t ready.
“I don’t have jokes, I’m serious. I’ve been knowing you for what I consider a long time, and there are things about you that still seem hidden. Instead of expressing yourself, you take it out on the world, me included.”
My intentions had never been to take shit out on her; however, she had been caught in the crossfire. I stood up from the couch, went to the back, grabbed something, and came back. “I’ll tell you what, since you like games, I have one for you. Every time the dice lands on two, you can ask me anything. For every time the die lands on three, I can ask you anything, and for every time the die lands on six, I get to do what I want to you, deal?”
She burst into laughter, “No, because that means you can torture me, and I have to submit.”
My tongue slid across my lips. “What’s wrong with that. My torture is good, I promise.” I winked.
I could see her wheels turning. “Fine.”
I handed her the die before sitting next to her. She shook it in her hand and rolled it.
Five.
