As Pen walked off, I got back into of the truck to park.
CHAPTER 2
BRIANNA
Brooklyn met me halfway once he saw me walking out of the arena. My heart was still pounding from everything that had taken place. It was having to keep it professional that broke me the most. From having to continue coaching to getting back to my phone and having a million threatening messages from Teddy, I was ready for this day to be over. With the way Naomi looked after they took her off the court, it wouldn’t be over any time soon. Regardless of how I felt, my bestie needed me, and I was going to be right beside her.
“Hand me that.” Not waiting on me to say I got it, Brooklyn took my bags out of my hand. I unlocked the doors and popped the trunk so that he could put my things inside. “I got that too.” Stepping back, I allowed him to open the door for me.
“Thank you,” I spoke softly while sliding inside.
“No thanks needed. It’s what I’m supposed to do.”
“And I’m still supposed to let you know that I appreciate the gesture. Chivalry doesn’t come around too often.”
“His loss,” Brooklyn stated with a shrug of his shoulders before closing the door. At this point, I was the one lost after what he’d just said.
Once Brooklyn got inside, I asked, “What made you say, ‘his loss’?”
“You said chivalry doesn’t come around too often. That’s that nigga fault that he chooses to stay away from a beautiful woman like you.”
Quietly, I sat still, hung on his words.
“Wait… you do know that chivalry isn’t—"
“I’m fucking wit’ chu’ Bri,” he interrupted, making me exhale a sigh of relief.
“Lord, I was about to say, now he is too damn fine to be stupid.”
Brooklyn glanced my way before pulling out of the parking lot behind Zoo and PJ. The beautiful sounds of Snoh Aalegra, “I Want You Around”, played once he started the truck up. That’s literally all I listen to so my phone automatically started playing it through my Bluetooth.
“So, you think I’m fine?” Brooklyn smirked at me as if I was really going to answer that.
“Really?” Chuckling, I shook my head at him. He was really sitting over there, thinking about what I said.
To be perfectly honest, I thought he was fucking gorgeous but that wasn’t a conversation I wanted or needed to have right now.My eyes scanned every piece of his body that I could see outside of his clothing. In graffiti lettering, the wordsSMITH BLOODwere tattooed perfectly on each forearm.
Just by looking at Brooklyn, you would’ve thought he was extremely mean but when I first bumped into him at the hospital, it was something about him that made me instantly feel comfortable. I stood there and talked to him like we were old friends catching up. Didn’t matter what state of mind I was in before seeing him, his chestnut eyes had hypnotized me.
Then, we met again at the party when he showed up with Zoo and Sin. We held small talk but only because we were the third wheel to the others. Seems like every time all of us linked up, we gravitated to each other. I wasn’t complaining at all because he was a cool guy and a lot different from trying to talk to Teddy about anything.
“I think we need to get to the hospital so I can check on my friend.”
Nodding, he continued to drive towards the hospital but had to stop once PJ and Zoo pulled over. I didn’t get out. I figured they were having a moment and she needed to pull herself together. Moments later, we pulled back into traffic.
Images of Naomi collapsing kept playing in my mind, making tears skate down my face the harder I tried to hold them back.
“Quit that cryin’, yo girl gon’ be good. If my cousin has anything to do with it, the doctors will have answers by the time we get there. He’on play and ain’t gon’ play ‘bout Naomi either. Think about something else.”
“She’s all I can think about.” A heavy sigh escaped my lips as I released the breath that I didn’t realize I was holding. “Although I have a sister, Naomi and PJ have been like little sisters to me since the first moment we met. From college to now, we’ve been inseparable. My family took to them and the same for theirs. Shoot, I was even in their family photo, that’s just how closewe are, and their mom wasn’t taking no for an answer because to her, I was her daughter too. I’ve always been the protector. Lately, it seems like I’ve been dropping the ball with that, just like I did tonight.”
“Tonight, wasn’t yo’ fault. Don’t even start blaming yo’self for that.”
“But I should have been able to look at her and immediately know that she wasn’t feeling well. Maybe I missed something she said or pushed them too hard at practice because I wanted to win. I don’t know but I feel like I’ve been letting them down.”
“The only thing you can do to change that is, to stop thinkin’ that shit right now. If her own blood wasn’t able to just look at her to know that she wasn’t feeling well before she collapsed, then what makes you think you were supposed to?”
I wanted to frown up and roll my eyes at him ‘cause who was he to be right?
