As we entered the emergency room, Bri waved us over to the double doors. Once we got there, the lady at the desk opened the doors and allowed us to go to the back. Bri took off her heels after the game and now had on some Yeezy Foam Runners. She was really pushing it through the halls while we hustled to keep up. When we made it to the room, everyone was standing outside Naomi’s door.
“How is she doing?”
Those simple words Bri asked, broke PJ down. “I don’t knoooow!” she cried out, making Bri swaddle her with her arms.
I guess this was the protector part she was talking about. She was trying not to cry over her friend because she needed to be strong for PJ. Brianna was trying to take care of everyone and that led me to want to know who took care of her if she was pouring into everyone else's cup.
She was just in an intense argument with her ex and a few minutes later, acted like nothing had happened. She completely pushed her issues to the back of her mind. Being there for her girl was the right thing to do, as long as she still took care of Brianna, too. From the way things sounded in the car, she wasn’t.
“Shhh, she’s going to be ok,” Bri told her as she rocked her back and forth. I saw the tears filling up in her eyes, and she dared one of them to fall.
“I’m sorry but, I’m going to have to ask you guys to wait in the waiting room. It’s just a short skip and a hop down the hall. We do have other patients here, and she’s being very loud.”
I looked back when I heard Emily's voice behind me. When her eyes locked with mine, she tried to smile but I mugged her instead. I was surprised to see her because she didn’t work at this hospital.
“Tuh, anyway! I need y’all to go to the waiting room.”
“We heard you the first time,” Bri spoke up.
Emily looked around me and when she saw Bri, she started laughing. “I knew you were fucking this bitch.” She pointed at Brianna.
Me and Zoo couldn’t move fast enough before she and PJ were in Emily’s face. The team members that were standing there, pulled them back.
“Not here. You guys have too much to lose,” one of them said.
“It can be here, or outside, wherever, whenever. Y’all don’t scare me!” Emily shouted, now gaining the attention of other staff members.
“Emily, you already know how I get down. I’on play games and you trying to make me spazz on you right now. Take that shit on somewhere before I make a way for them to meet cho’ ass outside for real.”
“Fuck you and that bitch, Brooklyn.”
“Bitch!” Bri yelled out followed by a Yeezy flying past my face and hitting Emily in hers. Bri couldn’t get away from her team, but she found a way to still put her hands on Emily.
“You just gon’ let her throw shit at me?”
“I told you to move around, Emily. You gon’ lose yo’ job and get cho’ ass beat in the same night. They ain’t playin’ with chu’,” I growled. “These people have serious shit going on and you coming over here on bullshit.”
“I was just…”
Grabbing her arm, I pulled her down the hall and a way from everybody else, taking her into that same waiting room she tried to force them into. Once the door shut, my hand was around her throat like a tight-ass choker necklace.
“I’ma say this shit for the last time. We ain’t shit, will never be shit, and will never have shit. When you see me, act like you don’t. When we leave out this room, take yo’ ass back to work and wipe some ass or something but don’t bring yo’ ass back over there or we will have a serious problem. Do you understand?”
She nodded while scratching at my hand. Releasing her, she fell to the ground just as the waiting room door was pushed open.
“Come on before you get cho’ ass put in jail,” Zoo told me then pulled me out of the room. “I was gon’ stop you from choking her ass sooner but that bitch needed a few more seconds to get some understanding. I was looking out for you, though.”
“My bad, man. I hate she just did that shit. Bri nem’ good?”
“Yea, she sent me at chu’. I walked slow as hell, too.” I tried not to laugh at Zoo but that was hard to do.
I was not the type to ever put my hands on a female and that was the first time I’d done that shit, but Emily was pushing all my buttons, and I ain’t had but one to push.
“You know I gotta tell Auntie yo’ ass need to start those anger classes again. ‘Cause yo’ ass is mean as fuck. I thought I was fucked-up in the head, but you got me beat. Quiet but deadly ass muthafucka.”
Waving Zoo off, we rounded the corner. All the players had left, leaving Bri and PJ standing at Naomi’s door. Bri looked like she was pissed off and was still standing there with one shoe on like the other one wasn’t a few steps away.
Zoo went by PJ’s side while I called Brianna over to me.
