“I’m up. Give me a few minutes, and I’ll be out,” I told her.
She said nothing more as she left the room, being sure to slam the fucking door behind her. All I could do was shake my head and laugh. I washed my face, brushed my teeth, and slid something comfortable on. I sat on the edge of the bed, getting ready to put my boot on to secure my ankle, when I caught myself gazing at it. I planted it flat on the floor, stood, and tried to take a step on it. I wanted to try to walk regularly. The moment the pressure was applied, the sting that went through me made me sit back down.
“Shit!”
I blew out a sharp breath and put the boot on. By the time I got downstairs, Phoebe and her parents were sitting at the table.
“We’re having brunch. Join us,” Dolly said to me.
I made my way to the table and sat. I honestly enjoyed these moments because the last time I sat at a table with family was when mine was whole. My mother loved cooking dinner and having my brothers, my dad, and me all in one place, enjoying her meals. As I thought about it, it fucked with me, and I couldn’t eat.
“If you all don’t mind, I’m not hungry,” I muttered.
Dolly reached out and touched my hand. “Are you okay?”
I glanced up to see Phoebe looking at me curiously. I quickly pulled my eyes away and glanced at her mother.
“I’m okay. Still full of last night’s dinner,” I lied.
It bothered me that Phoebe seemed so unhappy, even though she had a healthy family. Their home was big, they had money, and they seemed to love each other. I was confused. So many times, I wished I could rewind time and get moments like this back, but I couldn’t. I wished my mother was alive to see what I had become. Shit, she’d probably be disappointed, considering how I treated Jalen.Fuck! Jalen!I pulled out my phone to text him and see if he had gotten a response from the school. While I waited, Phoebe got up from the table.
“Come on. Let’s go get some work done.”
I gave her parents a tight-lipped smile as I got up and followed behind her.
“Xavier, today you work with Phoebe. Tomorrow it will be you and me,” Hendricks said to me.
I nodded and followed Phoebe. She moved quick, leaving me as she headed toward a huge field. “Ayo, y’all got all this money and don’t have one of those golf carts? I can’t walk that shit!” I yelled out.
She stopped walking and turned around. “Too bad, crybaby. Move that fucking peg leg.”
I continued behind her until we reached the stables. The way my body felt exhausted of energy told me a nigga was losing his stamina. I watched as Phoebe began tending to the horses. She stopped and looked at me.
“Are you going to stare or help?”
I shrugged. “I’m a hood nigga. I have never fucked with horses before. Fuck am I supposed to do?”
She rolled her eyes. “First, you need patience, not insults. They understand and feel your energy, so all that hood nigga shit is dead when you're around them.”
I knew she was talking about how I had been throwing jabs at her. It was fucked up, and it wasn’t an excuse. I wanted to apologize, but that whole Syior situation still had me boiling like hot soup. She opened another stall, pulling out a pretty-ass black horse. She walked him over to me.
“This is Black Mamba.”
I laughed. “Like Kobe Bryant?”
Her smile was sweet and innocent. “Yes. It’s my father’s horse. He said he named him after the G.O.A.T.”
I nodded slowly and rubbed my hands together. “Okay, okay.”
I reached out to touch him, and the nigga shucked, scaring me. “Oh shit!” I jumped back.
She stroked his hair the same way she stroked me when we were together. “You have to be easy. He doesn’t know you. He’s a little aggressive, but once he gets to know you, I promise you’ll fall in love,” she added as her light eyes peeked over his silky hair.
There was that fluttering shit again. I forced myself to pull my eyes away from her. I slowly extended my arm again as Phoebe began talking.
“Easy, slow, calm, and patient. Talk to him. He understands.”
“Shit, I don’t know what to say. Sup, nigga? I hear you’re the G.O.A.T. Well, I am too,” I muttered.
