“Miss Peterson, Dr. Patel wants to speak with you before you leave. Give me one second and I’ll let him know you’re here,” Lisa said as she moved from behind the medicine cart.
Lisa was another of the nurses my mother had taken a liking to. She was in school to be a nurse practitioner, so she only worked a few days a month. Lisa was such a good nurse that I knew she wouldn’t have a problem when she transitioned.
“Miss Peterson, please follow me,” Dr. Patel said as he waved me over to his office.
I took a seat in the chair opposite him and waited to see what he wanted to talk about. Dr. Patel had been overseeing my mother since she’d been here and always kept me in the loop about my mother’s condition. Reasons like this were why it felt like a gut punch to be leaving.
“First, let me start by saying I’m sad to see you all leave, but I understand. I wish there was something we could work out to keep your mother here, but I wish her the best. While I know you have every intention to make sure your mother’s health stays on the upside, I have to tell you I’m truly concerned. This past week, Cora’s oxygen levels have been lower than normal. Also, when Lisa assisted her to the restroom earlier, she noticed Cora was more fatigued. I’m worried that her condition is declining. My advice is to continue to be present and make sure you know exactly what’s going on at all times. I know you run a business but make sure you’re getting around the clock updates.”
“How concerned are you? Like do I just need to keep an eye out or are you telling me I need to start planning my mother’s funeral?” I questioned in a shaky tone.
The topic of my mother no longer being here was something I hated to talk about. It was a reality I hadn’t come to terms with, but my emotions wouldn’t stop the hard conversations from happening. At the end of the day, it was me who oversaw everything concerning Cora Peterson.
“I’m saying to stay on top of things. Have a talk with your mother to remind her of how important it is that she is honest about how she’s feeling.”
The remainder of the meeting was spent with Dr. Patel giving me a bunch of information that went in one ear and out the other. I talked to my mother every single day and she hadn’t mentioned anything about her condition declining. It took a few hours to get my mother moved and settled into my home. She seemed to be in good spirits while meeting the new nurses and doctor, but my thoughts were still in the clouds. Shane and Tripp had left a short while ago and Jade decided to take a U-ride home.
“What did Dr. Patel tell you? Your whole mood has been off ever since we left the nursing home,” my mother said, pulling me back to reality.
“He told me everything I should’ve been hearing from you.”
“Excuse me?”
“Momma, I don’t wanna?—”
“No! Let’s talk about it. You wanna have an attitude with me when I keep things from you, but you act like it’s nothing when I tell you what’s going on. You wave me off and make it seem like everything is fine when we both know it’s not. I’m dying, Celeste. I know it’s hard to think about, but stop being in denial. I’ve come to terms with my life and I’ve prayed and asked God to let me in those pearly gates.”
“I know, Momma. But none of that takes the hurt away. Knowing there’s a chance you won’t get to see me hit my biggest milestones is more painful than anything. You’ve been all I had my whole life and you want me to be okay knowing your days are numbered?”
Tears blurred my vision as I sat in the chair next to my mother’s bed. With all the crying I’d been doing lately, I was surprised I had any tears left. This time felt different. At thismoment, I decided to let it all out. I was tired of holding it in and acting like my mother’s sickness would leave. It was time for me to face reality. The feel of my mother rubbing my back made me look up at her. Her red eyes mirrored mine and I could no longer ignore what was happening before my eyes. At this time, all I could do was be intentional with how much time we spent together. I did my best not to dwell on the inevitable, but made sure to cherish every last memory from this day forth.
On the flip side, I was more than relieved to have control over my mother’s care. I didn’t believe Allen would’ve been heartless enough to pull the plug on paying the bill, but I wasn’t trying to find out. Now, I had to figure out what would happen with Luxe Addiction. Instead of being a sitting duck and letting Allen have the upper hand, I chose to be proactive and try to keep my storefront. Now that the nurse was here and my mother was asleep, I felt comfortable enough to leave to handle business. It took me thirty minutes to get to my destination. Once I was there, I spotted the car I needed for confirmation.
When I walked inside the studio, the room was filled with thick clouds of smoke, but I was able to make out Allen at the soundboard. There were at least twenty random niggas sitting around with women in their laps and Serenity herself was in the booth. As soon as my presence was felt, the room fell silent and all eyes were on me. Allen’s eyes got big.
“Yo, everybody get the fuck out for a minute,” he said as he looked around the small room.
As if he were in charge, everyone cleared out with no hesitation. The only person left was Serenity, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t here to try to get my man back. I felt her as she took the headphones off and came out of the booth.
“I need to know what you plan on doing with the building. If you’re not gonna let me pay you back for it, I’ll have my things moved out and you can have it,” I stated sternly.
“Hello to you too, Celeste. A phone call would’ve been appreciated.”
“I don’t give a fuck about any of that. I’m here for Luxe Addiction and that’s it. We can skip past all the small talk and bullshit. Now please answer my question.”
“Allen, what is this? You told me she moved out. If you aren’t fucking her, why is she here?” Serenity asked with her arms folded across her chest.
Before I could speak, Allen was up on his feet standing between Serenity and me. It irritated me that she really thought I was here to beg for this man back. I wasn’t sure if he was giving her a different version of his dick, but it was never that serious for me. Once the disrespect came, shit would never be the same.
“Serenity, please step out. I’ll come get you when I’m done.”
“Are you fuckin’ serious? I know good and damn well you aren’t dismissing me for your ex. This shit is never ending with you! Every time I look the fuck up, I’m in competition with your past. I swear if I wasn’t pregnant, you’d just be another nigga to me,” she shouted angrily.
My eyes naturally landed on her belly at her admission. Even when we weren’t together, Allen had a way of getting the best of my emotions. He was truly a piece of work and I was looking at him in another light yet again.
“Pregnant? How is that, Allen? How is she pregnant when you told me you weren’t ready for children?”
Allen’s character was so low down that I was convinced he was the devil himself. When the two of us had gotten together, I compromised my body and decided to get on birth control to prevent us from getting pregnant. He told me early on that he didn’t want children until he was married and I respected that. Honestly, I thought it was the best decision for both of us. If things didn’t work out, we wouldn’t be stuck raising a babytogether. Knowing he’d told me all of that just to get the next bitch pregnant didn’t sit well with me.
