"I'm telling you now. So, do you want to go with me or not?"
"Postpone it," Othello said.
"Why? Is something going down?"
"My execution,” Othello joked.
“Ah, brother, who did you piss off?" Zoraki joked. "Can I join in on the fun?”
Othello chuckled. “Sure. I’ll send you the details later.”
“I’ll be waiting. Until then, I’ll enjoy your city.”
They ended the call, and Othello put his cellphone back on the nightstand and flopped back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. He hadn’t heard from Des since he left yesterday, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. His cellphone vibrated, and he grabbed it, seeing that it was a message coming through from an unknown number. He wasgoing to ignore it until he realized it was an image. The second he opened it, he saw red.
Des kissing Ricci.
"What the fuck," he snarled, pushing to blankets back and getting out of bed.
He called Des, and just like yesterday, it went right to voicemail. Othello growled in anger as all kinds of thoughts ran through his mind. He didn't want to think everything was a lie between him and that Iago was right, and there was something going on between Des and Cassio.
He didn't want to think he'd been wrong all this time about Des, and the argument was a ploy to throw him off, stopping him from asking about Cassio. Othello was about to call Des again but instead threw his phone at the wall, angrily smashing it. It felt like it was the fucking Phillip situation all over again.
Cassio seducing his lovers was an act of revenge for an act of the past. Cassio was a fucking prick on all levels, and his every action was to bring Othello down. He had been angry when Phillip cheated on him with Cassio, but not enough to kill.
Othello had figured that if Phillip loved him, he wouldn't have cheated. Othello sat on the bed and dropped his face in his hands, trying to calm down. He wanted to believe that Phillip and Des weren’t the same.
"I need to know the truth, even if it hurts." Getting up from the bed, he dressed, ignored the broken phone, and left his apartment. He headed straight to Des's apartment and banged on the door and wished he had his gun because, at that moment, he wanted to kill Cassio Ricci, who opened the door.
So he did the next best thing and used his hand and started slapping and punching Ricci before the man could open his mouth to utter a word. He heard a crack and someone yelling, but he suddenly went deaf, and his mind went blank because all he could see was red.
He could tell they were moving back as Ricci fell and Othello straddled his waist, not letting up. Othello didn't know how many times he'd hit Ricci, but he was pushed away just as he raised his fist again.
Othello growled and was about to lunge at the person who interrupted him, giving Ricci the beatdown he needed. He stopped when he saw Des standing between him and Ricci.
"Othello, what are you doing? What the fuck are you even doing? Why would you attack someone like that?"
"Is that all you have to say to me?" Othello shouted.
"What do you want me to say?" Des asked, looking away from him.
"What the fuck is he doing here?" Othello bellowed, pointing to a bloody-faced Ricci groaning as he got up off the floor. He waited for Des to respond, but his lover had not spoken. Othello scoffed and shook his head. "So, this is it."
"Othello, it's not what it looks like," Des whispered.
"Really? So you kissing him is not what I think it is?" Othello raged.
"How did you find out?” Des exclaimed, his eyes widened in shock.
"So you're not even going to deny it?" Othello shouted.
"Shut the fuck up, Moor! Can't you see you're scaring the little dove," Ricci said, standing next to Des. "I told you he was a beast and not good enough for you. He's been hiding this part of himself. Imagine what else he's hiding."
"Keep talking, Cassio, and I'll snap your fucking neck," Othello said, burning with anger.
Cassio went to retort, but Des spoke up, stopping him.
"Leave,"Des said.
