“I couldn’t let that shit hold me forever,” he said.
“What if she tries to set you up?” I pressed. “What if she finds out about us and decides to get revenge?”
He stepped so close now our noses almost touched. His hand came up and gripped my chin, firm.
“Yo cousin a bird brain,” he muttered. “She ain’t got no real power.”
He let that sit.
“You ready to attend a funeral?” he asked casually. “You’d look sexy as fuck in your Sundays’ best.”
A chill rolled down my spine.
He wasn’t joking.
“Don’t put ideas like that in my head,” he added, tightening his grip slightly. “I don’t gotta be in town to get somebody touched. You know what the fuck I’m capable of.”
I swallowed hard. “Yeah… I know.”
He studied my face for a beat, then released me and stepped back.
“Any more questions?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Actually… I got a lot.”
I folded my arms again, my top riding up more. His gaze dipped, slow, before coming back to my eyes.
“Going forward,” I said, motioning between us, “if you ever reach a stage where you don’t want me, tell me. The way you did Trecee? That was foul. I wouldn’t wish that shit on my worst enemy.”
My voice cracked slightly, but I didn’t hide it.
“Don’t leave me in the dark,” I continued. “If you ain’t feeling me, say that. I’ll move accordingly.”
His face tightened, offense flashing.
“I’ll never do you like that,” he said firmly.
“Do you believe a crackhead when they say they won’t do crack again?” I shot back. “I need to protect my own feelings. This ain’t about you. It’s about me.”
Silence hung heavy.
“Where you going with this?” he asked, controlled.
“I just told you how I feel,” I said, looking away. “You can have bitches lined up around the block. I gotta peep shit for what it is — not what you say it is.”
“Then that go for you too?—”
“I already told you how I feel,” I interrupted. “I wasn’t cappin’ when I said that.”
“Yo trust all fucked up,” he muttered.
“Oh, it starts with niggas like you,” I said bitterly.
That hit him.
His eyes went cold.
“Stop insulting yourself like that,” he said, voice low. “It ain’t never been like that.”
