Mar passed Juelz the blunt as he sipped on a cold Corona. “Aye, we need to slide by Sintonio real quick. I need to pick that bread up from that nigga.” He placed the beer back on the table. “I think he threw sumthin’ on the grill too. So a nigga gotta get a plate.”
Juelz shook his head, agreeing, because he definitely wasn’t about to turn down grilled food, especially from Sintonio.
An hour later, the two were pulling up at Sintonio’s house, and Juelz noticed the small number of cars in the yard, seeing that one belonged to Tasha.
Mar glanced over at him, smirking crazy. “Yeah, nigga. Your girl up in there.”
Juelz shook his head, already knowing it was about to be some shit. “Man, here we go.”
The smell of charcoal and barbecue sauce floated through the air. The kids were running wild through the backyard, their laughter mixing with the music from the speaker propped on the patio. Juelz spotted Tasha hanging out on the lawn with Niyah under the big ass oak tree. She looked good wearing a yellow sundress, but he could see the fight in her eyes, the way she was trying to hold it all together.
“Aye, I’ma get me a plate then go holla at her real quick.”
Mar dapped him up, turning to go find Sintonio in the crowd. Juelz grabbed two plates piled high with ribs, baked beans, deviled eggs, and Mama Jackson’s famous potato salad, then made his way across the grass. He felt the eyes of his boys watching him, but he ignored them and stayed locked on her. As he got closer, Niyah saw him coming and gave Tasha that‘bitch here he comes, look.’ She excused herself to go check on the kids.
Juelz threw his head back at Niyah as she was passing by. He was grateful that she didn’t stand in his way.
“Whaddup, T… I copped you a plate,” he said, holding it out to her. She looked at him and then, with no hesitation, she flicked the plate out of his hand.
Juelz stepped back, looking at the plate on the ground. “That’s cool. That’s why I brought two.” He smirked, tilting his head. “Now take it.
Tasha rolled her eyes, taking the plate, her heartbeat speeding more than normal. “Whatchu want, Juelz?”
He stood there for a second, feeling the distance between them like a physical wall. He knelt, bringing himself to eye level with her. “We need to talk, shorty. For real.” He licked his lip. “I been fucked up out here.”
Tasha’s gaze drifted toward the kids, playing tag. “I’m done talkin’, Juelz. Seriously. I’m done.”
“I call bullshit,” he said, watching her. “You ‘gon let what we had go just like that? Really, Tasha?”
Her eyes finally met his, and they were filled with deep, shimmering sadness that made his chest ache. “You didn’t care about ‘we’when you fucked around on me.”
“I did!”
She took a deep breath, and when she spoke, her voice was barely a whisper. “Right now, Juelz, Ion have nothin’ left to give. I gotta focus on me.” She slapped the center of her chest twice. “On getting Tasha straight. Ain’t no more space for you.” She got up and started walking away, pointing at herself, then at him. “For us. And definitely not this tired ass conversation.” Tasha threw the second plate down on the ground, and it landed at his feet.
Her words hit him like a punch to the gut. It was the one thing he thought was solid, the one thing he thought he could always come back to. “Hold up!” He stepped over the paper plate, “Whatcha mean you don’t have the space?” he asked, his own voice cracking. “We a fuckin’ team, Tasha. I’m the one ‘posed to hold that shit for you when you can’t. That’s what we do.”
“Nall! That’s what weusedto do. But that’s dead,” she spat. “Matta fact, go hold space with Shyann fuck ass.”
She turned to walk away, but Juelz grabbed her by the arm, stopping her. “Fuck her,” he said, the hatred clear in his voice. “You really gon’ throw away what we built over that grimy ass bitch? After everythin’?”
Tasha shook her head, yanking her arms away from him. “Nall, I ain’t! But you did.” She brushed past him. “Move! I need to go.”
She turned and walked away, leaving him standing there looking hollow as hell. He watched the love of his life fade off in the distance, shattering his heart once more. Mar came jogging up to him, a half- eaten rib in his hand. He stopped when he noticed the look on Juelz’s face and the overturned plates on the ground. He swallowed his final bite. “The fuck happened over here?” He wiped his mouth with his paper towel. “This food too damn good to be turned over on the ground. You aiight, nigga?”
Juelz popped his knuckles, smacking his teeth. “Yeah, let’s dip out from ‘round here, before I do some shit I can’t take back.”
The Cancer Centerhad become Tasha’s home away from home. She was at her three-week check-up and had more lab testing with Dr. Madison to complete. Once she got done, she was walking out the sliding doors when she noticed Mrs. Riggs leaving after her chemo session. “Hey, Mrs. Riggs, how you doin’ today?”
Mrs. Riggs turned to see who was speaking to her. “Oh! Hey Tasha, baby, I’m good as I’m gon’ be.”
Tasha smiled as she switched her Curves by Sean Brown Lemongrass tote to her other arm. “You came by yourself today?”
“Nall, baby. My son is with me; he went to the restroom and should be catching up in a moment. I can’t wait to introduce you two.”
“Okay,” Tasha replied, folding her arms. “How many more treatments do you have left?”
Mrs. Riggs yawned, feeling fatigue wash over her. “I think I have maybe four more treatments, and then I do more labs to check where I stand with this cancer madness.”
