Chapter 1
Wtf
Love’s words sat heavy in my chest, but I wasn’t weak behind it, just caught off guard.
“What you mean you gotta kill him?” I asked, keeping my voice steady.
Love looked at me, head tilting just a little, but his expression didn’t change.
“Why you askin’ me that?” he said, calm, but there was something under it.
I took a breath, choosing my words better this time.
“I’m just sayin’… I didn’t think… I didn’t want it to go there.”
The air in the room shifted instantly. Keith and Kenya stayed quiet, like they already knew what time it was.
Love stared at me for a second, then let out a short breath through his nose.
“You seen what he just did, right?” he said, not loud or emotional.
“I did,” I nodded. “I just don’t want it to turn into something bigger than it already is.”
He ain’t respond right away. Just looked at me like he was reading me, trying to see exactly where I stood.
He nodded and turned his attention to Keith.
“Handle the store, get it cleaned up all the way, and get the people here to fix the glass today.”
Keith nodded quickly and hopped on his phone.
Love walked toward the door, looked both ways, then looked back at me.
“Come on.”
I looked at Kenya.
“Girl, just text me later,” she said.
I nodded and walked over to Love. He took my hand, and we walked out with his other hand gripping his pants and his head on a swivel as he opened the car door and helped me in the backseat. He hopped in, shut the door behind him, and the driver pulled off smooth.
I leaned back into the seat, my fingers still laced with his, but my mind was somewhere else. The city moved past the window, fast but slow at the same time, and I couldn’t shake the feeling sitting in my chest.
Love ain’t say nothing.
He sat back, one arm stretched behind me, the other resting on his lap like he was ready to go at any moment. His eyes were moving, watching everything, and I could tell that he was thinking.
I stared at the street flying past the window, trying to shake what he said earlier, but it wouldn’t leave me alone. “Gotta kill him.” That statement was still echoing through my head. He said that shit like it was just something that had to get handled. No shake in his voice. No hesitation. That’s what made it worse.
We stopped at a red light, and I stared out the window at all the people walking around living their best life, while it felt like mine was starting to fall apart. Music leaked out of rolled-down windows, everything normal on the surface, while my chest stayed tight.
Love moved a little in his seat, adjusted like he was sitting with a purpose instead of comfort. His arm was still behind me, but there was some distance in it now. Not physical. Mental.
I finally broke.
I turned toward him.
“You really serious about what you said at the store?”
