Maybe she’s still healing.
The scenarios played in my head one after the other. However, none of them felt accurate. Something else was happening in Hyphen’s world. And, if she didn’t emerge soon,I’d go searching for her fine ass in the daytime with a flashlight. Because, I refused to let her get away this time.
“What’s on your mind, homie? You’ve been quiet all fucking night.”
“Shit. Shit. I’m ‘bout to get up out of here.”
“You good?” Sully was no fool. But, I didn’t care to elaborate.
Nah. Not really.
“Yeah. Everything is lovely.”
“Bet.”
I gathered my bearings and started the engine of my whip. The Chevy made itself known. Loud pipes startled everyone within a few feet.
Honk.
Honk.
I tooted the horn, making it known that I needed space.
And Hyphen.
And my crib.
And my bed.
7:26p
I pulled in a breath of fresh air. My palms pressed against my threads, ironing out whatever wrinkles the car had created. The mugginess of the evening air stuck to my white shirt. Uncertainty hung over my head like a dark cloud. Still, I stepped forward and pressed the doorbell.
It sounded in the distance. I rolled the toothpick around in my mouth as the wait began. It had been six days since I’d gotten a glimpse of Hyph. Her absence was unsettling. I needed reassurance. I needed to see that pretty face and hear that sharptongue spit words that were either offensive or dismissive. The silence was unacceptable.
Locks turned. I stepped backward, giving the door the space necessary to open. Mentally, I prepared myself for the verbal massacre. Showing up at her door unannounced possibly broke some rule in her book. But I didn’t give a damn about her rule. I had one of my own.
Never go missing again.
The iron door pushed toward the right side of the porch on the white brick home that had recently been remodeled. It didn’t belong in Dooley. Neither did Hyphen. But she was here, and she was home. That’s all that mattered.
Behind the screen door stood Saga with a sleeping toddler in her arms. With furrowed eyebrows, she stared out the door, motionless. Wordless.
I waited for Hyphen to appear behind her. The wait was in vain. I realized it by the second minute of standing with my eyes trained on the space beside Saga.
“Hyphen– is she home?”
“She isn’t.”
“Where she at, Saga? She ain’t been ‘round in a few days. She good?”
“Not you worried about a woman who wants you to stay out of her face.”
She was amused by my foolishness. Sometimes, I was as well. But, the gravitational pull the damn girl had on me didn’t leave much room for a dispute. These feelings for Saga weren’t fresh. They’d been suppressed for years.
I promised to get my head and my bread right before stepping to her. By the time I was ready, my people were gunned down like dogs. It took me too long to shake back. I looked up and Hyph was gone.
“She doesn’t know what she wants. Where she at?”
