Page 31 of Pretty and Loco

“CONGRATULATIONS DADDY, A LITTLE ROOKIE IS ON THE WAY.”

The camera turned back on, and there was Leah’s psychotic ass sitting in the stands dressed in Sanders gear from head to toe, holding up a pregnancy test. She blew a kiss at the camera.

I smiled, but I wanted to throw up when my whole team rushed to congratulate me, and I was glad for the crowd around me because my expression was going to tell everything I was thinking.

The only thing worse than knowing she was lying was fearing that she was telling the truth. My whole morale was gone. She couldn’t have done this at a worse time. My pops and brother were in the stands, and I knew they would have questions. This shit didn’t feel real.

When the stadium applause had calmed down and we could finally finish the game, I stepped up to the plate and put the bat on my shoulder. The pitcher wound his arm and threw the ball toward me.

I was frustrated and swung. I knew something was wrong the second I did it, but it was too late. I felt the sharpest pull. It felt like someone had reached inside my shoulder, grabbed something, and ripped it in the wrong direction.

I dropped the ball and leaned forward, holding my shoulder, trying to breathe through the burning. This was a different type of pain. I played through strains and tears. This wasn’t the type of pain that would go away when you shake it off.

Still, I tried to rotate it, and pain shot through me so hard that my stomach turned and I fell to my knees. Everybody was running to me for the second time in less than three minutes, and I clenched my teeth and tried to power through.

The stadium, which just moments ago had been loud with cheers and applause, was so quiet I thought I heard someone burp.

“Can you walk, Rocko?” Coach asked me.

“Yeah.” I gritted my teeth as I held my shoulder and rose from my knees.

When I stood, everyone cheered.

As I walked through the tunnel and out of the stadium, I saw Leah in the crowd with a face full of tears, playing the supportive girlfriend role and being consoled by random people. I don’t know if the pain was clouding my judgment, but if I didn’t know any better, I thought I saw her smile. Shit creeped me out.

I would deal with her later; all I could focus on was praying this shit wouldn’t cost me the season.

***

“You hear that noise, Speed?” I asked, turning down the music so we could hear. Just like I thought, a noise grew louder as the truck sped up.

“That sounds like we got a flat.”

“Yeah, pull over.” I agreed.

He put on the warning lights as we struggled to pull over safely onto the shoulder of the busy interstate.

When he stopped, we both got out of my truck and saw that three of my tires had been slashed. I leaned down, saw fresh marks, and knew Leah had done it. This was the second vehicle she had ruined in a week.

Speedy just scoffed.

“Call roadside Rock; I know we don’t have three spares.” He said, leaning against the trunk of the car.

“Fuck!” I mumbled, agitated. I dug into my pants with my left hand for my phone. My right arm was still in a sling from the tear at spring training.

I opened my insurance app, scrolled to Roadside Assistance, then pressed the number to call.

“I know this shit has everything to do with Leah.” I scoffed, put the phone to my ear, and walked around the side of the truck. I was too frustrated and distracted to realize that we were still on the side of a dangerous road.

As soon as I took a step back, I heard Speedy scream ROCKKKKKK! Just as a car came full speed toward me.

I sat up, heart racing, before I realized I was dreaming. There was no escape from her. After everything Leah had done to me in real life, she was starting to invade my dreams too. Although I hadn’t seen the driver in the dream, I knew it was probably her behind the wheel. I checked the clock. It was a little before midnight, and I hadn’t even been asleep for more than a couple of hours. I took a deep breath, rolled onto my side, and closed my eyes again. I lay there for the better part of five minutes, but sleep never came again. This had been going on for the last few weeks.

I hadn’t really been able to eat or sleep since the night that Leah left my house. The way Shorty looked me in the eyes and promised me that I would regret the day that I played with her felt like some shit straight from a movie. Because since that night, I had been living a nightmare in real life. Between my tires constantly going flat, my shoulder injury, and strange things happening around my house, I feel like I’m losing my mind.

I had kept the issues between me and Leah to myself until the fake pregnancy announcement. She confirmed that it was fake too. When I called her out on it, her exact words were, “Maybe there isn’t a baby, but there’s a lesson. The lesson is that I can’t be ignored.”

Over time, I found myself venting to Speedy about it. When I told him what she said and all the weird shit happening, he finally said the only rational thing I’ve heard since I've known him. He told me she was bat shit crazy, but making her responsible for everything happening to me was all in my head. He said that it was just a coincidence, and niggas have bad luck all the time.