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    It seemed that I was under the water for hours.

    It might've just been because the water was so cold, or because the temperature of my body was dropping with each tick of the clock but I knew I had been under for too long. I couldn't feel my legs, or any part of my body for that matter causing me to only float in silence. It was when my eyes began to weakly flutter close that I began to panic.

    I was beginning to grow weak and my body was no match for the water that weighed me down until I could feel myself sinking. Even the muffled screams above the water's surface couldn't keep me conscious, and in an instance it seemed the life within me vanished.

   But my assumptions were wrong, as the darkness cleared and suddenly I was met with a bright light that I couldn't tell was heaven or a hospital. From the worried eyes staring me down through the thin rims of glasses, I could guess it was the hospital. Minutes of silence passed before I could hear anything and it was as if the water was clearing from my ears and the voices around me were easier to hear.

    "...hypothermia, so she'll need to stay here for the next couple of days." The doctor finishes off to from what I could see through squinted eyes was Renee, Pattie and my mother. All with concern etched on their face, their hands were all intertwined in what I believed to be prayer.

    Parting my dry lips, I swiped my tongue across them in order to speak. "Doctor.." all eyes fell back onto me in what appeared to be relief. Still dressed in their outfits from the party Renee and Pattie rushed to my side while my mother struggled to stand to her feet. The sight made me almost furrow my brows but Renee blocked my sight of her.

    "What the hell were you thinking, jumping in a pool in the middle of January," Renee scolded, angered and frustrated with my actions resulting in a pounding to begin to occur on the right side of my temple.

    Pattie locked her eyes with Renee in a warning, "Renee, she's been out for hours, let her rest a little before you get all hostile." I agreed. Not only because a headache was beginning to form but because I had no explanation for why I went into the pool other than I lost my balance.

     "Denise," Pattie called, unbeknownst to me that I was drifting in and out of consciousness until she tapped my shoulder.

     The doctor intervened, "She's going to be like that for a couple of hours, also slurring, confusion, shivering — it's apart of the process. But she'll need to stay here for a couple of night so we can keep an eye on her pulse, it's extremely weak."

    The new information went in one ear and out the other as darkness filled my vision again.

I came back into consciousness to Renee arguing with Pattie in the corner with a phone held snugly to her shoulder. Immediately, I grew curious.

"W-who i-is it?" I asked of them, causing Pattie to part her lips and briefly look in my direction before connecting eyes with Renee. Their secret communication confused me for a moment before Renee stomped towards me.

She pursed her lips tightly, "It's Prince."

Hearing his name immediately caused me to scowl and push myself up against the uncomfortable mattress. "No," I refused, attempting to remove the numerous blankets surrounding me. I was so hot, but cold at the same time.

Renee began juggling the phone and the action of making sure I didn't remove the blankets. "Quit acting stupid now, you have to keep those on."

"I-I don't n-n-need them." I slurred, tiredly as I kicked my feet to escape the cacoon I was wrapped up in.

Renee huffed, "Damnit, — no not you, hold on." She was speaking into the phone before she set it down and held me down causing me to squirm against her hold.

"Let me go!" I bellowed frustrated, feeling drips of sweat begin to form on the top of my head in result of my struggle. I was boiling and Renee forcing me to keep the blankets on was not helping.

Through it all, I could hear a low voice resonating from the phone. "What hell is going on?" It muffled in question, causing me to breathe heavily as Pattie soon joined Renee in her efforts to keep me held down.

"Denise, please stop." Pattie pleaded of me, as I convulsed violently against their hold before she yelled for a doctor. I didn't need a doctor, I needed to get the hell out of this hospital.

"No, you stop. I'm hot." I complained lowly, before the door whipped open and in came the doctor along with a nurse who moved both of my sisters out of the way. Everything was happening so quickly that I barely had time to get my bearings before I felt a small pinch in my arm.

     It instantly put me out.

     Stirring around in the darkness, I was in a calm state, even when I awoke again to both of my sisters gone. My mother now rested beside me, hand gripped snugly around the phone as it was pressed tightly to her ear.

     "She's fine...yeah, I know she's a strong girl...she delt with you and from what she's told me, it's not easy...those are just words, they don't mean anything...well, she is my daughter so she should sound somewhat like me." My mother briefly chuckled.

     "I know your sorry...mhm...no she's sleep," with my eyes still closed I could hear her pause. "...what do you mean she isn't, I'm sitting right next to her...you know, you sound just like my husband....she told you that?" I could feel her eyes on my back, but I didn't dare to turn around and face her.

     "I'm not sure, I was at a bad point in my life....oh she just told you everything didn't she?" I could hear a voice speaking on the other end again. "....no....she isn't faking being sleep...I know my daughter and I— what?....what does her nose have to do with—....fine....you're very demanding, you know that boy..."

I could feel her pressing down on the bed to lean over to look at my face.

    I was confused at her actions until she spoke, "Your right....I never even noticed she does that...." Gently moving my arm, I was forced to open my eyes and turn in her direction.

   "You weren't sleep were you?" My mother asked once I turned to face her so she could settle back down into her chair.

    I furrowed my brows, "How do you know?"

    "Prince said your nose is crinkled when your faking it." Instantly, I steal the phone out of her grasp and hold it to my chest. My mother laughs to herself silently at my reaction before getting to her feet gently and leaving the room.

I sigh to myself heavily as I watch her retreating back and the door closing soon after. Quickly, the phone goes up to my ear.

   "Why're you calling?" I get straight to the point. I didn't want to have a conversation with Prince in the first place but I knew I would ultimately lose the battle against myself if I tried to resist.

     "Don't even get a proper greeting from a friend to a friend?" His emphasis on the words make me confused for a slight moment.

    I sigh, "What're you talking about?"

   "You know." Prince simply says.

    "I don't." I release through clenched teeth, lifting myself completely up against the pillow. He scoffs over the phone.

   "You don't think I know people?" His words were making me more confused with each second, but I don't have the time to question it before Prince interrupts my thinking.

   "Forget it. Your mom told me you swam in a pool in 10 degree weather," he paused. "What the fuck is wrong with you? You could've died."

    Mild hypothermia couldn't kill me, but I could understand were Prince's concerns were coming from. Even though they were the last things I needed. "I don't have the energy to talk to you, go talk to Jill or Susan." The words escape me faster than I can help it and I only receive silence.

    Suddenly, he speaks. "I'm worried about your crazy ass and you choose to bring that up?" His tone sounds incredulous.

   "I don't care if you're worried. It doesn't erase what you did, nothing can."It's like he was expecting me to sweep what occurred under the rug and to fall putty into his hands because of his concern.

    "How'd you even find out what happened anyways, aren't you in LA?" I ask.

    "No, I'm back in Minneapolis. Plus, someone who knows your friend Angelo called me" I roll my eyes at his mispronunciation and shake my head.

"It's Antonio."

Prince scoffs, "Yeah..that." We basked in silence soon after that, leaving me to nearly blatantly hang up the phone until Prince spoke again. "Why'd you let him believe we never had anything?"

"Why do you care? You obviously believed we didn't have anything when you were still with Susan and Jill and whoever else." I complain. Parting my lips, I released a hefty sigh. "Who's this person that told you all of this any ways?"

"It doesn't matter." He throws back at me, making me more frustrated.

Nevertheless, I still question him. "Who is it?"

"All I'm going to say is that she's closer than you think." His words make me sit in silence for a few moments while I settle in on the key word. She.

I bite my lip, "Can you just," I cut myself off with a sigh. "—stop playing games with me."

I could feel the drowsy symptoms settling back in, and the last thing I wanted to do was pass out over the phone.

Prince grows quiet again, heightening the impatience within me as I exhale a sharp sigh in irritation. It seems like seconds pass before be speaks.

"Brenda."

His words make my body freeze except my eyebrows that seem to furrow on command. "Brenda?" Disgust and disbelief laces my tone. "What the hell is she doing calling you?"

"How the hell would I know? She called, explaining what happened and cut the line short before I could process who she was.—"

"How'd she get your number?" I cut him off, not even realizing jealousy was heard clear in my tone. Even though I had no reason to feel that way, it still rang true within me.

Prince obviously noticed as I could feel his smug smirk over the phone, "I called her once, to meet up with you backstage but that was months ago. She probably had it written down." It was all confusing and strange.

The fact that Brenda would go out of her way to fly to Canada to find out the things I was doing just to report it back to Prince left me on edge. I didn't even understand how she knew I would be in Canada in the first place, but all I could assume was that she inferred I would be home since we were on break. Nonetheless, I was still left on pins and needles.

"Denise.." I blinked back into current time, where Prince was calling my name over the phone.

I decided to end the call. "I have to go." But Prince had other ideas.

"No, what the hell is going on? Why is she calling me?" His questions I didn't even have answers for. His questions were the ones I had to ask myself. I didn't understand why she would want to stir up drama between the both of us since we've both clearly parted ways.

"I'm just as confused as you are. Don't answer anymore of her calls." I ordered, hoping that this time Prince would listen to my demands. Normally, it was his way or the high way but from the tone of willingness in his voice towards my demands, I could say I had finally won this battle.

"I'm not, I don't have time for this shit. People callin' me in the middle of studio session and then I have to have the band lookin' at me for an explanation on what's cutting into the studio time." His complaining went in one ear and out the other.

"I don't know what you want me to do. I haven't had any contact with her since that show backstage in Indiana." The only time I had even caught of glimpse of Brenda was when she was associated with Darren in the papers.

Considering he still remained a famous music producer, it wasn't that hard to come across her name that was associated with the lines Baby Mama tilted as the headline. Outside of the media, I didn't even want to have any social contact with Brenda in the first place.

     "Why are you so upset all of a sudden? Not even a few minutes ago you were interrogating me on what she said. Something that you don't even know is true or not."

     Prince completely dismisses my words, "Just take care of it. I don't want anymore phone calls."

    "Why? You get something sweet out of the deal. An update on my love life."

     "Why would I want to hear shit about you that I know isn't true?" Prince asks. "I know you better than what she was telling me, which by the way — ain't that pretty mama."

     Instantly, my curiosity peaks at the things Brenda's being spilling about what she saw to Prince. But then again, I decide against questioning it. "But you would believe her when she told you the I told Antonio that we didn't have anything."

     "Hell yeah. You seem like the type to push things under the rug, as if it didn't happen so you won't have to face it." Prince states, instantly offending me.

     "That's why you left Los Angelos, isn't it? So you wouldn't have to face me? So you wouldn't see me and have a reminder that I was fucking someone else, right?" His words slashed across the barely healed bruises.

    I cleared my throat, "I don't even know why I bothered talking to you. You have no remorse for what you did, still."

"That's not true." I scoff at his words.

"Isn't this what you like? For people to think did they or did they not?" I taunt him. "And what if I did fuck Antonio, huh? Maybe I did" Even though I was lying, Prince didn't know that and I could tell his bother from the way the line grew quiet.

Prince pauses, "I know you didn't sleep with him."

    "You seem pretty confident in that." I pout, no longer sack ring his feelings. "Are you scared another man was able to satisfy me better than you did." I whispered in a raspy tone.

     "That he hit that right spot," I whispered into the phone, reenacting the false scene. "Does that bother you?"

      "Your lying,"

       I bit my lip, "I'm not. You obviously don't think I'm capable of getting any man I want. Ones that can make me . . scream." I could make out Prince's harsh breathing over the phone and it made me smirk to myself in accomplishment.

   His words don't stir anything inside of me. "I still love you, whether you want to admit we had anything or not. We did."

"Okay." It's the only words I can fix myself to say.

      "And baby?" I answer in silence, which Prince uses as a will to continue. "I know good and damn well I'm the only one who can make you wetter than the Niagra."

    Clenching my thighs together, I feel my face heat up in embarrassment as Prince takes my silence as an accomplishment, before ultimately cutting the line short.