Capricorn
Chapter 34

Typical Capricorn Occupations:
* Researcher
* Dentist
* Architect
* Engineer
* Manufacturer
* Politician

*

It was an exhausting night for Adena. It was an exhausting night for Craig too. 

Adena wanted to redo the whole conversation. She went out of control, got defensive, and worst of all hurt him, which she never intended to do. She didn't know what she was thinking. When he asked if she had feelings for Taye, she gave an answer they both didn't like. 

"We were together for 5 years, that doesn't just go away..."

Which was true but not the correct answer. He wanted to know if she still loved Taye. Go back, forgive him, and start over. She mulled it over and over and she would be lying if she said she didn't. Baby or no baby, Adena knew it wouldn't work. Staying together for the sake of the child breaks the child, someone said. She was still hurt. He hurt her. More than anyone else. 

Her real dilemma was the baby. Baby or no baby, Taye was out of the picture as far as love and marriage. However, which would it be? Baby or no baby?

Craig wanted to redo the conversation too. As time went by he thought of all the instances where he should have been understanding and wasn't. She was right about one thing, they weren't officially an item. They were still in the building and development stage. They were a pretty good idea, there were only positives when questioning why it should happen.

Before that night.

This baby changed everything. Once he was able to think straight, the math added up, this happened right before they met. Unknowingly, the whole time he knew her, she was pregnant. Should he take on the risk? Would he take on the risk? Unfortunately, he had no say in the baby situation and the baby was the answer to all those questions. As he sat there and thought about it, daydreamed, zoned out, and even kept himself up at night, he was more hurt at the fact that she was having another man's baby. Her body belonged to him now, partly. He felt he wouldn't be able to stand a chance. The ball wasn't even in his court.

The only thing he had control over was whether he should stay or go and he was still going back and forth about that. 

Until then, he was a zombie. Always drinking. Sleeping during the day, sleeping longer, and partying all night and even into the morning. He had to keep his mind off of Adena so he kept himself busy. If he wasn't DJing or working on music, he was asleep. If he stopped feeling drunk, he would get another drink. He had to be under the influence, sleeping or working, he had no room for anything else. He had no strength for anything else.

This new state of being affected his work and his work affected his new state of being. Being a drunk zombie made him careless and care less. He couldn't listen to songs that reminded him of Adena which were basically all his favorites. If he didn't know it before, he knew it now and he would shut it off as soon as the reminder came. Or simply just change to the next song.

"Hey! That was my jam, you only played it for 30 seconds!" a girl in a black dress with sequins and rhinestones said as she walked up to him. 

Oh yeah, Craig was a cliché. Another way to get his mind off of Adena was to fill the booth with as many women as he wanted. However, it was annoying some of the time because of moments like this and it would put him in a bad mood. "I have other requests."

"Yeah but I waited practically all night for that song and you barely played it!"

"If you don't like how I'm doing my job, you can give me back your free drink," he said as he snatched the glass out of her hand "and you can get the FUCK out of my booth."

The girl's face curled up in disgust. "Asshole! Ugh, this whole place blows." She rounded up her friends and they stared him down as they walked out once they knew why they were no longer getting the VIP treatment. The booth was half full now. He shrugged. He realized he was still holding her drink. He took it to the head and set it on a big tray full of other empty glasses and bottles that he finished. He burped and then decided to play some more Wu-Tang and DMX. That's what type of mood he was in. 

Adena being the professional that she was moved with more finesse. Adena couldn't lean on Donatella for any support so she didn't tell her she was pregnant or even about the forged divorce. Everything was fine. Even if she was disappearing to the restroom to throw up. Everything was fine. Even if she was struggling to get in touch with Taye or a lawyer to contest this fake ass divorce. Everything was fine. Even if she was heartbroken. It took so much energy that by the time she got home, she went straight to bed, pretending everything was fine when it wasn't was exhausting. 

Missy was a subtle messenger for the both of them. When she wasn't helping Adena through this, she was with Ron and Craig now that he was home more. Missy would drop hints to Craig asking if he'd called her, give an update, or if he looked at a TikTok post of hers. Once Craig caught on, which sometimes was pretty slow, he would say about the same thing. "Did she figure out her situation yet?" he would ask and as of now, that answer was always no. So he would change the subject or disappear into his room.

Ron was Craig's doctor, therapist, psychiatrist, nutritionist, and counselor. He was always checking on Craig when he was at work, making sure he hadn't jumped out a window yet. One time Craig got so drunk that Ron took him to the hospital to check him in and hooked him up to an IV because alcohol was the only fluid in his system. Actually, it happened a couple of other times too. "Dude, if your dehydrated, drugged up ass comes in this hospital again they're going to check you in somewhere."

Craig was defeated but Adena wasn't going to do the same, no matter how tired she was. First, she'll deal with Taye and go from there.

"Ok Taye, this means war."

*

Each zodiac sign has an effect on each Chinese animal sign. The Capricorn effect on Rats makes them ambitious, controlling, and difficult to change.

*

*1 month later

"Ugh don't listen to Adele, don't listen to Adele" Adena mumbled to herself, she looked down at her phone and skipped ahead to the next song. She looked up and saw that they had arrived at her destination. She sighed and took her air-pods out of her ears and back into their case.

"Should I go further ma'am?"

"No, you can drop me here, this is perfect," Adena said to the Lyft driver. "Can I ask you something?" They nodded. "Are you all allowed to stay? I'm not going to be too long and I have another stop to go to."

The driver nodded and shrugged, "Sure as long as no one else needs me."

"Ok thank you so much."

"I'll just send you a message through the app if I need to leave." She nodded. "Besides, it's raining out and pretty cold, I can stay around."

She thanked him again, she opened the door and then her black umbrella. She walked under the brick awning that was at the entrance. She continued to walk for a minute or so and then she stopped. She sighed. 

Today would have been Grandma's birthday. Adena was torn up and upset because this was her first birthday without her. Tears ran down her face as she placed the white roses in front of her headstone. She was buried right next to Grandpa and other Capricorns who had already passed on. Adena stood under the umbrella as the rain fell around her. The weather reflected exactly how she felt. Rainy, cloudy, gloomy, cold. Grandma loved the rain which was also fitting. 

Once Adena stopped crying and got a hold of herself, she said, "If you told me last year that you weren't going to be here for this birthday of course I wouldn't have wanted to believe you. You had so much life in you, you seemed immortal to me. You didn't even have one gray hair on your gorgeous head. I know this is the '40th anniversary of your 30th birthday' but you don't look a day over 50. You didn't look a day over 50 rather."

She sighed and looked around, she was the only person on this side of the cemetery.

"Grandma I miss you" she cried. "When I need you the most, you're not here. You missed Christmas, New Year's, my birthday, and now yours and soooo much has happened Grandma. If you're truly watching over me like everyone says, you know I'm going through a lot right now. If not, well a lot has changed since I last saw you. I got a promotion, a big one, I got my own place with the gorgeous view I always dreamed about. Why? Well, Taye and I are no longer together...just like you predicted. I guess you really did see all the signs that I didn't. You were right. As always. I hate that you're right. That you were right."

*The previous Thanksgiving, a few months prior

"Amen," Adena's uncle said and everyone joined in with him. "Ok let's eat!" he said as he opened his eyes and got up and started carving the huge turkey in front of him. Everyone let go of each other's hands and all grabbed the servings closest to them. Later that night, Taye thought everyone was done and took the rest of the mac and cheese, put it on a plate, ate off of it and put it in the fridge so he could save room for dessert. Adena's uncle Hank walked into the kitchen some minutes later and practically hollered. "ARE YOU SERIOUS!? SHIT! GODDAMN IT! AWW HELL!"

It sounded pretty serious so everyone ran into the kitchen to see what was wrong. They all thought he was seriously hurt in some way but when they got in the kitchen and saw what he was yelling about, they all sighed.

Uncle Hank held up the empty aluminum platter that held the mac and cheese. "WHO DID IT? WHO TOOK THE REST OF THE MAC AND CHEESE!?!"

"Hank really? That's what you're carrying on about?" his wife asked.

"YES! YOU ALL KNOW THAT I LIKE TO GO BACK FOR FOURTHS AND FIFTHS OF GG'S MAC AND CHEESE! WHO STOLE IT?" Everyone looked around, mumbled it wasn't them and that they didn't know while shaking their heads."REALLY? NO ONE DID IT? IT JUST MAGICALLY DISAPPEARED!?"

"HANK YOU'RE DRUNK, COME ON NOW," his wife said as she walked up to him and took the platter from him. He started cussing again and some of them took that as a good way to escape the room.

"Maybe someone accidentally threw it out," her cousin said.

"Well don't tell him that because his drunk ass will go through that garbage," their brother said and they all laughed. However, it was weird that no one stepped forward. That's not how they rolled. Ever. They all started playing spades and if you've ever played or watched a heated spades game that included alcohol, it wasn't pretty. "Hell no! Hell no! No that's not fair" he shouted as he stood up. Adena rolled her eyes but didn't pay attention, someone always 'cheated' and then it was always a misunderstanding and they would switch up the teams and play it again. However, there was money on the line and there was a lot of it too. They all had a lot to be thankful for this year.

However, the next thing she knew a drink was thrown. Some of it got on her, she looked up and saw Taye and her cousin about to go at it. What the hell happened? "Get your man Dena! He's tripping" her cousin said. "Tell him to give me my money and stop throwing drinks like a little bitch!"

"You threw a drink at my cousin?"

"He went too far and got up in my face. I didn't cheat."

"What is going on in here?" Grandma said as she walked into the room. It was repeated that Taye had cheated and thrown a drink. She looked at Taye. 

"I threw a drink, yea, but I didn't cheat!!"

"Give me my money back. We all know that you're broke and need it more than us playa but that's not how you get it. If you need money, just say so-"

Her cousin didn't finish his sentence because Taye flipped the card table over and went at him. All hell broke loose and once the two were separated her father said, "Get out of here. Now!"

"I have no problem with that," Taye said angrily and stormed out. Adena gathered up her things and she wanted to shrink into a black hole when she saw the look on her family's faces. They were really disappointed, you don't fight family, especially a family you're married into. 

"I'm sorry," she said and walked out to find Taye. Taye was taking a few plates out of the fridge. "You throw a drink at my cousin AND bloody his face up?!!"

"He went too far, Adena. Why does he think I'm broke? Huh? Have you been talking about me? Badmouthing me to your family behind my back?!?"

"Of course not, don't be ridiculous-"

"It's not me that's being ridiculous. It's you and your whole damn family-"

"HERE IT FUCKING IS!" They all turned to see Uncle Hank holding up a plate piled high with mac and cheese. "This you playboy?! Wow, you put your hands on family and don't even take the blame for stealing food???"

"Adena, you have 5 seconds to get him out of here," Grandma said to her. Adena looked at her in shock, yes this was a fucked up situation, but she was usually the level-headed one. There was never a situation where Grandma wasn't on her side. Until now. 

"Don't worry about it, come on Adena" Taye said. "Keep the fucking mac and cheese, though you hardly need it."

Let's just say that Taye walked out the door quickly enough before another fight could start. "Adena, you're not leaving with him are you?" Grandma asked as Adena got their coats.

"He's my husband Grandma! This was all a misunderstanding, besides he doesn't have a key to mom and dad's."

"Who said he could go to your parents' place?" Grandma said to her as her parents walked into the room. "I'm sure your parents wouldn't want someone like him staying in their home after the shit he just pulled."

"Definitely not," her father said. Her mother put her head in her hands, shaking her head.

"Are you serious? Where is he going to go? Where are we going to go?"

"You're not the problem, Dena, he is."

"You all expect me to kick my husband out of dinner, out of the place we're staying at, and leave him high and dry??"

"With all that money he just stole from your cousin, he can get a hotel."

"Oh and go ahead and let him have our mac and cheese. He breathed all over it already" her aunt said as she gave her the plate.

"I'm really sorry about this you guys but you're asking me to choose between my husband and family??" Adena said in shock. "You know I can't do that."

"Sometimes your husband is wrong and this is one of those times. You don't put hands on or steal from family" Grandma said. Tears welled up in Adena's eyes and the only thing she could think of to do was to turn around and leave. She slammed the screen door behind her as Taye honked the horn telling her to hurry up. "Adena, come back here," Grandma said, coming outside and standing on the porch.

"I expect this from Daddy and Unc but not you Grandma. Why didn't you have my back in there?"

"I'll always have your-"

"Not tonight. I can't believe you! You all are family but Taye is my family now too. I won't let him leave alone and stay in a hotel on Thanksgiving. He's a priority now. He's my HUSBAND."

Grandma shook her head in disappointment. "Taye may be a priority but he isn't a guarantee. Family will always be here for you no matter what. You can't say the same about him. I don't care if he put a ring on your finger, that can always be reversed. You can't divorce family. With the fights, you said you two have been having and this fiasco, if he keeps this up, he won't be here next Thanksgiving."

Adena's mouth hung open in shock. Taye honked the horn again and called out to her. She shook her head as tears ran down her face. "I really hate you for this, for making me choose..." was all she could say. She turned around and walked toward the car. Grandma called after her, saying to stay, let's talk about this, she was sorry. Adena didn't listen. She got in the car and slammed the door. "We're going home. Brooklyn home."

"Hell yeah, we are. Next year we're going to see MY family" Taye said angrily as he put the car in drive and sped off down the street...

The two went to her parent's house, got their things, and returned home, they were too tired to talk about what had happened. They both went straight to bed. The next day, she had a slew of missed calls from her family but she wasn't ready to talk to them yet. She went out and did some Black Friday shopping, retail therapy saving the day again. When she got home with all the shopping bags Taye confronted her about how much she spent, and how they should be saving money since he just got laid off, then they started arguing about the night before starting with her cousin's comments about him being broke. They went back and forth for hours. They would have argued all night probably if her Mom hadn't called her repeatedly. After her third time, she finally answered. 

"Adena, we're at the hospital. It's Grandma. She collapsed. She had a heart attack. She's gone, Adena. She's gone."

"I'll say this every day for the rest of my life and hope you'll hear but I never hated you, not even that night. I didn't mean it. You know I didn't and I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for not telling you sorry...now I'll never have the chance. Please forgive me. I'm sorry, I didn't mean it. I didn't mean it."

She repeated that over and over until the rain turned from light to heavy. "I gotta go. Love you Grandma" she said as she blew a kiss. 

And then a small bird flew down and landed on Grandma's headstone. It was soaking wet from the rain and it flapped its wings and shook its little body to dry itself off. Adena stood there in shock and then the bird flew away.

*

The Rat personality will only help Capricorn to loosen up, have fun and not be so hard on themselves.

*

"Alright Case Number #01161979, Capricorn vs. Houghton" the bailiff called out. 

Adena took a deep breath. Missy squeezed her hand in support. "Everything's going to be ok."

"He's not even here. Kim isn't here either" Adena said sadly. It has been a lonely month for Adena and she was tired of the awkward back-and-forth between her and her best friend. She already lost a best friend through Taye...and Craig too. She needed more support. If she could forgive Craig and Missy over her disaster party, she can forgive Kim too. She also missed her and she could really use some advice. However, she didn't answer her calls or texts. Was she really through with her?

"Don't think about that. Don't think about them. Just stay calm and present your case, it's impossible for you not to win."

Adena nodded, she adjusted her blouse as she walked up and stood behind the plaintiff's stand. Missy was obsessed with the fact that she had to look 'courtroom chic.' It helped her when she had to go to court. When you look good, you feel good and when you feel good, you're confident. She also needed the judge on her side. She had to look innocent, naive, professional, hardworking, self-made, etc. However this wasn't a problem for Adena, she dressed like that almost on a regular basis but they still went out and bought an all-new outfit anyway.

Retail therapy.

She wore a gray skirt suit, a white blouse with ruffles, that would make Prince proud, under her tailored blazer, black stockings, and black mary jane pumps. Missy tried to get her to wear black oversized Hollywood shades but that was a little too much for her. She wished she wore some flats. She was so nervous and her legs and ankles were feeling wobbly. She basically held on to the stand for dear life.

"Capricorn vs. Houghton," the bailiff said again. Everyone looked around to see if someone by that name was there but Taye was nowhere in sight. 

"Ms. Capricorn, do you by chance know where the opposing party could be?"

"No idea, your Honor." Was he really not going to show up? Coward.

The court secretary approached the judge and they had a conversation while they all waited.

And waited...and waited...and waited...

"Ms. Capricorn, can you please approach the stand?" the judge asked her. She nodded, picked up her paperwork, and approached the judge. "So what we're dealing with are felony forgery and perjury, correct?"

"Yes, your Honor," Adena said simply.

"Ok looking through your case here, do you have any proof that it was Mr. Houghton who signed these papers?"

"Yes, your Honor. I told him I wanted a divorce, heard nothing from him, and then all of a sudden I'm served with papers."

"Yes Ms. Capricorn, I understand that, but do you have actual proof of the forged signature?"

Adena opened her manilla folder and pulled out a couple of papers. "See this is the signature that I actually wrote and here is his."

"They look pretty identical to me," the judge said as they put on their glasses. "We're going to need more than a side-by-side comparison Ms. Capricorn. Do you have any paperwork from a Crime Lab or a handwriting expert to back you up? Because right now it's 'he said, she said.' Since divorce is involved and you both aren't on the best of terms-"

"So you think I would sign these divorce papers and come here and fight anyway?"

"You wanted a divorce anyway, why fight? What's at stake besides principle?"

"I want to set the record straight, he's done enough damage, there's also child-"

She was interrupted by the opening of the doors of the courtroom and a cell phone ringing behind her. The judge looked up as she turned around and couldn't believe what she was seeing. You could say it was like she saw a ghost.

It was Taye in what looked to be a pretty expensive three-piece suit and glasses, even though he had perfect eyesight.

But that wasn't the issue.

The issue was that Taye was not alone. He had a woman on his arm.

And that woman was Kim.

*

Western zodiacs modify each animal's basic nature and personal relationships. The Ox follows the Rat. Capricorn Oxen are people who seek status, power, and recognition.

*

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