"Breathe me in like air tonight. Let yourself unwind, get lost in the garden of my mind. I could be your private island." - Alina Baraz

DARIUS

Liah won't stop staring at me as I drive her car, and it's pissing me off. "What?" I ask. "Nothing... I'm sorry about what happened between you, your sister, and your brother. No woman deserves to be abused, and no brother deserves to witness something like that." she says. "Yeah, well, that's what fucking happens when you spend your whole life around heartless people who are ruthless as fuck." I dryly say.

"I won't say I understand, because I don't. I've never witnessed anything like that. I've seen my mom and dad get into extremely heated arguments, but that's about it." she says. "Is that shit supposed to make me feel any better?" I ask. She looks down. "Nevermind." she mumbles. I smile a little. "Thank you, Liah. It's the thought that counts." I say.

She smiles. "I hope it gets better." she says. "Man, I don't want to talk about it. You still want to go to that party or we can go where you want." I say. "I really don't have a good feeling about that party. I heard gang members and drug dealers will be there. Darius, neither one of us associate with people like that, so us going isn't a good idea to be around people who ruin the planet with their stupid drugs and their senseless acts of violence. Only an idiot would want to be around those animals." she says.

I look at her out the corner of my eye. If only she knew who I really am. "Oh." I say. "We can go bowling or something." she suggests. "I don't like bowling and I don't really want to go to the movies. Do you want to go to Ant's brother, Vonte's house? He ain't sleep right now." I say. "Who's Ant?" she asks. "My sister's baby daddy. The one who was at the shop with us." I answer.

"Oh... is his brother a creep?" she asks. "Not really. I wouldn't put him in the human category, Vonte is kinda in his own world." I explain. "Is he big and scary looking?" she asks. "No. You'll think he's special ed at first, trust me. His dad said nothing's mentally wrong with him, he just lives unapologetically." I explain. Most people don't understand that about Vonte. He's not weird, he's not a show off, and he's not really in need of any help other than for his drug addictions. He just lives his life to the fullest.

"He sounds fun. Should I be worried?" she asks. "Not really. He will not judge you, he loves people who take risks and do whatever their heart desires, so you can definitely loosen up around him." I say. "I'll try." she mumbles.

The drive was silent. I was wrapped up in my own thoughts, and she was staring at me like she wanted to say something the whole ride. I just pulled into Vonte's driveway. "Oh my God, is that a car painted like a cheeseburger?" she exclaims, pointing at what Vonte calls his Krabby Patty mobile. "Yep. That's Vonte's." I answer, laughing. He also has a car painted like My Little Pony with a big ass stuffed pony strapped to the top.

I get out, then walk to her side. I open the door for her. I'm a gentleman, most definitely. "Thanks. Darius... is that Marijuana I smell?" she asks. Vonte smokes so much weed, it's a permanent odor in his house, outside his house, and inside of his cars. Rehab didn't help him at all, he was too busy smuggling drugs in his ass hole and getting high in the restroom, which is why he got kicked out the second time his parole officer sent him. He served thirty days in jail for that a couple of years ago.

"It's weed, Liah. We don't call it Marijuana. Loosen up." I say. "Darius, you act so different outside of school." she says. "I told you, I grew up around nothing but ruthless people. I just happened to be very smart. I know how to adapt to my environment. When I'm with my family, I'm this way, when I'm at school, I'm proper and on top of everything. You need to learn when to turn up and when to not turn up." I explain.

"I don't even know how to turn up." she says as I ring the doorbell. "Well, Vonte is the king of turn up. You'll know how to by the end of the night." I say, laughing as her eyes widen because she's nervous.

She grabs my hand. I look at her crazy, then slowly pull my hand away. Vonte swings the door open with pasties shaped like an X strapped to his nipples, a cowboy hat on, and a blunt dangling out his mouth. "Ding dong, ding dong, she said my dıck like King Kong. I fucked that bitch in Hong Kong, then I fucked her momma and made her suck this bone." he sings in a lullaby tone, doing the electric slide.

I bust out laughing along with Liah. "Oh my God, is that a real song?" she asks. "That's that Vonte shit. Come in." he says, stepping out the way. Liah starts laughing, staring at the way his living room is set up. It's like a mini club. He has weed posters everywhere, a hamster, a bar, strobe lights, a sex swing hanging from the ceiling, and stripper poles lined up in here.

"Wow." Liah says, sitting next to me on the couch. "Wassup yall? Yall want some weed, shots, ecstacy if yall trynna get nasty, some left over Pizza, and some Vienna sausages. What yall trynna get?" he asks, throwing a dart into the target on the wall. My eyes trail to the picture of him and Jessica on the wall in a picture frame he got custom made that says My Wife, fuck you mean?

"I don't do drugs or drink. Do you have any movies or something instead?" Liah asks him. He nods his head, then opens his DVD case. "I got Pinky, her lesbian and straight shit, I got everything Jada Fire fine ass ever did, I got some Skin Diamond, and a whole lot of Kama Sutra." he says, flipping through a book of famous pornstar DVDs.

"Really, Vonte?" I ask. "What? Yall mothafuckas came to my house, I could be calling Jessica but I'm dealing with yall. Don't start complaining." he says. "Fine. I think I want to try ecstacy." Liah says. Vonte and I raise our eyebrows at her. "You eighteen, right? Cause a nigga ain't going to jail if you decide to get freaky." he says. "Yea, I'm eighteen. Am I turning up enough, Darius?" she asks, as he walks to the back to get the pill. "Naw, do you. I'll just watch." I say, leaning back. This should be interesting.

JESSICA

I just pulled up to Ant's house. He didn't answer the phone after I blew his phone up and he eventually turned it off. I check my face in my mirror, making sure I have enough makeup to cover the cuts and the bruise underneath my eye.

I get out the car, then ring his doorbell. I step back, waiting for him. The lights turn on in there, then he halfway opens the door. He looks at me, then looks over his shoulder like he got something to hide. "Hey... I was... I just wanted to say hey." I mumble. "Jessica, what you doing here? The kids sleep and my girl upstairs, what you want?" he whispers.

I frown at him. "Where the fuck was all of this loyalty when you were with me? Damn, if I was a famous pornstar, your ass would've stayed faithful! Fuck outta here, Ant, you faithful to a bitch who every fucking body ran through!" I snap on him. It pisses me the hell off even though we haven't actually communicated since we made Reign five years ago, and even then we hardly talked.

"Lower your voice, Jessica. Get away from my house with all that. You wanted Montana, and that's what the fuck you got. Don't come crying to me cause you realized it was more to him than all that sweet bullshit he would fill yo head up with." he says.

"I'm not here for that, damn!" I go off. "What you here for then? You don't even acknowledge my ass. The first time I seen you in forever was at lil bruh graduation this morning. You been telling me what I need to know about my kids through Darius, not me, so what could you possibly want? I'm over you, Jessica. If you knew you still loved me when I fucking proposed, you should've said yes!" he goes off.

"Ant, fuck you. I hate you." I say. He looks back into the house, then steps outside on the porch, closing the door behind him. "Say it again." he threatens, walking closer. I close my eyes tight. "Do not hit me." I mumble. He looks at me funny. "That nigga be beating yo ass?" he asks. "No." I lie. He stares at me for a second. "I know yo ass lying, he beat you, that's why you here. But if you ain't gone do nothing but run up behind him when you get lonely, oh well. If you like it, I love it. Don't ever come to my house with yo drama, you ain't my issue no more. I'm really over you, Jessica. A lot changes over six years and that's what you fail to realize." he says.

I swallow hard, nodding my head. "Well... I need to get away for a while." I say. "You ain't taking my kids no damn where." he says. "That's what I wanted to tell you. I need to be alone for a while, a week or two at the most. I just need to clear my head, so make sure you let them call and video chat with me every single day." I say. He nods his head. Before he can say anything, the door swings open. Polly walks out here completely naked with her arms folded underneath her breasts. "Why is the baby momma here?" she asks, throwing her weave over her shoulders. "I don't know, the baby momma is leaving now, right, baby momma?" he asks me.

I push him into her. "Bitch." I say, storming off to my car. "Bye baby momma! Mad ass hoe! Don't be mad cause yo pussy wack and you couldn't keep this nigga like I can!" she hollers, walking into the driveway. I crank my car up, then pull up, trying to run that hoe over as she runs through the yard. "Yeah, bitch, who mad now, huh?" I scream, not really caring about what happens.

"Ant, get her!" she screams, running towards the house. I purposely crash my car into their house. "You fucking bitch!" I scream at the top of my lungs, puncing the steering wheel over and over. I'm so upset right now, I can't even think straight. I swear I can't win for losing.

Ant opens my door, then wraps his arm around me. "Get off me!" I scream at him. "Shh." he says, kissing my cheek. He picks me up, then grabs my bag out the passegeber seat.

He walks into his house, ignoring the fact that my car is literally stuck in a piece of the side of it. He closes then locks the door. "What the fuck, Ant?" Polly asks. "Put some clothes on, now." he demands, toting me up the stairs. He opens up a guest room, then lays me down on the bed. "I'll be back." he says, then walks out.

All I heard was Polly cussing him out, him apologizing, then him snapping off on her for calling me a hoe. He walks back in the guest room, then closes the door. "My bad, sorry about that. She left for the night, said she was going to stay at her momma's house cause she mad." he says. I shrug my shoulders, trying to control my tears.

He sits on the bed, then takes my shoes off. He starts massaging my feet. "Jessica, you making me feel depressed. Stop crying." he says. "Whatever. Ant, I'm sorry for ruining your life and making you unhappy." I say, staring at my hands. He lifts my head by my chin. "You know something that's funny? You sound just like I did when we were younger. I used to bottle everything up to the point I was depressed and anything could set me off and make me snap so I get it. I understand how you feel. Come on, big baby, go ahead and cry on daddy." he jokingly says, pulling me in his arms. I lay my head on his chest, crying my heart out. I'm so glad he's here for me right now, I needed a shoulder.

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