Picture Perfect

31.

~Sam~

"So there's an altercation at y'all's practice facility and somehow I'm to blame according to the fucking media? I cost y'all the season? I ruined ya'lls playoff run cause what? That dumb ass nigga got his feelings hurt after fucking me over for years and got himself suspended?"

"So you really think you play no part in this shit? Like you don't understand why the picture has been painted that way?" Kyler twists his face at me.

Oh nah. Not him trying to put this shit on me cause things ain't going his way. He was suspended for a few games too but compared to Garrison's indefinite, 6 games ain't shit.

"Please don't test me. Cause you playing with me right now."

"Don't what?" He asks as if he didn't hear me correctly.

"Whatever."

"Samantha wake the fuck up. This shit was dangerous. We both knew that. Our God children almost lost their fucking dad behind this bullshit."

I get closer to him and it honestly hurts my heart that he'd try to guilt trip me like this about an affair we both had.

"Don't try to make it seem like I almost cost Jabari his life."

"You did!"

I just shake my head in disbelief.

"We did."

"Nope, stand by what the fuck you just said. It's always the woman that gets blamed for the man's mess. I thought you were a fucking good one. I thought you understood. But it's clear to me you fucking don't."

"Stop it..."

"Don't fucking tell me to stop!"

"It's on both of us, I tried to correct myself. I'm not just blaming you. You don't think I feel like shit too? Jabari doesn't want to play right now. He can't. He's not even answering my calls but it's going around that this shit fucked him up. And it's on all of us. Me, you, and Garrison. And that's the one thing he kept saying to me behind this shit is that it would get messy, and would cost the team the season and look, no shooting guard, no center, at least not ones who can get down with the way Bari moves enough to hold it down until we can get back and by then it's too late."

"I don't want to hear about fucking basketball. Is that all you care about right now? Fucking basketball."

"Yes! You're fucking a basketball player, are you serious?"

I laugh knowing there's no way I can win this argument then. An argument that really shouldn't even be an argument. I'm just the demon, the succubus spirit. The downfall of two great players, the one who ruined one by fucking another and almost costing him his life.

"And here I thought you cared about me. Start a family my ass. Let's pray I don't end up pregnant. Shit sounds good when it's just a fucking fantasy I see. How could I be so stupid?"

~Jabari~

Elijah brings my food upstairs and sets the bowl of spaghetti down on the dresser next to me.

"Where's the juice?" I look over.

She pulls a bottle of water from behind her back.

"You've been in this room on the game all damn day. You haven't had a sip of anything other than Jariel's Caprisuns. Drink some water."

"You want to be my momma so bad." I snicker taking the bottle from her. I set it on the dresser and she looks into my eyes.

"He's calling. He's texted. He wants to see how you're doing? You can't ice him out like that, this ain't on him." She starts.