LOVELESS

Chapter 12

Veronica gets out of a Lincoln Town car, holding a Louis Vuitton duffel bag, and walks up to a Brownstone in Brooklyn, New York. She hears loud music coming from inside. She chuckles to herself, knowing that familiar sound. She bangs and kicks on the door until someone swings it open.

"Who the fuck is knock-" An older version of Sam stands in the doorway, staring at Veronica. The sight of her makes him smile.

"Hi Uncle Larry!" Veronica attacks him with a hug.

He grabs her face, and takes one more look at it. He pecks her cheeks, her forehead, her nose, and then back to her cheeks while Veronica giggles the whole time. "I missed you, too."

"Come in, come in!" He opens the door wider before Veronica enters. "Lily! Baby! Turn that music down!" He yells out towards the back of his home.

A woman comes around the corner holding a glass of wine. "What?" The woman gasps when she lays eyes on Veronica. She grins before running away to turn the music down, and then quickly returns to them. She hands her husband her glass and embraces her niece.

"-Oh." Veronica is in shock of Liliana's affection. Larry laughs, and then takes a sip of Liliana's wine.

"How much wine did you drink, Aunt Lily?"

"Shut up, girl."

They all laugh.

"So what're you doing out here?" Larry asks.

"Yeah, why didn't you tell us you were coming? I would've cooked," Liliana adds. "Wait; is Sammie out here, too?"

"No, just me. I'm doing my nail tour. I just finished my stop in the city."

"Whaaattt?!"

"Yep, your girl is doing big things Unc!"

"That's what I'm talking about! Come on, let's sit out back. You want a glass of wine?"

"Yep. I don't have to leave until tomorrow, so let's party."

Larry and Liliana laugh at their crazy niece. Both excited to have her around.

__

NEXT DAY

Back in Cali, Yemi is on her way out when she sees Sam relaxing on the balcony. She joins him. "Good morning."

Sam doesn't even look back at her. He just nods.

"Do you need anything while I'm out?"

"No."

"You sure?"

He nods.

Yemi sighs and then stands in front of him, forcing him to give her his attention. "If you're going to switch up on me, then I rather us go back to staying out of each other's way. I allowed my cousin to fuck up my mental. I'm not gonna go through the same thing with you."

"You asked me a question, and I answered. What else do you want?"

She throws her hands on her hips, annoyed with his stubbornness. She then digs into her purse and pulls out a couple of bills. "I can't give you the full amount now, because I have to get my car towed to the mechanic. But I will give you the rest in two weeks."

Sam doesn't take the money from her. "I told you, you don't have to pay rent until next month."

"It's for the outfit you bought me for church."

"What happened to the barter system?"

"I changed my mind. There's nothing I can do for you." She tosses the money on his lap. "Good luck with everything." Sam glances down at the money, then mean-mugs her as Yemi rolls her eyes at him. Sam stands up and towers over her, trying to find the right comeback that will mask his weakness for her. They have a quick stare down before Yemi makes a beeline to the front door.

"Yemi!"

Yemi ignores him and leaves the loft.

__

Veronica is about to enter the kitchen when she hears Liliana crying to her Uncle Larry. Veronica furrows her eyebrows, wondering why her aunt-in-law is acting so different. Liliana has always been a tough cookie, so to see her so emotional like this is worrying Veronica.

"She's never been a gossiper, so I don't think she'll tell them," Larry tells his wife.

Veronica clears her throat, making her presence known. Liliana quickly wipes away her tears in an attempt to hide them.

"Well, I gotta get going. I have another stop in Jersey in a couple of hours."

"Okay, babygirl. It was good hanging out with you last night." Larry hugs her.

"Yoooo. I really did have fun with you old folks."

"Watch it now!" They all laugh.

Then Veronica eyes Liliana. 

"Stop looking at me like that, girl."

Veronica kisses her on the cheek, throwing Liliana off guard.

"...We both can't be out of character." Larry and Veronica chuckle at Liliana's joke.

"I don't wanna pry, so just call me if you ever want to talk."

"Baby, go ahead and tell her," Larry chimes in.

"You do it. This is too much for me." Liliana turns to leave. "Have a safe trip, V."

"Thank you." Veronica turns to Larry. "So what's going on?"

He takes a long deep breath. "She has cancer."

Veronica covers her mouth in shock.

"She doesn't want the boys to know. She thinks they'll treat her like a charity case. She only wants you to know, because she wants to build a closer relationship with you before her time ends." Veronica starts to get teary eyed.

"She may have not shown it before, but she really loves you like her daughter. She just didn't want you to think she was trying to take your mom's place. So she stayed back."

A couple of tears fall from Veronica's eyes. Larry consoles her.

__

Yemi walks out of the mechanic shop and waits near the curb. Moments later, an Escalade pulls up in front of her and she waves. She gets inside and hugs her co-worker Kaylin. Kaylin is all types of fine. He's tall and muscular like Sam, but with a milk chocolate complexion. His dimples make his smile even more captivating. 

"What's up Yemi?"

"Hey. Thanks for picking me up."

"Anytime."

—

Yemi and Kaylin sit at a desk across from the property manager. The manager types a few things into the computer, and then moments later...

"You're approved." The manager smiles as Yemi grins from ear to ear.

"Thank you so much."

"No problem. People will start moving in next month. But the apartments will be ready in two weeks, if you would like to move in early?"

"I would love that. More like need that."

They all laugh.

"You got it. Let's start on your paperwork."