His Emancipator🖤 [His Duet #1]

CHAPTER TWENTY NINE

“It’s not your fault. Really” I say as she puts the car into park. To be honest I really thought Madison wouldn’t be home tonight, at least that’s what’s been her norm for the past few days. If I knew she’d be around I wouldn’t have agreed to take Zuri there.

Our elevator ride is also filled with silence. Zuri is still beating herself up about this whole issue, I can see it all over her face.

“Sit. I’ll go get the first aid kit” she says once we enter her apartment.

She comes back a few minutes later a small kit in hand although still distressed. She sits right beside me and gestures for my hand “Looks like we both have one useless hand now” I attempt to lighten the mood.

Zuri barely looks up at me as she cleans the wound and later on bandages it. “Are you okay?”

“Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?”

“Just tell me what’s on your mind” I persuade, not ready to confront everything that’s just happened. I bottle up my feelings because that’s what I’m good at.

She stands up abruptly that I almost think she’s gonna leave instead she rakes a hand through her hair, slowly pacing the room “I- I- just…I don’t know Darelle. I know I’m overreacting and this is not the time to make things about me but I’m frustrated at myself for not noticing sooner, at Madison for being the worst human alive and at the society for painting men as robots who are considered weak when they show their emotions” her voice breaks.

“The bruise on your forehead at the charity gala and afterwards in the bathroom, the scratches on your cheek when we went to your mom’s, the bandage on your palm when we went to Lucas’. I mean I had my doubts about your excuses but I suspended them as paranoia” She says, irked.

“For what it’s worth I’m good at hiding shit. I started at a young age” I whisper the last part.

She retakes her position next to me, circling her arm around my shoulder.  “I’m really sorry D. I can’t imagine how tough it was for you” I wish she knew she is the reason I kept fighting every single day to stay alive, the reason I couldn’t bring myself to end it no matter how many times in a day I thought about it. She was and will always be my safe haven.

As if reading my thoughts, she asks “That day when we met at the bridge, was that thought you answered me true?”

“Maybe”

She sucks in a sharp breath, leaning her head on my shoulder. “I’m so sorry I didn’t get you out of it sooner” she says mumbles.

“It’s okay. When you’re in my position you learn to live with it or rather with them.”

I push back and lean on the backrest of the couch. Out of instinct, Zuri settles on my chest her pointer finger drawing small circles around it. I heave a sigh of comfort, placing my good arm around her.

“Do you wanna talk about it?” she whispers.

“No” I’m not sure I can handle opening up when I don’t even know what I feel right now. Maybe I just don’t want to acknowledge that everything is out in the open now even if it’s only Zuri who knows. Am I supposed to breakdown and cry or be glad because now I don’t have to carry the burden alone? At the end of it all will my family be okay when Crapper finds out?

“But just keep doing what you’re doing”

“What? This?” she asks, drawing circles with two of her fingers now.

“Yeah it’s so comforting” I mumble.

“Okay. I can do that but we’ll have to go to bed sometime soon”