A Rose by Any Other Name

Chapter 20

Seven's POV

Look, facts
If you got a problem I'm pullin' up, strap
Big booty bitch and I'm pullin' on, tracks
I play with them words, I play with them birds
I'm really that
I'm statin' facts, facts, facts, facts, facts

I heard my phone ringing. I looked at the time and it was 1:24 in the morning. Who the fuck calling me right now? I asked myself.

"You better have a damn good reason calling me at fucking 1:30 in the morning!" I answered my phone.

"Seven, it's Ghost," I heard. It sounded like he was crying.

"G, what's going on?" I asked him.

"Mane, it's Lady Seven. I'm out here in Barbados with her. She's in the hospital. The doctor said it ain't looking too good."

I was still stuck on the part where he said he was with my woman!

"You know where Rose is? And you didn't tell me?! You fucking my girl?!"

"DOMINIC!!" He yelled. "SHUT THE FUCK UP AND LISTEN, NIGGA!" Then he paused and took a breath. "Rose is dying. You need to call her parents, and you and the kids need to get out here quick."

My whole world stopped. When he said Rose was dying, I just couldn't imagine my life without her.

"Yeah okay, I'm getting up and calling them now."

I got up and I called her daddy. "Dominic, it's almost two in the morning," he answered.

"I know, Mr. Gardens, but it's about Rose. I just got a call that she's in the hospital and it's not looking too good. They are calling her family in to say goodbye."

I never heard a grown man cry, but in that moment, hearing her dad cry was very heartbreaking. "Lord, not again," he cried. "Not my baby girl. Okay, Dominic, I'll meet you in at the airport."

"Yes, sir," I said and hung up.

I called Neal next. I explained what was going on. I packed a few bags and headed to the airport. Neal, the kids, and Rose's parents were there waiting for me. I hugged her parents, and we waited until they called our flight.

EIGHT HOURS LATER

As soon as we landed I rented a Jeep so we could go to the hospital. Once we pulled and got inside, her daddy went to check on her. Once he made it back over to us, he said, "She's calling the doctor for us now."

I spotted Ghost and Lisa sitting in a corner. I dapped Ghost up. I tried to hug Lisa, but she turned her back on me.

"Have they told y'all anything?" I asked Ghost.

"Not really. Just that she was in a bad car wreck and she had a lotta damage. They took her straight to ICU and we've just been sitting here waiting on more details." he answered.

"Oh now you care?" Lisa said through her tears. "Now that she's laying on her fucking death bed, you care about her. This is your fault!" She reached in her pocket and threw a piece of paper at me. "Read it! It's a fucking suicide note!"

I opened up the paper.

Dear family,
If you're reading this, that means I'm no longer here with you. While I know this is hard to believe, I want you to know it's been hard for me as well. From the age of twelve until now, I've been battling that depression so deep that it has eaten away at me.
Mom & Daddy, I'm so sorry. I know this hurt y'all the most. I couldn't do it anymore. Zaydha and Jamison, I love y'all so much. I'm sorry I had to leave y'all. To the guys, y'all were my brothers. Y'all looked out for me, but there was still something missing from me.
Dominic,
I have loved you since I was 11 years old. I used to watch you and the guys play basketball at the park and admired you from afar. I wish I could have been more for you. I wish I could have given you that family you wanted. And most importantly, I wish you could have loved me the way that I loved you.
Farewell,
Rose Chanel Gardens

I read that letter and couldn't began to phantom the thought of what I was reading. Did she really try to kill herself? Was I really to blame for what was happening right now? So many thing were going through my mind.

"The family of Rose Gardens?" I heard and it brought me back to reality.

"Yes, sir," her dad said. "That's us."

"Okay, so Rose was in a car wreck. She passed out behind the wheel and drove through a red light. She was hit from both sides. The damage that she sustained where very life threatening. She also suffered from a subdural hematoma which is bleeding on the brain. We went in to stop the bleeding, but because of it, she has fallen into a coma. We did a tox screen on her. She had oxycodone and cocaine in her system. Her blood alcohol level was a 3.2. But as far as her other damages, two cracked ribs, a broken leg, and a broken collar bone, we were able to repair those also. It's gonna be up to her from now on whether she lives or dies."

I fell to my knees and cried. What was I supposed to do without her. How am I gonna raise these kids by myself? I can't lose her.