"Dionne!" Diiiiioooonnne?" Keith yells, banging on the front door of her apartment. "Dionne! Are you in there?!" He presses his ear against the door. "Damn!" He punches his fist into the palm of his other hand. "What did Kandice do?" Is the door unlocked? Keith turns the door knob, answering his question. "It's unlocked." He whispers, opening the door, before slowly walking into the apartment. "Dionne?" He softly calls. "Dionne?"
*
"How are you gonna find out?" Jackie asks Jermaine as he cleans his sunglasses.
"With your help." Jermaine gestures then wipes dust off the side of his car.
"My help?" Jackie points at himself.
"Yup." Jermaine dusts his hands. "Your help, bro."
"What do I have to do with this?" Jackie shrugs. "How can I help you?"
"You dated Keith's sister, right?"
Jackie nods. "Yeah, so."
"Give me her number so I can call her." Jermaine says with his hands out. "Because I think we need to discuss some things with her."
Jackie arches a brow and studies Jermaine's unapologetic face.
*
"Pregnant?" I take a step back from Kendra. "By who?"
Kendra swallows hard and stares at me.
"You're pregnant, Kenny?" Teyonna asks as she walks over to us. "You're pregnant?"
"I could be." Kendra sniffs and wipes her nose.
"By who?" I ask again as she gives me a lazy look. I catch her drift and slowly gasp. "DEVONTE?! YOU'RE PREGNANT BY DEVONTE, KENDRA!!??"
Kendra wipes a tear as it rolls down her cheek.
*
"Dionne?" Keith calls again as he closes the front door behind him. "Are you here? It's me, Keith!" He looks around the messy room. "Damn, what did they do in here? It looks like world war three happened in here." The room literally looks like it's been turned upside down and shaken for days. "Diiioooonneee?" Keith singsongs as he picks up a piece of hair from the floor. "Did my sister kill you?"
As Keith rounds the corner, he turns on the hallway light and immediately gasps at the sight before him.
*
"Please, no." Teyonna shakes her head. "Please, tell me you're not pregnant by him, Kendra! You're pregnant by DEVONTE?!"
Kendra's silence seemingly answers our lingering question.
I shake my head and stare at her in disgust.
I can never shine alone can I?
I can't believe this.
My best friend, excuse me, ex-best friend is pregnant by my first love?
This can't be real.
It can't be.
I refuse to believe this is real.
Kendra sniffles through her tears.
Why is she fake crying?
"You had sex with more than just him though, Kendra." Michael interjects as he walks up behind me. "There could be a chance the baby is Trey's."
Kendra scoffs. "Kinda like Jazz's baby could be Keith's?"
Michael glares. "I wasn't trying to be rude, Kendra."
"And Keith's dick accidentally slipped into Jazmyne's pussy!" She patronizes. "Whatever, Michael. Go somewhere else with that shit."
"Bitch, I didn't have sex with Keith voluntarily and you know that!!" I seethe, walking into her face. "Plus I'm too far along for this baby to be that bastard's."
"Prove it." She smirks. "Amniocentesis will shut everyone up! Prove this baby is Michael's, Jazz!"
Oooo, I can just see myself slapping the shit out of this bitch right now!!
The nerve of her trying to turn the tables on me when her ass is in the wrong.
"I don't have to prove a damn thing, bitch, because this baby is Michael's!" I retort. "But you, oh you will have to prove this baby is Devonte's, because believe me, sweetie, he will deny it!"
"Like he denied yours when you were pregnant by him?" Kendra shoots back and Teyonna and I gasp.
Oh my gosh.
"Hold up, you were once pregnant by Devonte?" Michael asks, turning me around to him.
"You were pregnant before, Jazmyne?" Keri asks next.
I look at Michael then at Kendra.
So it's like that?
We're telling secrets now?
Kendra smiles. "You know, Jazmyne, since we aren't friends anymore, I'm feeling like all bets are off. Let's do this."
Oh really?
"Kenny, don't do this!" Teyonna warns.
"No, Teyonna!" Kendra yells. "Jazz wants to play hardball. I can play hardball too!"
"Kenny, don't--"
"NO!" Kendra yells again. "Jazmyne, did you tell Michael that the doctor told you after you got raped you could NEVER have babies?! Oh and did you tell him that you've had TWO abortions?!"
"What!?" Michael stares at me. "Jazmyne, you've had two abortions?"
"No." I shake my head, looking over at Teyonna. "I haven't."
"Don't lie to me." He warns. "Did you have two abortions, Jazmyne?!"
"No!" I repeat, honestly. "Michael, I have never--"
Michael shakes his head and backs away from me. "You're lying!"
"I'm not lying, Michael!" I walk up to him. "I have never had an abortion! I don't know where she got that from! That bitch is lying!!"
Kendra smacks her lips and Michael shakes his head again as he walks backwards to the door.
"Here we go with the lies again, Jazmyne. I-I can't be with you if you're going to keep lying to me. I can't be with you, Jazz."
"Michael," My voice cracks as I stare at him. "I'm not lying, baby, I promise. I am not lying. I have never had an abortion."
"Whatever, Jazmyne," He hisses and opens the door. "I'm done with--"
"Michael, Jazz is not lying!" Teyonna blurts and Michael stops in his tracks. "She's not lying."
He turns back and frowns. "What do you mean she's not lying?"
"Jazmyne has never had an abortion." Teyonna continues as she walks over to me. "She's telling you the truth, Michael."
"No , she isn't!" Kendra interjects. "I saw the papers, Teyonna, and it's clear that Jazmyne had two abortions during our first and second year in college."
"Proof." Michael spits, glaring at me, and I sigh. "You didn't have to lie for her, Tey. Ugh! I'm out of here."
"The papers are lying on Jazmyne." Teyonna says as Michael turns to leave again. "Someone had an abortion but it wasn--"
"Teyonna, don't--" I interrupt as Michael turns around again to look at us.
"No, Jazmyne, I'm saving your relationship." She sighs. "He can't leave you for this. You two belong together."
I sigh and rub my forehead.
I can't believe she's gonna do this.
"Why?" Michael frowns. "Teyonna, there's no need for you to "try to save our relationship", because I know she's lyi--"
"I had the abortions, Michael," Teyonna speaks over him and everyone, except me, gapes at her. "I just used Jazmyne's name. Jazz has never had an abortion. She's never been pregnant until now. Those papers Kendra's referring to that had Jazmyne's name on them were mine, not hers. I've had two abortions."
*
"Oh my God," Keith whispers, staring down at Dionne lying unconscious, bloody, and bruised on the floor. "what did Kandice do to you?"
He kneels beside Dionne to feel for a pulse.
Thankfully, she has one.
"Thank God." Keith pats her face. "Dionne? Dionne?"
No response.
He jogs down the hallway into the bathroom to grab a wet towel.
"Lord," He sighs as he kneels beside Dionne again. "this is not good. Kandice went overboard."
He dabs the cloth around Dionne's face until she slowly opens the one eye she can open.
Her left eye is swollen shut.
"You bruise worse than Jazmyne." Keith whispers as he examines Dionne's wounds.
"Uuughh." Dionne groans as Keith continues dabbing her face.
When she recognizes his face she tries to scream.
"Shh! Shh! Shh!" Keith urges as he covers her mouth. "I'm not going to hurt you, Dionne, I promise! Calm down! I promise. I'm not here to hurt you!"
Dionne whimpers as she stares up at Keith, rubbing her cheek to calm her down.
"I promise I'm not going to hurt you, Dionne." He reassures. "I'm only here to help you. Please stay calm."
After a few minutes, Dionne finally relaxes and allows Keith to cradle her in his arms.
*
"Are you just covering for her, Teyonna?" Michael asks, suspiciously, as he walks closer to us.
Teyonna shakes her head. "No. No, I'm not, Michael. I promise."
"Because I know you love Jazmyne enough to, so tell me you're not doing that, Tey."
"I promise, Michael, I'm not doing that." Teyonna assures. "I am not covering for Jazmyne, Michael, but she did cover me." Michael's face softens as he looks over at me. I look down at the floor then over at Teyonna. "Truth is," Teyonna begins again as I stare at her. "I had the abortions, not Jazmyne. Like I've said, I just used her name."
"Why did you use Jazmyne's name, Teyonna?" Keri asks as she walks over to her. "Why didn't you use your own?"
"I used her name, because no one would know." Teyonna says as Siggy places his hands on her shoulders.
"What?" Keri sighs. "I-I-I don't under--"
"When I started college, Ms. Keri, I wasn't on my own like Jazmyne. Well, financially; physically I was. So like a lot of girls fresh in college, I got into a relationship I thought was right and did all the wrong things while in it. Long story short, I ended up getting pregnant twice by the same loser." I sigh as Teyonna continues and Michael stares at me. "If I had used my credit cards or even my health insurance, my mother would have seen I had the abortions. At that time, she was over everything in my life, financially." Teyonna takes a deep breath before going on. "So since Jazmyne didn't have any help from you or her father financially, I knew no one would find out about the abortions, so I asked Jazmyne for help. The first time I got pregnant and the second time I got pregnant. Being the great friend she is, she helped me both times. Furthermore, so it wouldn't happen a third time, she helped me get on the pill." She chuckles a little and I lightly smile, thinking of those times. "So my mother wouldn't find out, I used Jazz's money and name. I had every intention to pay her back, but Jazz refused to take my money. And it was her idea to use her name when I went in for the abortions." Teyonna sighs and stares at me with love. "She said it was already tarnished enough, so what would two abortions do to it? Though Jazmyne didn't agree with my decisions to have the abortions, she stood by my side through both, and I owe her everything for that."
Michael stares at me in amazement.
I look down at the floor then over at Teyonna.
That's my best friend.
She didn't have to do that, but she did.
She did.
I wipe a tear from my cheek.
"So you let her use your name, Jazmyne? Just like that?" Keri snaps her fingers. "You didn't think this would ever come up again? You didn't think I would think it was you, Jazz? How could you be so--"
"She's protected me, Mama," I interrupt. "from soooo many things. So I thought it was time for me to start protecting her too. I chose to do this for my best friend and I don't regret doing it. Besides, it's my name, not yours."
"Prot--Protect?" Keri chuckles then scoffs. "This is something Teyonna's mother should have known, Jazmyne. You shouldn't have been "protecting" her from anything. Teyonna should have called her mother and told her mother!"
"Like Jazmyne told you about Devonte beating her?" Kendra interjects.
Everyone's head snaps around to look in Kendra's direction.
No, she didn't.......AGAIN?!
"Damn, Kenny." Teyonna mumbles. "Really?"
"Beating her?" Keri questions and turns to me. "Devonte beat you? Devonte beat you, Jazmyne?"
I shake my head before turning and walking towards the door.
I'm putting my baby first.
I am so done with this.
I've gotta get out of here.
Michael grabs my arm and stops me.
"Where are you going?"
"Away from here." I jerk my arm away from him. "Before I fuck up a deserving, big mouthed bitch."
I look at Kendra and she looks down at the floor with guilt.
Teyonna rubs the bridge of her nose and shakes her head as I leave.
I slam the apartment door behind me.
I can't believe Kendra.