ARMONI POV:
I stared at the T.V with a blank expression on my face. I can not believe this. They killed that man. They killed him because of me. I felt sick to my damn stomach. Although Darryl Hayes did the unthinkable to me yesterday, I would never have wanted him dead. Beat up a little maybe, but not killed. They even chopped his body up. I should've never told Jerome that man's name, but in my defense I was scared shitless. The look in Jerome's eyes literally scared the hell out of me.
I sighed as I finally snapped out of my thoughts when I heard Aaliyah throwing up. I slowly made my way to the bathroom to help her. After she was finished throwing up, I made sure she cleaned herself up and brushed her teeth before helping her back into my bed. Since Aaliyah is contagious and she's been sleeping in my bed, I slept in Jerome's room last night. Since he never came home.
"Mommy!" She called to me as I was spraying the bathroom with bleach spray, trying to kill all of Aaliyah's germs. I didn't want everybody else to get sick, we couldn't afford to miss any of our classes with midterms quickly approaching.
"Yes baby?" I replied.
"Can I have some juice?" She asked.
"In just a second Li." I told her as I wiped down the toilet and then the bathroom counter. I washed my hands before heading in the kitchen to get her something to drink. I know she wanted juice, but since finding out she's dehydrated, she's about to get this water.
"Mom." She groaned when she saw that I'd brought her water instead of juice."
"I know, but you're dehydrated Li. You need to drink water." I told her.
"I'm not thirsty any more." She pouted before rolling over with a huff and snatching the covers over her head making her sigh. I love Aaliyah but she was getting on my nerves with this little attitude she had. One moment she was happy and then the next she was mad. I don't know if it was because she was sick or if her mother's side is starting to come out of her.
"Aaliyah drink the water. If you drink it, I'll let you have juice at lunch." I compromised.
"I said, I'm not thirsty anymore!" She snapped at me with an attitude, making me raise my eyebrow.
"Little girl." I hissed, snatching the covers away from her. "Don't play with me, watch who you're talking to. I'm not your mother but you will respect me." I told her sternly. It took everything in me not to snatch her little ass up. I do not tolerate disrespectful children, especially if I'm taking care of them. "When I come back, that water better be gone and you better not pour it out either."
"Yes ma'am." She mumbled with a pout. Before I could even leave the room, my phone rang. It was Erica, I sighed before answering the phone as I left my room and headed to the kitchen. I got Aaliyah something light for breakfast; half of a banana, a cup of yogurt, and half of a slice of toast.
"Hello." I said answering the phone after taking a deep breath.
"Armoni." She sighed. "What did you do?" She asked.
"I didn't do anything." I whined as I placed the plate of food on the dresser for Aaliyah. I smirked as I noticed the glass of water from earlier was gone. I took the glass into the kitchen and began washing it. "I don't know what happened, all I saw was his face on the news and that's when I text you and Ashley." I told her honestly.
"Did your little boyfriend have anything to do with this?" She asked making me sigh.
"I don't have a boyfriend." I mumbled.
"Little girl." She warned, making me sigh. Although I was positive that Jerome or Emanuel had something to do with the death of Darryl Hayes, I was not about to tell Erica that. We had a close relationship and I trusted her, but not with something like this. I needed to talk to Jerome.
"I don't know, Erica. I haven't talked to him." I sighed, keeping my mouth shut about my suspicions of Jerome and Emanuel having something to do with this murder.
"Okay, well if anything comes up let me know." She sighed. Hell no! I'm not incriminating myself like that. The police already know what happened yesterday in my office and they'll most likely link everything back to me. This is all a big mess, I just wish Jerome would've left it alone. I should've kept my damn mouth shut when he asked who did it.
"Yes ma'am, I will." I lied. "See you tomorrow."
"No ma'am, you're off the rest of the week. You need rest Armoni." She told me, making me sigh. I was getting paid regardless if I came to work or not, since I was paid on a salary and not paid hourly but I actually enjoy my job. I don't know what to do with myself if I'm not busy or working.
"Fine." I huffed, with a small pout on my face.
"Fix your face." She told me making me laugh. She knows me so well. "Love you, get some rest and call me if you need anything."
"I will, love you too." I told her before we ended the phone call. I made myself a protein shake and ate the other half of Aaliyah's banana and a piece of toast. I cleaned up around the apartment a little before going to take my shower. Since I only had class on Monday's and Wednesday's and practice wasn't until later this afternoon, I had nothing to do. I just dressed in a tank top and a pair of cotton shorts with a pair of long Hello Kitty socks.
I was trying not to think of the Darryl Hayes situation but it was weighing heavily on my mind. That man is dead all because of me. He could've been someone father, son, uncle, grandfather, husband, or brother. The fact the I was somewhat responsible for this man' death made me feel horrible. I tried to push all thoughts of him to the back of my head.
Aaliyah had finished her breakfast and gone back to sleep by the time I was out of the shower and dressed. I cleaned up in Jerome's room a little before starting on the laundry. I usually only did Jerome, Aaliyah, and my laundry but since I had nothing else to do, I went ahead and did Tatiyana and Mike's laundry too. While the last load was drying, I went ahead and got settled and started on the homework that I'd gotten yesterday. I was situated in the kitchen, sitting on the island with my laptop and the three assignments that were due tomorrow.
I'd finally finished with my homework around noon and I was bored out of my mind. I wasn't used to just sitting around like this, I needed something to do. I would've gone to work out or went shopping but I couldn't since I had Aaliyah with me. She still wasn't feeling well and I didn't want to take her out. After flipping aimlessly through the channels on T.V. I finally started going through movies and I couldn't even find one that sparked my interest.
I found a workout DVD and popped it in the TV. I moved the couches and coffee table so that I could have room to move around freely. Once the living room was spacious enough for me to move around, I start the workout. About twenty minutes in, I heard Aaliyah gagging. I paused the tape before running to my room and praying to God that she hadn't puked on my sheets or my carpet.
Thankfully, she wasn't even in my room. She'd made it to the bathroom and was on her knees in the toilet bowl. I'd put her hair up into a messy bun and wrapped a scarf around it so she wouldn't have to worry about it all in her face. I got a towel from the cabinet and ran cold water over it before preparing her toothbrush with toothpaste and mouthwash for her. I'd finally got her settled back into bed. She was still burning up with a fever.
I googled some ways to help break a fever since I wasn't familiar with dealing with sick people. I wasn't the type to get sick very often. I got a cold towel and put it across her forehead before giving her a popsicle to eat. I poured her another glass of water before giving her a glass of ice chips. I gave her a dose of children's ibuprofen as well. I was trying to do everything to get rid of this fever.
I went back to my work out video while I let Aaliyah rest. I would check her temperature again in an hour to see if those remedies helped with her fever, if not. I would have to call her doctor. After finishing my workout video, I showered again before checking Aaliyah's temperature. Thank God her fever was gone. Her stomach was still bothering her but she was no longer hot and sweating.
I laid on the opposite end of the bed with her and did some online shopping. Since I couldn't actually go out and shop, I did the next best thing. Just as I was about to purchase a pair of cognac colored, knee high gladiator sandals, my phone rang. It was Brandy calling.
"Hey girl, wassup?" I said as I answered the phone.
"Nothing much, I need a favor though." She said making me slightly roll my eyes. If it wasn't one thing it was the other with Brandy. She was one of my best friends and I loved her to death but sometimes I got tired of constantly taking care of her.
"What is it?" I asked, already knowing she was going to ask me for money, again.
"Do you mind if I borrow $150 until next week. I'll pay you back on Friday." She told me.
"Yeah, that's fine." I replied, already knowing she wasn't going to pay me back. I've been letting Brandy borrow money from me since her freshman year and she hasn't paid me a penny back. I don't really mind because we're friends and I don't like to see people I love struggle. I'm a very generous person so if I have money in my pockets, we both have money in our pockets.
"Is it okay if I come by and get it now?" She asked.
"Sure." I replied. The phone call hadn't ended for two seconds before I hear knocking on the front door. So she just knew I'd say yes. I got up from the bed and headed to the living room to open the door for Brandy.
"Hey girl, thanks for letting me borrow this money." She said giving me a hug as she walked into the apartment. I closed and locked the door behind her before following her into my room. "What's wrong with her?" She asked, gesturing to Aaliyah who was still asleep in my bed.
"She has a stomach virus." I explained as I slipped my feet into a pair of flip flops. I grabbed my key, phone, and wallet. "Can you watch her for a second, while I go get your money?" I asked. There was an ATM machine in the main building of our apartment complex, it was convenient for everybody.
"Yeah sure, take your time." She said kicking off her shoes and sitting at the edge of the bed.
"Li, I'll be right back. Brandy's going to stay with you while I'm gone." I told Aaliyah as I shook her awake and whispered to her. She nodded her head before I kissed her forehead and left. I was gone and came back in less than five minutes, thankfully there wasn't a line. After I gave Brandy the money, she was gone. She claimed she needed to go buy more running shoes before practice, tonight.
I tried calling Jerome and it went straight to voicemail. I didn't really want to talk to him right now but I had practice in a few hours and I couldn't bring Aaliyah with me, especially while she was sick. Jerome needed to answer the damn phone, for his daughter's sake. I tried calling Mike as well but his phone went straight to voicemail too.
I called Ms. Jocelyn to ask her if she'd watch Aaliyah while I went to practice but she was at work and she was booked until later tonight with clients. Justycee wasn't home from cheerleading practice yet and Jerome still wasn't answering the damn phone.
"Mama where are you?" I asked, as she answered the phone.
"Well hello Armoni, I'm fine thank you." She scoffed dramatically making me laugh.
"I'm sorry, hi Mama. How are you?" I asked her.
"I'm good baby, how are you?" She asked me, making me sigh. I began explaining everything to her, leaving out the part about me thinking Jerome and Emanuel were to blame for that man's death.
"Your brother did it, huh?" She asked with a sigh. My parents know of Emanuel's illegal dealings, they don't approve but what can they do? That's their oldest son and they love him despite his career as a professional criminal.
"I don't know Mama." I admitted, truthfully I didn't know who was responsible but Jerome and Emanuel were at the top of my list of suspects. We talked about the situation for a few moments later before I finally got to the real reason that I called. "Mom, do you mind watching Aaliyah for me?" I asked her, hoping she wasn't at work.
"When?" She asked.
"In about an hour, I have practice at six." I told her.
"Yeah, bring her over. I hope she knows she's about to be asleep the whole time. I'm working overnight, tonight and I need my rest." She chuckled. My mom is the head nurse at one of the main hospitals in the city. She works long and demanding hours most of the time, but they know not to mess with her weekends. She works like a slave during the week in order to have her weekends off.
"Okay, thanks Mama. We'll be over in a minute." I said.
"Okay baby, see you when you get here. Love you." She said before hanging up the phone. I got up and packed my athletics bag for practice before packing a bag for Aaliyah as well. I got her some comfortable clothes to change into before waking her up so we could go. She took a quick shower before changing into her clothes and slipping into her shoes. While she was in the shower, I disinfected my room and put on new sheets after I'd put the old ones in the washer.
"Where are we going?" Aaliyah asked me as she pouted.
"You're going to my moms house while I go to practice." I informed her as I handed her, her Hello Kitty backpack. She slipped it over her shoulders before following me to the door.
"NaeNae's house?" She asked, lighting up.
"Yep." I nodded, with a smirk. All of my mom's children call her NaeNae and they call my father PawPaw. Every chance Aaliyah got, she was trying to go over there. My parents are very accepting of Aaliyah, but with Jerome it's a different story. Every time I try to get Jerome to come over to my parents house with me, he always gives me an excuse as to why he can't come. If I didn't know any better, I would think that he's scared to meet my parents.
Before we left the apartment I made sure to grab a plastic bag and a large trash bag just in case she got sick again on the way there. I think she was starting to feel better because she was bobbing her head to the music.
"Mama." Aaliyah called over the music.
"Yes, baby?" I asked lowering the volume with the button that was on my steering wheel.
"I know I'm not your daughter but thank you for being my mom and taking care of me." She said making me smile to myself.
"You're welcome Aaliyah." I said before winking at her through the mirror. "You feeling better?" I asked her. She nodded her head so I smiled before turning the music back up. I was starting to get a little hungry so I decided to stop at McDonald's. I ordered Aaliyah chicken nuggets and got a Big Mac for myself.
"Mama, can I have cookies too?" She asked me. I nodded my head before ordering a few cookies as well as something for my mom too. Daddy was most likely still at work and Leilani and Leland hadn't come home from their practices yet.
"Don't eat too fast, okay. I don't want you getting sick again and you need to drink at least two bottles of water by the time I come back to get you." I told her as we got out of my car and headed up the long driveway to my parents house. I got my key out of my purse and opened the door.
"Mama!" I yelled as we walked into the house.
"In the den." She called back in response. I went and put the food in the kitchen as Aaliyah ran off to the den, to see my mom. "Hi Li-Li, I missed my princess." I heard Mama coo as I brought her food into the den. Aaliyah was talking a mile a minute so I just handed my mom her bag of food and the sweet tea I'd brought her.
"Hey Mama." I said kissing her cheek as I sat down in Daddy's recliner.
"Hi Mookie." She smiled as she took the food from the bag. "You didn't bring my baby anything to eat?" She asked.
"I did, it's in the kitchen." I told her, before she could jump on me and start fussing.
"Go get it baby, you can eat in here with NaeNae." She told Aaliyah before patting her butt. I scoffed before shaking my head.
"You never let us eat anywhere but the kitchen, Mama." I complained. Now that I'm an adult, it seems like all my nieces, nephews, and Aaliyah get privileges that me and my siblings never got. They can pretty much do anything and get away with it. It bugs the hell out of me. Yes. I'm a little jealous.
"So, this is my house." She hummed.
"But it's not fair. If me, Imani or Emanuel would've tried to step foot out of the kitchen with even a glass of water we would've got beat." I laughed, truthfully. Even my younger siblings Leilani and Leland have more freedom than we did. Now that Mama and Daddy have gotten older, they just don't care anymore.
"Life ain't fair." She shrugged as she took a bite of her burger. I smacked my lips and she looked up at me, giving me the eye.
"Sorry." I mumbled.
"Gon' in there and get your food." She instructed me. i was grinning, this was the first time I had to eat anywhere in her house with permission. Of course I used to sneak food up to my room and eat it while she was at work, but she didn't need to know that.
When I came back into the den, I sat down in Daddy's recliner and began to eat. I still had about half an hour before I needed to leave to get to practice on time.
"Why haven't you brought Jerome by here lately? I haven't seen him in a while." Mama said making me shrug. I ate a few fries that I'd dipped in bbq sauce before wiping my mouth.
"I've tried to get him to come over. I think he's scared of Daddy." I admitted with a giggle.
"Well he doesn't have a choice anymore. I'm cooking dinner after church on Sunday and he better be here. I'm not playing with him." She said sternly, making me nod.
"I'll relay the message." I chuckled as I continued to eat. Once I finished my food, I gathered everyone's trash and took it to the kitchen. As soon as Aaliyah finished eating, Mama made me give her a mask to put on. I helped her put on the mask and then went to wash my hands. When I came back, Aaliyah's head was in my mom's lap and she was half asleep. I went up to my old room and got a blanket for them to share.
"Thank you baby, have a good practice." Mama said as I covered her and Aaliyah up.
"You're welcome, see you later." I kissed her and Aaliyah before leaving. I got in my car and checked the time before pulling out of the driveway. Half way to the training facility, my music cut off and my phone started to ring.
"You coming to practice?" Tatiyana asked when I answered the phone.
"Yeah, I'm on my way to the now, are you there yet?" I asked, turning on my blinker so I could get over to take the exit. The asshole in the right lane wouldn't let me over so I missed my exit. "Bitch ass!" I yelled, honking my horn as I shot him the middle finger. I sped off and cut him off before slowing down. If you're going to be an asshole to me, I'll be one right back. I gave him the finger again as I took the next exit.
"What the hell is going on?" Yana asked, laughing.
"Nigga wouldn't let me over." I mumbled.
"Angry ass driver." She chuckled. It was no secret that I have road rage at times, it just makes e mad that some drivers can't be courteous to others. You're supposed to treat others how you want to be treated, that goes for driving as well.
"Anway." I sang loudly, making her laugh again. "What's up? You at practice yet?" I asked her.
"No, I'm in traffic and I'm gonna be extra late." She whined. "Can you cover for me, tell coach I'm on my way." She said sounding desperate. Whenever we were late to practice, he made us un nonstop the whole damn practice. We only got a two minute water break and that was only if it was over one hundred degrees outside. Coach did not play about us being late.
"Yeah, I'll cover for you." I told her as I pulled into the parking lot.
"Thanks girl, you're a lifesaver." She sighed in relief.
"No problem. Have you talked to your cousin at all since yesterday?" I asked her.
"Nope." She sighed. "His ass loves to disappear."
"He wanna be houdini so bad." I said smacking my lips, making her laugh. "He can't just disappear like that without telling anybody, especially when his daughter is living with him now." I snapped, feeling myself get upset. I love Aaliyah and I have no problem watching her but she's technically not my responsibility. Jerome wanted her to come live with him but his ass isn't even home to take care of her.
"Oh damn. What happened?" She asked.
"It's a long story." I sighed.
"Bitch I got time. I'm in traffic, I don't have shit else to do." She laughed.
"It's nothing, I just haven't talked to him and he hasn't communicated with his daughter at all. He knows she's sick but his ass still dumped her off on me. I don't mind keeping her but he could've at least warned me or something." I huffed, leaving out everything that happened with Mr. Hayes.
"I love my cousin but Jerome can be an ass sometimes. He's so inconsiderate." She scoffed.
"I don't think he meant to be, he probably just isn't used to Aaliyah living with him." I shrugged.
"Like I said." She sang loudly, making me laugh.
"Don't talk bad about my baby." I giggled making her smack her lips.
"Like I said." She sang louder than before. "He's an inconsiderate ass and he needs to be punched in the damn throat. How could he just dump Aaliyah on you like that, especially while she's sick and not feeling good. What if you had something important to do?" She said making me shake my head. "Wait til I see his ugly ass."
"It's not that serious, Yana." I laughed. "And my baby is not ugly."
"Y'all make me sick. Bye!" She scoffed before hanging up the phone. I laughed before turning off my car and getting out. I grabbed my Nike bag from the back seat and locked the car with the button on my key ring. I was a little cold, all I had on was a little ass pair of black compression shorts, a thin ass shirt over my sports bra, and a pair of flip flops. That would all change when we got out here and started running. By the end of practice I would be sweating buckets.
After making sure that I had everything and that my car was locked up, I headed to the locker room.
"Hey Armoni." Everybody said greeting me as I entered the locker room.
"Hey guys." I smiled as I sat down in my usual spot in front of my locker to finish getting ready for practice. I slid off my flip flops as I unzipped my bag. I got my socks and running shoes from my bag. I put them on before putting my flip flops in my bag and taking my shirt off and folding it. I put it in my bag as well before applying another layer of deodorant. I put my Nike sweatshirt on over my sports bra. Since I had big boobs, I always had to tape my chest down before practice so they wouldn't bounce all over the place while I ran.
"Shit, I forgot my socks!" Shelby, one of my teammates hissed.
"Here, I have an extra pair." I said handing her the socks from my bag.
"Thanks girl." She sighed in relief, before taking the socks.
"Armoni, imma have to steal that sweatshirt, girl." Tamika said putting lotion on her legs.
"Girl I got this on sale for only $15." I told her. The Nike outlet was having a sale so I had to take advantage.
"You lying?" She said smacking her lips and making a face at me.
"Nope, girl I got four of them in different colors." I laughed.
"Only you." She said shaking her head at me as she laughed.
"The party can begin now, I have arrived!" Brandy sang loudly, walking in with Drea close behind her.
"Girl, y'all better hurry up, practice starts in four minutes." I said looking up at the clock that hung above the row of lockers. I put my gym bag in my locker and locked it before getting on the ground with Shelby, Tiara, and Tamika to stretch. We didn't like to do this type of stretching in front of coach because he was a pervert lowkey.
"I'm already dressed, I don't know about her." Drea said looking over at Bandy who was dressed in a pair of jeans and a shirt. Drea got on the ground as well and joined me for a partner stretch. We put our feet together as as we leaned forward and grabbed hands. We held the stretch for ten seconds before I pulled her toward my body for ten seconds and then vice versa.
"Where's Yana?" Brandy asked stripping out of her clothes. I drew one leg in and stretched to one side before doing the same to my other leg.
"Stuck in traffic." I replied, getting up from the floor.
"Coach finna make her ass run all damn night." Shelby laughed, shaking her head.
"Hell yeah." Tamika added. "Mookie, help me tape these damn things." She said tossing me the big roll of duct tape. I laughed before helping her tape her breast down.
"What you do today Drea, I know you got out of class like three hours ago?" I asked, tying my hair up into a neater and higher ponytail.
"Fucking Mike." Brandy laughed, stepping into her shorts and pulling them up her hips.
"Shut up bitch, no I wasn't." She giggled, throwing a bottle of lotion at Brandy's back.
"Y'all play too much." I said shaking my head as I leaned down and touched my toes. I felt somebody slap my ass, leaving a stinging sensation. "Ow." I whined as I continued to hold my stretch.
"Jerome knocking that ass down yet?" Shelby asked with a smirk. I was so caught off guard by her question that I lost my balance and fell forward, dead on my face. I just laid there, looking up at the ceiling. After a few seconds of just laying there, I busted out laughing.
"Mookie, what the hell?" Andrea asked, helping me up.
"My bad y'all, I just wasn't ready." I laughed.
"Jerome isn't knocking you down, is he?" Brandy asked raising her eyebrow.
"What's it to you?" Shelby asked, smacking her lips.
"I'm just wondering." Brandy shrugged.
"That's your problem, always wondering about somebody else's man." Tamika said shaking her head.
"Fuck you." Brandy said smacking her lips.
"Y'all, chill out. It's not that serious. Let's just pray so we can go out on the field." I told them, stepping in between Brandy and Tamika. We all circled up and prayed before jogging out on the track. I walked over to where Coach Chase and Coach Nixon were.
"Hey Coach, Tatiyana asked me to let you know she was going to be a little late, she's caught in traffic there was a bad car wreck, but she on her way so she should be on her way." I said avoiding eye contact with him. His perverted ass.
"Okay pretty girl, thanks for letting me know." He said winking at me when I finally looked up at him.
"Mhmmmm." I mumbled as I turned and jogged away from him and towards the huddle of girls. When I got back to where all the other girls where they were taking turns running sprints. I got in line with Brandy and Drea behind Ashley, Tiara, Shelby, Tamika, and Lauren.
After three rounds of sprints, Coach blew his whistle.
"Good warm up ladies, take a break and let's meet on the starting line in three minutes, Jones and Davis stay behind with Coach Chase for conditioning in the weight room." Coach Nixon said to the group. I groaned before rolling my eyes.
"Which one?" Both Brandy and Drea asked at the same time, since they had the same last name.
"You." Coach Chase said pointing at Andrea before winking at her.
"I feel for you girl." Tamika mumbled as I walked by everybody to head back inside to the weight room.
"You don't know the half of it." I groaned, rolling my eyes.
"If his old ass tries something, let me know. You know we got your back." Lauren said posting up in a boxing stance.
"I'll slice that ass." Ashley laughed.
"Girl you want my mase?" Tamiaka asked.
"Nah, I think we can take him." Drea smirked.
"Jones, Davis get moving!" Coach yelled.
"I can't stand his ugly ass." Drea mumbled.
"Me either." I laughed. We stopped by the locker room so we could get our phones and earphones before going to the weight room. We weren't allowed to have our phones on the field but Coach didn't mind if we had them in the weight room. Once we got to the weight room, Coach was already in the room looking at his clipboard.
"Okay ladies, twenty minutes on the treadmill at your highest speed. After that, I'll let you know what's next." He told us before going into his office. There was a glass window so he could still see us, I hated that damn window.
"Pervert, he just wants to see our ass' jiggle." Drea huffed as she stepped onto the treadmill.
"Right, like who would want to watch that, I think it would look kind of gross to me." I laughed, getting my phone and earphones from the jacket of my sweatshirt. I took it off and put it in Coach's office. He didn't allow us to wear sweats while we worked out, no matter how cold it was.
"Have you seen or heard from Jerome?" I asked her as I unlocked my phone and went to my Monica station on Pandora.
"Nope, not today." She said shaking her head.
"Ladies, get to running this ain't no damn social call." Coach called from his office.
"Fuck you, big greasy ass." I mumbled putting my headphones in. My twenty minutes seemed to go by so fast, I was done in no time. By the time I was finished, I looked at the dry erase board to see what was next. Squats, back and front lunges, deadlifts, and squat thrusts with ten pound weights. He wanted us to do ten rounds with ten repetitions each.
Just as I grabbed the weights and began doing my squats, Tatiyana walked into the weight room in sweats and a sports bra.
"Jackson, run the rest of practice on the treadmill at your highest speed." He yelled from his office. She greeted us before getting on the treadmill, she hadn't been running for a full two seconds before Coach was yelling again. "You know I don't allow sweats in my weight room."
"Bruh, it's damn near two degrees in here. I'm wearing these sweats whether you like it or not. Unless you're paying for my medication and doctor bills for when I get sick." She yelled to him as she continued running.
"Jackson, I don't know who the hell you think you're talking to but you better take them damn sweats off and I'm not playing around." He said coming out of his office.
"Here! Fucking pervert." She said stopping the treadmill, stepping out of her sweat pants and then throwing them at him. Oh shit. Andrea and I shared a glance before we looked back and forth between Tatiyana and Coach.
"Excuse me?" Coach said getting in Yana's face.
"You heard me Coach Chase, I'm not in the mood for your games, so just leave me alone alright." She said putting her earphones in her ears. She paid him no mind and started running on the treadmill as if she didn't just talk bad to this man. Coach Chase said nothing else, he just stormed out of the weight room. Andrea and I shared a look before we both shrugged our shoulders.
After completing every thing that Coach left for us on the dry erase board, we just decided to lift weights. No doubt I would be sore as hell tomorrow. I laid on the bench press with Andrea spotted me as I lifted fifty pounds, that might not seem like much to other people but when you were doing eight rounds of ten, it felt like a ton for my little ass to lift.
"I'm so damn tired." I groaned as we left the weight room. After Andrea and I both bench pressed, we took turns on the chest and leg press, the leg extension machine, and then finally the leg curl. My little legs felt like jelly and I thought they were going to fall off at any moment.
"Girl yes! I can't wait to see my bed." Drea laughed.
"Okay, let me call Stanley over so he can give me a massage." Tatiyana smirked making me gag.
"Let me get Mike to massage my insides." Drea winked, it took me a moment to finally understand what she meant. When I finally realized what she meant I wanted to throw up.
"Y'all are nasty." I whined as I covered my ears, making them both laugh.
"Just wait until you and Jerome start fucking." Andrea smirked making me shake my head.
"Nope, won't be none of that." I protested.
"Mhmmmmm. We'll see." Tatiyana smirked.
After showering, we all got dressed and went our separate ways. Andrea had to go to work, Tatiyana had a date with Stanley, and I had to pick up Aaliyah from my parents house. When I got there, I let myself in with the key. The aroma of food hit me as soon as I entered the house.
"Hi Daddy." I grinned as I walked into the kitchen. I wrapped my arms around him and he turned to kiss my forehead. I looked in the pots to see he was cooking spaghetti. Whenever my mom has to work the overnight shift, my dad comes straight home from work to cook her dinner before she has to leave for work. It's so cute. They are true relationship goals.
"Hey baby girl. How was practice?" He said as I sat down at the kitchen table and watched him cook.
"It was okay, I'm tired though." I replied.
"I bet. You staying for dinner?" He asked.
"Of course." I scoffed, although I just ate not too long ago, I was not about to turn down a free meal. Plus I would get to spend time with my parents. Most people my age wouldn't want to spend time with their parents but I'm the exact opposite.
After Aaliyah and I had dinner with my parents, Leilani, and Leland, I helped my dad with the dishes. Aaliyah was with Leilani in her room watching a movie, my mom was taking a nap before work, and Leland was on the phone with one of his little girlfriends.
After the movie was over, Aaliyah and I headed back home. Although she was feeling better, I didn't know if I would send her to school tomorrow. Since she had a stomach virus, she was probably still contagious. Mama send home masks and gloves to help us keep the whole household from getting sick. As soon as Aaliyah got out of my car, I was spraying the whole thing down with Lysol.
Once we got back to the apartment and settled in, Aaliyah took her bath and put on her pajamas. Mike nor Jerome were home and neither one of them was answering my calls. Tatiyana was already in bed knocked out. After Aaliyah fell asleep, I ran myself a hot bath so I wouldn't be too sore in the morning, after getting out of the tub, I rubbed lotion into my skin before putting on a pair of Hello Kitty pajama bottoms and a tank top.
The next morning I woke up and there was still no Jerome. I was getting fed up with his ass.