CHAPTER 28
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"You good?" Fezco asked Estrella once she was in his car, driving off immediately since he couldn't be wasting any more time.
He knew Mouse didn't like when he was late to a deal, but he wasn't about to make Estrella wait after reading her text.
Estrella had said her goodbyes to her friends after an encounter with Nate, which made her even more uncomfortable and made her wanna go home even more than she already did, then waited for Fezco outside for a few minutes.
And after being slightly cross faded all night and getting a little second hand high from the people smoking outside while she waited anddd her feet fucking killing her, she was walking with a slight limp.
"Yeah I'm just so fucking tired," She sighed before leaning over to give her boyfriend a hug and a kiss as he drove. "And I missed you."
"I missed you too mama," He told her and reached into the backseat, grabbing the rose he picked out of the doctor's garden for her. "Got you this."
A blush crept onto her cheeks as she took the rose in her hand, leaving Fezco's hand to drop onto her lap.
"You have fun?" He asked, trying to act as calm and normal as possible, as if he wasn't losing his shit in the moment.
"I honestly had more fun at Maddy's than at the dance. Don't ever let me go to another school dance," Estrella muttered as Fez stopped at a red light.
He sighed before turning to look at Estrella, his heart beating out of his chest at how relieved and happy he was that he was able to be with her right now.
He leaned over the center console like she always did and gave her lips a few kisses, making her smile and laugh in between them.
"What's up with you?" She asked him after a long kiss.
"I jus missed you." Didn't think I'd ever get to do this again.
Fez ignored his thoughts and gave her a smile, then kissed the corner of her mouth as the light turned green.
"But I need you to listen to me right now princess," Fez told her and dropped his hand back in her lap as the other rested on the steering wheel.
He opened his hand so she could place her hand in his, like they always did.
Once she did and their fingers were interlocked, Fez glanced down at their hands at then at Estrella.
"Mouse is at the house right now. And before you start losin yo shit, don't worry. I got the money, we gon be good. When we get home you gon go straight to our room and don't say or do nun or come ousside until these motherfuckers leave, aight? Can you do that for me?"
Estrella nodded without hesitation, ignoring the slight fear she felt at the mention of Mouse and looked down at their hands as Fezco raised them to his mouth and pressed a kiss onto the back of her's.
"I love you," He mumbled.
In less than 5 minutes, Fezco had parked his car in his usual spot at home and helped Estrella out, then walked into the house as quietly as possible.
He let go of Estrella's hand once they were inside, then began walking ahead of her, allowing her to watch as he lifted his hoodie to tuck his gun into his waistband.
It was a sight she always loved to see. But this wasn't the time for that. At all.
She helped him pull his hoodie back down to cover the gun, making him give her a quick kiss before he walked into the living room/kitchen.
"You're late," Mouse spoke from where he was seated on the couch.
Fezco glanced at Ashtray from where he was hiding, Ashtray flickering his gaze between Fez and Estrella as a way to ask why the fuck she was there.
"I had to go pick my girl up real quick," Fezco let Mouse know and glanced back at Estrella. "Go to the room princess."
"Nah, she can stay," Mouse said as he stood up off the couch and turned around to face the two, suggestively smiling at Estrella. "Hello there, princess."
Estrella glanced at Fez, who just stared at Mouse with his jaw clenched while he looked Estrella up and down.
"So I heard you got raided," Mouse said to Fezco once he was done making Estrella uncomfortable.
"But they ain't find nun though," Fezco told him and pulled out the money he owed from the pocket of his hoodie. "They ain't got shit on me."
He dropped the money on the table for Custer and leaned against the wall, glancing at Estrella for the split second that she raised her eyebrows at the money.
"Let's hope not," Mouse nodded, tapping the gun in his hand with his finger.
Estrella instinctively stepped closer to Fezco as Mouse watched Custer count the money, Fezco taking the chance to look down at her.
"It's aight," He whispered to her and nodded to reassure her, although he himself was scared as fuck too.
Mouse and Custer exchanged looks upon coming across a bill covered in blood, then looked at Fezco as he looked back at them.
Estrella did the same and looked at the bill while Mouse and Custer exchanged looks again.
"Fez," She whispered, thinking the blood was his.
Fezco avoided eye contact with her, feeling her eyes on him while he kept his on Mouse and Custer as they looked at him again.
"So we all good?" Fezco asked.
Mouse stared at Fezco with a hard look on his face, his hand gripping his gun.
Estrella discreetly tapped Fezco's back, making him reach behind and under his hoodie to grab his gun too.
And before Mouse could say anything, or even form a fucking thought, Ashtray ran into the living room and jumped over the couch, slamming a hammer into his head and then slamming the same hammer in Custer's face.
"Oh shit," Fezco put his arm over Estrella out of protective instinct as she widened her eyes and covered her mouth with her hand that wasn't holding the rose she received.
Mouse dropped dead onto the floor as Custer's painful screams filled the house, making Estrella cringe and close her eyes at the sight.
"Yo bro–what the fuck, man!?" Fezco asked Ashtray after fully processing what had happened, both his hands reaching up to rub his head. "God..."
Ashtray looked behind him at Mouse laid on the floor, then down at Custer holding his bleeding nose and screaming, then at Estrella, his heart dropping once he realized she had seen everything.
"Dude..." Fezco said to Ashtray. "What the fuck? What the fuck did you do bruh?"
"I killed this motherfucker before he fucking killed you," Ashtray answered and looked at Estrella again, who stepped back at their yelling.
Fezco followed his gaze and looked at Estrella as well, and like Ashtray, his heart dropped once he realized that she had seen everything.
She finally moved her eyes off of Mouse and looked at Ashtray, who stared at her, worried for what she would say.
Worried that this was too much for her, and that she'd leave him and Fezco. Worried that she'd stop being the only person who treated him like a kid, that she'd stop treating him like he was her son, like she gave him life all because she watched him take someone else's.
Her eyes shifted to meet Fezco's, pure fear in his eyes.
Not because his little brother had just killed some drug dealer. But because his girlfriend saw. She just witnessed a fucking murder that could ruin her whole life and it was all his fault.
And this was probably the moment where she realized how fucked up shit was getting, and that she needed to get the fuck out.
But no. Estrella was just in shock.
She'd seen her dad get into it with many people, sometimes almost beat them to death if he really had to. This was no different. But at the same time, it was. Someone actually died.
And she was never worried for her dad whenever he did some shit similar to the current situation. He knew how to handle it.
But right now, like Fezco and Ashtray, that's all she felt. Worry.
Because after tonight, anything could fucking happen.
"No no no, don't cry mama," Fezco sighed and pulled Estrella into a hug after seeing a tear slip out of her eye. "Custer, shut the fuck up! Ash, calm this mothafucka down, ima be right back. Don't fucking do anything."
Ashtray dropped the hammer on the floor as Fezco walked Estrella to their room, closing the door behind them once they entered.
"Ma it's okay, don't cr–"
"Is not okay, your homeboy's dead in the living room, Fez."
"I know..." Fezco sighed, not letting go of her hand.
"What are we gonna do?" Estrella asked him, noticing his distress.
"Nah, you not gonna do shit, this is on me," He told her as he wiped away a tear on her face. "Ion want you any more involved. It's gon be okay though, ima take care of this. Alright? We gon be good."
He led her to their bed and motioned for her to sit down, letting go of her hand once she did.
"Fez," Estrella whispered as she stared up at him.
"What, princess?" He whispered back and met her eyes with his.
She stayed silent, making him slightly anxious, worrying with what she was thinking. With what she was thinking of him.
He kneeled down and took her heels off for her, remembering that she was walking with a limp and wanting to ease some of the discomfort she was probably feeling.
Estrella's heart practically melted at how sweet he was, wanting to cry at the thought that she could lose him after tonight.
The thought itself along with other thoughts of what would happen if people found out made her stomach churn and more tears swell up in her eyes as Fezco grabbed a random pair of sweatpants and one of his t shirts for her to change into.
"Ima go take care of this shit right now, but I need you to stay here," Fez told her. "Just in case."
"Just in case what?"
Fez shook his head and gave her forehead a kiss, "Don't wait up for me, get some sleep princess."
Estrella grabbed onto his hand before he could exit the room, making him sigh.
Fezco stared down at her for a second before giving her hand a kiss, "Ima call Ash to come stay with you, aight? That way you not alone."
Estrella nodded and let go of his hand, allowing him to exit the room and walk back into the living room with Ash and Custer. And Mouse but he's kinda dead so he's not worth mentioning anymore.
"Yo," Fezco spoke, staring Custer down while he silently sobbed due to his broken nose and Ashtray pointing a gun at his head in case he tried anything. "Yo bro, put the gun down and go to my room."
"What?" Ashtray gave him a confused look.
"Let me take care of this shit, you go and stay wit Princess, she scared and ion want her to be alone."
"You sure she's gonna want me in there with her?" Ashtray asked as Fez put his hand on the gun he was holding.
Fez caught what he was tryna say and shook his head, "She not like that, bruh. Jus go."
Ashtray hesitated before letting Fezco take the gun from him and then dreadfully made his way down to the room, leaving Fezco and Custer alone.
He walked through the half open door to see Estrella sitting on her and Fezco's bed, looking up at Ashtray as he walked in and awkwardly closed the door, both of them just staring at each other.
He sat down beside her on the bed but kept his distance while they stayed staring at the other in silence.
"Are you okay?" Ashtray asked her since her eyes were kinda red, due to crying a little.
"Are you?" She asked back.
He sighed and finally broke the eye contact they held for minutes, looking down at his feet as they dangled off the bed.
"I'm okay."
"Are you really?" Estrella asked him. "Ash...you–"
"I only did it because I had to," Ashtray defended himself before she said anything else. "I saw the way he was whispering with Custer and I saw the way he was looking at you and at Fezco. I needed to protect us so I don't care. Fuck Mouse, I'm happy he's fucking dead."
He glanced back at Estrella, who had never taken her eyes off of him. The unreadable look she was giving him made him nervous, he'd kill again to know what she was thinking.
Because the first thing that came to mind was the worst case scenario.
"And I know you probably hate me right now and I know what you're gonna say and I don't wanna hear that shit," Ashtray told her. "Fezco's taking care of it and once it's done, we'll be all good. Like nothing ever happened."
Estrella remained silent, still never moving her eyes off of the little kid she had grown to love like her son.
"Ash," She said after a few seconds and scooted closer to him, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. "I don't hate you, baby. I love you, like literally I have siblings your age and I love you more than them no questions asked. But you didn't have to do all that...or maybe you did, honestly I don't even fucking know..."
"I'm sorry," Ash mumbled as he leaned into her embrace.
"Don't be. I've seen my dad do shit like this many times."
"Your dad's killed people with hammers?" Ashtray questioned.
She let out a small laugh, glancing down at him in her arms.
"I don't know, but I mean that I've seen him like, fuck people up, you know?" Estrella clarified. "So don't be sorry. It's okay...well it isn't, but it will be."
Ashtray nodded and slowly pulled away from the hug, looking up at her.
"Can I ask you a question?" She asked him, making him nod again in response. "How did Fez get all the money?"
"He robbed some guy Mouse knows," Ashtray answered, despite Fezco telling him not to tell her.
She knew of them about to cover up a murder, a robbery was nothing compared to this, so Ashtray thought.
Estrella rolled her eyes, "He's so stubborn. He should have let me become a stripper, I would have had the money asap."
"You'd become a stripper just to help me and Fezco pay off our shit?" Ashtray asked her.
"Baby, I'd die for you and Fezco," She said.
Ashtray stared up at her with glossy eyes, which she couldn't see due to the darkness in the room.
"I'd die for you and Fezco too."
—$—
Fezco walked back into his room a little over an hour later, having sorted some shit out with Custer and making him help get rid of Mouse's body.
He took off his jeans and his hoodie, changing into a different shirt and his favorite M&M pajama pants and glancing back at Estrella in his bed.
She was on her phone, liking and responding to comments she had gotten on the pictures she posted on Instagram to distract herself from the later events of the night with Ashtray asleep right besides her.
Fezco met his girlfriend's eyes as he stepped towards the bed, she had been watching him since the second he stepped into the room.
"Why you still up?" He whispered as she scooted closer to Ashtray so that there was space for him as he got into bed.
"I didn't wanna go to sleep til I knew you were back and okay," She answered as he gave her forehead a kiss, snaking his arms around her waist.
"I'm okay mama. We all good," He mumbled, breathing against her neck. "Is all taken care of."
She dropped her phone and moved her hand to rest against the side of his face, pulling his face closer to her's to give him a quick kiss.
Something they both needed after their long ass night.
Fezco pressed his forehead to Estrella's after pulling away, the both of them just staring into each other's eyes for a bit.
"You okay?" Fez asked.
Estrella nodded, "Yeah...but I was so fucking scared."
Fez nodded back, "I know. I'm sorry you hadda see all that. N I'm sorry I got you dragged into all this shit," he apologized in a whisper.
Estrella stayed quiet, deciding to keep her worry and fear of someone finding out to herself.
They went back to staring at each other, and just laid there and stared into each other's eyes for a few minutes while Fezco thought if what to say.
All he could think of was to keep apologizing.
"I'm sorry," He whispered.
"It's okay," Estrella whispered back and rubbed his cheek with her thumb.
"Is not," Fez closed his eyes and slightly shook his head, having felt guilty all night because Estrella had witnessed a murder because of him.
"You said it's taken care of, right?" Estrella asked, Fez nodding in response. "Then it's okay baby."
Fez opened his eyes to meet Estrella's once more before leaning in and giving her another kiss.
"Thank you fo bein so cool about this. Like seriously," Fezco told her. "Anyone else would prolly fucking run, and ion blame em. This shit is fucked up. But you're still here."
Estrella gave him a small smile. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Fezco smiled back and looked at Ashtray, who was still sound asleep next to Estrella. "Lil bruh good?"
Estrella glanced back at the little kid, slightly smiling at how peaceful and innocent he looked when he slept.
Like he couldn't hurt a fly. Or kill a man with a hammer.
"Yeah. He–" Estrella cut herself off for a second as she remembered that Ashtray would probably prefer to keep their moment and conversation a secret. "He's fine. Poor baby fell asleep the second his head hit the pillow."
Fezco clicked his tongue, "I sent him in here so you wouldn't be alone and his ass gonna fall asleep."
Estrella laughed, "Leave him alone. He's just a kid."
"He jus yo kid," Fezco teased. He'd been calling Ashtray her son ever since she told him that he called her his mom.
Estrella nodded in agreement with Fez and glanced back at Ashtray once more. She didn't birth him, but that didn't mean shit. Fez always said that blood doesn't make a family. And he was right.
She turned back to Fez once feeling his lips attach themselves to her neck, making her laugh quietly.
"Iwishyouknewhowmuchiloveyou," Fezco mumbled as he rested his head in the crook of her neck.
"What?" Estrella asked, not understanding what he had said as she rubbed his shoulders with her hand.
"Nothin. Go to sleep."
—$—
Fezco woke up alone the next morning, both Estrella and Ashtray out of his bed and his room.
He laid in his bed, confused for a few minutes, thinking that everything that had happened was probably a dream.
Fezco got up and walked out of his room, going to the kitchen, where Estrella would usually be, making breakfast.
Ashtray was seated at the table eating a plate of waffles when Fez walked in.
"Where's Princess?" Fez asked after giving him a half nod as a greeting.
"Giving grandma her morning meds," Ash answered as Fezco grabbed a waffle from his plate. "Fuck off, ask Princess to make you some."
"We can't ask her to make us food every morning," Fez told him as he bit into the waffle.
"I don't ask, she offers, and I'd be a dumb ass to decline," Ashtray said. "Plus she has to for me, she's my mom."
Fezco shook his head at him for using his own teasing against him, then glanced at the bare floor in the living room since he had to get rid of the rug stained with Mouse's blood.
So it wasn't a dream.
"What'd you do with him?"
Fezco informed Ashtray of everything that happened last night after he went to keep Estrella company in her and Fezco's room.
He told him about the agreement with Custer, told him that he made Custer help get rid of Mouse in case he ever tried to switch up so that they had dirt on him, told him about how Custer's going to hook them up with some other supplier soon. And told him that everything would be good.
And when Estrella came back into the kitchen, Fez gave her a brief summary of what he told Ashtray. She didn't need to know all the details. Just the important stuff.
And then after that, they didn't speak of Mouse or the situation again.
They all telepathically agreed on just forgetting about it and moving on with their lives.
Mouse was gone, and the weight of having to pay him his money was finally off Fezco's shoulders.
Speaking of money...
Fezco grabbed the money that Custer never finished counting last night off the table and held a band in his hand, glancing up at Ashtray as he ate and at Estrella as she made more waffles.
Fezco fanned the band into his hand, "Looks like Santa's bringing the both of you everything on yo list this Christmas."
I'm tryna sit on Fezco's lap as if he were santa. now let me bless everyones eyes <3
also this book hit 100k reads and I didnt even notice til someone pointed it out LMAO