Sayuri ' Yuri ' Carter.
Chicago, Il
June 18th, 2020.
Yuri woke up with a heavy mind and and an even heavier heart as the thought of what today actually was settled in. Zaire's death date. She looked over at the framed picture of him at her bed side of him mid laugh, he looked so happy and peaceful and now he was just gone.
Tearing her eyes away from the picture, she felt around the bed for hee phone, ultimately finding it on the floor on the other side of the bed. Her phone was flooded with messages from everybody back in Detroit to Chicago. Von's was the first one she read, since he was a pinned conversation.
Dayvon 👩🏽❤️💋👨🏾 30 min ago.
Good morning pretty girl 💙
I know today hard for u but keep yo head up
if u need anything you kno im here for u
see you later.
Yuri sent a couple hearts back, responded to every message with the same response, she was too lazy to send anything else. Later, in the afternoon she planned to go down to the 31st street beach and release balloons for Zaire with everybody.
Accepting the FaceTime call through the group chat she shared with Mariah, Heaven, Kiki and now Laila. She appeared at the bottom of the screen rubbing her sleepy eyes Laila, appeared to be already be on.
"Hey pretty, Say Say!" Laila said softly, a few seconds later Heaven, Kiki and Mariah popped in. "I just wanna let you know I'm here for you boo, Von told me what today was."
"Thank you Lai," Yuri croaked her morning voice raspy as she forced a kind smile.
"Yes cuddy, you know all of us love you and we here for you and we gon see you later!" Kiki said obviously at work. " Ima call y'all back later tho cause all these people comin' in right now."
"Love you too," Yuri responded before she hung up.
"How you feelin' mama?" Mariah hummed. Yuri sighed shrugging her shoulders.
"It don't get no easier," she said lowly, "every year it feel like the pain get stronger, I just learn to deal with it. I know he ain't comin' back so.."
"I know—"
"That's my bestie?" Yuri could here Booka in Mariah's background. Mariah hummed in response and Booka took the phone from her putting his cheerful braced face smile in the camera. "Bestioooooo!"
Yuri laughed at his early morning upbeat energy. "Hey bestie."
"Yoooo!" He chanted. "I know today sad and shit, but we ain't finna be sad! You know yo brudda woulda been wanting you to be smilin' and turning up for him!"
"Yeah you right," Yuri smiled walking into empty bathroom next door to her room, starting her shower, she turned the sink on sitting the phone on the counter, grabbing her tooth brush.
"Ugh, Laila," Booka scrunched his face up, "yo ass look just like yo brother girl, ugly as hell!"
Laila mugged him scratching her head through her bonnet, "you lame as hell, if Ian know no betta I woulda thought yo ass was a five foot dyke, you have no badges! Ugly ass."
Yuri choked on her tooth brush on the other end as Heaven let out a loud howl.
"Yo ass ain't funny," Booka mugged her, "and Mariah what the fuck is so funny?
"I'm cryingggg Laila! And not Yuri ova there deep throating the tooth brush! That ain't Von babe," Heaven laughed.
"Ew," Laila frowned, "I hope y'all ain't doin' that,"
"We not," Yuri rinsed her mouth out, "yet."
"I know that's right!" Mariah chimed in the phone back in her hand. "And Lai, not too much on my man, baby."
"Ew," Laila sounded off again. "And Mariah tell yo' man come correct when he come for Daquan Bennett and Laila Johnson, Pur."
"And Say Say, when we supposed to meet at the beach?" Laila finalized tapping her head through the silk bonnet she wore.
"Around like four," Yuri added wiping her face down.
"Aight."
"Aye I'm on my way to yo house right now Yuri," Heaven said closing her car door, she had wanted to take Yuri out to breakfast that morning to get her mind off of things, "be ready cause you always never ready when I get there!"
"Alright, I'm about to get in the shower like right now, so ima call y'all back. Heaven call me when you outside!"
—
"Hey," Yuri smiled as she answered the face time call from Von sitting next to Heaven in the passenger seat of her car.
"Wassup pretty girl?" Von smiled obviously in the car too, his hair tied back in a ponytail a dread in the front being the only one out. "Where you goin?"
"To breakfast with Heaven."
"Wassup Big Heav?" Von called out.
"Wassup lil gang?"
"Lil gang?" Von scrunched his face up. "Yo ass drunk off some mimosas ah some shit. I'm big gang shorty—baby tell ha ass I'm big gang!"
"He's big gang," Yuri said to Heaven scratching her head. All of a sudden Heaven slammed on the brakes, the car in front of her coming to an abrupt stop. "Shit!" Yuri said, her hand slamming against the dashboard, her heart slightly racing.
"Fuckin' dumb ass bitches don't know how to fucking drive!" Heaven hollered blowing her horn and swerving around the driver.
"You good ma?" Von asked focusing his eyes on the road but briefly looking down at his phone to see Yuri.
"Yeah, I'm fine. The car in front of us was tripping."
"Tripping hard as fuck." Heaven cursed rolling her eyes.
"Heaven, be careful wit my baby inna car you know she carrying my seed." Von added.
"Not the seeeeed!"
"Now Dayvon," Yuri sucked her teeth, "you need to pull over, pray, and ask god for forgiveness for lying like that."
"Yea," he continued, "how far along the doctor said you was ma? Three months?"
"Dayvon.."
"I call god mommy position!" Heaven happily added.
"Yea, big bank Heav fa god mama!" Von agreed.
"First of all, big bank Heav for nothing because there is no child inside of me crazies," Yuri laughed, "I don't even want kids so stop wishing that life for me."
"Ian wishin' shit on you," Von stated, "it's gon happen."
And ima kill it.
"I gu—"
"Hollon ma, Lai dusty ass callin me." He said before abruptly hanging up.
"Okay dusty." Yuri frowned.
—
"Girl why you ain't eatin?" Heaven asked chowing down on her breakfast while Yuri has probably eating a piece of a sausage and sipped on the mimosa the rest of the time.
"I'm not really hungry," Yuri shrugged face in her phone still responding to condolences messages on Instagram and her other social media platforms.
"Yuri, you're never hungry," Heaven mumbled, "like I've never seen you actually finish a meal—even when we was at Jojo's back in March you ate a few French fries and that's it.."
Yuri avoided eye contact her voice little as she spoke, "sometimes I just don't have an appetite, that's all."
"Yuri, it's okay to not have an appetite sometimes but it's all the time with you. Maybe you should go see a doctor—"
"I don't wanna talk about it," Yuri said firmly, "I'm just not hungry Heaven."
"Okay fine," Heaven wanted to say more but decided against it. She definitely knew something was up about Yuri but couldn't put her finger on it. She would find out in due time.
—
Dayvon 👩🏽❤️💋👨🏾 now
yea ma I'm sorry
I'm not finna b able to make it
Denae sick and shit.
Ima get up wit u later pretty girl 💙
Yuri frowned seeing the text come in from Dayvon but decided not to let her emotions get in the way of things. She could use the support from him but his child's health was greater than this. She simply loved the message and responded with a reassuring message and well wishes for Denae.
"Where Von at?" Jourie asked as they all stood on the nearly empty beach. Holding blue metallic balloons for Zaire.
"He not gon be able to make it y'all, the baby sick!" Lai announced her arm draped over Yuri's shoulder.
"Man, these mosquitoes don't play no mufuckin games," KC mumbled slapping his upper arm for the fifth time.
"Sex onna beach, playin in the saaaand! Just you and me," Booka winked at Mariah grabbing her hand, singing the song horribly and off key, "hand in hand, come on—"
"Booka, please shut the fuck up." Mariah snatched her hand away from him annoyed by his antics.
"Okay y'all, y'all ready?" Yuri asked everyone who said yes in unison, getting their Instagram and Snapchat stories ready. "I don't really have too much to say, but I miss you so much Z. The pain gets greater each year and I'd do anything to just see you smile again, but I'm down here holding it down for you and I love you. And it's Z-day, period!" They all released their balloons everybody having something different to say ole releasing them.
—
Laila ' Lai ' Johnson.
Chicago, Il
June 18th, 2020.
Laila sat in the backseat of Yuri's optima as she and the girls figured out if they were gonna get a bottle and chill at Heaven's crib, or hit up a function. Laila scrolled through social media, looking at the views on her Instagram and Snapchat stories, liking random post on Instagram till she seen a DM from her thirteen year old sister London, who sent her Tatiana's most recent Instagram post. A picture of her and Dayvon. Only twenty minutes ago.
tiptoptata_ 20 minutes ago.
Liked by patriceeeee_ and 789 others.
tiptoptata_ Like Jeremih said, love don't change ❤️
view all 106 comments.
patriceeeee_ awww one of minessss 😩
kingvonfrmdao 🤞🏽
Laila's mouth fell open seeing her brothers comment on the picture, she wondered what could be going through his mind that in Yuri's time of need he canceled on her using Denae as collateral. She wanted to show her but at the same time Von was her brother. She decided not to and hoped somehow she saw it on her own, or somebody else brought it to her attention.
—
Dayvon Bennett.
Chicago, Il
June 18th, 2020.
Dayvon sat on the edge of Tatiana's bed shirtless, running his fingers through his dreads he sighed as he has realized exactly what he had just done. Looking back at TaTa, fast asleep, naked under the satin sheets he kissed his teeth seeing as he had mad the stupidest choice ever.
It started with TaTa calling and claiming that Denae was sick, bad cough and all. That was true, but what she lied about was the fact that TaTa needed to be taken to the hospital, she had already been taken and prescribed medicine.
But, it all took a turn when TaTa came clean that it was a scheme that get him in front of her, she cried and cried about how sorry she was and how she missed him and Dayvon would be a liar to say he didn't miss her back. The bad outweighed the good, but when it was good, it was good. And six years of love and bringing a whole other life into this world, that love didn't disappear. But on the other hand, he had Yuri. Who was making him change and feel more intense feelings for her everyday, it was a hard gamble and it was only moments before she'd find out and he knew it.
He grabbed his shirt from ten floor, sliding it over his head and pulling his chains over it, he sighed grabbing his keys from the nearby nightstand and leaving TaTa's place. He needed to clear his mind and find out exactly what it was that he wanted.
—
Mariah Anais Taylor.
Chicago, Il
June 18th, 2020
Mariah bit down on her lip, watching a teary eyed Yuri stare at the Instagram photo of TaTa and Dayvon she came across. They were in Heaven's north side apartments bathroom. Mariah wanted to show Yuri first and let her process everything first. Not just show the whole group and bombard her.
"He commented," she said barely above a whisper just staring at the post flipping back between the comments and the photo itself.
"I know, babe." Mariah said sympathetically, grabbing a Kleenex from the box on the sink counter, dabbing it under Yuri's eyes as tears spilled down her cheeks. "Oh, Yuri."
"I don't understand this," she said lowly confusion filling her big brown orbs as she continued to look at the picture.
"Okay," Mariah hummed quietly, "let me have this," she coached slowly slipping the phone away from her grasp and locking it.
"I really don't understand.."
"How about we give him a call?" Mariah suggested, dabbing tears away from her cheeks. "You never know, she could be doing this deliberately."
"But he commented, Mariah." Yuri frowned.
"I still strongly suggest that you call him, babe. You never know exactly what's going on if you don't ask, call." Mariah urged her. Yuri reluctantly, grabbed her phone from her back pocket of her jean shorts. Clicking the FaceTime icon, she tapped his name, the phone rung over and over, until he answered on the last ring. He wasn't showing his face but could actively see Yuri's red eyes and irate expression. Only the ceiling of his vehicle was shown as the phone connected.
"So, what's going on?" Yuri asked shakily as she held the phone showing her watery eyes and irate expression.
Von sighed, "Say—"
"Don't Say me," she mocked him, "I seen you and TaTa on Instagram. The same TaTa you were just arguing with the first of this month because she was conspiring to jump me! The same TaTa you claimed was so toxic to you, and she cheated on you and how you didn't want her anymore!" She started to cry all over again. "I needed you so bad today, bro. I wanted you there with me so bad, and you canceled on me for a bitch who haven't done anything but disrespect you! For six years! Only for you to turn around and disrespect me!"
She struggled to talk as Mariah wiped her face, feeling her own eyes tear up. "I was there for you every night for three months straight, for hours at a time, praying for you, calling you and you do me like this? I would never ever cross you like this!"
"Say, I'm so sorry," Von spoke his heart breaking a little with every whimper he had, "everything happened so fast—"
"Do you wanna be with her?" Yuri cut him off, her voice shaky and stern.
"No—" he heard Yuri scoff. "No, and I swea ta god I don't Say, I wanna be wit you and only you. I fucked up, I did. I made a big mistake. Ian know what I was walkin' into when I went ova thea Say!" He brung his face into view.
"So did you guys have sex?" Yuri asked lowly.
Dayvon let out a heavy breath a long stretch of silence in between as he answered. "Yea," he kissed his teeth as she hung up. Calling back and go no avail did she answer. Until eventually, the calls didn't go through at all.
—
awww, don't be sad guys. let's just beat him up 😩
i was gonna make Mariah TaTa but honestly, i was just too lazy and i needed asian for this part so 😮💨 yupppp.
anyways, y'all like Mariah?