Giselle "G" Rowe
Sunday, December 11 | 6:37 a.m.
North Sails - Apartment Homes
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The ride to Gabriella's apartment seemed to last forever. I anxiously bounced my leg to the rhythm of the random songs that played on the radio the entire time, occasionally sparing June a worried glance. His jaw remained tense and his hardened gaze fixated on the road as he silently drove, only fueling my uneasiness that much more.
He finally pulls into the parking lot and switches gears, forcing the vehicle to jerk slightly as it comes to a stationary halt. Neither one of us speaks for a few seconds until June's heavy exhale breaks the silence. "Aight, G. I'll see you later, okay?"
We lock eyes and all I can force myself to do is nod. Part of me expected him to take my hand and lead me upstairs to my family, to stay by my side and comfort me.
I mean, ain't that what boyfriends do?
But can I even really expect that? He's never met my folks before and these aren't the best circumstances. Maybe he is right to stay away for now. Maybe I'm just being needy.
"Okay," I mutter, grabbing the door handle. His fingers wrap around my chin and plant a quick kiss on the corner of my mouth, soothing me for two seconds. I step out of the vehicle and the early morning December wind cuts through my jacket like daggers.
The elevator doors slide open before I even get a chance to press the button. Two police officers step out of the metal box with a polite nod in my directions.
I'm sure that whatever I returned looked stiff and awkward. I quickly replace them inside and ride the machine all the way to the desired floor. My father answers on the first knock, encasing me in his warm embrace.
The scene before me is just as I imagined it. Gabriella is in my mother's arms with bloodshot eyes and used tissues littering the floor and coffee table. Jamari looks up from his tablet, his big brown eyes lighting up as soon as he sees me. "Te-te!" He gets to his feet and rushes towards the door.
"Hey, pooh." I half smile, ducking out of my dad's arms to scoop up my nephew. How wonderful it be to remain oblivious to all the hell breaking loose around you.
My father's car and a police cruiser are among those parked in the first row.
I sit down on the other side of my older sister, planting Jamari in my lap and wrapping my arm around her back. "I'm sorry, Gab."
In a weird way, I mean what I say. Sure, I personally couldn't stand Farad. I didn't even want him around his own son, but I hate to see my sister so torn up. I hate that even though Jamari never had a good dad, the possibilities of him becoming one is now gone.
Gabriella just breaks out into another sob, burying her face into her hands and my mother plants a kiss on her daughter's head.
"So," I sigh, watching Jamari slide out of my lap to retrieve his tablet. "What do we know so far?"
"It happened Wednesday night while he was sitting in his driveway." My dad explains, leaning on the kitchen island. "The police think that it was either a robbery gone wrong or maybe something drug related since cocaine residue was found throughout his house. His assailants killed him, broke into his home, and took his valuables. Of course, they're still on the hunt for who did this."
"Cocaine?" I jerk my head back. "As in he was selling or he was a feign?"
I want to be shocked, I do, but I don't put anything past Farad, even in his absence.
"I don't know, Giselle. All of that is still under investigation. They're still trying to determine if it was one person or multiple people."
Gabriella's sobs deepen before she chokes out her next sentence. "They took a father away from his child! They even beat his eyes black and blue...for money!"
"It's the root of all evil. Don't worry, sweetheart, they're gonna get theirs!" My mother coos, rubbing her back with more energy.
"Gab, what did you tell the police?"
"Nothin', 'cause I don't know nothin'."
"Okay." I watch them both from the corner of my eye, unable to shake the feeling that Gabriella knows much more than she's letting on.
"Gabriella, go pack a bag." My dad orders, drumming his palms on the counter. "No way I'm letting you or my grandson stay here alone tonight."
Surprisingly, she does as she's told, dashing to her room to pack. A blanket of silence falls over us all as we get lost in our own heads. Just two days after Jamari left his father's house, he was gunned down. I can't help but to feel grateful that my nephew literally dodged a bullet. It's all so bittersweet.
Hauling myself to my feet, I enter the master bedroom to help Gabriella gather Jamari's things. Fat tears fall from her face uncontrollably as she struggles to shove a stack of shirts into his dinosaur bag with shaky hands.
"Just let me do it." I grab the pile of clothes and get to work. "Gab, pack more than one fit for yourself. You might be stayin' a lil while."
She sits down on her bed, hugging herself, and stares at the ceiling to stall the teardrops. "I don't know what I'm going to do. I just can't —"
A knocking sound causes her to jerk her head harshly and place my hand on her shoulder. "Gab, that was not your door. Relax."
I cannot dictate how people grieve and I know that everyone handles heartbreak in their own way, but a blind person could see just how paranoid she is.
"I can't relax, Giselle!" She coughs. "'Cause I'm next. I know that I'm fucking next."
"Wh-what?" I almost whisper, releasing her shoulder, deeply off put by yet another cryptic message. Her body shakes as she covers her face with her palms again and I stare off into space.
Maybe she's just talking crazy. Unless...
I think back to the day that she vaguely mentioned her regret over her past actions with Farad and realize that it might not have been him that she was afraid of.
What devil has my sister been dancing with?
**********
Tuesday, December 20 | 11:48 a.m.
Square Hills - shopping malls
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"Scuse me, ma'am." Cree smiles, toothpick hanging from her mouth. Despite brunch being over thirty minutes ago, she's still holding onto it.
"Oh, sorry about that!" The elderly blonde lady chuckles, pushing her buggy to the side. The three of us smile politely as we scoot past her.
"Every single year I say that I won't wait til the last minute to Christmas shop and yet, every single year I do it anyway." I sigh, scanning the packed store.
"Let's look over here real quick. If we don't find anything there then we can leave." Nadi nods in the direction of the jewelry and we follow suit.
"What can I help you ladies with today?" An employee approaches us with a warm grin. Christmas tree shaped earrings dangle from her lobes and her lipstick is a candy cane themed.
Countless amounts of jewels and stones shine beautifully under the fluorescent lights inside of the glass case and my eyes land on a feminine silver string of metal. "Hmm, can I see that bracelet, please."
"Sure thing." She slides open the glass from his side and wraps gloved fingers around the requested jewelry. It's perfect. Small enough to compliment a woman's wrist but thick enough to wear it will not snap easily.
"Okay, I'll take two more please." I hand her back the bracelet and watch her box everything up.
"Why're you gettin' three?" Nadirah's eyebrows shoot up as she looks over the watches for the third time.
"For me, my mama, and Gab." I shrug, moving a bit of hair out of my lipgloss.
"Oh yeah, how has she been holding up?" Cree places her toothpick in a nearby trashcan before grabbing chapstick out of her pocket. "I ain't seen Gabby in a minute, but I did message her my condolences."
"She's...managing. I'll say that."
"You never told us about the funeral, G. How was it? Did he at least look like himself?"
I blink, getting a horrendous flashback of Farad's body in his casket. The funeral was hard to attend. So many mixed feelings were present as I held a confused Jamari in my arms while my parents struggled to keep Gabriella standing.
"No."
Reaching into my purse, I pull out my wallet and swipe my card, deciding to finish talking after I've received my stuff. "Farad was beaten before he was shot in the head and his appearance reflected that, makeup or not."
"Damn." Cree shakes her head. We navigate through the busy store in a single file line. Once we reach the exit, I feel a whole lot better.
"I know that he wasn't the best dad or person but what happened to him is so extreme." Nadi grimaces.
"Yeah." The entire situation is pretty gruesome and more than likely not random. It scares me to think that whoever Farad pissed off, my sister may have something to do with it.
Shit, just a couple of months ago, I was thinking about shooting the nigga when he called himself pressing me in the parking lot and now look.
Life is crazy.
I look past my friends' heads and into the toy shop down the walkway, sick of discussing this dark topic. "Let's go in there! I wanna get Jamari some more stuff."
I start walking before anybody responds and Nadirah chuckles. "Chile, I still gotta win Kyler over so I guess I'll get something too."
"The pet store is across the street!" I tease and Cree sucks her teeth.
"Oh yeah and Nadirah, I got yo' auntcle." She bucks and Nadi scurries inside, laughing heartily.
Five more stores, a full belly, and two more bags later, I'm finally bidding my friends a goodbye. My feet are howling as I stomp down the parking lot in my black winter boots and I can't get into my car fast enough.
"Excuse me, miss."
I snap my head up to see a male cautiously approaching my vehicle. He's wearing a brown trench coat and a beanie, but his smile is friendly.
I lock the doors anyway before I crack the window.
"I didn't mean to scare you." He laughs softly. "I just wanted to say that you're beautiful. Are you single by any chance?"
"Thank you, but no I am not single." My words come out sweet, but the feeling in my chest is the opposite.
June has been rather distant from me these past almost two weeks. We hardly talk and when we do, it seems like he is eager for the conversation to end. How ironic that as soon as we enter an official relationship, the less it feels like one.
The first couple of days of his new attitude, I chalked it up to my own paranoia or insecurities. I thought that maybe he'd just gotten really busy with work or something. However, when he didn't even care to ask about the funeral or just check on me at all, I knew that something had shifted between us.
"That's understandable. You have a nice day, ma'am."
"Same to you." I reply, rolling the window back up and connecting my phone to the aux. Before I can find a song to listen to, the sound of an incoming call rips through the speakers.
"Hello?"
"Hi, is this Giselle Rowe?" A cheery voice on the other line inquires.
"Uhh, yes. Who is this?"
"This is Holly Allen with Build Your Brand incorporated! I just wanted to let you know that your design #1005 has been approved and we are moving forward with production! Already got a few garments made so far. You can expect to receive your first batch in full towards the end of January."
"Oh my gosh!" I nearly yell. "Yes, Holly! I forgot that you said that you'd give me a call. I'd gotten so used to just emailing you. Anyway, this is amazing news! Thank you so much."
"You are so welcome, Giselle. I will keep in touch. Bye-bye."
The line disconnects and I exhale heavily, clutching my phone to my chest. I've climbed yet another step closer to my dream coming true. Scrolling through my contacts, I quickly select June's, super excited to tell him the good news. This'll give me an excuse to hear his voice and at least kick start a conversation. Maybe he'll give me another lesson about websites. I'm honestly just starving for any interaction with him.
No answer.
I hang up on the automated voicemail aggressively before calling again. By the third ring, my leg is bouncing with annoyance. I'm trying not to jump to conclusions, but we haven't spoken all day and it's well past the afternoon. It's all getting old.
"I'm sorry, the person you are trying to reach cannot come to the phone right now. Please leave a mess —" I press the red button again and accept defeat.
Fine.