LOVELESS

Chapter 38

Yemi plops down on her bed with her PJs on and her hair tucked into a bonnet. She grabs her phone from the nightstand and calls Sam. It rings a couple of times before going to voicemail.

"Hey handsome. They must have you working really hard over there. I tried staying awake for your call, but I can barely keep my eyes open. Call me whenever, though. It's doesn't matter how late. I don't go to work until late morning. Alright. Good night."

___

A car, with an Uber sticker in the window, pulls up to a cemetery. The back door opens, and out comes Veronica holding a large tote bag and a bouquet of flowers. She looks around the lawn until she reaches a granite plaque with the name Dawn Carter engraved on it. She smiles at the ceramic photo in the top corner.

Veronica pulls out a small blanket from her bag, and then lays it down on the ground. "Hey Mommy," she sings sitting down with her legs crossing each other. She inserts the flowers into the granite vase that's attached to the base of the headstone. She then pulls out a bottle of water from her bag, and pours some of it into the vase before drinking the rest of it. "Gotta make sure I'm hydrated first," she says, smirking at her mother.

She brings out a bottle of wine and 2 wine glasses and sits one next to the photo. She opens the bottle and pours the dark red liquid into both glasses. She lifts her glass to make a toast. "Cheers to being able to see you whenever I want, now." She gently clinks the other glass, and then chugs her drink. "Oouu momma, I have so much to tell you." She states, shaking her head. She pulls her cell phone out with the time displaying 8:10am. She sets an alarm for 10am. "I have to be back by 11 to meet the guy who's dropping my car off."

"Anyway... where do I even begin?"

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MEANWHILE

Yemi wakes up naturally, and immediately checks her cell phone. The time displays 5:15am and there are no texts or missed calls from Sam. Her eyebrows furrow as she stares at the last message she sent to him. She clicks on his name, and then presses the phone button. The call goes straight to voicemail, causing her to worry.

She hops out of her bed and rushes into the bathroom. After brushing her teeth and running a cleaning cloth over her face, she runs to the hallway closet and grabs a sweater and her slides. She grabs her purse from the couch, and then runs out the front door. She does an about-face before running back inside, and then pulls out a manila envelope from a bookshelf. Veronica's is written on top with a sharpie pen.

She opens it and flips it around, allowing thick small envelopes and a ring full of keys to fall out. She grabs the keys, and skims through it until she sees one that looks like a house key. "I hope this is it," she says to herself. She puts the key ring in her purse and makes a dash for the front door.

___

NEW YORK

"So yeah, I don't know what to do, mommy. She said she would tell them soon, but I think she only said that to keep me from saying anything. I couldn't imagine not knowing you had cancer that whole time. Not being able to prepare myself for your death, would've tore me up inside. I just really hope Aunt Lily tells them, because I don't know how much longer I can keep this from my cousins. Especially Sam."

She takes a sip of the wine she placed down for her mother, and glances at the charm bracelet on her wrist.

"Mommy, Yemi was so mad that we couldn't bring in the New Year's together. She was being super petty over the weekend. But then we prayed together before they left yesterday, and I think that helped. I told her I would find a way to make up the New Year's Eve thing. I think I'll fly out there before her housewarming party, so that I can go with her to the counseling session she plans to go to. "