When We Were Young

Chapter Nineteen

A/N: Derrick in the mm

One Week Later

Odell POV

Me and Dezzy had spent everyday together for the past week. It was getting to be like old times. Sort of.

"Dezzy, wake up," I patted her shoulder as we pulled up to her apartment from the movies.

The ride was only about thirty minutes and she was knocked out.

"Desireé, get up baby, you're home," I nudged her again and she started stirring before she woke up.

"I'm sorry," she mumbled, still half sleep. "My bad," she shook her head before fully waking up and looking at me.

She looked exhausted. "How many jobs do you have?"

"Three," she yawned. "IHOP, the hotel, and Dallas."

"When's your next day off?"

"I work everyday, sometimes all three in one day, depending on if I work overnight at the hotel."

"You gotta take a day off or something. You gon work yourself to death."

"I don't have time to take a day off. I have bills to pay. I don't get any sleep anyway," she mumbled the last part to herself.

"Why not?"

"I just don't sleep good."

"Why?"

She looked out of the windows and shook her head like she was thinking about something that bothered her.

"Look," she looked back over at me, "I had a good time tonight, but I have work in the morning. Text me when you get whenever you get where you're going, okay?"

Nah.

"Why can't you sleep Desireé," I asked her again.

"I just can't okay! You ask too many questions, like a annoying little kid. Good night Odell." With that she got out of the car and slammed the door, but I followed right behind her.

"Aye! What you slammin' doors fa'? I asked a question because I care about you!"

She chuckled humorlessly, "Riigghht," she nodded, "You care. I forgot you care. You care about me, or you care about you? You wanna know because you really wanna know, or you wanna know so you can have some more shit to throw in my face?!"

Is that really how she felt?

"There you go! Looking at me, like that- with that... Face. That face like you just don't get it! And you don't! That's why I can't hate you because you genuinely don't get it! I can't be angry at you for what you did because you did it for your mother, but I don't know," she looked up at nothing before her eyes landed back on me.

"I don't trust you, then I feel bad for not trusting you. I resent you for the things that happened to me, but they weren't your fault. They were mine, but that's not the point. Every time I see you, every time I talk to you I just- I just... I hate that I love you so much! And to answer your question I don't get any sleep because I have nightmares. Really horrible nightmares about shitty ass Derrick. He's always there every time I close my eyes, so just stay awake until I can't anymore. I don't think we should be friends anymore. I don't want to be friends anymore. I wish you the best Dell." She turned away from me and walked up the steps of her stoop to go in the building.

She can't do that. She can't just leave me. Fuck that.

I need her.

"You can't do this! You can't just end our friendship! You can't just end... Us! It takes two people to break up and I ain't hea' for it!"