First Degree

Chapter 23: make it right

"Huh?" I turned to her. She was pretty. I guess he had a thing for black girls after all. She had curly, natural hair like mine. Her eyes were a honey color, matching her skin tone.

"I said you're the girl from the pictures." She said. She sounded shocked, almost. Her face showed confusion as she looked me up and down.

"Who are you-" he stopped talking once he saw me. His face looked as shocked as hers.

"Hello, Khi." I said.

The woman looked back at him and pushed him.

"And now you brought her to our home? You bastard!" She screamed as she stormed past me and down the hall.

He was too shocked to see me to even notice his wife just left him.  He looked like he wanted to say something but couldn't find the words.

He's beautiful.

Age did him well. It made it known that he was naturally beautiful.

"You're married." I looked down the hall towards the exit the woman took. She was pretty pissed.

He still didn't speak.

He just looked at me with pity now. I don't like when people look at me that way. That's when they start trying to please me out of pity.

"Either talk or I walk." I frowned. His eyes moved up to my eyes.

"I'm sorry." Was all he said. That was all the coward had to say to me. I'm sorry.

"For which part, exactly?" I squinted as I walked  closer to him. He bagged into his condo as I walked in too.

The home looked different. It looked like a woman got hold to it and started decorating.

The pictures of him and Tess were replaced with him and the angry woman that went down the hall.

"I'm sorry for ditching you like that. I was scared. I didn't know how to maintain a relationship with a convict." He said.

I felt very offended by the convict word. He didn't seem phased by my sudden look of offense.

"So much has happened once you left." He stated.

I closed his door and looked at the new furnished couch, I'm assuming his wife got.

"You can sit." He said as he sat on the couch.

"Where's Tess?" I looked around at the weird pictures. I'm shocked they didn't decide to live together forever.

"My new wife, Tammi, wouldn't allow Tess and I to stay friends. I had to choose." He dropped his head. He sounded so sad.

"So you're telling me you dropped your best friend since college for a woman you've known less than 10 years. You're a sucker. I hope she's using you for your money." I mugged him.

This isn't the Khi I knew. He is straight bugging. I like Tess. Hell, I thought he did too.

"Tammi isn't like that. Her dad is the coach of the 49ers. I'm actually the opportunist in this situation. I want to expand my brand." He said with a straight face.

I don't know whether to feel relieved that he doesn't love her, or to slap him for being so rude.

"You don't love her?" I asked.

That's when his hands softly touched my cheek. He looked into my eyes like he did when we first met.

"I love you. I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you." He grazed his hand across this scar on my neck.

I walked down the hall with my guards up. These are some vicious women in this prison. You got to be ten toes down.

"Where you going?" Two girls jumped out in front of me from a empty cell. One had their hand behind their back, signaling she had a weapon.

"I got to clean the bathroom." I told them.

Before I knew it, she grabbed me and had a shank to my neck.

"Pull her pants down." The girl with the knife instructed the girl that stood their frightened.

I tried squirming and accidentally grazed my neck against the knife.

Once they saw blood they quickly ran, leaving me there to bleed.

"It was rough in there." I told him. He leaned in to kiss my lips, but I leaned away.

"What are you doing?" I asked with confusion obviously written on my face. He leaned back and looked at me.

"You don't love me anymore?" His pale face started to flush red. He was embarrassed by my rejection.

"How could you sit there and act like we can pick up where we left off. You're married for crying out loud! You didn't love me when you chose her over me." I said. I was more calm than I expected.

He just sat there looking stupid.

"You didn't even ask me how was I getting by in that place. You don't even care." I stood up from the couch and stormed towards the door, but he grabbed my arm.

"I'm a coward, I know." He told me.

He's more than a coward. He's a bitch for the moves he made. Who does that? I killed a man in hopes of being with him. I could kill him right now.

"Let my arm go." I tried pulling away but he had a tight grip.

"Let my arm go." I cried out as Liam drug me through the ant bed. My back was burning as it began to get covered with ants.

"Please, let go." I begged. He looked me in my eyes, but let me go.

"I can make this right." He said.

I looked at the pictures of him and his wife on the wall. I'm a joke to him.

"How about I come over to your mom's house. I know that's where your hanging. I went by your old home and it looked like someone was living there. I just want a chance to make this right." He said.

Before I could say anything to the pitiful man before me, his wife burst in the door.

"Khi, why is she still here?" She asked. She looked at me and looked back to him.

"Tammi-"

"I was just telling him I'm out of prison. I promise you this will be the last you see of me." I told her. I looked at Khi and he looked sad.

This is a conversation for P and I. If only he was here.