Yours.
"I'm sorry, Ma'am. Immediate family only." Immediate family? Immediate family? For over twenty years, Cookie was the only family that man had ever had. She glanced to the beefy security guard Anika had hired that silently challenged her to make a scene so he could toss her over his shoulder and throw her outta the hospital. God, Boo Boo Kitty would love that. Cookie humiliated...again. How could he pick Anika over her?! The scowl on her face never once softened as she took the high road and reluctantly walked away from Lucious' hospital room. Now wasn't the time to cause a scene. Some may call her impulsive, but in truth, Cookie knew when it wasn't the right time to pick a right. Lucious didn't need the stress, and though the man angered and frustrated her, he was the father of her sons and painfully still, the love of her life. The sound of his pain ripped through her heart and made it impossible for her two feet to exit the hospital that smelt like bleach and death. Instead, she found a quiet seat in the corner and waited.
As she looked around, her eyes slid from person to person, sitting nervously, waiting for an update on their loved one. A little black girl with cute little buns in her head noticed Cookie and smiled with a little wave. The scowl softened as Cookie wiggled her fingers back. She reminded her of Carol from when they were kids too young for the heavyweight they carried on their shoulders. The older girl sat beside her, noticed Cookie, and wrapped a protective arm around her little sister, tugging her closer. Looking away, Cookie sighed. Even now, with so much water underneath the bridge between her and Lucious, she still cared. Despite him giving her every reason to waltz out of the hospital without a care in the world, she sat anxiously, feeling the way a wife should when worried about her husband's health. But here she was, carrying a load that no longer needed to be on her shoulders. Maybe she was a glutton for punishment or a fool that cares too much about people who care too less.
She didn't know how much time passed. She dozed, she re-energized with unhealthy amounts of poor-quality coffee and tried to sweet-talk the nurses into giving out any kind of information. Anything to put her nerves at rest. When Anika sauntered down the corridor in all that leggy wanna-be supermodel glory, their eyes immediately connected. The pang of anger returned. How was she immediate family? She'd known Lucious, what? Five years maybe? That was nothing. Nothing! Cookie squeezed her eyes shut for a moment and let the anger pass. Now wasn't the time to be angry about things that weren't going to change. If Anika wanted to become Mrs. Lucious Lyon 2.0, she could go right ahead but Lord knows, that little girl is completely unprepared for life as a Lyon. You can steal a crown but be prepared for the humiliation when it doesn't fit around your head.
"Leaving?" Cookie arched an eyebrow and took in Anika's tired form. She looked genuinely worried. How sweet.
"Still here?" Anika retorted.
"Did your Daddy send you home? Ain't it past yo' bedtime?" She taunted, immaturely. There was a certain level of pettiness Cookie had to maintain around Anika. Or else she'd crack. The woman's eyes rolled to the back of her head so hard that could've gotten stuck. Leaning back in her chair, Cookie twisted her lips. "How's Lucious?"
"If he wanted you to know, he would've had someone tell you." The woman snipped, adjusting her stance to give an air of supremacy. Cookie looked her up and down slowly and watched that stance crumble as Anika squirmed under her sharp gaze. It was the same glare her children received when they tested her patience. A silent warning. "Just go home, Cookie," Anika grunted. "You aren't wanted here. Not anymore."
Cookie resisted the urge to snatch the smug woman up by her roots and toss her around like a ragdoll, but she had more pressing matters to attend. Anika getting a good ole fashioned Philly beat down was at the middle of her long list of priorities. When Anika had disappeared and the nurses' station had quietened, Cookie slowly padded toward Lucious' room and shook her head with disbelief at the sight of his sleeping security guard. With the kinds of enemies Lucious had made, and the quantity of them, it pays to hire a decent damn security guard. Dummy. She hurriedly slipped into the bedroom before the useless man in uniform woke up from his donut induced coma. She quietly crept into the room and neared Lucious' bed. A frown marred her face when she saw his pale body hooked up to all those wires. The only thing that slightly soothed her was the sound of his steady beating heart. What the hell was wrong with this damn man? She knew there was no point in asking, though she'd do it anyway, because apparently now they lied to each other. But then again, they were no longer husband and wife. They weren't obligated to be truthful anymore. Cookie doubted anything genuine had ever fallen off Lucious' slippery tongue. Ever.
