Page 19 of Intercept My Heart

“Hey, what’s going on?” Drake walked out with Chloe trailing behind him.

“This piece of trash is getting out of my house. That’s what.” Vera glared at me as if she hated me. Honestly, I didn’t care about how she felt about me because she’d been terrible to me from the very beginning.

“Mom, maybe you should come lay down before you do something you’ll regret.” Chloe reasoned with her, placing her hand on Vera’s shoulder.

“The only thing I regret is letting your father talk me into letting these orphaned bastards into my home. I never wanted kids in the first place, and I damn sure never wanted to raise anyone else’s.” Vera huffed. Both of her children stared at her in disbelief.

“I’m calling Daddy,” Chloe warned.

“Don’t you dare. I want this home-wrecking bitch as far away from my house as possible! Stay the hell away from my man and my children. Do you hear me? If you see them, act like you didn’t, or so help me, I’m going to make you pay.” Vera lunged at me, but Drake stepped between us.

“Ma, you gotta chill. You’re drunk and not thinking clearly.”

“Get the fuck off me! I’m thinking very clearly, and that’s why she has to go. I’ve put up with way too much and sacrificed years of my life for this family, and nobody is going to destroy what I’ve built.”

“Mommy, I called Daddy, and he’s on his way. You need to come drink some water and come lay down.” Chloe attempted to move her mother closer to the door, but she broke out of her hold.

“Good. I’m sure he’ll want to send his whore off with a proper goodbye,” Mrs. Vera spat. Sadly, I was so used to her talking down to me that I wasn’t fazed at all. I walked over to help Dinero with my things, but he stopped me.

“I’ve got it. Why don’t you head to my car?” As much as I wanted to protest, I needed to be as far away from this placeas possible. My mind couldn’t even process everything I’d been through in the last few months. Drained. That was all I felt at the moment. Climbing in the back seat, I rested on the headrest. Children were supposed to be carefree, yet life only seemed to get harder and harder.

What hurt the most was the fact that I couldn’t even blame my parents because they weren’t here. Sometimes, I wondered how different my life would have been if they were here. Certainly, my upbringing wouldn’t have been nearly as tumultuous as it had been. Maybe I would have gotten the chance to experience real love. The only person who had ever loved me was Ciera. Well, I thought she did. For some reason, I’d been dreaming of her coming back to get me. I missed her more than anything. It sucked having to go through life with no one to talk to.

Dinero placed my things in the trunk before he got into the car as well. He turned on some music, which I appreciated. My thoughts were loud, and I needed something else to place my focus on.

Drake decided to spend the night with Dinero tonight. I guessed he wanted to get away from all the drama at his house as well.

“Hey, do you want to stop and get some food?” My appetite left the moment we pulled up to the house, so I declined. However, Dinero insisted that I would get hungry later, so he suggested we go to Roosters. All I wanted to do was crawl into the bed, then it dawned on me that I no longer had one. The money I saved up to move was barely enough to cover two full weeks at a motel, which meant I would have to work overtime to keep a temporary roof over my head. The only issue now was finding someone to book the room for me.

“Did you hear what I said, Rae?” Dinero called out to me.

“Umm, no, I’m sorry. What did you say?”

“I asked what flavor of wings you wanted.”

“I told you I don’t want anything.”

“I’m not tryna hear that. You’re eventually going to get hungry, and even if you don’t, it’s better to have it than not.” I rolled my eyes before telling him the flavor I liked.

“Thank you.” He smirked before pulling up to the window. I stared out into the distance, imagining what life would be like five years from now. My plan to go to school to become a physical therapist was still on my agenda. All I needed to do was focus and keep my grades up. While I was uncertain about my immediate future, I refused to give up on my dreams. I needed something to hold on to and believe in.

I remembered I stayed in an emergency placement home with this older lady named Ms. Gail, and she told me that trouble didn’t last always. She said, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy is coming in the morning.”

It seemed as if my days of weeping were lasting longer than I expected; however, I believed her words. There was no way I’d gone through all this heartache without a blessing waiting for me at the end.

“Put these in the back with you.” Dinero passed me the bags of food. I’d admit the aroma caused my stomach to growl. Doing as he asked, I set the bags next to me.

Dinero and Drake talked about superficial stuff like football and the best teams in the NFL. I tuned them out, for the most part.

“Naw, I think he’s done for the season. Even if he gets the best physical therapist around, it’s unlikely he’ll be able to play at full capacity.” Drake’s words sparked my interest, but I wasn’t sure why. I’d watched so many videos of people relearning how to walk again after they’d been injured, and it fascinated me. The idea of helping someone rebuild intrigued me. Plus, sports medicine was a very lucrative business.

“I think if he takes this time off to rest, he might have a shot. Most people with injuries like his make a full recovery within four to six months. However, being an athlete has to give him some sort of advantage.” They continued to talk as I pondered what a career in sports medicine would look like. I loved sports and also wanted to help people, so putting those two things together seemed perfect.

“Rae, wake up, ma.” Dinero shook me, and I realized I must have fallen asleep. I barely got any rest while I was home because of Dennis and Vera. Peace became hard to find when you were surrounded by chaos every day.

“Where are we?” It was clear we weren’t at a motel, and I’d never been in this neighborhood.

“Welcome to Royal Oaks.” He held his hand out for me to hold, and I followed his lead. Of course, I wanted to question why he’d brought me to his home, but I figured it was probably the easiest option for this time of night.

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