Page 34 of The Heart of a Capricorn
My parents taught me to respect my elders.
I had to remind myself of my upbringing. My mother would pop me in my mouth if I got smart with this lady.
“Look, Ms. Anita. I did everything I could for your son and your family, and y’all treated me like crap. Wouldn’t even let me in the funeral that I planned and paid for. At least y’all tried to, anyway.”
I’d arrived at the funeral home, and two of Brice’s cousins were at the door and tried to deny me entry. I couldn’t believe it. I had done nothing but be nice to them people, and they acted like I was some random person off the street. It was I who made sure he had the white casket with the horse and the other shit they wanted. I even ensured he had on the flyest outfit I could find for him. Everything I could do for them, I did, and they acted like I couldn’t be there because of the money.
Eventually, one of the family members that I did get along with came to the front and walked me in. By that time, I was over it. I paid my respects, said my goodbyes, and walked out of that church with my head held high.
A week later, I ran into Brice’s grandfather, and he apologized for his trifling family, but I didn’t need it. I was done with that family, and that was okay with me.
I knew how much Brice’s mom meant to him, and that was why I reached out, but I had to protect my peace. She was a disruption to it, so this would be my last time calling her.
She huffed and puffed but didn’t say anything else, so I did.
“You take care, Ms. Anita.” I hung up the phone, blocked, and deleted her number.
There was nothing else for us to talk about. I was glad I never had to deal with her.
The whole ordeal made me sad and angry. I swiped away the tears that had fallen. It was time to officially close that chapter of my life. I would never forget Brice, but I knew he wouldn’t want me to deal with anybody who treated me wrong, even if it was his mom. It was crazy because she wasn’t bad while we were together, but I guess she pretended to like me because of her son.
I allowed myself a good cry before I climbed out of bed and headed to the bathroom. I took a shower and pulled my hair up in a messy bun. I tossed on some leggings and a T-shirt. There was only one person I wanted to see, and he was only a couple of floors away. I looked over my appearance, and even though my eyes and face were puffy, I still looked good.
It had been a couple of days since I saw Chauncey, and I realized I missed him. I prayed he was in his room while I grabbed the key and my phone.
I slid my feet into a pair of slides and headed out. I tried to keep my tears at bay as I rode the elevator up, but it wasimpossible. I’d gotten myself together by the time the doors opened and walked down the hall to Chauncey’s room.
“Lyric. Are you okay?” Chauncey asked as soon as his door opened.
Without giving me a chance to respond, he pulled me into his arms.
Being in Chauncey’s arms gave me the safety and comfort I needed. Just inhaling his scent slowly mended the broken pieces of my heart.
A week had passedsince Lyric showed up at my room door with her eyes wet and face puffy. Whatever happened really bothered her. She never went into detail about what happened, except that she finally put the past behind her. I didn’t push her to tell me what she meant, because it wasn’t important. If it were meant for me to know, she would tell me when she got ready. I was just happy that she chose me as her safe space.
Since then, she seemed to be in better spirits, and we had spent all of our free time together. We did things like trying new restaurants, sightseeing, and zip-lining. I enjoyed learning more about her. She knew what she wanted and worked hard to get it. She was a no-nonsense kind of person. Even though it could be perceived as harsh, Lyric didn’t hesitate to speak her mind. It was a trait that I wish more people had. Don’t hide your feelings, because someone else might be mad about it.
“What would you do if someone gave you a whole lot of land? Like, a thousand acres?” Lyric asked as she did a crossword puzzle in her book.
We were in my room after having breakfast, relaxing for the day.
“I would build houses for my immediate family. Maybe build a shelter for the homeless that offers programs to help ease them back into society. It’s a lot of things that could be done with that much land. What would you do?”
She put her book down and focused on me. “Same, but I would probably add a farm, and garden, or something. It’s not like I can garden, because I’d kill the plants.” She giggled. “But, I could hire someone to do it for me.”
“That sounds like a good idea. How’s the project coming along?”
She twisted her body to lie on my chest. Her puzzle book was next to her on the bed. Her hair was out, so I ran my fingers through it.
“It’s going well. Still not sure as to when we’ll be done, but I feel like we are getting close. It’s a lot that we have to do.”
The sound of my phone interrupted the moment. I wanted to turn it off, but I couldn’t in case my boss called about the person they’d been tracking.
“I have to take this,” I told Lyric as I sat up in bed.
She rolled over and looked at me as I answered.
“Hello.”
