Color Me Blind (A Divine Love Story Book 1) (9 page)

It was senior year and
one month before graduation.  The gang had all received local job offers, was ready to go into business for themselves, or heading to their next level of education.  They were ecstatic about what the world had to offer. 

Jasmine and Lucy had gone to cosmetology school at night the last two years of school.  Lucy was a licensed
cosmetologist, esthetician and a nail technician.  Jasmine was a licensed cosmetologist and esthetician.  Jasmine was graduating with a degree in Business Administration and Lucy a degree in Accounting. 

Carmen
attended culinary school at night and was graduating with a degree in Business Administration and a culinary degree. Damon had a degree in Engineering and was heading toward his masters in Architecture.  Blake was an English major and about to enter into law school in the fall.  Ahmed was enrolled in an accelerated program and was graduating with a master’s in Finance. 

Ahmed had been thinking about this
for some time so he called a family meeting.  He loved the family they had created and knew they would all be friends for life.  He knew that at some point things would change when promotions, spouses and kids entered the picture.  He wasn’t quite ready for their friendship to come to a crashing halt just because they were about to graduate.

He cherish
ed his friendship with each of them and realized he was closer to them than his own family.  He had a plan to give them all a great financial start and keep them together.  He had of course already sat down with Blake, discussed the logistics and enlisted him to help find the perfect place.  Blake had a better eye for that sort of thing than he did.

They were meeting at their favorite place on campus to hang out.  It was a nice breezy spring day and Ahmed sat waiting for them underneath the big oak tree near the administration wing.

One by one they all trickled in to their meeting place exchanged greetings, hugs and kisses.  When they all assembled, Jasmine was the first to speak up. 

“Ok
ay handsome, why you got us out here sitting in the grass?”

Ahmed glanced
at Blake and gave him a nod.

Blake said, “Okay guys
, all of us pretty much know what’s next in life but Ahmed has brought a plan to my attention that would allow us to get off to a great start financially and still get to hang out every day.”

Ahmed saw that interest was now piqued and took it from there. 

“So you guys know me as the finance major. I wanna make sure we are all making good financial decisions now and setting ourselves up real nice for the future.”  He received agreeable nods.  “So I was thinking that if we all went in together and bought a place that was big enough for the six of us then the bills would be really cheap as well as the mortgage.  Instead of paying the monthly balance we will overpay and it would still be affordable.  The way I figure, we can get a decent place and pay it off in seven years.  Then when it’s paid off we can turn it into a bed a breakfast and have residual income for the rest of our lives.  What do y’all think?”

He saw the skeptica
l glances pass around the group.  He could literally see the questions running through their minds.

Lucy asked, “So what if someone gets married or gets another job before seven years is up?”

Ahmed said, “Well the good thing is that none of us are in a serious relationship right now so that’s a plus.  Well except for Blake and Jasmine, you know they’ve been together since they were in the womb.”

Everyone except Blake and Jasmine laughed.  Jasmine shot a bird at Ahmed and Blake just shook his head.  Damon gave a fist pound to Ahmed as he laughed extra hard.

Blake said, “
Anyway, to answer your question, that person still pays their portion of the mortgage so they can still benefit when we flip it at the end of seven years.”

Damon said, “I know we all have job offers, and Jaz and Luce are going into business together
, but what kind of mortgage are we talking about and how much out of pocket for each person.”

Ahmed said, “Okay, so we find a place for about $250
,000.  If we could get an interest rate at six percent, which is on the high side, then the payment would be about $1,800 a month.  That right there is only $300 a piece, but since we want to pay it off in seven years the payment would be about $660 a piece.  Now the plan is that we each pay $700. We will eat up the principal in no time paying an extra $2400 a month.  With the other household bills of utilities, cable and food each person should not be out of pocket for this house more than $1,000 per month.  We make this investment and in seven years it pays off for the rest of our lives.”

Carmen said, “Okay
, so you have the house as our investment, but what about other investments?”

Ahmed said, “I’m glad you asked.  I will be handling each of our investment portfolios
.  You guys already give me a head start at the firm because I will start out with five clients.”

Blake said, “You guys know how good Ahmed is with money so
we can trust him to do his part.  We just gotta do ours and have a little faith in our brother.”

Jasmine said, “Me and Lucy are starting out indebted to our parents as they are loaning us the money to open o
ur salon.  I don’t want to stretch myself thin and not be able to pay them back.  It’s hard enough to get a new business off the ground.”

Ahmed
said, “Trust me gorgeous, I’m gonna make sure our money is right.  I know I was born to do this.  You and Luce are going to have your salon and it’s going to be nice.  Give me one year to invest your funds and you two will be paying that money back and making upgrades.”

Blake said, “Remember guys,
I still have my trust fund.  We can have that as a fall back if we ever need it for emergencies or whatever.  I’m going to law school and that will be done in three years.  Then I’ll be working full time.  There is more than enough for me to cover my basic expenses and still give us something to fall back on.”

Damon said, “Man we can’t ask you to put your
ducats up like that.  I mean I understand taking one for the team but are you sure?  I’ll be working full time and going to school full time to get my masters.  What you guys are offering is ambitions but I can see this working.  I just want us to make sure we don’t fall on our faces in the first two years.”

Blake said, “Man I love
you guys.  Y’all are my family.  I really believe this is going to work and in seven years we won’t even be thirty.  We will have an investment property.  Jasmine and Lucy’s salon will definitely be profitable by then.  Maybe we will have enough funds to help Carmen open her own restaurant.  I haven’t decided if I want my own practice yet or even you with your own architecture firm.  We could set ourselves up royally.”

Lucy said, “Yeah Jazzy and I should have an established and loyal clientele and we can definitely help with funding the businesses.
  Ahmed do you want your own firm?”

Ahmed said, “
Absolutely.  But y’all can keep your profits and let me make your money work for you.  We can all have our own businesses and an investment property that sleeps six.”

Damon asked, “So where are we going to find this perfect property.”

Blake said, “I’ve already found three.  We can go and see them all this weekend.”

Carmen asked, “What about the down payment?”

Ahmed said, “I’ve had y’all saving for three years.  I know the six of us can come up with it. No problem, right?”

They all looked at each other as if they didn’t want to admit to Ahmed that they didn’t have it.

Getting agitated Ahmed said, “I know you guys have been saving 20 percent from all income like I’ve been advising since we met?”

They all laughed
. 

Damon said
, “We got you dude.”

“That’s not funny.  Y’all know I don’t play about money and saving for the future.”

Damon said, “I’m in.”

“Me too.”

“Me three.”

“Family gotta stick together.  Count me in too.”

Ahmed smiled, “You guys wait and see. This is gonna be awesome.”

(Five Years Later)

Jasmine
came through the automatic doors of the hospital emergency room.  She had just come from work wearing a pair of jeans and a red t-shirt.  Her red flip flops were flopping loudly as she rushed in.  She was beside herself with concern for Blake.  When he’d called to tell her his father had been admitted to the hospital because of kidney failure she could hear the fear in his voice. 

There was no love lost between her and his father
, but her heart ached for Blake.  Especially when he told her that he and his mom were being tested to see if they were a kidney match.  He and his father had some serious unresolved issues.  If he died before they could resolve them she knew it would leave a hole in Blake’s heart that he might never recover from. 

Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft whisper in her heart, “Take the test for a kidney match.” 

The whisper was so absurd it halted her quick pace.  Ever since she turned her life over to Christ a few years ago every now and then she would hear these whispers. Each time it was giving her direction, but God was trippin’ with this one.  This was not a direction she wanted to walk in.  In her mind she said a resounding,
No
!  The conviction hit her so hard she had to stop to catch her breath.

Jasmine was livid. 

God are you kidding me?  This man hates the very air I breathe and toward him I feel whatever emotion is right before you get to hate.  I would probably do a dance on his grave and you want me to get tested to be a match to give him one of my kidneys?  That is insane. Of course I’m going to be a match because why would you even bring it up.  So this isn’t about me being tested, this is about me giving that hateful, spiteful evil spawn of satan a kidney!

Her
mental rant halted when she spotted Blake at the nurse’s station.  He must have come straight from work because he was wearing a gray suit.  The crisp blue shirt was unbuttoned at the collar and the tie was missing.  His eyes met hers and they looked so worn.  She got quickly to his side. 

He reached out for her, “Jaz
.” 

Her arms wer
e around him.  He felt centered. He felt like he could handle whatever came next now that Jasmine was here.  She felt his body tremble as he began to cry on her shoulder.  It startled her, so she gripped him tighter.  She couldn’t remember a time other than when they were kids when she had ever seen him cry. 

His father had been the cause of those tears as well.  The rest o
f her resistance melted.  She knew she would be donating a kidney to that rat bastard that masqueraded himself as her best friend’s father.  She held Blake and soothed him until he gathered his composure a few moments later. 

He pulled her away from the nurse’s station for some privacy. 

“I’m so glad you’re here Jaz. I can’t do this without you.” 

“I’m sorry I couldn’t get here faster.  Work was crazy and traffic, but you know what, that’s not important.  I’m here now and I will be as long as you need me.” 

He tugged on her curls, kissed her nose and hugged her once again. 

“Jaz, no one knows better than you all the
crap my dad put me through.” 

She strok
ed his hair back from his face and kissed his temple.

“But seeing him like that.
I know you’ve been telling me for years to get everything off my chest. What if he doesn’t make it Jaz? What if neither of us is a match?” 

“Blake you can’t think like that.” 

“If you saw him you would think the same way.  There’s so much I need to say to him.  Is it selfish to do it now because I was too much of a coward to do it sooner?” 

She wanted to weep
for him. 

“B, you are not a coward and your dad hasn’t exactly made you feel
comfortable talking to him.  Don’t be so hard on yourself. Look at it this way, if selfishness is what it takes to get some closure your dad is in no position to judge or call you out about it.” 

He
chuckled, “I guess you have a point.  I should probably head back in there.” 

She smiled, “I should pro
bably stay out here for a while. I mean when I come in the room it can’t possibly help his health situation.” 

He smiled as she’d hoped he would. 

“Don’t be too long okay. My mom would love to see you.” 

“Okay,
give me just a few more minutes. I need to handle something.” 

He kissed her
hair and breathed in the scent of coconuts.

“Tha
nks Jaz. I know this isn’t going to be easy for you so I appreciate you being here for me, even if you can’t be in the room for long periods of time.” 

She
pushed his hair back and kissed his temple again. 

“Go.  I’ll be there shortly.” 

He turned back and asked, “Jasmine, what does it say about me that I want and need a relationship with a man that vile?” 

She walked up to him. 

“It says what an amazing man you are and just one more reason why I love you so much.” 

He walked off
smiling and yelled back, “Room 103.”

Now that Blake was gone Jasmine could focus on the woman who had been shamelessly hanging on to their every word. 

She looked at her name tag, “Hi, uh, Ashley is it?  Maybe you could help me out.” 

Ashley was a tall
forty-something blonde with eerily sparkling hazel eyes. 

She smiled, “Yes, what is it that you need.” 

“Wow your eyes are unlike anything I have ever seen.” 

The nurse smile sheepishly, “Thanks.
  They’re a gift from God.” 

Jasmine continued, “
It’s my understanding that the crotchety old man in room 103 needs a new kidney.” 

A ghost of a smiled tugged at her lips, “Yes ma’am
, that’s right.” 

“Okay
, so where can I get tested to see if I’m a match?” 

Ashley
let out a laugh that she disguised as a cough then said, “I’m sorry, what did you say?” 

Jasmine smirked.
She liked her already.

“Yeah
, I need to see if I’m a match because even though I loathe the man I adore his son.  Let’s just say I have a feeling that I have the power to be of help in this situation.”

“Please don’t be offended but
I’m looking at your big beautiful curls and his deep blue eyes.  Then I’m thinking of the man lying in the bed with the same blue eyes fighting for his life.  I can’t quite understand how you two maintain a successful relationship.” 

Jasmine laughed, “So you’ve met our beloved Frank huh? 
We’re not together. We’re just best friends.  Trust me he’s been complaining about that for years.” 

The nurse gave her a blank stare. 

“You two are not together?” 

“No, why would you say that?
” 

“Um, I don’t know what would make me say that other than the way he seemed to be basically holding his breath until you got here.  I mean he was at my station pa
cing waiting for you.” 

Jasmine blew if off as nothing. 

“We have been friends basically since God created us.  We’ve seen each other through many things. He just needed to know that I was here, that’s all.  Don’t you feel the same way about your best friend?” 

Ashley looked at her skeptically and said, “Yeah, maybe, I guess.” 

“Besides, his girlfriend is Amber you know the red-head.  I thought she was here.” 

“
He didn’t greet her like he greeted you.  Like I said, he was waiting for you.  He told me I would know who you were immediately by your hair and to call him but you got here before he could go back to his dad’s room.”

Jasmine was ready to move on from this conversation, “So can you tell me what I need to do to be tested?” 

“Yes. I’ll page the doctor and have him come out to talk to you.” 

“
Could you do me a small favor?  Don’t let anyone know I’m being tested until we know what the results are.” 

“Not a problem.” 

Amber was heading toward the nurse’s station but Jasmine’s back was to her.  She didn’t see the way Amber rolled her eyes.  It didn’t escape Nurse Ashley’s attention though.  She smirked to herself.  Something was definitely up between ebony and ivory, whether they knew it or not. 

Amber tapped Jasmine on the shoulder, “Hey there
. I see you
finally
made it.” 

Jasmine turned around, “Yeah.  It was crazy trying to get here.  You know I’m trying to prolong my entrance.  I want to keep the room drama free as long as possible.” 

Amber plastered on a fake smile, “I just came out to get some ice.” 

Jasmine had tuned
Amber out thinking about whether she could really give this man her kidney.  Her mom would have a cow. 

She saw Amber wave at her, “See you later.” 

Jasmine turned back to face the nurse. 

The nurse smirked and said, “Mmmm-hmmm.” 

Jasmine genuinely was lost and asked, “What?” 

Nurse
Ashley chose to ignore it and said, “The doctor should be here in about ten minutes.”