Authors: Tremayne Johnson
We stayed the night with Raquel, just the three of us, holding each other like we were kids. It felt good to have friends that cared. It really did.
14
A week passed since Raquel had given us the terrible news of her contracting H.I.V. I still couldn’t understand why. I prayed every night, asking God what the reason for this was.
Why did he have to choose my friend?
Not that I would wish something like that on someone else, but damn, this was real close to home. But the more I prayed on it and the more I kept my faith, the more I realized that God didn’t make mistakes. Everything was done for a reason. We may not know the reason in the beginning, or we may not ever know the reason, but there is a reason; and he knows.
The sweet smell of cinnamon pancakes and honey bacon teased my nostrils, bringing me out of a deep sleep. It was the first Sunday of November, and as usual, my grandmother was in the kitchen, cooking up a big breakfast. Sunday was the best day of the week because she cooked three times; breakfast, lunch and dinner.
I pushed the covers off me, got up, brushed my teeth, washed my face and made my way downstairs to get ready to eat. I saw that I had two missed calls from Simeon. I hadn’t heard from him in a week, but I would make it my business to return his call.
I got down to the kitchen and Dorian was already there, sitting at the table. My grandmother was at the sink, washing the last few dishes that were left. When I looked at the spread of food on the table, all I could do was smile.
“Now this is Sunday breakfast,” I said.
There was grits, scrambled eggs, bacon, fried whiting, fried shrimp, croissants, pancakes and a few more tasty dishes. I gave my grandmother a kiss on the cheek and playfully slapped the back of Dorian’s neck.
“Stop playin’ Cherish…”
“Shut up boy,” I laughed.
“Y’all better stop playin’ and get to eatin’. That food gon’ get cold,” my grandmother said.
“That’s why we got the microwave, grandma,” Dorian replied.
“You better leave that micro-wave alone… you gon’ turn into a goddamn micro-wave.”
We laughed and I made Dorian and me a plate of food. My grandmother left us and went upstairs. After I ate, the sluggishness kicked in full time. Dorian said he was going out and I gave him my usual speech about being safe and not getting into trouble. He told me the same thing he told me every time.
“Alright, okay sis, I’m good.”
I took his word for it and went upstairs to get a nap in before I went to church.
An hour and a half later my phone rang. I thought I was dreaming, but it kept getting louder and louder. The only way I could get it to stop was if I answered it.
“Hello?”
“Hello, Miss Parker, this is Cindy with Allbate Insurance Company. How are you doing today?”
I sat up in the bed. “I’m alright, Cindy,”
“Well, I’m calling because we tried to process a payment, but we’re getting a decline on the account.”
“Decline?”
“Yes, I’ve tried to process it several times before calling you, but there’s nothing we can do. Maybe you need to call your bank and see what’s going on,” she told me.
I was just waking up, so I wasn’t too comprehensive. I looked at my phone to see exactly who I was talking to. It was my insurance agency, but what the hell was she talking about.
“Hello, Miss Parker?”
“Yes, I’m still here. I’m just trying to figure out why the payment is being declined.”
“Well, as I’ve said, I think you should call your back and check in with them.”
“Okay, thank you, Cindy.”
I ended the call, jumped out of bed and snatched my laptop off the dresser. I logged into my online bank account and a message appeared on the screen. The message was giving me a number to call in order to find out what was wrong with my account. There was nothing I could do to get pass the pop-up message.
What the fuck is going on?
I thought to myself. I dialed my bank’s customer service number and waited for someone to answer. When the operator answered, I gave her all my information and she put me on hold. When she returned, she began telling me that my account was frozen, but she couldn’t tell me why. She gave me another number to call so I could speak with someone who would be able to help me.
“Frozen!”
“I’m sorry for the inconvenience Miss Parker, but that’s all the information I can give you,” she said.
I was so pissed off, I hung up on her. This shit was not happening. I grabbed my phone and tried to log into my account and got the same message as I did on the laptop, so I called the number.
The operator I spoke with told me that the only way my bank account would have a freeze on it is because someone has filed a case for an unpaid debt.
“Unpaid debt? I don’t owe anybody. There must be a mistake,” I said.
“Sorry, Miss Parker, but I’m only giving you the information I have in front of me.”
I was trying to stay calm, but my anger was slowly building.
“So, what do I need to do?”
“You can either deal directly with the person who filed the case, or you can file an order to show cause to vacate the judgment. Those are your two options.”
“Oh my God, I can’t believe this,” I thought I was saying it my head, but the words came out of my mouth.
“I’m sorry, Miss Parker. Is there anything else I can help you with?”
No, that’s it. Thank you.” I said, ending the call.
This was crazy. My account with over four million dollars was now frozen. Every penny of it, and I had no clue of why. Then a thought popped into my head.
Nah, it can’t be.
The only person I could think of was Marlon.
But why would Marlon file a debt against me?
I didn’t know what to think, but I knew I needed to get in contact with him, so I dialed his number, but after three consecutive tries, I didn’t get an answer.
“Fuck!”
I rushed to my closet and pulled out the Nike sneaker box I kept my cash in. I removed the stacks of money and started counting them. At least I had some cash on hand. I counted two hundred thousand dollars which was more than enough to hold me over until this issue got resolved.
I took a quick shower, got dressed and headed out. I needed to find Marlon. Deep in my gut I knew he had something to do with this. I just knew it.
I called every number that I had for him, but never got an answer. I also went to his apartment, but no one was there. Something was up. There was no sign of him at all. Not one trace.
I sat in my car in front of his apartment building and tried to figure out what the fuck was going on, but I didn’t even know where to begin. I felt my emotions twisting and twirling. I wanted to cry. I just wanted to sit there and cry my eyes out, but that wouldn’t help, so I started the car and drove off.
When I pulled up to my grandmother’s house, I parked and ran inside. My nerves were so shot; I didn’t know what to do. I had plans to go to church, but now I didn’t even feel like going there, and I probably needed it. I sat on my bed and stared at the wall.
What else could go wrong?
After ten minutes of doing nothing, I decided to use my time wisely and get some laundry done. My grandmother usually washed Dorian’s clothes, but since her visit to the hospital, I had taken over that responsibility. I gathered my things and bought them downstairs to the laundry room in the basement and then I went into Dorian’s room to get his things.
I carried his laundry basket downstairs and emptied the soiled clothes onto the floor to separate them. When I shook out a pair of his jeans, something fell out the pocket. I reached down and picked it up. It was a wad of cash; all one hundred dollar bills. I couldn’t tell how much it was, but I knew it was a lot.
With so much on my mind, I didn’t pay too much attention to the money. I just put it to the side and made a mental note to say something to Dorian when he came in, but when I grabbed one of his hoody sweatshirts, a brown paper bag fell out the front pocket.
I stared at the bag lying on the floor. Something told me not to open it, but I was too nosy. I just had to know what was in it. I reached in and pulled out the contents. It was plastic baggie with a big, white rock in it.
“I don’t believe this muthafucka…” I mumbled.
Immediately I pulled my phone from my pocket and dialed Dorian’s number, but I kept getting his voicemail. I stormed upstairs to let my grandmother know what I found. She was going to be very upset, but I had to tell her. I had to let her know what her grandson was out there doing.
On my way upstairs, I heard a reporter on the news discussing a trade in baseball, and they mentioned Marlon’s name. I stopped in my tracks and was glued to the television.
“And reports are coming in this morning about the trade involving Marlon Giles to the Los Angeles Dodgers for a fourth round draft pick in next year’s draft…”
“I think this is a good trade, Bill. What do you think?”
I grabbed the remote and hit power. I heard all I needed to hear. Marlon was on the other side of the country; that’s why I couldn’t reach him.
I continued up the steps to inform my grandmother of what I had found. When I pushed open her door I could see she was sound asleep, but I had to wake her up.
“Grandma…” I called out, “Grandma,” I walked over to her while she lay in bed and shook her leg. She was stiff as a rock. “Grandma, grandma wake up,” I said. I moved to the top of the bed and shook her shoulder, but I still didn’t get a response, “Grandma, grandma wake up!”
I started to panic. My grandmother never slept this hard. I shook her shoulder a second time and her head rolled to the side.
“Oh my God, grandma, wake up, please!” I shouted.
I bent down and put my ear to her face to see if she was breathing. I didn’t hear anything. I put two fingers under her nostrils, but I didn’t feel anything. When I placed my hand around her wrist to check for a pulse, I lost my mind when I didn’t feel one.
“No, no…. no, this can’t be happening,” I was pacing back and forth in front of her bed, “Grandma, please wake up… please,” I begged, but she was just lying there with the most peaceful look on her face.
Tears started to form in my eyes and fall down my cheek. My nerves were everywhere. I was sweating profusely and shaking like I had turrets syndrome. I snatched my phone from my pocket and dialed Dorian’s number again, and again I got sent straight to voicemail.
I didn’t know what to do. I slumped to the floor and sat at the foot of her bed, distraught, crying my eyes out. The tears were flowing so fast my shirt was soaked in minutes. I cried until no more tears were able to fall, and I prayed. I prayed to God. I prayed that he would end this horrible nightmare that was going on in my head. I prayed that he would make everything okay. I prayed for my grandmother. I prayed for Raquel. I prayed for my mother and father, and most of all, I prayed for me and my little brother Dorian.
It felt like an eternity had passed, but when my phone rang, and I looked at it, only seventeen minutes had gone by. I attempted to stop crying so I could answer it. I didn’t want Dorian losing his mind.
“You need to get to the house, now,” I told him.
“What’s wrong, sis?”
“It’s an emergency, Dorian… just hurry up and get here.”
“Aight, I’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” he said.
The phone went dead and I dropped it on the carpet. I peeked at my grandmother to see if something had changed, but it didn’t. She was still lying in her bed, dead.
15
“Cherish, Cherish! Where are you?”
I could hear Dorian’s voice, but I couldn’t move. I couldn’t even shout to let him know where I was, but I heard his footsteps coming up the stairs. I heard doors opening and closing, like he was looking for me, and when he pushed open my grandmother’s room door, all I could do was stare at him with tear filled eyes.
“Cherish, what happened?”