Masuk157. MARLON I have just laid on my bed, staring depressingly at the white high ceilings when my phone rings by my side. I have this sudden urge to fling it against the wall, but I stop myself. I don't even know who is calling. I pick it up without even looking, and blurt out. "Hello?" "Marlon? Where are you?" I sit up immediately. It's my sister Maybelline, that is calling. "Um, May? What's the matter?" "We've found her." Maybelline says, and my heart skips a couple of beats. "God, it was so hard, but we were finally able to find her." That bitch. If not because she is a girl, I would have taught Bernice the worst lesson of her life. I immediately stumble into my closet, trying to find something to throw on. "Where are you guys? Tell me so that I will come to you." I tell her. "It's not that simple, Marlon, she is not even in Densberry anymore." May says. "Yeah, no shit." I huff. "She is at the hotel just at the border, and she is asking us to meet her at the really luxur
156. JANAE "But, I don't understand–" "I'll get you out of here, I promise." He tells me. "Just, don't talk. Let me handle this." I'm at a crossroad here, but even with that, I nod to tell him that I am going to fully trust him, even though I still can't believe that he is actually here. I told myself that I never wanted to see, or speak to him again. Not because I hated Marlon Gustave Sr, but because I didn't want what happened with Preston to happen again. Deep within him, I know that Marlon is a good man who has a lot of complex layers, but I know that I am not the one for him. Not when I have my own troubles, and I desperately want to put myself together...The detectives walks back into the room, and I can't help but notice how much their counternance have changed. Especially seeing that Marlon is sitting so close to me. "Mister Gustave, we appreciate that you are trying to give back to the community and all, but the public lawyer is already coming, so you don't have to
155. JANAE I have never thought that the day would come when I would be too defeated to even lift a finger. A day that my nightmares would become true, or imagine the fact that I may never see my Luther again. Nancy smirks when he sees the look on her eyes, and like the evil bitch that she is, sure reaches to push my hair away from my face. I flinch, willing myself to move away from her, but I can't. That's how weak and broken I am. She looks over her neck, as if to see if the detectives are far away enough for her to sit down and blab her nonsense. "First of all, I should tell you that the cameras have been turned off!" She chuckles as she carelessly points to the two strategically mounted in the corners. "I mean, it's all over. The case is closed, you're going to jail." I sigh and look down, feeling that tightening feeling crawling up my throat again. "Oh, baby," Nancy pouts her lips as she reaches to hold my hand. "I told you not to mess with me. But you never but you neve
154. MARLON I blacked out and by the time I come back to myself and pull my body off Preston Cooper, he is a bloody mess. My fists are still tightly wrapped, and it's covered in blood. He is breathing heavily, groaning as he clutches his hand over his lips. "You.... Fuck!!!" His voice rings into the night. "You broke my nose!" You're glad that's the only thing I did!" I yell right back at him. "How dare you talk about Luther and Janae like that? And to ask me for money on top of that?! Are you crazy?!" He pulls himself over the ground, before turning over and lifting himself back to a standing position. He can hardly stand straight, painfully clutching his belly as he glares at me with all the hate in the world. The only reason why he has not charged at me is because he knows that he would not be able to beat me. "I could go to the police now and get you arrested for assault," he spits on the ground. "Bet your father is going to like that." "Oh, you should do that," I take a
153. MARLON "Fuck," my eyes close and my hands goes over my head. That explains a whole lot. Nancy Huston is right in the middle of this. She is the reason why the people Janae has been running from have suddenly caught up to her? What happened between Nancy and Janae? I know this doesn't have anything to do with Luther, Bernice, and I, because from what Luther said, Janae disappeared right before he just got back home from prom night. That was too fast. Whatever Nancy was plotting against Janae was already in motion before that. But again, Luther has never told me about any problems between his mother and Nancy Huston. I mean, I don't think he even knows about it! If he had suspected Nancy, that would have been a piece of information that he would have shared with me..Preston stops chewing, so that his confused eyes follow my face, and then with a sigh, he decides to clear my confusion. "I guess you want to hear the entire story," he clasps his hands together. "I was at a ba
152. MARLON His lips are slightly parted as he breathes so heavily. Was he scared because he almost died, or because he had to run all the way here, from god-knows-where? My hands are still on the steering wheel as I stare intensely at this man, like he is supposed to be a ghost. "Heyy," he raises both of his hands, asking me to calm down, because he thinks I will run over him. "I know you don't know me, but my name is Preston Cooper." "I know who you are," I say with unblinking eyes. A small smile creeps on his face as he lowers his hands to his side. "Is that so? Then that saves both of us a whole lot of trouble. I think you and I need to talk." ****Is this a good idea? No. I'm supposed to go back home to tell my Dad that Janae has been arrested, and he needs to intervene before she gets moved out of Densberry, into a maximum security prison, but here I am. Sitting across from my boyfriend's father, in an almost empty diner. I haven't ordered anything for myself, but Presto
LUTHER The words get all entwined and I can't come up with a good enough lie to tell my mother, and she rolls her eyes at me. "Oh, Luther, do you think I was born yesterday? Are you trying to lie to me?" "I'm not trying to lie, mum. Maybe it was the wind that you heard. Sometimes, when it's a l
MARLON I had no idea that my father came back into the country last night. I thought I heard Maybelline squeaking when she welcomed him back home, but I thought that it was just a dream. Until I look out of the window and watch the staff greeting him, and a scowl leaves my lips. It's not like I
LUTHER I was just going to teach Marlon a little lesson for treating me so coldly, but what I didn't expect is for that single act to send both of us into the nurse's office. Marlon has suffered a very terrible black eye, and he can't even open it. It's growing bigger and bigger, like a ball.
LUTHER Standing in front of the Hudson mansion, this is the last place I would want to be right now. I adjust the sleeves of my leather jacket before raising my hand to ring the bell. I haven't brought any flowers for Bernice this time around. All the kindness I had for her has been replaced wit







