After an exhausting night baking goodies, Letty couldn't sleep. Tossing and turning, up then down, she couldn't stop replaying her last call with Prince, and then she couldn't stop running through the many different ways the next call would go. I don't want you at the house 'til I'm back she heard him saying. I love you but I don't trust you anymore.
If the phone would just ring and she could hear his voice on the other side, she could explain better and breathe again. But for the first time since he went away, he didn't call to say goodnight. Some nights, the call came around 1 am but it was 1:59 now, which meant it was 2:59 in Atlanta. His last show in the city was hours ago and next was Virginia. He should've been in his room because his tour bus would take him to the next hotel in the morning, at least that's what happened for the transition from Florida to Georgia.
Prince had been so persistent calling Letty, she never had to call him. Even when he was in the middle of something, he'd still reach out to her just to check in, especially while he was in Atlanta. He didn't say names and he didn't say why, but Letty assumed it was because it was "fatal attraction's" hometown. On Thursday when he and the band did an impromptu signing at a record store, he called Letty from the car as soon as he left. He said around 4,000 fans showed up but he didn't see half of them. He stayed only a little under an hour. Letty asked if he saw a face he didn't want to see but he said no. "I'm just over this whole thing already."
Letty sat up and turned on her bedside lamp. Grabbing the phone and his tour itinerary from her the top drawer of her nightstand, she decided to try and call him, hoping he wasn't out doing an aftershow or something.
A woman from the front desk picked up to direct her call.
"Yes, can you connect me to suite 1505, Beveryly Horvath."
"May I ask who is calling?"
Letty hesitated, because Prince's assistant Beverly didn't clarify how Letty should address herself. "Vylette Wizzo."
The woman was paused.
"Or Letty Wizzo."
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but our guest has already checked out."
Pissed, Letty said her goodbye and thank you then tried Prince's cell phone. The thing didn't even ring. So she paged him, and lied back in bed to play the waiting game again.
In total, Letty got about 90 minutes of sleep. Prince never called.
It was the worst feeling to her, lying in the shadow of someone's disappointment. She didn't care when loved ones were upset with her. Prince had been upset about many things since they met, from the very first moment when she refused to release his son to Edna the housekeeper. And then there were smaller moments, like her missing too many calls in a row, or when she baked a carrot cake that Sunday instead of red velvet like they discussed. Letty learned fast Prince frustrated easily, and she didn't mind it. Good or not, she admitted to herself already that she was attracted to his need for control.
Disappointment on the other hand left her feeling like she failed him, and the feeling was nauseating. But she had a busy day ahead of her so she couldn't dwell in bed all morning.
The Good family hosted card parties nearly a dozen times a year. Summertime is when the houses were guaranteed to be packed, everyone and their friend's friend showing up. But it was going to be jumping this time around too because the family was planning a surprise celebration for the matriarch of the family, Letty's great-great grandmother Dolly. It was her 89th birthday.
Letty was up in the 8 o'clock hour to shower and wash her hair. By 10, she was down in the kitchen with a head full of purple rollers, setting up with her mother. Jax was awake and wanted to help, so Ms. Jackee had him scooping popcorn into the plastic bags for her to tie with gold ribbon. Granny Dolly's favorite color was pink, so Letty's dining room was filling up with pink, lavender and gold balloons and treats to match. Gold candy apples, strawberry popcorn, cupcakes and gumdrops. Letty loved how it was coming together and thought the colors popped nicely against her newly painted gray walls.

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TLWM: The Hate Experience
FanfictionThe Love We Make 2: It's 1992 and the world is bewildered by recent headlines. "His Royal Badness Prince is now MARRIED with a SON, and the boy is already 3 YEARS OLD! Was he really hiding the kid this whole time? Or is this sudden marriage hid...