All For Love (Urban Fiction) Part 5

Chapter 37 Jahleel

It had been a week since I got released from the hospital. The gunshot wounds were still healing, but the pain was becoming more manageable each day. Ava hadn't left my sight for a week straight, and I felt like I was being smothered by her constant questioning.

I winced in pain as I shift positions in the bed. Sweat beads formed on my forehead as Ava gently peeled back the bloodied bandages. Her fingers work carefully, cleaning the red gashes with an antiseptic solution that seemed to hurt worse than the actual shot.

"Almost done, just breathe through it," she soothed, her voice a calming down my aggression.

Once the bandages of fresh white gauzes were replaced, Ava fluffed up the pillows behind me so I can sit up. Leaving the room briefly, she brought over a tray with a bowl of chicken broth and some saltine crackers - bland food to help settle my queasy stomach. Her steady hand held the spoon to my lips, her other hand tenderly supporting my head. I took small sips, watching her over as she held back a smile.

"What's funny?" I asked, clearing my throat after swallowing the soup.

"You just look like a big ass, baby." She dropped the spoon into the bowl and stared over me before continuing. "It's funny that this is what it took for you to sit your ass down. But, I do love taking care of you."

Her care did help me take my mind off of what had happened, but even that was short lived. Beeno's people had almost took me out and robbed one stash house, which meant I was short product. Not to mention, the chaos raging in my mind over Marcus' case. Without him, I had no plug, I needed him free by any costs. Marcus froze all distribution since they arrested him, which was fucking up my business. I knew Daniel was making an exit from the game soon, so his product wouldn't match my demand. I was at a crossroads and I knew Ava was just as anxious for him to get out.

After eating, she made sure I took my meds, before she took a seat on the edge of the bed. "Do you think it was a set up? I feel like that lawyer of yours had something to do with it."

"I doubt it."

"Then who else could it be, if not her? I mean none of this happened until she came around. They probably been watchin' you and her, and followed her here."

"Beeno's people.."

"Beeno? He's been dead, what does that have to do with us? I don't trust her, Jah." She kept pestering me about new information, but I had nothing to give her. My irritability got the best of me, waiting on a call from Maliah that never came.

Finally, after waiting around, I decided to call Maliah over, telling her we needed to talk in person. She'd been avoiding me since the shooting. When she left the hospital room, I told her that I would need her help, and nothing came from that conversation. I had no other choice but to back her into a corner.

When she arrived, I could tell something was off. Maliah showed up at my  apartment, dressed in athletic wear. She wore a fitted, black sports bra that showcased her toned stomach. On her lower half, she had on high-waisted blue leggings. The leggings hugged her curves and accentuated her athletic features. Completing the look, she wore her hair in a sleek low bun. Overall, she looked like she had just completed a yoga class before arriving. But what caught my attention the most were her eyes, she seemed to be hiding something.

As she stepped inside, I couldn't help but stare her over. Anytime I did see her, she was in business-casual clothes, so this was different.

I tried to put on a unfazed face, but the bandages covering my torso were a constant reminder of the pain I had endured. Despite the circumstances, her presence alone was enough to calm my nerves. One thing I liked about her was how detached she was from the lifestyle that I lived.