Because of You

Chapter 11

Nolen

Pure pain.

Raw gut wrenching pain.

Mixed with tension, not of the sexual kind, but of the I will wrap my hands around your throat and strangle you kind.

This was how the car ride felt all the way home.

I honestly thought we were going to die since my mama was so distraught that she was constantly drifting off into her own mind and veering to the other lanes.

I gripped my seat and clenched my eyes shut the entire drive.

I didn't want to see what would kill me, because more than likely, it would be a head on collision with an eighteen wheeler carrying three hundred pounds worth of cargo while the greasy obesed driver ate a pulled pork sandwich, spilled barbecue sauce on the passenger seat, leaned over to get it off, didn't pay attention and my mama -since she wasn't in her right frame of mind- drove through the red light of the intersection and hit the said driver.

Big truck vs. a corolla and the corolla would fatally lose.

"Who is she," my mama questioned calmly, turning to my father in her seat.

Hands on the wheel please. One of us already got one foot in the grave while there are three other perfectly fine people in the car, can we keep it that way.

My father said nothing.

Instead, his already pale skin became an even more ghostly pallor.

"Who?"

Daddy, no, you already been caught. Don't be like every other nigga and play dumb.

"Who!? Who!? Is that all you can say!? What are you, a fucking owl now!? You know damn well what I'm talking about Robert," my mama shouted, still staring at my daddy.

The car began veering to the left almost scraping a Honda.

"Mama," Kira said warningly.

She placed her hands back on the wheel and pulled the car back into our lane.

"Liz, please not now," my father replied tiredly, "not in front of the kids."

"Not now!? Whatever, we are gonna do this! Do you realize that you could have possibly given this to me," my mama shrieked.

The car was eerily quiet until we reached home.

"Ooh, I swear if you wasn't hurt, I'd kill you right now," my mama yelled, slamming the car door and stalking to the garage door, "and you better find a way to get your own self out of the car, bastard."

My mama slammed the door forcefully behind herself.

Kira and I looked at one another, releasing a deep breath.

The door to the garage opened again.

"And don't help his ass out either," my mama yelled, slamming the door closed again.

Jacob

My body still hurt and it had been about three days since everything happened.

My mama still wouldn't look at me, my father had been working as usual, and Ray hasn't been home lately, which has been a plus for me.

A swift knock came on my door.

"Who is it," I asked.

"Your ma," my mama replied.