Life After Pain

Surprise!

Yn's POV

"DJ, come on. It's time to go to school" I said, slightly yelling to make sure he heard me.

He ran into the kitchen in his new blue plaid shirt, black Levi's, and blue Jordans. He had his new Spiderman book bag and looked as if he was ready to start the day. I can't believe he's already 4.

"I haven't even eaten yet, mommy. I'm hungry" he said complaining.

"DJ, mommy can't be late for work again" I explained. He started pouting and I sighed. I fixed him a small a decent amount of cereal in a cup so he could eat on the way to school.

We left out of the apartment. I work with Taylor and Minnie. We work for Lovely Family Hospital. I'm a surgeon/nurse, Minnie's a nurse, Taylor's a dialysis assistant. We started working there a few months ago.

My boss has been on my case lately. She's been upset because I've been arriving late lately. However, I can't help it if I am a single mother that has a four year old to take care of. But, nowadays people don't care about your personal life. It's all about money.

Since I'm on the subject, lets talk about DJ. Daniel Dwayne Simmons IV (4th). The love of my life. He was born March 25, just a few days after his dad, who has been missing for the past four years. It hurts me to see him growing up without a dad, just like I was. But, there's nothing I can do about it.

We got in the car and I dropped DJ off at his pre-school. My son is so different from other children. He actually loves going to school. My baby's so smart it's ridiculous!

He jumped right out of the car before I even got a chance to open my door! I had to jog to keep up with how fast he was running to get to the doors of the school. He quickly took his book bag off, unpacked it, and ran over to the rest of the kids.

I frowned and pretended to be hurt. "So mommy doesn't get a hug and a kiss before she leaves?" I asked him. I lowered my head and pouted.

He ran over to me. "Oh, mommy. Done be sad. I don't want to hurt your feelings." He squeezed his arms around my neck and gave me a big kiss.

"Okay, baby. Be good and pay attention. I love you."

"I love you too, mommy." He gave me one more kiss before I left.

I quickly hopped back into my car and started driving again. The traffic is pretty bad. I already know I'm going to be late. Uggghhh. Another day of hearing Tammy's, my boss, mouth.

I got to work at 9:25. Damn! 5 minutes late. I quickly punched in and started work. In the middle of sorting through files, I was stopped by Tammy.

"Ah. Late again, Miss Yn?" she asked. The sarcasm was clearly visible in her voice.

I tried my hardest not to curse her rude ass out. "Yes, but there's a reason for that, Ms Jenkins. You see, I had to-"

"You didn't have to do anything but arrive here on time. This is coming out of your paycheck, Yn. I suggest you get it together before you get fired." She said before walking off.

"Dumb bitch" I said under my breath. I don't understand. Plenty of people come late but she only singles me out. That's fucked up! I could be 30 seconds late and I would still get docked of my pay! Bullshit!

I rolled my eyes and continued going through my files. I was interrupted by a knock at the door. I turned to see Tay and Min.

"Hey, girl" they said together in unison.

I smiled. "Hey, girls. What's up?" I asked.

"Nothing much. Working hard or hardly working?" Taylor asked me.

I chuckled. "Working hard as always. Trying my hardest not to go off on Tammy" I said shaking my head.

"Girl, Tammy has been on our case lately, too. She started going off on me about putting somebody on the dialysis machine off schedule, not to mention the fact that the patient was put on at the time scheduled, and yelled at Minnie about getting files to her two minutes late!" Tay said.

"Yeah, I wanted to knock her ass out" Minnie said.

I laughed. "She's mad that I've been getting here late because I have to take DJ to school. I can't help it if my so is my main priority! I'm the only parent that he has, therefore it makes it harder on me."

"We all live a few blocks down from each other, Yn. If you needed our help, you should have asked" Minnie said.

"I know, but I just don't want to bother you guys all the time. This is supposed to be me and Diggy's responsibility. You guys shouldn't have to be the second parent in the situation."

"Yn, stop acting brand new. You already know we have no problem with helping you out. We told you that the first day we found out you were pregnant four years ago. You know that." Taylor said.

Minnie nodded her head. "I agree. We'll always be there for you, Yn."

"I love you guys so much" I said.

"We love you too" they both said.

*18 Hours Later*

I'm so tired! I had to work extra hours to regain the money lost from being late. I feel like I'm losing it.

I drove to Mrs. Justine's house. She and Rev. Run decided they needed each other more that ever after Diggy disappeared and worked everything out. I called them earlier to see if they could pick DJ up since I had to work late.

Although Diggy is gone, I have a strong relationship with his parents. They treat me as if I'm their own child. Plus, they help around with DJ a lot. I really appreciate them.

Once I got to their house, I rang the doorbell. I patiently waited until Mrs. Justine opened the door. "Hey, baby" she said with a big, wide smile on her face. She was gorgeous and looked as if she was glowing.

I returned the smile. "Hi, momma. How have you been?" I asked.

"Good. Come on in" she said.

I shook my head. "No, no, no. It was enough that you had to pick DJ up from school. I don't want to be a burden." I was trying to leave but she wasn't about to let that happen.

"No, I insist. I know you're tired. You need to rest. If you need to, sleep over here in the guest room. There's no problem at all."

I hesitated. "Are you sure. Momma, you don't have to do this. Honestly."

"Yn, I insist. I told you already, there's no problem at all."

"Thanks, momma." I said walking inside the house. I took off my shoes and sat at the kitchen table with her and Rev. Run. I know it's tearing them apart that no one knows where Diggy is, but they are staying strong. I admire them for that. If something like that happened to DJ, I wouldn't know what to do.

"Hello, Yn" Rev. Run said to me.

"Hey dad." I greeted back.

"Are you hungry, Yn?" Mrs. Justine asked me.

"Yes. I'm starving actually. I haven't eaten all day. Working the extra hours had me so caught up I didn't have enough time to eat."

"Well, I made chicken, corn, mashed potatoes, peas, and corn bread. If you're hungry, help yourself."

I nodded and fixed my plate. I had a little bit of everything and poured some kool-aid. I grabbed a napkin and sat back down at the table. I took a bite out of the chicken before I began talking. "So, how are you guys holding up? I know it's really hard for you to not be able to hear from Daniel, especially for four years." This is a subject that's never really talked about. No one ever likes to talk about the fact that Diggy was here one day and then gone the next. To be honest, we haven't had this conversation since the day we found out he was missing four years ago.

Rev. Run didn't say anything, he just looked down. I know it really hurts him since he and Diggy weren't on speaking terms when he had disappeared. He remained silent.

Mrs. Justine's big, wide smile slowly faded. "We aren't holding up, Yn. This gets harder and harder on us each day. I mean, this is our only son. We don't know where he is, if he's okay, or if he's even alive. All we can do now is keep our faith. And that's getting hard, too." She wiped her tears that streaming from her face.

I nodded. "Sometimes I think it's my fault. He left after our argument and after he found out that I was pregnant with DJ." I took a spoonful of the peas and mashed potatoes.

"I think it was partially my fault, as well. If I hadn't broken up the family and wound up in the hospital he wouldn't have turned to drinking." Mrs. Justine continued to wipe her tears.

"If I hadn't cheated on you and hit you on more than one occasion, you wouldn't have had to do that, Justine. It's all my fault. Everything. Everything that happened is drawn back to me."

The whole table grew silent. I hurried to eat my food to avoid the awkward silence that grew on. After I was done, I washed my dishes and threw away the trash.

"Thanks mom and dad. Stay strong. It'll get better, I promise." I said before giving them both a hug and a kiss before going upstairs.

I checked on DJ, who was in the guest room asleep with his pajamas on already. I took a nice, hot bubble bath and washed up and soaked my body for at least an hour. I got out and dried off. I wrapped the towel around me and walked out of the room to go and find something to wear.

I went to Diggy's room and searched his drawers for a oversized tee shirt. I already had under clothes in the guest room. I put on the tee shirt and went into the guest room to find some under clothes.

I went into the bathroom and brushed my teeth. Afterward I put my hair is a bun and tied a scarf around it. Then, I lotioned up and put deodorant on.

Just as I was about to lay down, I realized that I had left Diggy's bedroom light on. As I walked into his room, I couldn't help but to look at his bed. It brung back so many memories, good and bad. It was the same bed he had sex with Zonnique on. But it was also the same bed that we had made love on. And the same bed I had laid in to make DJ. It brung back so many memories.

I sat on it and rubbed the comforter. Words can't describe how much I wish Diggy was here. I wiped a few tears from my eyes. I turned the light off and went back to the guest room to go to sleep.

Corahn's POV

"Minnie! Baby, come here!" I yelled.

She quickly came running. "Baby, what's wrong?" she asked.

"Can you hand me the remote?" I said, pointing to the remote that was sitting on top of the TV.

"Are you serious. You almost gave me a fucking heart attack over the remote?!" she asked. "I thought there was an emergency!"

"There is, bae. I sat down on the couch and forgot to grab the remote. That's a huge emergency, baby."

She glared at me. She tossed me the remote. "Anything else, your majesty?"

"Naw, I'm good. Unless you want to put it down on a nigga like how you did last night" I said, smirking.

She blushed. She then threw a pillow at me.

I chuckled. I could tell something was wrong with her by the way she was looking. "Minnie, come here."

She came over and sat on my lap. She started playing with my fingers, something weird that she always does. "Yes, baby?" she asked.

"What's wrong? I can tell something is on your mind. Talk to me. What's going on?" I said.

She gave out a huge sigh. "It's Yn. She's losing her mind. She has to work and take care of DJ all at once. It's taking a toll on her, baby. I hate seeing her like this. She doesn't even feel comfortable asking Taylor and I for help anymore. I just don't know what to do."

I nodded my head. "There's not much you can do, baby."

"I know, I wish there was though."

"Well, just let whatever happens happen. We'll see how things turn out."

"That's it? That's all you have to suggest?" she said, her voice slightly rising.

"What do you want for me to do?" I asked, raising my voice too.

She got out of my lap and stood up. "Tell me what I should do! This is getting out of hand. Diggy has been gone for four years and no one knows where he is! This is really hard on Yn."

"You don't think it's hard on me?!" I stood up and got in her face. "My best friend is gone! I have no idea where he is! Imagine something like that happening to Taylor or Yn! How would you feel? It's not only hard for Yn, Minnie. It's hard for everyone! But we can't control life! We cant do anything! The only things we can do is wait and keep our faith. That's it!"

She looked shocked and hurt. This is probably my first time yelling at her like that. She ran upstairs.

"Baby, I'm sorry. Can we just talk?" I yelled from downstairs. The only reply that I got was her slamming the door and sobbing. She's not going to want to talk to me now, so I have to apologize in the morning. I sighed and got comfortable on the couch. I might as well, because after what just happened, this is where I'm going to be sleeping tonight.

Taylor's POV

"Baby, what's wrong?" Nate asked me.

I sighed. "It's Yn. Going to work and taking care of DJ alone is hard for her. I don't know what to do." I said helplessly.

"Damn. Diggy being gone is hard for everyone. I hope Yn is okay though. I know it's probably really hard on her and Mr. and Mrs. Simmons. It's going to be okay Tay, I promise." He said, gazing into my eyes.

"Thanks. Bae, love you" I said to him.

He smiled. "I love you too."

We took the love fest upstairs. I think you know what happened next. 😉

Yn's POV

*The Next Day*

When I woke up, DJ was nowhere to be found. I started panicking. I hopped out of bed and ran out of the room. I searched every room upstairs. He was nowhere to be found. I ran downstairs and saw him eating breakfast in the kitchen, along with Mr. and Mrs. Simmons.

"I see you're awake" Mrs. Justine said.

I nodded. "Yes, I am. What time is it?"

"10:30. Hungry? I made breakfast." she said.

"Wait, wait, wait. 10:30? Oh my goodness! I'm going to be late for work! And DJ is already late for school! I have to go!"

"Yn, Yn" Mrs. Justine said grabbing my arm. "Relax, sweetheart. It's Saturday, DJ doesn't have school today. Plus, your job called. You may get upset but I told a young girl, I think her name is Cammy, Sammy, no Tammy, that you were sick and wouldn't be back until Monday. I know I had no right to do that but I knew how tired you were and thought you may have needed a break. Since Run has to work, I was going to take DJ off your hands for the next two days so you could have time to yourself."

I smiled. "Thank you so much. You're absolutely right, I do need a break."
I went over and fixed my plate that consisted of eggs, bacon, rice, biscuits and poured a glass of orange juice.

She began putting up the dishes that she had just washed. "It's no problem. God knows you work too hard to not have a break. You're overworked, Yn."

"I'm told that a lot. But I do what I have to do for DJ and I. He's the only reason I want to even get up in the morning. He's my life. And since I'm raising him alone, I want to take care of him even more. It just pushes me to work even harder."

Mrs. Justine looked mesmerized by what I was saying. "Yn, you are such a beautiful person, inside and out. You're a gorgeous person with a great big heart. If there were more girls like you in the world, there would be less hoodrats!"

We both laughed. I'm glad she admired me because I admired her as well. She's one of the sweetest people ever. I'm even closer to her than I am to Taylor's mom, Mrs. James.

Since I have two days off, I think I'll go visit them. I can go over there for a couple hours today. I haven't seen them in a while so I'm sure they'll be happy to see me.

I finished my food and got DJ dressed. I washed him up, made sure his teeth were brushed, and made sure he put lotion and deodorant. He had on an orange polo shirt, black Tru Religion jeans, and orange Jordans. My baby always has to look good.

"So where are you guys going?" I asked her.

"I think I'll take him downtown to buy him some new clothes, shoes, and toys, then take him to Chuck E. Cheese's, then we can go out for some ice cream. By that time, he should be able to take a bath and go right to sleep once we get home."

I shook my head. "You don't have to buy him anything, momma. We go shopping all the time."

"Yn, please. Just let me handle this. You're not being a burden, so just let me do what I want to do with him without you feeling like one. Okay?"

I nodded. "Okay. And I'm sorry. I'm just so used to people thinking that I'm being a burden and I just want to make sure I'm not in your way."

She nodded. "It's okay. I have no issue with helping you out at all, Yn. We'll be back later on tonight. See you then." she said.

"Okay. Call me if there's any problems. I love you guys ." I said.

"We love you too" they both said before walking out the door.

I washed the dishes that I had and cleaned the kitchen. Then, I went upstairs and showered. I washed and blow-dried my hair. Then I put lotion and deodorant on. I wore a green tank top, blue jeans, and green converse. I put my hair in a bun, grabbed my purse, and left the house, making sure to turn off all of the lights, turn on the security alarm, and lock all of the doors.

I got in my car and drove to Mr. and Mrs. James' house. It's been a few months since I've heard from them and I want to check on them to make sure that they are okay. Once I got there, I took out my key and opened the door.

"Hello? Mom? Dad? Is anyone home?" I called out in the house.

"Yn? What are you doing here?" Mr. James asked.

"Hey dad. I came to check up on you guys. I haven't heard from you in awhile."

"Oh. Well, we are fine. Your mother's at work. Where's DJ?" he asked.

I sat on the couch. "He's with Mrs. Justine. She took him out for the whole day so I could have time to relax."

"Well, you've been working hard so I'm sure you need it." Mr. James said.

"Yes, dad. I don't think you understand how hard it's been for me lately. I know you said taking care of a baby isn't easy. Well, taking care of a baby alone is twice as hard. I'm trying, but I just don't know how much more I can take."

"You're a very strong young woman, Yn. I'm sure you'll be able to catch whatever life throws at you. We've seen you do it before, so we know you'll do it again." Mr. James said.

I smile. "Thanks, I'm hanging in there the best way that I can."

"Keep holding on Yn."

We continued to talk for another few hours. Then, I decided to go home and get a few clothes for DJ and I since we are staying with Mr. and Mrs. Simmons. I then went back over to the Simmons residence.

Once I got back, I laid down and watched TV. I then went downstairs to get some ice cream. I guess my timing was perfect because as soon as I came back up, there was some helpless romantic movie on.

The two in the movie seemed so in love. I couldn't help but to think about Diggy and I. They were exactly how we used to be. It's crazy how things can seem so perfect one second, and so horrible the next. How someone could be here with you one day, and gone the next. It really gives you something to think about.

I cried and ate ice cream while watching the movie. "Don't do it! Don't do it! She really loves you!" I screamed at a scene where he cheated on his girlfriend. I cried even more.

I called Taylor, Nate, Minnie, and Corahn to come over so I wouldn't feel so lonely. They arrived in less than five minutes. We all came up to the guest room. I knew they wouldn't want to watch this bullshit love movie, so I started flipping through the channels.

I decided to change the channel and watched 106 & Park. Bow Wow was talking about a new up and coming artist.

"So, without further ado, the new artist I was talking about. Get yo ass on out here Diggy!" he said.

My eyes grew with shock. So did everyone else's. Diggy. It's him! He ran onto the stage smiling a mile a minute. I can't believe he's all happy and left me here all miserable.

"Wassup, Bow" Diggy said.

"Nothing, come on, take a seat little homie" he said.

Diggy sat down. Damn. He looked better than he did before he disappeared.

"So, Diggy. I hear that there's a little story you want to tell everyone who's watching before we start speaking about your music career.

The smile Diggy had on his face slowly faded away. He put the mic up to his face. "Four years ago, I made the biggest mistake of my life. It caused me to lose the one person that I had loved the most. I ran away, like a punkass, and that's when I started taking more of an interest in having a music career. I was already used to singing, rapping, dancing, and performing in general. But that mistake made me take more of an interest into my music. I'm okay now, though. I have Desiree." He pointed to a gorgeous girl sitting in the front row. She was blushing really hard. I also noticed that she was pregnant. "I love her more than life itself."

Everybody in the crowd went "Awwwww". We just watched in shock. Nobody was prepared for this to happen. I heard him talking again but I didn't at the same time. It's like my ears had just shut off, as well as my mind.

"Yn" Corahn said, snapping me out of my trance. "Are you okay?"

"Corahn, he left me with our child four years ago and never even tried to get in contact with any of us. Now, he's on TV with some new girl that's pregnant talking about his new album that's coming out. Do you really think I'm 'okay'?"

He shook his head. "Damn. Yn, I'm sorry this had to happen to you. I know how you both felt about each other."

Nate nodded. "He went crazy the day y'all broke up. Punching lockers, cursing, storming off. He kept telling us how much he loved you."

"Well, he didn't love her enough to stay faithful to her" Minnie said, rolling her eyes.

"True. If he really loved her, he would have kept his dick in his pants and away from Zonnique. Drunk or not." Taylor said.

Wow. I feel so hurt. I wiped a few tears from my eyes. He has another chick pregnant and is with her, but he doesn't even care about DJ, his first child. That's really fucked up.

Well, there's only one thing I can do. Be the way my mother was before she turned to drugs. I have to be DJ's mommy and daddy. Period.
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Woah There! Wasn't expecting that, were you? To be honest, I wasn't either. I had other plans for this book, but I feel like this is going to fit in just fine.
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