Never Satisfied: A New Orleans Tale

Missing...

"Pregnant?" Khandi hollered into the receiver incredulously.

"Yep," I responded like it was no big deal. "I went to my O.B.G.Y.N. to make sure."

"Well," she paused. "How far along are you?"

"Twenty seven weeks."

"Damn that's like six months, right?"

"Yeah."

"How the fuck you got this far along without knowing?"

"I don't know Khandi. I-I didn't have any symptoms." I felt like I was being interrogated.

"And all that time you didn't realize you didn't have your period?"

"Just figured it was due to stress."

"So, who's the daddy?" She fished.

"Who else?"

"Not Nique, huh?"

"Well who else would it be then."

"Awe Jasmine! This shit was not part of the plan!" She said it like she was the one that was pregnant for her best friend's fiancé.

"Don't you think I know that? Neither was falling in love with him either, but hey."

"So, what are you going to do about this?"

"I don't even know anymore Khandi. When I first found out I was pregnant I was a little scared. Hell, I was even a little mad, but then I thought, 'Hey, Nique's always talking about how he wants a child of his own. Maybe when he finds out that I'm pregnant he'll leave Ri for me.' But you know that shit didn't even go down like that."

"So what happened when you told him?"

"I mean he was happy and everything, but when I asked him if he was going to leave Ri he was like, 'I love you, but Kyrielle's wifey.' When I heard that shit I was mad as hell."

"Fuck, I know you were."

"Have you seen Ace lately?" I inquired after an image of Nique pointing his gun at Kyrielle and Ace exploded into my mind.

"No girl. He went up north for a minute, but he'll be coming back later on in the week. Why are you asking about him girl, isn't he your sworn enemy?" She was playing, but I was as serious as a heart attack!

"Well." My heart sank to my feet and I felt a twinge shoot up my spine. "I um..." My eyes welled up with tears as I attempted to tell her what had taken place over the last couple of days.

"What? Are you okay?"

"No!" I cried. "I found this video of Ace and Kyrielle having sex."

"See, I told you your girl and Ace had something going on!"

"Yeah, you were right." I let her have her moment. "But the part where I messed up is when I showed the damned thing to Nique."

"You did what?"

The anger in her voice made me feel even worse and I became hysterical. "When he saw it he flipped out and grabbed his gun and left and didn't come back until maybe two or three hours later!"

"So what are you saying Jasmine? Do you think he killed them?

"I don't know!" I was overwhelmed with guilt. "What kind of friend am I, though? I shouldn't have even gone that far with Nique. I mean, how the fuck can someone become pregnant for her best friend's man, huh? What kind of shit is that Khandi?"

"Damn," she empathetically sighed. "And you're too far along to get an abortion so that option's thrown out..."

"That wouldn't have been an option regardless. I'm going to have my baby! It's not its fault that I screwed up."

"Well maybe it's not what it looks like. Did you even talk to him about it?"

I wiped my running nose with the back of my hand and tried to pull myself together. "I tried."

"What did he say?"

"He just gave me some bullshit ass story, but I know he's lying."

"How do you figure?"

"Because." My eyes shifted down to my bruised wrists. "We got into this huge fight when I started questioning him again the next morning."

"What happened?"

"Well, I was on edge the whole night so I hardly got any rest and I just couldn't stand to look at Nique so I camped out on the couch and waited until he woke up. When he finally got up I asked him why he was gone so long and he didn't say anything. So that's when I got in his face. 'Nique! Answer me!' I yelled, but he still ignored me. Then he started walking to the door and I clicked out.

I was like, 'Where the fuck are you going now?' and he just kept on ignoring me as he headed for the door. Now I was heated. I jumped up and blocked him from getting to the door. He tried pushing me out of the way, but I started swinging on him."

"Did he hit you back?"

"Well, at first he was just backing away, trying not to get hit, and warning me to chill. But I wasn't trying to hear that and when I backed him into a corner he grabbed my wrists and penned me up against the wall. At that point I wasn't even mad anymore; I was scared shitless. And when he raised his hand up to hit me, I almost pissed on myself, but I think he saw the fear in my eyes so he just let me go."

"Then what?"

"Then he left. And I haven't seen him since."

"Where do you think he went?"

"I don't know... To finish what he started the night before I guess."

"So you really think..."

"Come on Khandi, I know you heard the stories. Nique is capable of anything, especially when he is mad. And on top of all of that Tyree's here with me!"

I assumed the severity of the situation finally sunk in for her because I could hear the tremble in her voice. "Well, let me call a few people and see if I can find out anything."

"Okay, bye." We ended the conversation and, with no one else to talk to, I was left to my thoughts.

I slid off the couch and onto the floor and hugged my legs as my head rested between my knees.

"What's wrong Nanny?" Tyree climbed down from the couch and crawled beside me.

"Nothing baby," I tried to stifle my tears.

"Why are you crying?" His miniature hand covered my cheeks as he tried to wipe away my tears.

I thanked him in between snuffles and squeezed him.

"Let's go to sleep okay?"

"No, I'm not seepy Nanny. I want my Nique."

"Nique's not here sweetie."

"He not here? Then where is he?" I saw his eyes begin to water.

"I don't know where he is, but he'll be back soon Cooter."

"And my mama?"

"Yes... mama too."