Conquering Drew

XXXII

I stayed with Langston for less than a week and I had never felt so terrible in my life. He insisted that I take the bed because of my injury, but I knew that the couch would be bad on his back. To make matters worse, I couldn't even enjoy his comfortable bed since I awoke with nightmares throughout the night.

I didn't get much sleep and I knew why: I needed Giovanni here and knowing that he was out committing a crime for me, did not make me feel any better. He'd call everyday to check on me, which was sweet, but I couldn't understand why it took so long to handle business. He had to have known where Xavier was by now with the resources he had.

By day six, I called Giovanni, hoping that he wasn't busy. I wanted to know how much longer he would be. It was bad enough the guilt was eating away at me, but as the days dragged on, it felt unbearable.

"When are you coming back?" I asked him

"I'll be back later on today."

"What's taking you so long?"

"We can talk about it later."

"Okay, I guess."

"I promise I'll be by to pick you up." he said before rushing off of the phone

I sighed, but I could not be too upset, he was coming for me tonight. I went into Langston's bathroom and stared at my reflection in the mirror. I had dark circles around my eyes from lack of sleep. I know Langston's noticed, but he hadn't said anything about it. Through everything, he has been so supportive and I was more than happy to have him in my company. It was the first time in a long time that I was able to talk to him about something. I was not afraid to let him know about Xavier and the details of the scene. But I knew that there were some things that I had to leave out, like Giovanni's whereabouts. Langston thought that he was caring for Gabriella in the hospital and that's why it was best if I stayed with him. Little did he know who his sister was really dating.

_________________________________________________________

Giovanni kept his word and he arrived later that day to retrieve me from my brother's home. He was dressed in a suit with his hair nicely combed, while I looked like a bum. I tried to take a nap earlier today in a pathetic attempt to relieve my bags, but it did not work. I had no makeup here at Langston's and was forced to face Giovanni looking a hot mess.

"I've missed you." he said kissing my lips

I smiled up at him, happy to see him. He rubbed his thumb under my eye and his forehead creased.

"Have you been sleeping any?" he asked me

"Of course. Langston and I stayed up late, talking." I lied

From the look on his face, he knew that I lied. Just as he was going to call me out, I spoke.

"We'll talk tonight." I reminded him of his own words

Giovanni nodded his head in agreement and grabbed my things before leading me out to his car. Langston was out with his co-workers, so I shot him a text telling him I was leaving his apartment.

"Can we go to your place?" I asked Giovanni

"You want to go to New York?" he asked surprised