Business Before Pleasure MxM (Staten Krown)

9

Have you ever found yourself confusing 'whether' and 'if'?

"Whether" means "this one or the other." "If" refers to one thing that might or might not happen.

It would be incorrect to say, "Whether or not I wake up, it doesn't matter." Instead, you'd say, "If I wake up, it doesn't matter."

On the other hand, you'd say, "I enjoyed hanging out with my friends whether I am asleep or awake."

He presses his hands up against me.  Clapper fingers rub into my back.  He's never hugged me like this before.  Tears are rolling down his face.  There is a boy that comes to help him off of me.

"You're hurting him, Dad..." the person says.

"Jr.?" I ask.

It's not every day that you wake up out of a 5 year coma.  Seeing my godson standing there I hardly recognized him.  He has a suit on.  He looks like a darker version of his dad but just as handsome and just as classy.  It's clear the kid is no longer a kid.  He's a young man.  And it's also clear when he smiles at me that he remembers me well.  He walks over and puts his hand on my shoulder.

"What happened?" I ask.

"You don't remember?" Clapper asks me.

"I remember being in a car with Vicorio and ..."

Clapper puts his hand on me.  I can feel he's being soft with me.  He's being tender.  He's trying to say this in the best way, "You got into an accident in that car.  You had serious brain injury due to increased pressure on your brain.   The damage wasn't permanent but it's clear it's taken a blow to you."

"What about Vicorio?"

"He didn't make it."

I'm shocked.  I don't know how the crash happened.  I don't remember that part, but I knew what I was doing when it happened.  I remembered that much.   I was doing the same thing that I always did with Vicorio.  I was doing exactly what Vicorio told me to do.  I feel this awkward pain.  To them it was five years ago but to me it was a second ago.  I don't understand any of it.  And I am trying not to panic.  The weird thing is I don't cry.

Five years have passed and I'm not tearing up at all.

That's when there is a knock on the door.   It's Romelo.  He has flowers in his hands.  Two dozen flowers actually.  Seeing all these flowers blows my mind.  He smiles this wide smile.  The last time I saw Romelo I thought he was mad at me but it's clear that he isn't.  The guy looks the exact same as when I fell into the coma.  He has on a really nice suit and has this instant charisma that only Romelo can bring into the room.  He seems nervous as he walks in and I can't understand why for the life of me.

"You're up..."

"Really?" Clapper states all of a sudden, "Look what the fucking cat dragged in..."

The way Clapper says this isn't in a joking manner.  There is so much malice and tension in  Clapper's voice.  It's something that I don't think I ever really noticed coming from him.  He looks pissed.  Pissed isn't even the word.  There is almost hatred there.  I don't get it.  Seeing how he looks at Romelo I'm just shocked to say the least.

"I'm not here to start any trouble," Romelo states, "I just came to see my friend.  This isn't about you.  This is about my friend."

Clapper looks like he's about to argue.  I still know the look he has when he's about to argue a point.  It takes his son reaching over and putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Dad..." Jr. whispers delicately.

Clapper clears his throat, "You ok with him being here, Nile?"