Caught Up

Chapter 12

Laynaa hovered over Taj, tears flowing from her eyes. She stared at the hole sitting in Taj’s chest and held her hand over her mouth to silence the cry that so desperately wanted to come out. Taj looked up at Laynaa and strained to smile. This was absolutely the worst pain she had ever endured in her entire life. She closed her eyes for a moment, and opened them only to see Laynaa calling 911 on her cell phone.

“Somebody please come quick, my best friend has been shot!” she yelled into the her iPhone.

“Lay…” Taj forced out after Laynaa hung up the phone.

“Shhh , don’t talk. Save your strength” Laynaa said, tears still flowing.

“Na, I gotta tell you this, in case I don’t get another chance to tell you..” Taj started.

“Don’t talk like that, babe. You’re gonna be just fine. I just know it. You’ll be fine” Laynaa choked out.

“Na, I gotta tell you now.” Taj began. She tried to move but the pain was unbearable. Blood quickly gushed from her chest as Taj closed her eyes tightly in an attempt to ease the pain. She slowly opened them once more and started deep into Laynaa’s eyes. “Lay, you are an absolutely AMAZING woman. You are now and always have been everything I’ve ever wanted. Lay, I’m head over heels in love with you. I always have been, and I always will be, until the day I die.” Taj said, a single tear escaping her eye.

Laynaa sat in complete silence as a smile crept out from the corners of her mouth. “Taj, I…I don’t know what to say.” She replied.

With all the strength she could muster, Taj pulled Laynaa in for the most deep and passionate kiss she ever shared with another woman. Holding onto the back of Laynaa’s head, she guided the kiss deeper and deeper.

*Fireworks*

The moment was everything Taj imagined it would be and more. For that moment, as they kissed, all of Taj’s problems went away. For that moment, the physical and emotional pain from everything around her disappeared. She lost herself in the moment so quickly that she completely forgot she had been shot.

Laynaa welcomed the kiss as her body trembled. This was something she never thought she would experience. This was a moment that she would never forget for the rest of her life as she melted into the softest kiss ever imaginable. This was the sweetest kiss she ever tasted. She wanted more. Every part of her yearned for Taj in that very moment.

Laynaa broke from the kiss with tears in her eyes. A mix of emotion overwhelmed her as she stared into the eyes of the person that meant everything to her. “I love you too, Taj.” She simply said.

Sirens sounded in the distance as the ambulance and police made their way closer and closer to the house. Laynaa’s heart skipped a beat as she jumped up. “I’m going to bring them in here. Taj baby, hold on for me. Hold on baby. You’re going to be alright now. You’re going to be alright.” She said reassuring herself more than Taj.  Laynaa ran to quickly bring Taj the help that she needed.  

When she got outside, Laynaa frantically waved her hands in the air signaling the ambulance over to her direction. The emergency vehicles came to a screeching halt as the EMT’s jumped out the back.

“Where is she?” one of the EMT’s asked urgently.

“She’s in the back room! This way!” She said pointing at the room Taj was in. As she went to lead them to the room, she was stopped suddenly by a familiar voice.

“Hold on ma’am, I need to speak with you.” Officer Winslow abruptly said as he stepped out of his car. Officer Martin stepped out right after him with a sinister grin on his face. These were the last people Laynaa wanted to see right now but she decided to cooperate in hopes of getting to Taj quickly.

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Taj struggled to breathe. The loss of blood was starting to get to her as her body began to shut down. She slowly opened her eyes to look around the now empty room. As she drifted in and out of consciousness, her life, once again flashed before her eyes. She thought of every moment she shared with her amazing sister. That young woman was going places and Taj was proud she got had such a beautiful, intelligent, loveable sister to call her own. She thought of the way her older brother Chris taught her how to box and how to be a strong person. She loved her brother to pieces and prayed he was ok in the hospital. She thought of the moments with Ramon and it brought joy to her heart. Her older brother was so protective of them all. He was such a strong man who took care of everyone and kept them together when their mother passed. Taj thought about her mother and how wonderful she was while she was on earth. She could almost smell her mother’s flowery scent from every time she hugged her. Taj could talk to her mother about everything and she was truly the only one that understood her.

Her thoughts soon floated to Laynaa. Taj loved that woman with every fiber of her being. All the other women that came in and out life couldn’t compare to Laynaa. Laynaa was gorgeous, smart, and funny. Laynaa was that “ride or die” chick that Taj loved. Laynaa was everything to Taj. Laynaa was the true love of her life and she regretted not telling her how she felt earlier.

“Lord, forgive me for my sins. Watch and protect my family and keep them strong. Give Laynaa pure happiness, Lord. She deserves the world.” Taj prayed aloud. “Imma see u soon mama” As Taj took her final breath, a single tear fell from her eye. She left this world with a slight smile. She finally found peace.

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“Ma’am we need to talk to you” Officer Winslow said to an annoyed Laynaa.

As if out of nowhere, Laynaa’s chest tightened. Her head began to spin slightly as, what felt like a stab, hit her heart. Something was wrong and she didn’t know what. Tears came to her eyes as she prayed the best for Taj.

“I can’t right now.” She quickly said to the cop as she used all the energy she had inside of her to run to the bedroom where she left Taj.

When Laynaa got to the room, she stopped dead in her tracks as the EMT’s surrounded Taj’s limp body. Her eyes widened as the realization hit her.

Her best friend, the love of her life, the one person that meant everything to her… was dead.

Pain hit her hard as she stood in shock. Her eyes were fixed on Taj’s body. She couldn’t believe what was happening. Her world had completely stopped. The EMT’s began to carry Taj’s body out of the room when Laynaa threw her body on top of Taj and screamed a blood curdling cry. Even that wasn’t enough to make the pain in her heart cease. An EMT pulled Laynaa off of Taj’s body as Laynaa struggled to get free, screaming crying and fighting everything around her. The tears continuously flowed.

In that very moment, Laynaa’s heart had been completely and utterly broken.

Words couldn’t describe how she felt. As Laynaa screamed out in pain, she held her stomach in an attempt to stop the sinking feeling inside. The EMT let her go as she fell to the ground and buried her head in her arms.

After what seemed like forever, Laynaa looked up to see a smiling picture of Dontae sitting on Kerri’s dresser. She looked at the picture with pure hatred as she got up and walked over to it. She broke the picture frame it sat in and grabbed the picture, wrinkling it in her hands with every ounce of strength she possessed.

Dontae took the only thing that mattered to her. This wasn’t over. It would never be over until Laynaa got her revenge.

The End.