Married To The Game

C:8 | The Easy Goodbye

One Week Later

I made my way back to the hotel. It was still early, so I decided to take a nap. By the time I woke up it was close to seven. I went to freshen up and get ready for a night in with Josh . I heard my phone ping. It was a text from Josh.

Got good news. See you soon

I smiled. This week has been the first week I haven't thought about Marcus. And it's all because of Josh. My smile instantly turned into a frown. I have to leave New York tomorrow, and here I was thinking about somebody I can't even have to myself. All I was going to have was the game. It's not like I could trust anyone new. After Marcus my trust was fucked up, but after I got into the game, it was a wrap. I don't put anything past anybody. With Omari, there were times that I would sell as little as a half ounce of coke to somebody, and Omari would send Joc or Koby to go rob the person back for it. Whenever they would come back telling me what happened, I would just front them that same half ounce. And now they would owe me three fifty instead of one seventy five.  Just one of the tricks I learned along the way. A knock at the door caught my attention. I opened the door to see a nervous Josh standing with roses. "Are those for me?" "They are." "They're beautiful. How was work?" I went to the mini fridge to get some wine. He prepared the takeout he brought for us. "It was great, actually. Come sit down so I can share the news with you." I looked at him. I never liked hearing "news". It usually always meant something bad was taking place. "Why I gotta sit?" I asked, still skeptical. He rolled his eyes. We made our way to the couch, after I poured two glasses of champagne. Since it was two couches we sat across from each other. "You ready?" He said, grabbing my hands. "No, wait." I broke free and downed my glass, causing him to laugh. "Okay, shoot." I took a deep breath to prepare me. "I got promoted today." "Aw, Josh that's great. I'm happy for you." I pulled him into a hug. This, of course was good news for him. But like clock work my stomach sinked. Just confirming he'd be stuck in New York made the feeling even worse. Any hope that I had of him moving eight me was shot. "I have news for you, too." I stated. "Whats up?" "You know I leave tomorrow?" "What? No, Carol said you were staying longer." He frowned up. "I got called back into work early." "When are you leaving? Let me at least take you to the airport." "I was planning on leaving in the morning." I already said my goodbyes to the family and everyone else. Josh was the latest to know. Truly, I didn't want to leave so soon and right away, but I had to. I had blood on my hands here. I needed to get back to making money anyways. I couldn't spend all my time here, under Josh. We've seen each other almost every day since I got back. I had to go back with a heavy heart yet again. It was only a matter of time before Omari starts to put two and two together, and I needed to start on my empire before it fails before I even get the chance. Once Omari finds out what really happened, I know he's going to stop at nothing to have my head. "You sure you don't want to stay?" "I'm sure Josh, there's some things in Miami I have to get back to." "I understand. You know I love you right?" He smiled. "I-" The phone went off. It was Vito's phone. "Excuse me, I have to take this."

Rushing to the bathroom, I hurried to check to see who was calling. The number wasn't saved. I went through the messages to see if I could come up with a name or a relationship. It was Vito's connect. The actual kingpin. And he didn't sound happy about not hearing back from Vito about his drugs. I took his number down in my phone. "Everything okay?" Josh called. "I'm okay!" I flushed the toilet and came out the bathroom. "Who was that?" "It was nobody. You ready to eat?" The dinner we had was silent. I could tell he was uncomfortable with me lying to him. He always acted like this growing up. Whenever he would feel some type of way he would get cold and distant. This is the same old Josh. "So what time can I get you in the morning? I can pick you up around eight." He said, breaking the silence. "Yeah, that's perfect. Flight leaves at eleven." "You gonna miss us? Have you went and spent time with your mom?" "Yeah, I went to Amanda's new spot." "Amanda? You mean mom. Don't be so hard on her, Essie." Josh was the only man who knew about my mom's addiction and everything we had gone through. From the evictions to the new schools every semester. He was there through it all. I never opened up to any one about it, not even Marcus. Josh was really the only one who knew exactly what to say and exactly when to say it.

It was eight o'clock on the dot when I got downstairs to the hotel lobby. Just like clockwork Josh was outside waiting. "Right on time huh?" I smiled as he grabbed my bags. "You know I never have you waiting." He winked. I was cheesing before I knew it. Every time I smiled, I would always get this gut feeling. Like a punch in the gut. Reality always swoops in and steals my joy. The reality of losing Josh all over again. The reality that the joy and happiness was just temporary. The reality that I was stuck in the game, and I couldn't even ask Josh to save me.

We got to the airport at nine twenty. We barely had any time to talk, since my flight left at eleven. I went around the back of the car to help Josh get my bags. I noticed another set of luggage in the trunk under mine. "Who's stuff is this, Josh?" I unzipped one of the suit cases—Men's clothes. "So, here's the rest of my surprise. My job wants me to relocate to Florida, as a part of my promotion." I stood dumbfounded, as he finished taking out the rest of the suit cases. "That's great!" was the only thing I could muster up to say. He raises his eyebrow. Probably not the reaction either of us expected, but everyone know I hate surprises. On the way to the terminals, I tried to put my finger on the feelings I was experiencing. The feeling I decided on was bittersweet. On one hand, I was happy that Josh was moving to Florida with me, and that there was a possibility of us rekindling our relationship. And on the other hand, how would he react when I decided to tell him the truth about everything? Would he leave me for a house wife? Or would he be okay with a drug dealer as his partner? Because I had no intentions of stopping, at least not yet. I mean I loved Josh, but not enough to throw money away. Even if he decided to leave, there were always millions of other guys. I could fall in love again, easy. But making the kind of money I was making, or getting ready to make, would take years. And time was something that I wasn't guaranteed. I didn't want Josh to look at me in that light though. He knew that I was money driven, but not like this. He probably just figured I was like any other girl who was about her money; hard working and dedicated. I couldn't bare the thought of him thinking I was just some street bitch now. So, once again, reality hit. Even though my initial problem was solved, i'm back facing the same punch-in-the-gut feeling I was facing the entire week. It just doesn't stop.

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