Like a Virgin

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Imani's POV
3 DAY NOTICE!
I grabbed the taped bill notice on my apartment door. These people are so damn hungry for money that they will kick people out onto the streets just to get paid. I hate this time of the month. It's the same routine every time. I get multiple notices on my door and I can never pay the rent until the very last day. I've never been evicted, but the day I do is the day I result to extreme measure and do whatever it takes to sleep on a bed if you catch my drift. Detroit is no place to go take a nap on a park bench, especially at night.
I pulled out the keys to my Section 8 studio apartment, unlocked the door, and walked right inside. I set down my bag by the door and flicked on the light switch but there was no response. These damn people turned off my lights which means they turned off my water too. I reached into my purse and brought out the flashlight I purchased from the Dollar General last week. I turned it on and used it to navigate my way around the apartment.
I was headed towards the kitchen but I stumbled on something on the floor and fell to the ground,"Shit."
I picked myself up from the floor and continued my walk to the kitchen and stopped when I approached the fridge. I opened up the fridge door and and a distasteful stench burned my nose and made my eyes water. I slammed the door shut and turned over to the cabinet. My stomach growled in hunger as I shifted around the cabinet only to find half a package of saltine crackers. "Guess this'll do for now."
I grabbed the crackers and with the flashlight guiding me, I walked over to the small bed and sat down on it, then kicked off my shoes. I have holes in the bottom of my shoes but I can't afford to get new ones anytime soon so I'll have to wait until a better time.
I opened up my pack of crackers and started nibbling on one as I thought about the time when there wasn't much to worry about. My parents died when I was little and my grandma had been taking care of until about four years ago when she passed from lung cancer. I've been on my own since then. Paying bills, working long tiring hours, and still struggling to make ends meet.
I work in the General Motors building downtown as a janitor. I take the bus there as early as five in the morning just so I can be there by seven. My life isn't as sad and depressing as it seems, my best friend Devonie is also a janitor at the same place as I work and she does hair on the side too. She's a bit older than I am but she's the only person who I can ever rely on and she has helped me through my worst.
My prepaid cellphone rang from my pocket and I pulled it out and flipped it open and held it to my ear,"Hello?"
"Hey girl!"Devonie said through the phone.
"Hey Dev, what's going on?"
"I just wanted to check up on you. You alright?"
"Um, yeah. Everything's fine."I lied.
"Now I'm gonna ask you again and I'm hoping this time you won't lie to me Imani. Is everything okay? You need me to come get you?"
"No, really I'm fine. They just turned off my light....and water but you know, same old, same old. They'll turn it back on soon."
"Alright......if you say so. But you know you can call me if you need anything right?"
"Yeah, I know. Thanks."I said.
"Okay bye."she hung up.
Devonie is such a good friend but I try not to become her responsibility with my problems. She already has two kids and her boyfriend is in jail. I sighed and started to take of my jacket but I put it back on when I felt just how cold it was in here without the heater on. I sighed and zipped up my jacket then took off my worn jeans and climbed into the blanket and rested my head on the musty brown pillow and drifted off into my sleep.

Dr.Jordan Neal
I paced down the hall and entered room 119. One of the nurses entered the room handing me pills and a syringe. I had an elderly woman as my patient by the name of Margret King. She smiled up my as I stood by her bed and checked her IV and all the monitors that were connected to her.
"How you doin Margret?"I flashed her a big smile.
"I'm good now that your cute self is here. Foreal Doc, when are we gonna hook up? I'm feelin a lot better these days."
I let out a soft chuckle. Margret has been going at it with her crazy requests to "hookup" since the day she checked into this hospital last month. I ignored her and asked,"Is the new medication causing you to feel drowsy? Are you experiencing any headaches? Nausea-"
"No, everything is good."
"That's great to hear. Your test results have improved over the last week so you should b-"
"Dr.Neal, if you ain't tryna get with me then you should at least go for that cute nurse who brings me fruit in the mornings."
"I'm not real-"
"What's her name? Umm, Melanie! That's her name!"
"Margret, it's against hospital regulations for me to get involved with my nurses. I could get fired."
"They won't fire you! Besides, it's about time you find someone to claim as your own and to carry your seeds."
I choked on the last part,"So anyways, you should be outta here in a few days Ms.King."
"If you don't find someone yourself, I'll find you a nice girl from my church. All them girls over there are precious little saints."
"Margret, you go to my church and all those girls are ho-"
"You a damn lie. What about Regina Smith? She's a good girl about your age."
"She has three baby daddy's"I crossed my arms.
"Tyra Goodman?"
"Late night stripper."
"Joanne Miller?"
"Let's just say she has more STD's than there are ABC's"
"Okay so we won't look in the church for a girl. But Dr.Neal, you are a good man who deserves a good woman. There are planty of them out there but you have to be willing to look, you're not gonna be young forever you know."
"I'm 28."
"Time is ticking. Lord have mercy! Boy, you almost 30?"
I chuckled and began slipping on some latex gloves,"Here, it's time for you to take your medication."I said handing her the pills the nurse handed to me earlier. I watched as she ingested the pills."Now, it's time for this shot to help you sleep tonight."
She sighed,"Just stick in in there."She side eyed me and smirked,"Literally."
I smiled and stuck the needle into her arm then I pulled it out and disposed of it as well as my gloves. I grabbed her blanket and tucked her in and watched as her eyes grew heavy,"Goodnight Ms.King"

Candace's POV
I ran around the entire venue knocking everything over insight. The now horrid dress that I once used to love was now venom to my eyes. It's puffy white train and sparkles plastered throughout its body. Not mention the feather like veil that was placed right in the middle of my perfect spiraled hair.
The scene was different though. We were still at the hotel where the ceremony was supposed to take place but the difference was the weather. It was raining like hell outside and yet I running in my white Loubiton heels not caring whether they would be ruined or that I might fall.
I had one mission and that was to find my groom. No matter where I searched I still couldn't find him. As the thunder and lighting pierced the sky, the only thing I could focus on was wanting to be married. He was the love of my life and now it's like he's gone forever.
I came across a Motel 6, and I walked in the closest door that was within reach. In the room on the bed fucking was Chris and some unidentified female. He looked up into my face and smiled then asked,"You wanna join in or nah?"
I bolted straight up in bed with sweat all over my face. I panted and my eyes darted to the clock on my nightstand and it read 3:54 am.
"Uh, another nightmare."I said to myself.,"Go back to bed Candace, you have work in a few hours. Now is NOT the time for all of this."
I just hope that for my sake and my sanity, all of this foolishness and bullshit can be at rest. My mind wandered back to the nightmare I just had. It was so life like. I ran my hands through my hair and took a deep breath.
The sound of thunder seemed to shake the house and I seemed to have jumped a bit. My heart race as I looked out the window and saw that it was pouring rain just like it had been in my nightmare. I laid back under the blanket and stared up at the ceiling even though the room was pitch black.
I need to just.......relax. Tomorrow should be the start of a different lifestyle. No more calling Chris to see how his day is going. No more gifts that were sent to surprise me. No more visiting Chris in his office anytime I got horny. No more, no more A LOT of things. I sighed and shut my eyes and tried as best as I could to force myself back to sleep. In a few hours time, I would be back at work listening and taking notes of other people's problems and try to find ways to fix them. Meanwhile, I'll be trying not to focus on the biggest problem of all, my late period that still hasn't shown up. Damn you Chris.