The Owner of My Soul Vol 2: Chapter IX and Chapter X

CHAPTER IX

LONG AWAITED DAY

For five days I remained by Sydney’s side. For five days I talked to her and hoped she’d wake up. For five days, I waited, waited, and waited. As all her monitors remained the same, so did my hope. Not getting a single wink of sleep, I was getting cranky, frustrated, but optimistic. Will and I have done as much as we can to keep busy. From playing cards, to playing video games. Every once in a while Dad and Uncle Tevin will send us some work to do.

Today is Friday and I’m feeling more optimistic then ever. Something in me is tellin me that today will finally be the day. It was Will’s turn for food run, so I sat and watched Sydney and Candace expecting them to just wake up. I paced back and forth thinking they would awaken at any moment. As I stood between the beds, Will came in with McDonald’s and KFC.

“You iight?” He asked me.

“Yea.” I turned around and sat at the table to eat. “I have a gut feeling they’re goin to wake up today.”

“You’ve been saying that for the past five days.” He stated.

“Yea, but I really believe it this time. I can’t explain it.”

“While I’m thinking about it, your mother said that our kids’ flight comes in Sunday morning instead of Saturday morning.”

All our kids are in Florida visiting Sydney’s and Candace’s parents. They’re spending the week at Universal Studios, Sea World, and Disney World.

“Hopefully they’ll come home to good news.” I hoped. I looked at my phone. “Damn, I forgot this was on silent.” I had 65 missed calls, 35 voice messages and 125 text messages. “I’ll check em later.”

“Dad wanted me to tell you that they need our quarterly report card by Monday.” Will said.

“It’s that time again, huh? Ok.” I took out my laptop and turned it on. Will already had his out. “What do you have so far?”

“Only a few things. I haven’t logged in yet.”

“Iight.” I looked at Sydney and then back at my screen. “What’s today?”

“I have no idea.”

“You’re no help.” I said, smiling. “Let me bleed the lizard real quick and we’ll get this done.” I stood up and went to the bathroom.

“While I’m thinking bout it,” Will began yellin to me, “did you talk to Toya yet?”

“Yea, I did.” I yelled back. “She said that she posted everything.”

“Not about that. I mean the other thing.” I thought about it.

“Oh, yea. Hold on.” I flushed, washed my hands, and came out the bathroom. “She said that the test did prove it was Chris’s child. After putting all the dates together, it was determined that he impregnated her two months after we initially found out.”

“Saw that comin.”

“Yep.”

“What are they goin to do?” He asked.

“Right now, they’re separated. Chris is staying at another house he owns. No tellin when that divorce will be finalized.”

“What do you think?”

“Put a fork in it and throw on some barbecue sauce. I give it a couple days.” I replied. I logged into our company’s financial database. “You talk to Yvonne?”

“Yea. She caught Dre and Chris runnin the train on your cousin.” I spit out the Pepsi that I just put in my mouth.

“Excusé moi? What the hell you just say?”

“You heard me. She caught them both red handed with Courtney.”

“Courtney? She just turned 18.” Courtney is my Uncle Frank’s youngest daughter. I wasn’t real close to her, but I always looked out for her. She was like a step sister to me. “How did Yvonne catch em?”

“One of her friends called her stating that she saw him goin into a hotel.”

“She had a friend spy on him?” I asked.

“Nah, in fact, her friend was at the hotel wit a prostitute. He’s married too.”

“That’s ironic.”

“Upon hanging up, she immediately headed there. She paid the guy at the front desk $1000 for a key to their room. Opened the door, shot a video, and left. She didn’t make a scene or nothin.”

“How long ago was this?”

“Last night. I found out this morning. Word is that both Dre and Chris are staying at the same place together now. Yvonne said that without a doubt she is goin to divorce him.”

“Damn, yo.” I shook my head, blown away by what was just told to me. “Off subject, when did we acquire Uniden?”

“July 16^th.”

“Was that before or after Memorex?”

“After. Memorex was July 13^th.”

“Gravy.” I looked at my fiancée and then back at my screen. I then looked back at my fiancée and began thinking. “Have you ever wondered how someone can be damn near held captive but not touched?”

“Yea, why?” Will asked.

I stood and walked to Sydney. I put a glove on and started touching her. I lifted the sheets, but the moment I touched her, I was struck across the face. It went so fast that I didn’t see it.

“Did you hit me?” I asked Will.

“Nigga, I’m way back here.” He laughed. “She just smacked the shit out of you.”

“Wow, are you serious?” I tried again, but the moment I touched her I was struck across the face. “Son of a bitch.”

“She got some killer reflexes. Even in a coma.” Will commented. “Guess that answers your suspicions.” I tried again, but this time I used my gloveless hand. I got nothing.

“Did you see that?” I asked Will.

“Nah, I didn’t see anything.” He replied.

“Exactly.”

“I don’t get it.”

“She knows my touch. You see what I’m doin?”

“Yea, you’re tryin to get busy wit a comatose patient.”

“Ha, you funny. Seriously though.”

“Yea, you’re doin the same thing you were doin wit yo glove hand.”

“Since it didn’t feel familiar to her, she hit me. However, when I touch her with my gloveless hand, she allows it. That’s why she wasn’t raped. I bet you Candace does the same thing.” I stood up, took off the glove and sat down at the table. “I don’t know what to make of it.”

“She’d prolly let ya do her.” He laughed.

“Don’t tempt me.”

“You are somethin nasty.” We both laughed.

“On da real though, I just wish I knew what we could do or say that would pop em out of it.” I said.

“Yea, I can’t think of anything that I haven’t already tried.”

“Well, maybe somethin will come to mind later. Let’s get back on this report.” I suggested.

Slowly, but surely, the day went by and night made its daily appearance. Listening to music, I lied next to Sydney. Will was laying next to Candace reading a book.

“Aye, Will, you remember that cut ‘Say ‘Gain’ from our last album?” I asked him.

“Yea, what bout it?” He asked, not taking his eyes off his book.

“Did you ever really listen to Chris’s verse?”

“Not really. I mean I listened to it, but not real closely.”

“Me neither. Usually when I’m listening to music I’m doin somethin else, but sittin here and just listening, he basically just put himself out there.”

“What you mean?”

“He’s been cheatin on Toya since 07. Him and Dre been runnin thru females since 08. Road trips during the season and after parties after home games.” That got Will’s attention.

“Are we really that ignorant?” Will asked.

“We must be.” Will shook his head and started reading again. I played the next song. “Oh, shit, this brings me back.”

“Which one is that?”

“The song we made after we got engaged.”

“Oh yea, ‘Owner of my Soul’.” Will said. “It’s still number 1 in the world to this day. Everything considered; I’m still surprised you were able to do it with Andrew’s funeral the next day.”

“Yea, well, all things considered, when you’re with a woman that makes you feel the way she makes me feel, you tend to only think about the positive.”

“You sayin that like I’m not wit someone.”

“Oh yea, my bad.” I laughed.

I started the song over and sang my verse. Will joined in as his verse came up. We then sang the chorus together. As we sang, I felt somethin across my arm, then grasping my hand. My heart raced.

“Aye, K, why you stop?” Will asked.

He looked towards me and his jaw dropped. I was afraid to look, thinking I would just get my hopes up. I took a deep breath and looked at my hand. Sydney’s soft, beautiful hand was grasping mine. Her thumb caressing the back of my hand. I looked up and found myself looking into eyes that I haven’t been privileged to look at for two months.

“I love that song.” Sydney said softly. My mind went blank. My lips trembled with joy, relief and excitement. The only thing I could think of doing was embracing her. I hugged her tightly and kissed her like I never kissed her before. Tears streamed down my face. “Thank you for not giving up on me.” She said softly in my ear.

“Never. I’d never give up on you.” I whispered in her ear. “Now we’re just waiting on Candace.”

“She’s up.” She said. I looked at Will. If I didn’t know better, I’d say they were bout to have sex.

“Those freaks.” I said smiling.

I let Sydney go and just looked into her beautiful eyes. Tears streamed down both of our faces. We wiped each other’s tears and just smiled.

“You wanna get up?” I asked her.

“Yea.” She replied.

I helped her up and we went over to Candace and Will. Will gave Sydney a hug and kiss, I gave Candace a hug and kiss and we watched Sydney and Candace hug and kiss each other. We socialized for a little while and then took a break for a much needed shower.

After showers, we ordered some food. While we were waiting, we wanted answers.

“I guess I’ll ask the billion dollar question,” Will began, “how in the blue hell did y’all survive?”

“Well, when I tried starting the car, I heard clicking.” Sydney began.

“I recognized the clicking and said we needed to get out fast.” Candace continued. “I don’t know bout Sydney, but I dove into some bushes. Next thing I know, the car explodes. I don’t know what it was, but something hit me in the head. That’s prolly what put me in that coma.”

“When I dove, the car exploded while I was still in the air. The explosion pushed me a lil further then I wanted to go. I landed on a manhole or something. It was hard as hell and hurt like hell.”

“So nothing since then.” I stated.

“I do remember hearing voices.” Candace said.

“What voices?” Will asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Oh, yea, I remember hearing voices too.” Sydney agreed. “They were talking about waiting until chief gets there. I can’t quite remember exactly what they were talking about.”

“Chief?” I repeated.

“Doesn’t sound familiar to me.” Will said. I shook my head in agreement.

“Maybe more will come as time goes on.” Candace commented. “But look, I don’t wanna talk about that.”

“Me neither.” Sydney agreed.

“Ok, what’s on y’all mind?” I asked.

“Our wedding.” Candace said. “We want to decide a date.” Will and I looked at each other.

“What did y’all have in mind?” Will asked.

“Considering it’s already September and the basketball season starts the first week of January, we were thinking middle of next month.” Candace said.

“Well just so you know, you both were in a coma for two months. It’s now November.” I corrected her.

“Oh wow!” They both said.

“Yea.” Will and I both said.

“A week before Thanksgiving actually.” I added.

“I guess before the season starts next month.” Candace suggested.

“We don’t want to have our weddings at the same time either.” Sydney stated. “We were thinking one wedding one day, the other the next day, and on the third day, we begin our honeymoon.”

“We can decide the wedding days by coin flip.” Candace added. Will and I looked at each other and smiled.

“So a wedding on a Saturday and Sunday? Or Friday and Saturday?” Will asked.

“Saturday and Sunday.” Sydney replied.

“I want Sunday.” I requested.

“Why?” Candace asked.

“Save the best for last.” I stated.

“If you say so. We’ll take Saturday then.” Will said.

“Ok. December 10^th, 2110 fa me.” Candace wrote down.

“December 11^th, 2110 fa me.” Sydney wrote down. Will and I looked at each other and shook our heads. “Now, as far as the location goes, we want to get married outside, so we want to go to one of the islands.”

“Ok. How many guests we lookin at?” I asked.

“I’m up to 200 right now. That’s as of the day you proposed, so I’m sure there’s more.” Candace said.

“I’m only at 167.” Sydney said.

“Well, even though money is not a matter, keep a record of all expenses so I can keep a tab on our account balance.” I said.

“Our?” Sydney repeated.

“Oh that’s right, they don’t know.” Will said to me. “The moment your last name changes, you will be linked to our bank accounts, life insurance….everything.” Sydney and Candace looked at each other in disbelief.

“Didn’t Kevin and Tevin warn y’all about doin that?” Candace asked.

“Yea, wit Monique and Beyonce.” I replied. “They agreed with us when it came to y’all.”

“Are they really that confident when it comes to us?” Sydney asked.

“You have no idea.” I replied.

“Well, just so you know, as far as finances go, we’ll be providing round trip flights for all guests, transportation from and to the airport, rooms, and all normal wedding expenses.” Candace told us. We nodded. “Is there anyone I shouldn’t invite?” She asked Will.

“Or me?” Sydney asked me. We both shook our head.

“Well, we’ll need y’all guest lists ASAP.” Candace said.

“We’re all over it.” I said.

“I’m so excited that this is finally happening.” Candace said.

“You know, it’s probably a good idea to bring in your mother so she knows we’re ok.” Sydney proclaimed.

“Good point.” I hit the red button that directly pages Ma.

“Hey, did the NBA ever overturn your suspension?” Sydney asked me.

“Actually, they did. I just found out yesterday.” I replied.

“That’s great news.” Candace said.

“It’s ok, but first game of the season is against Cincinnati.” Will said.

“We’re gonna get our ass kicked.” I stated.

“Why you think that?” Sydney asked.

At that moment, Ma came in and immediately started smiling as she saw Sydney and Candace. She embraced both of them and engaged in idle small talk. They then started talking about the wedding and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

When Ma finally left, Sydney immediately kicked back into the conversation we were having.

“So why do you think y’all are going to lose?” She asked.

“The season starts on Sunday. That game is on Tuesday. We haven’t touched a basketball since the Finals. I’d say we’re rusty, but that’s like saying Ashy Larry is ashy.” I informed her.

“Yea,” Will agreed, “I’d say it’s gonna take at least two full weeks to be back in basketball shape.”

“So the streak is gonna come to an end?” Candace asked sadly. We both nodded in sadness.

“At least you have a good excuse.” Sydney claimed.

“Yea, but still.” Will said.

“Well, the season starts in a month, how can you not get in basketball shape by January?” Sydney asked. Will and I looked at each other and then back at them.

“Let’s be real,” I began in a somber tone, “We have been through so much the past couple months that we don’t have the stomach for anything but to be with y’all. We don’t want to do anything but be by your side.”

“And that’s real.” Will added. They looked at each other with a guilty expression. “Please, don’t feel bad for us. We really don’t give a shit about our record. At some point, we’re meant to lose. We just want to be with you. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“I mean, Candace and I can plan the weddings…” Sydney began.

“No!” I jumped in. “We want nothing more then to be part of this. We want to share in all the planning and decision making.”

“We want this to be perfect for y’all and as least stressful as possible. So come on, give us some tasks.” Will declared.

We had our phones in hand, ready to take down notes. They looked at each other and smiled.

“Well, y’all can handle the music for one.” Candace suggested. We wrote that down.

“You both have great taste in food, so y’all can choose the caterers.” Sydney said. We both nodded and smiled in agreement.  “Ummm…”

“That’s all I can really think of at the moment.” Candace said, looking at Sydney.

“Yea, me too.” Sydney agreed.

“No sweat. Anything comes to mind, just let us know.” Will said. At that moment, Ma came in.

“Hey, I just want to tell y’all that everything is looking good, so y’all can leave in the morning.” She stated.

“That’s wonderful!” Candace said.

“I’ll have a few prescriptions for some good pain killers ready in the morning, so when ever you wake up, you can leave,”

“Thanks, Ma.” I said to her.

“Just in case I don’t see ya.” She walked over to us and gave all of us a tearful hug.

After Ma left, I lied down wit Sydney in her bed. She lied on my chest and had her hand under my shirt, rubbing my stomach.

“Looks like you gained some weight.” She teased.

“Tell me about it.” I placed my hand on top of hers. “I have a confession to tell you.”

“What’s up?”

“Monique is alive.”

“Oh my god, are you serious?!” She said in complete amazement.

“It’s crazy, I know.”

“How’d you find out?”

“She was at the funeral.”

“Is that who you chased after?” She asked.

“Yea. She looked familiar, but in all seriousness, she had some work done.”

“Wow! How is she?”

“Well, she’s a lot different. A lot.” I paused and sighed. I was semi-afraid to tell her, but it had to be done. “She’s the one that’s been keeping my spirits up. She’s come over a lot and kept me company. Made me breakfast, dinner…anything I needed.” I could feel her heartbeat race….that and hear the monitor. “The thing is, baby, she’s the one that helped me find you.”

“What do you mean?” She asked.

“After all that, she didn’t bad mouth you or come on to me. I saw the report confirming your death and I lost it. I mean I was in complete disbelief.” I paused and swallowed. I sighed and said, “That’s when she comforted me and I kissed her.” I lifted her head and looked in her eyes. “That’s how I found you. While I was kissing her, I saw you and where you were.” She smiled and kissed me.

“I guess I owe her a thank you.”

“I already did thank her. I just hope it didn’t arouse any real attraction to me. I’d hate for her to go through that again. Supposedly she got back together with her boyfriend, so that may be good.”

“You’re so oblivious, my love.” She teased. “Monique will never get over you. You’re the best thing that has ever happened to her. Her link with you is a wonderful daughter and a dead son. Hell, if it wasn’t for Tierra, I think she’d kill herself.”

“Bit harsh, ya think?” I chuckled.

“Well she has a few loose screws.” She added.

“You’re right. She does.” I agreed.

“But kissing her brought us together. I’m glad you did.”

“You told me to.”

“I did what?”

“You told me to find you any way necessary. Dad told me that sometimes doing the things I’m not supposed to do can help.”

“I guess I did give you permission, huh?”

“Yes you did.”

“For your sake, you better had just kissed her.”

“I may have tipped her.” I joked.

“Oh really!?”

“Maybe half.”

“Now it’s half?!”

“Well if I told you I full-fledged made love to her, you’d be angry. So I’m not going to tell you.”

“You’re such an ass, Mr. Johnson.” She laughed.

“I know. I’m sorry.” I said, smiling.

I slid down to her level and looked her directly in the eyes. I held her hand and smiled. For several seconds, we just stared into each other’s eyes.

“When did you know you liked me?” She asked me.

“Good question.” I started to think about it. “I’d have to say it was the time when you stayed over for a few nights before you left for Cali. We were playing Monopoly and it went on for hours. I mean no one was losing. At the same time, your cell was blowing up with friends or guys trying to hang out wit you. Yet, you stayed with me. To repay you, I started to let you win.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. I won fair and square. How did you let me win?”

“Who buys a Get out of Jail Free card for $5K? That makes no sense.” She started to laugh.

“I never thought about it. You’re right. But why let me win if you liked me? I figured you’d want me to stay.”

“I did, but I wanted you to be happy and have a choice to be with me or your friends. After the game, you stayed with me….sealing my feelings.” We both smiled to that. “How about you?”

“It was the day you bought me the wrong ice cream.”

“Wow…the one time I do that happens to be the time you realized you liked me?”

“Yes.” She laughed. “It was what you did afterwards that won my heart.”

“Which was what?”

“Switched with me. As much as you hate chocolate mint, you took it and gave me rainbow sherbet. You didn’t do the cliché of going to get another one or telling me to get over it. You just switched and bit the bullet. It showed you’d do anything to make me happy.”

“Yes I will.” I said softly. We glared into each other’s eyes. There was a comfortable, passionate silence between us. I touched her face softly and grinned.

“What are you thinking of?” She said softly.

“Just you.” I replied in almost a whisper. “I have no idea what I would have done without you.”

“Hopefully you never have to find out.” She said.

“Words will never explain how much I love you. How much I’ve missed you. How much I need you in my life. You’re the owner of my soul. You’re my better half. You’re everything I’m not. As the old overused statement goes….you complete me.”

“Everything I am to you, you are to me. I love you more then life itself. If you were ever taken from me….I swear on our children that I would kill myself just to be with you.”

Another comfortable silence deafened the area. I embraced her with tears dropping from my eyes. I kissed her like I never kissed her before. I relished this moment. My wife-to-be was finally with me. Nothing else mattered more than that fact.

CHAPTER X

REALITY

                “Don’t fuck wit me like that.” Sydney stated.

                “It’s not something I’d joke about.” I proclaimed. “I know that deep down you wished that to be true.”

                “Yea, but I knew it couldn’t be true. Before this moment, I knew we never did anything at that time, yet here you are telling me differently.”

                “I’m sorry. I had to be sure though.”

                “Why did it take you this long? Why did you wait this long and choose today to tell me?”

                “The time wasn’t right.”

                “How long have you known?”

                “I was suspicious of it the first day I met him and confirmed it within the week.”

                “Why the hell did it take you THIS long?”

                “I didn’t know how to tell you.”

                “How about, hey, Sid, I think Kendal is my son….that’s a start.” She stood up and walked to the other side of the room, basically to get some space.

                “I’m sorry, Sid. I really am. I should have told you a while ago. I was afraid of your reaction.”

“So what makes now so different?” She demanded.

“I don’t know. I have a feeling that something is going to happen and before it does, I need you to know this.”

She turned and looked at me with more concern then anger.

“What do you mean?”

“I honestly can’t say. It’s just a feeling I’m getting.” I approached her slowly and took her hand into mine. “I realize that this isn’t easy to cope wit. I did all I can to tell you in a timely manner but this has been our first real night to relax and have a serious moment. I don’t want you to focus on the bad feeling I’m getting. If anything, focus on the feelings that I have for you, the fact that I love you and will consistently do right by you.”

I looked into her eyes, waiting on some kind of response. Her eyes were watering up, tears slowly forming and falling. It had to have only been 3 seconds, but it felt like 3 minutes that I waited. I decided to make the move. With her hand already in mine, I pulled her to me and embraced her. I could feel her sobbing. She wrapped her arms around me tightly.

“Do you forgive me?” I asked her.

“I always forgive you.” She said softly. “I love you, Kenny.”

“I love you too.” I looked into her eyes and wiped her tears away. “I promise to never keep anything else from you.”

“I know you won’t.” She stated. She smiled, “I wonder how I would have taken this if you didn’t give me the massage.”

“The same way.”

“Why you say that?”

“The massage wasn’t for you. It was to trick me to believe you’d take it better at complete relaxation.”

“And here I thought it was for me.”

“You know better than that.” She laughed and wrapped her arms around me.

“So every child I gave birth to is really yours?” She asked in surprise.

“Every single one and the next ones.”

“The next one, huh?” She smiled. “When did you have that plan in mind?”

I kissed her then looked into her eyes. “Now sounds good.” She smiled and kissed me.

I open my eyes and stared at the ceiling. I’m lying on my back and feel a breeze sliding against my body. Feels like I have no clothes on. I sit up and look around. It’s dark all around.

“What are you doing, Kenny?”

A distant voice whispers. I look around but see nothing. I stand up and continue to look around. When I turn around, the bed I was laying on is no longer there. I raise my eyebrow but don’t dwell on it for long.

“You must break free.”

I turned towards where I believed the voice was coming from. I started walking towards it, very cautious in anticipation of the unknown. In the distance I can see the outline of a woman. I couldn’t recognize her at first. As I continued walking, she didn’t get any closer. It was like she was backing away from me.

“You must break free from this.”

Break free from what? I tried running in hopes I’d be able to reach her, but with no success. I stopped to the sound of another voice….several voices. I looked in the vicinity of where the voices came from.

“Daddy, please come back to us!”

“We need you Daddy!”

I reached my arm out in a futile attempt to touch my children, but obviously to no avail. I looked Tierra in the eyes as she stood there hugging Kendal…tears streaming down their faces. A woman stood behind them, holding the twins…my little Sinclair and Kenny. The woman holding them wasn’t visible. A shadow casted over her, yet the vibe I got from her was all too familiar.

“You’ll never be able to awaken if you can’t break free.”

“Break free from what?” I asked. “Who are you?”

“You know who I am.” The shadow slowly rescinded, slowly exposing her….my Sydney.

“Why are you still in my dreams? We’re together in reality.”

“Are we, Kenny?”

At that moment, my eyes opened. I looked to my left and saw my beautiful wife-to-be. I stood up and went to the bathroom. I stared at myself in the mirror. Something isn’t right. Something about this doesn’t feel natural. My surroundings started flickering like a power shortage. I was startled by the background I was seeing. I blinked several times and everything was good again. I looked left and right to be welcomed by the calm. What’s happening to me?

“The question isn’t what’s happening to you, but what’s happened to you?” I turned around and saw Sydney still in the bed sleeping. I turned back around and saw a dark figure in the mirror. My heart was pounding but I tried to seem unfazed.

“What do you mean?” I blinked a couple times. “Who are you?”

“You think all of your problems are solved?”

“I have no problems. I found her and now can carry on with my life.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for reality?”

“I’m in reality. I’m ready for the next step. Stop talking to me like this is a dream.” He lifted his head up and looked me in the eyes. I looked at his and immediately became subdued by the image I was seeing. “You……you’re…..me.” I realized. He smirked and closed his eyes.

“I hope you’re as ready as you say you are.”

In one single instant, he reached out and grabbed my throat. As I gasped for air, he yanked me through the mirror.

I yelled at the top of my lungs as I popped out drenching in sweat.

“Oh my god!!!!!” I looked at Sydney as tears streamed down her face. “You’re back! You’re finally back to me!” She cried as she embraced me. I hugged her back as she cried on my shoulder.

“I told you I’d find you, but you already know that.” I said to her. “We went through all of this yesterday.”

“What?” She stopped hugging me and looked at me. “Baby we didn’t talk yesterday.”

I took a second and realized my surroundings. She was fully clothed and I was in hospital garments. I looked around. It was daytime.

“No. No…..what is this?” I started panicking. “What’s going on? Why am I here?”  At that moment, it hit me.

Before leaving the podium, I see a woman by a tree, way in the back. I somewhat recognized her, but I think she noticed me noticing her first. I stepped down and went towards her. She tried to walk away.

“Hey!” I called. I jogged and grabbed her arm. “Who are you?”

“Nobody.” She replied.

“Do you come to anyone’s funeral?”

“I know the boy.” She sniffed. She’s been crying.

“How do you know him?” I asked her. She didn’t say anything. I grabbed her arm and turned her around. “I said how do you……” When I saw her face, I immediately knew who she was.

“I know him because I’m his mother.” She sighed.

“Monique?” I was speechless. “How are you still alive?” That was the first question I can think of. Terrible.

“I wasn’t dead. I ended up in a coma.” She replied.

“So you change your face a lil bit and your hair. Didn’t think I’d recognize you?” I asked.

“Honestly, no I didn’t. I’ve walked by Sydney on many occasions and she never noticed me.”

“Well, if you know someone well enough, there’s not a thing that person can do to make em unrecognizable.”

“I see.”

“So why were you tryin to run from me?” I asked.

“I didn’t know what would happen. You banished my entire family as it is. I didn’t know how you were goin to react to me keeping him from you.”

“Why did you?”

“Come on, Kenny, ain’t it obvious? Look at Tierra. She doesn’t even love me anymore. I couldn’t risk that happening with him.”

“Why’d you block out anything I was?”

“If he found out you were the famous Kenny Johnson, he wouldn’t wanna stay with me.” She replied. “I’m sorry that I kept him from you, but I couldn’t live with losing both my children.”

“You coulda at least told me. It could have prevented some thangs when we presumed you were dead.”

“I know. I see that now.” She looked at her watch. “Looks like I better go. The president only allowed me two hours here.” She kissed my cheek. “It was nice seeing you again.” She turned and walked away.

“Mo?” I called. She stopped and turned around. “I’ll lift the ban.”

“Why?” She asked.

“I think y’all have suffered enough. Your family except for your father may re-enter the city at will.”

“Thank you. I hope to see you around.” She said. I watched her walk away. I turned around and saw them about to finish up. I ran back and put my flowers onto the casket. I couldn’t watch anymore. I left to go sit in the car. Will knocked on the window. I unlocked the door and he got in.

“How you holdin up?” He asked me.

“I’m ok.”

“Good. That eulogy was beautiful.”

“Thanks.” I sighed. “Guess who I ran into.”

“Who?”

“Monique.” He started choking.

“How’s that possible?” He asked.

“She didn’t die. She went into a coma.”

“Did you get the answers you been wanting?”

“Yea, it’s just like I thought. I lifted their ban. Except for their father.” I confessed.

“I thought about it.” He started shaking his head. “Life is getting crazy.”

“I heard that.” I saw Sydney and she was getting into her car. Candace soon followed. I looked down at my watch. I then looked at Will.

“I’m thinking about pro…”

“Shh…you hear that?” Will stopped me.

I stopped talking and listened. Sounded like ticking. We looked at each other and immediately got out the car. We both tried running away from the car as fast as possible but before we could get much of anywhere, the car exploded. I launched into the air……………………………. and landed……

I blacked out at that moment. I started shaking my head in disbelief.

“That can’t be right. I saw your car explode. I spent the past couple months trying to find you and I finally did yesterday. That’s not right at all.”

“Baby, you’ve been in a coma for the past eight months. You hit your head pretty hard. You’ve gone into surgery a couple times to relieve the pressure.”

“What? Eight months? Wait, where’s Will?” I wondered.

“He’s in an adjacent room. He woke up three days ago so we knew it was only a matter of time before you would.” She took my hand and kissed it. “I don’t know what’s going on in your head but the fact you made it back to me is all that matters.”

“Wait….I’ve been in here for 8 months? I grabbed the remote and turned on the TV. I turned to ESPN to watch SportsCenter.

“The Bear Claws are just one win away from their first NBA championship behind the sharp shooting of Kevin Johnson Jr. We had a moment to talk with KJ after his shootaround. KJ, we like to thank you for taking the time.”

“No problem.”

“With one more win, you’ll finally be able to capture that NBA title that’s eluded you the past several years. Do you feel that this title will be tainted considering the absence of your brother, Kenny, and cousin, Will?”

“Ummm, I’m not going to lie and say that I’m glad we’re not facing them in the championship. I’m dedicating my play to my brother and cousin in hopes they get out their coma soon. As tainted as this title may be, we’ll be ready to defend it next season when they return.”

“You’ve put up insane numbers this season to claim your first MVP title, continuing the MVP title reign that the Johnson and Smith family has. You’ve dedicated that award to Kenny as well. Do you think this season will end up having an asterisk to it because of their absence?”

“Umm, I think people will judge this season how they want to judge it. Everyone knows that when Kenny and Will play together they’re undefeated so had they been here, who knows what would have happened. The only thing in my control is to play my hardest tonight to bring this franchise its first NBA championship and another to the city of Cleveland.”

“Speaking of Cleveland, do you feel the extra love this postseason since the Cavs lost in the conference finals?”

“I do. No one thought the Cavs would go as far as they did and it gave their huge fan base life and when they came up short last round, the energy in their fan base remained as they were proud of the accomplishment. That team is pretty stacked even without Kenny and Will. Now we’re the favorites and besides our own fans, we have fans of Cleveland on our side so it’s a beautiful feeling.”

I turned off the TV and buried my face in my hands. Sydney sat next to me and hugged me, laying my head on her shoulder.

“I don’t know what you’ve been through or what went through your mind. All I know is that you’re here now. Here with me, our kids, and the rest of our family.” I looked up at her. She smiled and kissed my lips. “I’m here, baby.”

“I don’t know what happened, but it doesn’t matter. I’m back with you and that’s all that matters.” I embraced her. “Where are the kids?” I said softly.

“They’re in school.” She replied.

“I need to see Will.” I stated.

“Of course, baby.” She kissed my cheek. “I have to tell your mother first.” I nodded.

She pressed the button to notify the staff. I lied down on her lap, trying to put everything together. A few seconds later, Ma rushed into the room. She didn’t look worried or stressed, she just calmly walked in the room in anticipation of seeing me.

“How are you feeling?” She asked me.

“Confused.” I replied.

“I believe it.” I sat up so she could do some tests. “How’s your memory?”

“Decent. Haven’t recalled everything yet.” I looked in Ma’s eyes and could see the fatigue.

“Everything looks good.” She told me. “We’ll see how you progress and get a good estimate on when you can go home after that.”

“Ok, thanks Ma.” I said. She kissed my cheek and hugged me.

“Glad you’re awake. I probably couldn’t handle one more surgery.”

“Thank you for everything.” She kissed my cheek again.

“Love you.” She said before walking away.

“Love you too.” I told her before she left and closed the door.

“Baby,” Sydney called, “before I bring Will in, I have to know. What were you experiencing in your coma?”

“I don’t really know. It feels like my world has turned upside down. I guess the real question is what has happened since I’ve been in here?”

“Well, the kids and I talked to you every day, almost every member of your family has at least visited once, Toya and Chris and Yvonne and Andre have argued in here on different occasions. For the most part, nothing really changed.”

“Are they still married?”

“Yea but it looks like both will end soon.”

“Wow.”

I scooted to the edge of the bed and dangled my legs to the floor. Sydney stood in front of me and put my arm around her.

“On 3.” She said.

We nodded in unison twice and then she helped me stand. My back popped in several spots and my knees popped. I took some deep breaths as she rubbed my back. I grabbed one of the crutches that Ma left for me and put most of my weight on that instead of her. We started slowly walking to Will’s room.

“So why does Ma look so subdued?” I finally asked.

“She’s extremely tired. For the past 3 months, she’s been sleeping about 10 hrs a week. She’s had to travel across 29 states and 40 countries. Summits here, summits there, conference here, conference there….it’s been a gauntlet. On three separate occasions, she was gone for your surgeries. At the end of the week things should be back to normal.”

“What surgeries have I had?”

“The first day we immediately got you an MRI which showed a little hemorrhaging on the left side of your head and had to relieve pressure. Of course that was after removing a metal shard from your side and the two in your thighs. Lucky enough, upon removing those, we noticed you had some ligament damage in your left knee and a torn MCL. We surgically repaired that, stopped all your bleeding, sewed you up and began the waiting game. I don’t know what was going on in your sleep but I could just see the stress in your face. Then out of nowhere your vitals will shoot up and we’d have to drill another hole in your head.”

“Intense. I’m dying to see the video.” I grunted in minor aches and pains. “Is there anything I need to recover from physically?”

“Everything should be healed. It’s been several weeks since your last procedure. You’ll need a little time to strengthen your knee. After the recovery time, a couple nurses would bend it and apply pressure every 4 hours, every day.”

“A couple huh?”

“Your leg isn’t necessarily the lightest part of your body.” She stated. “As far as your mother goes, when she gets some rest, it’ll hit her that you’re ok.”

“Out of curiosity, who operated on me while she was gone?” I asked.

“The only person she could trust with your life.”

“Which is?”

“Me, baby.” She looked up at me. I kissed her and smiled. “You can repay me by not putting me thru that again.”

“Deal.”

We approached Will’s room. Sydney tried opening the door, but it was locked. We shook our heads, already knowing what was going on. Faintly, we could hear Candace moaning. Sydney banged on the door.

“Cuming!” Candace yelled.

“Me too!” Will yelled too.

We started laughing as we patiently waited.

“Bet ya a bill that it’ll be at least another 5 minutes.” I said.

“I mine as well just give you that.” She stated.

“When’s the game?” I asked.

“Tonight, I think.” She replied.

“Did you get front row tickets?”

“Yea, KJ gave me 4. Thinking about going?”

“Yea. Instead of issuing a statement, it’d be better to make a public appearance.”

“Don’t you think that’ll overshadow the game?”

“It could, but it could also generate the greatest performance of all time. Will and myself not included.”

“You think so?”

“Inspiration never hurt anybody.”

Sydney knocked on the door again, not anticipating anything different.

“I’m cuming!!” Candace repeated.

“Again!” Will added. We chuckled and shook our heads.

“I should probably tell you that I raped you in your sleep.” Sydney admitted.

“Seriously?”

“Seriously.”

“That’s a bit disturbing for you. Why would you do that?” I asked.

“I don’t know. It just happened. I was laying next to you, reading a book, and I could feel your fingers brushing my leg.”

“Really?”

“It was weird.”

“So a tiny bit of finger caressing made you rape a comatose patient?” I joked.

“You know when you say it like that, it sounds extremely horrible.” She chuckled. “Besides, the finger caressing made me think about the one time we were play fighting.”

“A little random.” I said.

“I agree. That fight turned into the roughest and most exhilarating sex we’ve ever had and it turned me on bad.”

“I see.”

“Don’t make it sound so embarrassing. You’re not completely innocent in this.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know if you were feeling my aura or just having one of those dreams but you were quite aroused before I even touched you. I swear you kissed me back to.”

“You’re making that up.”

“I swear I’m not. In fact, in anticipation of you thinking that, I recorded the moment on my phone.” She grabbed her phone and showed me the video. Sho nuff, I was quite aroused. Her reaction to it was basically proof that she wasn’t expecting it.

“Ok, ok….so how was it?”

“It felt like masturbating on one of those dildo chairs. The lack of your touch was killing me. I tried taking your hands and grabbing my boobs with them, but it didn’t feel the same.”

“Did you at least get off?”

“Several times actually. After all, it was you that was inside of me so it felt extremely good.”

“Shit, did I get off?”

“Yes you did and made a cute little sigh.” She laughed, as did I. “And on that note, I haven’t gotten my period in almost two months.”

“Still as fertile as ever.” I stated, not even surprised.

“Yea, well, I think it’s more stress then pregnancy. I think you’re shooting blanks due to lack of nutrients.” She stated.

“What makes the last two months more stressful than the previous 6?”

“It’s when I had to do your surgery.”

“Well look at the bright side. You’ve always wanted to be in my head sometimes.” I joked, drawing a nice chuckle from her. A moment of silence came and went.

“It’d be nice if we can all refrain from hospital stays in the future.” She suggested.

“No disagreements there.” I agreed.

We could hear the door unlock and whispering. The door cracked and Candace popped her head out.

“Oh, hey Sydney.” She said, not noticing me yet.

“Hey, yourself. Are you dressed?” Sydney replied.

“No, just this sheet. Sorry to keep you waiting.” She started whispering, “I think I came like 15 times.” They started giggling.

“Girl you need to stop. Make yourself decent.” Sydney requested.

“I am decent. Come on in.” Sydney smiled and started walking in.

“Well if you insist on me seeing you naked.” I said as I followed Sydney into the room.

Candace looked at me real fast; her face lit up as she screamed and jumped on me. She hugged me so fast that the sheet fell to the floor. I wrapped my arms around her but immediately started thinking something else. Awkward. Will came out the bathroom, amidst all the screaming. He noticed me and followed Candace’s lead. Now a naked man and woman were in my arms. Awkward and quite disturbing. I looked at Sydney, whom couldn’t help but laugh at it all, and just shook my head. Will and Candace started talking at the same time, which sounded like a bunch of chatter.

“Ok, kids, calm down. One at a time.” Sydney intervened. They both turned to her and raised their hands. “Ummm……Will?”

“When the hell did you wake up, dude?” Will asked me.

“Like 45 minutes ago.” I replied.

“You know, if you had said you were at the door, I would have jumped off his dick.” Candace proclaimed.

“Really?” Will said, as he looked at Candace.

“Oh in a heartbeat.” She replied. “Even if I was about to cum or in the middle of it.”

“Damn, that’s cold.” He said.

“The thought crossed our mind,” Sydney said, “but we figured this way would be more exciting.”

“Besides, I’m not a fan of interrupting orgasms.” I added.

“Oh trust me; I’m quite aware of that.” Will stated.

At that moment, a flash burst across my eyes. It felt like I physically jumped into an earlier moment in my life.

It was a month before the end of my junior year in high school. Will and I are in the stands of a tennis match. The Women’s International Doubles Finals between Alessa and Alisa versus a Dutch team. I was literally having an out-of-body experience. I could see my younger self with Will as we watched the match. Where is this memory coming from?

“Either the girls are playing like shit or this Dutch team is serious.” Will said to me.

“I think a mixture of both. They’re making a lot of unforced errors, but at the same time, the Dutch are quite good.” I explained.

The Dutch were leading 4 games to 2 in the 2^nd set after taking the first set. The frustration was mounting up on the girls and it was really starting to show in their play, especially after they dropped another game, falling behind 2-5. As they sat down to rest, Will and I stood up and leaned over the railing.

“Alisa?” I called. She looked at me. Nothing but frustration all over her face. “You’re getting away from your game. You’re letting them delegate. Take control.”

“This isn’t y’all.” Will added. “You’re doing way too much thinking and not enough executing. Get out there and show why you’re #1 and 2 in the world.”

They nodded and got back on the court. So far, the pep talk didn’t work as they dropped the first three points to go down 0-40. The Dutch had match point. They both looked at us. I kissed my fingers, tapped them to my chest, and sailed it to her. She smiled and prepared to serve. She looked at Alessa and they nodded at each other.

The girls ended up taking that set but couldn’t close out. It came down to a tiebreak in the final set. Back and forth they went until one critical mistake was made by Alisa. The Dutch had match point. Alisa and Alessa huddled up. I closed my eyes and tried relaying my thoughts to Alisa. Trying to calm her down. They broke the huddle and awaited serve. Back and forth it went. What looked like a sure victory was in the hands of the Dutch, Alessa saves it, hitting the ball right on the line and passed both players. Deuce again. It was Alessa’s turn to serve. She looked at Will. He blew her a kiss in a fashion almost like mine. She poked her lips out in acceptance of his offering. She bounced the ball and served……..ACE!!!! We applauded the beautiful serve. Match point. She bounced the ball again and served…..ACE again!!!! The crowd erupted as one of the greatest comebacks in tournament history was achieved.

We waited for the girls in the limo outside the stadium. I looked at my watch.

“Whatcha think,” I began to ask Will, “dinner and movie or dinner and sports bar?”

“Dinner and sports bar. I’m feeling pool and darts. I think the girls will agree.” He replied.

“I agree.”

I looked up and saw the girls approach the limo. I opened the door and watched Alessa get in first, followed by Alisa. I closed the door and looked at Alisa. Before any words were spoken, she pulled me to her, locking her lips wit mine. Aggressive as always, she started taking my clothes off. Not to be outdone, I started taking hers off. Who knows what Will and Alessa were doing. We didn’t get completely naked, but just enough to enjoy each other’s body. She got on top of me and got things going. Her moans reverberated throughout the limo. I held onto her tightly in complete awe and satisfaction of everything she was doing.

At the same time, I could hear a faint voice in the distance. As I actually started to concentrate on it, it was Will calling me. I was so close to climax that I continued to ignore it…….

“I swear I called you like 20 times.” Will stated. I paused for a second.

“I just thought he couldn’t hear you because I was too busy singing in his ear.” Alisa said.

What? I looked at her as she looked into my eyes. I was in complete disbelief. I put my hand on her face.

“What’s wrong baby? Last time you looked at me like that was when I woke up out my coma.”

Coma?

“Yea, I’m fine. Just still taken away by how beautiful you are.” I told her. I started looking around and could not tell where the hell I was.

“Are you sure you’re ok?” She asked me again.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” I asked with a smile. I put my hand on her face. “I’m here with you……everything is great.” I kissed her…………………..

“KENNY!!!!!!!!”

I jumped and stumbled into the wall. I blinked repeatedly to clear up my vision. I was back in the room with Will, Candace and Sydney.

“Thought we lost you for a second there; you really drifted.” Will stated.

“I couldn’t begin to say what happened there.” I said as I rubbed my temples.

“Maybe we should go lie down.” Sydney suggested.

“Yea, we’ll chop it later, Kenny. Get you some rest….the good kind.” Will agreed.

“You’re prolly right.” I hugged Will and Candace together. “I love y’all. Feels good to actually see y’all again.” I kissed their cheeks.

“We love you too.” Candace replied. “We’ll definitely talk later.”

I looked at them and smiled. Sydney took my hand and we walked back to my room. When we got back to the room, Sydney closed and locked the door. She then helped me get on the bed and lied down with me. I wrapped my arm around her and looked at the ceiling.

“Kenny, are you sure you’re ok?” She asked.

“Honestly, I’m not sure. I don’t know what’s going on.” I replied.

“What do you mean?”

“I’m having issues determining what’s real and what’s not.”

“What are you seeing? Andrew?”

“No. I…” I thought about if I should even tell her that I’m seeing my deceased fiancée. I had no idea how she’d react. “I’m not sure what I’m really seeing to be honest. I’m more afraid that I’m losing my sanity.”

“It’s highly improbable that you’re losing your sanity. Maybe it’s a different message being sent you. Maybe it’s a hidden message that your psyche is trying to tell you.”

“Been taking psychology classes while I was sleep?” I stated, half-way joking.

“Working on my degree as we speak.” She stated in all seriousness.

“Wait, what? I was just joking.”

“I know.” She chuckled. “But I really am taking classes.”

“What are you aiming for; Bachelors…..Masters….maybe even a full fledge Doctors?”

“You already know I gotta go all out.”

“How are you going to be able to handle this, work and our wedding?” I wondered.

“Well your mother has already cut my hours because she really wants me to pursue this degree. She also referred me to a wonderful wedding planner so the only thing I have to worry about is the date, location and guest list.”

“Well, that takes quite a bit of stress off your shoulders.”

My eyes were closed as I settled into complete relaxation. I could feel Sydney get heavier…..she was falling asleep too.

“I’m glad you’re back baby.” She said softly.

“As am I, love.” I said, softly as well.