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When I arrived at Trevante's house, he was standing on the porch, waiting for me. He was leaning against his porch, his strong arm crossed. I jumped out of the car and walked upstairs. He took my arm and slung it over his shoulder. He escorted me inside and sat me gently and slowly on the couch. He took a pair of scissors and slit my jeans open so he could examine the bullet wound.

"What the fuck happened? What did Manny put you up to?" He said this with a deeply concerned expression on his face.

I let out a sigh. "I ended up in jail because my sister and I, along with a friend, ended up beating up your fuck buddy because she didn't know her place. Because I was in jail, he lost money, which irritated him greatly. So he told me to go kill someone who had stolen money from him, and you know what happened? The guy shot me."

Trevante stood up, grabbed a gun, and loaded it. "Where is this nigga at? We can go kill him right now."

I direct him to take a seat with my finger. "Listen, I already dealt with him, so please put the gun down and assist me in removing the bullet from my thigh."

He gradually put the gun down and began grabbing items to assist in getting the bullet out of me. He reached for a towel and handed it to me. I was perplexed as to why he had given me a towel.

I looked at him with a puzzled expression. "How come you handed me a towel?"

He chuckled with a seductive look on his face. "Ma, you'll have to put that in your mouth because you'll be in excruciating pain. Please let me know when you're ready."

Now I'm beginning to regret calling him because one of my characteristics is that I dislike pain. I'm pretty sure no one does, but I'd rather have the doctors put my ass to sleep to accomplish this, but I'm already here and there's no going back, and I don't want to get into trouble with the cops. I signaled that I was ready by putting the towel in my mouth and grabbing the couch, knowing that the pain was about to escalate.

I started screaming because he poured some kind of liquid solution on my wound. I couldn't even describe how awful the ache was. I leaned back in the couch and began yelling even louder. If I had gone to the hospital, this would not have been so painful.

He came to a complete stop and gazed at me. "Listen, I understand how painful the pain is, but you must stop moving and yelling. Ma, you need to relax."

I gazed at him as if he were insane. I snatched the towel from my mouth. "Don't tell me to chill out. You're not the one who got shot in the thigh."

He smirked and returned to his treatment on my wound. He was able to remove the bullet, and he proceeded to put additional things on my thigh before wrapping it up with a bandage. I believe I will become sick as a result of this. This must be how it feels to get shot.

To make me feel better, he rubbed my shoulder. "Well, there you have it, ma. Your thigh may be sore for a couple of days, but you should be fine."

I smiled as I wiped away my tears. "I really appreciate it. That was the most agonizing pain I'd ever experienced. I guess I'll get going."

He looked at me as if I were a idiot. "What the hell do I look like letting you drive home after I just removed a bullet from your thigh? You can sleep in my room, and I'm going to sleep on the couch."

I was hesitant at first because I wanted to return home, but I chose to follow his counsel and stay here. "Thank you so much, Trevante. I really appreciate it a lot."

He waved me away with a chuckle. "Nah, you're ok, ma. Make sure you get some rest though."

I was about to enter his room when I felt compelled to stop. I was going to ask Trevante the most bizarre question ever. I'm hoping he says yes.

I gave him a sidelong glance before shifting my gaze to the ground. "Hey Tre?"

With that gorgeous smile, he turned around and gazed at me. "Yeah, wassup?"

I was hesitant to ask the question, but I did so regardless. "Do you mind sleeping with me? I don't want to sleep alone."

He smirked and pressed his lips together. "Yeah, sure. I don't mind at all."

We both entered his room, and I must say that it is very nice. I adore his room's decorations and color scheme. His bed appeared to be very comfortable, and it was a king-size bed. I lay in bed slowly because I didn't want to injure my leg any further. We lay next to each other, and he fell asleep quickly. It's strange to be in bed with a complete stranger, but I feel like I can trust him.

I was about to ask another ridiculous question, but I asked it anyway. He groaned when I tapped him on the shoulder.

"Would you mind holding me while I sleep?" I inquired in a baby voice.

He let out a small chuckle, which I clearly heard. "Sure, whatever you want, Ma."

He turned around and gently grasped me. I'd been feeling caged, terrified, and depressing since I arrived in LA, but as soon as Trevante wrapped his arms around me, I felt safe, cherished, and delighted. I truly believe I can put my faith in him. It didn't take long for me to nod out.

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I felt a little better when I awoke, but the pain in my thigh was still there. I looked to my side, but there was no sign of Trevante. I hopped out of bed and into the living room, where I overheard him and his homeboy conversing. They paused in their conversation and turned to face me, laughing. I rolled my eyes because they always thinking negative.

"Why didn't you tell us you brought shawty over here?" With a nasty smirk on their face, one of his homeboys inquired.

"You know Tre doesn't want us to know about his sneaky links." Blowing the weed smoke out of his mouth, one of his homeboys said.

"I see why he kept this sneaky link to himself. Shawty bad as hell." Smirking at me, another of his homeboys remarked.

He had a serious expression on his face as he gazed at them. "A'ight, chill out and give the girl some space. If you need anything, Angel, you can go inside the refrigerator and get anything you like."

I gave him a friendly smile. "No, I'm fine. I was about to leave."

He jumped to his feet so rapidly. "A'ight. Let me walk you outside."

His homies began grinning, and I simply ignored them since that's how they are. We both took a step outside and exchanged glances.

I gave him a sweet grin. "I want to thank you once more for removing the bullet from my thigh. I'm not sure how I'm going to pay you back."

He smiled, displaying his lovely grills in his mouth. "You're welcome baby girl, but you can repay me by having me take you out. I have to say, Angel, I really like you and I'd like to get to know you better. You appear to be very different from other women. I know you've been going through it ever since you got here, but I really want to take you out and show you a good time."

I put a small smile on my face, like if I were a toddler. "I'd really like that Tre. I was afraid to tell you that I like you as well. For some reason, you make me feel special."

He gave me a delicate kiss on the lips after looking me in the eyes for a few seconds. He seemed to have sucked my soul from my body. He eventually smiled after releasing his lips from mine.

He bit his lower lip. "Tomorrow at 8?"

I blushed and smiled at him. "Yes. I will be there. I'll see you tomorrow and thank you again for your help."

He smiled. "No worries, ma. Make sure you take care of that wound for me."

I gave him a nod. I said my goodbyes and got into my car. I started my car and drove down the road. When I get home, I know Rubi will ask me a lot of questions because, for one, I wasn't home last night and, for two, my pants are cut open, revealing my bullet wound. I just want her to hurry up and leave because I don't want her to be involved in anything.

It took me only a few minutes to get to the house. Manny and Spooky aren't here, as their cars aren't parked in the driveway. I was relieved because I didn't want to see Manny's face just now, and I especially didn't want to hear his gruff voice. I parked my car and entered the home, where I discovered Rubi watching television on the couch. She shifted her gaze to me.

She had a puzzled expression on her face as she stared at me. "Hey, sis. Where you been at last night? When I awoke, I couldn't find you anywhere in the house."

Because I didn't want her to see my thigh, I attempted to move upstairs. "Nowhere, Rubi,"

She got up from the couch and approached me. "What exactly do you mean when you say nowhere? Are you having cheating on Manny?"

I rolled my eyes and sucked my teeth as I gazed at her. "Girl, what are you talking about? I'm not cheating on Manny."

She was about to say something, but then she saw my thigh and she went crazy. I should've kept walking up those steps. She's about to irritate me to death now.

"What the fuck happened to your thigh, Angel?"

I shoved her out of the way and went to the kitchen to get something to drink. "Nothing. I simply fell. It's not a big deal."

Her arms were folded and her head was inclined to the side. " Do you think I'm stupid, Angel? Why the heck did you have to slit your pants apart if you so called fell? Something happened, and you're not telling me about it."

I attempted to walk away from her, but she grabbed my arm and pulled me back. "Rubi, nothing has happened; therefore, could you please leave me alone?"

She had a angry expression on her face as she looked at me. "I'm not leaving you alone until you tell me what happened to your thigh, or I'll call mom and tell her what's up."

I became irritated because I knew that if I didn't tell her the truth, she wouldn't leave the situation alone. I don't want her to tell our mother anything because I know she'll fly to LA real quick, and I don't want her to become involved with this. I walked back and forth, debating whether or not to tell Rubi what had happened. I eventually came to my senses and decided to tell her what had been going on for the past few days.

I snatched her arm and sat her down on the couch. "You must promise not to go to the cops and not to tell mom what I am about to tell you."

She now has a terrified expression on her face. "Angel, what's going on? You're terrifying me."

I let out a sigh. "To cut a long story short, Manny isn't my boyfriend. He forces me to transport drugs and murder people because the money our father took from his family is hidden someplace in this house, and I can't find it, so he's forcing me to do awful things. The only reason I have a bullet wound in my thigh is because he assigned me to kill someone for him last night."

Rubi looked at me as if she was have seen a ghost. She began to stutter. "H-how come you didn't tell me this sooner? We need to leave, go to the cops, or go somewhere. You can't stay here. If you continue to sell drugs and murder people for him, he will literally have you killed."

I pressed my brows together. "Rubi, if I try to flee or even speak to the cops. He will literally murder me, you, and our mother, and I do not want that to happen. What you need to do is get out of here as soon as possible."

She looked at me as if I were stupid. "Do you honestly believe I'm going back to New York without you? Do you really believe I'm going to let you stay here with a drug dealer and a murderer?

I gave her a sidelong glance. "Look, now is not the time to be a super hero. Rubi, I want you to pack your belongings and leave right away."

We heard clapping before she could say anything. We looked in the direction of the clapping noise and noticed Manny standing there applauding. My heart sank all the way to my toes. I didn't even hear him come in the house.

He began to laugh. "Congratulations for killing yourself and your family because you couldn't keep your mouth shut. It was a pleasure doing business with you."

I stood up from the couch and confronted Manny. "Look, I tried my hardest to deceive her, but I couldn't keep up with it. Please don't hurt her. I guarantee she won't tell anyone."

He pulled his gun from his back pocket, pointed it at Rubi, and she began crying and screaming. "I'm sure she won't tell anyone when she's dead. I warned you not to tell her, but you ignored me. Now look at what you've done."

I jumped in front of Rubi and motioned with my hands for him to stop. "Please, please let her go. I'll deliver whatever drugs you want me to deliver and kill whoever you tell me to kill. Just let her go. She doesn't need to be a part of this."

Manny's gun was pointed at us, and he had a thoughtful expression on his face. "Wouldn't it be nice to have two workers, huh? That would be so dope. She'll be working with you from now on. End of the discussion."

With a skeptical expression on my face, I stared at him. "What? Come on, Manny. She has nothing to do with this. Could you please let her go?"

He had a crazed expression on his face when he glanced at me. "Oh, you think you're the boss now, huh? If I tell you she's working with you, then that's that. If you would just shut the hell up, she wouldn't be in this situation. Now you must both kill someone for me."

Rubi was terrified and her eyes were filled with tears as she stared at me. "Angel, I'm sorry, but I'm not up to it. This is completely insane. We're either going to be imprisoned or killed."

I looked at Rubi and put my finger to my lips, signaling that she should be silent. I looked back at Manny and folded my arms. "Who do we have to kill now?"

He took out his phone and showed us a picture of a large buffy man. "His name is Jayceon, but the majority of people refer to him as The Game. I want you to go deal with him because he stole my money and half of my drugs."

💓

Rubi and I exchanged glances before returning our gaze to Manny. "This man is huge as hell, and he also appears to be as strong as hell. Manny, you could have sent one of your men to deal with him. Are you attempting to kill us?"

He smiled and gave me a gentle pat on the cheek. "Don't worry, you'll be ok. Just make sure you get my money and drugs, mama."

I started stuttering. I couldn't even find the words to express myself. He proceeded towards the entrance with his hand behind his back. I took a seat and covered my face with my hands.

Manny was about to walk out the door but he cut himself off. He snapped his finger, as if it would help him remember what he had forgotten. "Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. Make sure you look your best tonight because he's throwing a lavish party."

He then walked out of the house after saying that. Rubi and I both sighed deeply. We got off the couch and went upstairs to change into more decent attire. We started rummaging through our belongings. Rubi came to a halt in her digging and glanced at me with a sad expression on her face.

She wipes the tears from her eyes with her hand. "Angel, I am terrified. I'd never killed somebody or done anything remotely similar before. What happens if one of us dies? Mommy will be crushed to death by that."

I came over to her after stopping going through my clothes. I took her face in my hands and gazed into her eyes. "Listen, I understand your scared because I am as well. I promise I won't let anything bad happen to us. Just make sure you stay with me when we arrive at the guy's place. We're going to make it through this. Manny isn't going to get away with none of this."

She shook her head and rested her forehead on mine. We let go of each other and returned to our search for an outfit to wear to this party. I found an outfit I like, and Rubi did as well. We both quickly jumped into the shower, then applied make-up, did our hair, and finally put on our outfits.

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Rubi and I exchanged a series of glances. I'm trying to figure out why Rubi isn't wearing the a dress like me.

She rolled her neck as she glanced at me. "What are you doing staring at me like that, girl? No, I'm not changing my clothes because it's cute."

I gave her a sidelong glance. "I never said it was unattractive. I only wish you would put on a dress."

She sucked her teeth. "I ain't putting on no damn dress, girl. Now leave me alone and let's go to this party before I shit up myself because I'm very nervous right now."

I brushed past her, shaking my head. I took the keys, and we took our purses and walked out the door.

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Hello, everyone. I hope you're enjoying this chapter so far. Please let me know in the comments if you do. I adore you guys 💕

Love, Red ❤️