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Brandy awoke at 3 am, shivering. Dre turned the air back on the while she was asleep and disappeared. With her head pounding, she rushed to the phone. Needing to find Sheena and her car.
20 missed calls, 11 voicemails, and 30 text messages were waiting for her. Mostly from Charles and Sheena. Trying to figure out what was going on, she looked down and found herself naked from the waist down, under a thin white bed sheet. Her emotions running wild, Brandy stumbled attempting to stand.
The strong stench from the empty Jack bottle and their shot glasses made her sick. Making it to the toilet, Brandy hurled everything she ate and drank the day before. Not daring to look at herself in the mirror, she walked out of the bathroom and peeked inside of a dark room. Through the bathroom light shining through, Dre was sleep in his bed. Attempting to scurry back to the living room to find the rest of her clothes, he woke up.
“You up, finally.” He yelled out.
“Yea.” Brandy said in between coughing. “I need to go.”
“Back to your husband?” Dre emerged into the living room, shirtless with a pair of sweatpants. “He’s been calling you all night.”
“Wh-What are you talking about?”
“Your husband. Charles right? He’s been calling. Your home girl too.” He continued, walking into the kitchen. “I was gonna answer, but I ain’t wanna be disrespectful...”
As Dre rambled, Brandy dialed her husband. She needed to hear his voice in order to feel better.
“Where have you been!?! Why didn’t you answer your phone?!?! Sheena’s been calling me like crazy! Some dude, Larry left her at a restaurant and she needed to find you. How did you two get separated at the party? Did something happen?” Charles questioned.
Trying to process answers to the interrogation, she stayed silent.
“Brandy?!” He yelled. “Where are you?!”
As Charles yelled and Brandy stayed frozen, Dre’s rambling grew louder. She didn’t notice him joining her in the living room.
“I tried to put it in but you said head was enough. Your husband wouldn’t want you to fuck me. So you just let me eat you out real quick. Next time I guess. So you got a husband Brandy. That’s why we haven’t seen each other. Now I’m your side-piece huh?” He laughed.
Dre was so loud, Charles heard the entire spill while on the line with his wife. Brandy stayed frozen solid hoping that she’d wake up from the nightmare, at home in her own bed.
“Who is that Brandy?” Charles asked with his voice shaking. “What the fuck did you do?!?!”
“Dammit!” She screamed.
“Yea that’ the same thing I said after you dropped that news on me.” Dre chimed in.
Her husband hung up. Not wanting to hear another word. His question was answered courtesy of Dre along with her response.
“Dre I don’t care about all of that!” She yelled. “I need to get home. Dammit my daughter!”
“You have a daughter too!?!? Damn. We could have had play dates and shit with my kids.” He sat and watched her franticly put her clothes back on. “Aye I can take you back to your car in a few hours. I’m not ready yet.”
“I’ll call my own ride. Just leave me alone.” Brandy said, disgusted.
“You gotta get it together sweetie.” He shook his head. “Damn shame.”
Just as Brandy was about to start a yelling match with Dre, her phone rang.
“He-Hello?!”
“Brandy! Where in the hell are you?!?! I’ve been calling you all night!” Sheena said in a panic. “Your friend’s friend left me at the restaurant because he wasn’t getting any. I had to call a cab to take me to your house to get my damn car!”
“Why in the hell did you call Charles?” She replied in sassy tone.
“Um. Because I couldn’t find you! Larry said Dre wasn’t with you so I thought you went to your husband.” Sheena fired back. “You weren’t answering your phone! Where are you?!!?”
“Don’t worry about it. I gotta go.”
Hanging up on her friend, Brandy rushed to the door.
“Tell Charles to come get you!” Dre shouted.
“Fuck You!” She said slamming the door.
Walking towards the entrance of the apartment complex, Brandy reserved an Uber ride. An hour later, she was home. Charles’ car was parked in the driveway, which made her feel even worse. Thinking she had time to process everything and prepare to face him. However, time was up. She stood at the front door contemplating on what to say. Charles heard her and flung the door open before she could get the key in.
“So what happened last night?” He asked in a low tone.
“Where is Eve?” She asked with tears forming.
“Eve is asleep. I had to drag her back home in the middle of the night because I thought something happened to you.”
As her husband scolded, she walked through the front door wiping tears.
“I’m sorry I put you through that.”
“Answer me Brandy.” Charles demanded.
“I just need to see our daughter.”
“Answer me!” He yelled.
“Stop yelling you’re going to wake her up.”
Charles walked away with his hands on his head to calm down.
Brandy dropped everything making a loud clunk on the floor. The noise made him rush back to her as if it were a bell in the boxing ring.
“Answer me Brandy!?!” He shouted again. “Who was that man and what the fuck did you do!?!?”
Afraid and feeling like she had nothing else to lose, Brandy’s toxic pride stepped in, removing the remorseful tears.
“You see! This is all your fault! I told you I wanted to see you!” She shouted.
“Where’s your ring Brandy?” Charles asked in an eerie but calm voice.
“What?” She asked looking at her hand.
“Your ring. You know the symbol people wear to show others that they’re married. Where is it?”
“In my purse.” Brandy replied, picking it up from the floor.
“Brandy what the fuck did you do?” He asked bawling his fists.
“I went over to a friend’s house and fell asleep!”
“A friend huh. The same friend shouting in the background while I was on the phone with you? The same friend entertaining you so much that you couldn’t even answer a call from your husband!? Is this the same friend who went down on you while I’m in a fucking hotel room trying to figure out how we can fix our MARRIAGE?! I could KILL you right now Brandy!” He ranted.
She couldn’t speak. Her tears weren’t able to be held in any longer. Brandy pulled out her rings and slowly placed them onto her finger.
“You don’t need those.” Charles said calmly. “You didn’t want to wear them when you were with him.”
“Charles stop! Can we talk!?!” She cried out. “Please!”
“I’m sleeping in Eve’s room.”
Feeling sick all over again, Brandy ran into the bathroom. After spilling more guts and emotions, she finally took a look in the mirror. Not recognizing the woman staring back. The woman in the mirror was cold hearted, bitter, and hurting the man who loved her more than anything.
“What in the hell is wrong with me?” She shook her head.
Memories of the evening of sin started to come back. The drinks, the oral sex performed by Dre, and the conversations. Brandy wiped her face with a warm towel; getting the idea to shower off the rest of the shame.
Roughly scrubbing her body, she tried to rid the leftovers of liquor coming through her pours and memories with Dre. Tears flowed heavily as the shower pellets blended in. Letting out a huge cry, Brandy sulked in the corner of the tub, praying that Charles would come to her rescue.
“How could I have done this? Why did I do this to my husband?!?” She said through the tears.
Charles heard the crying and self-talk over the running water; wanting to come to the aid of his wife. Instead, he stayed with the innocence of Eve. A baby girl created from the love he thought he had with Brandy. Any other time he would have rushed in, but the cause of her tears were from her own doing.
After the shameful shower, Brandy laid down in bed. Hopes of Charles talking to her shattered, and sickness still taking over her stomach. Sleeping everything off was the only solution.
Charles didn’t get any rest. Too busy watching Eve, and shedding tears of his own. Pain took over as he packed. He’d gone beyond his limit in dealing with Brandy’s moods, harsh words, and negligence. It wounded him to stay with a woman who was obviously too hurt by the past to allow real love to come in.
In the process of packing, he watched Brandy sleep with uneasiness. The sense of her regret softened his pain a little, yet that wasn’t enough to stop him from leaving. Allowing another man to “snack” on HIS treasure turned his heart into broken glass that could NOT be glued back together with an “I’m sorry” or an explanation.
As the afternoon sun fell from its peak, Brandy awakened to Charles feeding Eve at the kitchen table.
“I can take over if you want babe.” She said, breaking the ice.
“Cool. I need to get ready to go anyway.” He replied.
“Go where?”
“Brandy I can’t take this. I’m leaving.” Charles said in a sad tone.
“Leaving?!?” She pouted. “You’re going to leave me?”
“Do you realize what you have done?” He asked astonished. “I’ve tried. One day of us needing space and you do some dumb shit like this? I would have never cheated on you. I know I had things to work on like balancing Monica’s drama with our life, but I KNOW I’ve showed improvement as soon as we got married and had our daughter.”
“I can’t put into words what’s wrong with me.” Brandy mumbled, shaking her head.
“I got the job by the way.” Charles smirked.
“Really baby! Congrats! Let’s go out to eat as a family to celebrate. Then we can come home and talk.” She suggested.
“You still smell like liquor.” He snarled. “Even if I was up to it I wouldn’t go anywhere with you.”
Brandy grabbed Eve out of the high chair. Hoping that by seeing her with his daughter would unstiffen his heart; reminding him of what they shared.
“You need more space? Ok I can give you that.” She rambled. “Whatever you need I’ll give it to you.”
“All I wanted to do was love you. But you blocked me in every way. Things got better here and there, but I feel like it’s always going to be like this. I can’t take it and I can’t take the fact that you cheated on me.” Charles said, throwing a gym bag over his shoulder.
“So you’re just going to leave us?” She cried burping their baby. “Well fine then. I can do this by myself.”
“NO you’re NOT going to do this by yourself. I’ll still be here for our daughter. But I can’t be with you. You don’t want me to love you. Can’t you see that?” He moved in closer and gave Eve a kiss. “Daddy loves you Eve.”
“So what now?” Brandy asked.
“I’m going to be a good father to our daughter. I’m going to move on. I don’t know what you’re going to do but its best that you heal whatever it is broken inside to be there for our child. She needs you.” He lectured, then headed towards the door.
She felt highly insulted by his suggestion; only because it was true.
“Whatever Charles. Look, just go.” Brandy snapped, following him.
As he reached the door with luggage sitting near his feet, her anger grew. Not knowing what else to do, she pushed him as he leaned down to stuff a jacket into the gym bag.
Charles’ quick temper finally showed up, gripping Brandy’s hand.
“Don’t do that. I’ve NEVER put my hands on you. And we are NOT going to do this in front of our child. Goodbye Brandy.” He released her hand. “Maybe we rushed things. I probably should have given us more time. But whatever I did, it was with the intention on loving, supporting, and taking care of you. I wanted to build a life with you Brandy.”
The pain in Charles’ eyes slowly burned a hole in her heart. The entire time, Brandy was so afraid that he was going to turn into her past lover. Instead, SHE became what she was afraid of receiving.
He walked out the door and in a way, out of Brandy’s life. She knew, at that moment, it was best to let him go. Even if he wanted to stay, she knew it wouldn’t be a good idea for them to stay together, being fully aware of the type of woman she had turned into.
The awful things done to her husband, should have been done to Jay. The man who implanted that pain rooted deep down within. That pain made her subconscious vindictive, and making her the wrong woman for a good man like Charles.
Brandy moved on from Jay but mentally and emotionally, she was still with her ex. In result of holding on to the past, she’d lost a man who loved her in the way her heart deserved. She broke her own damn heart and Charles’ too.
He walked out of that house regretting the conversation at the bar that sparked a relationship, marriage, another chance at parenthood, and despair.