ELLA
Two hours earlier…
I was done scouting locations, having taken tons of pictures with my phone. I was sure to evade the areas Boogie told me to avoid but did venture into his old hood to get him one of those St. Paul sandwiches he was always raving about and a bag of Red Hot corn chips. It had been a good day despite my phone constantly ringing like I was working at a call center. I didn’t silence it in case Boogie called me and I couldn’t block my family. So I just ignored the calls, even the ones from my agent. Partnership offers were pouring in, but I wasn’t in a rush to accept any of them. I liked the slower pace my life had settled into.
I couldn’t wait to get back home to my man. I loved me some him for real, but the best part was that he loved him some me for real.
I was making one last stop at a gas station to fill up my tank in what would be deemed a good part of town when it happened.
First, I could feel eyes on me. I initially thought I was imagining it, but when I looked up, there actually was a guy staring at me. He was a couple stalls over, pumping gas. His glare was stapled to me, making my skin crawl. So, I shifted my gaze back to my pump and chided myself for taking my sunglasses off. My tank wasn’t full, but something told me to stop the pump and leave. I was replacing the nozzle on its hook/hanger thing when a voice startled me due to its proximity to me. Snapping my head around, I came face to face with the guy who’d been staring at me. I mean, he was literally in my personal space.
Before I could think through what was going on, he spoke. “I was with her for eternity. Never expected her to turn on me. Gave my heart to a straight gangster but I still can’t find it in me to hate her!” He was quoting lyrics from one of Jackson’s songs, one written and recorded before we got together.
“On One for life!” he added.
I didn’t notice the cup he was holding until he’d lifted it and dashed its contents in my face, making me yelp.
Then he yelled, “Fucking bitch!” as I gasped for air, my eyes burning from what I now recognized as liquor.
As he headed back to his vehicle, I could hear laughter, male laughter, coming from…somewhere. I didn’t take the time to figure out who or where they were as I fumbled with the door handle, climbing into my vehicle and locking the doors. I should’ve called someone—the police? Armand, maybe? But I wasn’t thinking clearly. I was in fight or flight mode, and I wasn’t about to try to fight a man. My hand shook as I pushed the button to start my engine. My eyes still stung as I pulled away from the gas station. Then the tears started falling, further blurring my vision. I was so damn scared and disoriented that I’m not even sure how I ended up hitting that pole, but I did.