Chapter Twenty-three
Marcus moped around Sunday after church as he waited for a return call from Gracie. It never came. When he became suspicious enough to consider going to her apartment, he voted against it. He had never been one to crowd anyone who didn’t want to be crowded.
He thought things were different with him and Gracie this time around. They were growing in their newfound friendship with several dates and long conversations to show for it. Even though he knew some things about Gracie’s private life, Marcus left those thoughts way in the back of his mind.
Gracie’s conversations had always been pleasing to him. He didn’t know if he had done the right thing by hinting at her private life, but he felt that he had a right to know. That is, if they were going to be involved. Because of her reaction to the question, Marcus had a great deal of worry.
HIV wasn’t something one could take lightly. On one hand, he was glad she didn’t return any of his calls because he needed time to think about whether the rumor was true. On the other, he wanted to be a friend no matter what the circumstances were.
In his heart, Gracie was always number one. Their time apart had done nothing to make him feel different. Even when she had given him his walking papers and told him that she couldn’t do it any longer, all he asked was for her to keep an open spot in her heart for him. By the looks of it, she had.
Whether she knew it or not, Gracie meant a great deal to him. In their earlier years, she had loved him like a woman should love a man, even when the man still clung to his childish ways. Not one time did she change for him, or ask him to change for her, and that is exactly what Marcus admired about her. If she said that she wasn’t going to do something, she didn’t. If she said she would do something, she did it. Gracie was the type of woman who didn’t sit around waiting for a man to change. She moved on if he wasn’t ready. However, she wasn’t too stiff against giving one a second chance once he matured.
Gracie had also given him the little knowledge he had about spirituality. Not religion, but understanding and having a relationship with God. Before Gracie, Marcus only prayed before he ate his meals and that was because he caught on from his early school years. Initially, he had followed Gracie in her pursuit of God because he liked her. But then the whole spirituality life became interesting to him. He gave in to God and didn’t give up after he and Gracie broke up.
By Sunday evening, Marcus had every intention to grab his coat and head over to her apartment. Only he was stopped by Michelle in his doorway.
“Oh!” Michelle yelled. She threw her hand up to her chest. “You scared me. I was just about to ring the doorbell. Are you going out somewhere?”
“What are you doing here, Michelle? Was I expecting you?” he asked sarcastically.
Marcus stared hard at Michelle, angry that she would just show up without being invited. It made him second guess his trip to Gracie’s. He leaned against the door with no intention of welcoming her in.
“No silly. You weren’t, but I just had some news that I wanted to share with you and was sure I could help you out.” She batted her eyes under her permanent makeup-filled eyebrows.
With a far off look on his face, Marcus said, “Help me out? What are you talking about?”
“Well, can I come in and talk to you, or are you in a big hurry?”
Marcus stepped back, and hesitantly let Michelle in. He would let her have her say, and then he would be on his way. He followed Michelle into the living room and watched her take a seat. He remained standing.
“So what’s up, Michelle?” he asked.
“Okay,” she answered, sighing. “Just so you’re not kept waiting, you know the rumor I told you about, regarding Dillian and Gracie?”
Marcus rolled his eye and crossed his arms over his chest. “Yes, I know,” he replied, irritated.
“Well, it has been confirmed and I have paperwork that proves that Dillian is in the hospital because of complications with HIV. My sources are telling me that he is pretty much in denial and won’t take his meds. I’m here because I’m sure you’re going to want to press charges against Gracie for not letting you in on her little sickness. Most definitely, if the woman is sleeping around and possibly infecting people, it’s against the law and on your behalf ...”
Marcus threw his hand up, stopping Michelle in mid-sentence. For the life of him, he could not understand Michelle. Was she so hard up to win him over that she stooped to conjuring up private information on a person just so she could get next to him? Not flattered at all, the more she talked, the hotter he became under his collar. He wanted nothing more than to grab Michelle by the arm and toss her out of his apartment, but he never disrespected ladies. Even if he wanted to, he wouldn’t be bold enough to do it now.
Michelle stood with well-practiced concern in her eyes. She reached out to comfort Marcus. She thought this had to be a painful and upsetting time for him. Michelle was rudely awakened from her demented dream. She opened her arms, thinking Marcus would come into them, but he pushed his arms out and backed away from her.
“Whoa! Michelle? Are you crazy or something? I mean who does this type of stuff? If Gracie knew of any sort of thing,” he said, “believe me, she would have told me. There is no way she would intentionally do anything to harm me. I’m tired of hearing your headline gossip. You have to go!”
“Gossip? How do you know she’s not lying?” Michelle tilted her head. “Maybe she’s still bitter over the relationship you guys had years ago.” Michelle noticed Marcus’s defensive stance and tried to ease toward him. “Look, Marcus, I’m just trying to look out for your well-being. I mean, I don’t want anything to happen to you. Why can’t I be concerned about you?” she asked as she allowed their bodies to meet.
Michelle managed briefly to slip her arms around Marcus’s neck. He took her hands and removed them once again. He picked up her bag, held her by the elbow, and escorted her out the front door. She stood staring at him, confusion, anger, and embarrassment etched into her face.
“Let this be the last time you try to come between me and Gracie,” Marcus said in the strongest voice he could find while pushing her bag into her arms. “Just for the record, no matter what Gracie is going through, I’m going to be there for her. You should find you some place to be.”
Marcus slammed the door and walked back into the living room, where he plopped down onto the sofa. The documents Michelle had brought along with her were on the coffee table. He reached for it and flipped through the pages. It seemed to be legitimate. For a second, a wave of nausea ran through Marcus. Nausea from Michelle’s cruelty to investigate something so private in a person’s life. The nausea was also about Gracie and the possibility that she too could be infected.
The whole episode left Marcus drained. He thought about what he had told Michelle, that he would be there for Gracie through her trials, but he didn’t even have a second to think things through. No doubt he would be there for her, if she allowed him. But he wondered if it would be a good idea to go forward with an intimate relationship. So many questions were in his mind that they gave him an instant headache. He couldn’t understand why God had allowed Gracie to resurface in his life and then let it all be for naught.
All the questions that crowded in Marcus’s head needed answers. He jumped to his feet without giving himself enough time to change his mind and grabbed his coat. He prayed that he wasn’t too late for Sunday evening’s service at his church. Church was the best place for him.