ZZ
My daughter isn’t even twenty-one yet, and she has fucking cancer; cancer doesn’t discriminate when it comes to its victims. I don’t know how any parent gets through their child being sick, but I’m about to find out.
My baby is being stronger than I am about the entire thing.
My little girl who loves drama, who loves to stir shit up for fun; she’s the calm one.
I don’t fucking like it.
It worries me even more.
The sun has only been up for an hour, and I’ve already called a family meeting in Braxxon’s living room.
The smell of coffee radiates throughout the room.
Everyone is silent while I sit next to my daughter, my daughter who looks more tired than she should for her age.
I’m fucking helpless.
Shit. There’s no easy way to break the news to everyone who loves my baby girl. My best friend. My fucking life. “Tea has uterine cancer. Stage 1.”
The intake of all the breaths being taken around the room chokes a sob out of my quiet daughter, and I wrap an arm around her.
“Next step,” Braxxon speaks up, and I force my eyes to move from my daughter to his. “Hysterectomy. Waiting on insurance.”
“Fuck that. Give me the—” he’s interrupted by Tea holding up a folder. She knows her godfather well and came prepared.
Braxxon drops down in front of my daughter while his fingers grasp the folder. “You’re all that matters right now, yeah?”
“Okay,” she whispers as he squeezes her right knee and stands.
“Winter,” Braxxon says while he moves to the kitchen.
“I’m on it,” she answers while she wipes tears from her eyes, already knowing what she has to do. “Piper, can you listen for my daughter while I’m on the phone?”
“Of course.” Piper chokes out.
My eyes cut over to my mom who has her hands covering her mouth, her head shaking back in forth in disbelief.
I lean down and whisper, “Gramma probably needs to hold you right now, baby.” It takes every ounce of strength I have to remove the hold I have on my daughter and to stand. I walk over to my mom, stand her up and guide her over to sit next to Tea. My daughter lets out a loud sob and turns her head into her gramma’s shoulders. My mom wraps her in a tight cocoon.
Fuck.
I use the backs of my hands to wipe my eyes.
Where the fuck is Shadow?
I gaze around the room and don’t find him until my eyes hit the glass windows. I can’t stop my sharp inhale when I finally spot him sitting at the edge of the pool; his boots beside him, his pants rolled up, his sunglasses on top of his head, his eyes stuck on the motionless water.
I turn my attention back to my daughter because I know she heard the sound I made when I spotted him.
Tea’s already pulled away from my mom and standing up to go to him.
I go to speak but think better of it.
The sliding glass door makes zero sound when she glides a part of it open and steps out.
The whispers begin, but I don’t pay any attention to them. I watch my daughter make her way over to Shadow, who is so deep in thought he, doesn’t feel or hear her presence.
“Don’t do it, baby,” I whisper to myself. “Fuck.” I hiss when his body hits the water. Shadow moves slowly when he comes up from underneath the water and when he sees it was Tea who shoved him in, his eyes close and his shoulders shake. A shake I’ve grown familiar with over the last twelve hours. Tea kicks her sandals off and walks down the steps into the pool.
“That waters cold, she’s going to get sick,” my mom hiccups.
“She’s already sick, ma.” I choke out as Shadow wraps his arms so tight around my daughter I can see his fingers digging into her body from where I stand.
I turn away and wipe more tears from my eyes. “Shit.”
“She’s gonna be okay, brother,” Smokey says giving me a brotherly pat on the back. “You’ll see.”
She has to be.
I won’t accept anything else.
“No more fuckin’ secrets in our family,” Braxxon growls from the kitchen as he dials another number. “No more.”
To be continued in Schooling Me releasing Sunday, October 28th