Lara Dropping Shantel off and getting back to Orion’s place didn’t take long. When we walked through the front door, Crown had already cleaned up most of everything. I looked around inside and outside to see if I could help, but it seems like I wasn't needed. “Wow, Crown, good job. It seems like I didn’t need to come back to help clean,” I said while turning in a circle on the balls of my feet, stopping as I faced him. “There wasn’t much too clean. But since you’re back, we can just chill and catch up” he said. “It’s late don’t you need work in a few hours,” I asked. It’s around 2 in the morning, so shouldn’t that mean both of them should be sleeping now. “I took off just in case I got a hangover,” he said with a chuckle. “Come on, sit,” Orion said then sat on the couch. I looked at Orion, walked over and sat next to him, while Crown sat on the loveseat. “So, do you guys do this often,” I asked them. “Do what,” Orion replied. “Have people over like this,” I replied. Orion and Crown lo
Over the past few weeks, things at work were ok. Nothing good. Nothing bad. Working is fun but definitely not highlighted in my life. It’s just a skill that I can do and not a big deal. Orion and I have been getting to know each other too. We would go out on dates, talk on the phone, text each other, or even relax at his place or mine. In my twenties, I would have done the deed with him already. Now, turning 40 in 2 years, I abstain. Not that I don’t want to be with Orion, it’s just that the older I get sex isn’t that great. I’ve fallen asleep one time, another time I got bored because it’s the same thing over and over again, and then there was one I called out a name that was a character of a book I was reading at that time. I had to laugh at myself for that one, definitely no forgetting that experience. That’s quite funny now that I look back. Majority of the time, I had to get myself off after he got off. I swear some guys have no idea. With that thought I had to laugh
Waking up with Lara in my arms was an amazing feeling. She’s curled close to my right side with her right knee resting on my lower abdomen. Not wanting to disturb her, I take myself back to last night. Last night was very unexpected. I didn’t expect to meet her two sons and their friends. I’m not against meeting new people, nor do I get uncomfortable like Lara. Even though I haven’t been with Lara long, I was hoping she and I would progress in the direction of meeting family. I wonder what part Sean has in her life because it looked like there is something more to their friendship. Whatever it may be, I will be in Lara’s life for as long as she allows me to be in it. A thought is teetering on the edges of my mind, but I can’t seem to grasp it. Something about being lonely or alone. Oh, yes, the first night, Lara said she was lonely, or something along that idea. I can understand now that I saw why she may feel lonely. She only gets to see her sons when they have time, but
My body didn’t hurt much when I went into work that night, so I was relieved. The good part is that I worked in the ER for tonight. It wasn’t busy, which is suprising since it's a friday night, so I just sat there waiting for rounds to start. “Hey Lara” I heard someone say. I looked up from the game I was playing on my phone cause let’s face it, it’s boring now, and I need something to keep me busy, or I will fall asleep. I see Dr. Cameron walking up to me with a big smile on his face. “Hey Doc” I greeted him. “How you doing? It’s been a while” he asks. “It has been a while. Everything is ok. Nothing to complain about. What about you” I respond. “My shift is ending soon. Let’s go eat after” he says to me. “Sure. Who else is coming” I respond because it’s best if there is more than just us. “Just us” he says. My right eyebrow goes up on my forehead. Are you for real, I thought. “Huh” I say. “Just us. That’s ok, right” he asks. Is it ok, I thought. I don’t want to give him the wron
Orion The guys wanted to get in some overtime since we have been slammed during the week. I agreed since the volume is more than normal. When the guys asked if they could do this, I said why not, but not a full day. It's Saturday and we'll close at 2pm. I checked my phone before I started to get ready. There was a bunch of messages asking to go clubbing. I rolled my eyes and thought "it's been a long time since I've been clubbing, there's no need for that now." I deleted those messages because I didn’t care much for the sender. I’m 35 with a career, granted I’m not the riches guy in the world, but I feel like I’m pass the point in my life when staying at home isn’t such a bad idea. As the owner of an auto repair shop, I’d rather just go home to wind down after a long day at work. Or maybe have a beer or two with Crown at a bar or at home. When I got to the bottom of the new messages, I notice that Lara texted me. TEXT Lara: Good morning, I hope you had a good night’s sl
My phone started to ring again. The name on the screen read Orion. I don’t feel like talking to him because of the phone call I received earlier. There is nothing for us to talk about. He can do whatever he wants to do. Then, why do I feel this pain in my chest. It’s not like Orion and I committed to each other, but I still have a pain in my heart. Absentmindedly, I rubbed my heart. When did I start to like Orion that I have a pain in my heart after learning who he was with today? There must be a misunderstanding. I listened to his voicemail again. I looked at the time when he called, then I looked at the time of the other phone call. The timing of the two calls were too close together. This feeling sucks. At this age and experience, why do I still feel pain like this, but I am trying hard to be in control. The pain cannot take control of me. Obviously, I have experience in this, I thought to myself chuckling a bit. My hands start to shake because the mix of feeli
Orion It’s already 11pm. Lara must be at work by now, so I decided to text her. However, what was I going to text her. She hasn’t gotten back to me since this afternoon. I know I shouldn’t be worried, but I am, though I don’t want to suffocate her. My fingers started to text something, but deleted it. They would start again, then, deleted that one too. My thoughts going crazy about what to write, so I tried again and then deleted it. After more thought, I sent her a voice message. Message: Hey Lara, I’m heading to bed. Text or call me when you have time. It doesn’t matter what you say. Ok, goodnight. Then, I sent the message. “So, what happened” Crown asked me. Ahhhh, I sighed loud. This is so frustrating, not hearing from her all day. What am I suppose to do? My head shook back and forth. “I don’t know man. I tried text and calls. She ain't getting back to me” I answered. I’m feeling at a lost. "Am I overthinking it," I said out loud. She might need a break
“Hello” I heard a deep voice say. The voice was familiar, but I couldn’t quite place it. “Hello, Lara” the deep voice said again. “Crown” I asked. He and I don’t talk much, so it takes me a while to recognize his voice. Why is he picking up Orion’s phone, I thought. “Yeah, it’s me” he replied. “Where’s Orion? Is everything ok,” I asked felling a little concerned. “He’s here. He drank to much last night and is sleeping in” Crown notified me. “What? Why? What happened,” I asked. Why would Orion drink to much that he had to sleep in? “The only thing that I know is he couldn’t get in contact with you all yesterday, so he drank. A lot,” Crown said accusatory. “I…” I started to say but then what. When I heard that he was with Hana for lunch I…. Well, I don’t know. Was I hurt? Was I mad? Did I care? Did I not care? “Lara, if you are just playing with him, then it’s best that you leave him alone,” Crown said. It was a bit cruel for Crown to jump to conclusions that I am playing with Orio
“It looks like we both don’t have an appetite,” I said. “Hmm,” Crown responded back to me. “Stop stalling,” I said perturbed. Crown breathed in and out deeply. “Marcus was in prison for killing his sister,” he said in a low voice. “I gathered that much on my own,” I replied dryly. “He was pretty young. 15 years old. His sentence was harsh. First degree murder,” Crown started to say but I cut him off. “No, second degree murder,” I said. “His report says first degree murder,” he replied. “Then how does a 15-year-old go to prison thinking he was charged with second degree murder,” I asked. Crown only stared at me. Blink. Blink, blink his eyes went. “Dude, what’s up,” I asked. “You’re telling me Marcus thinks he went to prison for second degree murder for killing his sister,” he asked me. “That’s what he said,” I told him. “What brought up you asking about Marcus,” he asked. “Marcus asked what I would do if I saw someone I thought was dead. From what Marcus had mentioned
Crown When I left Orion and Lara, I drove straight to my house. Before I could twist the knob, the door flew open. “Dude, did you get laid last night,” was the question that came flying my way from a voice that needed to mind his own business. However, said voice, didn’t stop there but followed up with, “yeah, yeah, you did. Why else would you be out all night.” I shook my head side to side. “Report,” I said tersely and continued to walk into the house. “You no fun,” David mumbled, or in other words, annoying little brat. “Report” I repeated with a sign. “Fine. Lara still doesn’t know. Mr. Green is still investigating. The reason why he is looking into you and Orion is unknown,” David said. “He’s looking into Orion too,” I asked. “Yeah, but Orion overall has had a normal life so,” he said as he trailed off and shrugged his shoulders. “You, on the other hand, he is looking into more. Actually, he is really, really digging now. However, he won’t find anything we do
Lara “I’m so glad this night is over,” Dani said from behind me. Dani, Maria, Shan, Nelly, and I were in the elevator itching to leave this place. Our shift is over, and we want to get out of here. Tonight, was weird like there was a full moon. I mean, it’s like all the crazies came out tonight. All of us agreed with whatever noise we could muster. Bing! The elevator door opened, and we all walked briskly to the exit. The ladies knew I was getting picked up, so they walked me out of the main entrance first. Nosy ladies, I thought. “Oh my goodness,” I heard Nelly say. “Damn” Maria said. “It’s so not fair,” Dani said. The thing is they said it all at the same time and I was confused, while Shan was laughing. I looked at her with my right eyebrow lifted. Shan moved her head in a certain direction. My eyes followed her movement and then I saw them. The two of them were leaning against the car, legs crossed at the ankles, arms folded across their chests. A sigh slipped
Mr. Green When I arrived at the restaurant, I walked directly to the private room where Taryn was waiting. The hostess saw me approaching and went to open the door for me. “Would you like to order anything,” she said as I entered the room. “No,” I replied. There are 3 main hostess that work the private rooms. They are like furniture. These hostesses do not move to any other part of the restaurant. They oversee everything that goes on in the private rooms, but if there is any trouble security will come and intervene, however, they are very discrete. “Very well, shall I come back later,” she asked. I looked at her up and down appreciating her beauty, which is a requirement for hostess. Man or woman, only beauty is allowed to work the private rooms. “No need. I’ll call if I need anything,” I replied and offered a smile. “Very well,” she said with a smile that was very seductive, then she turned and walked out making her hips sway side to side with every step until the doo
Mr. Green “Sir, the information I found seems normal. Nothing threatening or weird,” Taryn reported. I have a private office here in the hospital. It has never been used until now. “Hmm. What do you think of this report,” I asked Taryn. “They know how to keep clean. No incidents at all,” he answered. “Hmm,” was all I could respond with. After a few moments I said, “that’s all for now.” “Yes, sir,” Taryn said as he turned and walked out of the office. As I sat here, my mind drifted back to the beginning. Life was simple, but I was full of ambition. I wanted to leave a legacy for my family to want for nothing. Now that I’m here, grass is not always greener. The more wealth you have, the deeper you slip into the cesspit of snakes trying to take everything away from you. You are constantly on eggshells, calculating every move, every word, and every appearance. The more I gained, the more suspicious I became of everyone. My trusted circle got smaller and smaller. Taryn
Orion The ring of a phone sounded in the silent room. “Hey,” I heard Crown say. Crown was chilling on the couch. I was lounging on the single sofa seat. “When,” Crown spoke into the phone. He sounded a bit alarmed. “Show me,” he said, then he put his Bluetooth earpiece over his ear and looked at his phone. “Where is she now,” he said while looking at his screen. Crown looked up at me and waved me over. A bit of concern came over me, so I went over to sit next to him. My eyes went to his cell phone screen, and I saw Lara. My eyebrows lifted on my forehead, and I glanced at Crown. Then, the feed changed to another area within the hospital. There seems to be an altercation. A man had a pole or rod and was swinging it around like a bat. It looks like the man that was swinging that thing around made contact with a few people because the other people were holding different places of their body as if in pain. Then, I saw in the corner of the screen something moving. “What
Lara “You guys are spoiling me. I'll see you in the morning, “I said to Orion and Crown as I was getting out of the car by the emergency room. “We’ll be here waiting,” Orion said. Crown who was sitting in back also got out. He smiled at me, and I gave him a hug. I don’t know why I did that, but I did. Then he got into the passenger seat, and I closed the car door. My hand lifted to give a little wave to both of them, then I turned to walk into the hospital. They both have been treating me like we've known each other for a long time. Well, I guess we have, but we haven't spent time together. “Are you a threesome now,” I heard from behind me but I didn't turn around. The giggles that followed the voice was very mischievous, so I started to giggle too. A woman’s arm linked with mine as I was walking. “Well, that would be a nice idea. Wouldn't it,” I replied. Then, I stopped walking, turned my head to look at Shan. “I can't believe I just said that,” I mused with a shocked
Lara Waking up was a chore. I really didn’t want to wake up but did it anyways. Life seemed pleasant at the moment. So, not wanting to get up isn’t due to laziness or no motivation. It’s because of Orion and Crown. I’m happy that they stayed until I fell asleep. Orion would have checked the house before he left, so I’m not concerned. A feeling of being safe came over me. I’ve been single for such a long time; I notice the little things. It’s been a while since I felt good upon waking up. Actually, I can’t remember the last time I felt good when waking up. I got out of bed, and then my ears perked up. There were voices in my house. It startled me because no one should be in my house. As I slowly calmed myself down, cause let’s face it, I literally went from ok to WTH in .5 seconds. The voices were registering in my mind. They were familiar. Orion and Crown. I smiled and walked out of the room to go see them. The voices got louder as I walked into the kitchen and there
Crown As I was driving to my place, my thoughts were thinking about all the weird stuff that has been happening. Who’s the target? It could be Orion. He lives here and all the coincidences surround him. But then, they could be using him to get to me. Then, there’s Lara. She is a bit mysterious. I didn’t do any background check on her because... That thought can be left hanging cause I really don’t want to think about that. I know she has sons in the service, I continued thinking. Maybe they are the target and Lara is the bait. I hope that isn’t the case. Then, the doctor who is interested in Lara. Is he really interested in her, or just playing a game? I’ll look more into him, eventually. Hana. She also seems to be the center of all the coincidences. Why? Why did she come back into Orion’s life? Why now? My place wasn’t that far away from Lara’s. So, getting to her isn’t a problem. Nate was not very smart to let this one go. Was she like this before or did she