Friend-Zoned (Friend-Zoned 1)

This morning Nat and I open up the store and a little past nine a flower arrangement delivery comes to the store.

I smile because I assume it’s for Lola from Trick. Things are heating up between them and I wish they’d just get together already. They’re smitten.

I sign for the delivery and Nat bounds over. I set the arrangement on the counter and we both take a good look at it. There are approximately eighteen perfectly white lilies surrounded by baby’s breath.

Good going, Trick!

That’s an expensive arrangement. At least two hundred dollars’ worth of lilies.

Nat and I look at each other and smile huge. She takes the card, looks over it then hands it to me.

I take in her frown and hard eyes. This is not going to be good.

Think about what I said. You can do better than him. I can give you everything you’ve ever dreamed of. Come see me. –O

Oh, for the love of all things holy!

They’re from bad guy Omarr. I don’t like the situation he’s putting me in. He’s coming between me and my friend. I hate that!

I told Nat what had happened and she was livid. I told her Ghost and Nik took care of me and she seemed slightly placated. I think she didn’t like to think about me being upset while everyone else was having a good time.

We look at each other a long time before she motions to the phone.

I sigh and walk over to the phone, dial the number and wait.

“Ghost? Yeah, I’m okay. Can you come over here please? Thanks. ”

Within a minute Ghost is at the store with a garbage bag in hand. He doesn’t greet us, just walks straight over to the beautiful arrangement and shoves it roughly into the garbage bag. Then he walks over to me and says in a kind voice, “Good girl. ” Then he leaves, garbage bag in tow.

***

“I’m going to kill that motherfucker!” I roar.

Max puts a hand on my shoulder and quietly replies “Calm down, bro. You know Tina, he isn’t gonna take her away from us. No way. We’re family. ”

Omarr is a dead man.

First, he comes into my club knowing he isn’t meant to be there. Second, he comes on to my girl.

…not that she knows she’s my girl. But, anyway…

Third, tries to treat my girl like a free rein whore. And, lastly, sends her expensive flowers with promises when he really just wants to fuck her and leave her broken as a message to me.

The only thing Omarr wants is for me to suffer. He blames me for his brother’s death. This all goes way back to when I was just a teenager. Dad had just died and I was given a choice to join Chaos.

Chaos are a Russian-American gang. My dad was what you could call the vice president of the gang. They were criminals but my dad was a good man. I joined them and to my complete disapproval, so did Ghost and Max. We we’re just kids doing the hard lifting for old men. When I say hard lifting, I mean we were enforcers. We would go out and collect drug money, debt money, and bribes. They would give us a list and we would collect. By any means necessary. Mom was devastated when she found out. She didn’t want that life for us. My dad was trying to get out when he died.

Omarr is a part of the Sixes. Most of them went to school with me and we were all cool til Marcus died.

Marcus was Omarr’s older brother. He broke into our family home to steal something Chaos related from my dad’s office. My dad shot him and he died in hospital later that night. My dad was going to go to jail. I had to do something. Just as the officers asked who fired the first shot, I spoke up and said, “I did. ”

I was just about to turn sixteen. I got a suspended sentence. I would do it again in a heartbeat. Anything for my dad.

Ghost, Max, and Trick all know this. Ghost and Max were there. I told Trick some years later.

Omarr is out for revenge. His uncle has forbidden any retaliation on me.

Uncle Jerm leads the sixes. The first time we met he questioned me about Marcus’ death. I know he knows I didn’t kill Marcus. I was flustered and defensive. I left too many questions unanswered because I simply didn’t know the answers to them. This is why Uncle Jerm has forbidden any vengeance. He knows I didn’t do it. But I confessed. I’ve made my bed, now I have to lie in it.