Page 9 of Mr. Calloway

Watching him interact with his kids was always a beautiful thing to see. Father’s Day was approaching, and I wanted to make the day as special as possible for him. June had come a long way, and it was something I never thought I would see. When I was pregnant, him at least making it to the birth was something I prayed for every night. Now, it was me praying that our family remained healthy. In the back of my mind, I wondered if the cancer would ever come back or if my boys might have it someday, too.

My phone buzzed, alerting me that it was time to leave. For the last month or so, I had been preparing to open my practice. There were a few more final touches I needed to put on the place before I was fully open to take clients.

When I told June I wanted to start my own practice in the Cove, he was so supportive. So much so that when we got back from our vacation, he did what he did best: make shit happen. My hope was to get clients who were much like the people I was around daily. Although we seemed fine, deep down, there were deep-rooted issues that most people who looked like us never talked about. I wanted to be the cause of change and maybe save someone’s life in my own way.

June’s Entry

Place: Virginia

Year: 2025

Time: 10:50 pm

Zaria,

Since you're in the bathroom getting ready, I figured I’d use this time to get a letter in. North Carolina felt like a small change. Preach doing the honor and baptizing me felt like a bit of my soul was free, but to be honest, though, a part of me still feels caged. I don’t know how to describe it, but only a part of me was left at that waterfall. The sad thing is, I don’t know which part.

I’m afraid, Z. I’m fucking terrified that I’m not going to make it. Harvey told me my birthday had already come and gone, but when I woke up this morning, I thought it was only days away. Why is it that when I finally feel something, something real, I seem to suffer more? You know, when you asked to go out tonight, I wasn’t feeling it. I would have much rather been laid up, but to know that you would miss out on a memory to add to your book, just in case, you know, God wanted to be selfish, I couldn’t do it.

Oftentimes, I think about what shit would look like for us. You know, raising our kid and shit. I could see it, the house, the plants, the disastrous gatherings, ’cause one thing about my niggas, shit is always going to be a show. I think about those things often, hoping it’ll be me and you growing old together.

Fuck! Life isn’t fair, and if I somehow come out of this shit, Z, I know this bad feeling I have isn’t the end. I feel it. I know traveling to Toussaint isn’t a big deal to everyone else, but to me it is. I can’t tell you that it’ll be worth it, but what I can tell you is that I will make sure you’re straight. I’m saying all that to say, I’m going to marry you. I put that shit on my life. By the time you come across this letter, you will have a nice ring sitting on your finger as you’re reading this. If I have to marryyou in the process of dying, then so fucking be it, but you will be Mrs. Calloway. I don’t know if this is considered foreshadowing or whatever they call it, but it’s my truth.

Alright, you’re coming out of the bathroom. As always. I love you from here to Calloverse.

Signed,

Mr. Fucking Calloway

“I’m going to miss you,”Alyse whined.

I leaned over and hugged her. “I’m going to miss you too. All of you, but I’ll be back. I think I need this,” I told the girls.

Alyse, Paige, Phoebe, Morgan, and I decided to have one last girls’ day at my apartment. It was nice to have Phoebe here since she and Streets decided to be a thing. Phoebe sipped on her drink as she looked at me curiously.

“So, this trip. Are you going with a class or what?”

“Well, according to Dean Cecily, it’s?—”

Paige chimed in. “You mean Dean Mercier. Y’all know he’s back.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yes, and since he’s been back, he has been working my ass to death in that office. I know he hates me because of Chevy, and that’s the thing. I need to see what it's like outside the Zoo.”

Paige grinned. “I reported his ass. There is nothing like an alumnus reporting the dean for his behavior.”

I laughed. “You think they’re going to fire him?” I asked.

She shrugged. “I don’t know, but they need to know that he’s not the right person for that position.”

She was right, and I hoped like hell her complaining worked. I glanced over at Phoebe, who stared at me, waiting for her question to be answered.

“Sorry, Phoebe. We got all caught up in the Clark thing. But to answer your question, I’m going with a group of students from all over. This abroad trip is filled with other artistic people like me, and I’m so fucking excited.”

Morgan’s head turned slightly. “Bitch, wait! You’re saying that like you want to get away on purpose. You just got engaged, though. What does that mean for you and Dio?”

My body shrank. It wasn’t that I didn’t want my man because I did. I loved him, but since leaving New York, it’d been all about him, never about me. Besides, with Chevy’s issue with Clark and my issue with my mother, I just needed a break.

Alyse touched my leg. “You don’t have to explain. I get it. All of us are wrapped up in the Zoo and kind of forget about ourselves. You go out there and have a blast. We’ll be right here when you get back.”