Page 14 of Delirium 2

The stench in the apartment was almost unbearable. They were living in horrible conditions. I’d never been a snitch but something in my spirit told me to call CPS. I wouldn’t though. I just… My God I felt bad for them.

On our way to the bedroom, we passed by the bathroom. The carpet was drenched. My shoes were squishy and wet and off top I prayed like hell the toilet hadn’t flooded, and I wasn’t stepping in sewage water. I had on Crocs, which meant my socks were wet too. I cringed, with a frown, ready to get the hell out of there.

“What did you make, Layla?” I asked, calling LaLa by her full name.

“This!” She yelled when we got into the cluttered room. Much like the rest of the apartment, there was shit all over the place. How did they sleep in here? There was only one bed and that was crowded with clothes, shoes, and trash too.

“Look, look!” LaLa yelled, pulling my attention away from the mess.

I turned and looked at the wall she was frantically pointing at. She’d scribbled all over it in an array of colors. Although it was crazy to have drawn on the walls, what she did was oddly really beautiful. I couldn’t tell if she’d used really good markers or some sort of paint, the colors were so vivid. With dipped brows, I walked closer to the wall, examining it. It was as if she was a little artist, expressing herself the best way she knew how to. The colors were meticulously thrown against the wall in patterns. Reminded me of abstract art you saw in a museum, it was so pretty. When Marv saw this apartment he was going to flip, though.

“That’s really pretty, LaLa. Your momma said it was alright?”

“Mama didn't see it yet. I did it last night,” she said, smile bright, proud of the mess she’d made. A beautiful mess, yes but a mess that Sabrina would have to pay for indeed. Honestly, though, the walls were the least of her concerns. The apartment was destroyed. I couldn’t see Marv being able to rent this out, ever again if Sabrina and them ever did move.

“She’s going to… love it,” I hesitated to say, turning my attention back to the hallway, eager to talk to Sabrina so I could get the hell out of there.

My phone buzzed and I fished it from my pocket. I cursed when I saw it was Rocc, letting me know he was pulling up. I told him I would be down in a bit and stuffed the phone back into my bag.

“You want to see what else I made? My closet⁠—”

“I’m sorry La. I have to go to work. I need to talk to your momma first though.”

“She been in the bathroom for a lonnnng time,” she mumbled as I walked out of the room.

Standing at the bathroom door, I knocked and looked down at my squishy shoes with a deep breath. I was disgusted.

“Sabrina, it’s me… Rei-Rei. You got water leaking down into my apartment. It’s water all in this hallway too, girl. What is going on?”

Silence.

I knocked again. “Sabrina!” I called out.

More silence. Because something didn’t sit right in my spirit, I twisted the doorknob. It was locked. She didn’t say anything about me trying to come in and that raised a major red flag.

“How long you say your momma been in this bathroom?”

LaLa shrugged her shoulder. “Last night.”

“Last night?” I mumbled back, banging on the door. “Sabrina!”

I started to panic. Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. She’d been in the bathroom all night? How? She had kids! And Man-Man said she was taking a bath… It didn’t make sense. How in the hell had she been in the bathroom all night? Sean didn’t do anything? Hood said he’d just saw him leave a minute ago.

Oh my God.

I banged again, yelling her name, getting the attention of her kids. They stopped playing. Joined me in the hallway and banged on the door too, calling out to her.

“Mommy! Momma! Open the door, mommy!”

I looked down at them and said, “Move out the way, okay? I’m going to try to—” I pushed on the door with my shoulder. “—to knock it down.”

Man-Man flinched. I pushed on the door again with my shoulder. My phone buzzed again. I knew it was Rocc. Didn’t need to check it to see. I ignored it. Gave the door another push. Nothing. It wouldn’t bulge. Sabrina was inside, alright. But she wasn’t okay. Ain’t no way she was okay. What the fuck had happened last night?

“Is mommy okay?” Asked another one of the little girls. Diara. She was quiet mostly. So quiet that the high-pitched sound of her voice caught me off guard.

With dipped brows, I looked down at her angelic face. The fear and worry written on it, gutted me.

I swiped a piece of hair from my face. “Um. I—I think so.”