Page 8 of Kisses Behind The Spotlight 2: Finale

They exited the room, and I stood up from the chair when the door clicked shut behind them.

“You know your dad didn’t feed D3 that information, right?”

“I don’t want to talk about that,” I sputtered.

“Well, we are,” he lectured, stepping in front of me. His hands gripped my arms as he peered down at me with a serious expression. “I talked to your dad after you called me, talking shit about him. Your dad swore on your mother that he didn’t know anything D3 had going on. The song was only posted on Instagram; it wasn’t pushed through any DSPs, so D3 didn’t need any type of approval. Your dad wouldn’t put something on your mother that he knew he was lying about. James also dropped D3 and lost a lot of money in the process. He said you hung up and blocked him before he could explain himself.”

Tears welled up in my eyes as I looked back at my dad. Guilt was swallowing me whole. I subjected him to ten days of no contact for something he didn’t do. I handled my dad the same way Q handled me, wrote him off without hearing him out, and that wasn’t fair. Now I could lose him before making amends.

“He was stressed about me, wasn’t he?” I sniffled.

“Don’t do that, Jameera. It’s not your fault he had a seizure.”

“But it is. He hasn’t had a seizure in almost nine years,” I blubbered. “And I refused to speak with him. Ignored all his attempts at communication. He called Q’s phone a few minutes before getting into the car accident, and I ignored the call.”

“You can’t think like that, Jameera. We gotta be positive. Marissa said you haven’t showered or changed since you got out of jail. You came straight there. Go home, shower, and get some rest. I’ll call you if anything changes. I can see the sleep deprivation all over you,” he noted, then placed a kiss on my forehead.

Uncle Sam released the grip on my arms and leaned over to grab the tissues off the counter. He pulled two out and dabbed my tears. I walked back over to my dad’s bed and scanned his battered face for a few seconds.

“Daddy, I’m sorry for ignoring you. I need you to wake up so I can apologize and share all of my good news with you. I have so much to tell you,” I lamented.

After a few seconds, I pulled myself away from the hospital bed and hugged Uncle Sam before finding Amill and Yaseer in the hallway. I was going on almost thirty-six hours of no sleep; only that brief nap in the uncomfortable hospital chair was keeping me afloat.

Yaseer drove us back to his house, and my bestie had already stopped by my place to grab pajamas, toiletries, and a cute outfit for court the next morning. I took a long, scalding shower, washed and conditioned my hair, and finally emerged from the guest bedroom an hour later. I heard Yarissa and Amill talking in the kitchen, so I slowly made my way there.

“Hey Jameera,” Yarissa greeted me, and her bright smile instantly fell when she saw my face. “My God. What happened to your face?” She questioned with her mouth wide open.

“Stop staring and being dramatic,” Amill nudged her. “She had an accident. That’s all.”

“Yeah, I had a little accident, but I’m fine,” I confirmed.

“Looks painful,” she quipped. “Anyways, let me see that rock in person,” she chirped, laying her iPad on the counter and darting over to me. She took my hand and lifted it to her face. “Yep, the green ring definitely fits you.”

“It’s an emerald.”

“Well, the emerald fits you, future sister-in-law. When are we going to start planning the wedding?”

“Soon,” I informed her.

“Your plate is in the microwave. Do you want me to warm it up? Mama Marissa made vegan marry me pasta and homemade garlic bread. Everyone else ate before we got here.”

“I’m not really hungry. I just want the garlic bread.”

I went to the microwave and grabbed the bread from the plate.

“Excuse me, ladies, it’s time for my hour of screen time,” Yarissa bragged before bopping out of the kitchen. We watched her amble into the sitting room and plop down on the couch.

“You have to eat more than bread, Jameera,” Amill encouraged.

“I ate the garlic bread. That’s all I have an appetite for. I ate the lunch they brought to the hospital earlier. Relax, I’m not starving myself,” I explained, taking a swig from my bottle of water.

“How did things go in New York? I know Salena ate in that Bottega coat.”

“She did,” Amill chirped, clicking around on her phone. “My girl was out there looking every bit of a WAG! I’m so happy for her!”

Amill passed me her phone with Salena’s Instagram pulled up, and she looked amazing in the look we pulled together. I was happy to see Salena moving on because Xain seemed to be doing the same thing.

“Aghhhhhhh!” Yarissa’s ear-shattering screeching caught both of our attention.