The Realest Ever - By Keith Thomas Walker Page 0,40

to lose you sounded a little psycho.

“Brianna, this ain’t working out.”

“Please, let me come over there,” she begged.

“No. Why would… No, Brianna.”

“Then let me think about it,” she said. “I don’t wanna lose you, Donovan. Okay?”

That actually was not okay. Donovan felt like he was free from her tears and accusations just a few seconds ago. Was she trying to get back with him already? He wanted to tell her no, but there was a chance Brianna could change. It was a long shot, but they had been together for eight months. She deserved another chance.

“Alright,” he said. “I gotta go now.”

“Donovan, wait.”

“No, Brianna. I’m getting off the phone. For real this time.”

“Call me before you go to bed.”

“Okay, bye.”

He disconnected and drove the rest of the way home with his radio off. Donovan was a spiritual man, and he knew he didn’t have to be in church to have a powwow with his maker.

“If I’m wrong, God, please tell me.” He spoke aloud in the quiet confines of his truck. “I don’t think I’m wrong, but she makes me feel like I am. You know I don’t want to hurt her. I don’t wanna hurt nobody…”

≈≈≈≈≈≈≈

When he got home, Donovan took his dogs Wyatt and Doc for a two mile jog. He didn’t normally run at night, but working out had always been his best stress reliever. The night air was warm, but there was a decent breeze blowing in from the north that cooled the sweat on his face and chest.

When he returned to the house, Donovan felt a lot better about his argument with Brianna. He had a sense of peace, knowing that whatever happened with them was meant to be. He took another shower and crawled into bed at eleven o’clock wearing only his boxers.

He had already dozed off when his phone rang at eleven-thirty. He reached for his cellular and frowned at the bright display. He forgot to call Brianna before he went to bed, and she was no doubt upset about it. But the incoming call was from Kyra, not his girlfriend. Donovan’s aggravation quickly dissipated.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” she said. “You sleep?”

“I was laying down.”

“I’m sorry. I be forgetting you have to wake up early. I can let you go.”

“No, it’s cool. What’s up?”

“Nothing,” she said. “Just sitting here watching TV. I can’t sleep.”

Kyra’s voice was calming. Donovan didn’t think they’d ever had a real argument. He rolled to his side and closed his eyes. “The kids up, too?”

“No, they’re in there sleep. I had to come in the living room so I wouldn’t wake them up.”

“What’s up with your aunt? Did y’all have it out when I left?”

“No. I did like you said,” Kyra replied. “I didn’t even ask about the food stamp card I gave her. I did tell her not to disrespect me in front of my company, though.”

Donovan grinned. “What’d she say?”

“Nothing. What could she say? She know she wrong.”

“Cool. I’m glad that worked out.”

“What about your girlfriend?” Kyra asked. “Is she mad at you?”

“No. Why you say that?”

“That wasn’t her who called while we were at McDonalds?”

Donovan chuckled. “How’d you know?”

“I saw the look on your face,” Kyra said. “I figured it was either her or your mom. Did you tell her where you were?”

“Yeah. I don’t lie to her, well I try not to.”

“You told her about the groceries?”

“No.”

“Was she okay, though, about you coming by here?”

“Don’t worry about it,” Donovan said. “That’s her problem. It doesn’t have anything to do with you.”

“Alright.” Kyra had so much to say about Donovan’s woman. And she wanted to know exactly what the long-haired beauty had been saying about her since she returned to Overbrook Meadows. She knew she could get Donovan to tell her. But Kyra also knew that any advice she gave him about his girlfriend was biased at best and out of line at worst. She decided to stay out of it completely.

“Do you remember when Bo robbed that ice cream truck?” she asked instead.

Donovan laughed. That incident occurred when they were in middle school. Bo was a knucklehead, had been since he was in diapers. He was only thirteen when he told Donovan and Kyra that he planned to rob an ice cream truck with a pellet gun that was so realistic it looked like a 9mm. Donovan thought he was pulling their leg until they heard an ice cream truck round the corner a few minutes later. Bo took off in its direction with the fake pistol in