Chapter 3

3

Lila (Nala)

I t was quiet.

Way too quiet.

Whenever the trauma center had light traffic, it always meant we were going to be flooded later. There was either a car accident, a shooting, or some type of disaster that would ruin an otherwise peaceful day. When it got like that, we mostly sat around charting or organizing something to keep us busy. It would be just my luck to hear that alarm go off right when it was time for me to leave.

I'd already charted on my patients and organized the supply closet. I had fifteen minutes left before it was time for me to clock out, so I wasn't doing shit else. I wandered behind the nurses' station and took a seat next to Latrice, one of my favorite charge nurses. She was one of the first people to befriend me when I moved here.

I met her while grocery shopping. My belly was big, and I was having a hard time reaching something on a top shelf, so her lanky ass got it for me. She walked around the entire grocery store helping me gather my things that day. We got to talking and I knew I liked her by the time we hit the checkout line.

We exchanged numbers and had been friends ever since. She was the reason I got the job here right out of nursing school.

"It's so quiet—" I started but was silenced when she clamped her hand around my mouth.

"Do not say that word. What's wrong with you?"

I slapped her hand away.

"First of all, I don't know where your hands have been, especially when I saw you and Dr. Monroe sneak off together earlier."

Dr. Victor Monroe was the head of cardiology and Latrice's unofficial boo. They'd been seeing each other for about a year now and loved to pretend that nobody knew they were an unofficial item.

"Second, we already know how this is going to go today. I don't know why you are acting superstitious."

She rolled her eyes. "Okay, number one… Victor and I didn't sneak off to do anything. This isn't Grey Sloan Memorial, and we are not Derek and Meredith. We were just talking. And two… I'm not superstitious. It's a well-known fact that as soon as you say that word, all hell breaks loose."

"You're being dramatic, Trice."

"I'm being realistic, Lila. As a matter of fact, go do a good deed to counter the karma you just put out there. You can go change the dressing on the patient in room 203. You know he's sweet on you."

I rolled my eyes. Mr. Jenkins had been admitted for an infection that resulted in him losing his leg. He was a seasoned older man and quite handsome. Every time I made my rounds, he flirted with me relentlessly. I could admit, I was flattered.

He always told me that once he got out and got his prosthetic, he wanted to take me out on a date and show me a good time. The twinkle in his eye when he said that let me know that man wanted to fuck me. I hadn't been with anybody in six years. I was almost tempted to take him up on his offer.

I stood from the chair. "You know you're wrong for this, Latrice."

"Go on in there and make that man's day. Just bend over and shake that ass for him a little."

She smacked my ass as I walked away. Her laughter rang in my ears while I smiled to hold mine in. After stopping by the supply closet to grab what I needed to change Mr. Jenkin's dressing, I headed toward his room.

No sooner had I rounded the corner did I run smack into a hard body, spilling the contents from my hands and damn near knocking me over.

"My apologies."

I looked up and came face to face with possibly the finest man I'd ever seen. If I had to guess, he stood well over six feet, making me feel like a shorty with my five-foot eight-inch height. My eyes trailed his muscular frame. He looked like he would have no problem picking my thick ass up.

His skin was the color of coffee with just a hint of cream… maybe a mocha latte. He wore a tapered haircut. Those deep brown eyes looked as though they carried something heavy behind them.

He stooped to pick up the items I dropped. I stood speechless as he handed them back to me. He eyed my name badge and smiled. Lord, what a smile he had. His teeth were white and perfectly straight. I was a sucker for a killer smile.

"Nurse Lila Peterson… I'm sorry I almost knocked you down, beautiful."

Pulling myself together, I shrugged it off. "It's okay. I guess we both should have been watching where we were going."

"I guess you're right. I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"No, no, I'm fine. I mean it's not every day I run into a human wall, but I'm okay. I'm sorry, that was totally offensive."

He chuckled. "You're good, love. I mean, I'm bigger than most."

"I bet you are."

That slipped out of my mouth before I even had a chance to stop myself. What the hell was wrong with me? Men hit on me all the time and I was able to brush them off with ease. But this man? Something about him told me he commanded attention everywhere he went.

I cleared my throat of the embarrassment. "I should get going. I have a patient to tend to."

I tried to hurry past him, but the sound of him calling my name caused me to stop.

"Lila!" I turned to face him, finding a smirk on his face. "Maybe we'll run into each other again sometime."

I blushed, nervously tucking one of my locs behind my ear. "Maybe."

I started walking, and again, he stopped me.

"Don't you wanna know my name?"

I smirked as I turned to face him. "Since you know where to find me, maybe I'll catch it if I see you again. Good day."

This time when I walked away, he let me go. I could feel his eyes planted on my ass in these scrub pants. Just because I felt flirty, I added a little switch to my hips. I had to shake my head at myself. Flirting was something I didn't do. It led to entertaining the wrong things. The last time I entertained a man I got Slim.

There I was minding my business while walking back to my dorm after my last class. I had a full scholarship to Georgia State University. I'd taken a gap year to work after high school so I could stack my money just a little. GSU was an hour away from home, and I didn't have a job, so it only made sense to stay on campus all four years of undergrad .

I rounded the corner to my dorm, and the first thing I saw was the gang of niggas posted up. I rolled my eyes. It wasn't unusual—in fact, they were out here all the time trying to pick up females. I reached into my bag and pulled out my headphones.

If I couldn't escape them, I could at least pretend like I didn't see them. With a straightforward gaze and my books clutched against my chest, I made my way to the front door of the dorm. Behind me, all I could hear were catcalls and whistles to get my attention. Niggas were never short on audacity. I wouldn't give my pussy to a single man on this campus. At least that was what I thought until I met Slim.

"Aye! Aye, thick ma!"

I kept walking. I had a name and that wasn't it. Just as I reached the front door, a hand wrapped around my arm, gently pulling me back. I snatched off my headphones, ready to curse out the culprit.

"If you don't get yo' motherfuckin'—"

I stopped when my eyes met his. He stood maybe a few inches taller than me with a small yet muscular build and smooth, dark chocolate skin. Locs grew from his crown and hung down past his shoulders. His neck and wrist glistened with gold chains and a watch, and he was dressed in designer from head to toe.

Just by looking at him, I could tell he wasn't a student. These niggas around here only wished they had drip like this.

"Can you let me go?" I asked, looking at his hand on my arm.

He raised a hand in surrender. "My bad, ma. You dropped something."

He held up my chemistry notebook, causing me to look down at the contents in my hand.

"You were so busy trying to get away that you didn't notice you lost it," he said with a smirk.

"Yeah, well, being harassed isn't my idea of a good time." I plucked the notebook from his fingers. "Thank you."

I tried to go into the building, but he stepped in front of me.

"Hold up, thick ma. Let me holla at you."

"Even if I was interested, my name ain't thick ma and I don't answer to that."

"I apologize, baby. How about I introduce myself? My name is Avery, but everybody calls me Slim. It's a pleasure to meet you."

He extended his hand. I looked down at it, then back up to him before I slipped my palm in his hand.

"Nala."

"Nala… that means queen in Swahili, right?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Yes."

"You didn't think I would know that, did you?"

"Everybody has seen The Lion King, so it's pretty easy to google."

"Not easily impressed… I like that. That means none of these niggas out here can play you for a fool."

"I wouldn't give any of those niggas the time of day."

"Ah… so that means I have a chance."

"Say what?"

"You said them. One thing I ain't is one of them."

He was right about that. He wasn't one of those niggas; he was worse. College boys would fuck and duck you. Niggas like Slim could draw a bitch in by doing everything a woman expected of him in the beginning. Then when he got her right where he wanted her, he flipped the script.

He laid the foundation for a perfect relationship with me. He was loving, caring, and a good listener. He took me on dates and sent me flowers. He spoiled me with gifts and laced me in designer labels and jewels. For a whole year, he wooed me before ever making me his. Right before I was supposed to start my senior year, he staked his claim. He told me he wanted to take care of me. I foolishly allowed him to convince me to take a semester off. That was the worst mistake. One semester turned into a whole year, and I never went back. I was so head over heels in love with a fa?ade that when he finally pulled the wool from over my eyes, I convinced myself that things would one day go back to normal between us.

That was my problem.

I fell in love with who he portrayed himself as and not who he really was. In my eyes, that person was still in there. I stayed, hoping and praying for the day that he showed back up, but he never did.

The real Slim came out, and by the time I realized it, I was stuck. I had no job and no money saved up. He took care of everything. He made me exactly what he needed me to be… a fucking dependent—someone he could control because there were no better options for me.

Thinking back on the mystery man made a chill run up my spine. I didn't need another man like the one I ran from. Shit… I didn't need a man period. Pushing the door open to Mr. Jenkins' room, I laughed at the smirk on his face.

"Mr. Jenkins, don't start with your mess today."

"How many times I have to tell you to call me Clyde, baby?"

"Hm, about as many times as I told you to stop calling me baby and flirting with me," I said, washing my hands then putting on latex gloves.

He chuckled as he scooted up further in the bed to sit up. I gathered everything I needed to clean and redress his wound, then removed the blanket to start the process. I had become immune to seeing open wounds—nasty ones at that. I had to, considering working in the hospital allowed me to do what I've always wanted to do—help others.

It had always been in my DNA to help people in need. I was a nurturer at heart, but after meeting and falling in love with Slim, it was as if I lost my identity. I wasn't the same person going to college to obtain her bachelor's degree in the medical field. I had become whatever the hell Slim wanted me to be, and I hated myself every damn day for it.

However, I was free from that situation, and with each day after those six years that passed, I felt myself taking more and more of my life back. I still had my head on a swivel. I had done a bad deed, but I didn't apologize for it, nor did I regret it. That choice allowed me to be physically free. Now, I was working on being mentally free as well.

"Why are you single anyway, beautiful?" Mr. Jenkins asked, ending the silence.

"Because I choose to be."

"Understandable. You know, I'm good at reading people."

"Oh really?"

"Yup. And I can tell you're running from something or someone."

I tensed slightly as I continued to wrap his leg.

"Yeah? And why would you figure that?"

"It's in your eyes. There's also something else in your eyes, too."

"What is that?"

"It's telling me you want me, baby. Tonight is your night." We both broke into a fit of laughter as I finished wrapping his leg.

"You keep playing with me, and I'm gon' throw this ass back on your cute, old ass."

"You promise?"

I laughed again, tossing everything in the trash. "Goodnight, Mr. Jenkins."

"Goodnight, beautiful."

I walked out of the room after washing my hands, preparing to end my shift and go home for the night. I was off for the next two days, so I planned to have some much-needed fun.