Ash sprinkled across the cement when Selena flicked the filter of the cigarette. "How long does he have?" Selena asked Monica through the phone.
"Girl, that's your husband. I don't know why you don't know. You didn't go to the trial or anything?"
Selena inhaled the cigarette deeply, letting the nicotine deep into her cells. "No. Didn't want to and didn't have time to."
"Okay, well holdup cause you know the internet talking about it." As Monica started to do her searching, she continued talking. "Didn't he tell you? When was the last time you talked to him?"
Selena scoffed. "That night."
Monica gasped. "Are you serious? Bitch, the last thing you said to him was that you didn't marry the love of your life and that was almost a week ago." She sucked her teeth. "I hate to tell you this, but I'm telling you as your best friend, but um, you're being a terrible wife and supporter right now."
"Okay, whatever. He was acting like a dick and I honestly don't think we're gonna last any longer."
"But you still love him and you're not going anywhere, so you can shut the hell up."
Selena let out a laugh, blowing out a puff into the air. "Maybe. Anyways, what does it say?"
"Mmph. He's got two months in there and a few days. He fucked this nigga up pretty bad. You wanna see?"
Selena debated whether or not she wanted to see the pap's face then she shook her head and answered, "No. It's fine. I gotta get back to work, I'll talk to you in a bit." She said before hanging up.
Great. Now she was gonna have to spend Christmas in Detroit without him. She was gonna have to explain even further to the kids why their dad wasn't there. The lie she was going along with now is that he was traveling to with the band, and she's been keeping them away from the tv to keep them from finding out about it to since that's all the media has been talking about now.
Selena flicked the cigarette onto the ground before stepping on it and turning around to go back into the hospital to get back to work.
Jack pillowed his hands behind his head as he absentmindedly stared up at the dirty ceiling while he lied on the most uncomfortable mattress in the world.
Surrounded by four white plain walls, there was absolutely nothing to do but stare at them and listen to the horrible humming of his cell mate.
Luckily, his cell mate had just gotten up and left to roam around the pod and do whatever. But Jack didn't move, he didn't want to.
He wasn't scared, he just felt no reason to be out there unless it was to eat the food that he usually traded for commissary since no one put money on his books.
"Mercer!"
Jack heard his name being called and slowly got up then walked across the pod to the officer at the door, wondering what it was about.
"You got a visitor."
Jack tsk'ed, almost rejecting the visit until he remembered that Selena had probably brought the kids with her and he needed to see them more than anything.
Following the officer down the hall and to the visitors booth, he sat down on the opposite side of the glass, almost surprised with who he saw.
Jack watched Kiana sweep her box braids across her shoulder and grab the phone then bring it up to her ear. He stared at her for a long moment before he finally took the phone off the hook and pressed it to his ear.
"Hey." She spoke softly into the phone.
"Hey. What are you doing here?"
Kiana shrugged. "I just wanted to see if you were okay and how you were doing."
"I'm fine."
"Oh. How'd you end up here?"
Jack let out a humorless chuckle. "Media isn't talking about it? I'm surprised."
Shaking her head, she leaned forward onto the small table. "No, they are. I just thought I'd hear it from you instead of believing any lies."
Jack wiped his hand across his face, hesitating to answer until he finally did, bringing his hand to rest flat against the table.
"I was taking pictures with fans when me and Selena were leaving the restaurant and paparazzi started to flash pictures and I didn't realize until she was getting in the car that the flash could make her damn dress see through and he kept getting closer, so I did what I had to do."
Kiana nodded. "Yep, that's exactly what most of them are saying." Her fingers began to drum against the table. "Who's come to visit you so far? Everyone?" She chuckled.
"Just you." He dryly stated, sobering her laughter.
"Really? Not even Selena?"
Jack's eye's met the floor as he shook his head. "It's cool though." He chuckled. "We'll be done as soon as I get out, that's all there is to it. I'm fine."
Kiana's green eyes lit up for a split second and Jack didn't miss it, but he honestly didn't care either nor was he gonna feed into it.
"I'll put some money on your books. I would've done it sooner and came sooner if I knew all about this. I just wanna help you since you always help me." She smiled.
"Yeah, thanks."
"Mercer, c'mon. Times up!" The officer barked.
Jack thanked Kiana for coming then stood up and left without taking another look back before walking back into his pod.
The first thing that caught his attention was one of the inmates, Stretch, lacing up his shoes. Then his gaze averted to five guys gathering around a cell where Ricky slept.
Jack knew exactly what was going to happen and why. It was cause Stretch was in debt and he had to pay.
Ricky gave Stretch a bag of chips off his lunch tray yesterday in exchange for Stretch to give Ricky his cornbread today, but he never got it and Jack understood.
It's not the point of it being over food, it's the fact that if they let someone get away with stuff in there, everyone is gonna see you as a pushover and they'll walk all over you, so you do what you gotta do to keep your respect.
As Jack started walking over to his cell, he seen Stretch walk towards Ricky's room and not hesitate to walk in and fight. Two other inmates guarded the room, stopping anyone from getting inside.
Jack only kept moving towards his cell, staying away from the drama before he ended up staying longer than he's supposed to.
Once he got into his cell, he pulled himself up to the top bunk and did the same thing he did everyday, the same thing he was doing before Kiana came.
His cellmate, Dashawn walked back into the cell and sat down at the small desk in the corner of the cell and started writing on a piece of paper.
"Yo, you wanna send a letter to somebody? I got two extra pieces of paper and I ain't gonna use all of it anytime soon." He asked, not moving his eyes from the paper.
"I'm good."
Dashawn chuckled. "Everytime I ask someone if they want paper, they jump on this shit like dogs on meat. You don't got a mama or pops or girl you wanna write to?"
"My mom died. Never had a dad. Don't have a girl."
"Don't you have kids?"
"Yeah." He muttered. "Can't talk to them though. Their mom isn't gonna give it to them, so I'm not even gonna waste your paper like that."
"Who came to see you then if you don't got nobody?" Deshawn asked, crossing out a word on the paper.
"A girl I know."
"Oh word." He twisted in his seat to look past the door out into the pod. "Man, I don't know why that nigga keep looking up in here. He better take his ass somewhere before I fuck him up."
"Who?"
"That nigga at the table next to Sheckles."
Jack sat up to take a look over at the table to see a broad man who was probably late forties, staring into their pod, looking back and forth between Jack and Deshawn.
He only shrugged it off and laid back down and tried to fall asleep. The only thing he could do to escape his reality.