Chapter 45
Phoenix
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I'd never been so happy with my life. And you know why? I had gone on a man hiatus. That's right. I gave up men for a while. After Tobias put things in perspective for me, letting me know I needed to take a look at my life and how I was making detrimental decisions regarding myself, I had decided to cut all ties with the men I was dealing with. It took Tobias for me to realize I was putting myself out there like a paid whore.
I was celibate for five and a half months. Can you believe it? Me, Phoenix, didn't have dick for that period of time. It was like not having that animate object penetrating me allowed my mind to become clear as to where I wanted my life to go. That's when I decided to follow my dream and go to school to become a chef. I couldn't be happier with my decision. Becoming enthralled with something I loved, like taking different types of meat, vegetables, and spices and turning them into something magnificent, was enough to make me have an orgasm from the pure joy of it all.
Still, as fate would have it, I did end up with a guy in my life, and that guy ended up being Tobias. One day he just stopped by to check on me. I hadn't seen him in months. I guess instead of driving by my house, wondering how I was doing, he decided to park, get out, and knock on the door to see this time. I was surprised to see him, and I wasn't rude. I invited him in, and from there we'd been talking.
I realized there was more to being with someone than just money and nothing else to offer. I needed to be with a man who was willing to love me and give me the world. Lucky for me, Tobias was that man. The ironic thing was Tobias did have Diddy money. Those papers he gave me that night he had left revealed a lawsuit he'd filed against Noah, who had embezzled money from a company they were partners in. Tobias not only gained the joint venture company he and Noah acquired together, but he ended up winning a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against Noah, who was ordered to pay the money he stole back to Tobias.
Now, mind you, I had no clue about any of this. I had never been involved with how Noah made his money. Hell, I never cared how any man I dealt with made his money, just as long as he took care of me.
That was then; this was now, and I was a woman making her own money. Even though Tobias had Diddy money, I wasn't that same woman who felt privileged to this money. I liked that about myself now.
As irony would have it, Noah's baby mama left him for someone else when his money dwindled. I heard she took the baby and moved to France with her new man, and Noah was back in California living with his parents, so the child he yearned to have was still not in his life.
Don't you know he had the nerve to call me one day. He called to apologize and said he hoped we could be friends. I told him I didn't need any friends and to not get any ideas about trying to come back into my life, because I had moved on with Tobias. Needless to say, this was shocking to him, because he didn't have a clue I was with his once great friend. I can't lie; that shit felt good telling him that. I know it was wrong to feel great about him feeling bad, but I am human. I never thought the day would come when I felt like I got one up on Noah, but I did, and it helped me move on to develop a better relationship with Tobias.
“Phoenix, we need to go. You know we can't be late,” Tobias said, looking handsome in his suit. That once-dorky man was looking way better than he used to, and that was due to me changing up his attire a bit. I think it was Dawn who told me you couldn't turn a whore into a housewife. I wasn't a housewife yet, but the fact that I could be with this man made me happy because now I knew that anybody could change.
Chapter 46
Vivian
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I never thought I would see this day in my life. Looking into the long mirror, I stood in my wedding gown, getting ready to walk down the aisle to marry the man I loved. I had thirty minutes to be a free woman before I became Mrs. Sheldon Garrison. I smiled at my reflection, amazed at how far I'd come. Not only was I marrying the man I loved, but I'd learned to love myself more and be confident in the skin God had blessed me with.
Rubbing my hands down my waist, pushing out any imperfections, I turned right and then left to make sure everything was like it was supposed to be. My tiara on my head sparkled as ringlets of curls fell freely. My face was made up, nails were done, and the only thing left to do was slide on my five-inch heels and make my way to becoming a married woman.
“You look beautiful,” Serena said, looking me over. She was holding Nevaeh's little hand, who looked cute with her white flower girl dress on and a ringlet of flowers around her little head. When I looked down at her, she smiled up at me with her little teeth and the dimple in her right cheek. She looked adorable.
“Hello, Nevaeh,” I said in the baby voice I used with her, and she ran over to me and wrapped her little arms around me.
“No, Nevaeh. You are going to get Auntie dirty,” Serena said, trying to stop her.
I said, “It's okay.” I scooped my niece up in my arms and hugged her lovingly. Feeling her little arms around me felt wonderful.
“You better give her to me before she gets something on your dress,” Serena said, reaching for her. Nevaeh went to Serena as she continued to speak. “You don't know how hard it is to keep this little one from getting anything on her. As much as this is your day, I can't wait until you walk down that aisle so I don't have to worry about her getting dirty.”
I giggled.
“Are you ready?” she asked excitedly.
“I am. I'm so happy,” I said joyfully.
“Here we were thinking Dawn was going to break the curse of the Johnson women, and now you are the first in four generations to get married.”
“You know I never fed into that curse on the Johnson women thing,” I told her.
“I know, but I did.”
Phoenix burst into the room, saying, “You have ten minutes, Vivian.”
I giggled and said, “I'm ready.”
“I still can't believe you are getting married,” Phoenix said.
“Me either, but I am happy I am, because I really do love Sheldon,” I proclaimed.
Both of my sisters were wearing lavender-colored bridesmaid dresses with matching heels. It was so good having them both by my side today. Mama and Daddy crossed my mind, along with Renee, who I wished was there with me. I knew they were there in spirit, but it still made this moment bittersweet.
Shauna came walking into the room with her bridesmaid dress on, saying, “You should see all the people out there.”
“Is it a lot?” Phoenix asked.
“You know it is. Sheldon has a huge family, and some of them brothers are fine as hell.”
“We are in a church, fool,” Serena said.
“Oh, my bad,” Shauna said, covering her mouth.
If anyone had come a long way, it was Shauna. That night when my and Sheldon's moment was interrupted by a phone call, it was Shauna calling me from jail because she was arrested for reckless driving and DUI. That girl was a nervous wreck. I'd heard of karma, but she got it as soon as she left my home that day, and she had vowed she would never drink and drive again.
She didn't drink that much anymore. I think her being behind bars for that short stint was enough to scare the alcohol out of her. Here she was living in the past, not realizing she should have been working on how her future was going to be.
Another silver lining for Shauna was the fact that she was still with Grayson. Cal was finally out of the picture for good, since he received time for assaulting her and disobeying the restraining order. My sister couldn't be happier.
“Look, before we leave, I have something to show you guys,” Shauna said, walking over to me. “I need you to sit down.”
“Do you know how tight this dress is?” I said, laughing.
“Try anyway.”
I did as she asked, and Shauna knelt down beside me as Serena and Phoenix stood behind me. Shauna took out her cell and pushed a few buttons until a video began to play. Dawn's face popped up on the screen, and my hand flew to my mouth with joy.
“Hi, you guys. Hey, Vivian, I heard you were getting married today. I wish I could be there, but you know I'm currently tied up right now,” she joked. “I wanted you to know how happy I am for you. No one deserves this more than you. I'm there in spirit. You know I love you. I love all of you, and I can't wait until we have one of our sister-dinners again. It's going to be a while, but trust, it's going to happen. Congratulations, sis. You are marrying a wonderful man. Enjoy your day, and party enough for me. I love you,” she said, putting her hand to her mouth and blowing me a kiss.
Tears streamed down my cheeks.
“How are you going to make her cry right before she walks down the aisle?” Phoenix asked, wiping tears from her own eyes.
I looked at all my sisters, and each one of them had tears falling.
The reason why my sister Dawn couldn't be here was because she was in jail for shooting Corey in the back. She had unloaded the gun completely before she walked back to her living room and sat waiting for the cops to arrive. This incident was made worse by the fact the camera was recording the entire incident. It quickly went viral all over the Internet.
She was arrested and charged with attempted murder. I say
attempted
because Corey ended up surviving. Unfortunately for him, he would be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life. Again, there goes that karma. You can't do people any kind of way and not have to pay for what you've done. I don't agree his payment should have been him getting shot, but at the same time, you can't predict people a lot of times. I hated that it was at the cost of my sister's life, but she had to pay for what she did. She ended up getting a ten-year sentence, which was reduced due to the fact that she pled guilty due to being mentally unstable. She was getting the help she needed, despite the fact that she was behind bars. I missed her so much and tried to visit her as often as I could. Seeing her on the video made my day.
For Shauna being the one to show me the video, I knew this meant she had gone to visit her. She had blamed herself for Dawn snapping like she did, and she said she wished our last sister-gathering turned out better than it had. Shauna was dead wrong for what she did and realized her mistakes. I was glad she'd grown up to learn to be accountable for her actions. She finally made peace with everything. I think both Shauna and Dawn had. Sometimes it takes getting down to your lowest points to help you rise above and beyond even what you thought you could achieve. This couldn't be truer for them. As Mama always said, “As long as you learn and grow from your mistakes, I'm happy.”
“It's time,” Serena said, looking at me.
I stood and walked over to my white blinged-out shoes and stepped into them. Phoenix held her hand out for me to hold so I wouldn't fall.
“Let me look at myself one more time,” I told Phoenix, who helped me over to the mirror again. She dabbed at my face again, making sure my makeup was on point.
“Can't have you looking like a raccoon out there,” she said.
I gazed at my reflection, knowing this would be the last time I would see myself as a single woman. I smiled at myself and tried my best not to cry so I wouldn't ruin the fabulous makeup job Phoenix did for me.
“I'm ready,” I said with a smile. “I can't believe this is happening.”
“Believe it, sis. You are marrying the man of your dreams,” Serena said, coming up behind me and placing her loving hand on my back.
All of my sisters stood around me, and I looked at how beautiful we all were. Despite our ups and downs, we were still here, standing as one.
The curse on the Johnson women was mentioned earlier, and I had to smile, thinking I didn't know if it was a curse at all. Maybe it was just about the choices we made, especially the ones who settled for less than they deserved.
I thanked God in this moment for bringing me such a long way. He had blessed me with the man of my dreams. He blessed me with the gift of loving myself; and most of all, He blessed me with wonderful sisters. Life sometimes deals you a bad hand, but it is up to you how to play it. Each Johnson sister went about playing the hand they were dealt differently, but the one thing I was happy about was that we still remained close in the end.