Sample Sunday | Rather Be With You
Before Rashad was able to say a word, Presley’s phone began ringing. They stood in silence as she let it roll over to voicemail but once it chimed, alerting her of a text message, she reached into the pocket of her hoodie, retrieving it.
“Are you serious?”
“What, am I supposed to do, ignore it? Besides, it might be her telling me she changed her mind.”
She knew Rashad didn’t buy the excuse anymore than she did, but having run out of things to say in what was becoming nothing but a repetitive argument, she told the fib anyway. As expected, it was Susan reaching out to see when she’d be able to go into the office. As if Rashad were able to view the words on the screen he spoke, making a request that was more of a demand.
“Tell her you aren’t coming.”
Instead of repeating to him how that was something she was unwilling to do, Presley opted to remain silent, simply texting back she’d be there as soon as she could. Heading into her bedroom, she began tossing off the sweat suit she intended to wear to the airport, replacing it with a pair of khaki slacks and a black dress shirt.
“Presley, I’m not going to keep doing this shit with you. Got me out here sounding like a punk all because I want to spend time with my girl.” Rashad had followed behind her, leaning against the wall as he spoke.
“You are going to be spending time with me. I’ll be arriving early enough where we can still hang out tonight and enjoy the rest of the trip as planned.”
Presley ran her hands along the seams of her pants, hoping to knock out the few wrinkles to no avail. Under normal circumstances, she’d never show up to work looking so unpolished, but with the time constraint, she had no choice.
“Yeah and what about the next time? What about when it’s your birthday and you have to work. Or the holidays when she’s home with her family but has you working?”
“Why are you doing this to me? You know how long I apologized to you for all of that and you’re treating me like I enjoyed missing out!”
“I can’t tell. Shit. That job is consuming and you can’t even see it. You really need to make a choice before it takes over your life and you won’t have me or anybody else to share it with.”
The words were enough to halt Presley in her steps. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
She was far from stupid and knew exactly what he was implying but wanted to hear him say it just in case she were mistaken.
“Just like I said. You have to make a choice. The job or me.”
Presley blew out a breath, shaking her head as she laughed. “Do you hear how you sound?”
When Rashad didn’t say anything, Presley was forced to look at him, taking in the seriousness in his demand.
“If you loved me the way you said, you wouldn’t even give me some fucked up ultimatum like that.”
“And if you loved me like you said, I wouldn’t even have to. But I’m real doubtful now.”
There was nothing funny about the way the conversation turned but all Presley could do was laugh. She was in disbelief, waiting for him to tell her that he was just frustrated and didn’t mean the words. But as she continued getting herself ready to leave, putting on her shoes and grabbing her briefcase, she knew he wouldn’t say such a thing.
“I’m sorry. We’ll go to Miami, have a good time and when we get back home, we can have a more rational conversation. But I have to go now if I’m going to make my flight.”
Rashad followed behind her as she walked out of the bedroom, grabbing her arm to stop her before she made it to the apartment door. “You think this shit is a joke don’t you? I’m not about to keep on acting like I’m cool with how shit is. Damn sure not going to Miami just to come back to some bullshit. If you walk out that door, this is a wrap.”
Presley’s eyes lowered as she was again faced with an ultimatum. One that wasn’t fair or warranted. When she didn’t answer as quickly as he would’ve liked, telling him she was going to stay, Rashad continued.
“You’re gonna come back and me and my shit is gonna be gone. You want to talk about what’s fucked up? Me never getting to see you and feeling like I’m second in your life.”
For a moment Presley gave some serious thought into taking his advice and saying fuck Susan. She wasn’t the kindest and while Presley had more responsibilities than being an errand girl, she was still what most would’ve called an overpaid secretary. It was a job and in a perfect world she would’ve walked in, dazzled everyone with her charm and knowledge and been sitting up with the bosses, but it wasn’t. She had to work for the things she wanted and that in mind, she freed herself from his hold.
“I love you and I’m sorry but I can’t. Please understand that.”
When Rashad’s shoulders dropped, she again considered changing her mind. The thing was, she’d been dedicating most of her life to her dreams and had come too far to suddenly stop.
“Forgive me?”
She wasn’t expecting for him to provide her with a verbal response but at the very least expected a head nod. He only looked at her until she stepped back, ultimately leaving the apartment. While it wasn’t what Presley wanted, it was a decision that she needed to make for herself. She wished Rashad could be more understanding to that, especially since this had been ongoing with them, but she was willing to hear out his frustrations, even if she didn’t agree with them.
For every time that she’d hurt him with her hectic lifestyle, she’d always made it a point to express her remorse and remind him that like her career ambitions, he was important to her. Why he was suddenly questioning that was frustrating to her. So much so, that it was all she could think about as she made her way to the office. The wall to wall traffic she was stuck in didn’t make it any easier either. All she could think about was what she could’ve done differently that might have provided a different outcome and why her best wasn’t good enough for him suddenly.
The longer that she was forced to sit with her thoughts, the more she was able to replay the argument in her mind. She was so worried about listening to him with the intention of providing a response good enough to get him off her case that she didn’t listen to understand where he was coming from. It still didn’t make sense to her but the one thing she did understand was Rashad wanted to spend time with her. He also wanted what was best for her even if they couldn’t agree on what that was.
“And here my dumb ass is, going to work.”
Presley could only laugh at herself. So worried about herself and what she wanted, she was too stubborn to realize the error in her ways. She’d always been told to work hard now so that when she was older, she’d be able to reap the rewards. It never sounded like a good plan but rather one that just made sense. If she handled her business, she’d have the security to do as she pleased.
Truth be told, she was tired of living like that. It only added on to the stress she was already forced to deal with. The only person telling her she couldn’t work and live her life was herself. Just as quickly as the thought crossed her mind, she found herself making the decision Rashad asked of her. She was choosing him and their vacation.
After almost an hour of sitting in the traffic, Presley was able to exit off the interstate and turn around so she could head back to her place. A few times she tried dialing out to Rashad with no answer but knew he was still angry with her. She could only imagine his surprise once she showed her face, announcing they’d be able to catch their flight together after all.
In nearly half the time she’d spent in traffic, she had arrived back to her apartment, though she didn’t immediately head back inside. Not when she needed to send an apologetic email to Susan for flaking on such short notice. Just as quickly as the message had been sent she was responding with a simple “okay.” Presley couldn’t tell if the shortness meant she was in for a long week once she returned to work but refused to think about it. All she cared about was making amends and enjoying her time off. She all but ran to her apartment and before the door was even fully unlocked, she was eagerly calling out. “Rashad? Baby, I’m so sorry.”
She didn’t expect him to match her eagerness but she also wasn’t expecting to be met with complete silence. She at least thought he’d ask what she was doing back home but he said nothing. That’s when she realized the apartment was empty. He was gone and while she hoped he’d stepped out temporarily for whatever reason, his missing suitcase confirmed he wouldn’t be back.
