Suds – Season 1, Episode 19

… a mini soap opera that bubbles with Love & Drama

[Last time on Suds... oh oh, spaghetti o’s… There was a major incident involving a defective condom and Mira and Sylus that swirled our HIV advocate into a painful panic. Can you imagine something more dreadful than an unplanned pregnancy or a curable STD? I can, and I’m in excruciating pain just thinking about the horrid possibility!

On the more lovey-dovey side of things, Darien and Leilah are sooo cute together… let’s take a break to soak in the mushiness…awwww. But when Shantel finds out that they ARE still together in spite of the impossibility… well, who knows what will happen next? I do … sort of :o) And if you stay tuned, you will too!]

Mira tugged the roots of her hair. She closed her eyes to concentrate, blocking out his rant. Fishing through her memory, she searched for recent rumors of Sylus, but couldn’t find any. God, please don’t let this be happening. Not to me. Her eyes swelled up with tears. Please, don’t let this be happening.

She heard his boots stomp toward her front door. He slammed it shut.

Relax, she thought. Just relax. What are the chances?
~~
Shantel stayed in the bathroom another fifteen minutes before flushing the toilet to complete her ruse. She picked up her bag, turned off the light, and opened the door. Terrance stood in the doorway.

“Terrance,” she screamed, dropping her purse. Her contents scattered across the floor. Shantel gripped her heart to soothe the furious pounding.
“Why are you so jumpy?” He asked through a stern mask.
“I don’t know, maybe because you’re lurking at the door like a knife-wielding psycho,” she screamed. “What is wrong with you?” Her hands shook as she clambered to gather her items. Frazzled and discombobulated, Shantel dropped the items back into her purse and stood.

“Why did you take your purse in the bathroom?”
“Why did I take my purse into the bathroom,” she repeated as she thought quickly. “What kind of a question is that?” Shantel pushed herself to become angry, and pulled a tampon from her purse, then threw it at him. The tube-like package hit his chest and fell to the floor.

His stone face chipped away as he returned his gaze to hers apologetically. She cut her eyes, casting them away from his face. And when they returned, they were filled with angst. “How long do you think I am going to put up with this,” she growled. “I am not your ex-girlfriend, and I am not cheating on you.”
“Baby, I…”

Shantel cut him off as she pushed him out of her way and grabbed her boots. Sitting on his unmade bed, she forced her feet into her boots and zipped them up. “I can not believe that you have the audacity to mistrust me when just last night, you were cheesin all up in my trick roommate’s face. The same roommate that you ignored all my calls for because you were being mister knight in shining armor…”
“Baby,” he pleaded.
“Don’t baby me. Go, baby, that cow in the girl’s bathroom at the student center, and while you’re at it, question her about why she’s there,” she fumed as she shoved her hands into her jacket. Shantel turned dramatically to face him ensuring that her heels stomped to convey her wrath. Then her breath caught.

Terrance clutched her iPhone in his massive hands. His concerned facial expression morphed into a porous mask of hatred as he saw Darien’s name repeatedly listed in her call history. Instantly, she felt herself deflate.

“Get out,” Terrance said in an inaudible voice.
“Baby,” she whispered.
“Get out, Shantel,” his voice thundered, and then crackled into a stream of profanities.

Shantel grabbed her purse and fumbled toward the door, begging him to listen.
“Please, baby please, just let me explain…”

He grimaced when she reached the front door, gritting his teeth to fight back the rage.

Her hand trembled against the doorknob. Then she turned away from him, facing the door. Her mind raced. I can’t be alone. Don’t let me be alone. Please don’t let me be alone. She clawed at the wooden door, breaking her nails as she scratched. They bled. Please, no, I can’t be alone. Tears began steaming down her face like the river of loneliness she would soon come to face. Unable to bear the thought, Shantel pounded her head against the door, and wailed as her body collapsed to the floor.

Terrance nearly jumped to her side, but was grounded by the lucid memory of her betrayal. He stood still watching the tears flood over her face, and the swelling lump on her forehead. Torn between his desire to protect her and the impulse to further maim her, he screamed out in agony.

Clutching her ears, she cried, “just let me explain. Please, just let me explain.”

“Naw, Shantel. Just leave,” he said solemnly.
~~

Darien searched the lobby with his eyes as he exited the elevator with Leilah, carrying her large duffle bag.
“What’s wrong with you?” she asked.
“Nothing,” he said distracted.

They walked in silence until he hurled her bag into the trunk of his car. He opened the passenger door for her, but she didn’t move.
“You don’t have to do this,” she said. “I can drive myself.”
“No no, I want to. I gotta see my pops anyway.”

They stood in silence as Leilah looked for traces of uncertainty in his almond eyes. There were none. He focused in on her unspoken question and answered it with a gentle kiss. It lasted less than a moment, but sweltered with the promise of absolute certainty.

Leilah blushed.
“Ready?” he asked resting his forehead on hers.
She nodded, and slid into the seat.
Darien closed her door, scanning the area with his eyes as he walked around the car. Something jostled in the bushes less than twenty feet away. Standing with his door open, he stared at the bush as it shifted slightly with the breeze but otherwise remained undisturbed.
Darien got into his car and drove away.

When the car was out of sight, a disheveled Shantel emerged from behind the bush.

[Stay tuned: Dum, Dum, Dum…I know, I know, the suspense is killing me too!]