FULL CIRCLE

20.

🎶 Now playing: Know That You Are Loved by Cleo Sol.

"I need you to come bail me out."

~

Antonio sat quietly on the corner chair of Justine's room, watching silently as she dried her dripping curls with an old shirt. "Thank you, Ant. You're the one person I know I can count on."

Fetching Justine from jail and taking her back home was the last thing on his bingo cards. From the studio with Roman he was about to go back to Reign's apartment to check on her make sure she was okay, until Justine metaphorically sunk her claws into him once again.

Shaking his head in disagreement, he still stayed quiet with his gaze on her for her to start speaking. "Look, I was called in for questioning because there was some picture they had of me," she started, making Antonio tense up because the picture she was referring to could've only been the one Reign showed him.

"But because of AI, editing, all that stuff, they let me go seeing that they don't have tangible evidence."

"So how'd they arrest you?" Antonio queried.

"All because of hearsay, or some tip-off, I don't know. You bitches hate me out here..."

"Where were you when they caught you?" Antonio pestered once again with his body still slouched on the chair.

"The bar. Had a little too much to drink. I was outside throwing up when they arrested me, Antonio." She bluntly replied.

"And why didn't you call your homeboy Morris?"

Justine squinted her eyes, "You know your dad is a dangerous man right? Now what would he think if I'd called him from jail asking him to get me out? The only thing he'd think about is his money and operations and whether I'd snitched on his ass. Not me, anyone in his way... not even you. At this point he won't even hesitate to get rid of me."

One thing she knew how to do was say as little as possible, yet still make Antonio think he knew a lot.

Again, he nodded simply as he stood up to leave. His sourness came from the fact that he had to help someone who was sabotaging his life along with his own father. Justine's greed is what made him fail to sympathise... or so he thought. "Wait, Antonio..." she trailed off, pulling him by his forearm as tears welled up in her eyes.

"Justine come on now." He spoke, looking up at the ceiling because of the position he was being put in. He knew comforting her crocodile tears would be no good, but of course his good heart, and terrible self control when it came to her, would be to blame when he did. She went on about how hard life had been on her, how much burden she carried, and if it were all an act then Antonio would've fallen into her trap once again.

"I'm sorry for what I'm putting you through. If I could I would just up and leave, but I'm in too deep."

Her movement slowed down from her sobs as she cried hard with her head falling into his chest. Mentally arguing with himself resulted in his body losing the argument because his arms wrapped around her in comfort... comfort being something he hadn't felt in a while, which was also his greatest demise.

The morning after...

Shameful as ever, Antonio hurriedly put his shirt on before rushing out of Justine's house, heading straight to Roman.