Chapter 168
We hung around the open yard on the campus, walking over to the rows of stalls where food and beverages stalls. When it started to get dark, we decided to head back home and start preparing for tonight.
The Jones' and Johnson's were having a barbecue tonight at our house and Jerry should already be on his way with the kids.
When Jerry and the kids arrived, the smell of grilled food was already filling the air. We were sitting around a wooden picnic table that Dad built a year ago while the adults were busy grilled the food.
"Hey!" Jerry greeted as Mom let him through the glass door that led to the backyard.
Cali spotted us and her face lit up like a Christmas tree before she squealed and ran over to us. Pio, seeing her sister run, followed suit and tried to catch up. He had grown so fast, I kind of miss the tiny boy that couldn't even speak properly and waddled everywhere.
Cali dove straight into my arms and I sat her on my lap, hugging her close, as Adam caught a tripping Pio before he could fall on his face.
I giggled at Pio's clumsiness. That boy will never stop being cute.
"Congratulations on graduating, Case. I got something for you." Jerry said from behind me.
A wrapped gift box appeared before my eyes and I took it from Jerry.
"Thank you Jer, you didn't have to." I murmured softly, offered him a smile which he mirrored.
Jerry nodded, motioning to the gift, "Open it."
I let my attention wander back to the box and tried to opened it without ripping the wrapping paper since it's done so neatly.
When I finally got rid of the wrapping paper, I opened what looked like a jewelry box and gaped at what I saw.
It was a charm bracelet with 5 charms on it. There was a wing, a heart, a boxing glove and two circles with the letters "B" and "C" engraved on it.
"It's from all of us," Cali piped up and I smiled at her, kissing the top of her head before looking at the bracelet again.
"B for Bryant and C for Carla," Maddison explained.
My fingers traced the letters and smiled at the Jones' and Maddison.
"It's beautiful, thank you."
As the night passed and everyone finished eating, they all moved into the living room to watch some TV.
I sat down on the grass, still yearning to stay outside for a little longer.
Adam plopped down beside me and we both ended up laying down to stare up at the sky.
"What are you thinking about?" Adam asked as he linked our hands together while we looked up at the dark sky.
"Nothing." I answered him softly before muttering out, "Everything."
I sighed, probably confusing the heck out of Adam.
"Hey, don't stress," Adam chuckled as he pulled me close and pecked my forehead in an attempt to comfort me. My head rested on his chest and I draped my arm over his waist as I got comfortable.
"Have you ever wondered what it'd be like if we never exposed Dom as the psychopath that he is?" I asked Adam quietly.
"His parents wouldn't be going through all the shit feelings they're probably feeling," I muttered, feeling like maybe I should've found another alternative to sort things out with Dom.
"Case, that guy is a nutcase. He needed professional help and it was either getting him locked up in a cell or a mental ward. You did the right thing, love." Adam reassured me, caressing my head as he tucked me closer to his side.
After I successfully quit fighting, I exposed Dom to his family and mine for what he'd done. It took a lot of convincing before they finally believed me. I knew that it would be hard for both families to process but I didn't see any other way to do things civilly. As far as I was concerned, Dom was a psycho on the loose.
I resorted to riling Dom up in front of our families, knowing that he was far from being emotionally or mentally stable.
He lost it after half an hour of endless yelling battle and threw a glass vase in my direction, missing me by a few inches. After the glass vase broke, he finally confessed murdering Bryant in a fit of rage because, and I quote, ‘he wouldn't let us be happy together, so he needed to be gone'.
I caught it all on camera for legal evidence and my parents saw to it that Dom was either behind bars or in a mental ward.
The man was dangerous to the people around him.
After Dom was locked up, I guess the police force started sniffing around and the gangs that were involved didn't stick around long after that. It was as if they vanished into thin air.
Some days, I'd get the paranoid feeling of being watched by one of the gangs but I knew that it was just me. I was a normal girl who didn't have a certain significance in the world. It simply wouldn't make sense if the gangs risked their empire for someone like me.
Trying to shake the depressing thoughts away, I decided to think about happier things.
