Best On Best

by Kizzie Kollins

I didn’t know how to ask for help without thinking it would make me look weak.

“You can walk out of here or you can be carried out.”

Keegan closed the rest of the space between them. “I know this ain’t what you want. I can see the bitch tendencies all in you.”

“Fuck you and her, alright?” “Alright.” Keegan nudged his head toward the door. “Talk all the shit you want on your out.”

“Yeah, I hear you, but if he keeps giving you issues and you don’t tell me, you and me will have some problems, alright?”

“You think I’m special?” I teased her back and even in the dark I knew that she’d rolled her eyes. “Of course I do,” she said simply. The way she said it as if it was a fact that I should have just known made me let out a deep exhale and deflate into calm.

“If I’m not sleeping with anyone else, I don’t want you dating either.”

And when did she say she liked you like that?

“I’m competitive and I’d hate for you to see what I’d do to anyone that tried to compete with me for your attention.”

“You can cheer for whoever you want, Nour, but you’re not doing it in that jersey.”

“Now, go change.” He offered the shirt to me. “I’m not moving from this spot until you’re no longer wearing the last name of another man.”

“Leif, I do not need your old gang buddies threatening Keegan.” “Yeah, well they should have threatened Marcel’s little ass so we’ll be sure to get it right this time.”

“I’ve let it go. You should let it go.” “Fuck that. There’s no expiration date on disrespect,”

“Is that you lying because you don’t want to answer the question or should I be concerned that a man that you aren’t dating is coming down the bleachers mid-game and making you change your shirt?” He gestured to my jersey. “Yeah, girl. You may not be dating Keegan, but he’s definitely dating you,” Nicki said simply.

He whistled and I rolled my eyes but looked back at him as he trudged behind me. “You look good wearing my last name.” He licked his lips and I could have sworn I melted.

“I’ll be here as long as it takes you to decide, and if you decide you don’t want to keep me, I’ll be waiting in the wings in case you change your mind.”

“I’d do a lot more to make sure you never had second thoughts about this, about us,”

“There’s an us?” I teased. “Yeah,” he said seriously. “There is.”

“That journey can take a few months or years or hell, maybe we’ll fall into each other later tonight, but regardless of how long the journey is, at the end of it is me and you, Nour. Nothing and nobody else will do it for me.”

“But just remember that you can’t love him all better, okay?”

“You belong on this dick just like this, gripping and soaking it.”

“If I get your purity ring, it only makes sense that I replace it,” he said simply.

He’d put my purity ring on a chain and was wearing it around his neck.

He was hindering her healing journey and if he didn’t want me to hinder his living journey, I was going to need him to cut his losses.

I gravitated toward her without a thought or choice.

I didn’t like the thought of Keegan coming off of a low brought on by memories of his first love and using me like a Band-Aid.

“And I don’t care what you think I need. What I really need is for you to not put yourself last for me.”