Murder She Wrote

"Watch here now, it name
Pretty face and bad character
Them the kind of livin can't hold Chaka (follow me!)
Ah pretty face and bad character
Them there kind of livin can't hold Chaka
Say say you pretty
Your face, it pretty
But yuh character dirty
Girl you just act too flirty flirty
You run to Tom, Dick, an also Harry
An when you find your mistake
You talk 'bout you're sorry, sorry, sorry (Come now!)... 
I know this little girl, her name is Maxine
Her beauty is like a bunch of rose
If I ever tell you 'bout Maxine
You would of say I don't know what I know (but)
Murder she wrote (x4)" Murder She Wrote by Chaka Demus & Pliers


"Your best friend just got engaged..."

I dissected Trevor's words in my head over and over again.

I watched as Rocky nodded, holding out her shaking left hand. Brandon slipped the ring on her finger, smiling broadly. Rocky grabbed his face in her hands and kissed him passionately as everyone cheered and applauded.

best friend...

My beautiful, domineering, brutally honest, right fighting, confrontational best friend couldn't even tell me the truth.

How could she think any of this was okay?

Rocky still hadn't spoke, even as her mom pulled her hand away to examine the ring. She was speechless. I was too, but probably for a completely different reason.

...just got engaged.

They just agreed to get married; To vow to love, honor, comfort and keep each other. Forsaking all others for the rest of their life. How could she agree to that? How could she make that promise after what she did? I grabbed Trevor's rum runner and finished it in one gulp.

"Lily." Trevor whispered to me, tightening his grip on my waist.

I sent Trevor an evil glance. He immediately loosened his grip on my waist. I was in kill mode and was 2 seconds away from grinding my booties into his foot in anger. Then, he gave me that pleading look and I got lost in his deep blue eyes. They instantly quelled the storm of emotions raging through me and I took a deep breath.

"I know it's fucked up, but I need you to stay calm Lilypad." Trevor whispered against my ear. I nodded, my face relaxing.

The fact that Trevor cursed let me know he felt as strongly about it as I did, but causing a scene wasn't the way to handle the situation. I needed to calm down.

"I will. I promise." I returned, grabbing his hand that was holding my waist. I forced a smile on my face.

Everyone was finished eating and champagne and desserts were being ordered to celebrate. I declined on dessert as I made my way out the booth. As Rocky's best friend, I needed to be one of the first to congratulate them on their engagement. I dragged Trevor with me.

Mrs. Carter was pulling away from hugging Rocky when I approached them.

"You're engaged!?!" I exclaimed, giving Rocky a hug. Surprised was the most appropriate emotion that I was feeling at the moment. I decided to roll with it.

"I'm engaged!" Rocky confirmed, smiling when I pulled away. Trevor cleared his throat and Rocky's eyes shifted to him, her smile weakening.

 "Congratulations you two." Trevor said, shaking Brandon's hand before we switched places. I noticed a brief, awkward moment before Trevor went in to hug Rocky. I turned my attention on Brandon, hoping he didn't catch that.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I asked, giving him a hug.

"We both know you would have told Rocky." Brandon said, flashing a million watt smile. He was gleefully ignorant. I was envious of that. I just wanted to be that happy for them too.  A part of me wished I didn't know the truth.

"We don't know that..." I argued. Honestly, I didn't know what I would have done.

Sabotage came to mind...

"You would have. You know how much she hates surprises. Your loyalty to Rocky would have compelled you." Brandon playfully argued.

"By loyalty, you mean fear of her wrath?" Trevor joked, lightly.

Brandon laughed and I laughed nervously as well. I could tell Rocky was forcing a smile.

"Let me see the ring!" I exclaimed, moving Trevor aside to grab her hand.

"Oh wow, that's gorgeous." I complimented her.

"Thank you. I love it." Rocky said, staring down at her ring in awe. Trevor cleared his throat again, causing Rocky to look up at him.

"You did good Brandon. Are you taking notes Trevor?"  I said, nudging Trevor before it got awkward again.

"Yeah Brandon. Great job." Trevor said, mockingly.

Brandon laughed, good-naturedly. "I want nothing to do with that."

Mostly everyone lined up behind us to congratulate the couple, so we moved out the way. I pulled Trevor aside before we went back to our table.

"What the hell was that?" I hissed at him.

"What do you mean?" Trevor asked, confused.

"You cleared your throat every time Rocky spoke!" I told him.

"I did?"

"Yes, it was so obvious."

"I didn't mean to." Trevor said, apologetically.

"Well, pull it together." I coached him.

"I will. I'll be right back." Trevor said.

"Where are you going?" I asked him, frustrated.

"I have to call Bilal before he finds out another way." Trevor said, softly.

I nodded, disheartened. I forgot about that piece of this fucked up puzzle.

After he went outside, I made my way to the booth. Jake, Kelly, Omar, Jasmine and Malik moved to the booth to make room for everyone to speak to Rocky and Brandon. I sat next to Jasmine on the end of the booth.

"Did you know?" Jasmine asked me.

"I had no idea." I shook my head. I turned to Jake, who was sitting next to Malik across from Jasmine. "Can you pass me my drink?" I asked. When he did, I thanked him. He nodded in response.

I sipped my drink while everyone talked about the engagement. Ethan and Serena joined us as well.

"You ok Lily?" Ethan asked me as they sat down.

I nodded, straw still in my mouth.

"You're so quiet." He remarked.

I tried to take a long sip of my drink, but the loud slurping alerted me that the drink was empty. I blushed, embarrassed.

I pushed the drink away. "I think I'm still in shock, that's all."

"Is it that much of a shock?  They live together." Jasmine smiled at me.

"I know, but still..." I said, weakly.

"I think I know what it is." Amber said.

I gulped. Maybe she did know! Will cheated enough before they got married, maybe she saw the signs...

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll be next." Amber smiled at me.

I breathed a sigh of relief. When Ethan eyed me curiously, I flashed a smile.

"That's it. I'm so jealous. It should have been me." I said, neutrally.

Truthfully, Amber's accusation was a great cover up. I would go with jealousy if anyone questioned my lack of excitement over the upcoming nuptials.

"Really? Y'all have only been dating 4 months." Kelly questioned.

"Yeah, but they've been in love with each other forever and just didn't know. I bet it'll happen sometime this year." Amber teased me.

"The wedding?" Trevor asked, rejoining us.

"Nope, your proposal." I smiled at him as he sat beside me.

"I propose more drinks." Trevor putting his arm around me. I laughed at him.

Jake and Malik offered to go get a round of drinks for everyone. I declined, especially when Sammy made a comment about how I killed the rest of the drink. I didn't even notice how much was in it when I started drinking, but I was definitely feeling buzzed. Sammy agreed to dance off some of the alcohol with me. We left Corey and Trevor together when they decided they would rather watch us dance with each other.

We had a blast dancing to a great mix of Sean Paul, Beenie Man, and Bob Marley. Sammy and I both had dancehall moves; I learned from watching music videos, especially Rihanna. The engagement was the furthest thing from my mind as we bounced to the beat. The only time I even looked at our group was when I met Trevor's eyes. One of the advantage of a day party was that there was actually light in the lounge. I could tell Trevor really was watching me dance as he talked to Chris and Corey.

Every time I caught him watching, I would grind against Sammy. The way he grinned at me let me know he was enjoying the show. I smiled as I remembered how he said sex was the way to get a ring from him. I knew without a doubt I would be working on a ring that night!

"What's so funny?" Sammy asked me over the music as we danced.

"Nothing." I chuckled back. "I think I'm ready for another drink."

Sammy nodded and we made our way over to the bar. I caught Trevor's eyes again and pointed to the bar, signaling where we were going. He nodded in understanding.

At the bar, I went for a calypso and Sammy switched from liquor to wine. She told me she tried to stay sober since she knew Corey wasn't a fan when she got too drunk. I told her my drink would probably be my last since I had to work in the morning.

As I sipped the drink, I felt arms engulf me. I sank into the embrace, automatically assuming it was Trevor. I quickly knew I was wrong when I felt arms too muscular to be Trevor and Sammy gave me a wide-eyed stare. I pulled out of the arms and whipped around, ready to tell whoever it was off.

Christian threw his hands up in surrender. "Don't kill me!" He said, with a grin.

I laughed and gave him a hug. "You were this close to getting told off!" I smiled when I pulled away.

"I can tell." He said, settling next to me at the bar.

"Sammy, you remember Christian right?" I reintroduced them.

"I do. Don't you live in California?" Sammy asked, sipping her wine.

"Good memory. I fly back tomorrow." Christian explained.

"You have great timing. Rocky just got engaged!" I informed him, with as much cheerfulness I could muster.

"You're shitting me." Christian said.

"I shit you not. C'mon. She's gonna be excited to see you!" I said, grabbing his arm. He nodded and we decided to cut across the dance floor to head back to the tables. On our way, the DJ started playing a mixture of "Freaks" by French Montana and Nicky Minaj with the song it sampled, "Murder She Wrote" by Chaka Demus & Pliers.

The crowd went crazy, girls started dutty wining and flipping their hair all over the place.

I tried to follow Sammy as she cut through the dancing bodies, but Christian stopped me, grabbing my arm.

"Come dance with me." He requested.

"No, we need to go to the table." I shook my head.

"One dance. C'mon. I'll show you how to wine." He bargained.

"I know how to wine!" I corrected him.

He grabbed my drink from me. "I'll believe it when I see it."

The challenge and the beat left me no option: I started dutty wining with him. Christian was always an amazing dancer. I was happy that even though he picked up some muscle, his dancing abilities hadn't changed. I was even happier I was able to keep up with him. I rotated my hips in perfect rhythm to the music and against him. I even threw in a few hair flips for fun. When the song was over, I grabbed my drink back from him and we made our way to the table.

"Damn, I didn't know you had moves like that." Christian complimented me as we walked.

"I think I'm kinda offended by that. Why wouldn't I?" I asked, with a smirk.

"I never saw them in college."

"I was studious and focused. I didn't have time for partying and dutty wining." I smiled.

I took him to the booth first to say hello to everyone. Trevor promptly took my drink away from me. I looked at it: it was half full. I didn't remember drinking that much so he was right to take it away. That was a sign I needed to stop if I didn't remember drinking it.

I then took Christian over to Rocky and Brandon. They were cuddled up together, talking to Rachel, Forrest, Amber and Will with their family surrounding them.

"Look who stopped by..." I announced Christian as he smiled.

Rocky looked so surprised. "Christian? You came out for my birthday?" She asked, standing up to give him a hug.

"I was in Austin for SXSW. I wanted to visit some friends before I leave. I'm glad I did. I hear congratulations are in order?" He said, hugging her back.

Rocky lit up with a dazzling smile. "Yes. I just got engaged. Let me introduce you to my fiance." She said, turning to Brandon.

I don't think I ever saw her so ecstatic. It put me at ease and I relaxed. I couldn't have negative thoughts when my best friend was so happy. It was infectious. I went ahead and sat down at the end of the table by Serena.

Christian shook hands and congratulated Brandon before he sat beside me.

"Did Ethan and Jackie ever hook up?" Serena asked me quietly.

I made a face. "No, she tried. Why?"

"Because she's still trying." Serena muttered.

"Urgh, I'll talk to her. I thought she was dating someone." I said, looking for Malik.

"Don't worry. I can handle her." Serena said, a determined look on her face.

I still looked around for Malik. I didn't see him, but I did see Jake standing off to himself, over looking the dance floor. I excused myself to join him.

"Hey." I greeted him, standing beside him.

"Hey." He returned.

"Where's Malik? I think Jackie had too much to drink." I asked.

"Malik and Jackie aren't dating anymore." Jake informed me.

"Really? Since when?" I asked, confused.

"A few months." He answered, shortly.

"Ok..." I nodded. "Did Brandon give you the gift I bought you from Japan?" I asked.

"He did. Thanks." Jake said.

I studied him. "Are you ok?" I asked him.

"I'm good." He answered.

"Ok..." I trailed off, turning to leave.

"Lily?" He called me back. When I turned back, he shook his head. "Nothing. Take care."

I started to question him to find out what he was going to say, but I left it alone. If he thought better of it, I agreed.

"You take care too Jake. In fact, I'll let the money you owe me slide if you promise no strippers at Brandon's bachelor party." I smiled.

He pulled out his wallet and handed me a $20 dollar bill. "I can't make that promise. Besides, from what I heard, I should be worried about you hiring a stripper that looks like me."

I laughed and took the money from him. "I forgot about that guy. This 20 might be going in his g-string tonight!"

"That's between you and Trevor."

"Not if you can keep a secret." I said, holding my finger to my lips.

He pretended like he was zipping his mouth shut and smiled, revealing his dimples. I smiled back and joined Trevor. He offered me a seat on his lap and I quickly accepted.

I watched from a distance as Serena shut down any attempts of Jackie trying to flirt with Ethan. She handled Jackie like a pro with withering stares every time she addressed Ethan. It was hilarious to watch. Serena broke into a smile when she saw me laughing at Jackie. Jackie sent us both a glare before she made her way over to Jake. After Jake ignored her, I decided to do the same.

Everyone slowly started leaving around 8pm. Amber and Will left first. After Jackie struck out with Jake, she decided to be overly friendly with Will. Instead of confronting her like she should have, Amber made Will take them home.

I said goodbye to the Carters as Brandon and Ethan went to walk them out shortly after Amber left. I made a quick trip to the bathroom before Trevor, Corey, Sammy and I joined everyone at the main table. I missed saying goodbye to Forrest, Rachel and Serena as they left while I was in the restroom.

The table was discussing wedding ideas.

"Considering you got engaged at a reggae party, it should be in Jamaica." Christian suggested, turning away from Jackie who had found her way back to the table and next to him.

Brandon smiled. "I love that idea."

"Who's got the time and money to fly everyone out to Jamaica?" Mama Smith cut in.

"Mama, it won't be tomorrow. There will be plenty of time. It's just an idea." Rocky said, defensively.

"Well, I don't like it. Excuse me." Mama Smith said, leaving the table.

Rocky gave everyone an apologetic smile.

"Did I just start something?" Christian asked, returning her smile.

"No, that's just how she is unless she made the suggestion." Ramon assured him.

"Wherever we go, I hope she doesn't bring that attitude." Brandon shook his head.

"She might, but the only thing that matters is you and me." Rocky added.

"You're right." Brandon leaned over to give her a kiss. I smiled a genuine smile as they kissed. Love radiated between them, I couldn't deny that. Maybe that was enough...

"I still say Jamaica..." Christian said, before smiling at me. "How you gonna be mad on vacation?"

"Dutty wine around all them Jamaicans!" I finished the lyric.

Christian laughed. "I thought I would stump you on that one."

"You can't try me on Kanye West lyrics. I know them all." I boasted. Trevor's arm tightened around me and I squirmed in his grip.

As everyone continued to file out, I stayed and listened to them chat more about wedding plans. By now, I was actually interested, not just playing the role of best friend. The remainder of us left together and I gave Brandon and Rocky one final hug.

When we got back to my apartment, we went up to my room. I immediately asked him how Bilal was taking the engagement.

"He's ok. I think he made his peace with Rocky when she cut him off. He just wants to move on." Trevor responded.

"Good, that's probably the best thing for everyone: just forgetting it ever happened." I nodded

Trevor stopped and stared at me. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, we don't know what all happened-" I started.

"Yeah, we do. She cheated." Trevor said.

"We know that, but we don't know how it happened." I argued.

"Why does it matter?" He questioned. "It happened."

"Obviously, she regrets it. She cut Bilal off. Marriage could be like a brand new start for them." I explained.

"Please tell me you're doing that fake positive shit again."

When I just stood there, he looked at me, incredulously.

"Lily, are you drunk? She cheated! It's not a brand new start. It's lying. How is that ok?"

"I'm not saying it's ok-"

"Then what are you saying?"

"I don't think she's going to do it again." I defended Rocky.

"She should have never cheated at all." Trevor argued.

"I get that, but not everything is black and white. She's happy and he's happy; they're moving forward and they love each other. Isn't that enough?" I questioned.

Trevor stared at me for a long moment, before looking away.

"Let's just go to sleep." Trevor said, laying down on the bed.

I joined him wearing just my bra and panties. I got under the covers, but he didn't.

"Do you want some covers?" I asked.

"No, I'm ok." He answered, putting an arm around me. I sighed and closed my eyes, forcing myself to go to sleep. The positivity and the love I was feeling from the party were dead. I killed them the second I brought up the engagement.