Chapter 57 At His Worst

Chapter 57 At His Worst
Sloane’s POV

“Sloane?” Brenda called out my name, loudly, snapping me out of whatever haze I’d fallen into. I refused to believe the words she just said.

“Brenda, can you please come again? I don’t think I heard you the first time.”

“Yes, dear, I understand that it can be hard to process, but you heard everything I said.”

I shook my head no.

“Just say it again, please.” I begged as tears began to slide down my eyes.

“I said that while they were running some tests to confirm if Malik was fit to return to the court, they found some traces of anabolic steroids in his blood.”

“So basically, they are trying to say that he’s a druggie?”

“Sloane, this is not time for any of that. This is time for you to go and get him. We need to get to the bottom of this and the bottom of everything happening because none of this makes sense to me.” 

I did not even realize it when I ended the call on Brenda, ran to stand right in front of the gym and began to knock loudly.

My knuckles hurt, but I had to get him out of there.

When the loud sounds of the grunting stopped and I heard the sound of the door knob getting twisted, excitement coursed through my veins. I was not prepared for the man that appeared in front of me.

Gone was the Malik I knew and present was a man I could not recognize. His knuckles were busted up and his clothes were soiled with blood. 

“What?” 

The tears fell from my eyes even more. Did he just have a manic episode? Did he just….?

“Malik, we need to talk.” I muttered. Back in school, we were taught that it was wrong on all levels to try to have a conversation with someone who had just had an episode. It was best to leave them be because trying to strike up a conversation with them could trigger certain memories and they would act out again.

“There’s nothing to talk about, Sloane. Go to your room and let me go to mine.” He turned around to walk away but I grabbed one of his forearms with one of mine so that he turned around and stared at me. 

“Brenda wants to see you.” I muttered. He observed me for a while, hissed and walked past me making his way downstairs before he went to the bar.

“Malik, please don’t drink.” I ran in front of him, trying to prevent him from taking a bottle, but my small frame had nothing over his big one. He grabbed a bottle of rum, raked his fingers through his taper fade and sat on the floor.

I sat there with him, watching him. He sniffed in a couple of times before I noticed that his face was wet. He was crying. My heart broke into a million pieces.

“All I’ve wanted in this stupid life was to be loved by someone. Without the money and all the fame, I’ve always wanted someone to come home and tell how the day went. She never loved me. Even when I took care of her, she never cared.” He cried out. All I could do was sit there and watch him.

“But you know that regardless of all these things, she still loves you so much?”

“No, she doesn’t.”

“Why would she join them to say those mean things about me? She never cared about my diagnosis, wrote it off like it was nothing while I still took care of her. This dream of hooping had been for her. I’ve hoped that one day, she would come to realize it, but that day may never come.” He threw his head back, leaning against the wall.

I flattened my palm in front of him so he could put his big hands on top of it. I stared at his bloody knuckles and had to stop myself from crying. This really was the reality of athletes.

“I know that all of this is a lot to take in, but Malik, I promise you one thing.” I said to him, looking him right in the eyes. “Whatever happens, I’ll be here for you.” His grip on my hand tightened and I did not even realize it when he was pulling me on top of him and kissing me, all of the memories from the day I outrightly rejected him out the window.

When the kiss was over, he pressed his forehead against mine.

“Do you promise that,” he licked his lips like he could not seem to produce the words. “when the worst information about me is out there, you’ll be with me through it all. Promise that you won't leave me.” He begged, his voice quite shaky. 

“I promise to stick around.” I said even though I knew that sooner or later, this relationship would end.

“You said Brenda wanted to see me. Will you come with me?” He smiled a little and it warmed my heart.

When I remembered Brenda’s reason for calling, my heart shattered into a million and one pieces. I was hurting for him. I used to hate Malik so much and wanted out of this fake relationship because I could not keep up with the lifestyle, but I’d come to realize that he was just a human being like me who had his flaws.

“Yes, I will come with you, but before we leave, we have to clean up all of this mess. It looks like a bloodbath.” I said, getting up so that he followed behind me.

It was going to be one hell of a day.