End Of Time

Here's the first chapter to my new project. This is unedited and subject to change. Enjoy Tribe ❤

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Chapter One

Karin silently battled an intense bout of anxiety that caused her heart to pump wildly. She sat in the back seat of the vintage Rolls Royce, gazing out the window, while trying to talk her mind into being overjoyed. This was a day she had dreamt of. One that she’d written down every single detail of how it would play out back when she was a little girl. This moment was what she prayed for, yet the nervousness setting up shop inside her body created an unsettling feeling she couldn’t shake off.

“How are you, my dear?”

Karin turned to her right and peered at her father, Wallace. He was every bit of an upstanding man. He had been a perfect example of what a man was made of, and she desired that in her life. Since childhood, she declared that her future husband would have to possess the same qualities as her father.

“I'm… nervous,” she admitted.

He simpered. “I was just like this when I married your mother. I had the bubble guts and everything.”

She chuckled. “I bet. I feel like I should be happier, but I can’t relax. Is something wrong? Tell me if that’s normal.”

He placed his hand on her leg while shaking his head.

“Yes, my dear. This is normal behavior for a day like today. Your life is about to change, and I couldn’t be more pleased with who you have chosen to share it with. Zyair is a man of great character, and I think you two are going to make a beautiful couple.”

Karin’s eyes traveled down to her feet which were propped in a pair of YSL sandals. Although she was elated to be entering into territory she’d always fantasized about, there was still this small piece of her that wondered if she was making the right decision. A year ago, she never imagined herself being in this moment. Now that it was happening, she didn’t know if she should be excited or cautious about this new experience.

“You're right. Today is one that I will forever hold in my heart. Thank you for being here.”

Wallace leaned over and graced her temple with a chaste kiss.

“No need to thank me. I’m your father, and I’ll forever show up for you. Whether you're in trouble or not, Daddy will always be by your side.”

Karin intertwined her fingers with Wallace’s in an effort to soothe her raging nerves. After ten minutes, they’d finally arrived at the Diamond Falls Conservatory. If she hadn’t been nervous before, she was extremely anxiety ridden now.

“Alright, Karin. Are you ready?”

She nodded, gulping down a deep breath. “I am.”

Karin’s voice quivered, making her doubt herself. Wallace exited the car first, and then helped her out the backseat. When she stood, her legs wobbled while trying to regulate her heart rate. She couldn’t remember ever being this nervous in her life. Karin had always been sure. Each decision she made had been thought over numerous times before making a choice. Marrying her fiancé was something she didn’t have to think of. So why was she so troubled? All she wanted was happiness and Zyair gave her that with ease. Still, there was this bubbling sensation in the pit of her stomach, alerting her that something was off.

“I'm with you every step of the way,” Wallace assured her.

Nodding, she released a heavy breath. “Okay.”

The sun beamed brightly across her skin with not one cloud in the sky. It was the perfect day to become one with her man in front of their family and friends. Wallace held his arm out and Karin linked her arm within his. They began to trek toward the church as chill bumps developed on her skin. Each step felt like it weighed two tons as they neared the door.

“What’s up, bae?”

Karin froze in her stride. Her eyes widened while her round, thick lips parted. That voice would forever have power over her. She would never be able to rid herself of the effect that man possessed over her. It was almost like having a disease with no cure. He had permanently left a mark on her that rocked her core.

Wallace was the first to spin around. Karin’s heels were still cemented in the same position she had been in. Turning around would confirm too much that she wasn’t ready to face. She would have to battle everything she tried so desperately to leave behind. It was a fight she wasn’t prepared for. One she would lose if she wasn’t careful with how she handled the situation.

“What the hell are you doing here?” her father boomed.

Hesitantly, Karin rotated on her heels and finally accepted her reality. Worth stared at her with those big, brown eyes she’d loved from the moment they met. She hated him for being here. Only because he knew the influence, he had on her. His tall stature stood confidently with his head slightly tilted. His honey, blonde locs hung loosely while he cupped his hands in front of his pelvis. Everything about Worth screamed caution. He was a do-not-enter sign. A red flag that alerted her he would never be any good to her. However, Karin had purposely ignored the signs and fell into him face first with no one to save her except herself.

“Answer me, boy! Why are you here at my daughter’s wedding!” Wallace bellowed.

Worth’s eyes peeled away from Karin and landed on him.

“Fuck you calling boy?” he asked in an even tone.

Wallace began to advance toward Worth, but Karin grabbed his arm.

“Daddy, no. Please don’t do this.”

“Hell no! He got some nerve showing up here uninvited. Go back wherever your lowlife ass was at. You ain't welcome here or in my daughter’s life.”

Worth grinned and Karin almost melted in her wedding dress. She hated the way her body betrayed her whenever he was in her presence. She wanted to hate him, stay far away and never speak to him again. Except, when Worth was within a few feet, she couldn’t help

but succumb to his commanding existence.

“Karin, you better tell your old man to chill before I get in his ass. You know I ain't got no sense, bae.”

“You make me chill!” Wallace dared as spit flew out his mouth.

“Worth please,” she begged. “Don’t do this. It’s a very important day for me and I need you not to mess this up.”

He smirked, shaking his head. “Important day? Yeah, fucking right, sweetheart. You don’t think I'm about to let you get married to another nigga, right?”

Wallace snorted. “You don’t have no got damn choice. She don’t want your toxic ass anymore. Let her be!”

“Karin this your last warning to get his ass,” Worth cautioned, placing his hands behind his back.

“Daddy, just relax. I'm going to go talk to him.”

“You don’t need to talk to him. As a matter of fact, I'm calling the police.”

“No, no,” she beseeched, holding his forearm. “I swear he’ll leave once I talk to him.”

Wallace huffed and puffed while shooting daggers at Worth. Karin hiked up her dress and stepped closer to where Worth stood. Immediately, she regretted that action. The warm tones of his cologne comforted her in ways that she felt guilty for. Her eyes zoomed in on the tattoo of her name right above his left eyebrow. He’d done it early on in their relationship to prove how loyal he was to her. Worth’s loyalty had never been in question for Karin. It was the other shit she couldn’t deal with.

“This is my wedding day,” she hissed. “You have to go now.”

One side of his mouth tugged into a smirk. “Now why would I do that when you're my bitch, Karin?”

“Are you serious?” she gritted. “You leave me for a year and now you pop back up expecting me to just oblige your demands? I don’t think so. That's not how life works, especially with me.”

He sucked his teeth. “You said all that shit for nothing. I don’t give a fuck what kind of speech you give me, I ain't leaving here without you.”

Karin glanced back and noticed her father wasn’t there anymore. She returned her stare on Worth, who was studying her like a student preparing for a test.

“You can’t do this. I don’t belong to you anymore. Just let me be happy, Worth. I'm good where I am now. You have to let go.”

Worth leaned back on the car with his leg propped up on the bumper.

“I told you what it was. You keep saying the same shit and I keep telling you I'm not trying to hear it. Let’s go, Karin.”

She gawked at him, not believing how much audacity he had right now.

“Absolutely not. Go where the hell you’ve been for the last year. How dare you try to crash my wedding and make commands! You must've lost your damn mind.”

Worth dragged his teeth across his bottom lip. It was another gesture that provoked her heart to palpitate without notice.

“When it comes to you, my mind been gone, and you know that. I’ll go to all kinds of measures for you, bae. Why you act like you new to this shit?”

Karin opened her mouth to speak but was silenced when she heard clamoring behind her. She turned around as people emerged from the conservatory. Her fiancé, Zyair, wore a glower as he jogged down the small set of stairs. His black tux was tailored to his athletic frame as the diamonds in his ear glistened brightly. Karin despised how Worth had taken away her moment to be breathless once her eyes landed at the altar on Zyair. She wanted her tears to fall as reality set in that she would be his wife in a matter of minutes. Yet, that moment was gone, and she hated Worth for that.

Zyair forged ahead at lightning speed, causing Karin to step aside since she didn’t want to be in his way. He approached Worth as they stood toe-to-toe. Worth’s facial expression was smug as Zyair continued to scowl at him. Karin’s limbs shook as she anticipated how this encounter would play out between them.

“Fuck is you doing here, nigga?” Zyair interrogated.

“I'm here to collect my bitch.” Worth smirked.

Karin cringed on the inside, bracing herself for the unknown. Worth had a way of saying something with so much conviction that people couldn’t help but get in line with his demands.

“Your bitch?” Zyair scoffed, then looked at Karin. “You been fucking with this nigga?”

Quickly, she shook her head. “No-no, I haven’t.”

Zyair returned his attention on Worth. “Man get your ass on. You ain't got no bitch here, my nigga. Move the fuck around before I have your ass laid the fuck out.”

Before Karin could process it, Worth pulled out his gun and pointed it at Zyair’s head. The crowd began gasping as Zyair’s jaw clenched.

“The fuck!” Zyair’s cousin yelled, making his way toward him.

“I'm good, Mo.” Zyair assured him. “This nigga ain't about shit.”

Worth’s eyelids shrunk as his irises darkened. “You got a lot of mouth, my boy. You think I won’t murk your ass on your wedding day?”

“Worth don’t!” she implored with her hands held out. “Don’t do this right now.”

“Nah, let that nigga pull it so his ass can go to jail,” Zyair urged.

Worth’s thin brows rumpled. “You think I give a fuck about jail? Nigga that's the least of my worries. Karin, you better school this nigga on who I am before this trigger get pulled.”

“Okay, okay, Worth. Don’t do this. I’ll do whatever. Just put the gun down.”

Karin knew what Worth was capable of. He wasn’t a man of reasonable words. He was an action guy. He did things before anyone could think. She’d witnessed him do some of the most traumatic things to people without a flinch. Karin was certain he would kill Zyair and she didn’t want his blood on her hands.

“The police are on the way,” Wallace announced.

Karin’s mother, Darla, ran up to her. “Get this bastard out of here right now. He's destroying your big day.”

“I'm trying,” she snapped. “Worth, come on. Please, I'm begging you.”

“You come with me right now and I’ll let this nigga breathe,” Worth proposed.

“Nah pull the trigger,” Zyair challenged him. “You think I'm scared of you mothafucka?”

Worth cocked the gun, propelling Karin to run over and grab his arm.

“Okay, I’ll go. Just put the gun down.”

Zyair cut his eyes at her. “You bet’ not, Karin.”

“I have to do this in order to save you. You don’t know what he’s capable of,” she explained.

“Karin, you are not going anywhere with him!” Wallace exploded.

“Y’all please!” she yelled. “Let me handle this.”

Worth grinned as he lowered the gun. “This was fun. Karin let’s go.”

He began his stride back to his car as Zyair burned a hole into Karin with his eyes.

“If you go with this nigga, shit will never be the same between us.”

She gulped back the regret creeping up her throat. This wasn’t a good look. Karin was leaving with her ex on her wedding day. This had to be the most chaotic ceremony in the history of marriages. However, she was the only person who knew how to calm Worth down, so she took the risk.

“Just let me talk to him and I swear I’ll be back,” she pleaded with her palms pressed together.

“The police will handle it Karin,” Wallace fumed. “You going with him is only going to make things worse.”

“Your father is right,” Darla added. “You know that crazy motherfucker will stop at nothing to make your life miserable. So, stop what you're doing and let the police handle it.”

Karin took in everything they’d said. Their responses were quite logical. But what they weren’t privy to was the depths Worth would go to ruin her wedding. No amount of police presence would stop him from shooting up this entire place. Karin couldn’t afford for that to be on her heart, so choosing to oblige Worth’s request was the only option she had.

The horn blew, prompting her to look at the car. The impassive expression on Worth’s countenance told her she was running out of time.

“I hear you all but let me handle this my way. I swear I'm coming right back.”

Karin hurried toward the car feeling like she had disappointed Zyair in ways she would never be able to undo. The uneasy feeling, she had possessed most of the day was for this very moment. She knew something wasn’t right but never anticipated her day being destroyed by her old lover. As soon as she got in the car, Worth turned to her smiling. What she used to bask in now annoyed her immensely.

“I can’t believe you just ruined my day like this.”

“Don’t worry, bae. I promise I'm going to make it up to you.”

Worth pulled off as Karin’s heart became heavy with regret. She didn’t know what her life would consist of after today. Would she still be a fiancée to one of the most honest men ever? Or would life as she once knew be in shambles because of the man she thought she was freed from? Only time would tell as Worth grabbed her hand and graced it with a sweet kiss.