I Ain't No 50/50 Type Of Chick

21. Jai

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

JAI

“ Y ou ever just looked at a nigga and be like, I’ll let you do whatever you want to me. That’s how I look at him, girl!” I told Cali as we talked on the phone.

I had just finished telling her about the exciting day I had the day before, but at that particular moment, we were discussing none other than Savvy.

“Jai, I have got to meet this nigga who has you so smitten!”

“Well, I wouldn’t say all that, but with everything that me and Leek are going through, he’s definitely a distraction… a good one.”

“Still, I want to meet the man who bought you a phone and tablet after just three times bumping into you, so set it up.”

I chuckled. “Okay, girl.”

Although I didn’t know when I would hear from or see Savvy again, I just told Cali that to appease her in that moment.

“I still can’t believe that Leek’s bitch ass acted like he wanted to hit you, though!” Cali exclaimed.

“Me neither, girl! But you already know how it would’ve gone down if he had. You show a nigga your Jhene Aniko side, and they forgot you were raised by Muhammad Ali.”

I was half-joking and half-serious when I said that. My grandfather wasn’t a boxer, per se, but he was a beast with his hands, and he taught me all I needed to know when it came to fighting and even shooting a gun.

Cali laughed. “Nah, you show a nigga your Chrisean Rock side, and he forgets that you were raised by Future!”

I laughed that time because I knew Cali meant that she could easily turn back to her old ways.

“What did Jayceon do this time?” I just knew he had to have done something.

“Girl, what don’t he do is the question? Take that back, I can answer that… shit! But it’s the lies for me, Jai! I swear the worst type of niggas are the ones who say they’re going to do something and never do it! So, yesterday, Jayceon gave me some money. We’ll come back to that because where he got the money from was very interesting. Anyway, he then turned around and said he was going to go and do some shopping for the twins. Tell me why that nigga didn’t come back to the house with so much as a cookie for the kids!”

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Well, I’m glad he told you that instead of the kids because you know kids be looking forward to anything somebody says they’re going to do for them. At least Zuri and Zion do when it’s coming from me.”

“Right, girl! But what the fuck?” she yelled, which had me asking, “What is it, girl?”

“Jai, someone just texted me from an unknown number saying, ‘I feel like I’m not the only nigga you’re talking to, so what’s my name?’ Like, who the fuck plays guessing games these days? More importantly, who are you, and how and in the fuck did you get my number?”

“Maybe it’s Jayceon trying to see if you’ll respond to an unknown text from a random nigga.”

“Could be, but this isn’t giving me Jayceon vibes. He’s more of a vocal person and just asks what he wants to know. Girl, if I had given my number to that crazy ass nigga I met at my job the other day, I’d say it was him.”

“Wait a minute! What crazy nigga?!”

“Oh, shit! I never got around to telling you about him!”

For the next ten minutes, Cali and I talked about her ‘work bae,’ as I called him.

“My cousin done got her a work bae!” I teased.

“Jai, please don’t call him that. Hopefully, I’ll never see his worrisome ass again.”

“I’ma need you to sound a little more convincing for me to believe that. And girl, please! That nigga knows where you work, so you can hang that up.”

My doorbell rang, interrupting our conversation.

“Hold on, chick! Somebody is at my door!” I told Cali. “I’m coming!” I let the person know as I padded across the soft carpet toward the front entrance.

When I pulled open the door, I was met by a delivery guy standing confidently on my doorstep holding a neatly sealed envelope. The events of the past few days flooded my mind and left me questioning everything. My imagination spiraled out of control. I didn't know if he was there to confiscate our things or maybe to tell us we had to move out of the house.

“Um, hi!” I stammered, a flutter of nerves dancing in my chest.

“Hello! I have a delivery for Jai Love,” he responded.

“I am she!” With the mention of my name, my initial apprehension faded and was replaced by an electric buzz of interest.

“Perfect! Just sign right here,” he said, extending a clipboard with a piece of paper.

I scrawled my name, the pen gliding over the surface as I felt a rush of anticipation. When I handed it back, the delivery person smiled again.

“Thank you! Have a wonderful day!” he cheerfully said, then passed the white envelope into my hands, which felt surprisingly light.

“You too!” I replied as I watched him turn and walk back to his car—a modest, unremarkable vehicle that stirred my curiosity even further.

Why a regular car for a delivery?

“Jai!” Cali’s voice burst through the silence, snapping me back to the present moment. In my curiosity, I had nearly forgotten our ongoing call.

“My bad, girl,” I said as I closed the door.

“So, what did you get? I heard someone say you had a delivery.”

“Nosy, are we?” I teased. “But, honestly, I’m not quite sure what’s inside.” My fingers brushed over the textured surface of the envelope, tracing its edges as I savored the suspense. “Let's find out, though.”

When I opened the package, I discovered a neatly folded note, its corners pointed and crisp. As I unfolded it, a wave of recognition washed over me—the sender was Savvy. The note read Another thank you from me to you. Call me once you get this. Savvy.

I smiled.

Setting the note aside, I peered deeper into the envelope. There, resting in the soft, protective embrace of the lining, was a sleek debit card—smooth to the touch and blank of any inscriptions.

“A debit card?” I murmured, holding it up to the light. The card felt like a key to untold possibilities, mysterious and alluring, waiting for me to unlock whatever surprises Savvy had in store.

“Jaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaai!” Cali practically sang my name to get my attention. Once again, I was so engrossed in the package that I forgot she was on the phone.

“Cali, let me call you right back.”

“Right back!” she demanded.

“Okay, gul!” I replied, then ended the call, went to my call history, and located Savvy’s number.

Once I found it, I nibbled on my bottom lip, contemplating if I should call him. However, I knew if I wanted answers about the mysterious debit card, that would be the only way. So, I dialed his number. Surprisingly, he answered on the first ring.

“Yeah, who is this?” Savvy answered in a strong tone, almost as if he were out of breath.

What the hell is he doing? I wondered.

“Um, this is Jai.”

“Jai?” Savvy repeated as if he’d never heard of me before. I automatically assumed then that he was around another woman.

“You know what…” I was about to hang up until he started laughing.

“Jai, you better not hang up this phone.” He got serious. “I was just joking,” he added.

I chuckled. “It’s too early to be playing.”

“Well, since you’ve called, I assume you either got my package or… you just wanted to give a nigga a good morning call.”

“Both,” I admitted honestly. “For starters, good morning.”

“Good morning, gorgeous. But, aye, why are you calling me from that number, though? I told you to use your other phone for our communication.”

“I know, but I had this phone on me when I received your package, so I just called you from this one.”

“Oh, aight, but from now on, use the other phone, and try to keep it out of your lil’ boyfriend’s sight. I’d hate for him to have a heart attack looking at our messages and videos.”

Videos? What kind of videos? I didn’t voice that, though . I could tell then that Savvy was probably the kind of freak that I needed in my life. Leek was always too afraid to do videos for fear of people snooping through his phone.

“For some reason, I believe him being out of the way would be music to your ears,” I said.

“I mean, yeah, but I ain’t got to technically kill the nigga to do it. If I tell him I want you, I’ma get you. Actually, I ain’t got to tell him shit. I’ll just take you from him. Now, when the time comes, if he doesn’t want to politely hand you over to a real nigga, then… yeah, more serious tactics will probably have to come into play.”

“Well, it’s obvious you want me, so when do you plan on letting him know?” I was kidding, just going along with the flow, but I also wanted to hear his answer.

He chuckled. “Patience is a virtue, gorgeous, and I’m a patient man… to an extent. But like I told you last night, he’s going to fuck up again… and again, and in due time, you’ll be mine. So, I really won’t have to tell him shit or do shit on my end to make that happen. He’s going to eventually fuck himself out of a good woman, and I’ll be there to pick up the pieces where he failed you.”

“We’ll see. Now, let’s talk about this package I received, which I am very intrigued by. A debit card? Really, Savvy?”

“Facetime me,” he instructed, his tone light yet commanding.

“Um, okay,” I replied, feeling a mix of curiosity and excitement.

Within seconds, his handsome face graced my screen. Savvy was shirtless, with sweat all over his face and upper body. It was clear that he was in a gym setting.

“Someone has been working hard this morning, huh?” I kidded.

He smiled. “It’s an every morning thing for me, gorgeous. You should join me one morning.”

“I might just take you up on that. Let’s get back to this debit card, though. What’s that all about?” I said, trying to steer the focus back to the topic at hand.

“Did you call the number to check the balance or details?” he asked, a playful smirk dancing on his lips as he took a large gulp from his water bottle, the muscles in his arms flexing as he did so.

“No, I didn’t. I’d prefer if you’d just tell me what’s going on.”

After placing the water bottle down, Savvy turned his full attention back to me, his expression serious yet relaxed.

“There’s fifty-thousand dollars on that card,” he revealed in a casual tone. It was as if Savvy were talking about the weather rather than an astonishing sum of money, especially considering we barely knew each other.

My eyes grew in size. “Fi-fifty thousand dollars?! For what?!”

“To get you another car. I would have just given you a car and then some money on the side, but I knew gifting you a car would’ve drawn suspicions, not that I really give a damn, but I’m trying to be respectful… for now.”

“Savvy, this is too much!” I exclaimed, struggling to process the magnitude of his generosity while feeling overwhelmed by the unexpected situation.

“It only seems too much, probably because you’ve never had a nigga do this kind of shit for you. There’s him or them, your exes, and then there’s me. Royalty treatment over this way, gorgeous.”

I sighed. “Still, Savvy, how could I just go and buy myself another car without drawing any suspicions?”

“Well, you have good credit, so you can easily say you didn’t have to make a down payment.”

“Okay, but what about income? I need that, remember?”

“Does he know about the job offer you got?”

“No.”

“Then that works in your favor. Since he doesn’t know, just tell him you started a month ago.”

“Then he would look at me as the one keeping secrets.”

“Well, it’s either that, or you use that money for Ubers every day. Now, I don’t mind taking you wherever you need to go or coming to yo’ crib, but I’m sure you don’t want me popping up at your crib with yo’ nigga there.”

“No, I have enough drama going on as it is.”

“Well, just let me know what you decide to do. I know a lot of people, and I can get you a good deal on a car… a brand-new one at that. We will figure it out together.”

We will figure it out together is a love language and a huge green flag. That was the type of communication I wanted from Leek. Yet, he always had to include his mama in everything.

“Thank you, Savvy. I… I don’t know how to repay you for this.”

“Jai, if I spend money on you, it’s not because I got it like that; it’s because I got you like that. But… if you really want to repay me, you can let me take you out next week.”

“Savvy…”

“I know you got a nigga, and honestly, I don’t give a fuck about that or him! The way he’s fucking up, he’s practically holding the door for another nigga to come through and snatch yo’ fine ass up. Just dinner, that’s all I ask.”

I thought about it, but not for too long. “Okay. I guess you’re deserving of that.”

“Dinner it is then.”

After exchanging a few more words, I said, “Well, I have to do some cleaning around the house, so can I text you later?”

“Anytime, gorgeous.”

“Okay, we’ll talk later.”

After I disconnected the call, I leaned my body against the front door and tilted my head toward the ceiling.

God, who is this mystery man that you’ve brought into my life, making me all happy? Please reveal his true identity to me.