24. Quasim
Quasim
“Are you coming to the lake house tomorrow?” Elijah stared into the phone, making sure I was telling the truth and would be back at the lake house.
I laughed. “Yeah. I’m coming cause I miss my homie.”
“Miss you too, Sim. Ryder went with her mom, so me and CJ been hanging.” He looked around. “No accidents.” He held up his thumb and I smiled so wide.
I didn’t need to give Gams the heads up before leaving for Bali because she already knew. “My boy… I’m proud of you.”
Changing his environment helped with him not wetting the bed. He was safe, getting as much food as he wanted, and was having fun being a child. His mama’s trifling ass hadn’t reached out and when I was home, I hadn’t seen anybody at the crib. The rent was late, too, but I didn’t stress about it since I had Elijah. I didn’t need her junkie ass trying to take him from me because she knew I had a soft spot for her son.
I hated when someone could spot a weakness of mine, and Elijah was a weakness for me. Like I would blow a block up behind Blair, I would do the same with him. With her being gone, it made me question what the fuck she was doing.
Shit, maybe she went to that Mexico rehab that she was chatting about. I knew one thing; Elijah was safer with me than being with his own mother.
“Is Ms. Blair going to come with you?”
I looked over at my baby, shaking her ass to bounce music while making me something to eat. She was in her own zone as she cut up onions and peppers. I was surprised she had that much energy with the way I wore her ass out last night.
After she made me a sandwich, I turned her ass every way but loose between that stove and fridge. Fucking Blair was like a high that I never wanted to come down from. If this was how Thea felt every time she got high, then shit, maybe I needed to apologize to her.
We spent the entire day in the bed, watching some show about people marrying people from other countries. Apparently, this was what kept her interest. When I tried to get her to watch a civil war documentary with me, she fell asleep on my chest, swearing she was watching it.
The drool on my chest said otherwise.
“Yeah… she’s going to come.”
Elijah had met Blair when she came over for dinner before the concert. She called him very handsome, which made him happy. My boy needed his confidence built up because those snotty fucks in his school teased him.
It was the reason he kept a fresh line up and new clothes since I had started looking out for him. The closet in the guest room was filled with the clothes and sneakers that I had purchased for him. Whenever he got his hair cut, or he put on a brand-new outfit, I could see his confidence grow.
“Can we go to Red Robins?”
I looked at the phone and laughed. “Where the fu… the heck did that come from?” It was hard having to learn to sensor my words around a child again.
As much as I loved my niece, I wasn’t around her enough where it was hard to sensor myself. Meer didn’t sensor himself at all, but that was just my brother. Ry knew her father was missing some sense.
“I saw a commercial and I want to try their burgers. I’ve never been there before.” He was so excited that I couldn’t let him down.
“I’m heading back tomorrow morning. We’ll go for lunch, cool?”
He cheered, then lowered his voice. “Mrs. Mina is resting so I have to keep quiet.”
My mother was over Blaze and Capri’s lake house, and Gams had been over there. Capone and Erin had been helping me out by keeping Elijah, since he and CJ had gotten real close. With Ry gone, they didn’t have nobody to boss them around or plan their activities for the day.
It took a village, and everyone stepped in to make sure he was good, and I appreciated that. “She needs a lot of rest right now… you looking out for everybody while I’m away?”
He had this innocent smile that I loved about him. Eli had experienced so much, yet, he had this innocence about him that I wanted to keep with him forever. “I am… Meer let me help him fix his bike, too.”
“Oh word? He never lets anyone but Ry help him.”
He smiled again. “He told me that.”
“Means he likes you… I knew he would, you dope.”
“The dopest.”
I could hear Gams in the background. “Eli, I’m making cookies… who is going to test the dough to see if it tastes good or needs more salt?”
His head snapped in her direction. “Gotta go, Sim.”
I chuckled. “Alright, man. See you tomorrow.”
He hung up before I could get the words out. When I looked out the window, I nodded my head at Kincaid. “What is your plan with him, baby?” Anjo asked while looking up from what she was doing.
“I know I don’t want to send him back to his mother. She tried to send him to some random ass fake uncle like he was a dog. Shit, even Blaze wouldn’t do that to Beretta.” I leaned back in the chair and stared at her from the living room.
She looked over at me. “Are you prepared for what comes with raising a child, Simmy? Especially one that isn’t yours.”
“I’ve been doing it for a whole year, Anjo. You’ll never be prepared for anything; you get prepared for it.”
I watched as she continued to chop the vegetables. “That little boy is so sweet and deserves the world. Makes me think about my own son… well, what he would have been like.”
She tried to shrug her emotions off. I stood up and walked across the room toward her, and wrapped my arms around her, kissing her neck. “He had you as a mother, so I knew he would have been just as amazing as Elijah.”
“Damn onions,” she sniffled.
I took the knife from her and turned her around until she was staring me in the face. “It’s not the onions, Anjo. Feel the emotions and stop shaking them off… I can tell you that your son would be proud of his mother.”
“I’m the reason he’s dead.”
Softly grabbing her chin, I pulled her face up until she was giving me direct eye contact. “You’re not the reason that he’s gone, Anjo. A man who can’t regulate his emotions into words is the reason that he’s gone.” Just knowing we were talking about that nigga had my blood boiling.
“He’s a heroin addict.” She whispered as she stared into my eyes. “Has been for I don’t know how long. When I first found out, I should have left. I thought I could save him, heal him, and get him clean.”
I leaned my head back and raised my brow. “That nigga do that dog food?”
“Dog food? Baby, I said he does heroin… you know.” She started slapping her fucking arm, and I started laughing because she was so serious while trying to explain what that junkie was on.
“Dog food mean heroin… he on that dog food, doggie… he on that shit, in other words.” I rubbed the side of her face, kissing her lips. “I don’t even like to think about the shit you went through because it’s gonna have me out there going to kill his grandmother.”
“Mrs. Loretta?”
“Hell yeah… took out Harry already.”
She shook her head, standing on her toes to kiss my lips. “And you proud, too, huh?”
I reached into the pocket of my sweats I wore and pulled out a gold pocket watch with a H engraved on the front. “Hella proud… keep ol dirty Harry on me at all times.”
Blair squealed. “Quasim Crazy Ass Inferno! You have his grandfather’s pocket watch?” she couldn’t believe it.
While she was shocked, the shit wasn’t shocking to me. “Israel.”
“Huh?”
“My middle name is Israel.”
She roped her arms around me, pausing to look at me flipping the pocket watch open and closed. “I think Israel fits you well.”
“They towing your whip out there… was gonna tell you that, but wanted to make sure you were good first.”
“What? I told that damn meter maid that it was me and her the next time she tried some shit.” She flung herself off me and ran across the living room to the window as I walked slowly behind her. “Sim…” She slowly turned around and looked at me.
“It’s only fitting that a future Queen Inferno should ride in something fit for a queen.” She turned to look out the window once again before coming to jump into my arms. “You gonna go downstairs and see it?”
“Whaaaaaat!” Blair screamed so loudly.
I held my ear with one hand and held her up with the other. “Damn, Anjo… trying to make me fucking deaf.”
“Baby, what… what is wrong with you?” She kissed my lips repeatedly as she wrapped her legs around my waist.
The sound of pounding on her door caused us both to look at the door. I walked over toward the top of the fridge and grabbed my shit before going to the door. When I looked through the peephole, it was Capella.
He was standing in the hall in socks, sweat shorts, and no shirt on, with his gun in his hand. “What the fuck? Thought something happened to her.”
I looked around him, and Aimee was in the doorway of her apartment with her gun. “What the hell was that scream about?”
Blair moved around me and ran downstairs. “He got me a brand-new fucking truck!”
Aimee leaned inside her apartment and then took off running behind Blair while Capella still held his gun. “Look… I was about to get some and here you go, having her screaming and shit. If you gonna cause all this disruption when you visiting, then you don’t need to be coming over here interrupting the building… Rory with his grandfather, and you the one cock blocking.”
Capella was a lighter version of Big Capp with his silly ass. “Ain’t you a visitor, too?” I held my hand over my mouth and smirked, while I tucked my gun into my sweats and closed the door, walking by him.
“That’s cold as shit, Quasim.” He called behind me as I jogged down the flights of stairs.
By the time I made it outside, Blair was in the front seat, holding the key fob that Kincaid had given her. “Simmy! It’s… It’s fucking beautiful.”
She jumped out the front seat and ran into my arms. I picked her up and kissed her lips, as we both looked at her candy red Mercedes G wagon. I had Kincaid go and get me the biggest fucking bow so I could surprise her with this.
I carried her around the back of the truck and pointed to the license plate. ‘Queen Inferno’ was on the digital plates that Core had installed for me last week. She kissed my jaw when she saw it on the plate.
“I got that man opened like a can of butter biscuits.” Her goofy ass laughed while hugging me tightly around the neck.
“Anjo, why you so corny?”
She snorted, as I opened the back of the truck, and it was filled with a bunch of red roses, packing out the entire trunk. Blair had been so busy checking out the truck that she didn’t notice the whole back was packed out with red roses.
“Simmy,” she held her hands to her mouth as she looked at all the roses.
“Yeah, I don’t have fucking splinters or nothing.” Kincaid muttered, as he hopped on his bike and laughed. “I’m out, Sim…”
I saluted as my baby continued to kiss all over my face. “Why so many roses, Simmy?” She wondered.
I kissed her chin. “A rose for every time I wanted to be there and couldn’t be. A rose for every moment I missed, even before knowing you. A rose for all the memories and laughs that we’ll have in our future, cause I love your fucking laugh.” I moved closer to her ear. “A rose for every time I get to watch that face you make when I’m making you cum. I’m always going to give you your flowers in more ways than one… you went so long without getting them that I’m not ever letting a moment pass where you don’t get them from me verbally and physically.”
I wiped her tear as she pushed her lips against mine. We heard a loud wail, and we pulled away from our kiss to see Aimee crying. “I’m so sorry ya’ll… this is so beautiful. I mean, we all been wanting this.”
Capella came out the building and looked at me. “Now you got my wife crying in front of our residence?”
Aimee stopped crying. “Nigga, this ain’t your residence… you in that guest room at Alaia and Pop’s house.”
Me and Blair both laughed. “Told yo ass you a visitor.”
“I’m at my Pop’s house by choice… don’t need to get my own place because I’m bringing my wife and son into our home real soon.” He kissed her cheek, and then went back in the building. “You coming?”
Blair shook her head. “Visitor my ass… you running behind him.”
“We not talking about me… mind ya’ll business and keep it down.” She did a little dance as she took off behind her husband into the building.
“Those two.”
My phone buzzed in my pocket, so I held Anjo while fishing for my phone.
Kew: tomorrow night.
I put my phone back into my pocket and went back to giving my baby all my time. She kissed me on the lips as she held my face. “I love you, Quasim.”
“I love you too, Anjo… a little too much.” I slapped her ass, closed the trunk and locked the truck up before carrying her up all the flights of stairs.